Spring Fling 2015

Transition from winter to spring 2015

My ambition soars ever higher as my health fails but I will not be deterred.

Gasteria obliqua, Curtis
Botanical Magazine

I became fascinated with gasteria in the fall and have two postings yet incomplete on what I have learned and collected. I started a board on Pinterest about lilies and gasteria.

Throughout spring I spoke on various horticultural topics, with my wife Mashell, we sold bulbs, those funds go into gardens.

Now have three geographically separate gardens; our private garden, breeding production garden and a new seed patch of material stratified over the winter.

Our private garden is broken down into various components which incorporate the entire property.  A rock garden which is being expanded.  Butterfly garden where we are adding density to eliminate weeds.  A Siberian Iris planting where we added Little Joes (see posting) and trollius. The shade garden under White Oaks next to a Siberian Iris collection. Finally a border of many lilies planted in blocks of various types.

Iris cristata "Powder Blue Giant"

In the shade garden Iris cristata, Canadian Anemone and  wild ginger, Asarum canadense, are blooming. We are adding density to this garden also.  In late April we added Yellow Ladyslippers, Cypripedium parviflorum. A number of spring ephemerals will be added. Thalictrum ‘Elin’ has been removed, way too tall at 6 feet, four large pots  will be traded for other plants. ‘Elin’ has been replaced with Thalictrum rochebruneanum, dioicum and dasycarpum.  These create a centerline along with martagon lilies creating height and backbone. I will move some hosta, add more, with Woodland Phlox and Geranium maculatum for added color.  

Wild Ginger, Asarum canadense

The back of the house is a lily garden, blocks of many types more blocks have been added there.

When Mashell and I married four years ago I sold my house and moved my gardens to our current location. Some materials were planted haphazardly. My Siberian iris collection was thrown in about the yard, the balance on a sandy western facing slope, not ideal conditions. This collection will be replanted to other spaces. The new garden will be another type of rock garden, Bearberry, blueberries, Vaccinium angustifolium and Wintergreen, Gaultheria procumbens, will be the base of this garden area.

A lot of pleasurable work.

Thalictrum breaks out of the ground