Durable Gardening

Winter Interest with Broadleaf Evergreens

2012-01-13T11:06:00.000-08:00

Helleborus niger
'HGC Josef Lemper'
from Skagitt Nursery

We've had our first real cold snap with a decent snow and now is when I crave more broadleaved evergreens in my garden. These are the epitome of durable plants for a garden.

Adding evergreens to your garden can add a little life when not much else is happening in the season. Broadleaved evergreens are plants that have leaves instead of needles like your typical pine tree. There are more and more broadleaved evergreens available in garden centers. A few of the broadleaved evergreens to look for are Hellebores, Rhododendrons/Azaleas, and one of my favorites, Pieris.

Hellebores
Hellebores have been increasing in popularity over the past few years. As selection and breeding programs have improved, the popularity has too. The leaves are variable textures, evergreen to semi-evergreen, and they give a nice surprise through the Winter, Spring and Summer. They bloom. That is right, they bloom in the Winter. It is uplifting to see little blooms defying the insistence of winter stasis.

During the growing season, Hellebores are even more delightful.

Backyard (Acer palmatum, Deutzia lemonei 'Compacta' (in back),
Helleborus 'Royal Heritage Strain', Heuchera 'Caramel',
Heuchera 'Cherry Cola', and Hosta 'Regal Krossa')

Rhododendrons and Azaleas
A longtime favorite in the garden are Rhododendrons and Azaleas. A classic broadleaved evergreen is the Rhododendron 'P.J.M.', that was bred in the early 1900's. If you ever wondered what those initials stood for, it is for the work done by Peter J. Mezitt and family to cultivate this famed plant. What's so great about this plant? It is evergreen. It has a bright burst of pink flowers in the Spring. Rhododendron 'P.J.M.' has a fine, small-leaved, burgundy texture throughout the growing season. It makes an excellent backdrop for brightly-colored perennials and annuals. Though I know that the gorgeous flowers should be what captures my attention, one of my favorite traits that this shrub offers in the Winter is on really cold days, the leaves roll up tight, making it look like a thread-leafed plant. Though it hasn't been proven, I think it's Mother Nature's natural thermometer screaming, "stay inside!" and "would you mind getting a coffee for me too?"

Pieris
One of my favorite broadleaved evergreens is the Pieris genus. This plant is just not used enough in typical consumer gardens. Pieris is a small to large shrub that I've seen growing anywhere from 3' - 10' tall depending on the species. They can get bigger, though I haven't seen it. The new growth makes this plant look like it is blooming in the spring and summer. The real flowers begin growing their racemes in the Winter and fully open their small fragrant flowers in the Spring. A bonus for older neighborhoods like mine is that this plant likes the shade of my old trees.

Pieris japonica 'Mountain Fire'

There are dozens of other winter-interest plants available. Do a quick search at your favorite garden center to find what is available. I can't get enough of them.

Plant Profile: Hosta 'Wheee!' PPAF

2011-12-31T07:30:00.000-08:00

A hosta that is new on the market in 2011/12 is Hosta 'Wheee!' PPAF. This medium-sized, entertainingly named, hosta has all of the traditional attractive qualities of hostas. It is shading-loving, mounded in habit, and has bright green leaves with a variegated edges. So what sets this apart from others? The real treat is the undulating, or wavy, variegated leaf margins.

A wee little Hosta 'Wheee!'

This plant is being brought to us by hybridizer Bill Meyer, Proven Winners®, and Walters Gardens, Inc. It has been mentioned in numerous publications and has already found its way to the Top 100 Best New Home Products list in This Old House (November/December) magazine. You'll most likely be finding this plant in your local garden center soon.

I was given 3 small specimens at the Garden Writer's Association 2011 Annual Symposium from Proven Winners this past fall. Admittedly, this is not my best photography, and these plants had quite a rough trip as the leaves were smashed in the car a bit, but it was the end of the season and next Spring will be the real view. It will all add up and speak to this plant's long-term durability.

As young specimens these hostas seriously are cheerful. They definitely stand out from other plants around them even as small specimens. Hosta 'Wheee!' is hardy in my zone 5b garden, and has been checked for being hardy into zone three. If you like clean lines, this plant may be too busy for your liking. But, if you're like me, you will probably find that you really like the texture change of this plant against larger smooth-leaved hosta cousins.

Other Wavy-margined Hostas
If you like the wavy margined hostas, here is a list of plants I think are comparable to Hosta 'Wheee!': Hosta 'Seducer' PPAF, H. 'Irish Luck', H. 'Surfer Girl', H. 'Candy Dish', H. 'Fruit Punch', H. 'Big John', and H. 'Gone With The Wind'. There are dozens of others available with a quick search. If you are looking for these at your local garden centers, you may need to look a bit harder. Online purchases may be your best resource.

Enough about Wheee! now about me!
I'm interested in small and miniature hostas. I have a small collection of miniature hostas in my garden and am always looking for good contenders. Recommendations always welcome. A hosta that I am interested in that is different from this group is Hosta 'Autumn Frost' PPAF. I think this plant would pop from a distance, and that is critical in my deep shade garden. It certainly is an eye catcher in photos.

For reference, Hostas are categorized by their overall height (not including flowers).
Mini: > 6 inches tall
Small: 6-10 inches tall
Medium: 11-18 inches tall
Large: 19-27 inches tall
Giant: < 28 inches tall

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Gerbera Daisy

2011-12-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

I bought these beautiful flowers at a local grocery store. Cut them, put them into a tulip vase (narrow-mouthed vase) and voilà--instant gorgeous. The grower was Bayview Flowers in Jordan Station, Canada. Beyond that, I think the cultivar is Gerbera grootbloemig 'Souvenir'. Correct me if I'm wrong, because I would love to get my hands on more of them.

A Tree Adventure at Arbor Day Farm

2011-12-01T21:20:00.001-08:00

My extended family is fantastic at keeping secrets. They have lived in Nebraska City, NE since the 1870s. Since that time, there have been a multitude of events that could cause hushed conversations at family gatherings.

Since I've been going to Nebraska City, no one had shared information with me about the Arbor Day Farm, which is part of the Arbor Lodge State Historical Park and Arboretum, until about 8 years ago. My husband and I decided to take a peek at the farm when we stayed at the Lied Lodge and Conference Center while visiting family.

We headed out to the Tree Adventure. It was just a short walk from the lodge. It boasts an educational walk amongst the trees. It offers so much more. My husband and I enjoyed our time there so much, that this year during the Thanksgiving break, even in the cold, I wanted to make sure and take my four-year-old son on the short walking tour to introduce him to some of my favorite things in life, trees.

My husband could not make the trip, but Grandpa stepped in to join us. Grandpa had never known about the Arbor Day Farm either (despite the get away car breaking down within an eighth of mile of the entrance when he and my mom were eloping.) The Arbor Day Farm was the original estate of J. Sterling Morton. The farm is approximately 260 acres in size. The educational sections just inside the entrance include an animal footprint path, the Nut Tree Arboretum, nature focused classrooms, and the Canopy Tree House, a 50ft high tree house overlooking the forest canopy.

My father and son enjoyed walking from trees to educational signs, to footprints on the path, climbing the tree house, and playing with the interactive displays. This adventure is well thought out, well taken care of, and thoroughly exhausting for both the young and old. Translation: if you need to 'encourage' nap time near Nebraska City, you couldn't do much better than Arbor Lodge and the Arbor Day Farm.

The Tree Adventure is just a small part of the entire Farm. Some of the things you can see include a large orchard, windbreak demonstrations, stream bed stabilization, a parking lot runoff filtration system, and a long nature walk.

One of the best kept secrets here is found in the Preservation Orchard. It features 180 antique apple trees representing 165 different apple varieties! They use this orchard as a genetic collection of some of the finest known and best tasting apples of very old varieties. Many of the varieties are no longer available commercially.

I think this is a fabulous visit for people of any age or ability.

So that's one of my family's little secrets exposed. You'll have to be an insider to hear the others.

Learn more about:
Arbor Lodge State Historical Park
Nebraska City, Nebraska
Arbor Lodge State Historical Park and Arboretum

Fall color no contrasting background

2011-10-30T19:45:00.000-07:00

As independent specimens, these plants are displaying good fall color. Beyond these plants is my brick house that is a pale pink that offers the perfect camouflage to the plants. The lack of contrast against the background, makes the plants lose their oomph and appear boring.

Endless Summer Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla 'Endless Summer')

Oakleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)

I wish the entire Japanese maple (Acer palmatum) was the vibrant red.

Trial Gardens - Ornamental Peppers

2011-10-24T19:05:00.000-07:00

While visiting the Hartley Selections Gardens on the University of Illinois campus recently I found a spectacular collection of ornamental peppers. These display gardens are absolutely fascinating. All of the plants in the garden were in containers this year and it made for quite the show. From dark and mysterious to a mass planting that looks like flames, peppers add a ton of warm options to a garden.

Ornamental peppers are grown primarily for their looks and not for tasty late-night snacking. Taste is frequently not a concern. Though caution should be taken if planting around pets and children. The real zest from these peppers shows up in the garden. They have the ability to add excitement with color and texture. These would make great additions to containers, small gardens, and add pops of color in borders. With names like 'Black Pearl', 'Explosive Ignite', and 'Chilly Chili' you really should expect pop!

Capsicum annuum 'Black Pearl'

Capsicum 'Black Pearl'
All parts of the 'Black Pearl' pepper are shiny. Light reflects brightly off of every pearl. It is a great accent plant and can really make neighboring light colors (yellow, whites, chartreuse), pop! This pepper is only 18" tall. It has small, glossy, compact, dark purple-black leaves with highly glossy black fruits that turn red as they mature. These plants work so well as border plants and have their own punch of color.

Capsicum annuum 'Explosive Ignite'

Capsicum 'Explosive Ignite'
This pepper stays primarily yellow-green, but will mature to an warm orange color. The warm, along with its name, should cause pause. This pepper is apparently hot hot hot! The color, the abundance of peppers, and upright texture is hot too! It is really an easy plant to help make your other colors pop.

Capsicum annuum 'Chilly Chili'

Capsicum 'Chilly Chili'
These fiery-hot topped plants are short at 10" tall, but real stand outs in a border or container. The fruit stands upright giving a great texture to the tops of its otherwise mounded habit. The fruits start out yellow-green and mature passing through orange right into red.

I read an interesting little note once while buying ornamental peppers once. If you are intending to use these plants as food, be sure to buy from a source that does not use pesticides. It's good advice and a good policy for all your food.

Seating in the garden

2011-09-29T21:10:00.000-07:00

Seating in the garden is such a great way to add a focal point to even the smallest of garden spaces. At the Extension Idea Garden, there is this lovely little niche with a stone bench and a pollarded Catalpa. The whole scene is flanked with fabulous annual flowers.

The Exotic Crocosmia and Fountain Grass

2011-09-02T05:00:00.000-07:00

Crocosmia Twilight Fairy Gold. Photo permission of Terra Nova Nurseries www.terranovanurseries.com.

One of the new plants I look forward to seeing is the development of the newCrocosmia "Twilight Fairy" series. These are said to be shorterborder plants with multiple crowns, offering up a better fuller effect. Oneunique way to use this plant in the landscape that I really like is thecombination of Crocosmia sp. with Miscanthus sinensis 'Gracilimus'. PlantingCrocosmia at the base of this grass makes a prairie style plant taken on atropical look. It is amazing. It also seems to increase the zone tolerance by at least one zone as mine are treated as perennials in zone 5b. I'm hoping that many of these new varieties andcultivars truly pan out.

Heucheras: New plants for 2012

2011-09-01T05:00:00.000-07:00

New plants coming out are always a hot topic. This is one of the reasons Iwas excited to be invited to attend the 2011 Independent Garden Center (IGC) trade show in Chicago as a social media representative and tweet about the new productsI found interesting at the trade show. I'm going to make a couple of posts on plants and products that I am excited to see coming out.

Heucheras have been pretty unstable in what is shown sold in catalogs and what is reality. The leaves shift in color with almost every passing day. I have a special interest in adding plants that will stay true to their advertised color, size and shape.

Terra Nova Nurseries released a few new varieties that they shared at IGC. They brought 19new plants for display. The goal for these plants was to showcase improvementsover older varieties in performance, crown size, and flowering. Owning a few ofthe older species, there are many desired changes that I'd like to see inconsistency of leaf color and perhaps longevity.

Heuchera 'Pear Crisp' part of the new "Crisp" series.
Photo permission of Terra Nova Nurseries www.terranovanurseries.com.

The groups on display at this tradeshow were the Heuchera "Crisp" series, a couple of plants from theHeucherella "Falls" series, and the Sedum "Party Hardy"series. Another inclusion was the 'Sun King' Aralia. There are alwaysentertaining names coming for Terra Nova Nurseries. Many names usuallyinstigate a sudden desire for food or drink.

Heuchera 'Delta Dawn'. Photo permission of Terra Nova Nurseries www.terranovanurseries.com.

This new round of plants seemed to really concentrate on bang-for-your-buck type details. Leaf color, shape and texture are shown. Of the newplants, I found the leaf color and patterns to be most interesting in the Heuchera'Delta Dawn' and 'Electra'. Both plants show the color transition of bright new growth to darker older growth, but all the while maintaining color interest.Heucherella 'Solar Eclipse' has a maroon center with lime green scallopedmargins. These leaves really seemed to stand out and had great texture.

Heuchera 'Electra'. Photo permission of Terra Nova Nurseries www.terranovanurseries.com.

I've grown a few Heuchera over the years, nothing compared to a breeder, buthave been a bit surprised, sometimes disappointed, at the variability in leafcolor over the season. I am amazed that they can be marketed under oneparticular color or another. With each successive year, this color variationseems to be decreasing and plants are coming closer to maintaining the marketed colorthat they are sold under. In zone 5b, Huecheras, Heucherellas, Tiarellas notonly return but also do so reliably even in our gray, (lately) harsh, snowless winters.
#igc11

Wordless Wednesday - CBG Evergreens

2011-08-24T04:30:00.000-07:00

Botanical Gardens Contain a Gem of Ideas

2011-08-21T09:35:00.000-07:00

There are fabulous places to sit in the Chicago Botanic Gardens. The chairs and benches have been very well thought out, but sitting is last thing that a garden photographer wants to do when presented with the late summer glory of a garden.

I met up with a group of fellow garden lovers and avid garden photographers. The gardens were alive with color, something my garden lacks this time of year. A few pockets of gold can be found in my yard right now, like with the brilliant yellow of my Blackberry lily (Belamcanda chinensis) or the unique flower of the my Toad lily (Tricyrtis sp.), but mostly, my garden lacks punch.

What I discovered on this trip is the sheer excitement that people get when they see wildlife in the garden. The colors can be amazing (and they were), but when a conversation comes to a screeching halt and is only completed with a single emphatic word, "monarch!" You know that a design works.

Botanical gardens are one of the many places I like to go for growing ideas to bring home. The downside is the scalability of projects. Most of the garden displays are laid out with the luxury of large scale design. If you look around enough you'll start seeing how you can scale the designs, and find ideas that you can take home to a residential garden.

One of the best ideas I brought home with me, is a way to really try to bring more wildlife to the yard. Near the English Oak Meadow is a hill of zinna, marigolds, and salvia. The hummingbirds and finches were swarming the area. The acrobatics of the hummingbirds were making people ooh and ahh like a fireworks display. The finches blended right into the background. The only real sign of them were the flying flower petals while they were reaping the seeds from the spent marigolds.

All of these flowers are very easy to grow from seed, and they really liven up the garden. I have a few sunny patches in my yard. The prospect of bringing in more birds (and butterflies) without having to refill a feeder is truly exciting.

Wordless Wednesday - Green Bee Belamcanda

2011-08-10T08:45:00.000-07:00

Plant Profile: Gryphon Begonia

2011-07-25T20:41:00.000-07:00

Plant performance of sun to part-shade (left) vs. part-shade to shade (right).

I have been wanting to grow the Gryphon Begonia hybrida and see how it performs in my yard, and later in my home. I bought 4 plants from an independent garden center. They were all the same size when I bought them. In general, I don't add fertilizer to my plants other than what is already in the potting soil.

"Beautiful, strong & durable foliage"
--PanAmerican Seed

The Gryphon Begonia is described as having "beautiful, strong & durable foliage" and I am all about durable in the garden. The information sheets for Gryphon Begonia on the PanAmerican Seed web site clearly state that this begonia thrives in the shade and with less water.

When the description on this plant is part-shade to full shade, my experience now says respect it if you want the plant to perform to the best of its ability. It's a hard balance to find the right amount of sunlight, in duration and quantity, for plants. Is the dappled shade under a dogwood enough? Perhaps too much? What I discovered with this begonia is that direct mid-day sunlight, even for an hour is too much. The two plants in the same containers flanked a patio table. One was protected from direct light by a dogwood tree, and the other did receive direct light for only about an hour. The plant in the shade had large leaves. It was very full and tall. The plant in too much light was smaller with an airier appearance. Never reaching its potential.

One of my favorite color combinations,
Petunia 'Raspberry Blast' with a Gryphon Begonia

I kept one of the plants in a 6 inch pot with no drainage. This is usually a dangerous proposition when it comes to over watering and rot. I'm aware of these possible issues, but found that I spent most of my time watering. It is pretty voracious in its ability to take up water. Then the problem really becomes that this condition significantly dwarfs the plant. It hasn't grown over 15" tall and is pretty wimpy looking overall, but about the same as the plant that was in sun.
Color combination of this plant must be planned out well before choosing the containers. I had two peach colored ceramic containers and a red ceramic container. All three of the containers clashed horribly with the silver/blue leaves with maroon coloration underneath. I didn't want to drop the cash for new containers, so on this endeavor I made due. The fourth plant was placed in a large terracotta pot with other plants. The begonia in terracotta combination was very nice, though I think I'd stick to charcoal gray or earth tones.

The temperatures over the last few weeks have been in the high nineties. The hoses have been left out because watering has become a must in yard as well as the containers. The Gryphon Begonia leaves have shown damage where water has sat on the leaves. The damage is either caused by the sun heating the water, or the severe temperature differences between leaf and water. This damage followed a significant hail storm a few weeks ago, that left many of the leaves looking like swiss cheese.

After all of the weather events hail, heat, sun and water, that have hit these begonias, they have bounced back quickly and powerfully every time. They perform best when you give them room to grow and the proper lighting needs. I am thoroughly impressed with the durability of this plant and plan on using it again and again. It will be interesting to see if I can bring it inside over the winter to become a house plant.

Amorphophallus titanum

2011-07-16T11:51:00.000-07:00

Laura next to the Titan arum taken off of a webcam by Mark Hart

Opportunities for interesting events constantly surround us in Urbana. This weekend, there is an opportunity to see a titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum) that just began opening today at the University of Illinois Conservatory.

I've been visiting the conservatory everyday over the last week. The greenhouse manager, Debbie Black, has taken the time to talk and answer my never-ending list of questions. Over 700 people have gone through the conservatory this week. There are so many outlets for this information, a live video feed, facebook updates, and dedicated email lists. Debbie has been interviewed by numerous news agencies in the last week, even Modern Marvels is coming to film, and her voice is beginning to pay the price of popularity.

Today, with the anouncement of the malodorous flower opening, the numbers have just spun out of control. There has been a constant line of interested onlookers since the announcement of the flower beginning to open. With the first sign of the leaf unfurling around 3:00pm people have begun walking by holding their noses trying to avoid the pongy air.

This is a rare opportunity to view the world’s largest inflorescence native to Sumatra. The largest flower was measured at just over 8 feet. The U of I flower is opening after growing to around 42” or just shy of 4 feet. Just a babe in the world of titan arums.

Other than the size why the attraction?

Also known as the corpse flower, the flower got its name from the fragrance that it emits of rotting flesh. The tip of the flower (spadix) heats up at maturity causing the chemicals in the plant to emit a foul odor.

The leaf on this arum is long gone. After years of growing a tall leaf and going dormant again and again, each time growing larger, it finally sends up a flower to finish its life cycle. The spadix is wrapped by a green spathe that is dark maroon on the inside. It takes anywhere from 7-10 years for this plant to complete its life cycle and flower. There have been less than 100 of these flowers to have bloomed in the United States.

The titan arum at Illinois was a gift from Mo Fayyaz at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and has been diligently nurtured for 10 years by Debbie. For the first 5 years, Debbie was the only person allowed to water the plant. This was because they lost many other plants to over-watering in previous years.

The corm weighs in around 40 pounds. The native pollinators of this flower are carrion beetles and other insects. The titan arum needs pollen from another plant to fertilize it's flowers. In the greenhouse, Debbie will try to hand pollinate the flowers from two year old frozen pollen, and hope for fertilization to make new seeds for her collection. I hope to have an opportunity to help with that process and learn.

The flowers inside the Titan arum inflorescence are just visible at the base of the spadix inside the spathe.

Commonly asked questions:

How long does it flower?
From when the flower breaks ground to begin growing, to when it withers and dies back to the ground, the flowering process can take 3 - 4 weeks. It is only open and really pungent when, first the female and then male, flowers are viable and ready for fertilization. The inflorescence only lasts 1-2 days before the spathe begins to wilt.

What is the heaviest corm?
This plant's corm weighs around 40 pounds. The largest corm in the world weighed in at 200 pounds at Kew Gardens.

For more information see the following links:
Plant Sciences Conservatory
Kew Royal Botanical Gardens, Amorphophallus titanum (titan arum)

Titan arum, Corpse flower...something smells here

2011-07-13T20:55:00.000-07:00

Standing at 39" high, this Titan arum is just getting ready to put on a show.

Check out the live video feed of the
Titan Arum blooming

The Titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum) is native to Sumatra, Indonesia. It is the largest single inflorescence in the world and can grow up to 8' in height. It consists of a spadix and spathe growing up from a corm. The corm of this bloom particular bloom is just under 40 pounds. The largest has weighed in at 200 pounds. At full maturity, the tip of the spadix is approximately the temperature of the human body and coincidentally the scent is that of rotting flesh. Actually in this phase (see photo) of the flower, the fragrance has not been activated yet. You can get as close as you want and not get knocked out.

The entire life cycle of the Corpse flower begins with a leaf coming up for a short time and then going dormant. It will repeat another cycle of the leaf growing in size the next time around. Then the plant goes dormant for a long time. The next time there is activity, in a couple of years, the flower makes an appearance.

Read more about the titan arum...

Bagworms are out in force

2011-07-08T20:11:00.000-07:00

I've seen bagworms create their decorative bags from many different plants. Most often though it's been with the evergreen leaves of arborvitae. I've seen bagworms creeping across sidewalks, hanging from cement stairs, and hanging from plants. I didn't expect to see this bagworm hanging from this deciduous shrub, I think it was a hydrangea. The structure had great architecture with dried leaf curls and remnants of flowers stuck to the side. If you want the real details about bagworms check out the latest issue of Home, Yard, & Garden from the University of Illinois.

Tetraploid-à-Tet: What does tetraploid Daylily really mean?

2011-07-03T03:02:00.000-07:00

Hemerocallis 'Prime Minister'

It is the peak of Daylily (Hemerocallis) season here in Central Illinois and companies are pushing everything from their newest "Tet" selections to the old fashioned Daylilies. But what does this name Tet or Tetraploid Daylily mean and why are they saying it is better?

What does tetraploid daylily mean?
I looked around at Daylily websites to find what they had to say about definition of tetraploid and frequently found them to be circular. Using the word to define the word.

Tetrapoidy in lilies means that two nuclei have been fused together doubling the number of chromosomes normally found in a cell creating two sets of chromosomes. This doubling creates more genetic mutations (outcomes) available for creating new plants.

Why do they say it is better?
The mutations that occur from the doubling of chromosomes results in the ability to breed new plants that have more admirable traits, such as flower color, stem thickness, leaf shape or plant habit. The breeding possibilities are much greater. Flower color is usually more intense and there are far more options available than the reds, oranges and yellows that are available in the diploids friends.

Hemerocallis 'On and On'

What else?
There are some other traits that are often found in tetraploid Daylilies. They don't spread or divide as rapidly. This could mean there won't be the same ground cover effect as with Hemerocallis fulva or other diploid varieties. On the flip side you don't have to dig and divide your plants nearly as frequently or work to keep them in check. Another change is that there also tends to be fewer flowers per scape (stem) as their diploid friends. While we are on the topic of friends, tetraploid and diploid flowers don't cross to produce viable seeds. They must remain friends in the garden.

Resources:

Hail No!!!

2011-06-15T12:33:00.000-07:00

As I was celebrating the rain this morning I thought, "great, I don't have to water" I must have overlooked that it hailed out too. All of the big-leafed plants took a pretty big hit. The Gryphon begonia was completely roughed-up. I think they'll all bounce back, but there were 1/4"-1/2" sized holes scatter-shot through the leaves with hanging chads dangling off one side. Here are some photos from the fallout. The last one is the saddest. I found a Tulip tree seedling and had just potted it up for my son. Truth be known, he probably would have killed it, but at least it would have been his to kill.


Gryphon begonia showing hail damage breaking the leaf petioles and holes in the leaves

Hosta with hail damage

Asarum europeaum (European Wild Ginger) with hail damage and shrapnel from another plant

Calla Lily leaf with hail damage

Liriodendron tulipifera (Tulip tree) sheared-off at the stem.

Wordless Wednesday - Clematis

2011-06-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

Plant combinations

2011-06-14T11:38:00.000-07:00

Sometimes interesting plant combinations happen by sheer coincidence. Honestly, almost all container combinations in my garden are coincidence. These two lovelies are in separate containers, but in close proximity to one another. The dark green with silver and burgundy highlights of the Gryphon begonia leaves next to the bright pinks of Raspberry Blast Supertunia petunia really make the pink color pop. I love it!

Petunia 'Supertunia Raspberry Blast' with Gryphon Begonia hybrida in front

There is no scaring a Carpenter Bee

2011-06-12T19:01:00.000-07:00

This is a follow-up post to my June 4th post, "Shoot, Carpenter Bees." Since I scared the Carpenter bee away last time I saw it, I was pretty sure it would find another spot to go and chew on. I took a glance at the little hole chewed into my trellis.

A hole started by a Carpenter bee (Xylocopa virginica).

Since the last post, that bee had returned. Carpenter bees chew into wood about 1/2", then take a right turn and keep on chewing a tunnel with the grain of the wood for about 1 to 2 feet.One out of 4 legs of the pyramidal trellis is now tunneled out by that same little critter.

Xylocopa virginica (Carpenter Bee) takes a right turn

I was surprised at how easily that bee was scared away. Silly me.

Wordless Wednesday - Still blooming

2011-06-08T06:28:00.000-07:00

Trollius europaeus (Globe flower)

Xylocopa virginica on Ligustrum vulgare (Carpenter bee on a Common privet)

Pelargonium x hortorum (Common geranium)

Xerochrysum bracteatum (Straw flower)

2D barcodes and gardening: More than just a label

2011-06-06T07:00:00.000-07:00

QR Code

Microsoft Tag

I work in the College of Engineering as a web designer. I've been pushing for over a year to use something different and attention grabbing, in a field surrounded by different and attention grabbing. This is why I find it so interesting how quickly and well the nursery-related industries have been able to adopt different bar code technologies and put them to good use.
This is the first year that I've seen QR Codes and the Microsoft Tag used effectively in the industry. These codes and tags are frequently called 2D barcodes or 2 dimensional barcodes. In January 2011, a tradeshow/conference I attended used them to show off new plants that are thought to be hot on the market this year. (The examples go to my facebook page)

According to Direct Marketing News, in March, Home Depot launched a QR Code campaign. If you stroll through the garden center and glance at the tags, you can't miss the funky black and white image on the tag. They've been good enough to give instructions on how to use it for the uninitiated right on the tag.

Screenshot of site brought up from Home Depot QR Code

What happens when you scan the code with your mobile device? It automatically takes you to a web page that offers offers you immediate information in a mobile friendly design. Information like what the plant is, what it looks like at peek bloom and all of the details that are on the back of the tag are available. But who cares? That information is available on the tag right there on the plant. In fact you're holding that information in your hand. The real glamor is found in some of the other tips that they include further down on the page.

There are suggestions for companion plants, general plant info (which includes what a perennial is), and watering and planting tips. They do something else interesting here. They don't beat you about the head with commercial branding of everything they have to offer. They offer almost anything you might need listed, but they don't say things like, "don't forget to visit isle 10 for your fertilizer." I like that, but someone else might find that helpful. Having worked in garden centers myself, many people are interested in picking up all the right supplies in one visit and getting out. So there may be room for change in their marketing strategy.

Lowe's, Home Depot, and more often the growers themselves are offering up more information to consumers through the use of these codes. Outside of the nursery industry, you can find larger companies using 2-D bar codes in magazines, newspapers, and catalogs. I personally find them very interesting, with great potential. No more trying to type in the simplest of urls, just need to hold still long enough to scan, and it takes just a second.

Screenshot of site brought up from 2011 National Green Centre
Conference and Tradeshow Catalog QR Code

There is a lot of information that can be shared in a code too. Each type of 2D barcode is created differently, shares slightly different bits of inform

ation, and can hold different types of information. This media isn't just for pushing a website. I have my contact information included on one, as well as website links, and short resume. QR Codes are free to create and you don't have to have an account with anyone to have one. The Microsoft® Tag is proprietary. An account needs to be set up, but this allows you track all of your codes created, and change data as necessary. Currently it is free.

How do you scan a QR Code, or a Microsoft Tag, or other bar codes available? You must have a mobile device (cell phone, ipod touch, etc.) with a camera. An application (app) for reading the code you're interested in must be installed. Open the app, snap a photo of the code, and you should be off and running. I highly recommend that you check your particular device for details on installation.

Best ways to see it in action are to watch a friend or try it yourself. Want to create a QR Code? Try the Kaywa site for QR Codes or the Microsoft Tag site.

Shoot, Carpenter Bees

2011-06-04T20:07:00.000-07:00

I've had a few altercations with Carpenter bees (Xylocopa virginica) in the past, but they were few and fleeting. A few friends have had serious issues with them to the point where it sounded like mice were chewing on wood during dinners in their gazebo, but no worries, it was our cute fuzzy little friend. They are said not to cause much structural damage in most cases, but I am afraid that a 1/2" hole in some of our old wooden windows would be difference between drafty and just plain open.

Carpenter bee (Xylocopa virginica) working on a stained wooden trellis.

I did learn a few interesting tidbits about Carpenter bees from different Extension web resources. The University of Missouri Extension Carpenter Bees and the University of Illinois Extension Carpenter Bees Factsheet (pdf) were very quick and helpful. They mention that these tunnels can be very long, "sometimes extending 2 or more feet," run with the grain of the wood after the initial tunneling, and lay their eggs in chambers inside the tunnels. They are relatively harmless, unagressive, and the male does not have a stinger. The shiny abdomen is a great way to tell the difference from the fuzzy abdomens of bumble bees (Bombus spp.), their sometimes confused look-a-likes.

A hole started by a Carpenter bee (Xylocopa virginica).

On a more humorous note, the size of the tunnel is described to "look as if someone has shot a 45-caliber bullet into the wood," in the Illinois factsheet. If you have the this background, you know exactly what this may look like, if not, then you may have learned two things. What a Carpenter bee tunnel looks like and the size of hole a 45-caliber bullet would come out of.

I spotted this little critter digging away on a trellis that my mom made for me. Now, if my mom had seen this, there would be no question of the future of this bee, but I had my camera in-hand and was on a routine garden walk and shot it with a Nikon D90 instead.

Wordless Wednesday - Silver and Gold

2011-06-01T05:36:00.000-07:00

Cerastium tomentosum 'Yo Yo' (Snow in Summer)

Physocarpus opulifolium 'Mindia' (Coppertina Ninebark) and
Berberis thunbergii (Golden Pillar Barberry) combination

Aquilegia (Columbine)

Stachys x byzantia 'Countess Helen Von Stein'

Cornus florida 'Cherokee Sunset' (Cherokee Sunset Flowering Dogwood)

Pink Iris - Wordless Wednesday

2011-05-25T07:52:00.000-07:00

Yew and I need to talk

2011-05-24T21:28:00.000-07:00

This morning there were two men pulling a young over sheared hedge of Yews out of a front yard. They were using a tiny backhoe, chains, and shovels. There were flags marking power and cable lines. The shrubs were coming out with relative ease. I flashed back to one of my least favorite times in gardening.

I love the labor of gardening. I like the overall ache of my body after a long day digging. Of all of the landscaping, gardening, and other outdoor tasks I've ever done, pulling old Yews (Taxus sp.) from a yard is my least favorite.

Yews are highly durable, very disease resistant, and have been used to create anti-cancer drugs. These little plants can grow to 25' trees when left to their own devices. They are however incredibly adept at adapting to anything including 50 years of heavy shearing. How do I know this? My neighborhood was built some 50 years ago and back then, perhaps still now, planting yews along the foundation of the house was the thing to do. These little guys have been being sheared year-after-year to make that perfect LEGO square hedge. The problem is that they still manage to make a little gain in size every year.

My first house was a duplex, the yews were 5 high, by 5 feet deep, and 30 feet long on both halves covering the bottom half of the windows. The problem? I'm only 5'5" tall. Standing in the middle of the hedge, electric shears held over my head, reaching as far as I can to recreate that lovely shape got old after one year. I made the executive decision...they had to go.

There were only 4 shrubs that made up this hedge on each side. I was sure this would go easy. I laugh now at was a sweet a notion. Two days, 4 friends, a little beer, and a comical visit from a neighbor later and they were out. Tadaa!

What I learned from the process:

Only use sharp tools, it seems obvious, but you'd be surprised at the butter-knife quality chain saws friends own
When a neighbor comes by to see what you are doing, tells you about a really nice saw he has, shows it to you, then says you can't use it, remember that he is armed with the really nice saw and just say thanks.
Be nice to your friends
Feed your friends
Lie to your friends about how easy it is going to be
There is a water spigot on each side in the front of the duplex

Bloomin' flowers

2011-05-20T21:08:00.000-07:00

It's late Spring and taking walking tours on campus have begun again. The smell in the air overwhelming belongs to Lilacs on campus, but off campus the sweet scents of peonies, and irises are far more apparent. Many friends have posted beautiful pics of flowers and wishing they could share the fragrance. There is only one way to truly experience the smell--get outside.

Peony

Syringa pubescens subsp. patula 'Miss Kim'

Peony

Bearded Iris

Josephine the Empress of the Clematis

2011-05-15T15:29:00.000-07:00

I have a small garden, and have still managed to tuck four different clematis vines into the yard. A classic Jackmanii clematis (Clematis 'Jackmanii') and my Lemon Chiffon clematis (Clematis 'Lemon Chiffon') are the winners in the durability contest.

Josephine clematis (Clematis 'Evijohill' Josephine™) just beginning its display

The Jackmanii has been moved twice because of other changes made to the yard. It didn't blink at the move. Just kept going. The Lemon Chiffon has had a hard life. I planted it so that it would grow up a trellis against the front of the house. The trellis is under the eve of the house, but the vine was planted outside of the drip line so that it would get enough natural water. The problem is that people have walked across the front of the house and kicked right through the vine leaving what's left to grow through the vinca. It appears that I have created a new, beautiful, ground cover. The large flowers cover the ground.

I am also growing a Sweet Autumn clematis (Clematis terniflora) and Josephine clematis (Clematis 'Evijohill' Josephine™). The Sweet Autumn clematis always gives a good performance. It grows along a chainlink fence between my patio and my neighbor's patio. A sweet division, making good neighbors.

Showing the numerous flower petals waiting to open on the Josephine clematis (Clematis 'Evijohill' Josephine™)

This year, the clematis that is the empress in my yard is Josephine™. This is another example of a vine that is planted under the eves and has had to earn the water it gets. I helped initially, but the expectation of long term babying is not a recipe for success in my yard. It quickly adapted to its location and has been a very strong and beautiful grower. This year, we've had unusually cool temperatures with short-lived bouts of heat. No moderate temperatures.

The vine is covered with large pink double flowers that are very showy up close and from a distance. I have not been terribly considerate of the rule of thumb for pruning clematis. In my experience, this vine is hardy into zone 4. It grows best in a sunny location, but has tolerated the moderate shade of its current existence. This plant requires a type 2 pruning and calls to remove dead vines, and stagger cutting heights. If you want more details on maintenance I highly recommend investigating the Raymond Evison Clematis website. After all, this is one of his older introductions.

I met Raymond Evison in January at the National Green Centre Trade Show in St. Louis. He is a delightful man with a firm but gentle handshake that only someone who works with their hands can give. He's been working with clematis since he was a young man. His hard work has been making plant lovers smile for many many years.

Refreshing as a dandelion

2011-05-13T19:17:00.000-07:00

Today I saw a woman cupping the puff of a dandelion in her hands. The smile on her face was wide with delight. She had never seen one before. She held it momentarily, and quickly discovered the delicate nature of the dandelion in seed as it magically took flight from her hands into the air and floated off. This photo reminds me how refreshing it is that something so ordinary can be still be new.

Gone in the blink of an eye

2011-05-10T21:30:00.000-07:00

I can't believe this weather! I've been waiting five years for my Paeonia 'Thumbelina' (Peony Thumbelina) to bloom. I bought it as a very small bareroot plant and expected to wait for a year or two to see the blooms. Two years ago my toddler sat on it losing an antagonizing battle to gravity. Last year my 90 pound black lab sat on it resting after taking chase on a squirrel and losing.

So when this compact little beauty, marketed for rock gardens, bloomed this year, I was ready. I have been taking photos of it all week while waiting for the tight little buds to open. I expected something tragic to happen. A renegade frisbee accident. Death by squirrel.

No tragedy. The flowers opened up yesterday. Just offering a peek at the beautiful golden stamens inside. Gorgeous. This morning there was no sun shining, with a forecast of rain and heat. At the last minute, on my way out the door to work, I grabbed my camera and took a shot of the flowers and left to get on with my day.

We were greeted with an unusually high heat, and no rain. I didn't see it coming. I got home and the petals were on the ground. Just a single day of full bloom.

Was it worth the wait? Yes. Was it worth the life of the bloom? Not so much. But I'm going to give it another a year, see what next year brings. My son, a King Kong in training? My dog, named Dog, that gets outwitted by a squirrel and is making a mockery of my efforts by sitting on my plants? The reality is, that I won't remove a shrub that isn't dead, but it will be fun to think about what will happen next year in my garden.

Timing is everything when you're seeing green

2011-05-07T21:36:00.000-07:00

Female virescent green metallic bee (2011)

I finished up a round of Master Gardener volunteer gardening today, with a quick photography tour of the marvelous work my fellow gardeners do in Champaign, Illinois. When shooting flowers, I use a Nikon D90 with a 60mm f/2.8 Macro lens. While I had my lens peering deep into a tulip, I noticed a virescent green metallic bee in the flower. I got super excited. I snapped a lot of shots, to make sure I caught at least a glimpse of this bee before it flew off never to be seen again. This is only the second time I've seen this type of bee.

The last time I saw one of these bees was in 2001. I had never seen one before. I was lucky enough to catch a photo of it last time with a Nikon CoolPix 950. The bee was diligently working its way around a Purple coneflower (Echinacea) that was wide open. I captured the bee, the flower, the moment perfectly. The problem? I couldn't identify the bee. I knew it was anatomically a bee, but couldn't find a solid reference online. I used the Entomology resources available at the University of Illinois. It took a lot of footwork, but I managed to hunt it down.

Female virescent green metallic bee

After the photo shoot today, I came home to be greeted with the latest issue of Horticulture Magazine. I randomly flipped through the magazine and was amazed at the timing. There it was, a virescent green metallic bee! It was highlighted in the InsectID section of the magazine by Bill Johnson. The article was written perfectly for identification. Within an hour of taking the photo, I was able to confirm the genus of today's find, just by checking my mail.

I've been reading articles in Horticulture Magazine for years. I love that when I'm short on time I can still flip through the magazine and find an article that is interesting, enlightening, and accurate. Having Bill Johnson's succinct article and his extreme skill in photography to reference is a great addition to the magazine.

Male virescent green metallic bee (2001)

A true blue friend, the Forget-me-not

2011-05-06T14:24:00.000-07:00

Myosotis slyvatica (Forget-me-not)

This is just a simple little true blue flower that is a biennial, will move around on you, and can disappear as rapidly as it appeared. Myosotis sylvatica or Forget-me-nots are one of my favorite little flowers. You want to stay away from rigid designs with this little plant and let it works its magic in its own way. It will perform better for you when well placed and left to its own devices.

The first time I saw this plant was in the Aosta Valley of Italy. It was a lighter blue. I don't know what the species name was, but it had the same petite qualities of this genus. It is a wonderful and happy little plant that dappled the large valley reminiscent of blue flecks of paint.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-05-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

What's blooming today

2011-05-02T13:40:00.000-07:00

Deutzia gracilis (Slender Deutzia)

Taken on a warm day you can see condensation forming inside the inflorescence.

Paeonia 'Thumbelina'

Fothergilla gardenii 'Blue Mist' (Blue Mist dwarf fothergilla)

Roll out the carpet!

2011-04-29T05:43:00.000-07:00

The weather in Central Illinois is holding steady. There has been lots of rain, and lots of cool days. This has been an amazing year for how long the early Spring flowers have held on. Few things are fading as quickly as years before. It has had its ups and downs.

My Crabapple is a perfect example. The last of the petals have fallen off of my Crabapple tree. The constant rain hitting the tree at peak flower caused the petals to fall straight to the ground leaving a pink blanket over the walkway to the house. It is making for the most picturesque front yard. It was really quite the sight.

The cyclic majesty of the flowering Crabapple is finished. The fresh perfect burgundy leaves are quickly opening. Only needing the shade cast by the flowers to have passed. Too soon the freshly sprung leaves will fall off too caused by the many blights that afflict plants in the Rose family.

So many people stopped to share how much they enjoyed the sight. Seeing a small yard in bloom makes the coming warmth a reality, even when the weather itself is set on another path.

Captivating Fasciated Dandelion

2011-04-25T12:26:00.000-07:00

Fasciated mutation of Taraxacum officinale (Dandelion)

I'll share a secret with you. I like dandelions. They are the bane of many a gardeners' existence, don't even say the word in front of turf specialists, but I find them absolutely captivating. I try to do my share of thinning the heard and removing as many from the yard as possible, but living next to one of the city parks, doesn't lend itself well to a winning battle.

While on the hunt this morning I found a dandelion displaying a mutation that I have seen on numerous other plants. This dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) was short. I almost missed it completely because it was long and thin and I was scanning for round yellow flowers or spiteful white puffs. The stem and the flowers all displayed the same fasciated mutation. The leaves were typical. The fasciated mutation causes a crest-shape growth habit, instead of typical (in this case round) growth. It can happen in any part of the plant. Hit the web to find details on the how, why, propagating possibilities and other fascinating details of this mutation.

Cherry Blossom - Wordless Wednesday

2011-04-20T05:35:00.000-07:00

Spring's Sweet Scent

2011-04-14T21:25:00.000-07:00

I have a pink flowering Crabapple in my front yard. It, along with our floor to ceiling picture window, was one of the features that made our house a charming little purchase. It's been a great place to live.

The drawback to our tree? It has an odd occurrence of fully flowering only every 2 to 3 years. It looks like this will be the magical third year. The ruby red flower buds are densely covering the entire tree. Soon those red buds will burst open and quickly fade to a lovely pink. While the color fades from bold to blush it will also be releasing a beautiful perfume. It will fill the air. The bees will hitch a ride on that fragrance too.

While the blossoms of spring cause the insect activity to increase, the whole scene makes me want to slow down and fully take them in. I like to lay on the ground with my face close to the blooms and watch the bees moving from flower to flower. You can really take in all of the aromas around when you stop and enjoy them.

The reality is that the spring blooms are short lived, and the time that I can spend laying in the grass is very little. Spring awakens all of the tasks of life that have been trapped indoors for the winter, and I must attend to more than just the garden and flowers. I will take this Spring and every spring flower I see and breath in the moments and remember them, as happiness, as Spring.

Spring Prairie Burn

2011-04-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

Despite a very unfortunate recent fire in Champaign, IL eliminating two iconic restaurants on campus, usually when you see smoke from miles away in Central Illinois, it means one thing...Spring prairie burns.

A Bloodroot that is twice as nice

2011-04-06T07:30:00.000-07:00

A small gift from a friend has spread into a nice colony of brilliant white double-flowers followed by deep green leaves. If the Double-flowering Bloodroot isn't on your list of must have plants for the shade, you need to update your list.

The harbinger of spring in a woodland or shade garden.
Double-flowering Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis f. multiplex)

A close-up of the veins of Bloodroot shows the development of the red sap that gives this plant its name.

The same colony of Double-flowering Bloodroot from last year right at peak flowering.

Reflecting on the Redbuds of Rome

2011-04-05T20:09:00.000-07:00

Like any traveler to Rome I was amazed by the ancient ruins, the delightful family owned businesses and delicious food of the city. We were lucky enough to stay in the center of Rome overlooking the Pantheon.

I walked miles enjoying the dilapidated sites. The Tiber River lined with old Sycamore trees. Calling them ancient seems like a joke in Rome, but from the perspective of Central Illinois it is quite appropriate. There were many protected nooks where I found old trees growing way beyond their average years. Protected from climbing, trimming, and mowing they seemed to be able to outgrow their typical descriptions. Apparently, they hadn't read the books I have. They didn't have the same assumptions, so they were able to grow outside of the given expectation and become much more.

The largest Redbud tree (Cercis siliquastrum) I've ever seen. For size comparison, there are two adults in the same plane of the tree trunk on the left of the photo. The girl is picking flowers in the foreground.

The trees that astounded me constantly in Italy were Redbud (Cercis siliquastrum) trees. Again and again the images of Redbuds that are instantly conjured up in my head come from the first time I learned about the them in my teens. I was introduced the Eastern Redbud then. I couldn't stop hearing my instructor at the time run down the details of the tree, "Redbuds are small trees, growing to about 20 feet high, by 25 feet wide...They are highly susceptible to Botryosphaeria canker, and Verticillium wilt..." with Botryosphaeria being spelled wrong in my notes. Those trees were considered short-lived trees.

A multi-stemmed Redbud tree. This tree has stood the test of time, with apparent climbing, soil compaction, and the occasional resting spot for my husband.

Cercis siliquastrum, in Rome is durable, large, and long-lived. These trees inspired the same reflection you give to so much in the city. Who saw these plants as small seedlings? Did someone nurture it? I'll probably never know the answers to the questions about the trees of Rome, but I'm grateful to have witnessed their existence.

A decorative housing for an elevator, but if you look closely at the top left, a Redbud is
trying its best to take hold. I don't believe it will stand the test of time.

Redbud taking hold (inset from above)

Early Morning Hope

2011-04-01T05:17:00.000-07:00

I love waking up before the break of light in the mornings. The birds all sing their songs in the darkness like they know something that no other creature knows. I'm hoping that the songs are of sunny days, warmth to come, or Spring and blossoms. Here are some photos to join in the chorus with hopes of things to come.

Kerria japonica 'Flore pleno'

Prunus armeniaca


Tulipa gregii

Myosotis sp.

Beauty defined by age and weathering

2011-03-21T00:10:00.000-07:00

When I travel with my husband, we usually have a long list of must-see places to go to. Our first day on the ground we like to walk around and serendipitously stumble on things that we've read about while getting our bearings. Paris has been no different.

We headed out of our apartment that overlooks a corner of the Louvre and is above the Louis Vuitton design studios. Walking immediately out of our door is the only time I feel like I am complete fashion dolt. The people who work there look like they walked right out of a magazine. They are all ages and look stunning. They look like they could persevere through anything on looks along. Incredible.

In wandering beyond our door we found the Flower Markets by Notre Dame fascinating. The air was filled with the fresh fragrances of hyacinth, lilac and magnolias, and the brilliant colors of forsythia, primerose, irises, and hydrangeas. The store owners were nice and patient and happy to let me photograph their wares. One of the store owners had an Olive tree in a container that had to be over 20 years old, but well pruned to be within reach.

By the time we reached Notre Dame, the crowds were so heavy that we decided to keep walking and look for nice vistas of the beautiful rose window from the outside.

This adventure led us to the Square René Viviani. This small city garden overlooks the church from across the river and holds one of the most oldest and durable trees in all of Paris. Planted in 1602, this tree has managed to survive numerous wars, the revolution, religious upheavals, protests, and city life. The tree is a Robinia pseudoacacia or False aralia. This is a hardy tree in any planting, but sometime in this plants' life the trunk has hollowed and was filled with cement, a relatively common practice in the past. It is propped with sturdy cement columns and is now covered in two types of climbing ivy (or perhaps it is only Hedera helix in its mature and immature stages next to each other) that are vigorous.

Robinia pseudoacacia or False aralia.

Robinia pseudoacacia or False aralia with Notre Dame in the background.

It is still surviving with the obvious help of people and despite the more obvious weathering of time. I feel lucky to have seen this tree and think about everything it has witnessed through the last 409 years. Growing in sight of the grand Notre Dame Cathedral this tree is just a baby, but perhaps our lady can help protect it a little longer.

2011 Chicago Flower and Garden Show

2011-03-10T14:23:00.000-08:00

If you haven’t had a chance to see the Chicago Flower and Garden Show take the time, it’s worth it. The theme this year is “The Sport of Gardening.” The outdoor living spaces incorporated massive dry-fit masonry construction to demo how kitchens, or other outdoor entertainment spaces could be created. The vendors were all very friendly and the trend on growing green themes were found in everything from green roofs and vertical walls, to backyard chicken coops. The chicken coop idea was interesting, since Urbana and other residential areas do allow chickens. Closer to our downtown area, from time-to-time, you will find a brazen rooster strutting his stuff down the street.

“A Curious Croquet-Ground” by the Illinois Orchid Society

For me the show began with “A Curious Croquet-Ground” by the Illinois Orchid Society where you’ll see three large spheres of all white orchids (Phalenopsis) each about 5 feet in diameter. This display was set up as a giant croquet set with the mallets magically hanging in mid-swing. It was very playful and interesting. I did find that if you take a photo at just the right angle it looks like the mallets are popping the people on the head, like a good game of whack-a-mole.

The 'water feature' from “One Goal, One Garden” designed by Tony Butterworth, Christy Webber Landscapes

Are you Chicago Hawks hockey fan? Then the “One Goal, One Garden” is the place for you. Designed by Tony Butterworth, Christy Webber Landscapes, this garden had a water feature like none-other. The bottom was painted to resemble a hockey rink, but with a little trickery, people can walk right out onto the “ice” without getting too wet. This high-end contemporary design used many active components from the hockey team. From the picket fence made of hockey sticks, to the flooring that comes from a training rink. Don’t get too excited by the Stanley Cup trophy, it is a replica, though a pretty nice one.

Tulips Joe van der Vlugt of Doornbosch Bros.

Gardeners and landscapers tend to be passionate about what they do. The garden "Off to the Races" was designed and planted by a bulb grower whose family has been in the Holland bulb industry for over 4 generations. Joe van der Vlugt of Doornbosch Bros. was gracious enough to give a personal walk through of his tulip display. He placed every bulb in this display and made sure the heights were all spot on for each type. There were over 40 different varieties of bulbs on display. Every variety labeled so that the viewers could walk over to the their booth on the trade show floor and buy every bulb they could need for the season. If are you are looking for a different fundraising program and are tired of popcorn and candy, give Doornbosch Bros. a consideration.

“The Great Outdoors” display. Designed by Miguel Sotelo, of Orion Land Water Snow.

Another passionate builder is at “The Great Outdoors” display. Designed by Miguel Sotelo, of Orion Land Water Snow. This company is the first Hispanic owned company to be invited to the Chicago Flower and Garden Show and it is easy to see why. This garden really had a wonderful outdoor feel. Miguel designed there to be a good view from every angle, and he succeeded. Truckloads of sand were brought in to create a lake fed by a spring. Though there was very woodsy feeling to the display, Miguel designed in plants and features that could easily be incorporated into the average home garden. One of my favorite components to his design was the way he broke up a 150’ stretch of stonework wall by installing nooks at regular intervals and varying the height. This was simply, a great demonstration garden with an obviously talented company.

To see a list of all the gardens at the show, collaborators, designers, and details, go to the Chicago Flower and Garden Show website.

Thanks for making it easier: Fun at the Chicago Flower and Garden Show

2011-03-09T23:29:00.000-08:00

If you haven’t had a chance to see the Chicago Flower and Garden Show, take the time. It’s worth it. The theme was “The Sport of Gardening” this year. The vendors and builders were all very friendly and the trend of growing green themes were found in everything from green roofs and vertical walls, to backyard chicken coups. The chicken coup idea was interesting, since I do live in a residential neighborhood that allows chickens. Closer to our downtown area, from time-to-time, you will find a brazen rooster strutting his stuff down the street.

The tulip display designed and installed by Joe Vandenvlugt of Doornbosch Brothers (Booth no. 548)

Conferences and door prizes are great fun, but at the end of the day, I'm still far more fascinated by functionality than flirtation. I joined the group of Garden Writer's Association at the 2011 Chicago Flower and Garden Show to get a preview of the gardens, network, and learn about what's being done in the garden industry that is new and exciting. The garden vignettes were all fantastic. There were many inspiring ideas that were applicable in the home garden.

Events like these are places where vendors can really show off their stuff too. It pleases some. It irritates others. I really like to take a close hard look at new products. When I see a new product, I often wonder if this is something that should have been pushed on late night TV. Should it have been lost before the public had a chance to view it? I'm looking for well thought out things that I can use. Products that make life easier, or inventive ways of doing something else are the products that catch my eye.

The door prizes from the sponsors of the GWA regional meeting were great. One of the prizes I walked away with was a set of PowerGear® Bypass Pruners from Fiskars. In my mind, Fiskars reinvented themselves when they introduced gears to their line of loppers and pruners. Coming from a long line of farmers and DIYers, our hands have had a pretty tough life. Tools like these really make a difference.

Smith and Hawken gave away gift boxes filled with durable work gloves and a gift card. Gurney's Seed and Nursery Co. gave Carmine Jewel dwarf bush cherry plants to everybody--adorable, and The Seed Keeper Company added "What did I plant" labels to the goody bags. These are all things that are nice additions to my gardening needs.

The SimplySalad display and dinner in my kitchen.

The last parting gift was a table center piece containing the City Garden Mixture of the SimplySalad program by PanAmerican Seed. These are easy to grow, and packed in pre-mixed pellets. This presentation certainly does makes a great festive center piece. A pleasant surprise, but I honestly questioned the value of it. I was afraid that these would fade or look miserable as the Central Illinois weather heats up, but realized that it is lettuce...you eat it, and replant when it is cool again, just like you would in other areas of your garden. I think it'll be a success.

So I say thank you to the GWA and CFGS for a conference well done, the vendors who are making an honest effort to change the way we work in our gardens, and thanks to Ball Horticulture for my dinner.

Hey, I can see your stamens

2011-03-03T20:08:00.000-08:00

My husband won't select a pack of berries unless they actually smell like strawberries. He stands there, digging through numerous cartons until he finds that perfect one. I make fun of him. He says that if they don't have that sweet fragrance, then they aren't sweet. He's never been wrong on this account. I don't hold it against him.

Digging in the fridge for a snack tonight, I stumbled on a fresh batch of strawberries. These already curiously large berries had the largest leaf cap (calyx) I've seen on picked fruit. I've also never seen petals and stamens still clinging tightly to a fully developed strawberry. These are anomalies that I'm not sure I can explain, but I oddities that I notice on a day-to-day basis.

Guard your rubber boots, or be left with a smile

2011-02-26T16:15:00.000-08:00

Ranger rubber boots...chalk not included.

Even with the snow and cold, I still go out and take photos in the garden. I put on my rubber boots in our sun room. Glancing down, I noticed there was something in one of my boots. I quickly discovered they had sat unguarded just a bit too long. In the bottom of the right boot was all of the sidewalk chalk my toddler decided to store there for his next Julian Beever impression. In retrospect, it was a good short-term storage method he left for himself. Long term, he unknowingly left me the gift of a smile.

Helluva lot of Hellebore, and I like it.

2011-02-20T21:22:00.000-08:00

Hellebores (Helleborus) have been mentioned in writing as early as the fifth century¹. It was thought to have been used in chemical warfare during the First Sacred War. Chemical warfare you ask? That’s right, every part of the lovely hellebore is poisonous. Its beauty and intrigue heavily outweighs this potential negative.

Helleborus x hybridus 'Royal Heritage Strain' from Wayside Gardens

In 2005, hellebores won the status of Perennial Plant of the Year by the Perennial Plant Association (PPA). It did not move terribly quickly on the market. In catalogues you would sometimes see one or two available. In the October 2008 issue of American Nurseryman, Allen Bush recommended the hellebore as one of the ten durable plants for the ages. This is a title for plants that I can appreciate. Even then, Bush mentioned that this plant remained underused, and was, "still something of a sleeper" in the home garden.

There has been serious breeding and production done resulting in great new hellebores. The colors and combination are now endless. The number of plants being sold before in catalogues ranged from zero to just a few. This has now increased significantly. On the grower end, companies like Jelitto Perennial Seeds, where Bush works now, offer 30 different varieties to nurseries. Great Garden Plants has 11 different varieties available to consumers.

This February Allen Bush, of Jelitto Perennial Seeds was one of six speakers at a joint PPA and Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA) conference². This conference set out to show new introductions, as well as more durable plants, and in general plants that made all of the presenters excited plantsmen. We were introduced to a plethora of new and exciting plants. Wouldn’t you know, hellebores were all over these lists?

What’s changed over time? A little breeding has happened for the leaves, but most of the change comes in the flowers. Originally hellebore flowers predominantly faced downward. This is not as showy. So they have been bred to have the flowers face outward and even upward. Chris Hansen, of Great Garden Plants, mentioned an anomaly about upward facing flowers being more susceptible to mildew, but giving a great show if they haven’t been hit.

I’ve had hellebores in my yard for 5 years, and have loved them. I’m excited that this group of plants has made it to market in a big way. I’m more excited to see what plants make it through my door. It’s been said, more than once, that we don’t have any more space for plants in my yard. We still have turf…we still have space.

First Sacred War. Wikipedia. 2011, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Sacred_War
Passion and Pursuit, Perennial Plant Association and Indianapolis Museum of Art. Feb. 2011.

Hydrangea paniculata 'Limelight' Winter Appeal

2011-02-19T21:40:00.000-08:00

The weather in my area has taken a 70 degree swing over a one week period. All of our snow is gone and we were teased with the sweet smell of a spring day. I took advantage of the day by grabbing my camera and taking a sun filled photo walk.

I found a nice collection of Hydrangea paniculata 'Limelight' (Limelight Hydrangea) that still had all of the flower heads attached. It looks like a shrub in bloom while most everything else is still working on developing buds.

It's in the buds where I now have a question about what is otherwise a fantastic plant. On closer inspection I saw that not one terminal bud was still intact on the plant. The old flowers standing proud, the lateral buds all looked good, but the tips of all of the branches were tipped by the weather.

According the Proven Winners, 'Limelight' is known to be hardy all the way up to zone 3. In central Illinois we did have this crazy little cold snap of sustained negative temperatures (F). The plants themselves looked fantastic otherwise. I'm interested to see what will happen when spring truly hits. Will the plants need to be pruned back? Will they just be self-pruning? I'm eager to see.

A glimpse into the future

2011-02-14T21:31:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I was able to attend the National Green Centre Conference in St. Louis. While there, the audience was given a sneak peek of some of the newest plants being brought to the market. Growers and breeders from all over were showing their wares. It was awesome. These are the people who have bred and/or grown the plants in our latest catalogs. I love thumbing through the catalogs. This brought the catalogs to life. I was extremely pleased with how accommodating many of the vendors were at answering questions that ranged from simple to mundane.

Well known companies and the people behind the plants were willing to share information about themselves, their products, and (most importantly) their plants. I've shared just a few enjoyable encounters here.

In the warmth of the sun...
I had the great pleasure of meeting Ray Jackson of Jackson Nursery who found and introduced Cercis canadensis 'The Rising Sun' (The Rising Sun™ Red Bud). He was as enthused at seeing this plant being shown by Greenleaf Nursery Co. at the Sweet Melissa Fashion Show as he was when he discovered it growing in the field. Every person in the audience seemed equally excited to see it. I was happy to hear the details about this tree straight from the source. This small twelve foot tree offers a beautiful form in leaf which gives it a unique summer interest that many cultivars are missing. New growth comes out in "reds and peaches fading to green," said Jackson. Personally, I'm hoping to see this in my yard soon.

Photo credits: Ball Horticultural Company

At the Willoway Nursery booth, Scott Thompson shared a lot of information about a plant called Mahonia 'Soft Caress'. This was one of the plants on display at the conference Sweet Melissa Fashion Show. He broke my heart when they informed me that this lovely plant is not hardy in Zone 5, until they made the suggestion of growing it as a container plant. Then we started talking about some of the other plants that they had on display. I really found the Ficus carica 'Brown Turkey' (Brown Turkey Fig) interesting. Large mitten-shaped leaves that were tropical looking, but it looked promising for a plant in a three-season room. The plant that stole the plant show was the new Gryphon Begonia hybrida by PanAmerican Seed. This is a plant that I am super excited about for containers. I'm really looking forward to these plants hitting the market in my area.

Bob Flanders of Botanico, Inc. spent a fair amount of time talking plants with me, and then asked if I wanted to see something really cool. I did. He was kind enough to give me a sneak peek at a Cornus kousa sp. (Dwarf Kousa Dogwood) that looks to have serious promise for small gardens, or as an accent specimen . This Dogwood has dense compact growth, with the same beautiful full-sized white flowers that we love. After over 10 years the mother plant is still only around 7 feet tall. He was kind enough to share these images with me.


First crop of grafts grown from the mother plant (photo with permission of Botanico Inc.)	Mother plant more than 10 years after discovery (photo with permission of Botanico Inc.)

I spoke with Raymond Evison of Raymond Evison Clematis briefly about his newest line of plants. Feeling a bit under the weather, this world renowned expert on Clematis was still able to shine. He enthusiastically showed a number of the newest Clematis vines coming out. I have to admit that I am a fan of the doubles and already own an older variety named Josephine. So it was no surprise that I was most fond of the new Clematis Diamantina™, a purple double-flowering variety. Simply gorgeous.

Being a tree and shrub girl, I spent the most time talking with Terry Hines of Hale and Hines Nursery out of Tennessee. They had an interesting display with unique plants that also caught my attention. They had a large Thuja 'Green Giant' as a center piece. It was already towering above many plants being 14', but stood even higher on the ball and burlapped base making an excellent presentation. Other gems that stood out that are way to big for this gardener's yard were, Salix 'Scarlet Curls' with spectacular fine red tipped, contorted branches. The Phellodendron amurense (Amur Corktree) which has a beautiful mature form, but only look at males (the females have been found to be invasive), and Celtis magnificus (Hackberry) were both great looking trees. For an urban area, this tree is really strong.

I've had a few opportunities to talk directly with growers and the people bringing us new plant introductions before. This was a truly uplifting event to see the excitement in the eyes and hear it in the voices when these people shared information about these particular plants. It made the catalogs pale in comparison. I would love to feel the exhilaration of finding that potential new hot plant, and it makes me long for another glimpse into the future of the plant world.

When in doubt, guess Viburnum

2011-02-04T19:12:00.000-08:00

Frequently when I go on photo walks with friends we not only take pictures, we talk plants. I love talking plants. I also love to field id questions. I'm better than average, but frequently get stumped myself. I've found a funny common occurrence. When someone is stumped, I find myself saying, "it's a Viburnum" on more than one occasion.

Viburnum carlesii (Koreanspice viburnum) backlit.

I thought about this anomaly a bit. Viburnum is a relatively small genus with lots of cultivars. All of my sources (didn't list quick searches on google) narrow it down to about 150 species. Compared to other genera like Ilex (Hollies) at 600 species, or Euphorbia at over a whopping 2100 species (not including cultivars!). Yet, in trying to describe a viburnum, I found myself at a loss for consistency. I started asking myself how can this be? How can it be so difficult to identify a small number plants from just one genus?

Viburnum lentago (Nannyberry viburnum)

Perhaps it comes from the variability in the size of the plants, the leaves, or the flowers. Viburnums can vary in size from small landscape shrubs at a couple of feet (Viburnum acerifolium), to small trees at 30 feet (Viburnum lentago). These plants can be light and airy or densely packed with branches. The leaves can be toothed, smooth, hairy, glossy, arrow-shaped, oval or even look like a maple leaf.

Viburnum carlesii (Koreanspice Viburnum) in bloom.

The flowers of Viburnum carlesii, can be mistaken for the flowers of Hydrangeas from a distance. In fact a number of plants that were once listed under Viburnums have been moved to Hydrangeas⁽¹⁾. The flowers can be showy (like Viburnum plicatum with lacecaps type flowers--very similar to Hydrangea), small, fragrant, putrid, or even fragrance-free. Flower colors can range from white to pink.

Viburnum x juddii (Judd viburnum)

What are you left with for identification of Viburnums?

Viburnum x rhytidophylloides
(Lantanaphyllum Viburnum)

There are very few key characteristics of the Viburnum genus that are the same across the whole spectrum of these plants. One similarity is that they seem to develop their flowers on the last year's growth and should not be pruned until after blooming. Otherwise you risk losing one of the best seasonal interests of these plants. Michael A. Dirr mentions that the fruit is relatively the same in all of the species, too. On page 15 in his book, Viburnums, he says, “1. the fruit is a drupe, generally ellipsoidal, flattened, ovoid to rounded, with a fleshy coat, hard bony endocarp, and a single seed within; and the leaves are always arranged opposite;". The other method of identifying Viburnums he says is DNA (carry that test in your pocket).

How do I know when I see a viburnum? Hard work learning them, testing myself at gardens and garden centers, luck, and gestalt. I've said, "it's a viburnum" enough to friends now, that when my friend Chris at From the Soil asked his wife to guess a plant, without even looking she said, "Viburnum". She was right.

References

USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program.
Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN) [Online Database].
National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?300272 (03 February 2011)
USDA, NRCS. 2011. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 3 February 2011). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.
Dirr, Michael. Viburnums: Flowering Shrubs for Every Season. Portland, OR, Timber Press, 2008. 262 p.

Getting My Flower Fix at Orchid Shows

2011-01-30T16:24:00.000-08:00

I've discovered that there isn't much I know about the mysterious flower, the orchid, other than it makes for one fantastic photo shoot. This weekend the Central Illinois Orchid Society held their annual orchid show. They had a great turn out in both plants and people. The society brought over 65 plants from their individual collections as well as educational displays, photographs, and door prizes.

Phalaenopsis 'Double Delight'

Epilaeliocattleya Don Herman

The variability in the orchid family (Orchidaceae) is tremendous. I learned that it is thought to be the second largest plant family, and contains the plant responsible for one of our favorite flavor extracts for baking--vanilla. The American Orchid Society has educational sheets that are helpful, but only on a handful of genera. With over 850 genera documented, my hope is to learn the most common and enjoy the ones I don't know. This is how I cope from becoming overwhelmed in any field filled with terminology and potentially no labels.

Vanda Thongchai x Vanda Kasem's Delight

Classic to unique
Flower shape varied so much from species-to-species. Some flowers had large rounded petals, others strappy petals. You can find plants with multiple flowers a tight cluster all open at the same time on the end of a spike, or spread out over the length of a spike opening one at a time slowly. I am now a big fan of the following orchids types: lady slippers, the genus Vanda, and many of the fragrant varieties. On display, I found the following flower that was just a lovely coral color. Such a unique color.

Phragmipedium Don Wimber

Is there a chocolatier in the house?
In the small room where the show was the air was a delightful bounty of fragrance. It turned out that there are a number of orchids that have scents varying from the light smell of soap, to a bold odorous smell, to chocolate. Yum!

Pot. Shin Shiang 'Diamond' looks like daffodils, smells like heaven

Zygopetalum 'Blue Blazes'

Angraecum Veitchii 'White Star'

Cattlianthe Chocolate Drop 'Kodama'
Like the name suggests, it smells like chocolate.

Blooms...blooms...blooms, that's what orchids are all about, or is it?
What the uninitiated may not know is that growing an orchid is not all about the flowers. A plant is only in bloom from a few days to two months. Sometimes they bloom longer, and worse, sometimes people don't get them to bloom at all. But having a plant not in bloom for about nine months doesn't have to be annoying like construction season. If this is your fear, I have learned that many of the orchids have especially nice leaves to save you. These can be used as center pieces or for the tiny plants, talking points.

Ludisia discolor

Dossinodes Indra's Net
also happens to be a miniature orchid

Did you see that?
I heard a lot of chatter about not having space for such plants. A few of these demonstration lovelies showed if you like unique and don't have the space for the larger plants, there is an entire industry of miniature orchids. So many people took double-takes on the miniatures. They offered a punch in a petite-sized place.

The Dendrobium peguanum plant measures in at a whopping 2"

Phalaenopsis equestris

I no longer am able to conjure up a single image to represent the orchid family. What I have learned is that I enjoyed this orchid show so much that I find myself resisting the urge to run out and buy many. I have a few plants that I might look at, but will wait until I learn a bit more. I didn't win any door prizes at this flower show, but I did leave feeling like a winner from the opportunity to photograph the flowers and talk to the society members.

Conservatory Close Up

2011-01-27T12:53:00.000-08:00

I've visited our local conservatory, University of Illinois Plant Conservatory, four times already this year. It's true we're only four weeks into the new year. It is quite the little gem especially in the winter. The air seems so fresh inside a conservatory, sometimes I like to sit and talk, most times I take photos. On this trip I focused on close ups. There is something fascinating about taking a closer look from time-to-time.

Nun Orchid (Phaius tancarvilleae)
At first glance this looks like a hummingbird hovering.

The winter is such a great time of year to find orchids in bloom. The bright unique flowers are the little bursts of energy that make walking across campus on the gray winter days in central Illinois tolerable.

Epidendrum Pretty Lady
Ready for Valentines Day, this bloom has a heart.

The Epidendrum Pretty Lady, is a beautiful orchid where the inflorescence is a cluster of flowers held high above the foliage. An individual flower is only about .5 inch in real life. Sometimes you find little surprises like the heart-shape on this fuchsia colored Epidendrum. From a distance, this little find would have gone unnoticed, but up close, this flower shows a lot of love.

The following photos are some close ups that are artistic, but not terribly useful for identification.

A Tree Grows Through It

2011-01-22T14:05:00.000-08:00

The church above looks like a bouquet of greenery is spilling out over the top where a roof once was, and indeed it is. Called Kirchruine Abterode (or Ruined Church in Abterode), Hesse, Germany, it has been in ruin since 1809, giving the trees and vines around it a chance to really take hold.

Many young trees now surround the grounds of the church even filling in the cemetary. Ivy (Hedera sp.) can be found growing up their trunks and well into the canopies. All of the trees lend a air of mystery to the ruins. But the tree (Tilia sp. I think--speak up if you know) that was left to grow inside, poured over the tops of the walls and gave an air of romance to what would otherwise could be a dreary place.

I can't imagine why someone left that particular tree there to continue to grow, but I couldn't be more grateful. There proved to be a lot of life flourishing around these ruins. Nature showing all the signs of perseverance that few buildings can maintain without abundant attention.

Old hollow tree filled with cement, still persevering.

There were signs that showed attention has been given to some trees. The cavity of this tree was filled with cement long enough ago that there was a one inch gap between the cement and the interior walls of this old split tree. I imagine the deteriorated cement slowly flowing out the bottom creating a miniature alluvial fan. Even gnarled, old, and covered in vines, this tree breaks bud in the spring, sends up new shoots, and keeps on growing.

Buds and Bark with Michael A. Dirr

2011-01-20T04:56:00.000-08:00

Dr. Michael A. Dirr

In a tree identification class, a professor will walk hastily between specimens, but will share the details of a tree in front of you with patience and enthusiasm. If you're lucky, there will be a little history on that specific plant, the grounds it's on, or someone who introduced it. If you experience more than this, then you are blessed.

I learned tree identification from Dr. Gary Kling, professor at the University of Illinois. I sought out to study under Dr. Kling because of his reputation. He is ridiculously smart and has a big heart. I was humbled to learn his adviser, Dr. Michael A. Dirr, was the same.

When I discovered that the 2011 National Green Centre Conference was offering an opportunity to join Dr. Dirr and many industry professionals on a garden walk at the Missouri Botanical Gardens (MoBot), I jumped on it. I've been peripherally involved in horticulture for 19 years. I've torn through two editions of Dirr's Manual of Woody Landscape Plants. One was while I was working on my Master's in Horticulture Education.

When I told my husband I was attending a garden walk in January, the first thing out of his mouth was, "it's the middle of winter, what's there to see?" He knew. Beyond meeting a man renowned in the industry, we would see, buds and bark. Only people this passionate would willingly pay to go on a walk in the cold, rain or shine. What began as a two hour walk, turned into an a three hour walk ending with industry professionals talking about the future of their beloved industry. The event was forced to an end, only by the bus driver.

Loebner Magnolia (Magnolia x loebneri) at the Missouri Botanical Gardens

Dr. Dirr started the walk off without pause, willingly sharing and quizzing anyone who looked up for the challenge. Everyone was up for the challenge. He wasn't the only one talking. He would call others to speak up when they knew details or were specialists in their field. When part of the group would move at a leisurely pace, he would bark, "hurry up people!", and the tail end would move faster. Discussing a tree thoroughly and then getting to the next specimen, this is what a tree walk is about.

Chip Tynan, Michael A. Dirr, Christopher Tidrick (From the Soil), and Linda Orton

He talked about the history of a series of plantings that have taken hard hits at the University of Illinois. This was an area where I was able to chime in. Living and working at the university for so long, you come to know the location of plants like they're your neighbors. You know when they were born, what diseases they have, and when they have passed. We were able to share and reminisce about the rise and fall of many plantings on the famous 'Quad' at Illinois and numerous other specimens on campus.

Group photo of garden walk attendees

Dr. Dirr was certainly the headliner of the walk, but he was joined by Jim Cocos (VP of Horticulture for MoBot) and Chip Tynan (Manager of MoBot's Horticultural Answer Service), Hillary Barber (Horticulturalist, who worked for Dr. Dirr for years, and now works part time with him as well as for Bold Spring Nursery in Georgia), Linda Orton (President of Mid South Hydrangea Society), Maria Zampini (President of Lake County New Plants LLC), Robert Smith (Arbor Day Foundation), and that was just the people I was able to meet. It was like a roll call of who's who in the industry. It was an experience of a lifetime for me. I was blessed with buds and bark.

Chip Tynan, Laura Hayden, and Michael A. Dirr at Missouri Botanical Gardens

Solace in a conservatory

2011-01-18T22:13:00.000-08:00

Had a hard morning at work. Back to back meetings, computer support...first day of classes. That's the life of working on a university campus. I find it utterly amazing that I can always feel better after a brief visit to the University of Illinois Conservatory. It's a botanical garden always at peak, and yet always changing. It smells good, and in the time it takes for my camera to acclimate to the heat and moisture, I've usually scouted out some new views.

What's the difference? Alocasia, Colocasia, and Xanthosoma

2011-01-15T16:53:00.000-08:00

Elephant ears and Taro are names that are used for the large-leaved tropical plants. They are popular additions to the landscape and when used can be whimsical to dramatic. I've heard many different names used for these plants. I had a couple types in the yard. When I've asked, I was told the largest were elephant ears, the smallest were Colocasia. This is too general and I have found somewhat inaccurate.

Photo taken at the University of Illinois Arboretum

I've often wondered what the differences were between Alocasia, Colocasia, and Xanthosoma. After many long discussions with friends and other gardeners, I finally had to do the research. It's a topic that has been covered on other sites well (and I've included the sources I've used below). The thing that is missing from all of the websites is displaying the side-by-side differences. They are fairly minor visual differences, but it is differences like these that make it easy to successfully grow these plants over and over again. Just a note that the plants don't have to follow these guidelines, so keep in mind there is variability.

The features to focus on are the direction of the leaf and the attachment point of the petiole to the leaf. Beyond that, according to walterreeves.com the definitive way to tell the difference is in the flower morphology or DNA.

Details	Alocasia	Colocasia	Xanthosoma
SUN
WATER	moist but well-drained	high moisture	high moisture
LEAF TIP DIRECTION	upward to horizontal	downward	downward
PETIOLE ATTACHMENT	at leaf notch	below leaf notch	at leaf notch
LEAF SHAPE	heart (cordate)	heart (cordate)	arrow (sagittate)

*Illustrations Copyright © 2011 Laura Hayden

The Big Ears - Spotlight on Colocasia and Xanthosoma, LariAnn Garner
Colocasia vs Alocasia vs Xanthosoma, Walter Reeves, walterreeves.com
National Tropical Botanic Garden

Encourage Them to Grow

2010-12-05T22:04:00.000-08:00

Having a degree in a horticultural field and volunteering as a Master Gardener, year after year I hear the same timid refrain from non-gardeners, "I can't keep anything alive", or "I kill everything I try to grow". They go into detail about a beautiful plant that was given to them as a gift, a plant they tried everything they could to keep it alive. Its demise--inevitable. Predetermined by some attribute that the uninitiated gardener could never have seen coming.

Every gardener worth their weight in compost has witnessed numerous deaths of plants in their own gardens. The plants may have been experimental, gifts, or great finds, but again the end was inevitable. Over time I've managed to compile a short list of easy to grow plants that I recommend to my friends and family who claim to have thumbs other than green. When making suggestions, whatever you do, encourage them to grow.

One thought to consider when suggesting plants for someone who is sure they can only kill plants, is to suggest a durable plant with a reward. An impact that is sure to start the bug that none of us has been able to shed. Whether it be a bountiful garden or show of flowers, it must make an impact to a beginner.

Pothos

Helping Houseplants
If indoor plants is where someone wants to start then here are some good beginnings. Fresh herbs or a simple vine can add that touch of life that makes people happy. A number of herbs are simple to grow indoors and keep close at hand. Useful for looks, cooking, or fragrance herbs are a great start. Placed close to the kitchen, they are less likely to be forgotten when it comes to watering.

Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum)

Pothos is probably the most common indoor plant. I cannot emphasize enough the durability of Pothos to survive some of the harshest conditions the vicious indoors can throw at it. It takes a lot of punishment. When treated properly though, Pothos is a lush beautiful vine plant.

Madagascar Dragon Tree
(Dracaena marginata)

How could one completely ignore something as simple as a Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum). Grown most often for its ease, it also offers beautiful texture. This plant tolerates, over-watering, under-watering, and flourishes with mediocre care. The secret to this plant's durability is its adventitious roots. Adventitious roots will store water for those bouts of neglect that can happen.

For those who really like an exotic look with little effort a Madagascar Dragon Tree (Dracaena marginata) is a nice addition to the family. This little tree has a thin trunk, with spiked leaves at the tips of the stems. This plant can have multiple stems or one single stem. Simple to grow, simple to keep in check for height, I think this is one knock-out indoor plant.

Autumn Joy Sedum
(Sedum telephium 'Autumn Joy')

Perennials with Pulse
Starting from a nice mound of lush bulbous textured leaves, Autumn Joy Sedum (Sedum telephium 'Autumn Joy') is one of the easiest perennials to begin growing in your yard. They root easily and don't spread our of control, and give a great show in every part of the year. From new growth to fall color to seed heads this is a strong and very durable plant. A great starter.

Hosta spp.

Hostas spp. have such a wide variety of options to offer, shade to sun, blues to chartreuse, and fragrant to non-fragrant flowers. Where do you begin? Start with the location where you want to plant it (is it sunny or shady). Then pick one that has a leaf color and texture that is appealing. Look around, you'll see that many people have Hostas in their yards. Ask them for suggestions. Gardeners love to share. Who knows, maybe you'll end up walking home with a new division for your collection.


Fountain Grass (Miscanthus sp.)

If you admire ornamental grasses, then Fountain Grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Malepartus’) is a good starter for you. These species of grasses give a nice show, can fit into most landscapes and this variety can't escape into other areas of the yard because it is sterile and doesn't develop seeds. Avoid ornamental grasses that have heavy seed production, it has been well documented that they can become weedy.

Shape up with Shrubs

Shadblow Serviceberry
(Amelanchier canadensis)

The Shadblow Serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis) (or many of the species) are really well suited (large) shrubs for the home landscape. Attractive traits 3 out of 4 seasons, with white spring flowers, delicious edible fruit in early summer, and reliably great fall color.

Forsythia (Forsythia)

Forsythia (Forsythia suspensa) are standards in the shrub world. This isn't just the sheared yellow shrubs anymore. There are a number of varieties that have changed the face of forsythias. Variegated leaves, dwarf plants, and lighter flowers are just a few new options available. Tip for flower production, if you are going to prune these shrubs, prune immediately after flowering in the spring, otherwise you will remove next year's blooms.

Three-flower Maple
(Acer triflorum)

There are two thoughts that come to mind when Maple is mentioned, a huge shady tree, or the Japanese maple. The Three-flower Maple (Acer triflorum) is a nice change of pace. This maple is not as expensive as Japanese maples, but has similar traits. Well suited as a medium to large shrub, the leaflets offer a soft texture with a mild green through the growing season, and an outstanding red-orange fall color.

Loebner Magnolia
(Magnolia x loebneri)

Toning up with Trees
The Loebner Magnolia (Magnolia x loebneri) is one of my favorite trees. The flowers are lovely and fragrant on this tree. The arching branches with an overall oval habit is refreshing to see in the landscape.

Flowering Dogwoods (Cornus florida) are be a gem of a find, but disease resistant cultivars are welcome. Look for trees that are resistant to powdery mildew and/or anthracnose. Spring flowers, nice foliage and good fall color make for great reasons to suggest this tree as a starter.

Flowering Dogwood
(Cornus florida)

Black Tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica) has dark glossy green leaves that turn a brilliant red in the fall. This is a slow growing tree with very few pest problems. Very solid, trouble free tree for any medium to large yard.

Black Tupelo
(Nyssa sylvatica)

The most common cause for the loss of plants is watering. Too much water, too little, when to water are all recurring problems. When in doubt use the best test for determining if an indoor plant needs water, your finger. You should be able to feel if there is moisture in the soil, or if it is too dry. It's important to make sure new large plantings get enough water for the best production. For newer varieties and cultivars, you may need to travel beyond your local home improvement centers. You should give some of your larger local nurseries a go. They tend to be very knowledgeable on newer species and carry some lesser-known plants. Even if you think you know what you want, always ask. People are a fountain of information, and you may find something new that is durable and fun.

Resources: 1. Dogwoods, By Paul Cappiello, Don Shadow
All Photos Copyright © 2011 Laura Hayden

Bishop's Weed

2010-12-03T20:04:00.000-08:00

Variegated bishop's weed (Aegopodium podagraria) is a beautiful plant when mass planted in a border. I treat bishop's weed like poison ivy. I've used the mantra of leaves of three, let them be...in another yard. Though this plant looks lovely en-mass, it is an aggressive spreader. If you want to keep this plant contained, it will need a barrier, and you will want to remove the flowers before they go to seed. Removal of the plant is tedious and all of the rhizomes (spreading roots) must be removed. If you leave any behind, or worse, try tilling it, you will have made exponentially more plants.

Making the Grade

2010-12-01T21:12:00.000-08:00

When we bought our house years ago, the house had sat silently on the market for quite a while. Usually leery of slow to move houses, I had to see what was making this house sit on the market for so long.

I visited this small 1960's ranch style home on an ideal Spring day at an open house. It couldn't have been shown at a better time of year. A gnarled old crab apple in peek bloom arched its heavily laden, pink, scented blossoms gently over the front floor-to-ceiling windows. Perfectly framing the entry. The inside was dark, small and boxy. I saw nothing tragic as I walked through (except a picket fence and sun flower mural in the laundry room). I started to become suspicious as I moved toward the back of the house.

I followed the looks of dismay and found myself standing in the back yard staring at a overgrown jungle. An un-pruned Linden arched to the ground. Meant to be the focal point, it was now lost in a sea of weeds. A large mound ran diagonally across the yard running from the house to the back lot line, sending up a divide between the house and the tree. No mower had seen this yard for some time.

What was the cause of this catastrophe? A newly dug sewer line. I'd like to emphasize new. That's right an improvement had been made to the house that should remove the need for me to have to deal with sewer issues for a long time. I'm liking this flaw. I was going to be digging up the yard anyway. This was perfect. A blank slate...I called my soon-to-be husband immediately.

A nice offer and a loan later, we owned a home that needed work inside and out. Of course the backyard took a lot of hard work, but it is a work in progress. I hired a crew to regrade the yard and we had a smooth canvas to work with. A lucky strike on some old street pavers and I had the makings for new landscape beds that would frame in the the new turf. It's been 6 years since we bought the house. Every time I come home with a new plant, my husband tells me we don't have room for it. I keep proving him wrong. With this home project, it turns out the hardest garden related job, was the four coats of primer and two coats of paint it took to cover up the picket fence and sunflower mural.

Quite the optical illusion, half of the yard sloped toward the house.

The finished product with border and plantings in place.

A tropical paradise

2010-08-06T05:00:00.000-07:00

Being a Master Gardener has a lot of perks. Not only do I get to meet great people with various areas of garden expertise, but occasionally, I get to pick up small divisions of garden gems.

This year's winner was a small clump of Imperial Taro (Colocasia esculenta var. antiquorum 'Illustris') with just a small bit of Papyrus sedge (Cyperus papyrus). The combination is truly wonderful. The Papyrus has wispy fronds at the tops of long arching stems like giant green dandelions. These fronds float above the large dark leaves of the Colocasia 'Illustris'.

The only downside of this combination is the amount of water that these two need to really show their stuff. If not watered frequently enough, both will bow their heads and wilt. Leaving a sad looking container.

Planting Bulbs for Big Impact

2009-10-05T20:04:00.000-07:00

I've planted a couple hundred various bulbs in my garden over the last few years. Until now, I've concentrated on Tulip bulbs, but do have over 20 different varieties of Daffodils, just a small handful of Allium, and a nice ring of Grape Hyacinths.

After years of admiring the wonderful effect of mass planting bulbs at places like the Keukenhof in Lisse, Netherlands (photo left), this fall I am giving my hand at a mass planting of Grape Hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum). I've taken about 100 sqft. of rock bed, and converted it to soil and mulch with a treasure of these tough little bulbs beneath. This coming Spring, the hope is a flowing crescent-shaped ocean of blue with 3 large rocks plunked down in an archipelago formation.

Though Grape Hyacinth bulbs tend to be deer and rodent resistant, I am trying to defend the bulbs from the inevitable onslaught of squirrels. The squirrels may not eat the bulbs, but it doesn't slow them from digging into the soil and tasting numerous bulbs before giving up. I've used a red pepper coating to remove the temptation. We'll see if the bulbs or the squirrels emerge victorious in the battle of the bulbs in the Spring.

Planting density is at 16 ridiculous bulbs per square foot (though higher is not unheard of in mass planting). The final count was 1525 bulbs. I thought I would be limited because of a crabapple and its surrounding roots. Turns out that you can plant right up to the tree, and the roots barely registered.

I purchased the first round of bulbs (1300) from Great Lakes Nursery Co. http://www.greatlakesnurseryco.com a subsidiary of De Groot Inc., for the great price of $0.12/bulb. The quality of the bulbs was outstanding. A second round of bulbs was needed because I underestimated the area where I thought roots would be a problem. I bought this batch of 300 from a local nursery at $0.13/bulb. Great price and instant gratification. The bulbs themselves come from De Vroomen.

There was a definite difference in the bulbs between the two suppliers. The size of bulb was excellent in both groups. The DeGroot bulbs were very clean with light papery covering (tunic), while the De Vroomen bunch had a thicker paper-like covering with a bit of dirt and mold on them (not necessarily a negative, just something of note). Also, almost all of the bulbs had two to three bulblets, not quite ready for dividing, on them already in the De Vroomen purchase.

Great Lakes Nursery bulbs photo 1, and De Vroomen in photo 2.

I'm excited to see what they look like when they bloom in spring. I am curious to see if there is a difference in productivity. I may even dig up a couple to see the quality of the bulbs later.

Time to Bring the Outdoors In

2009-10-02T20:14:00.000-07:00

It's that time of the year again, when I bring the outdoors back inside for the winter. I have a small number of tropicals and temperate plants that I like to over winter. I maintain them inside until next summer when I can enjoy their beauty, once again, on the patio.

I have two methods of overwintering plants. The hardier of the bunch, the ones that can handle being in 30 degree temperatures without hard freezing spend the winter in my 3 season room. Even when the temps drop to hard subzero temperatures, they manage to make it through with little damage. They don't thrive, but they haven't declined and that's the important part.

The second method I use is to store the tropicals in a sunny window in my garage. The average temperature in the garage won't usually dip below the 45 degree range. I don't leave the garage open for extended periods of time in the winter. Moving the car in and out of the garage on a normal basis hasn't damaged the plants either.

When overwintering plants, keep in mind that you don't want to over fertilize the plants. Vigorous fertilization can cause tender new growth that may not make it through the winter, and may cause decline of the plant. Also, you will want to water moderately through the winter.

A note of overwintering durability:
I have a large Spike Plant (Dracena spp.) that was very old. I overwintered that plant in the garage one year and failed to water it for 2.5 months. Gave it just a sip of water, enough so that the water didn't just pour through the dessicated soil, and left it until spring. It looked a bit rough for a couple of weeks. Then it perked up and was fabulous when spring came and the plant was put out on the patio. The Asparagus Fern (Asparagus densiflorus) made it through too. Durable!

Signs of fall have arrived in East Central Illinois

2009-09-05T20:31:00.000-07:00

Despite the unusual respite from heat through August, the early signs of fall are showing their faces. The leaves are changing. The leaves on the Lindens and Honey Locusts have begun to yellow. Even Sugar Maples are starting to turn red.

These are all good signs that I should begin the process of preparing my garden for the winter ahead. What is on the to do list?

Weed and feed the turf (using a winterizing fertilizer to help build the root system)
Remove the weeds in flower beds
Remove the dead leaves/plants from flower beds
Mulch the beds
Turn the compost as often as possible before the freeze

Unintentional Daphne Durability Test

2009-09-03T08:12:00.000-07:00

I've had a Daphne (Daphne x burkwoodii 'Carol Mackie') growing in the garden for 3 years now. It started out as a small 1 gallon plant that was killed to the ground in the first unusually harsh winter. That little plant had heart and it grew from the rootstock to about a foot in height. The following year, again harsh, killed the stems back about 4 inches. Since then there has been a beautiful flush of growth and the small beaten and weathered plant has become a beautiful 2.5 foot shrub.

The variegated leaves, the pincushion affect of the branches, the sweet fragrance of the pink flowers, the zone 4 hardiness for the midwest are all great reasons to have this plant in your garden. The one drawback is that this plant is very poisonous. Every beautiful part of it, poisonous. This last bit has led me to attempt to transplant the Daphne to a safer part of the garden out of reach of pets and kids.

It's said that when transplanting you should take care to get as big of a root ball as possible. In Daphne's case, don't transplant at all. This is good information. But in my case the soil did not contain the moisture content neccessary to obtain a root ball...at all. I have moved the plant, watered, and in two following weeks it has lost all of its leaves. I'm going to try to stick with it and see if it can make it through this latest round of unintentional durability testing. The weather has been especially cooperative.

Will try to follow up with more updates as things change. Regardless of how this plant makes it through this transplant. Though historically tempermental, the Carole Mackie Daphne ranks high on my list of durable plants.

Good information about Carole Mackie Daphne can be found here:
Hyland, Bob; Demystifying Daphnes
http://arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/675.pdf

Buying Bulbs

2009-07-27T20:42:00.001-07:00

When buying bulbs it helps to have a keen eye and the ability to walk away from what may look like a deal. I've bought bulbs from catalog companies, online retailers, local garden centers, and discount superstores. I have had successes and failures in all places. The most sure answer on the best place to shop, is a complex problem of matching the level of assistance you need, the speed you need it in, and cost.

If you shop online, shop at a well known retailer. The high-end retailers will cost more, but the bulbs tend to be larger, disease free, come with a limited guarantee, and give a great show when they emerge. These companies take pride in their product.

Shopping at your local garden centers tends to be the most expensive route. Not to give the fuzzy end of the lollipop to the local shops, along with the price, you can get live suggestions and advice. The real charm in buying local though, is the ability to pick the healthiest bulbs available. Like picking produce in the store, you get to sort through the lot and find the ones that look the best to you. See below about what characteristics to avoid.

Don't discard the discount superstores. Frequently, the bulbs sold in bulk at these stores tend to be smaller in size and have a higher occurrence of disease, but the prices are more promising. This doesn't mean that all bulbs are diseased. It does mean that as a consumer, you need to take time and look at the bags of bulbs.

No matter where you buy your bulbs, check for the following signs to prevent buying diseased bulbs: Dark spots, soft spots, rotting bulbs, mold growing in the bag or on the bulbs, or dried, shriveled bulbs. If you see any of these traits in a bulb, skip it. It's not worth it. You might be saving more than money by keeping your gardens disease free. Starting with strong healthy bulbs will go a long way to getting the desired results in your garden and is always worth the extra look.

Plants for Very Early Spring

2009-03-11T20:28:00.000-07:00

The first signs of spring come early. Don't be looking for daffodils and tulips breaking through the ground. Look for the promising signs of an explosion of spring to come. The surprisingly early bloomers like Galanthus nivalis (as well as other species), Hamamelis mollis, Hamamelis x intermedia, Helleborus orientalis, Iris danfordiae, and Scilla siberica peek out into the world when very few are willing to venture anywhere near. These early bloomers begin their show in late January or early February and can bloom into March or longer. They tolerate harsh drops in temperature, and are the very inspiration that this gardener needs to bridge the gap between catalog orders and that sweet scented explosion of buds and flowers in spring.

If I had to pick one...
If I had to pick a favorite early bloomer, I would leap at the chance for more Hellebores. Mostly shade loving, evergreen plants, with delightful slightly showy flowers that will last til mid spring. Hellebores are also deer resistant. Warning, parts of this plant are poinsonous if ingested.