The native beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) is only occasionally available in garden centers, though it is readily available through mail order suppliers. Asian imports (Callicarpa dichotoma, above) are showier, I suppose, and in a long established garden I avoid small, mail order sized shrubs and tree unless there is absolutely no alternative. The Asian beautyberry is…
Month: September 2014
Autumn flowering azaleas
After a winter of prolonged cold (with a handful of nights that dropped below zero), many azaleas fared poorly and bloomed only sporadically in the spring. Only the old dependable Delaware Valley White flowered normally in this garden (though three weeks late in mid May), and a few varieties of the repeat blooming Encore azaleas…
A few September flowers
Unsurprisingly, after being eaten to a nub by tiny caterpillars a few weeks ago, violets (Viola labradorica) growing beneath liriope (Liriope muscari ‘Variegata’) and ‘Chocolate’ Joe Pye weed (Eupatorium rugosum ‘Chocolate’, below) have recovered to fill in quickly. My wife complains that the violets grow into every crack in the driveway, which is true, though as…
Mysterious disappearances
This is hardly surprising, or disturbing, but very little seems to go exactly as planned in the garden. Perhaps this is why the gardener is so pleased when one thing or another goes right, which fortunately occurs with some regularity. On occasion, a perennial or bulb disappears from one year to the next, and I’m…
Fruits and berries
I’ve been known to sample just about any fruit or berry that I find in the garden or the neighboring woods that looks good enough to eat, so long as I’m confident it won’t kill me. I steer clear of pokeweed (below) and others that suspiciously look like they might be poisonous, but others must…
Foolish speculation
Years ago I realized the folly in speculating about natural cycles. I am continually amused that folks presume to forecast a winter’s cold or a dry summer, or that as a result of some weather event there will certainly be fewer mosquitoes, ticks, or whatever in the next season. If a scorecard were kept, perhaps…
Late summer blooms
The flowers of several cultivars of toad lilies (Tricyrtis) are too narrow for bumblebees to fit to sample the nectar that is protected beneath pollen laden anthers. So, the bee simply chews a hole near the base of the flower (above), and takes its fill. The bee’s shortcut undermines the toad lily’s natural mechanism designed…
While Tiger swallowtails (above) have reappeared in the garden after a notable absence earlier in summer, their numbers are not nearly as abundant as a year ago when I was astounded to see a dozen or more on one Joe Pye weed ((Eutrochium purpureum). More typical is to see a few at a time, and…
A stinging rebuke
I noticed recently that something was eating the redbuds (Cercis canadensis), both the red leafed ‘Forest Pansy’ and variegated ‘Silver Cloud’. First, I saw the webs, which I figured were the work of Fall webworms that are occasionally present in the garden, but rarely much of a problem. If I’m in the mood at the…
Ramblin' through Dave's Garden 