More than a few times, I’ve erred on the side of excess optimism in advising that one plant or another is rugged, or difficult to kill. Of course, any plant can be killed by chemical means, or by ill timed neglect. Of this, I’ve been guilty, and since some attention to detail is required with new…
Month: September 2016
Tragedy narrowly averted
If there can be such a thing as a tragedy in the garden (rather than a severe disappointment), one was narrowly averted in mid April when two nights with temperatures in the twenties damaged new leaves of Japanese maples (as well as hydrangeas and others). With fresh growth spurred by early spring warmth weeks ahead…
The first coolness of September
Following late July surgery, an initial bout of boredom drove me outdoors in the worst of summer’s heat. Heat and sweat soothed the soreness as I bent and weeded, stretching the surgeons’s instructions more than a bit. Perhaps, an indication of the extent of my recovery is that I now spend fewer hours outdoors and…
Sporelings in odd places
While I would not for a moment describe it as invasive, or even aggressive, sporelings (baby ferns) of Japanese Painted fern (Athyrium niponicum var. ‘Pictum’, below) are common in the garden. These often pop up in odd places, though always in shade. Along the narrow, constructed stream that flows between two of the garden’s ponds, sporelings…
Most bothersome weed
I suspect that each gardener has a particular weed that is most bothersome, and in this garden the most prolific is nutgrass (nut sedge, below). There are three sections of lawn in the garden, all relatively small in comparison to the area devoted to planting beds and ponds. The section farthest from the house is…
Drought, or just dry?
Probably, the gardener is too quick to label a period in summer without substantial rainfall as drought, but there is no doubt that the past six weeks have been much drier than usual. Serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis) and ‘Okame cherry (Prunus x incamp ‘Okame’) have reacted by dropping leaves. While moisture loving River birches (Betula nigra)…
Sad hostas
The heat of summer is likely to bring out the worst in any garden, and certainly one without irrigation. After an unusually hot August with barely a trace of rain, the garden is a bit more haggard than most years, though I don’t believe any permanent harm will come of it. Summer is rarely kind…
The assistant gardener, for better or worse
I notice that the assistant gardener (my wife) spends less time in the garden, and while her efforts are appreciated on occasion, I heartily encourage that she come out to visit, and please leave her pruners behind. I notice that ivy along the path to the back deck is still neatly pruned, and that branches…
The dry garden in a dry summer
Curse you. I don’t want to hear that the storm that veered north a few days ago dumped an inch and a half of rain on your garden. This was two days after you had another half inch that came so close, but scooted north of here at the last moment. A few storms the same…
Ramblin' through Dave's Garden 