Two gordlinias (x Gordlinia grandiflora) have recovered nicely after defoliating completely in colder than average temperatures last winter. The evergreen, shrubby trees are of questionable cold hardiness, and certainly I would not have been surprised if both had died. Now, I’m pleased with their rejuvenation, though only one has grown vigorously. The gordlinias are planted…
Category: gardens
Not ready for winter
Somehow, this year has passed too quickly. When cold persisted too long into spring, the internal clocks of many plants became muddled, and mine also so that it seems only a short while ago I was nursing too many shrubs through their winter injuries. I was jolted, along with the garden’s hydrangeas, by fifteen degree…
December flowering daphne
After a three week hiatus when nighttime temperatures dropped into the twenties, and then the teens, ‘Eternal Fragrance’ daphne (Daphne x transatlantica ‘Blafra’, below) shows signs that it will flower again in December. Until this year I had experience only with the spring blooming ‘Carol Mackie’ (Daphne × burkwoodii ‘Carol Mackie’) and the variegated cultivar…
Lost treasures
Changes in the garden are unending, witnessed through the shorter span of the seasons and over decades if the gardener is so fortunate to remain in place long enough. Most alterations are for the better, while others are not so appreciated. Perennials come and go in this garden that is dominated by trees, though there…
A snake’s paradise
Several years ago, through one summer a garter snake resided in the vigorous clematis (Clematis montana ‘Rubens’, below) that covers the rail on one side of our deck. I suppose there were occasions when the small snake followed the sturdy trunk of the vine down to prowl the ground below, but my wife and I…
With overnight temperatures in the twenties, the leaves of paperbushes (Edgeworthia chrysantha, below) began to fade, but after a few nights at fifteen degrees the foliage wilted, and now it’s dropping. This is not unusual, and the sudden freeze should not result in any harm. While young shrubs suffered only a little in the severe…
A heavy, wet snow
Long stems of nandinas (Nandina domestica) arch under the weight of the wet and heavy late November snow. Leaves remain on several Japanese maples (Acer palmatum ‘Okushimo’, below) so that these catch more snow than others with bare branches, though this snow will melt quickly and no damage is expected. A well prepared gardener will…
Sick of sycamores
Autumn is most noted for foliage that turns to marvelous reds and yellows before falling to carpet the ground. In this garden at the forest’s edge, perennials and small shrubs (as well as garden tools) can be lost forever (or just for months) if deep piles of leaves are left for long. So, a few…
Turning cold
After several nights with temperatures dropping into the twenties and teens, most foliage has fallen from trees and shrubs, and the few scattered blooms that remained on toad lilies (Tricyrtis) until a week ago have turned to brown. Splendidly colored leaves remain on Lion’s Head (Acer palmatum ‘Shishigashira’, above) and a few Japanese maples that…
Mahonias in November
I haven’t the gumption to prune the tall and lanky ‘Winter Sun’ mahonias (Mahonia x media ‘Winter Sun’, below) down to a height where most of the splendid yellow panicles can be enjoyed at eye level. This is an evergreen shrub that grows taller than expected, at least taller than I expected, though references seem…
Sparkleberry with few berries
The garden’s Sparkleberry hollies (Ilex verticillata ‘Sparkleberry’) need a friend. Or, at least a nearby pollinator so that pollen is passed between male and females so there will be more berries. I think that at one point I planted a male holly in the vicinity, but that was long ago, and the details are fuzzy,…
What a difference a night makes
A freeze was inevitable sooner than later, only I didn’t suspect there would be one the night I opened my big mouth to say that beginning the second week of November it was unusual not to have had one. So, temperatures dipped below freezing, and in the week ahead they are forecast to drop into…
Ramblin' through Dave's Garden 