My wife complains (again) that the ‘Crimson Queen’ Japanese maple (Acer palmatum dissectum ‘Crimson Queen’, below) planted beside the driveway is a problem. I believe this is the fourth year she has brought this to my attention, but possibly it is the seventh or eighth. In fact, the maple is not only beside the drive,…
Tag: japanese maples
The koi pond in May
Along one side of the koi pond a gravel bog filter (below) is planted with tall, variegated sweetflag (Acorus calamus), yellow flag iris (Iris pseudacorus), pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata), and water lilies (Nymphaea). Pockets between boulders at the pond’s edge are planted with Japanese irises (Iris ensata), though a few clumps have been infiltrated by the…
The spring tour
Occasionally, a reader suggests that I should include a few scenes from the garden rather than photos only of individual plants. A time or two through the year I will do this if I can figure angles that edit out the piles of brush, and my old sailboat that is hopelessly landlocked by the garden….
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…
24 (or 25) and counting
After a harsh winter there is small consolation that the garden’s Japanese maples (Acer palmatum) have suffered little by comparison to the long established dwarf hemlock and Hinoki cypress that have been cut out and discarded. Evergreen magnolias could be the next to go, and I await the verdict on several crapemyrtles that are tardy…
A joyful day
Today, there will be no whining that the paperbushes (Edgeworthia chrysantha) and Southern magnolias (Magnolia grandiflora) are troubled, or that the mophead hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) have died to the ground. Winter has left behind considerable miseries that must be dealt with, but on a sunny, though slightly cool late April afternoon there is too much…
A spell of cold
After a delightful series of warm days, this upcoming period of cold is maddening. However, it is not unusual, and it is fairly common for a spell of cold to arrive in April just as the leaves of Japanese maples unfurl. This is when the leaves are most fragile, and tender foliage might be undamaged at…
When is enough, enough?
I can state with certainty that it’s possible to have too many trees in one garden. I don’t believe that I’ve quite reached that point (regardless of my wife’s thinking on this), but there are portions of the garden where one tree stretches to touch the next, and then the next. I don’t consider this…
Trees and shade
The inevitable result of planting lots of trees on a property is that the garden becomes increasingly shady. When carried to an extreme (which I have) the exposure of the garden changes radically over time so that sun loving plants are plunged into darkness. Many shrubs are forgiving of the encroaching shade, but some are…
More about Japanese maples
The Golden Full Moon maple (Acer shirasawanum ‘Aureum’, below) leafs several weeks after the garden’s other Japanese maples. It’s in nearly full sun, which is not it’s preferred location since the yellow foliage is prone to sunburning (though this has not been a problem for me). But, this should speed leafing in the spring, not delay…
Finding space for trees
There’s no disguising that I’m a sucker for any distinctive tree, common or rare, and regardless if there’s space to plant it, or not. Last year I purchased tiny saplings of Dove tree (Davidia involucrata, below) and Korean Sweetheart tree (Euscaphis japonica) since there was no space in the garden to plant full sized trees….
A flowering tree?
My nose itches. My eyes water. The maples must be in bloom. This is not some exotic variety, but the native Swamp or Red maple (Acer rubrum, below). They’re everywhere, and there are a good number in the narrow swath of forest that runs along the southern border of my garden. The shallow roots make…
Ramblin' through Dave's Garden 