Asters.....fall's last hurrah..

Lovely fall asters

Asters serve as miniature green hedgerows all spring and summer long.  Just when it seems like the end is near, these lovely lumps of green burst open with pale lavender daisy-like blossoms.  They are a mass of color, a final food source for every bee in the county.

Great path liners

 About a foot tall, this variety is "un-named" since the dear old friend who gave me start had no idea of where it came from.  It performs best in full sun but will do okay in part sun too.  A prolific grower, it spreads by roots.  Although the foliage can start looking wimpy by October, it is very forgivable due to the abundance of color.

Final fall colors

Used to line the entire path, they draw the eye toward the garden shed on this sunny Autumn morning.

Happy Gardening!

Tulip Buying Time

Tulip garden in April----something to plan now....

Yes, I know, the fall rains are coming.  You're tired of gardening and weeding and mowing.  It's yucky outside, muddy too.  But think now of spring.  Think of that spot in your yard that would be perfect for a tulip bed.  An April or May garden bursting with color.

Sunny day in May....

So head out now and buy some tulip bulbs.  This garden had nearly 100 bulbs!!!!  It bloomed for months and was so very worth the money I spent on the top quality bulbs.

Who can resist these?

I may be a penny pincher in many other areas of the garden, but not here.  Lavish, healthy bulbs will give you an amazing garden early next spring.

Happy Gardening!

Dead heading the easy way!

Hmmm....the mower might just do the job!

Snow on the Mountain- Aegopodium podagraria 'Variegatum'

When it comes to rugged groundcover that can tolerate tough soil conditions, there's nothing like Snow on the Mtn (as we commonly call it here in the Northwest).  When the construction crew left only subsoil along my foundation, I chose this hardy plant.  I knew before I started that this plant had the reputation of being invasive.  I have restricted it to just this section of the yard and hit it with weed killer if it creeps out of place.  It spreads by roots and seeds.  I also deadhead after the summer blooming but never add any part of it to any compost piles.  It's simply too prolific. Tolerates sun to part sun.
                                                                                      

How to handle a project this size?  I'm a firm believer in simple is best.  This bed is free of rocks or stumps that could harm a mower blade so I decided to simply mulch down the entire bed.  I used a rocking motion to chop off the taller materials and slowly set the mower back down on its wheels.

By leaning the mower up slightly, the entire plant can be munched down.

The mulching blade does a nice job....

One bed is already done

Then rake all the mulch evenly for winter.....

This plot gave me several full bags of mulch. I prefer to remove all the mulch then spread it evenly back on the beds.  It's important that you return all of the Snow on the Mtn to this same area.  It's hard to get rid of if it takes hold in, say, a nice perennial bed.  After "deadheading," I mowed the surrounding lawn area as well, added grass clippings and a few fall leaves to the bed.  A few quick sweeps with a spring rake and the job is done.  It is now ready for winter.  The uniform appearance is visually acceptable and will naturally break down and feed the beds as well.  The whole job took about half and hour.

Happy Gardening!

Naked Lady in the Garden-Amaryllis belladonna

Naked Lady Lily in full bloom

Sipping coffee in my elderly neighbor's kitchen, I noticed a mischievous twinkle in his eye as he told me there was a naked lady in his garden.  Never anything but a gentleman, I was surprised by his humor and took the bait.  "Yep, right by the corner of the house, right next to my wife's camellia bush"....we traipsed out there together.  And sure enough, there was a stunning pink, fragrant lily without a single bit of foliage nearby.  She was my first encounter with nudity in the garden.....

Naked Lady Lily in garden

Ladies in bud stage

July foliage dies back

A few years later, another friend offered to share her plants with me.  After a full day of weeding, I brought my enormous bulbs home and planted them in my own garden.  Naked ladies can be a bit finnicky, I guess we can't blame them, but it took mine 3 years to bloom again.

Here's how to grow them:

Plant in deep, rich soil in full sun.  The top of the bulb just below the soil.  Water regularly.  Around July the foliage will shrivel up and you'll think you killed the poor girls.  When the leaves turn brown, trim them away.  In a few weeks purplish red stalks will appear.  Shortly thereafter, the buds will open and bear up to a dozen 3-4 inch blooms.  Good prices at the following site:

willowcreekgardens.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=328

While the flowers are beautiful, they do look a bit odd all alone in the September garden.  Next spring I'll have to remember to plant a companion for them.  Perhaps Lady's Mantle?

Happy Gardening!

Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

Autumn Joy in July-still green

Autumn Joy in late September-deep pink 

As perennials fade and the leaves start to turn, 'Autumn Joy' is just starting to reign in the garden.  The pale green heads of summer are now a full, rich pink.  As the season progresses, they will turn a rich brown that can remain all winter long.  It adds interest on those long, rainy Northwest days.


In the early spring, cut back all the foliage, being careful not to damage the new nubs of growth that emerge.  Full sun, little water, and light on the fertilizer.  I have experimented with part shade---the result was spindly plants that fell over easily.  They do very well in my rock garden just outside the range of my hose.  This is a great beginner's plant.  Spreads by the roots and can be divided in the spring and shared after just a year or two.  This large clump can easily yield 10 nice plants next year.

Bamboozled.....

Bamboo.....ahh, they are so lovely, evergreen and easy to grow. But, you've heard such terrible stories about bamboo taking over that you really are not so sure about using them in your yard. If you're puzzled, or rather, bamboozled, maybe I can shed a little light on the subject.

There are basically two kinds of bamboo. Running and clumping. The running bamboo spreads by sending runners out from the main plant. A few inches to a few feet away. The roots are tough, the new shoots pop up and the bamboo forest expands. Some spread very quickly, others not quite as fast.

Clumping bamboo means that the roots stay in a clump. It tends to keep to itself. It will expand some but nowhere near the pace of the running bamboo.

When it comes to varieties, there are hundreds to choose from. Green to golden yellow to black stalks, and leaves also can vary in color. Thin stalks to massive stalks. Towering to dwarf.

As a thrifty gardener, I dug up a few clumps from a neighbor's yard. I liked the height, the color, the airiness and the nice movement in the gentlest of breezes. I had a nice side-yard I wanted to screen from the neighbor's view so I put in five clumps HOPING they would spread. After about 5 or 6 years, I was glad to report that they did spread nicely. They filled in the row and I started giving away starts to my friends.

Tips: Plant running varieties where you know that you want them for a long time. Full to part sun, water and fertilize normally. I like to use a groundcover and also plant some accents around them. They are wonderful backdrops. To keep a group from leaning all over the place, pound in a sturdy stake and tie them up at whatever level is appealing to the eye. Thin out any scrawny shoots. The emerging diameter is also the mature diameter. I cull out my bamboo once or twice a year. Save the sturdy stalks for garden use later on. Sweet peas do nicely on bamboo stakes.

You can also keep the bamboo in bounds by erecting an 18"barrier around your planting area. Concrete, steel or other rugged material. Wood will rot and be quickly penetrated. Bury all but the top 2-3inches of the barrier. This lip prevents roots from climbing over the barrier. Another effective barrier is water. Bamboo will not cross water, so a stream or pond is a good edging for them.

Again, a thrifty way to subdue bamboo is to use a sharp edged shovel once or twice a year and go around the perimeter of the bamboo. Cut through any roots trying to escape. It will head them back without too much effort. I don't bother to pull the roots out, cutting seems to do the trick. Some may disagree with me on this but it has worked both times that I've grown bamboo.

Plant

Stake

Thin

Trim roots

Enjoy!

Do you Care at all? Cover my shoulders.....

Late season carrots are wonderful. Sweet, crunchy, fresh....but there are a few tips to keep in mind.

On a cool spell in August, an overcast day, I planted two short rows of carrots. I kept them watered and they came up in about a week. I thinned them when very small and again as fingerlings, see second photo. A quick scrubbing and the baby carrots make a great snack.

When I harvested my earlier crop of carrots, along with a couple of cukes and the first of my bush beans, I noticed the tell-tale signs of carrots being a little neglected. The red blush at the shoulder of the carrot tells me that the shoulders were left exposed when I was working in the garden. (In the bottom photo, the carrot on the right was in trouble, the one on the left looks normal.) Maybe I loosened the soil when thinning or perhaps when I was weeding I exposed the tops. No real harm done for now, but in the fall it's quite another story. Exposed shoulders are an invite for trouble---slugs lead the group of crusaders. So, if you "Carrot All", cover up the shoulders of this darling of the fall garden.