Tag Archives: Gaura Passionate Rainbow

High Five

3 Sep

While the asters usher in autumn, I thought I’d take a moment to give a shout out to a few plants that have kept going, and going, and going–and are still going; the ones that have added color to my garden for three or more months. It was tough, but I chose the following five to honor this time around:

1. Euphorbia (Ascot Rainbow)–with its gorgeous foliage and bubble-like flowers, it has been putting on a show since late March. This photo looks straight down into the middle of the plant.

2. Hybrid Tea Rose (Double Delight) — it has been a delight since the end of April, with  fragrant flowers and lovely new foliage

 

3. Gaillardia (Fanfare-left, Oranges & Lemons, right) — it has been a bee magnet since the beginning of May

 

4. Verbena Bonariensis (Brazilian Verbena)–a tall, gently swaying plant; also in bloom since early May

5. Gaura (Passionate Rainbow) — though it did not bloom at all this year (its first in the garden), it has been flashing its foliage since May

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Tall, Colorful, and Handsome

5 Jul

In an earlier post, I included a photo of Garden 2 (G2) in 2011. Here is a photo of G2 last month:

As you can see, G2 has exploded. The focal plant, Crape Myrtle (Siren Red) is now well over fence height, with the Porcupine Grass on either side towering more than 6′. Ultimately, the Crape Myrtle will be taller than the Porcupine Grass; I just hope it doesn’t get suffocated before it gets there. A recurring lesson: check the spread (width) of your plants before planting them.  I only had eyes for height; width wasn’t really a consideration. I was looking for tall, colorful, and handsome, and in some cases ended up with fat and jolly instead. But it’s hard to be upset with a happy plant.

The new Gauras (Passionate Rainbow) on both sides in the front filled in quite nicely, but have yet to bloom. I suspect they will not this year. Maybe I am fated to not have Gauras, though I love them. But the yellow Euphorbia is still pulling its weight, as it has been since March. And new this year are two Azaleas–the two lighter green plants at the far left- and right-hand sides of the photo, just below fence level. I planted them in April, and am already fairly certain they are getting too much sun, so a relocation may be in the works. Another lesson worth repeating from 2011: don’t be afraid to move plants around. Of course, it would be best not to do it at high noon in 100+ degree weather (of the kind we have been experiencing lately); even the hardiest plant would have a rough time under those conditions. In fact, I can’t blame them. I’d wilt, too, if I were unceremoniously dumped into a hot hole with the sun beating down on my head. So I will keep my eye on the azaleas  and move them if needed–on a cooler, overcast day when rain is predicted.

I leave you with a couple other photos of the garden from June: a corner of Garden 1 (G1) featuring some pink and orange Echinacea, as well as Rudbeckia Giant Coneflower, which is stunningly tall, colorful, and handsome, and a total bird magnet.

And Garden 3 (G3) looking down toward G2, with the coppery Hibiscus and crimson-colored Yarrow in the foreground, and orange Butterfly Weed by the tree. Don’t be fooled by the Yarrow, however. It is proving to be all show and no substance. More on that soon.

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2011: Lessons Learned from the Garden

21 Jun

When it comes to gardening, I learn as I go. In 2011, I learned some valuable lessons:

  1. Yarrow gets big and bushy and then it starts to fall open, exposing its barer, unattractive core. Of course, this could be due to the fact that perhaps one is supposed to stake Yarrow. But I am not about to start staking my plants. Harsh, I know — but when you don’t have a lot of time to garden, it comes down to survival of the fittest, not support for the floppiest. For this reason, Yarrow was on my do-not-resuscitate list. Actually, it earned a spot on my get-rid-of list, not only because of its spineless character, but also because when it fades, it doesn’t fade nicely. When I could no longer bear to look at it, I leveled it. And lo and behold, it bloomed again. For that act of bravery, it earned a reprieve. But I have my eye on it.
  2. Some plants, such as Asters, are space hogs.  Of course, had I paid more attention to info about plant spread, rather than just plant height, I might have realized this beforehand. This oversight on my part has caused some problems elsewhere in the garden, and I suspect I will be trimming or moving (or removing) plants in years to come for this very reason. As an example, Montauk Daisy is also a remarkable grower, and within one year, the two daisies I planted completely overtook the poor Asiatic Lilies in front of them, like a mother hen atop her eggs. The lilies did not survive the experience. The daisies are now on my watch list. As for the Asters, two of them had to go, and they did, in Spring 2012.
  3. Gaura (Belleza Dark Pink) did not survive the winter. All six plants died. I was willing to give them one more chance and plant them again, but I couldn’t find the same variety. Instead, I’ve planted Gaura (Passionate Rainbow), which caught my eye because of its wonderful foliage; you can see it here in the foreground (note the bushy green Montauk Daisy in the back). If this new Gaura does not survive, that’s it — I will move on to something hardier.
  4. Beware of hubris. A couple of my tulips did not come up in 2012. Those miserable squirrels (see the bottom of this post) must have figured out how to get them. But my squirrel-proof bird feeder gives them pause. Actually, it doesn’t; they just get the seeds that fall to the ground. Miserable squirrels.
  5. Marc Chagall said, “All colors are the friends of their neighbors and the lovers of their opposites.” But some flowers in my garden in 2011 just did not go well with their neighbors. They may have been friends, but they weren’t a love match. So I moved them. This is a lesson I learned a while ago — if you aren’t happy with a particular combination of flowers, if the colors don’t sing together, move things around. If the plants are hardy, they will be back next year. Otherwise, they shouldn’t be in the garden.
  6. Final lesson is one concerning dogs and gardens, but as there are as of yet no solutions to that particular problem, I will simply leave you with a photo of the two culprits:

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2010: An Unplanned Garden and the Philosophy Behind It

19 Jun

I did a lot of thinking and thumbing through gardening books during the winter of 2010 in preparation for our future garden, but basically, I am someone with more optimism than concrete knowledge of garden design (or in fact, gardening in general beyond the bare basics).  I do not know how to propagate, have rarely had to divide my plants, and can’t be bothered with elaborate plant care beyond deadheading, watering, mulching, fertilizing every once in a blue moon, and keeping them somewhat tidy. I realize this is anathema to real gardeners, and one day, I hope to become a real gardener. In the meantime, I will keep planting things and hoping for the best. In hindsight, this operating procedure of diving right in and tweaking as I go is not new. It is the underlying principle by which I have painted the interior of our houses, but that is another story. I will only say that it helps to have an understanding husband who likes the end result and puts up with the tortuous path I take in getting there.

But back to the garden: we started digging out three flower beds in the summer of 2010, after hosting an Easter Egg Hunt in our bare, grass-only yard, at which point it became quite clear that hiding colorful plastic Easter Eggs in a sea of flat green requires a lot of creativity.

My very simple gardening philosophy was the same then as it is now:

  1. Flower type: Perennials all the way, with a very occasional annual or two to liven things up as needed.
  2. Color scheme:  Hot (purples, fuchsias/wine reds, oranges, and yellow).
  3. Foliage: Different leaf shapes and colors (variegated and non-variegated) are essential.
  4. Height: It  matters! Flower gardens need a different mix of plant heights. Also, taller plants can help form a natural privacy screen along fences shared with neighbors.
  5. Bloom period:  Plant flowers with differing bloom times, to ensure at least some activity in the garden from early April into October.

2012 example of hot-colored perennials with diverse foliage and differing heights: Garden 2

Armed with these few concrete thoughts and a very preliminary list of possible plants that could meet my requirements, I ventured out to the local nursery. What always happens is I cannot find many plants on my list, either because the specific variety is simply not available (or is not common to my area), or I am visiting the nursery at the wrong time. So then I end up with plants not on my list. On the plus side: there are some beautiful plants in my garden I might never have considered had they not caught my eye at the nursery. On the minus side: as with clothes shopping, it is easy to buy something beautiful in the store only to realize once you are home that it just doesn’t look quite right on you no matter how hard you try to make it work. A far corner of my garden now features these spur-of-the moment horticultural purchases, the ones that don’t quite work in the main flower beds.  But I am now no longer swayed by a pretty bloom unless I know it will fit and make the garden look better by its presence.  I’d like to say that is also true of pretty dresses….

Next: Phase 1.

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