April 2009 Archives

"April showers bring May flowers." What a cliché!

Besides, I've got flowers in April. Even in the rain, a garden in bloom can be a nice welcome home.

Front Garden in the Rain


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Magnolia


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Daffodils and Early Tulips


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Pink Tulips Ready to Bloom


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

I took these photos with my iPhone camera when I got out of the car, just because it made me feel so good to arrive in my driveway with a view of flowers.

...
Copyright © all rights reserved. All text and images in this post belong to kbgardenblog.blogspot.com.

"April showers bring May flowers." What a cliché!

Besides, I've got flowers in April. Even in the rain, a garden in bloom can be a nice welcome home.

Front Garden in the Rain


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Magnolia


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Daffodils and Early Tulips


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Pink Tulips Ready to Bloom


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

I took these photos with my iPhone camera when I got out of the car, just because it made me feel so good to arrive in my driveway with a view of flowers.

...
Copyright © all rights reserved. All text and images in this post belong to kbgardenblog.blogspot.com.

I made the mistake once of registering my site (and its email address) for a blogging "event" that I thought was all about a good cause. I do believe, however, that the people who ran the so-called event were merely compiling a list of blogs to sell for profit.

As a result, I have periodically received many requests from marketing types who want to put ads on my blog.

The short answer to those people -- and anyone else who asks if I would be willing to put ads on my blog -- is NO!

So please. Just don't ask.

Thank you.

Winter in the Garden



...
Copyright © all rights reserved. All text and images in this post belong to kbgardenblog.blogspot.com.

I made the mistake once of registering my site (and its email address) for a blogging "event" that I thought was all about a good cause. I do believe, however, that the people who ran the so-called event were merely compiling a list of blogs to sell for profit.

As a result, I have periodically received many requests from marketing types who want to put ads on my blog.

The short answer to those people -- and anyone else who asks if I would be willing to put ads on my blog -- is NO!

So please. Just don't ask.

Thank you.

Winter in the Garden



...
Copyright © all rights reserved. All text and images in this post belong to kbgardenblog.blogspot.com.

I've left it rather late to take this blog off its winter hiatus, but then spring seems a little bit late in coming to the garden this year.

But now it's here, in both the front and the back yard. It started with crocuses, as it always does, but this year they looked just the same as last year. (Except for the additional mix I got at the grocery store last autumn. I have to say that was a waste of money. A poor showing of tiny, mostly pale yellow crocuses. I now understand why my "Ruby Giant" are called "Giant", even if I'm still not sure why purple crocuses are called "Ruby".)

We did also add plenty of early tulips to the garden last autumn, though, and that seems to have paid off well.

Early Tulips


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

The purple hyacinths are ancient (by the standards of this garden) and strong, and return year after year. The white ones return, but they are sparse and sickly looking. There are the light purple hyacinths under the gingko tree, which are the same colour as the periwinkle that is also blooming right now.

Hyacinth and Periwinkle


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

We also have dark purple hyacinths under the Camperdown elm. These ones are really striking in contrast with the hybrid daffodils that bloom at the same time.

Dark Purple Hyacinth


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Garden Under the Elm


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Hybrid Daffodils


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Over in another corner of the back yard we have other things going on. This time of year, with the snow cover gone and the hostas not yet grown, we get an interesting view of the base of the willow tree. This tree has character. And we love it (as do some of our neighbours) for the privacy it gives us.

Base of Willow Tree


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Under the willow, some flowers that will also eventually compete with the hostas that grow there: fritillaria.

Fritillary


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Now, I'm assuming, probably wrongly, that "fritillary" is the singular of "fritillaria", and that "fritillaria" is a real word. If you are a person well-versed in flower lore who knows otherwise, please educate me. If I am wrong, I'd rather not have it go on for too long.

Another flower that blooms at this time of year that's located nearby is the pasque flower. Here is one that is almost open.

Pasque Flower


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

It is Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Rode Klokke' (Red Bells). I did have some nice purple pasque flower, but these are newer, planted in 2006. I think the purple ones died off (it grew to be quite a large plant, as seen halfway down this post) and only the red ones remain.

Moving back to the front of the house, the magnolia is once again starting its glorious bloom time. I'm afraid the Nootka is starting to invade the magnolia's space though. I don't like to prune evergreens, but removing the entire Nootka is not really an option, since it is part of a group of three, so I might have to remove some length from a couple of branches in order to give the magnolia some more room to grow.

Magnolia and Nootka: Close Enough to Kiss


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

In this final photo, however, you would never know there's a problem.

Glorious Magnolia Blossoms


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved


...
Copyright © all rights reserved. All text and images in this post belong to kbgardenblog.blogspot.com.

I've left it rather late to take this blog off its winter hiatus, but then spring seems a little bit late in coming to the garden this year.

But now it's here, in both the front and the back yard. It started with crocuses, as it always does, but this year they looked just the same as last year. (Except for the additional mix I got at the grocery store last autumn. I have to say that was a waste of money. A poor showing of tiny, mostly pale yellow crocuses. I now understand why my "Ruby Giant" are called "Giant", even if I'm still not sure why purple crocuses are called "Ruby".)

We did also add plenty of early tulips to the garden last autumn, though, and that seems to have paid off well.

Early Tulips


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

The purple hyacinths are ancient (by the standards of this garden) and strong, and return year after year. The white ones return, but they are sparse and sickly looking. There are the light purple hyacinths under the gingko tree, which are the same colour as the periwinkle that is also blooming right now.

Hyacinth and Periwinkle


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

We also have dark purple hyacinths under the Camperdown elm. These ones are really striking in contrast with the hybrid daffodils that bloom at the same time.

Dark Purple Hyacinth


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Garden Under the Elm


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Hybrid Daffodils


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Over in another corner of the back yard we have other things going on. This time of year, with the snow cover gone and the hostas not yet grown, we get an interesting view of the base of the willow tree. This tree has character. And we love it (as do some of our neighbours) for the privacy it gives us.

Base of Willow Tree


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Under the willow, some flowers that will also eventually compete with the hostas that grow there: fritillaria.

Fritillary


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

Now, I'm assuming, probably wrongly, that "fritillary" is the singular of "fritillaria", and that "fritillaria" is a real word. If you are a person well-versed in flower lore who knows otherwise, please educate me. If I am wrong, I'd rather not have it go on for too long.

Another flower that blooms at this time of year that's located nearby is the pasque flower. Here is one that is almost open.

Pasque Flower


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

It is Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Rode Klokke' (Red Bells). I did have some nice purple pasque flower, but these are newer, planted in 2006. I think the purple ones died off (it grew to be quite a large plant, as seen halfway down this post) and only the red ones remain.

Moving back to the front of the house, the magnolia is once again starting its glorious bloom time. I'm afraid the Nootka is starting to invade the magnolia's space though. I don't like to prune evergreens, but removing the entire Nootka is not really an option, since it is part of a group of three, so I might have to remove some length from a couple of branches in order to give the magnolia some more room to grow.

Magnolia and Nootka: Close Enough to Kiss


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved

In this final photo, however, you would never know there's a problem.

Glorious Magnolia Blossoms


Philosophical Karen © all rights reserved


...
Copyright © all rights reserved. All text and images in this post belong to kbgardenblog.blogspot.com.

I think we’ve just entered that specific time of year we all love to read about - the annual “guys-search for less work in the garden and less-mowing question time”. In answer to those burning questions about ground covers, which ones work and how they can replace lawns, here are the practical details.

Ground covers work really well in garden settings where you can control weeds. Because contrary to established wishful thinking, weeds do invade ground covers and the only way to remove them is to hand-weed. So if you’re thinking of pulling out the lawn and installing some funky ground cover because it’s less work, let me assure you that you’ll be exchanging an hour of mowing for an hour of hand weeding each week. And unlike the lawn, if you let it get away from you and get really bad, you can’t just whack it to the ground and let it regrow. You’ll have to go in and really do the weeding. Keeping grass and weeds out of ground cover beds can be a lot of work. Ground covers are, in my opinion, a gardening answer to what would look good in masses, not the answer to what will replace grass and be less work.

Climbing Hydrangea as Ground Cover

Don’t ground covers stop weeds? Well, yes and no. Once they’re well-established and growing nicely, they shade the soil. This shade will stop most weed seeds from germinating. Notice the qualification of the word, “most weed seeds”? Garden reality is that there is always maintenance to be done because there are always seeds being introduced via the wind, animals and birds. No matter how thick your ground cover, there are always some plants that will try to take over that area. That’s how Mother Nature works in plant succession; taller plants invade shorter ones, and taller plants invade those until you have tall forests shading the ground where you started with creeping thyme. Give a plant a toehold and it will take root, propagate itself and before you know it, you have a problem of weeds and other “stuff” where you least want it. Before you ask, I think weeding in ground covers is a major pain because no matter how careful you are, it always seems you pull out or disturb as many ground cover plants as you do weeds.

The number two question about ground covers is the hopeful one of what will grow under a (insert one- pine, cedar, big blue spruce tree)? The problem here is that grass won’t because it wants a lot of sun. The space under a dense evergreen is just too dry and shady to support much great growth of darn near anything. So plants struggle on the edges of evergreen plants but underneath them, not much will grow. I suggest a thick layer of attractive mulch and don’t cut up the lower branches of the trees but allow them to spread the way Mother Nature intended them to. If you water heavily and grow on the edges of the tree shade, you can grow a garden but you’ll need more light and water than this kind of tree is willingly going to give.

Another favourite this time of year is what can I do with that slope? It’s too hard to mow and sometimes too dangerous. This is a tough one. The deal with slopes is that they require something that will hold the soil from eroding. But you want them to look good at the same time, you want neat, orderly and good looking. Mother Nature wants great root growth and plant variety. There’s a conflict there that sometimes defies solution. So if you just want to hold a shady slope in place then plants such as vinca are wonderful. They’ll grow quite quickly once established and will do a nice job of stabilizing a slope. Weeds will invade and that’s OK if the objective is to stabilize. You could use spreading ornamental grass or vines such as Virginia creeper in sunnier spots to hold the bank. It won’t look cultivated after a season or two, but it will hold the bank. While I’ve written about this before, if you objective in growing is to reduce work and have the bank look good, then my suggestion is you go with shrubs, evergreens, landscape fabric and mulch. Garden it up with larger spreading plants rather than try to ground cover it up with plants that will require high levels of maintenance. Or allow it to grow wild and let nature take care of its own. There are no middle grounds here for this kind of location.

This probably sounds as if I’m death on wheels on ground covers. Not so. I just want folks to use them appropriately and understand what they do. I think there’s a ton of marketing information that’s given out in bad faith about how these plants really work, just like there are implied promises that all perennials live for a very long time. The reality is that all plants have a role in the garden, you simply have to understand their strengths and weaknesses. If you want a broad swath of plants and if you’re prepared to prepare the ground properly and maintain them both while they are establishing and afterwards, a ground cover bed can be a stunning bit of landscaping. There are few things nicer in a cool, shady garden area than a bed of hosta as ground covers or the shiny-leaved Pachysandra ‘Green Sheen’. Sunny areas and huge swathes of daylilies or shrub combinations can be absolutely stunning on a large scale or patterned thyme varieties on a much smaller scale.

Just understand what it is you need to accomplish and what Mother Nature and the plants have in mind.

Copyright Doug Green 2008.

Ground Covers

Related posts:

1. Growing Peonies Make My Garden The tulips are pretty much over for this year...
2. The Advantage of Northern Gardens You know I really hate to read the Net...
3. Roundup Resistant Weeds Well what were we thinking? That glyphosate (sold as Roundup)...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Read this entry on Doug Green's Blog.

First observed in 2004, glyphosate (Round Up) resistant weeds are becoming established in many places in the US.

This is nature’s defence mechanism to overuse of everything to antibiotics, pesticides and now Monsanto’s herbicide Round Up.  This is causing some farmers to revert to using older herbicides in combination with Round Up, like 2,4-D a product banned in a number of countries, and famous as a component in Agent Orange the toxic chemical used in the Vietnam war.

No one can say Monsanto wasn’t prepared for this day!  Monsanto was aware of this problem as early as 2001, when it took out a patent on herbicide mixtures targeting plants resistant to Round Up.

Read this entry on Bifurcated Carrots.

Read this entry on gardenpath.

Read this entry on in a garden....

Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and brussels sprouts are all cold weather crops that should be planted in early spring. While many of these crops look different they grow in a similar manner. Cabbage has been grown for over 4 millennium giving it a rich history in cooking.
The crops love to be grown in cold weather. The best climate for growing broccoli and other brassica family vegetables is cool. They will tolerate frosts of 20°F (6.5°C) and like daytime temperatu...

Read this entry on Growing Wisdom - Dave Epstein.

Spotted in...

Read this entry on Geranium Blog.

Read this entry on gardenpath.

  Before You Start Seeds Indoors.   1. Make sure that’s the best solution for that particular crop. Check out Gardening 101: My Top 12 Easy Vegetables To Grow From Seed. There you will find lots of healthy plants that did better when I planted them in situ (ie, directly in the ground).   2. Read, read, read. Read the [...]

Read this entry on One Green Generation.

Read this entry on in a garden....

Driwater gel packs is a great idea for people with house plants who are going on vacation. The water is in a gel colloidal form mixed with nutrients. One pac lasts for thirty days of watering. Plant gel packs are a useful item.

Other folks who have delicate floors and a lot of indoor plants have had success with this product. They don’t have to rush around watering every plant each day, or reprimand their children endlessly about spilling everywhere, or over watering a now drowned plant or conversely under watering: Which results in the same daily parent child lecture about responsibility.

All those worries can be over, much like the washing machine automated the daily task of limbering ones knees, shins, ankles and lower back over the wash basin: the Gel Pac can automate plant watering, no robot maids or mini woolly mammoths required.

DRiWater is organic, so it is completely biodegradable. This brand comes in twelve packs and is completely safe for animals and people.

All you have to do is leave the gel pac in its plastic wrap, slit the side slightly; then lay it slit side down, and forget about the whole thing for about a month Thirty days..

Just think of it. Less chores! And more time to pretend to water neopets online. Be sure to log in, or else yet beloved pet might die.

Kidding aside; this is a wonderful innovation for keeping better control of exactly how much water a potted plant receives.

Read this entry on Aaron’s Home and Garden.

Seedlings Aboard!

The other day I watched a plastic bag float up into the sky like a balloon.   As it disappeared out of site, I was sadden by the prospect of the bag’s remaining life to  hang from a tree,  on a bush, or stuck in a ravine for years to come.  This darling of our modern world that reduces breakage and freight costs comes with an added price.  Plastic is littering our Earth and clogging up our landfill.  Creating plastic reduces a natural resource, petroleum oil. To make matters worse, some plastic leaches into our food, and it takes forever to biodegrade.  So, how do you balance our need to reduce plastic consumption with our fast pace lifestyle?

Just say No

I love salad bars; however,  the local supermarket only supplies #6 food grade plastic containers for its salad bar. I can’t recycle them and  cringe every time I use them. Inevitably, I take home the plastic and try to find a use for it. I  always vow to keep a clean one in my car.  Some how I always forget.   With over a dozen plastic containers in my house,  I am always looking for somewhere I can recycle them or re-use the containers  in some way.

One day I snapped.  The plastic issue was just to much for me to bear.  Here’s what happened:

I was at the local supermarket with my husband.  As he reached for the container, I just couldn’t follow suit.   He asked if I was going to eat and I told him that I couldn’t.  Why, he explored? I replied that I just couldn’t take another one of those plastic containers home, nor could I throw them away. The guilt was so overwhelming.  He chuckled and said, okay and went ahead to make his salad.  He knew that I was dead serious. He also knew that there was no budging me.  When I draw the eco-line, that’s it. No crossing it.

My plastic  mentor, Beth of Fake Plastic Fish, has taught me how to reduce my plastic consumption as well as provided me with alternatives to consider in its place.  So, instead of eating salad, I settled for  a slice of pizza on a white paper plate.  At least I could recycle the plate. So, how can you just say no to plastic or reduce your consumption?

• Buy products that contain minimal plastic packaging.
• Buy only products made of post-consumer  plastic that CAN BE recycled if a glass alternative is not available or too expensive for your budget.  In my area only #1 and #2 plastic bottles can be recycled.  Everyone I speak to thinks just because the container has a #1 or #2 on the bottom, they can pitch it in the recycle bin.  Guess what happens to it at the recycling center?  It gets pitched into the garbage.  So, check your recycling information provided to you by your recycling center as to what can go in the bin.
• Make your own and save it in glass bottles or containers.  See Beth’s home-made mustard and mayo articles. Two of my favorite articles.
• Bring your own containers to restaurants for left overs.
• Ask for silverware in lieu of plastic forks and knives. I always ask for silverware and given the same without any problem.
• Take your  own  shopping bag to the market.
• Teach by example at work.  Bring your own silverware, cups, plates, etc for your meals in lieu of using plastic.
• Buy glass or stainless steel straws
• Use stainless steel reusable bottles in lieu of plastic water bottles.
• Pack your child’s lunch using re-usable containers rather than plastic bags.  See Laptop Lunches , Project Kool, and Kids Konserve for lunch bag alternatives.
• Buy in bulk to reduce the amount of plastic. Single servings are a plastic nightmare.  You also pay more for the convenience.
• Opt to send online gift certificates rather than give someone a plastic gift card.  Unless you are going to re-use your credit card as I indicated here, the gift credit card goes in the trash.  Personally, I prefer giving cash for birthday gifts  when kids get older so they can get what they want.  Check out ECHOage for those who wish to create a birthday party that offer  a group gift consisting of one meaningful birthday gift and one gift for charity.

Plastic is everywhere and it can be hard to avoid. I feel like  a plastic foster parent since all orphan plastic comes home with me.  As I said before, I can’t throw it away.  Here are some ideas:

• Take home your plastic whether it is plastic forks, bottles, or containers.  Recycle what you can as in the case of bottles or whatever your recycling center will take.  Re-wash and re-use your plastic or donate it to your school for the teachers.



• Re-purpose what you can. I re-use my straws for bulb and seed markers. See picture here.  I re-use those salad containers as mini terrariums or paint containers when I am spot painting.  (See picture above at the beginning of the Article.)
• I wash my containers and give them away to people who can use them.  Freecycle those take out Chinese containers (meaning offer them for free on this online source!)
• Schools love small containers for paints.  Art teachers are amazingly creative and welcome many different items for projects.  I give my art teacher my empty cream cheese containers after learning that she was taking the yogurt cups we were collecting for a eco-fundraiser .
• Find out who else recycles your  plastic that you can’t but in the local bin. The Gimme #5 program takes plastics with a  #5 on the bottom.  Aveda takes the caps of bottles.  Most supermarkets take back plastic shopping and dry cleaning bags.   You can even recycle the plastic fertilizer bags where you drop off your shopping bags.  Just clean them out first.
• Have Ziploc bags?  Either re-wash them and re-use them or cut off the zip lock top and throw the plastic in the shopping bag bin.
• Terracycle has  a program that it will be rolling out nationwide which will take the non-recyclable plastics. Presently, it is only in select NY and NJ stores.

These are some of my ideas how to either reduce your consumption or use the 3Rs to keep plastic out of the landfills.  What are your suggestion?

This post is part of the Green Mom Carnival being hosted by Beth at Fake Plastic Fish on plastics.  Go over to her site and check out all the different perspectives about our plastic consumption and add yours as well. Next month’s topic is gardening and will be held at Sommer’s Green and Clean  Mom.

Similar Posts:

• Rethinking the Use of Plastic
• To Wrap or Not, That is the Question
• Meet “The Low Impact” Lunch
• Preserve Recycles No. 5 plastics at Whole Foods
• 18 Easy Green Steps Without Spending A Dime!

Read this entry on Green Talk™.

Read this entry on gardenpath.

Read this entry on in a garden....

It's always a wonderful experience entering a garden but often the garden entrance can leave a little to be desired. In many cases the entrance to the garden can be understated (at best) or completely unrecognizable (at worst).

And, to be perfectly honest, there doesn't even need to be an entrance - but we often expect to see some delineation between what is, and what isn't, the garden. Logically we expect to see a location where the garden begins.

The garden entrance could be as simple as a gate or elaborate as a hedged pathway passing between a dry-stone fence. Fortunately there are no hard and fast rules as to what constitutes an entrance point to the garden but they are significant in the way they filter visitors into your yard.

So why have a garden entrance? Is it a necessary component of the modern garden?

As homes get smaller and smaller many home-owners have opted for more open yards. The reasons are simple; gardens aren't so cluttered, they're easier to maintain and it keeps the costs down for landscaping the garden. But, it doesn't offer a lot of intrigue to the garden or any privacy.

How can you create a stylish garden entrance?

The first step is identifying how people approach your yard. Our garden, as an example, started very open. A large part of the landscape was our double-width driveway that seemed the logical starting point. People who arrived in cars would park on the driveway and then access the garden, and our house, by this means. Visitors walking off the street would then have to bypass the cars and access the garden through another point.

It seemed logical to divert this traffic into a common focal point and hence the birth of our garden entrance began. Apart from the driveway the remaining front garden is hedged with some westringea and this is interrupted by a rose arbour - the garden entrance.

The next step in creating a garden starting point is to understand how visitors are going to traverse your landscape. But even more important is what you want them to see and experience. If convenience is your aim then choosing the most direct route is probably a key factor. However, if your desire is to engage your visitors with the garden then directing them through garden beds, annual plantings and landscaped features is part of the journey.

The final step is choosing what design would make an appropriate entrance for your garden. Should it be ostentatious? Secretive, and deserving of further exploration? Or something a little more minimalist? Whatever you choose it should reflect the current design and style of your garden. Here are some ideas;

• Simple fence and gate - the easiest of garden entrances is just a simple garden fence with a gate to break the barrier.
• Arbour or Pergola - covered in a creeping rose or some climber this entrance can offer some romanticisim and mystery into your garden. It provides a very welcoming gateway to your yard.
• Stone Pillars - a formal structure such as pillars can easily direct traffic to a centering focal point and inform your guests as to where your garden starts. Using materials such as stone or local rock can even offer some age to your garden.
• Archway - not to be confused with an arbour or pergola an archway is fairly two-dimensional. It draws a garden entrance together by keeping some continuation but adds the dimension of height and use of curves to delineate the starting point.

If your garden is lacking a focal starting point consider one of the options above or try creating garden entrance that fits your current style. Your visitors will thank you for it.

Read this entry on Gardening Tips 'n' Ideas.

I’m writing over at the Simple | Green | Frugal Co-op today - please join me there!  Here’s an excerpt: As the economy ebbs and flows - but mostly ebbs - many economists, politicians, bankers, and people like you and I are taking a step back to figure out not only how [...]

Read this entry on One Green Generation.