Front Garden Containers

I am trying to simplify my garden a little bit this summer so I am cutting back on the number of containers I'm planting in the front yard. 

Since I have purple Salvia and Clematis growing in the garden I thought I would pull that same color into the containers this year.

I really like the way the purple looks against the soft gray here.

Petunia

Calibrachoa

Alyssum

Nemesia 'Juicy Fruits Papaya'

Osteospermum 'Lemon Symphony'

Verbena

Alyssum

Calibrachoa

White Osteospermum and Nemesia with a pocket of purple Alyssum

Front Door Container

For my Mother's Day gift, R and I spent the morning at The Growing Place choosing flowers for the large containers at the front door. 

I love, Love, LOVE this establishment and could easily visit once a week (or more), just to see how their display gardens change through the seasons, or to find a little something that needs a home in a corner of my garden somewhere, or to find inspiration in one of their display areas, or to get a question answered. 

As we arrived they announced that they were beginning a Garden Tour in five minutes so we joined in.  During our walk through the display gardens we decided that we wanted to try using a Hosta as the focal plant of the container.  R mentioned that he likes the way the Sweet Potato Vine looks trailing down the container so we tried to choose a Hosta that would be tall, but not too wide that also had a touch of yellow in the leaves.  Once we had those two plants we both agreed that we love the way Heuchera looks in the container.  We like the wispy blooms and the substance of the plant itself so I pulled out three or four that I thought would work and put them in the wagon to get a feel for the size of the leaves and the color of the foliage. 

As I was planting the container Saturday afternoon, I realized that three plants just was not going to cut it in creating the full and lush look that I was going for so I grabbed the Begonia that had been purchased for the patio grouping and added that in.  I was getting closer to the look, but wasn't quite there so this morning I went back to the nursery to grab a couple of extra fillers. 

I chose a nice Pennisetum for the wispy height it will bring in.  It will carry the color up and through the entire planting without making it top heavy.  I also picked up a Calibrachoa for the touch of hot pink to draw the eye in.  I knew the Begonia had a pinky flower, but couldn't remember if it was more coral pink or bright pink (it's coral - hope it still looks good together).

I'm thrilled with the look on day one. 
Now I just have to remember to keep it watered and fertilized so it will grow lush and full and lovely.  These plants each have the potential to get good sized so it will be fun to watch them fight for dominance in the pot.   

Hosta 'Sagae'
Begonia 'Gryphon' (??)
Ipomoea 'Marguerite' (Sweet Potato Vine)
Calibrachoa 'Cabaret Hot Pink'
Heuchera 'Burnished Bronze'
Pennisetum 'Rubrum' (Purple Fountain Grass)

Pergola Patio Container

Ostrich Fern  Matteuccia pensulvanica
Light to full shade
36-60" high
moist soil
Begonia 'Gryphon'
Part shade to full shade
12-16" high
moist soil
Impatiens 'Butterfly Salmon w/Eye'
Shade to part shade
8-10" high
Polka-Dot Plant 'Red Splash Select'
Part shade to shade

10-18" high

moist soil

Planted May 9th

R & I bought a different Begonia on Saturday that had the perfect foliage colors to complement the fern.  I thought it was "Gryphon" so that is what I picked up when I went back to The Growing Place this morning.  (I can't find the plant labels in the garage and I suspect they may have been thrown away in an attempt to keep things tidy)  However, I like the touch of red on the underside of the Begonia leaves and think it plays nicely with the Polka-dot plant.  I'm hoping that after a week or two of nice warm temps the plants will settle in and mix and mingle like they are supposed to.  The lightest green of the Begonia plays well with the Impatiens which in turn speaks to the green of the fern.  Then the red from the Polka-dot plant is supposed to create just the right sparkle in the Impatiens.  We shall see.

Clematis 'Henryi'

March 18, 2010

Lots of healthy leaf axil buds. 

This morning I spent a little time cleaning up the vines and pruned just a little off the top of the longest vines.  I also reworked some of the vines around the trellis. 

After reading a little bit on the web tonight I realized that I can and should do a bit more clean up.  I should remove all the dead leaves.  I had just raked up the ones that fell off the plant as I was working on it.  I can also be a little more assertive about pruning some of the weaker vines.  Apparently, I can even cut the dry petioles off if I need to unravel vines from around each other so I can get them situated better on the trellis. 

If I get around to it, great.  Now I know what I'm doing.  If I don't get around to it, that's okay too.  It will keep and I've managed to keep the clematis alive and thriving with  minimal spring care and attention up till now. 

I need to look up which clematis I have planted as a companion.

'Henryi' is a Group 2 (or a repeat bloomer) clematis.

It has large, lovely, white flowers between 6 - 8 inches across.  

We love that it is a repeat bloomer and have been suprised with blooms into late November!

Phlox 'David'

March 18, 2010

Red Charm Peony

March 18, 2010

This is why rabbits and I do not get along

Last spring I finally gave in and dug up the azalea.  It had never been happy.  I amended the soil, I treated it annually with extra special care and attention.  It didn't care.  It didn't thrive.  It didn't put out lovely flowers. I had given it a good six years of my life and figured enough was enough.  So I planted a lovely variegated euonymus. 

I Know. 

What kind of trade off is that? 

I just wanted something that would bring a little interest and a little light to the corner by the yews.  Just something quietly dependable with a little personality.  Nothing loud or demanding.  Nothing that needed extra special attention or care.

Variegated Euonymus seemed to be a lovely fit.  It seemed to be everything I was hoping for. 

I put the garden to bed in the fall and didn't think about offering the euonymus any extra protection during the winter.  The neighborhood rabbits hadn't even tasted it once during the spring, summer or fall. 

How was I to know that come winter they would not just nibble, but would devour that shrub? 

Now I can't prove it was rabbits.  They didn't leave any evidence (and usually when they have eaten on shrubs in past winters they leave broken twigs scattered on the ground), but I have seen them damage enough things in my yard and garden that I am willing to accuse and convict them of this crime.  GUILTY until proven innocent! 

Three summers ago we had owls in the neighborhood and very little rabbit damage.  Two summers ago we had a feral cat slinking around the neighborhood and very little rabbit damage.  Last summer I didn't hear the owls or see the cat and the rabbit population increased. 

I wish I knew how to invite the owls or the cats back and am happy to take suggestions.

Spring Has Definitely Sprung

These are the first blooms in our garden. I love the bright white and yellow. It's a perfect combination to combat the grey that tends to stick around Chicagoland just a little too long at the end of winter.

I planted these last fall underneath the crab apple tree.  The bulbs had sat in the garage since I purchased them at Farm and Fleet in the fall of 2008, so I wasn't sure if they would come up or not.  I thought planting them was better than putting them into the compost (just in case). 

Looks like I made the right decision.

Coral Nymph Salvia

full sun
height:  24"

Graceful flower spikes of salmon coral and white blooms until frost.

Euphorbia 'Breathless Blush'

Chamaesyce x hybrida
full sun
height:  8" - 12"
spacing:  10"

This elegant and durable new series includes the only red-flushed leaf form on the market plus a White with terrific branching and denser flowering. Heat tolerant Breathless fills in fast, makes stocky and mounded plants, and displays a showy mass of self-cleaning flowers all Summer across a wide range of conditions. The long lasting, free-flowering plants are well-suited to solo and mixed containers.  From BallHort.com

I will definitely use this plant again.  I loved the blooms!  These plants bloomed all summer long - (even through mild neglect) and who doesn't love self-cleaning flowers.  It's nice to know that some plants live up to expectations.