Catch Up Time

It was a season of daylily abundance here. Day after day there were 30+ daylilies blooming everywhere I looked. An incredible treat coming out of a now mature daylily garden.

Up north at the little reno house, success! It doesn’t look like much in pictures, the front porch needs love, and the old shed needs paint, but the deer are now staying away from the new plantings. What worked? It could be that our dog likes to “leave his calling card” right outside the “entrance” to the two areas, or it could be the mulch. Time will tell.

So after so much trial and error with up north gardens in the past 3 years, how did I settle on what to do? It was actually a “happy accident”.

The association board at the townhouse (from which I am now retired), decided to have all rock gardens between the garages pulled out and replaced with asphalt. In the rock garden between our garage and the neighbor’s garage there was some history I decided to preserve. There were rocks from a previous neighbor’s parents’ farm that we had used to keep the landscape rock somewhat contained, and there was an alpine current bush that my father had given me 15 years ago that had thrived there, providing many a happy day for our neighborhood birds. The rocks went up north in two batches in big bins (which are now quite beat up from the weight but oh well, it’s for the new garden!).

For the foundation, because the soil at that little house is rocky and needs some gardening love, I chose to do a modified lasagne garden, putting a layer of heavy cardboard down on the very old lawn, adding soil where needed, securing the cardboard in place with the rocks, and putting a good 6″ of mulch on top of that. I worked the cardboard around the plantings. Then I trimmed the areas with the smaller rocks.

Because I was tentative on how well things would work, and because the results of my previous up north gardens were less than optimal, I built in sections. I brought up plants from things that needed dividing or saving from the townhouse gardens. The Rainforest Sunrise hosta needed to come out of one of the areas in the townhouse garden because it was getting crowded. The shrub start was from rootings off the alpine currant that was removed. The sedum were cuttings and divisions. The daylilies were from last year’s purchases and plantings, and the daylily seedlings were from last year’s Purple D’Oro seed harvest.

The plants I put in before I decided on the modified lasagne method took a bit of a hit from the deer, but since I put the mulch in the deer have left everything alone. Fingers crossed.

There is so much more that needs to go up in the next 8 weeks. Two trellises went up because we had to replace the ac at the townhouse. The new ac unit was bigger, necessitating the removal of the trellises. I cut back that clematis, and it will be moved next. Beyond that, the Blue Mouse Ears desperately need dividing, a Patriot Hosta has really burned this year in the landscape rock and drought and needs moving, and I should move some crowded hostas out of the area across the path from the weigelia. That will probably fill the current garden up at the little house, and then I will finish putting the rest of the mulch in. After that, sleep new little garden. Rest up for next year.

Hanging on to summer

Last week it felt like fall, but it was still summer. This week it feels like summer, but it is now fall. And so it will go, as the days get shorter and cooler and the gardens here slowly begin their rest. For now, though, the pollinators are still happy – our sedum are in full bloom.

And at the little house up north, five daylilies have been added to a yard absolutely devoid of any plantings. A completely blank slate front, back, and sides. Only an old lawn and a couple trees. Mind is going, but for this year, while other projects are prioritized, this humble fall planting will have to do. A little sunny corner to make a start. Next spring I’ll pull the grass, the first bit of lawn to be replaced by the start of the gardens.

Cherry trees and tulips

The cherry trees in the association stated blooming a couple weeks ago. Who doesn’t love their blooms?

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They are stunningly beautiful for two-three weeks and then fade to the background to start building for next year’s show.

Similarly, the tulips take center stage at the ground level at about the same time. Immediately following the crocus, they put on quite a show.

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I love it all! Here’s my dilemma – Unlike the cherry trees, the tulips are more of a “one and done” most years. Essentially they are fall planted annuals that bloom the next spring. In the years after the initial bloom year they are awesome at growing … leaves, but no blooms.

This spring, last years tulips looked like this.

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As beautiful as the tulips are, I have another plan. I am going to dig them out, reclaim that real estate, and plant some of the baby Purple d’ Oro daylily seedlings in that spot. If they take off, in future years they would look absolutely lovely in front of the sedum.

Having repurposed that space, when the spring bulbs start showing up for order and purchase later this season, I have an alternate option. I have, in past years forced tulip, hyacinth, and crocus bulbs in large plant pots. Maybe I’ll do that this fall again.

Spring again!

It is finally feeling like garden season, and some hope after a tough few months for the whole world. The pandemic has brought so much fear and sadness, and our hearts go out to all the families who have been affected and all who have lost loved ones. It is sometimes hard to imagine it has only been a few months. The heartbreak is incredible, and it seems like much longer. I just couldn’t get motivated to share garden news amid all of the tough news. But as sad as this sounds, at some point I decided reading and listening to so much aweful news and fearful projections was not good. I started to trust it was ok to severely limit partaking in media coverage and updates. It took a few weeks, but now some joy is starting to overcome the awfulness of this pandemic. And as the gardening season is fully arriving, it is bringing some positivity, very much needed during this difficult time.

Through the winter I dreamed and planned gardens. The association board work took form and the garden refreshes for this spring, now being done by an incredible local professional, are underway – 22 gardens at homes, and removing bricks, pavers, plastic trim, and various rock and mulch from around 42 trees and putting in only mulch. We hear it is healthier for the trees. A couple larger gardens integrated around trees will remain with rock, to be done in future years. The garden outside our home is one of those, and our landscaper reports the tree is well established and very healthy. Mulch may come in future years.

From my personal overwintered plants, the hibiscus is now back outside, as is the green shamrock. The green shamrock has mostly gone through its spring die off. I watched as the robins do what they do every year – pluck the dead stems by the beakful, and fly them up to their nest. It is the annual cycle. The robins get their materials, and the shamrock gets hardy and fills out again.

Of over 100 daylily seeds I planted this winter in pods indoors, 13 daylily seedlings came up. 11 daylily seedlings survived. In previous years I have direct sown our harvested seed in the ground at the townhouse. A few lilies have grown from that and this year I am anticipating seeing what the pollinators produced three years ago. For the extra work, this winter’s results were not awesome (I don’t think?) but it was an experiment. We’ll see if I do a repeat.

The gardens here are popping back like crazy right now, and it looks like everything made it through the winter. It’s pretty full, so of the daylily seedlings from this winter, I’ve decided to keep the 2 ‘South Seas’ parentage seedlings here, and 4 of the ‘Purple d’Oro’ parentage seedlings. 5 ‘Purple d’Oro’ seedlings are going to be in the year 2 test garden up north, with chicken wire the first year, to give them a safe start. I am hoping they eventually naturalize, and am optimistic, as I see entire fields of lilies up north that have made it. We’ll see.

More to come.

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Happy Leap Year!

Wow! February 29! Spring is around the corner, right? I hope so.

We filled February with a lot of activities, and the month was fun, but I’m so ready for gardening season.

My daylily seeds are in the refrigerator getting prepped for planting in two weeks. The days are getting longer, but the snow piles remain. Still, my shamrocks are back in bloom, and, right on cue, my hibiscus bloomed for the first time this year on February 26th. How does it do that so consistently? Soon another bloom will brighten a couple days.

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Outside at our townhome, the sedum I left for the birds fed another as well. Can you tell who else liked it?

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Glad to see it go to good use!

Up north we have ample snow as well – ample as in higher than the bottom of the doors the last time we made a day trip. But soon the wonder of the thawing woods will arrive. We’ll see how our fall planted bulbs fare, and if the asclepias and coneflowers made it through the weedy hugelkultur garden and the long winter. Dare we plant daylily seedlings? Still undecided.

More no work fall decorating

The gardens are in full fall color now.

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Late September Minnesota garden

The shrubs have now been trimmed for the upcoming season, the sedum are in full color,

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and the last blooming hostas are still hanging in there.

Last weekend I trimmed part of the clematis and a hosta that is first to come up, and first to fade. Although we’ve had low 80°F temperatures on and off, the mornings are crisp and cool.

The hummingbirds are still coming through, and Tuesday we saw something new – a dragonfly migration. There were dozens flying around above the lawn. It was very cool.

BUSY days

Over a week has gone by and we are enjoying beautiful days in the garden. The hibiscus had over 30 buds about a week ago and day after day we are getting treated to multiple blooms.

The sedum are really getting beautiful.

Even our butterfly friends cannot resist a visit.

while many parts of the garden begin their resting time.

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Not me, though. Not a lot of resting here. I went on the association landscaping committee, then volunteered to fill an open spot on the board. If you’ve never served on a board, give it a try! You will not be bored – lol!

This coming weekend will be more garden trimming – probably starting to trim back some of the hostas that are starting to turn.

Rainforest Sunrise hostas, and first fall apples

One of the last hostas to bloom in our gardens are the ‘Rainforest Sunrise’ hostas. The leaves are gorgeous all season, but the wine colored scapes and lavender blooms are icing on the cake as the gardens wind down.

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The sedums are pinking up too. It’s that time of year.

And yet another sign of fall, this weekend the farmers market had apples! I absolutely could not resist! Crisp air, crisp apples. Embrace the season.

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Fall additions, wave two. Seasons changing.

A week or so ago we made another trip to the local garden store. 4 additions and a replacement came home with us – two lavender plants, and two more chocolate colored sedum, plus another ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ hosta. It is my favorite time of year to plant, when I know with almost 100% certainty what survived the previous winter, and where I have gaps going into next year.

The only daylilies that are still blooming are the ‘Marque Moon’, and they are wrapping up. That area needed some fall interest. The two new sedum are just what that area needed. They are babies now but will fill the space within the next few years.

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The two lavender tucked under the weigelia, right along the path, where I can brush by the leaves and enjoy their scent. I hope they survive the winter and return. They are zone 4 so we’ll see.

In the progression, as the daylilies are winding down, the ‘Autumn Joy’ sedum are now taking the stage. I know, they are kind of like ‘Stella D ‘Oro’ – everybody knows them – but I absolutely love them. Over the years I have propagated many new sedum from our original ‘Autumn Joy’ plants, which were a gift from my Dad. I learned to do that at first because we had a fearless bee chasing Irish Terrier (Darby) who broke off stems in his efforts to eradicate our entry garden of those “buzzing menaces” – lol. From those poor broken stems I rooted sedum plants that within three years formed a hedge! That hedge got too big and I had to gift some, but now, years later, our garden boasts a fall tapestry of their beautiful form and changing color, woven in throughout the landscape. Here’s their first efforts at color morphing this year.

The garden also has an abundance of seed pods. The daylilies are full. The ‘Purple D ‘Oro’ are crazy full this year.

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I think I will have quite an April seedling project coming up.

And of course, the weather has been INCREDIBLE! Cooler temperatures soothe my soul. The crisp air renews me.

I already miss the “Wow!” of the new daylily blooms, but to everything there is a season. There’s still a lot of garden left.