No Care Mums

It’s true. Nothing was done to these mums this year.  They were not pinched back, though that might have made them more compact -- just the regular bit of compost and mulch and a friendly mother nature is all.

Shefffield Pink  is spectacularly large at over 3 feet tall. 

One little yellow volunteer appeared in my garden in 2007 and has almost taken over the bed. 

 

Great blooms following great summer weather.

Alert! - Impatiens

Current news from plantsman Doug Green at Simple Gifts Farm (see sidebar for website):

 “Downy Mildew is currently wiping out Impatiens plantings and breeding work across North America and this article is intended to give home gardeners enough information to make informed decisions about this disease and the alternatives they have.”

 Here's the story -

http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/downy-mildew-impatiens.html

 I will miss all that color in the garden and in pots!

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

I’ve been gone from this blog for a long time.  As I learn to live life as a handicrapped     (Freudian slip?) person*, I find I need to adapt to all kinds of challenges. I’ve lost dexterity in my hands. (This note was typed the old fashioned way.)  But, I’m learning to use “Dragon – NaturallySpeaking” speech recognition software. Hopefully, I’ll get back to gardening and blogging soon.

In the meantime, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and Joyful Holidays.  I hope your 2012 garden was spectacular and your 2013 garden is even better.

 

(*See June 10, 2012 blog “Inclusion Body Myositis [IBM].”)

 

Grape Tomatoes

Grape tomatoes either have improved since they were introduced in the late 1990’s OR I’ve learned to appreciate them more.  They seem sweeter and firmer to me.  They are convenient for salads or snacks, or roasted, or grilled or right off the vine – I keep a bowl on the kitchen counter for a quick snack.

 

Grape tomatoes have ripened in abundance since August and need to be picked every 2 or 3 days.  I often cut them in half and sometimes in slices to avoid an embarrassing mouth-geyser.  I’ve also shared their sweetness with neighbors. 

Two of my favorites are grape tomato ‘Sweet Thing’ (shown here) and grape tomato ‘Juliet’ (grown by a friend). 

 

Do you grow grape tomatoes?  What are your thoughts on the modern grape tomato? Which variety is your favorite?

Workshops for the Gardener

Immerse yourself in a day full of gardening topics.  It will be an exciting day full of gardening information and fun.

Master Gardener Workshops for the Gardener

September 15, 2012

Holy Cross Lutheran Church, 696 Johnson Road, Nazareth, PA 18064

All day seminar includes sessions topics:  Macro-Photography, Backyard Habitat, Composting, Vermiposting , Food Preservation, Seed Starting, Small Space Gardening, Fruit Trees, Hypertufa, Year Round Gardening, Invasive Plants, Pruning.

Keynote address "Pollinators" by Dr Anita Collins, USDA-ARS, retired. Dr. Collins has done research on honey bees for more than 40 years and is currently collaborating on a survey of native bees east of the Mississippi with the U.S. Geological Survey

Garden Fair: vendors with Birdhouses, gardening books, perennial plants, jewelry and more. 

Hurry. Registration ends August 31. Click here then click on “Workshops for the Gardener Brochure” for registration information and form.

More information or questions call:  Call Northampton County Extension Office (610) 746-1970.  Lehigh County Extension Office (610) 391-9840

The Season of the Lily

There is truth in saying “buyer beware”.

The Season of the Oriental Lily has passed for another year.  July is the month of lilies for me.  One of my favorite plants, they mostly take care of themselves.  They are reliable and bloom every year. 

Lilium ‘American Dream’ purchased from White Flower Farm in 2003 grows to 7 feet tall in my front garden. From one bulb I now have about 10 to 15 flower bearing stalks filled with large fragrant blooms in July.  Beautiful true-to-type.

Casablanca may be my favorite.  Heavily fragrant and somehow angelic, I purchased 3 bulbs from Brecks in 2009.      Beautiful true-to-type

I bought some bargain bulbs labeled Casablanca and Stargazer from a vendor at the Philadelphia Flower Show.  This lily labeled Stargazer does not look like any Stargazer I’ve ever seen.    Nice but not true to type.

This Pretty peachy colored lily came in the same batch from the bargain vendor but it is neither Casablanca nor Stargazer.  Beautiful but not true to anything I imagined.

I would not buy inexpensive bulbs from unknown vendors again.  I have a mixed bunch of lilies. Pretty but not what I had planned.

It’s something to think of as you purchase spring flowering bulbs this fall. 

Vacation

I went away for a week and a day

for a little rest and a little play.

Trimmed some hosta and several astilbe.

A gardener is a gardener and always will be.

A Delicate Combination

Pastel pink and baby blue - I would have never planned this combination thinking it too bland. I think it works here because neither bloom is overpowering. The quantity of forget-me-nots seems to balance the larger mum flower.

The self-sowing Forget-Me-Not seeds followed gravity down the mulch slope over the winter and geminated in the Clara Curtis Mums.  It’s what I love about the self-sowers.  Every year I see surprising combination without any effort at all.

Mum ‘Clara Curtis’, Dendranthema zawadskii, planted in 2004 from Wayside, blooms all summer. I cut it back just a little in late fall.  In spring it has always started to bloom early and continues to bloom until frost. 

      

Annual Forget-Me-not ‘Blue Bird’ Myosotis dissitiflora,  planted directly in the garden in 2006 with Ferry & Morse seeds. 

Mum ‘Clara Curtis’ info from Suite 101 here.

Forget-Me-Not info from Backyard Gardener here.

Spring Ahead

Spring ahead means more this year than a change to daylight saving time. Spring in the garden this year is weeks ahead of schedule.

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PJM Rhododendron (above), usually blooms in the middle to end of April. It wasn’t bothered by below freezing temperatures the other night. Last spring, I trimmed about 1/3 off and I’ll cut it back by another third when it’s finished blooming this year. It’s just getting too big for the space.

About ¾ of the mulch has been spread. The Helleborus’ (Lenten Rose ‘Royal Heritage’) nodding blooms continue their long bloom time. Mulch makes it all look pretty.

Daffodil season is winding down and some daffs are ready for dead heading.

Pieris Japonica ‘Mountain Fire’ is finishing its pretty winter bloom. When the blooms are gone, new growth will be bright a burgundy. This is what I call a bonus plant – winter bloom and summer color.

The mop head hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Venice”) is leafing out dodging the frosts so far. I cut it for shape last summer. I will only need to cut off the dead branches this spring. We’ll see how well it blooms this year after last summer’s haircut.

The early spring makes me feel like I need to hurry to catch up when, in reality, I need to slow down. The last frost date here in zone 6 is around May 15. Over a month till it’s time to put out tender annuals and vegetables. It’s also important that the soil be warm enough to promote healthy growth.

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The coleuses will have to wait for their outside debut.

More Philly Flower Show Photos

From the tiny scuba tanks to the little hanging baskets, Miniature Setting winner Irene Sobotincic’s “Taking the Plunge” scuba shop captured a still life of homegrown Hawaiian commerce.

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Anthurium and red lights mimicked a lava flow in the popular display “Pele” by Schafer Designs.

A few of the thousands of orchids in the displays.

Temple University Ambler School of Environmental Design is always an environmental treasure trove. This year a rain garden accompanied by a handout with a diagram and plant list was another testament to Temple’s attention to detail.

A model of Philadelphia City Hall and surrounding gardens was presented by Philadelphia Water Department’s “Green City, Clean Water” “Islands of Green in an Urban Sea.”

As always, there was lots to see at this flower show!

Perfect Weather for Spring Cleanup

before

after

Thank you Mother Nature.

The beautifully warm days recently have given a jump start to spring garden cleanup. I am feeling very organized this year. Last fall I did a better than average fall garden cleanup so there’s not as much to do this spring. Add a week of heavenly spring weather and I’ll be ready for mulch next week.

Another help to move the cleanup along is the tool I bought at the Philadelphia Flower show. It’s

called a Leaf Lifter from Better Garden Tools.

It's saving my old back.

Crocus

Is it my imagination or are the crocuses prettier than usual this year? They are definitely a couple of weeks earlier. I planted hundreds of crocus between 2003 and 2005.

I remember walking around the garden in spring and sticking tongue depressors in the soil as markers so I would remember where I wanted to plant more bulbs in November. I remember digging all the little holes on chilly November days. I remember watering them in and sprinkling the soil with cayenne pepper to try to fool the squirrels.

It was definitely worth the effort.

JOIN THE FUN!

ADVENTURES IN AGRICULTURE

Talk about your garden, learn to grow better tomatoes, pick up information sheets, enter to win a soil test kit, have the kids plant bean seeds and pick up coloring pages and crayons.

Join the Master Gardeners at Palmer Park Mall near Easton PA this weekend.

Lots more to see throughout the mall.

Adventures in Agriculture

Starting at 4 pm on Friday 2/10/12 and through the weekend, Palmer Park Mall will host its annual shop, play and learn event - Adventures in Agriculture. Penn State Master Gardeners, Northampton County Farm Bureau, 4-H of Northampton County and much more! Merchants will be on hand with local farm production for sale.

Learn about local food, 4-H Activities, ecology, antique toys and farm implements, animals. Fun and games for children are scattered throughout the mall. A mall-wide scavenger hunt is always popular.

Want to grow great tomatoes? The Master Gardener display includes “Tomato Time” covering tomato diseases and growing methods. The kids can learn “How seed Grow” and plant bean seeds. Gardening question? Ask a Master Gardener. Pick up free information fact sheets. A free raffle drawing for a Soil Test Kit will take place at the end of the show. Sign up any time. You don’t have to be present to win.

Get out of the cold. Come in and enjoy the displays and the great store sales that usually accompany Adventures in Agriculture.