| Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2004 - 04:12 am: |   |
May 13, 2004
Venosa is growing well. Here is a picture:
I also dug up Comtesse tonight and noticed there is growth around the root ball. This is promising. I moved Comtesse inside the house to share the window sill with Venosa. |
| Posted on Friday, May 14, 2004 - 05:03 pm: | |
May 13, 2004
Whew! I was on a planting mission today. I got my Bluestone order and Dan sent me the missing Piilu that I had ordered from him. Piilu got planted on the sugar maple with Multi-Blue. I look forward to seeing that one bloom as Piilu is a really pretty clematis.
So what did I get from Bluestone? I got 6 Brown-eyed Susan plants (Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm') which I planted around the parkway trees. I also got 6 Nepeta 'Walker's Low' which went in between the Susans. I think the color combo will be very nice.
6 Ajuga 'Silver Beauty' which I planted in the Rhodie bed next to the patio. Just something to soften the edges of the concrete a bit, and I believe that SB isn't as invasive as "normal" Ajuga. I got my Harlequin Butterfly Bush, which went into the front by the river birch and the two clematis, 'Betty Corning' and 'Duchess of Albany', which are very small and I have potted them up into larger containers to grow on for a bit.
I was expecting my other shipment of clems, but it didn't arrive yet. Tomorrow I hope. Oh, and it totally figures that I have seen Venosa Violacea at both WalMart and HD today. I picked up a 4" Kermesina and a gallon sized Arabella. The Arabella was planted on the river birch in the back yard and Kermesina is planted on the river birch in the front yard. I might have to move Arabella as I just realized she is a non-climber. I think I will just move her a couple of feet into the back corner. I am going to put Blue Boy and Venosa Violacea back there, so Arabella should work, too. Hopefully moving her again won't cause any problems.
Update: May 14, 2004
I did move Arabella. I moved her to where I have my Ville De Lyon. I figure she can cover us the bottom of VDL which has a tendancy to get brown and bare as the season goes along.
It was pouring buckets here all morning. We really have gotten a lot of rain this week. The pussywillow branches I stuck into the ground are starting to leaf out because they are basically in a swamp in the back corner. I am concerned we are getting almost too much rain. Of course, come late August and I will be bitching because we haven't had *any* rain and everything is wilting :)
Still waiting for my shipment of clems from that Cottage Farm place. They shipped it via UPS but are telling me they didn't get a tracking number. That's sort of an annoying way to do business. I guess I'll see how the quality of the plants are. It just seems to be taking forever to get here considering they are located just outside of St. Louis. I had my plants via US mail quicker than this from Brushwood and they are located in Pennsylvania!
Hopefully the plants will arrive tonight.
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| Posted on Friday, May 14, 2004 - 06:27 pm: | |
May 14, 2004
The clems arrived. They are nice sizes and I have already put them into the ground. It is SO wet out there that I had to plant them in puddles which I added a bunch of soil to. It is supposed to be done raining for awhile now so hopefully everything will dry out. On the plus side, the areas I planted them in should remain moist for most of the summer so hopefully there will be some good growth there.
I planted Venosa Violacea and Blue Boy in the corner of the fence behind the river birch bed in the back yard. Rubromarginata was planted in our yard right on the fence next to the utility boxes.
Sometimes too much rain is not a good thing. It had better dry out and soon. |
| Posted on Sunday, May 16, 2004 - 11:58 pm: | |
May 16, 2004
We've had a couple of dry days. This is good as it allows some stuff to dry up. The spot where I planted Rubromarginata is still somewhat soggy, so hopefully that won't be a problem. Supposedly you can't overwater a clematis.
Spent much of the day working in the yard. Did the edging on the rest of the beds, and Cj got most everything bricked. We only have the island bed in the front yard left to do with the regular bricks and then he's got the parkway tree beds to do with the larger grey wall bricks. He also installed the lighting in the backyard as well. We have a spot on the new dogwood, one on the Rose of Sharon by the patio, one on the pussywillow in the back corner and one on the redbud. Our house truly looks like a helipad now ;)
Bees' Jubilee looks like it is going to be the first of last years clems to bloom for me. I expected Ramona to be the winner, since she's been covered in buds for weeks, but Bees' is already opening a couple. After Bees' it will probably be one on Dr. Ruppel. This is a seriously exciting time in the garden :) Here's a pic:
I noticed that Nelly Moser is getting buds on her new growth, and I saw one bud starting on the Ernest Markham I planted a few weeks ago. Elsa Spath also has a bud.
Miss Bateman has already had a partial wilt! I can't say I wasn't warned, but sheese! What a pain. I'll see how she does and if she keeps wilting, she's going to be shovel pruned and I will try and find a Candida for that area.
So, I am just tired from all the physical work today. The day itself was gorgeous, mid 70s, sunny and slightly breezy. Edging those beds...what a job! But it's done now and once the brick is in it shouldn't be as much work next year.
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| Posted on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 02:28 pm: | |
May 17, 2004
Well, in typical fashion Cj has the camera and I have three clems blooming. Bees' Jubilee was first, Dr. Ruppel was second and now Ramona is starting. 
I took pictures with the old camera, but quite honestly, I am spoiled to the core by the new camera and these pictures are really awful in comparison. I'll post them here for posterity anyway.
Ramona:
Dr. Ruppel:
Bees' Jubilee:
So there ya have it. I believe that I only have three more Group 2s (that I planted last year) that haven't started yet: Will Goodwin, Multi-Blue and Sunset. I do have buds on Sunset, but nothing yet on Multi-Blue or Will. Multi-Blue is growing like a weed and Sunset and Will are plodding slowly along. |
| Posted on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 08:35 pm: | |
May 17, 2004
Nabbed a gallon sized 'Gipsy Queen' from HD today. This will be the last clem this year unless I find a total one to die for :P It's already in the ground, with some bonemeal at the bottom of the hole. I put it in the redbud bed and plan on making an obelisk for it. I left it on the little trellis that was in the pot, so at least it has somewhere to grow. |
| Posted on Thursday, May 20, 2004 - 02:08 am: | |
May 19, 2004
I am going to have to move Rubromarginata. According to Chalk Hill's website, it likes a "sharply draining" area. The area it is in right is anything but sharply draining. Ugh. So, I need to figure out where to put the thing. I think I am going to have to put it on the side fence because that is really about the only spot I have left for a very large vine to grow. I'll have to move it tomorrow. It's bee sitting in a puddle since last Friday and I thought today thatit just didn't seem happy there. Now I now why. Hopefully I haven't done too much damage to it in the past 6 days. 
I did see a little bit o'green starting to poke out of the soil where I planted the Comtesse after I "killed" her. That makes me very happy. I am happy to see that she is still alive and has a chance of making it now. Venosa is growing happily away, too. It hasn't put on too much growth since I took it outside, but the weather has been somewhat chilly for the past few days and I am sure that has an effect.
I think I am going to bed. I am fretting about Rubromarginata right now and there is absolutely nothing I can do until the morning, so the sooner I go to bed, the sooner morning will arrive. I am seriously debating going out there now and digging it up and putting it into a pot though...we are supposed to get MORE rain tonight. Maybe I will. I'm crazy, I know :) |
| Posted on Friday, May 21, 2004 - 03:28 am: | |
May 21, 2004 (1am-ish)
Yeah, I did go out there last night and move that clem. It really was looking pathetic compared to the others I got, too. I plopped it into the pot on the front porch and will have to figure out where to move it. I think it will have to be somewhere on the side fence, as that is the driest area I have open right now for a clem that is supposed to grow monstrous.
I got two new daylilies today as well and have planted them already. 'Addie Branch Smith' went in by the maple, and 'Mattie Mae Maxwell' by the variegated dogwood. 'Mattie Mae' was supposed to be 'Martha Fawcett' but the grower gave me the wrong one. Oops. That's ok, though, since MM is a pink and from the one pic I saw, it's pretty.
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| Posted on Saturday, May 22, 2004 - 07:06 pm: | |
May 22, 2004
Rain. We've had a lot of rain. It's great for all the plants, but the ground is getting almost super saturated. I should just enjoy it now.
Rubromarginata is doing better in the planter for the moment. I still plan on moving it, but I need to give it a few more days to recover more.
Moved The President from under the forsythias. It wasn't getting enough sun, so I decided to just move it over to the Wall of Clems. It is now next to Ramona. Hopefully we'll see some good growth now.
Speaking of Ramona:
I am very happy with that clem. I cant till the rest look like that :)
Elsa Spath is adoring her spot on the side of the porch opposite Nelly. She's growing like a weed.
Madame Julia has started to take off as well, winding about the rose and starting up the trellis with Jack. Nelly has some buds on her upper growth and I have a bud on Ernest. Will Goodwin is finally starting to take off and show some growth as well.
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| Posted on Saturday, May 22, 2004 - 07:47 pm: | |
List of clems:
Clem list as of 5/22/04
Jackmanii - 2002
Hagley Hybrid - 2003
Dr. Ruppel - 2003
Ramona - 2003
Sweet Autumn - 2003
Will Goodwin - 2003
Sunset - 2003
Bees' Jubilee - 2003
Ville de Lyon - 2003
Multi-Blue - 2003
Betty Corning - 2004
Duchess of Albany - 2004
Kermesina - 2004
Madame Julia Correvon - 2004
Etoile Violette - 2004
Rouge Cardinal - 2004
Polish Spirit - 2004
Ernest Markham - 2004
Miss Bateman - 2004
tritenata x Rubromarginata - 2004
Blue Boy - 2004
Arabella - 2004
Venosa Violacea (2) - 2004
Comtesse de Bouchaud - 2004
Elsa Spath - 2004
The President - 2004
Piilu - 2004
Pink Fantasy - 2004
Gipsy Queen - 2004
Violet Charm - 2004
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| Posted on Saturday, May 22, 2004 - 10:49 pm: | |
May 22, 2004
I decided to plant some of the other clems and see how they manage. They're small, but I think as long as I baby them they will make it. If nothing else, they have good, strong rootballs, and if they plants don't take off this year, they will take off next year. I can be somewhat patient with my flowers. It's the only thing I am patient with.
I planted Rubromarginata in a high spot on the side fence. We had a ton of rain today and the spot I chose for it wasn't very wet, so it has really good drainage there. Hopefully it will like this spot better.
I decided what the heck and planted Betty Corning and Duchess of Albany on the side fence as well. Betty is in the middle of Duchess and Rubromarginata, with Duchess being in a slightly lower and wetter (but not too wet) spot. I planted them 16 feet apart, so they will have plenty of room to spread out. Eventually I will probably end up getting more clems and planting them around the others but I want to give those three a few years to grow and see how much of the fence they overtake. From what I understand, each are very vigorous and strong once they get going.
So now I have a bunch of netting on the back fence that I had put there for Rubromarginata. I'm just leaving it for the moment since I will probably end up getting more clems to put back there...just not ones that require sharp drainage. I have a Comtesse de Bouchard and a Venosa in pots on the front porch and maybe if they get big enough by mid summer I will put them back there. I have had success with planting in the summertime as long as I water, water, water.
I found a spittlebug on my Multi-Blue today and also on one of the plants in the Bgarden. The Don Juan Rose has aphids on the buds, so I need to get the Neem out and spray. I did knock off some of the aphids by hand today and sometimes that takes care of the problem, too. I am not really into using pesticides...only the Jap Beetle drives me to get nasty like that and it doesn't always work :/ Why poison myself and the environment?
Cj wrapped the redbud today...it had one branch that had a crack in it. I guess it had it for a long time, since the thing was definitely old and weathered. But, we figured better safe than sorry, so he wrapped some canvas tape around it and then some aluminum wire to hold it. Eventually it should grow together.
Maybe some more rain tonight. I watered in the clems a bit in case we don't get any rain, though. |
| Posted on Tuesday, May 25, 2004 - 01:32 am: | |
May 24, 2004
Moving things around in the garden.
I completely removed a fairy rose I had planted by the flagpole because it has never grown well and I just didn't care for the look there any more. I had two 'East Frieslan' salvias there and the fairy was just too free form and didn't work anymore. So I got another EF Salvia and planted some vinca vine between them all. I think I will like that look much better. I gave the fairy to my neighbor, Susan.
Pruned the forsythia and the viburnum in front of the house today. It made a big difference and everything isn't so on top of each other now. I was going to pull one of the Miss Kim lilacs out but decided not to.
I think I am going to take out one of the fairy roses from the midddle of the island bed in front and move it the birch bed by the house...I am going to take out a couple of hostas from that area. I *think*. I need to stew on it for a couple of days and see how I feel about it.
Planted another Polish Spirit on the back fence. This was the one we got for my mom originally but she decided to out the clem in a spot where a PS would just not work (too vigorous), so we got her a Niobe instead. Niobe is a G2 that can be pruned as G3. She will lose the early flowers but I think it will be ok.
I ordered two new clems this week (sue me :P): Pagoda and Roko-Kolla. Pagoda I have wanted for awhile and RK is a white one that is a G3 prune. I plan on putting it with Polish Spirit on the back fence. I think I will put Pagoda on the (soon to be made) obelisk with Gipsy Queen.
I scooted over the pussywillows today, too. I had originally stuck them way back in the corner because I didn't think they'd grow and they ended up rooting and started to leaf out. So, since they supposedly grow huge and bushy, moving them away from the fence a bit seemed wise :) Plus, this saves me having to get another dogwood for over there and I still should have some space for a fountain.
I got a clump of 'Clara Curtis' daisies from my SIL yesterday and planted those next to the patio, in front of Arabella and Ville de Lyon. I don't have any idea how tall CC gets, so I guess we'll see if they end up needing to be moved at some point ;)
I think you get to a certain point in your garden and then want to move stuff around. What you liked one season, you dislike the next. There are some plants you always love, which are your standards and others that come and go.
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| Posted on Friday, May 28, 2004 - 03:02 am: | |
May 27, 2004
Here is an update on my clematis.
Jackmanii is growing impressively and I see a bunch of buds on him now. You can tell this is his leap year. Madam Julia has also started to take off and put on some length. No buds, but she really is a baby still.
Miss Bateman had some wilt (already!) so I cut her down almost to the ground. She is putting out leaves but no height, and I am hoping she is working on he roots.
Elsa Spath...whoa! She has doubled in size and obviously loves the spot she is in (there is a ton of mulch there from the rose that was there). I had also dumped in a lot of bonemeal, and I can tell. I've seen a couple of buds on her already.
Nelly is doing well, too. Climbing steadily up the trellis and there is a bud on the top growth.
Kermesina is putting on growth, too, and looking good. No buds, but again...baby.
Pink Fantasy is putting on new growth and looking healthy. No buds.
Huldine. Ah, Huldine. She is really doing nothing. She is alive and I am hoping that she is growing roots. I really see no new leaf or vine growth. Obviously, no buds.
Etoile Violette is growing nicely. No buds, but has reached over and grabbed onto the trellis netting.
Rouge Cardinal is growing well and I can see new growth. No buds.
Triternata Rubromarginata is alive but not showing any growth yet. The leaves look somewhat crispy, but it has been getting regular water and is in a well drained area.
Betty Corning is showling a little new growth. I don't expect much from this one this year since it is a serious baby. Same with Duchess, though Duchess is showing more growth than Betty.
Blue Boy is showing good growth already. Venosa Violacea is alive and healthy but not realy growing. I hope it's working on roots.
Polish Spirit is insane (no buds tho), and I just planted a healthy looking Roko-Kolla next to it.
The other Polish Spirit is growing like a weed, too. No buds yet.
Gipsy Queen is showing new growth. I need to get that obelisk done. No buds yet.
Ville de Lyon is growing. I am really sort of disappointed by it's growth this year, I did expect more. No buds. Arabella is growing a bit and is starting to get a lot of buds on it.
Dr. Ruppel is blooming and has new buds. Violet Charm is growing well. No buds on VC.
I just planted a Pagoda and a Petit Faucon on a small obelisk in the butterfly garden.
The Wall of Clems has a total of 6 clems on it now: General Sikorski (just planted); Ernest Markham (growing well and has a few buds); Bees' Jubilee (growing well and is blooming); Sunset (growing but no buds); Ramona (growing very well and blooming like mad) and The President (just planted).
Piilu is putting on some new growth, I noticed it today. It's not growing by leaps and bounds, but it is growing. Multi-Blue has gotten to be about 4 feet tall, with multiple stems, but is not showing any indication of getting buds yet. It is a strong grower, though.
I ended up adding some bonemeal to the clems I missed before, so the ones that got bonemeal today were: Pagoda, Petit Faucon, Roko-Kolla, Duchess of Albany, Betty, Rubromarginata, General Sikorski and The President.
Swwet Autumn is growing well, too.
My Venosa Violacea in the small pot is doing well. It has one very long vine and puts on a little growth each week. It's a baby, so I don't expect any blooms this year.
Comtesse du Bouchaud, which I thought I had killed, has poked a vine through the soil. I am just letting it grow in semi-shade and since it is one of the hardier clems, it should end up growing ok. I do not expect to see any blooms this year.
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| Posted on Friday, May 28, 2004 - 03:49 am: | |
May 27, 2004
I thinned out the butterfly garden today. It was just way too crowded and I was not pleased with the way it was looking. I got rid of two yarrows and one salvia, and moved a coneflower. It really opened up the garden a bit, but I think it will all grow together again anyway. The yarrow was just overwhelming the area and needed to be removed. When I planted this garden last year, I had stuffed everything closely together, and I had put in way more plants than the space could fit. I wasn't sure everything would make it. Most things did, so we have serious overcrowding now. Also, I think that had I known better, I probably would not have gotten this particular garden plan...I am not particularly fond of the plants in it. Oh, I love the coneflower and the butterfly bush, and the veronica is way cool, too. I don't really care for the Purple Rain salvia or the yarrow. The salvia is ok, but not my first choice in salvias, and I don't really like the yarrow at all. However, it is a tall yellow and easy to grow, so I did leave two of the plants in the garden. I also left most of the salvia, because I can tolerate them and Cj would have cow if I decided to rip everything out and start fron scratch.
I did order some more plants from Bluestone tonight, though, for the new bed next to the patio. I ordered 9 brown-eyed susans (Goldsturm), 3 nepetas (Dropmore Hybrid) and 3 erigemon (Blue Beauty). Three of the susans will end up going around the redbud, three will go behind the pussywillow and three will go in front of it. The erigemon and nepeta will go in front of the pussywillow, too, in order of size. I'll take a picture for clarification once I am done planting them. Hopefully they will arrive next week sometime so I can get them into the ground and they will have a couple of weeks to grow before Gage's party. |
| Posted on Tuesday, June 01, 2004 - 11:39 pm: | |
June 1, 2004
It's already June!
I haven't really been doing too much in the garden. Mainly wandering around a bit and pulling some weeds. Today was a windy, warm and sunny day (finally!) so the plants actually got some sun. My new redbud is suffering a bit from all the rain. My soil is clay and keeps the water so the poor thing is probably sitting in a puddle. :/ Nothing to be done about it, though. It either makes it or doesn't. I did notice that after it gets a day or two of sun it seems to perk up. Hopefully we will have a couple of sunny days.
I ended up getting a trellis for my Elsa Spath by the front porch. I was just going to have it climb on the railing but Cj pitched a fit, so...whatever. It is growing like gangbusters and has a couple of buds, so I expect to see a flower soon.
Things look to be drying out a bit. I swear the plants are breathing sighs of relief. Too much rain is as bad (if not worse) than too little. For example, the catmint in the mailbox bed is turning completely yellow and looking terrible. I hope it doesn't die because it was just starting to bloom. The mailbox bed basically gets flooded when it rains, but normally it doesn't rain for days on end, so it gets a chance to dry out in between. Not lately, though :(
The General Sikorski I planted last week has been eaten down to the ground by something :/ I think I have something possibly living under the shed, but who knows. So far it's the only one that has been eaten down and I hope it's the only one or I will have to start caging, which I am NOT looking forward to.
I took a bunch of pics of the garden yesterday but I am worn out and will post them later. |
