When Gardeners are Crazier than Golfers

In another life I managed the clubhouse at a very "chi chi" country club in South Carolina. It was there that I discovered how crazy some golfers can be. In the midst of howling winds, black clouds, crackling lightning, and alarms telling them to get off the course, I would inevitably look out my window and see a golfer raising his (iron) club up in the air for that one final shot (Final being the key word here).

Fast forward to the present, when I'm gardening for a living. I garden in three places: "The Big House," a garden I'm truly passionate about, and from which many of these photos are taken; "The Red Headed Step Child," which is what I call my own little suburban garden; and "The Penthouse," which sits atop one of Atlanta's better known towers.

If you've been paying attention to Atlanta weather, you know that we've had pretty major electrical storms last night and today (Until you live in the South, you only think you have seen lightning!) Anyway......guess which day Chuck and I chose to replace all the plants in the Zen garden, way up there in the sky?

After loading the truck and driving into the city, we did the usual "through the gates, down the ramp to the loading dock, unload the truck and go find parking for it, load all the plants onto carts, roll them down the hall to the security desk, up the elevator for a mile and a half, and gingerly walk five trees, four shrubs, eighteen groundcovers, bags of (wet)Erthfood and potting soil, and all our supplies through most of the apartment, through the bathroom to the terrace."

We got to the terrace, and there was ridiculous wind, but that's sort of the norm for that garden. Then it was time to play "Beat the Clock" to remove the old and tired bamboo that's been in the Balinese antique containers for ten years, and replace it with the new plants. (Have you seen the rootball on bamboo that's been potted for that long?)

I'll get to the point and say that this afternoon's best questions from Chuck were, "Do you feel rain?" and "Holy Crap! Have you ever had lightning come so close you could hear it buzz???"

Let's just say the new bamboo is going to look beautiful in those pots for a really long time......

To Hedge or Not? Sort of like Vanilla & Chocolate

We were having a conversation yesterday about the merits of lorapetalum in its natural form, just growing all over the place, with those great fuschia blossoms (and now in whites, reds, and some other shades). This is the look I have in my own garden, mostly because I have it planted as "exclamation points" around the garden, and it would look a little too fussy if it were sheared.

(I have a picture elsewhere on this blog of "Little Rose Dawn," with its particularly loose form, billowing fuschia blooms all over the place.

All that said, there is definitely beauty in lorapetalum that is kept sheared. I first saw this at Smith Gilbert Gardens in Kennesaw, GA, where Dr. Bob Gilbert kept his lorapetalum sheared into a beautiful, formal hedge around a parking area. Part of why this is surprising is that Dr. Bob is definitely not a sheared hedge kinda guy. If anything, he is just the opposite, aiming for plants that grow undisturbed to their full natural size and form.

In my weekday garden, there are many lorapetalum hedges, in different sizes and cultivars. As much as my gardener side says, "Let it be!" I can't deny how much I like the crisp clean look of the hedge with its distinctive burgundy foliage. This garden is decidedly more formal than my own, and it's really the perfect look.

I think I'm going to stop apologizing to the natural-style gardeners about how severely sheared the lorapetalum is, and just enjoy its beauty in both forms....vanilla AND chocolate!

The New Climbing Roses

The garden where I spend most of my days is incredibly beautiful, and was well designed when it was newly installed ten years ago. As a result, my job is made somewhat easier, because I'm really nurturing beautiful things and "tweaking" as plants age and grow. I'm fortunate that the owners of the garden also appreciate that I do as much as I can organically, so it is a garden that actually benefits the surrounding area.

If there is a flaw in the original design, it is the placement of five espaliered camellias on a brick wall in full sun that must reach 110 degrees most afternoons in the summer. At this moment in February, these poor plants are gasping for breath, doing their best to push out some pretty amazing blooms, from their parched and fried trunks.... they are underplanted with vinca, which also struggles and has never looked all that good. (If vinca is struggling, it will give you an idea of how bad this particular spot is for plants).

Anyway, the plan for this summer is to replace the camellias with climbing roses, underplanted with creeping rosemary. For the roses, I'm installing Blush Noisette, which was originally developed in Charleston, SC, in the 1700's. It's a beautiful fragrant rose specifically bred for the heat and humidity of the southeast. Between the Noisettes, I'm planting Snowgoose, which is an amazing white rambler from David Austen.

Finally, we're adding in Clematis Princess Diana, and Clematis Roguchi, which should scramble through the two different roses! Not that I'm a competitive gardener or anything, but I can't wait to see this in summer! Even Patti (the rose hater) has got to like this combo!

A Couple of Great Ideas to Borrow

The March issue of Garden Design magazine arrived in my mailbox today, which means the latter half of the afternoon was a complete "wash." Sadie the Dog agreed that this was the perfect afternoon for a long walk, after which she could sleep on the sofa while I read the new magazine.

There were a couple of new ideas that jumped out at me. First, on page 18, there is a profile of Jasper Van der Zon, the young head designer for the Keukenhof bulb display garden in Holland. He is encouraging a break with traditional bulb planting in favor of a "mixed border" look, which I think is really cool! When I was in the garden early this morning, I was particularly impressed with how beautiful one of the naturalized areas looks, with its mix of hellebores, narcissus, crocus, scilla, and snowdrops. Van der Zon shows a mixture of Fritillaria, Allium, and other summer blooming bulbs, many of which I've added to the garden this year. If my display looks anything like his, I'll be delighted!

In the same magazine, page 56, there is an article about using grasses and sedges in container arrangements. First, it was photographed at Cheekwood, a really beautiful old estate in Nashville (the Maxwell House Coffee family home); if you haven't been there, it's worth the drive. Throughout the article, there are a number of really great arrangements, suitable for a number of different light exposures. I loved the way in which the designers have mixed very contemporary containers and an aging garden, and the way in which the containers replicate plants that are in beds around them. (Notice on page 56, the lambs' ears in the container, as well as in the border.)

If you don't subscribe to Garden Design, you should. But in the meantime, run out and buy the March issue!

A Gardenia, Two Lorapetalums, A Hydrangea, and a Rose

I had the chance to run in to the Southeastern Nursery Show late Friday afternoon as things were wrapping up, but was glad that I did! Probably as a result of the economy and the ongoing drought, the show was definitely smaller than in previous years, but there were some special plants to be found in many of the displays. I got to spend some time chatting with Mike Sikes from McCorkle Nurseries, and really fell in love with some of their new introductions.

The Heaven Scent Gardenia is new for this year, and is pretty fabulous! Reblooming, covered with blooms (that were forced for the show), nice fragrance, and a great form. The interesting twist to this little gardenia (matures at 3 to 4 feet) are the great seed pods that turn from yellow to orange to red through the winter, when most gardenias aren't at their most attractive.

Carolina Moonlight Lorapetalum is on my "gotta have it" list for this year. White blooms rather than the usual pink-red, with an olive green leaf. I'm never 100% convinced when I'm told what the mature size will be on a lorapetalum, but this one is supposed to max out at 7 to 8 feet. I have the perfect place to put an informal hedge of five plants!

The "Little Rose Dawn" Lorapetalum isn't new for 2009, but still relatively new on the market (I actually won mine as a doorprize at the GMGA Conference in Athens in January 0f 2008). It has done beautifully at my house, even with this roller coaster weather of the past year, and is starting to show the unusual branching pattern that this cultivar is noted for. One of my favorite plants is the Doublefile Viburnum because of its beautiful "layered branching," and this particular lorapetalum seems to be doing the same thing. It grows wide rather than tall (it's supposed to become pretty massive at 7 feet tall and 15 feet wide)...sort of loose and fluffy looking like a Van Houteii Spirea....picture above.

There is a new hydrangea that will most definitely make it into my garden this season. "Twist-n-Shout" is the newest in the Endless Summer series. My plant snob side always pooh-poohs things like Endless Summer, but this is a pretty awesome plant, and it's a reblooming lace cap....will let you know in August if I'm still so smitten with it!

Lastly, the "Amber" Flower Carpet Rose is just beautiful! Can't wait to use it in hanging baskets off the side of the bridge that goes over the creek! Blooms late spring through late fall, and I'm going to mix it in those baskets with Diamond Frost Euphorbia and Marguerite Sweet Potato Vine....it's going to be like a perpetual bouquet of roses, I hope! (Check out the photo above)

McCorkle doesn't sell retail, but I know Buck Jones carries most of their lines, and I'm sure many retailers will have them this season. It's the rose in the pink pot and the hydrangea in the blue one.

The Magic Created by Garden Rooms

(Click the photo to enlarge, if you'd like)

Today was one of those days that come in mid-winter, when I know the weather won't stay like this, so I appreciate it even more. It was in the mid-60's, but there was enough of a blustery wind to remind me that it is definitely still February. The temperatures have been in the 50's and above for about a week now, so the spring flowers are starting to really show off in the garden.

I was walking through the garden early this morning, and came to the area that is named "Zone 35" on my official work list, but which we all call "the white swing." Most everyone knows that I have huge respect for the original landscape architect, and this area is one that has matured very beautifully over ten years. The additions I've made recently "garnish" this area in a way that I hope compliments the original design.

At this time of year, the white swing area is distinctly blue and white, although one wouldn't probably say that at most other times. I've attached a photo of this garden room taken last June, which shows the more wooded, dark green cast that it has most of the year.

This little area really demonstrates the beautiful magic that comes from dividing the garden into smaller "rooms." The garden in total is more than 4 acres, so it sometimes feels just massive; having little rooms like this brings things down to a more intimate scale. Since the deciduous shrubs are now bare and have been pruned back, what is left is the gray Crab Orchard stone, the pristine glossy white of the classic swing, and the distinct blues of the Vanderwolf Pine, the Carolina Blue Sapphire, and some Blue Atlas Cedars that are out of view in this shot. I realize I need to take a winter photo as I'm reading this back, since you also can't see the dozens of snowdrops and white pansies that lead up to the swing. It really is the perfect place to sit with a book to enjoy the unusually warm February day in complete solitude. Hopefully you're enjoying this beautiful season, as well.....

Any Big Plans for 2009?

One of the bloggers that I follow has a list of winter projects that she reviews in the winter. Since she's in the great frozen north, that winter is much longer than ours (thank goodness!). The premise is the same, however, and one I thought was worth pursuing more.

Do you have any major plan for your garden this season? Anything you've identified as "missing" in your garden world?

Mine is STRUCTURE, STRUCTURE, STRUCTURE!!!!

As much as I would like to be organized in my plant purchases, I am inevitably drawn to those "I really need one of those" purchases, that manage to stay in pots behind the house for weeks or months until I discover the PERFECT spot for them. Mike Francis (the Japanese maple guru) accused me (unfairly, of course) at this year's Southeastern Flower Show of redefining "competitive gardening" with my purchase of the Aurea pine, and my delight when he ran out of them shortly after my purchase!

In any case, over the past few years, the perennial bed has gone from a specific color driven design to a "mixed border," to a somewhat hodgepodge collection of things that all happen to like sun. A few "must have" hellebores, a daphne odora and some sweet woodruff plants have found their ways into the "only ferns" bed by the front door. The Japanese maple island seems to have discovered a couple of exotic hydrangeas and a dogwood or two......you get the picture.

All that said, my commitment this year is to add some STRUCTURE to my garden, which is affectionately called the step child. I'm sure by September it will look like Versailles......maybe with a couple of quirks.......(Check out the photo of a "redneck Stonehenge".....that's my fantasy!)

So what are your major plans this year?