A Day for Catching Up at the Big House Garden

Today was one of the first really blistering hot days we've had this year, but which I'm sure we'll have many more of as the summer goes on.  It was a reminder that summer is coming to Atlanta, and it's the price we pay for having such mild (usually....) winters.  I'm still more than happy to put up with this heat than the winter snows of New England.

Chuck and I got an early start at the Big House garden, when the air was still cool and damp (low 60's).  It's always fairly quiet in that garden, but for some reason on Sundays it seems particularly so.  We were each doing our own thing in different parts of the garden, so it was an opportunity to just enjoy the garden and the quiet.

Even though this is a time of year when things are visibly growing every day, we're at the point now of having a little bit of time to step back, clean and organize.  The greenhouse is 99% empty, with just the last of the plants there that live there permanently.   The huge alcocasia and begonia are each planted in "elderly" containers that can't be moved.  They are both pretty major background players in winter, but seem a little lonely now.  Next week we'll do "the big clean" of the greenhouse to get rid of any winter funk that might still be around.

This was also my morning to start some ruthless thinning in the perennial bed in the walled garden.  When it was installed four years ago, the wish was for "instant full," AKA lots of invasives.  Today was time to tear out lots of hooligan rudbeckia, New England asters that are completely out of control, verbena bonarensis and the like.  By 10:30 this morning, the sun was up and it was already getting a little unbearable in those beds.

At the pond, the koi are loving the fact that the water is now safely above 70 degrees, and they're at their most active.  As much as my logical side says, "They're just fish," I find it very entertaining that they will immediately come up to me when I walk up to the edge of the ponds.  I think it's something about their association of food with the fat guy with the blue shirts.....Anyway, I got a few new plants installed, a giant blue lobelia and a dwarf cattail in the bog (that's the only cleaning system....we're chemical free), and a pretty awesome tropical water lily called "Starbright" in the big pond.  It was my own little version of swimming with the stingrays to walk in the pond, having the big fish fully comfortable approaching me to see what I was doing.  I think they were all a little disappointed I was only bearing flowers today......

The Dwarf Cattail and the Blue Lobelia for the bog, above, and the new apricot water lily called "Starbright," below.

The Big House Garden in Snow

The Walled Garden mostly put to bed for the winter, with a few things still popping up here and there (aren't Sweetpeas amazing to continue going in this stuff??)

The gate to the walled garden looks better with a little snow on the wreath. I know the holidays are over, but I really love this wreath that Patti made.

The koi are happily hibernating on the bottom of the pond, barely moving their gills.

Even in ridiculous cold, the cardinals are out at the feeders.

I think I'm Beginning to Defrost!

If you are in Atlanta, and you weren't out in your garden today, you missed an amazing opportunity! This was one of those days that felt like spring actually could be coming soon.

The pansies look like tiny little green lumps from this ridiculous roller coaster weather, but we're hoping that today's deadheading and a good boost of Pansy Booster (along with some warm weather) will put them back on track. I used Delta True Yellow, Delta True Primrose, and Imperial Antique Shades this year. So far the Delta cultivars are doing a whole lot better than the Antique Shades, but we'll see what things look like in a month or so. I have mentioned before that I get my pansies from Kelli Green in East Cobb, and they never lead me astray, so I'm confident things will perk up as spring approaches.

I went a little crazy last fall with bulbs, and now the garden is like one giant popping bulb! The Crown Imperial just poked through the ground, the crocuses are starting to bloom (for some reason the yellow always comes first), tulips are a couple of inches tall, and there are daffodils everywhere! Irises are showing signs of life, as are the leucojem (one of my favorites!)

The first of the Scilla have started to bloom, and they're pretty adorable. Patti and I were walking along this afternoon, and it looked as though there were cherry blossoms that had dropped all over the ground. Since Patti is much more logical than I, she pointed out that (1) there isn't a cherry tree in that part of the garden; and (2) the cherry trees aren't blooming yet. If you haven't grown these before, I would encourage you to consider them. Obviously they are very early bloomers, in shades of icy white and blue, with a little pink touch here and there. (There's a picture here from Van Engelen, the company where we bought them. Ours have almost no leaves, though, just the blossoms!)

The poor koi were under a thin coat of ice this morning, and you could see them huddled together, just their lips moving every thirty seconds or so....by afternoon the sun had hit them, the ice was gone, and they were starting to slowly glide around the bottom of the pond. They're still a little slow for the next couple of months, but obviously enjoyed the sunshine and warmth today.

The days are getting longer, and things in the greenhouse are starting to explode all over the place! The mandevilla has looked sad (to say the least) for the past couple of months, but must have grown two feet in the past week. The lemon trees are in full bloom, and the scent is intoxicating when I open the door in the morning! The Cup & Saucer Vine doesn't seem to know it's winter, and continues to grow up the wall and over the glass ceiling! All of the Rex Begonias are also excited about the days getting longer, and have started shooting up those fabulous shooting blossoms!

Only a few more days until we plant the peas!

Some Interesting Shots from Atlanta's Winter Blast

Here are some photos taken yesterday morning, when it was still below freezing. The big koi we call "Momma" is just fine, as are the rest of her family; she was foraging around under the ice, although she was moving quite slowly! That is a fish after my own heart......she's under a layer of ice, and still manages to eat to "keep up her strength."