The Wearing of the Green (and a Surprising Bloom!)

The Wearing of the Green is an Irish street ballad that dates back to the late 1700s, when wearing a shamrock in your hat was a symbol of supporting the rebellion. While the garden isn't exactly rebelling--its green is more a sign of the extremely mild winter we've had this year--it was still a little bit shocking to see so much green in my yard before St. Paddy's Day, even!

Some of the garden green was a little hidden at first glance. Check out the 'Frosted Curls' sedge in the photo above (upper right) and then look at how much of its frosty color is actually green:

'Frosted Curls' had a green-to-dead-leaves ratio of almost 40:60! Some years, I find just a few hints of green--enough to give me at least a smidgeon of hope that this sedge has enough life left to sprout again after its spring haircut. 

I don't really ever worry about the hardy miscanthus family coming back year after year, but miscanthus is a warm season grass. So I was even more surprised by all of the green I discovered during this "haircut":

Most of the time, my Japenese anemone worry me with their late emergence in the garden. No worries this year:

'Red Rocks' penstemon has a reputation for being NOT hardy here, but don't tell that to the one that has been growing in my (admittedly very well draining) front garden for the last 3 years! It has never looked quite this good before, though:

Last but not least, I even found a surprising bloom today! The hellebores and snowdrops are already blooming like crazy, but I got a real surprise while I was cleaning up this area, beneath my Japanese maple:

This area is always colorful in the spring, with the mingling of green tulip leaves and winter purple on the silver lamium leaves. This year, though, the 'Purple Dragon' lamium decided to take things to the next level with a handful of tiny blooms:

I only counted 4 blooms, and none of them were close enough together for me to get them in the same photo. But still, it was a nice reward for a good four hours of yard work today! Did anyone else get a chance to go out and enjoy some lovely weather in the garden this weekend?

Enough Pouting: On to Planning!

A few of you (hi, Mom and Dad!) might have noticed my absence from the blogosphere for the past few months.  I hate to admit this, but I was actually pouting a bit... wait, on second thought, let's say that I was "in mourning" instead. That sounds a little less pathetic.

Before I get to the reason for the pouting, though, I'm going to post a few photos to catch everyone up on the horticultural highlights of my little sabbatical:

I counted FOUR blooms on my rescued Bird of Paradise this winter!

This 3ft tall tower of 'Brasil' philodendron looked pretty through the winter next to the BOP, in spite of having almost no soil in its container.

Mexican heather bloomed through part of the fall and early winter, mingling nicely with a nearby succulent.

Okay, I feel better now, after seeing a little bit of plant prettiness.  So, here goes:  I haven't been posting anything here, and I've kind of been in mourning because... I'm going to be leaving my garden. And I didn't know quite what to say about it.


The reason for leaving is a very good one--even a happy one. I'm getting married in August, and my fiance simply does not fit in my house. (Frankly, he's not all that fond of old houses, anyway. He would like to have something a little bigger, and more open.) At 6'4", he has to bend his head on the lower landing of both staircases, and when taking a shower upstairs. His size 14 feet do not fit on the steps... in fact, he has to walk sideways on his way down.


I love my house, but the thought of leaving my garden is really what sent me into a bout of melancholy. The garden is really where I healed after my divorce. It has witnessed countless thoughts, hopes and dreams... and, worse, the cherry trees I planted years ago are just now starting to bear fruit!

But... there was never any question of whether or not I would eventually move once we got married. A man should be comfortable in his own house, after all! I did request for us to put off the whole moving-and-house-hunting process until next spring, however. The thought of planning a wedding in just 10 months PLUS trying to keep my house in show-worthy condition sounded pretty much like an impossible task. And since he's a very reasonable guy, he readily agreed to suck it up and deal with my sweet little house temporarily.

And so I have this one last year with my garden. One last growing season to watch things mature. One last summer to eat blackberries, strawberries, raspberries and cherries. One last chance to finish painting the darn fence and simplify the borders to make the house more sellable. One season in which to propagate my hypericums, dig up and containerize my blueberries, and move countless divisions and seedlings to the yard of my (thankfully amenable) future mother-in-law.

Just one more year. So I guess it's time to stop pouting, and start the planning!

The Ninebark (and Carex) in Fall

I love my purple ninebark in all seasons, but it's especially endearing in the fall. It's like the LBD (little black dress) of shrubs--it seriously goes with everything!  I adore how it picks up the cherry hues of the self-sown 'Lady in Red' salvia, plays off of the carmel tones in the carex buchannii, grabs some gold (when backlit) to match the edge of the 'So Sweet' hostas at its feet, and still remains cool enough to play nice with the blue caryopteris.

Speaking of carex buchannii, I know that brown-leaf plants are one of those love-'em-or-hate-'em things, and many people find them hard to work with in the garden. But I can't imagine my front yard without them!

Oakleaf Hydrangea Corner in Fall

So I never got around to adding words to a few of these posts in the fall.  Instead of trying to do so--which would probably just cause further delays--I'm posting them mostly as is.

Please ignore any stray weed you may happen see (one of my favorite parts of this garden is the low-maintenance aspect--I barely ever bother to weed it) and concentrate on the oakleaf hydrangea in color, the pretty blue caryopteris, the chunky blue sea kale leaves, the grasses, and the golden variegated yucca:

Autumn Light & Color - Part 1

The past few weeks have gotten away from me even more quickly than usual. Between launching a new website at work and trying to plan at least the basics of our wedding, the days have completely flown by. (And yes, we finally have a date! August 4th!)

I haven't spent much time outside this fall, which is a shame. I love the slanting rays of light that pick up all of the beautiful reds, like the brightening maple leaves and the flower stalks of the nearby miscanthus:

Light colors at their feet, like the 'Frosty Curls' and 'Beetlemania' carexes, and 'Purple Dragon' lamium, really highlight the reds:

As I bent to find another view of the low-angled light playing in the maple leaves, I discovered a bonus:

'Party Dress' Japanese anemones are still blooming! I just love this messy yet delicate mix of anemone, miscanthus, and a veil of red Japanese maple leaves, all anchored by the yellowing foliage of 'Northern Halo' hosta:

A few more posts of fall color are yet to come... before it all disappears under a blanket of snow! Any of my other northern neighbors have things that are still blooming in your garden?