Lilies

::repost from 7/9/06::


I mentioned that lilies do well for me. They do, but that doesn't mean I haven't had some learning experiences along the way. For one thing, I have a country garden with all the attendant critters that like to munch on lily bulbs. Also, as a genus lilies are not uniform in their requirements. So even though my Madonna lilies have struggled, my neighbors seem to flourish.

Madonna lilies are elegantly beautiful when they do well. Mine have given different results in different years, they are planted closer to the surface than other lilies and they are available for planting earlier in the season (fall is the planting season for lily bulbs, but spring is the second best time). They bloom earlier, too; usually seen in June gardens.

One of my first attempts with growing lilies was the Asiatic lily, Enchantment. A deep orange, I had paired it with the rose, Fragrant Cloud. Oh, those were the days! In that city garden I could keep the hybrid tea roses from freezing to death over the winter. Asiatic lilies are one of the easiest lilies to grow and I have a huge stand of golden ones of generic type. (I bought one of those grab bags for economical reasons) They don't have the fragrance of some of the other types, but they sure put on a beautiful show. Trumpet lilies are just as easy, and I grew several types in the city garden, they are tall for a windy country place, but fine if staked. I'm thinking of getting some in the fall, Black Dragon was one of my favorites.

For both the show and the sweetest of smells, Oriental lilies bloom later in the season. They are a littler trickier to grow. They like rich soil and slightly acid or neutral ph. These are flowers that really stand out and say "Garden!". Think powerful presence flowers like peonies, hibiscus, etc.

Columbia-Platte Lilies are particularly beautiful. I still have 'Tiger Babies' and one of the 'Butterfly' hybrids.... although I better check for that one. The remodeling projects and house painting has wrecked havoc on my plantings. Most of my lilies I bought through White Flower Farm. I notice that this year they have a mixed bag of butterfly hybrids. I would definitely consider purchasing those. The only drawback is not knowing what colors one is getting.

My regales were the result of buying up the sale clearance of Easter lily promotion at Krogers one year. Mainly because I totally lost all the ones I bought through WWF. Rodents..... the one bane of lilies in my garden. Rodents like to eat bulbs and lilies are especially toothsome, it seems.

Years ago I had read in an old garden book of a scheme of herbaceous plantings based upon lily choices, now that I've grown lilies and seen how much they add to a garden I think it seems like a sensational idea.

Read all about Asiatic Garden Lilies on its profile page, more photos and good varieties to look for...

Technorati Tags: lilies, planting tips

The Early Flowers

The first flowers have finally made their appearance, and even gone by a bit quickly since the fickle Ohio weather was very warm for a few brief days. The snowdrops are quite sturdy and longest lasting of the early bloom. The tiny snow crocus are quite delicate, more so than their garden crocus siblings. So they were a bit tattered after I procrastinated but a day to get their photos. The eranthis do not last long in the area I have them planted: the front flower box next to the iris reticulata (which also bloomed!) Yes, it was a sudden burst from them all in response to the warmer, sunny weather.



This year instead of a sequence of bloom, there was that rush for everything to break out into the warm weather. I bet the bees were exhausted. Not many bees this year, either...  everywhere the same story is told about the struggle that honey bees, and even some of the other types, are having to survive with the modern environment.

 We do not need perfect flowers and foliage, but we do need the helpful insect life, especially the honey bee.

I started the winter damage assessment. The north side of my pine trees had most of the branches snapped off to jagged stubs. Those will need to be made into a clean cut and the large , almost Christmas tree sized, branches stacked out of the way. We gathered many more branches, and I looked at the 'Dawn' viburnum buds. I am not sure, but they look weatherworn. I hope they bloom anyway.

Some of the flowerss looked a little scrawny, and that may be because I couldn't keep the mowers away the last couple years... I may toss around some fertilizer soon.

The purple crocus are usually right after, and in tandem with the golden chrysanthus. I know I have planted many sorts of named and unnamed types over the years.


The larger crocus make a better show in a big space, but the snow crocus can make quite a splash of color and I think I like them as well, or better, in a closeup setting like in the city lot.

When earliest spring, the golden colors are bright and cheerful, but once the dandelions bloom, nothing else yellow or gold can compete. They really steal the show.

I used to grow Ligularias, although they struggled to stay alive in the dry summers here. The daisy form blooms in the spring, as do the Doronicums, another plant I tried. It just was lost once the dandelions started.... and who wants to spend time on a plant that looks like an unhealthy weed? Those are plants that I now feel should be in partly shady and moist woods gardens.





My Page of "Little Bulbs".

 The Iris reticulata are persistent, as are the eranthis, but neither have done particularly well here. Crocus love it, as do the large hyacinths. Scillas are probably prolific wherever they are planted.

It took many years for the snowdrops to settle in, but they seem happy now, and are multiplying.









Years ago I wrote about the diminutive bulbs that I like so well. Those are many that are up and blooming right now. The large crocus put on the best show from a distance. Especially 'L'Innocence'.
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puschkinias and grape hyacinth

February Gold ready to shine

small field of grape hyacinth

© 2010 written for Ilona's Garden Journal. Copyrights apply.

Soiled Hands, Wormy Worries

 I happened upon the topic of a guest on a garden show stirring up the Chicago garden community. I became unhealthily obsessed with finding out about roundworms, dogs and their "byproducts", and the food safety of vegetables grown where animals leave their feces.

Wow, did I find out a lot.
I was disturbed by the subject because I have had both dogs and cats and they have the run of the place. The cats especially love to use my vegetable garden as their private litter box...which makes me very angry. When really bothered I spread lots of old pepper on the surface of the soil. It helps a little for a short time.

Anyway.... what are some things I found out about this icky subject?
One of the most informative sites was The Worms and Germs Blog
If you want to kill roundworm infestations of eggs... it needs extreme heat (flaming). Living in an urban area would require getting permission from the fire dept.

Dogs only transfer roundworm infestations if they are infected or pass through and area that is infected ( then it is on their fur). Raccoons are the bigger problem.
The trouble is that you don't know the history of the dogs of your neighborhood, so precautions need to be made.

The infection with parasite eggs in vegetables is not through the plant tissues, but by contamination of the soil. Scrubbing your veggies helps, and anytime your hands are in contact with the soil there is possibility of contamination. Wear gloves, but still wash your hands thoroughly.

Hear of Raccoon latrines? Neither had I. They are the greatest concern for health issues. We have a bunch of raccoon out here in the country, but cities have them too. Raccoon seem to have communal latrines and they are full of all sorts of parasites and health problem issues. they are particularly rife with roundworm infestation. And if your dog noses around them, that is one place they can pick up a problem themselves.

This is my contribution to the conversation.
sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite. Oh yes, that could be the topic of another post, but it freaks me out a little too much.

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© 2010 written for Ilona's Garden Journal. Copyrights apply.

Winter's Damage- Is There Anything I Can Do?

small pile from the latest storm

For many parts of the nation it was a tough winter, although as my husband and I were discussing, the world events put our little complaints into perspective. The heart goes out to those in Japan who are suffering from an epic disaster. Prayers, also.

The seasons of life march on in the background of our tragedies, comedies, and dramas... with long spaces, thankfully, of the everyday events that give our lives continuity and a sense of order. I think this is one of the great things I appreciate about pursuing gardening. It is a context of how life is stitched together and the flow of events gives hope to again grow from ashes, from winter's cold, sometimes punitive hand.

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In March the garden begins to call for our attention; we have waited and yearned to answer it throughout winter's long season.

On to the practical - what can be done about winter damage to our gardens?
Trees were severely pruned by the ice storms and heavy snows. If there are jagged leftovers those should be pruned flush with the branch or trunk. Misshapen forms can be pruned into a better symmetry. So get out the pruners and loppers. The Japanese pruning saw works well for large branches. Tools are linked if you don't have them in your toolshed already.

Once growth restarts it helps to give a fertilizer boost, all purpose is fine, although acid loving plants benefit from formulations just for them.

Don't remove your mulch too early, although I know we are tempted by spates of blue skies and warm sunshine. Mind the frost dates, and remember it is the drying winds that are a problem early in the spring. Keep everything protected well into April for Ohio gardens.

Did plants heave out of the ground? Heel them back in- just press them back into the soft ground, maybe use a hand cultivator to bring a little extra soil up over the roots. Easy does it.

Look for losses and dieback, simply cut those away. Check throughout spring, since for some reason the plants will leaf out, only to show the damage later.

Roots are killed when soil temperatures hit about 15°F. If you had snow insulating the ground, as many did, there is probably no problem with this. However rodent damage underneath the snow may result in the shrub or tree wilting once warmer temperatures arrive.

Some trees develop frost cracks- there is nothing you can do. Most of my trees healed up from them.


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© 2010 written for Ilona's Garden Journal. Copyrights apply.

The Butterflies Are Coming

The butterfly exhibition is coming to Franklin Park Conservatory. Starting on March 19th this year, the Conservatory will host Blooms and Butterflies and start it off with a Butterfly Carnival.

This exhibition is one of the most entertaining ways to experience the Franklin Park Conservatory, although I think there is something exciting about all their programs. This one,though, is almost magical. The brightly colored butterflies from exotic places are most unusual and will land on your hand, if you are lucky. They float through the air in the lush Pacific Island Water Garden, mingling with the Chihuly glass sculptures there and the plants of a rain forest.

"Franklin Park Conservatory is the only public botanical garden in the world to own a signature collection of Dale Chihuly’s glass artworks."[1]

Maybe it will impress you to create your own butterfly sanctuary for native Lepidoptera.
Butterfly Gardening
Make Your Yard A Destination For Butterflies


Be sure to see Gardens in Ohio.

Flickr Slideshow
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© 2010 written for Ilona's Garden Journal. Copyrights apply.

Soaking Wet Ground

Cold Climate Gardening's Kathy Purdy calls it The Mud Season, and it has hit Ohio with a vengeance this year. Right now in our area it is more like Pond Season which will morph into Mud Season.

For mommies, that means trying to stave off the inevitable tracks through the house. Mats at the door, double mats in fact (one inside, one outside the entrances). If your family can get used to it, the rule of "shoes off at the door" helps.

For gardeners, especially if they garden on clay soil, the admonition is: don't touch that soil. OK, you can touch it, but don't try to dig in it yet. Besides the fact that it is hard to work, clay soils worked too early and while still wet will clump when they dry. Those rock hard clumps can be impossible to return to good tilth in time to plant. They will interfere with plants, compaction of the soil interfering with root growth and losing the important air spaces. Yes, plants must breathe both above ground and underground. Good humus-y organic soils do that, but compacted clay is difficult to garden on.

Wait until the soil dries out to a crumbly texture (when it crumbles in your hand, instead of holding a clay ball when squeezed), keep on adding amendments like compost, and work up for planting.

It is a spring like this when raised beds prove their worth. Raised beds dry out more quickly in the spring and allow for earlier sowing.

Roses Scenting the Air

::repost::
I can't wait until I get to smell the roses again.


Paul Neyron, is an old fashioned rose. But nobody tells you that after heat, heavy rains, and the rest of the roses bloomtime being just about over and this guy is looking perfect and fresh as any super suave gentleman might. A real stand out in a garden filled with literally hundreds of rose varieties.


[Thérèse Bugnet rose bush.]

For June Gardening Gone Wild is choosing roses photos based on things like:

"– The photo shows a lovely rose, a rosebush, a cluster of roses, or a bouquet.

– The subject is enhanced by the way light shines on or through it, and/or casts intriguing shadows.

– Colors are vibrant and details distinct."

I selected some photos from my visit to the rose park recently, and the one familiar from my posts on my Thérèse Bugnet rose... even if I don't place I hope my readers enjoy them :)






Oops, forgot the name- but like the way the light hit it.

What's Cooking?

Many very fine garden books I had purchased in the past had recipes included in a chapter towards the back. 'Herbs: Gardens, Decorations, and Recipes' was one. I am wondering if that isn't a trend to look for again in the future. Not predicting it, but it seems that everywhere food and cooking is moving onto the (ahem) front burner of the community consciousness. Probably due to the economy, but maybe because we are looking for the simple pleasures of life, and cooking a great meal to eat with family and friends is among those.

I haven't had very many recipes on my blog here. A few, 'Apple Recipes' was one of the first, back in 2006.

So, while on Squidoo, I had fun creating a lens (what they call their blogposts) on Hungarian food. Maybe you don't know much about me, but I am half Hungarian in ancestry. I find Hungarian cuisine to be my own brand of comfort food. I suppose you wouldn't find my recipes on here unless I started growing my own cabbage- which I have yet to do. True confession. I do like well prepared cabbage rolls. And paprika.

Hungarian peppers are a vegetable I grow every year, though now plants are labeled as "Banana peppers". I did get a chance to go to Hungary back in 2004 and taste a Hungarian pepper fresh from my hosts garden; he took out a small pen knife and cut it up for fresh eating right then and there in the garden. It somehow had a sweeter taste than those I eat here in the USA, but it might have just been the sentimental notions of the moment.

I wondered whether anyone reading likes to see cooking and gardening combined? I have had mixed feelings about that in the past, but am coming round to the idea that maybe that is the most "organic" way to learn about growing food.... along with the preparation and enjoyment of it. What is your opinion?

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© 2010 written for Ilona's Garden Journal. Copyrights apply.

Spring's Watershed

My white crocus from 2010- no rainy pictures please

It is raining today as I write this. We have entered the time of spring rains, and after the inundations of last month added to the heavy snows, there are flood warnings as steams and rivers rise. Spring has definitely reached her watershed mark, and winter will reign no more. Even if spits and spurts of unsportsmanlike winter storms lash out. Winter is like that in Ohio.

There is no mistaking the change of the atmosphere, however, and spring is here.

I still have time to start some tomato plants, although my eye surgery proved more complicated than I anticipated. Not to worry though since the most important spring crop for me is the lettuces and spinach. Those will be direct seeded as soon as the ground cooperates. It is a spring like this, where the ground is wet and slow to warm, that proves the wisdom of having some raised beds in the vegetable garden. That is where my 2011 lettuce crop is going to be planted. Among the 2nd year strawberry plants, which I should check for heaving.

As I looked out the window this morning to check on the state of the weather for today, I could see the water droplets hang heavily on the twigs of my Jane magnolia. Like little crystal orbs they are attached along the underside of craggy brown branchlets, magnifying the world through their miniature lenses.

The past few days the ponding fields have had small lakes that shine in the moonlight  and ripple during the day. Ponding is common in this very flat terrain, but the streams were rushing in wild madness that spoke of the heavy influx of the past few rains and the melt. It can only become higher, wider, and more powerful in the predicted rains of the weekend.

Gardening chores will remain a thought and a dream while this weather prevails. There was no midwinter break dry enough to prepare fields or gardens this year, the gardener and nature are both filled with pent up anticipation of the new growing season.

Starting To Think Like Spring
Start Seeds
Propagation

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© 2010 written for Ilona's Garden Journal. Copyrights apply.

Flower Garden Oils

Flower Garden Oils 15x18 '06 (2)
Originally uploaded by michellejoachim

Another from Michelle Joachim- happiness, summer, warmth, the bursting of the garden in full bloom.... it is all caught on her canvas.

Perhaps you would be interested in reading an interview with her about her art: Michelle Joachim

Safia Walking through the Woods, oil on canvas panel,11x14

Safia Walking through the Woods, oil on canvas panel,11x14
Originally uploaded by michellejoachim

It isn't often I come across an artist who strongly touches me, but Michelle Joachim has that sort of ability to reach out from the canvas and draw you into her subjects. I love her color, bright yet subtle in application with fullness of flavor.