The Spring Wild and Cultivated Flowers in Tiger Way Gardens-One Year Later

It has been more than one year since we purchased our land in Stewart County, so, with a new growing season I thought I'd update you all on the progress. First of all, progress in a garden is always an ongoing thing. Natural gardens and really all gardens change daily. This is so out at the land so these pictures are only a snapshot in time. They vary from vistas to wildflowers to cultivated flowers. The one thing they all have in common is that it is clear Mother Nature is in control because I simply cannot cultivate everything you see--nor do I wish too! 



We start the tour with a beautiful vista down our back hill under a dogwood. This is a rather large hill and the vision is for it to be filled with wildflowers and grasses. This is where the majority of the wildflower seed was planted early this spring. An unexpected result of clearing this hill last spring has allowed a lot of already existing wildflowers to germinate and bloom. Some of them you will see in this post. On the day I took this shot Mr. Fix-it bushogged all of the broomsedge. This will allow even more sun to penetrate to the ground surface so that the wildflower seed that has germinated will get light and will grow.



One of the surprises in the area that was mowed last fall was all of the phlox found growing on the Wildflower Hill. The pinks and purples are delightful.


This is a native wildflower that I actually transplanted to the little pond area by our overhead shelter. It is of course Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum species). This is one perennial I can't get enough of due to its long period of interest and ease of care. Also, thus far the deer have not eaten it! I have several different cultivars of it and also the False Solomon's seal (Smilicina racemosa now apparently changed to Maianthemum racemosum). I have been busy trying to move every bit of it out to the land and I am actually making progress. This clump was moved last year and came back wonderfully.

Another shot of the little clump by the little pond.

These violets were nice bits of color on the Wildflower Hill. I am not sure what type of violets they are so if anyone can positively identify them let me know please. It is probably a woodland violet.

This is the view toward the overhead shelter I call the gazebo. If you will remember the canopy we had over the structure collapsed due to the weight of snow and ice within the last month or so. Mr. Fix-it did an outstanding job of replacing the roof with metal we had leftover from when our garage was built twelve years ago. Yes, I hold on to everything as you never know when you might need it. The metal is all different colors but it works to keep us dry and out of the sun. The gazebo is surrounded on the north and south by a prairie style garden. Behind the gazebo is a small pond and a woodland garden. This is also where the above Solomon's Seal grows. I'll post on the prairie garden later but for now suffice it to say it has growing in it: baptisias, asters, Tartarian asters, compass plant, helianthus, amsonia, salvias coneflowers, cannas, grasses, heucheras, catmint, sedum, veronica, liatris, and daylilies.

Here is an up close picture of the north side of the little gazebo. It looks like the plants are pretty far apart but remember these plants have been here only one year and will quickly fill in.The southern side has about 600 'Sun Disc' daffodils currently blooming in it but the whole area is pretty much natural. The electrical transformers and wiring is scheduled to go in the area so I have not done much with that side.

This is the view on the extreme north side of the prairie garden under the oaks. Here the divider between a cultivated area and the wild area are stepping stones. These heucheras 'Miracle' you see as the chartreuse foliage in the foreground are a truly a miracle. I planted them last spring and never watered them. They kept their foliage all winter long. As this new foliage came in the deer kindly came and ate all of the old foliage. I don't know how that happened but it did. I hope they leave the new foliage alone. These heucheras are a tough, large, and vigorous cultivar of heuchera. I highly recommend it. Also, these can take a lot of direct sun because they get the western sun each afternoon.

Spanish bluebells grow along side some pink Spanish bluebells behind the gazebo by the pond. They were moved while in bloom last spring and barely winked at the move. Firepinks have also joined the chorus in this area and the red of their flowers contrasts nicely with the blue and pinks of the Spanish bluebells.

I am not sure what this little yellow wildflower could be. It is growing sporadically in the field. It is a pretty yellow.

I had transplanted a lot of spiderworts out to the Driveway Garden. Imagine how surprised I was to find spiderworts growing wild on our Wildflower Hill. This type may be Tradescantia subaspera. It prefers moist, acidic soil and that is exactly what we have--even on the hill during certain periods of the year, like spring. This pretty little clump was mowed over by me while I cut the grass, but it seems to have not suffered any major damage. Big sigh of relief.

'Florida Flame' azaleas are blooming. I am loving the azaleas this year and so far the deer have not nibbled on them, tho they have sampled the rhododendrons. I can completely forget about hollies as they are all chewed down to nubs. Darn deer.

This last picture is of another wildflower area in our back corner of the field. The columbo grows here with wild abandon. Many of these American columbos are getting ready to bloom. I love this area as the columbo looks like hostas coming and so prolific are they that the sight is really something. Within another month or so all of these columbo will have gone completely dormant and the summer wildflowers such as butterfly weed, lespedeza, goldenrod, and asters will take over. Also growing on the land but no pictures of them are: ragweed (transplanted and wild), yellow rocket, waterleaf, and many, many more wildflowers yet to be identified....

in the garden....

We are finally breaking ground on the house so I am very busy working on that, but gardening is never far from my heart. I think that hopefully by the time the house is done most of my gardens will be moved. I've worked more than one year on this process but it is a very time consuming thing and I am not really where I need to be. As it is, it looks like I'll have another winter season to get everything moved before we put our house on the market. This is great news for me because as wonderful as it is having a new house to be, it is ever more so wonderful to have a new garden I create from scratch. I am so excited to have this opportunity! Thanks for following along....in the garden. 

Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden

Pine Straw to Plants

By Skeeter

This picture was taken in my Georgia Garden last year. I have always been happy with this pine straw area until now. This spring it was time to change things a bit in this area. The patio is to the left in this picture so it's a wonder why I have waited until now to work in this area. I would say the soggy issues we can get in this area as that is why it went to mulch in the first place.

A few years ago, I had Spider Plants hanging on the front porch. They dropped baby plants onto the ground below and I dig them out when they pop up each spring. I put some around the stump where I always place a Boston Fern. You can see them popping up in the first picture. Strange thing, I have not had the spider plants hanging for about 3 years but still have them popping up in the front planters! This year I have them hanging on the porch again so I am sure to get many many more baby plants next year!

With the Spider Plants acting as a Perennial and returning for me each year, I decided it was time to add more to the area. I started with Heuchera's and added more things as I found them at bargain prices.

My first Heuchera was a gift from Tina's garden! So this one gave me the motivation to add more to make a collection. Thank you again Tina for teaching me about Heuchera which I had never heard of before then. I had heard of Coral Bells though. Heck, I cannot even pronounce the word Heuchera so Coral Bells they will be for me. lol. Tina says this one is called "Mocha Mint" Hum, sounds like a nice cool ice cream doesn't it?

Mocha mint has the most dainty blooms on it. I also see a spider web!

The second one I picked up at a bargain price of $1.00 being the "Palace Purple". At that price, I should have picked up a few more. Oh well...

Since noticing the Coral Bells, I am finding that this one seems to be the most popular one in the garden centers.

The blooms were not as pretty as the blooms on the Mocha Mint. I don't even consider them blooms as they do not look like blooms to me. "Tiramisu" is the second one I added this year. Since I found the bargain one for a mere dollar, I felt it was okay to pay $3.95 for this one. I have paid more for a piece of Tiramisu cake in a restaurant!
Again, the blooms are not so pretty but this bee sure does seem to like the way they taste. Hum, wonder if this is an Italian Bee? Tiramisu is still in its pot for now. This area was real soggy from the massive spring rains and I about lost the other two due to the moisture. As a matter of fact, this is the third time I have moved Mocha Mint! Tiramisu arrived at a later date so I kept it in the pot and buried the pot. This way, it was not so soggy by not being in the ground soil. The area is now bone dry and the hole is dug so I need to plant it when I find the time. I am thinking of maybe trading Tiramisu and Palace Purple since it is so much smaller. I know in time it may reach growth but for now, it looks a bit funny don't you think?
I also found some bargain hosta last fall. I found them for $2.00 a pot and I was able to separate them into 3 pots. So for $4.00, I ended up with 6 plants! I have a problem with the Voles eating my hosta. My Mother in Law let me in on her secret to keep them from the Voles mouths. Keep them in the pots and bury the pots in the ground! You can see how I have done this in this picture above. The pine straw and plant hides the pot and you can hardly tell they are not in the ground. They will not spread this way so I will have to separate them each year.
So far the bury method is working for the Voles but not for the deer! Argggggg, I finally took someones advice and invested in a bottle of Liquid Fence and so far, they have not bothered them again. They also ate most of the leaves off the Black Elephant Ears!

In this picture, you see the hosta before the deer found them. The pots hide well don't they?

The deer also found and ate most of the leaves off this Black Elephant ear that I planted in this area. I sprayed it with the Liquid Fence and it became spotted. I can't win for loosing with the wildlife around here. I love my wildlife but also my plants. What's an animal loving Gardener to do? I guess keep Liquid Fence on hand.

Well this is part one of a two part series on this area going from PINE STRAW TO PLANTS, In the Garden...

Stay tuned tomorrow for the conclusion...

The Heuchera Garden and Some Evaluations

Heuchera x villosa 'Caramel'.

When I first moved here in 2001 I was eager to get a garden going. This was the first time I could truly 'put down roots'. I wanted plants, and I wanted lots of plants and right away. On one well timed trip to Home Depot, I was fortunate to find 'Palace Purple' heucheras in a six pack for about $2. What a steal! I have never found the heucheras sold this way again, but that is okay. I now know how to divide the ones I have, and they have faithfully multiplied from year to year. In fact, they have multiplied and performed so well in my garden that I started a bit of a collection of heucheras. Hey, it can be worse, at least heucheras are small:)

Heuchera Garden

In the fall of 2007 I consolidated and labeled all of my heucheras in my collection. The heucheras were planted in a part of the 'Woodland Garden' and 'Greenhouse Garden'. They have all done well and I do like being able to see all the varieties in one spot. Consolidating these heucheras allowed me to really evaluate each variety of heuchera as well. After nearly two years of evaluating this garden and the plants, I have come to some conclusions about the different varieties of heucheras growing in my garden. Keep in mind these conclusions are based on how these heucheras perform in my Zone 6/7 garden in upper Middle Tennessee. These heucheras may perform differently for you if you are in a different zone. These are only my personal recommendations; like all things on this blog.

First of all every single heuchera is growing in the exact same condition as their neighbors. The same amount of sun, shade, and moisture. No one heuchera has an advantage over the others. Most heucheras are bred for foliage and the varieties are astounding. There are orange, chartreuse, purple, silver, peach, green, variegated, red, and all shades in between of heucheras on the market. Some varieties have performed better than others in my garden, and I'd like to share some observations I have found. Heucheras are bred primarily for foliage, but there is an awful lot to be said for the blooms. Some of the plainest green varieties have the prettiest blooms and I will share with you some wonderful cultivars here based on certain characteristics of each. Remember, these are simply my observations and results may be different for you.

Mocha Mint (left) and Montrose Ruby (right)

My first observation is going to be a general one about the orangy colored heucheras. These include 'Peach Melba', 'Cream Brulee', and 'Marmalade'. I have at one time or another grown all three of these varieties. All three perished during the winter. I have learned not to buy the orangey colored heucheras anymore but did give one more cultivar a try last fall. I purchased a few mark down Heuchera villosa 'Caramel' heucheras. One is pictured at the top of this post. This orangey heuchera has performed admirably this winter. The picture was taken on March 20 and just look how it shines. I can't vouch for its heat worthiness as yet, but for sure if you like the orangey colored heucheras, try 'Caramel' or 'Montrose Ruby'. I cannot guess as to the reason for the other orange colored heucheras' demise, but it surely would have to do with the hardiness of these cultivars.

Chocolate Ruffles (Left) and Palace Purple (Right)

Palace Purple is the classic heuchera. It is the one most folks are familiar with and has been around a long time. It was my very first cultivar of heucheras and while I like it, I think there are much better varieties out there. Palace Purple is an easy cultivar to divide each fall. Simply lift the whole plant and separate the small offsets. Throw away the woody part of the mother plant. Mine have multiplied quite well as you can see from the picture above (Palace Purple is not ruffled like the Chocolate Ruffles and is on the right of the picture). Palace Purple will almost always peter out in the summer. It really looks ratty and stays looking ratty until it is divided in the fall, but it is a good cultivar for beginners since it is readily available.

Mocha Mint

My next recommendation is going to be based on foliage and veining. Many folks like variegation in foliage for the interest it adds to the plant. You can't go wrong with 'Mocha Mint'. It is pictured above. It is one of my favorites for veining and overall color.

'Chocolate Ruffles'

My next recommendation is going to be for winter color, interest, and hardiness. It is 'Chocolate Ruffles'. This heuchera says come look at me! No ifs, ands, or buts, it is a showoff this time of year. The coloring is similar to 'Palace Purple', but just look at the ruffles! The ruffling on the leaves is particularly pronounced. It is one of the first heucheras to begin growing anew in late winter.

Snow Angel

Snow Angel Foliage

'Snow Angel' is another easy to grow heuchera that looks lovely all year. It is a bit different from the brightly colored heucheras in that it is a green foliaged heuchera, with a bit of dusting on the leaves. It's bloom is also outstanding. If you did not see the blooms and weren't sure what this plant is in a garden, you might not think it is a heuchera. I like 'Snow Angel' very much.

Key Lime Pie

'Key Lime Pie' is a good all around chartreuse cultivar of heucheras. It sure helps that it is a Proven Winner cultivar too. I love the Proven Winner plants and do try to buy them whenever I can. Another chartreuse cultivar is 'Citronelle'. Both 'Citronelle' and 'Caramel' are Heuchera x villosa hybrids and are very hardy in the garden. They are also very vigorous-a bonus! 'Citronelle' is a bit more yellow and larger than the 'Key Lime Pie'.





I also grow other cultivars but I will not bore you with their pictures right now, maybe at a later date. The cultivars I grow (list format) are: Montrose Ruby, Amethyst Mist, Canyon Duet, Cascade Dawn, Key Lime Pie, Firefly, Fireworks, Mocha Mint, Palace Purple, Regina, Snow Angel, Cathedral Bells, Vanilla Spice, and an unnamed (I assume the species type) heuchera. I leave you with the regular old unnamed heuchera pictured above. It is the first to show buds and will be in bloom soon. Nothing fancy about the foliage but it sure has a sweet red bloom.

What is my favorite heuchera? I don't have any particular one in mind, I like them all and all have special qualities about them. The entire genus of heucharas is easy to grow, long lived, and great evergreen plants in any shade or part shade garden. You can't have too many really-that's why I have a bit of a collection.

If you have experience with heucheras, which one is your favorite and do you have any special tricks to highlight heucheras....

in the garden....

After nearly two years of blogging and over 600 posts, we now have a 'spammer' I guess I would call it. The spammer has a great concern with zombies and for some reason has chosen to make comments concerning his/her fascination with zombies on this blog-anonymously of course. Which is most amusing. This is not acceptable so I have changed the settings. I am sorry to all my good blogging friends who may be affected by this change.

If anyone else has had problems with these kinds of strange comments or knows who this person is, please email me offline.

Collections

What gardener doesn't collect things? In this case plants, all kinds of plants. Or maybe all of the same plant but just different varieties.

Collections of the same plant can be so interesting. Breeding and hybridizing and so on has created tons of varieties of all sorts of plants. To name just a few which come to mind: hostas, irises, daylillies, heucheras, tomatoes, coneflowers, and salvias. I love them all but only have a few 'collections' of plants.

I have several collections, both in and out of the home, but my main plant collection is of heucheras. Heucheras are small evergreen plants which come in all the colors you can imagine. Last fall when I had to rework a rather large and shady garden, I decided to consolidate all of my heucheras. And! I even went a step further and labeled them (at least with the names of the ones I knew). I am pleased with the effect. Ugly steel labels excepted, since they serve a vital function in the garden.

I have a bunch of different varieties of other plants but this is the only collection I can see all at once and enjoy up close and personal as a collection. That is why I call it my 'main' collection. Even a non-gardener can tell it is a collection and I love explaining to people that all of these plants are heucheras.

Unfortunately, plants are not like collecting spoons or knick knacks or whatever, you can't consolidate them and move them around as the whim suits you. Could you imagine trying to display a collection of hostas? Maybe you could plant several varieties together but never all the varieties growing your garden I'll wager. I know I couldn't. That is why heucheras are ideal displayed as a plant collection.

At any rate, consolidating the heucheras, also known as coral bells, has enabled me to see their sometimes subtle differences, and sometimes great differences. One thing I have noted in my garden is that some heucheras winter over better than others. Peach Melba and Amber Waves were both duds in my garden. Whereas all of the purple varieties such as 'Cathedral Bells', 'Regina', 'Prince of Silver', and 'Palace Purple' overwinter wonderfully. I am especially fond of the heucheras which have red blooms. The regular red coral bells and 'Snow Angel' have great blooms. I also like 'Mocha Mint' and 'Vanilla Spice'. Both have done well for me.

Heucheras are easily divided in the fall. In fact, if there is one fault I find with them besides the fact they can look a bit ratty in the heat of summer, is the fact they do need dividing every year or every other year or so. I have found this is very important to the plant as the center of the main heuchera can get very woody and produce less and less and foliage. The bonus of dividing is you get several new and FREE heucheras to add to your collection! I try to mass mine in groups of three, though with my consolidation and dividing marathon last fall, I wound up with some groups of 6, 7, and even more than 10. Quite a collection and happily living together ....

in the garden....

Holy Heucheras!

Heucheras are such a neat bunch of plants. I have a whole collection because it seems they are just a collectible type of plant-if there is such a thing. I know there is because many gardeners collect special groups of plants. Some like daylillies (I do too), some like hostas (who doesn't), some collect evergreen trees (like Paul James-The Gardener Guy), some collect roses (Yuck!) and so on. I like heucheras.

If you are going to collect plants, the heucheras are the best because they are small. Which means of course, I can fit more of them into my garden! Heucheras are also evergreen and bloom in the spring. Now is the time of year they are begining to really wake up in the garden. What more can a gardener ask for?

How about awesome color and a wide variety of foliage and blooms? Now let's add in some really cool names like Key Lime Pie (the first picture). Can you guess why it is called that? Hint: It has everything to do with the color. There is also a 'Snow Angel' (the second picture). Now let's add in some 'Mocha Mint' (the last picture).

These are but a few of the varieties out there in the market; there is a flavor for every gardener's palate. I have mine combined in a 'Heuchera Garden'. Heucheras are also known as Coral Bells; which may be easier to remember. My heuchera garden is under a cedar tree in a shady area on the north side of my backyard. It is in an area visible from the house and deck and I just love this little garden.

Heucheras are not fussy about maintenance or water. Too much sun can burn the foliage and even when in shade heucheras can start to look pretty fried by summer's end here in the south. Regardless, as soon as rains come and the shorter, cooler days of fall show up, the heucheras rebound quickly. The one thing I have found to make sure they stay vigorous is they need dividing every other year or so. You just pull the plant and separate the baby plants from the older woody material and replant. Make sure they are well established before the winter and I like to divide mine in the fall, though you can do it in the spring as well.

in the garden....wishing for maybe not SO many collections, but enjoying them nonetheless.