Biltmore: Azalea, Tulip, Redbud and Wisteria

BY SKEETER

 A year ago, the Saint and I discovered beautiful Biltmore House and Gardens during the Garden Blogger, Asheville Spring Fling 2012. This past weekend, the Saint and I went back for another visit. This visit was compliments of Del Holston of Explore Asheville. I won the Bloggers contest thus, our return visit this year! Again, Thanks Del for hosting this contest at the Fling!

 Last year was a very early spring in Asheville and this trip was very different in the gardens of Biltmore.

 When booking Spring visits to gardens, one never knows what will be happening too far in advance. Mother Nature is always keeping us on our toes.  

 The Saint left the booking up to me and I picked the last weekend of April in hopes of seeing azaleas and tulips. Little did we know at the time the weather would not be too kind for our entire trip. More on that later, on this day, it was glorious!

 We drove to the Azalea Garden area, parked our car and enjoyed a Pimento Cheese Sandwich and chips atop the gardens.

 Our stroll through the Azalea Gardens was such a treat.

 We had never seen Redbud trees this full of blooms. We do not see many Redbuds in our area here in my GEORGIA GARDENS.

Although, this year we seem to notice more then in years past. I assume they had a good year here in GA.

 Azalea's were bursting with color throughout the gardens!

 We headed up to the Formal Gardens where we were shocked to find Tulips still hanging around for our visit! The tulips above were my favorite. Do not ask me what they are named as I was only here to admire them.

Double Tulip's were a treat as I have never seen them before.

 The Tulips were on their last few days of putting on a show but beautiful none the less.

 Red, Pink and Purple is not a color combination I would think of but I loved it!

 Flingers will recall sipping Champagne in this spot last May. This photo does not give the Flower Combination here justice. The blooms ran down both sides of the arbor from front to back! It was stunning.  

 With the sun shining bright on this day, the Yellow Tulips were glowing!

 The Sea of Tulips went on and on.

 I like the shape of this planter.

 April is the month for 1000's of Tulips to shine!

 The Arbor taking one from the house into the gardens, had blooming Wisteria. It was not as full as I had expected but pretty just the same.

 The Purple Color did not stand out as I expected but the bees seem to enjoy it.

 Wisteria reminds me of grape clusters.

 When I see Wisteria covered Arbors, I desire to have one in my gardens.

 But such vines must be maintained and at times cut way back such as this area in the middle of the arbor. Maybe this empty spot was the reasoning behind my disappointment of the Wisteria Arbor.

 The Arbor was pretty, it just did not pop like I thought it would with the sun shining upon the purple petals. Plus, the petals were not all opened just yet.  

The Arbor by the House was bare at this time. The Trumpet Vine will be blooming in time though.

 The size of the vine keeps me captivated.

We headed back down into the gardens and caught views that stopped us in our tracks. 

 I remember the view being much different a year ago when standing in this spot.

 We worked our way back down the hill taking in all the colors.

 I have some of the same azaleas in my gardens but none are as spectacular as these large beauties.

 The colors just glowed with the sun hitting them. Notice how some have yet to bloom.  

 Pink and Purple, so pretty. 

The Saint and I spent about 5 hours strolling around the grounds never making it inside the house! We toured the house last year and we did not want to spend time inside with such a beautiful day filled with AZALEA, TULIP, REDBUD AND WISTERIA, In the Garden.... 

 

Stay Tuned for more of Biltmore's Spring Gardens, Christopher's Mountain top, North Lodge B&B and a meet up with some Garden Bloggers amongst other fun things... 

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

The Wisteria Arbor

Wisteria arbors seem to be on people's minds judging by the number of searches that come to this blog. Coincidentally this year happens to be a great year for me to update you all on my wisteria arbor. I have posted about it before and if you'd like to see those posts you can search on my sidebar. This year it is different because for the first time in seven years my wisteria bloomed! Hence, a fantastic time for me to talk about my wisteria arbor.


The arbor was built as a privacy wall between my property and the terrible neighbors adjacent property owners we happened to have had the misfortune of living next door to for seven years. It was a miserable time here at Tiger Gardens and I won't go into detail about the issues but just suffice it to say I needed privacy-fast. My solution was to build this 35 long by about 4 foot wide and 8 foot tall barrier between our properties. I tried to build it high because our decks are raised up about 4 feet; which allowed clear view between the decks and persons that may have been on the deck. Not a cool situation when you and your neighbor do not get along. We've all been there at one time or another right? At any rate let me tell you what I went through to get this fabulous arbor/privacy screen which grows some very nice vines on it.





The supports are 6x6 pressure treated timbers 12 feet long. This allowed for 4 feet of timber in the ground and 8 feet out of the ground. The top of these timbers (both sides parallel) were notched. I then mounted and lag bolted 2x6x4 pressure treated wood to these notches. I wound up with a T, with the 6x6 being the tail of the T and the 2x6s between the top of the T. Mr Fix-it rented a bobcat with a large auger bit. He dug two foot wide four feet deep holes. It took both of us to mix the concrete and set the five supports. Once that was done I took 2x4x10 feet or so and notched them out so they would fit into the top notches on the top of the T (the 2x6s). I mounted these in place securing the pieces of wood together tightly with the notches then screwing all together. On top of these 2x4 joining beams I cut 4 foot long 2x4s as the arbor support. These are mounted four feet apart across the length of the 35 foot arbor. This would be the base for the vines I planned to grow on the arbor. The vines are important because once they filled out they gave my arbor/privacy screen some more height. A very important consideration as you'll see below with the big picture from my deck to my neighbor's home (the nice new one). 





Here is a view showing some of the notching and how the arbor is built. Everyone has their own way of building arbors. This arbor was built from a plan in my head. I build things to last and wanted it to be strong. It is custom tailored for my purposes. The key with arbors is to make them appeal to you and to make them safe. Notching is an extra step that wasn't too difficult. It simply required a jigsaw, a chisel, and a hammer. The results are that step above if you can see what I mean when you look closely at the joints in the pictures. 




I have three vines growing on this arbor and the wisteria pictured in the above picture is not one of them. This picture was taken at Nashville Natives Open House on April 30th. (A post will most likely be coming next week). This particular wisteria is a picture of the American native wisteria. It is reputed to be less aggressive than the Chinese version of wisteria. If you must grow wisteria then this is the one I would recommend. It is our native wisteria, Wisteria frutescens. Most likely the cultivar 'Amethyst Falls' though I am not sure. You can find 'Ameythyst Falls' at Home Depot. The bloom is quite different from the Chinese version don't you think?

Back to the vines I grow on this wisteria arbor. Remember there are five pillars or support beams? I have one Chinese wisteria growing at each end of the arbor, and a 'Dropmore' honeysuckle growing on the third beam (the center of the arbor). It has taken six years but two of the three vines have finally met in the middle. They will have to battle it out for dominance because I'm not playing favorites. Normally I would never ever plant a Chinese wisteria, let alone two. But when I built this arbor I was desperate for quick growth and fast coverage and I really-ahem-didn't know any better about wisterias. I do like wisteria but it is not for the weak at heart because it is aggressive. Fortunately I am a pretty good pruner and I tend to keep up on my vine. Not only that but this arbor is on the north side of some oak trees. The oaks shade the wisteria enough to keep it growing at a manageable rate. 


The 'Dropmore' honeysuckle was a gift from my daughter Liz. She had attended a PPSMT meeting with me and received it as a door prize. The door prizes during that particular meeting went to the oldest and youngest members of the audience. Liz happened to be the youngest at that meeting. Even now she comments on how well her honeysuckle is doing. I've included a picture of it at the end of this post. This honeysuckle is not as bad as Hall's honeysuckle but it is still quite aggressive. It does however work fine on my arbor.





Under the arbor we have the Arbor Garden. It is not much of a garden. I used to have a half a dozen mophead hydrangeas growing here. But with the droughts we have suffered the last few years I've decided to move the hydrangeas closer to the house for ease of watering. In their place I've planted dwarf nandina. Nandinas (the dwarf ones) are a wonder plant. They grow in sun or shade, dry or moist soil and almost always look good. I do not like the tall nandinas because they self seed everywhere but that is not a problem with the dwarf ones. I will slowly add wildflowers to this area as well. It is currently undergoing some renovations so it is not looking its best.





Here we have a long view to the arbor. Can you see the PVC arbor to the right? This is the view from my deck looking south. The sidewalk leads to the chainlink gate and to the out front parking area. Remember the arbor is approximately 35 feet long and at its top is probably about nine feet tall. It curves down with the lay of the land and I've also adjusted its placement so as not to hurt the mature oak trees behind it. This arbor is about 10-15 feet from the property line. You must check with local codes when building something like this just to be sure you don't interfere with any easements. In our case 10 feet is the setback. My neighbor had no room to complain. Looking across the top of the arbor toward the house you can't even see the deck over there anymore. The junipers I planted behind this arbor (prior to the arbor being built) have grown in and provided me with an additional barrier. Funny, after I finally got the privacy in hand those people moved. Now I love my neighbor and wouldn't mind seeing her but she and I both agree privacy is nice and she enjoys seeing any bit of my gardens she can. This arbor included.





And here is the 'Dropmore' honeysuckle. It is a lovely orange color that is quite vivid. Robins always nest on top of the wisteria arbor within the honeysuckles arms. One night around midnight I was working on my computer when I heard the robin stir and tweet frantically. I peeked out my window at this arbor and saw a HUGE owl, probably a great horned owl, sitting next to the robins' nest. I checked the nest the next morning and was overjoyed to see all babies were still intact. I scared the owl away when I peeked out of my window I guess and it did not have time for a midnight feast. I was most disappointed because you know I was reaching for my camera to get a shot of it! The owl was magnificent and so quiet I never heard it come or leave the wisteria arbor...


in the garden....

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

Wisteria: The Hungry Chinese Vine

One of my good friends and faithful reader of this blog from the beginning (and commenter) purchased a home a little over one year ago. The home is absolutely beautiful and apparently the people who sold my friend the home, were gardeners. What a bonus for my friend. One of the plants the previous homeowners planted was Wisteria sinensis, aka Chinese Wisteria.

This vine is not a vine for the faint of heart. Do not plant it unless you are very fierce and ready to do battle not in the rink, but in the garden with an equally ferocious set of pruners. The pruners need to be very heavy and well made because you will use them weekly all throughout the growing season. So get ready because contrary to public opinion, kudzu is not the only vine that is eating the south. Just travel down to Florida and look at all of the beautiful flowers of wisteria twining through the trees everywhere there is a spot of dirt. Yes, it certainly is beautiful-in someone else's garden or along a roadside, but not in my garden.

My friend learned from her neighbor this particular vine was only two years old. Two years old and about 20 feet tall and maybe as wide. Obviously it liked the area it was planted in as it literally took over. The vine damaged the lovely arbor and trellis it was trained to grow upon. Boards were literally ripped off the trellis and who knows what else would have been ripped off had the vine been left to grow. But alas, its fate was sealed when my friend and her husband cut the neck of the beast AND used a chain and truck to pull the roots out, at least partially.

I agree, wisteria is stunning when it is bloom. It grows fast and quickly provides much needed shade when grown on an arbor such as in this situation, but I do not recommend planting this vine close to a house or on an arbor such as this. A better wisteria for this arbor would've been Wisteria frutescens, aka American Wisteria. This particular wisteria is native and is not as invasive as the Chinese wisteria. It will be more manageable for the homeowner. A good variety which was widely available last year, not sure about this year, is 'Amethyst Falls'.

If you simply must have a wisteria and the Chinese variety is the only one available here are some simple tips I use in my garden. Yes, I not only have a Chinese wisteria, I have TWO of them. Had I known better, I may have chosen the American variety over the Chinese variety (the only one available at the time). I say may because one of my tips helps me to control my wisteria and I am not sure American wisteria would've stood up to the tip. It probably would but we'll never know now since I have already planted the Chinese variety.

It is not a tip I would generally recommend because the old adage, "The right plant in the right place" is still the best advice you can adhere to as a gardener. But what if you are a plant collector and just have to have a wisteria-regardless of the type or consequences? Well, what I have done is plant my wisteria in a less than ideal location. My wisteria does not get full sun, thus it does not grow rampantly. This is not the right way to garden, but it is how I garden sometimes. Do not say Tina recommended buying a plant and planting it in a less than ideal situation because I will deny it forever. That is not what I am saying. But, if you must have a plant no matter what, think of innovative ways to control it and maximize its beauty and strengths in your garden. Not only are my Chinese wisteria growing in part shade, but they are growing on a very sturdy arbor away from anything the wisteria may try to climb and tear apart. And they actually haven't done much of anything so far, so how smart am I? Not very.

You see, if you really want wisteria, then pick an ideal location for it and plant it. The previous homeowners of my friend's house did not pick the right spot or the right plant for the spot even though the growing conditions were favorable. In this case they should have either:

a. planted the American variety on the their house, or

b. planted the Chinese variety far away from the house and trees, on a sturdy, sturdy arbor made from 6x6's and 2x4s, not 2x4s and 1x2s. That will never work.

I am not sure what my friend will plant to replace the wisteria, but perhaps the American variety 'Amethyst Falls' might be good? Or maybe a grape vine? One she can contol with judicial pruning. I think my pick for the arbor if I had such an arbor overhead, would be either a grape vine or a climbing rose, such as 'Zephirine Drouhin'. The Zephirine Drouhin is an extremely fragrant climbing rose which repeat blooms, and is nearly thornless. The pinkish red flowers would contrast nicely with the white of the arbor. Another excellent vine which would grow great on the arbor, is the clematis. Clematis would do well and not absolutely take over the arbor and definitely won't damage the arbor. There are many colors to choose from including: reds, purples, whites, pinks and a mixture of all of the colors.

So, the next time you want to plant a wisteria, or any vine, make sure you have the right situation for the plant and know what you are planting. There are alternatives to almost every single plant you could possibly want to grow.

in the garden....