Garden Update

The blog has taken back seat to other pursuits recently, including the actual work in the garden, as well as tatting and trying to come up with things for the Farmer's Market. I am not particularly pleased with this year's flower bed. Weeds, especially thistle, are winning the war I wage against them. Lack of rain is taking a toll, stressing everything--except the thistles--in spite of frequent watering with a hose. The lawn is riddled with bald patches and is more weeds than grass. Today I squashed the first Japanese beetle, munching away on my Rose of Sharon. The Rose of Sharon opened its first blossom today, too, coincidentally.

Gourdo is concerned about the lack of rainfall, especially now that the gourd vines are starting to scramble up the sides of Gourdhenge. We've seen a few gourd blossoms unfurl each evening, attracting night-flying moths, which pollinate the creamy white flowers. No sign of baby gourds yet, though, much to Gourdo's consternation.

Another concern of Gourdo's and mine is the yellowing of our pin oak trees. They look chlorotic and we fear their eventual demise. I haven't taken a soil sample in to the county extension office for testing, but that's what various garden web sites recommend, as the wrong amendment to the soil could make the matter worse.

We've had many years of relatively easy gardening: now we're up against some challenges. I'll let you know how it goes! Garden 2009 photos by JulenaJo.

Farmer's Market

Our community puts on a Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings in the summer and early fall. It's held on a covered bridge that crosses between a community parking lot and a lovely park. This is the first year for us to participate. Our table of goodies is shown here, featuring mostly gourds and some cut flowers and tatting/knitting that I crafted to sell. The rest of the bridge filled up with vendors as the morning progressed but by noon it was all over. We made a modest haul, but it was a lot of fun and we're looking forward to our next scheduled weekend.

Oddly, the fresh-cut flowers weren't the big seller for us, but they did draw a lot of comments--as did the tatting. Everyone's grandmother tatted and the sight of me sitting there with my lace and shuttle in my hands drew comments from many passersby. The biggest draw by far was the gourds. A lot of people commented and several were delighted to spend $5 or $10 on a dried, hard-shell gourd. The ones stained red in the photo are apple shaped and sold immediately. Gourdo was pleased.

I heard from other vendors that the day was slow. If that's the case, I can't wait to see what a busy Saturday looks like.

The cutting garden and gourd patch have been keeping us busy, but this first, tentative foray into selling at the Farmer's Market has renewed our faith in what we're doing. That sitting there at the market watching the world go by is fun is the proverbial frosting on the cake.

Oh, and speaking of cake--there were so many delicious baked goods at the market! It was hard to keep from spending every dollar we made on the cakes, fry pies, rolls and jams from the neighboring vendors.

Do yourself a favor and pay a visit to a local Farmer's Market soon. It's a great way to spend a morning and the fresh produce, crafts and baked goods are amazing. Farmer's Market photos by JulenaJo.

Meet 'New Dawn'

If you haven't already met 'New Dawn' you are in for a treat. I planted her early last year along with two other roses on the west side of our pergola in a narrow, six-foot long bed. It quickly became apparent that I'll be moving the other two roses. 'New Dawn' is taking up every bit of room, and she's still a baby. The first year she just "settled in." Now she's about to go wild, sending out thick, healthy canes in every direction.

I had been trying to train the canes up, but finally decided it was not going to work. The vigorous growth demanded space. I fanned the canes out and re-tied them. You could practically hear the plant sigh with happiness. Ahhh.

Dozens of fragrant blooms have already opened from head to toe along the length of the canes, with scads of fat buds in the wings, waiting their turn to burst into bloom. Each blossom has that old fashioned character that I so love in a rose. The petals unfurl like fresh linens billowing on a summer breeze. They are a soft, delicate pink, and the foliage is a dark, glossy green that is the perfect background for the blooms.

Hardy to zone 4, 'New Dawn' does fine in my Ohio garden with minimal winterizing. This spring I had to trim off a few dead ends, but nothing more. The foliage doesn't seem to mind the wind that whips around my yard more often than not.

Friends of ours who live in town have two 'New Dawn' roses growing up and over an arbor. Granted, townies have more protection from the elements than we do here in the country, but their roses scrambled up and over the arbor in short order, and the canes reach to the heavens as though seeking foothold there. Although our friends attack their plants with loppers each year, trying to keep the rampant growth from burying their arbor, I think our rustic pergola can withstand whatever 'New Dawn' dishes out. Twenty-foot canes would be welcome here as I want some shade for my patio.

This is the first year for me to experience the spring flush of bloom for 'New Dawn' in my garden; I am interested to see what the rest of the summer holds. It seems to me that our friends have little bloom after the first flush. An internet search leads me to believe that this is a common occurrence. I'm hoping that the great amount of sunshine here, plus diligent deadheading, will encourage quick and plentiful rebloom.

Notes: 'New Dawn' was introduced in 1930, a sport of 'Dr. W. Van Fleet'. It was the first ever patented plant in the U.S. In 1997, 'New Dawn' was named as one of the world's favorite roses and was inducted into the Rose Hall of Fame by the World Federation of Rose Societies (www.worldrose.org). New Dawn Photos by JulenaJo.

'Black Lace'--A Sizzler

Black Lace. What a sizzling name for one hottie of a plant.

Here in my Ohio garden one of the star performers is the Sambucus nigra 'Black Lace', a dazzling, dark-leaved elderberry. It's in the back of the flower bed, where the dark, finely cut foliage sets off everything sited in front of it. Right now it's covered with pink flowers similar to Queen Anne's Lace. Sterile berries will follow. The fruit is edible, but I leave it for the birds.

I added this gem to my garden several seasons ago, and as it grows taller I find myself wishing I had two or three more of them. The graceful shrub will attain a size of approximately 6-8 feet tall and wide. It's perfectly hardy in zone 5, and it is reputed to be hardy to zone 4. It withstands the wind, the heat, the cold--everything Mother Nature has to offer. I see no signs of any kind of disease or pests.

'Black Lace' Sambucus may be used as a substitute for Japanese maples in gardens and yards like mine where conditions wreak havoc on tender trees. That's a stellar idea for this sizzler. Black Lace Photos by JulenaJo.

A Rose By Any Name

Some books are irresistible. So, for me, is A Rose by Any Name: The Little-Known Lore and Deep-Rooted History of Rose Names. This book is a charmer on many levels. Most obvious to the casual peruser of books is the eye-catching cover and glorious selection of artwork throughout the book. This is not a straightforward encyclopedia of roses with glossy photos and descriptive text for each entry. No, this is something more--the artwork is culled from heirloom rose catalogs, paintings, rare books, and magazines. The thick, creamy pages are edged in soft green. Each chapter features a rose in text and in art, as well as others of its class or relation. Yet, for all its beauty, the book is not a mere gift book (although it would make a great gift for any lover of art, antiquities or roses). The text is delicious, too: informative and fact-filled, the authors' love of roses permeates every line. It's a delightful and chatty ramble through the history of roses and the people who love(d) them. Want a small taste? Below are the first lines from the entry on 'Dr. Huey', the sturdy rose on whose rootstock many modern roses are grafted.

" 'Dr. Huey' really gets around. In Brooklyn, New York, for instance, this local denizen is often seen lounging against stoops, crowding doorways, and leaning over concrete grottos that house statues of the Virgin Mary. Ninety miles east of there, upscale Hamptons nurseries sometimes tag the same plant "Long Island Red," claiming to have found it on old estates, and price it at $350 a pop. From the rush of buyers you'd have thought they were hawking heirloom Tiffany sterling. Sure, this rose is beautiful--but only for a day or two. Then heat and humidity leave the velvety flowers hanging like rags, their limp petals the color of dried blood. This is 'Dr. Huey', undercover agent of the rose world."

Don't you love it? Check it out from the Library. You, like me, might find you have to get a copy of your own!

Variegated Iris

Often gardeners are thought of as being frugal individuals. After all, gardeners recycle kitchen waste into compost, grow and put up their own food, and share and swap plants and seeds with each other--all frugal activities.

But there is another side to gardeners. For, while we will happily scour the discount bins post-season in hopes of scoring cheap seeds and plants past their prime, we will also spend rather recklessly if we find something unusual and rare. How frugal is that?

Case in point: the variegated iris. I had to have it. I don't recall what I spent for it when I bought it a couple years ago--maybe $30 or so, but I do recall it was a large-sized container and I cringed inwardly. It seemed like a lot of money at the time, and it's not THAT exotic or rare. However, since I knew I wanted it, I squelched those second thoughts as quickly and mercilessly as I do Japanese beetles on my roses. I have not regretted it.

In fact, if I wanted to, I could justify the expense and consider it money well-spent. The foliage on this plant is a spot of sunshine in early spring, and it lasts well into summer. The cheerful purple flowers are a mid-spring delight. Like other irises, the variegated sort multiplies freely. I expect to be dividing them in another year or so. Frugal!

Right now, this is the only variety of iris in my garden. I longingly peruse catalogs and the offerings of fellow gardeners, but I hesitate to indulge. While nothing can beat the form and splashy color of irises in the spring garden, they tend to have a relatively short bloom period. And the foliage, especially on bearded irises, gets ragged after a while. Because of this, I haven't quite figured out how to work irises into my mixed flower bed.

While visiting in southeast Ohio last weekend I was invited to tour a private garden which featured long rows of heirloom irises in a rainbow of colors. It was stunning, to say the least. I didn't ask what was in the beds the rest of the year, and I wish I had. I might have learned how to better work this old-fashioned beauty into my own garden. Variegated Iris photo by JulenaJo.

Icebergs in May

Whenever I visit a nursery or garden, my eye is drawn to the unusual. That's how the two roses above found their way into my garden. 'Brilliant Pink Iceberg' is at the top, a lovely rose that looks as though its light pink petals were hand painted with strokes of deeper pink.

'Brilliant Pink Iceberg' is a floribunda rose, a relative of the classic 'Iceberg,' aka 'Scheewittchen' (Snow White, introduced in 1958) from the house of Kordes in Germany. It's not too tall in my garden, well under 3 feet, and it blooms prolifically. It resists black spot and disease, and the blooms have a sweet, light rose scent. The buds are long and pointed and beautiful to watch as they unfurl. Best of all, it's got an unexpected knot of deep burgundy stamens at the center when the flowers fully open. That's what caught my eye when I first saw the rose--that distinctive and unusual dark center.

Last year I added 'Burgundy Iceberg' to my garden. The second rose above, 'Burgundy Iceberg' features striking, dark, wine colored blooms, and the nice size and shape, lovely pointed buds, and overall good health of its famous relatives. It surprised me with its very first blossom this spring, however. Some of the petals are pristine white--obviously flaunting its noble 'Iceberg' heritage. These Iceberg descendants show a lot of variation in their coloring, as a Google image search reveals. It will be interesting to see how 'Burgundy' performs for the rest of the season.

Notes: Gourdo's mom welcomed mama cat and the trio of kittens. We will help her neuter or spay them when the time comes. Almost all the roses in my garden bloomed this weekend. Many of the flower seeds planted in the cutting garden are up. I'm looking forward to having tomorrow off to putter about the yard and gardens. Thank a veteran! Brilliant Pink and Burgundy Iceberg photos by JulenaJo.