Tropicals & Tender Perennials: Tropical Garden # 81, 0 by GordonHawk

GordonHawk wrote:
Debra... HA HA HA... Tell them where the plants go in the winter... Love your basement.. this is aa closer up view of the back 1/2 of the garden.. the Japaneese Maple tree is in a 4' x 4 ' planter... about 20" deep... the planter sits 4' up off the roof.. over a vent stack. so it's drooping branches are below ground level.. .. but off the roof... It comes as a result of an article Fine Gardening ran on them and the guys that graft them as art..... one was a Mr wolf.. a real gem... outside Philly... I drove down and spent a few days on a couple of trips with him... and brought this one .. and an oridio nashiki.. back with me some 12 - 14 years ago... ON is in the front 1/2.. I almost lost them this year.. as I was away for two weeks... after they were totally leafed out in the spring.. and my helper who has been with me for some 6 years.. we do gardening for a bit before work every day.. well he was hired to come in every few days to water ... and on my return both were leafless.. this sparse growth shown is the regrowth of some of the limbs... alot were so crisp they were removed... it set them back years.. needless to say he was paid as he said they were indeed watered.. and the underplantings looked good... but it was done like mother would say.. with a lick and a promise.... [ just some superficial care ].. but in my grief he stopped comming by to work.. and I never called him to find out why... he worked for 6 years... his father worked for 4 years before that.. he didn't get that if you water a dry container... it first falls out through the space in the sides where the soil has pulled away.. and nothing gets into the soil... with such a canopy on everything.. not a drop of rain will get to the container in the rain.. .. it can rain for days.. and I'm watering before the sun sets when it stops... the drip irrigation was dismantled 20 minutes before my trip to fix a leak in a line running down the 5 floors to a planter on the sidewalk... with the morning glories... growing up 30' every year... and across the doorway as an awanning.. well in my rush to leave it was not turned on correctly.. or had been chnged in my absence.... so it wasn't working...it is complicated to grow so much in containers.
plumeria grove shown about 1 - 3 o'clock in the photo also..got some inflos there too...

This message was edited Sep 2, 2010 7:42 AM