What is in full bloom in your garden now? April 16 to 30

Well, I'd be happy to trade starts with you, for sure. I have multiples of the Heucheras I've divided coming out my ears these days. I keep meaning to get to the Plant Farm at Smokey Point (I think that's the one). My brother says that their prices are amazingly decent.

I'm not in any hurry, it just looks happy and healthy and the leaves look so big in your picture, which I love.

I missed psychedelia by just a little bit and then growing up in Alaska really buffered me from a lot. My youth was mostly peppered by go-go boots with gold fringe from Sears and then Smiley Faces from the grocery store (my mother loved those - they fed into her inner Child of Aquarius). And my older brothers had mostly been into the Kingston Trio and The New Christy Minstrels . . .

Of course, that doesn't mean I haven't ever heard In-a-gadda-davida. :-)

That really is a lovely Tiarella. I've got a Pirate's Patch cultivar that looks something similar - it was looking great this spring and then my kids stomped it. Can't wait until mine is as nicely filled in as the one in your pic!

Katie - I've got a purple Heuchera that is just huge and beautiful this year. Your tales of rampant Heuchera division are tempting me to want to start chopping bits off of it - but it's only two years old. Do you think I could chop off a chunk for propagation without hurting the mother plant? (In other words, can I have my cake and eat it too? I want more of this heuch - but without giving up too much of its current gorgeousness.)

Bless those little boys. "What? Oh? The plant? You didn't want us to step on it? Sorrrrrryyyyyyyy . . ." Just think. In another 8 or 10 years, you'll have them trained to carry in bags of compost and shovel them out. They don't have any idea what's waiting for them. :-)

I wouldn't want to lead you wrong, Kim, but this weekend I actually divided an Obsidian that didn't even look like it could be divided. All five pieces are perking up. I do think that this cool weather must be the right time to do this. It'd probably be harder on them if it was warmer and the soil dried up faster.

Anyway, I appear to be having my cake and eating it. Aside from being smaller for a big, the divisions do just great. I don't think that any of the plants I've divided have been older than two years old. And the ones I've had the most success with are the purple ones. That having been said, I'm not giving up on anything. Two months after I first stuck the pieces of stem (no leaves, mind you) into the ground, I'm seeing the tiniest leaves appear. Seriously, too tiny to get a photo. It's amazing.

So if anything happens to your plant - I'll have some purple ones to replace it . . .

Alright you temptress - I'll be getting out the chopping tools. Baby purple heucheras - coming up!

:-D I've just been tucking my pieces into straight potting soil in their own pots until they develop good root systems. The Hori Hori knife and pruners are the best tools for this.

I started a wee Obsidian about February/March...i don't remember. It looked like a miniature baby & has grown into a fine toddler. I think they just like to keep going. We'll see - the moles uprooted one of mine & I'll divide/plant/tell results later. I wanted more, anyway & I really liked it last year.

I don't think they are every too small do divide unless they have only crown. I divide mine religiously and have had very few failures. One of my favorites was a volunteer in the garden. It looks like a villosa type with very large leaves in a dark bronzy color. Tall white flowers. I was able to divide it into several pieces this early spring and they are taking off well. I have another one that looks like the same type, but has very large fuzzy pale green leaves. They both just popped up in the garden one year. Can't say no to that!

gifts from above, Pixy!!! One of mine looks like a cross between palace purple & Obsidian. Never planted it & i don't know where it came from. It stays in its present location. well, for a while longer.

I have a division of Creme de Menthe that is looking very much like Sweet Tea . . .

McClendon's is having 20% off perennials, so I picked up Obsidian, Caramel, Purple Petticoats. Key Lime Pie, and I cannot remember what else. I even got them all planted! I went to the nursery afterwards, and boy, am I glad I didn't buy them there.

Argh! Um, thanks (I think). Maybe they'll be gone before I get there. :-)

I bought 6 or 7 Heuch's and a 'Diablo' Physocarpus that I have been wanting since I failed at starting one from your cuttings last year. It is small, but inexpensive (compared to what I saw at the nurseries).

Mine definitely did the sleep, creep, leap, but it's performed beautifully so I'm sure you will love it!

How tall is your Diablo?

I will NOT Not NOT go to McClendons! No! Bad girl!

My yellow rhodies opened up yesterday. Also my Yaku rhody is starting to open up, and the old red one are open. The lilacs are all in bloom.

Interesting side note about the lilacs. I have one planted by the pond. This tree is one I dug up at an old house (saved it from destruction, I did) when I was pregnant with Andrew. I went into labor digging up that tree. At our old house, it never bloomed well. I moved it here almost 12 years ago and it still never bloomed that well. My son will be 18 next week. Last year I had a little 'talk' with the lilac about taking up space and not pulling its weight in the garden. This year it is heavily covered with blooms! LOL!

I am trying to learn how to post an image. Not real bright with this stuff yet.
I'd like to see your Hellebores, heuchera, & Bergenia.

Here is a new one still in the pot.

I finally have this figured. I am proud!

This one has two colors on the one plant. Neat huh It's a
Lenten Rose

Can anyone suggest what to do about the brown spots on the 'new' hellebore above. I have it separate until I can see if the leaves are going to drop or whats up. It was like this when I bought it a month ago.

You will love your 'Ivory Prince'. It is just a super helle. I have those black spot also. I think Cisco said one time that there is nothing you can do about them except remove the leaves. Make sure you remove all the old ones from last year. Helles like a little lime sprinkled around them in the spring also. Congrats on the pictures.

enyeholt - beautiful, I especially like the first one, do you know its cultivar? Here's my only one, I have no clue what its name is, but I like it.

Pretty Hellebores!

Black spot isn't uncommon. Many if not most of us cut off the leaves after Christmas so we can see the blossoms better - especially for the H. orientalis, whose leaves can get huge.

Elaine, you might look back through the threads a bit. In January and February we had lots of Hellebore picture posted!

My lilacs are blooming more than usual, I think, this year too.

Lynn, my Diablo is about 6.5 feet at the tallest part, I think. The height of my species Physocarpus, which is older is about 7 feet at the top.

I used to have awful botrytis on my oldest hellebore every year, because I made a beginner mistake and planted it very close to our splashy garden hose... oops.... the poor thing is always getting wet... but I didn't move it because I enjoy a challenge and I read hellebores hate moving as it take time for them to establish...

It was touch-and-go for a few years and then I started treating the soil with lime just directly beneath it (because there's an azaela very close by). The thing just took off after that and has had virtually no spots since...

It still gets splashed a lot with the hose, but its soil is so sweet it doesn't seem to mind anymore. ;)

I love hellebores... They remind me of orchids. I splurged and bought two new ones at WM this year - they had some pretty ones! This time I planted them away from the garden hose... hehehe

I think Hellebores fool us because they adjust so well to acid soil here. I don't lime mine, but I imagine that giving them what they want makes them much more resistant to disease, for sure.

I discovered in my seed "basket" earlier this year some chalk I had purchased at the dollar store a couple of years ago to stick in next to my Hellebores. It took me a couple of minutes to remember why I had it. I will do it this year for sure!

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/hellebore/msg1113564229588.html

Aw, that explains a lot... according to some of the comments in that thread H. niger is a little pickier about pH... guess what my old hellebore is... ;) The chalk idea is a really neat solution. I imagine that would last for years...

It seems to me that the Nigers do better with more sun and better drainage - they're found in mountainous regions.

The orientalis can take more shade and handle a little heavier soil, being more of a wooland plant.

That reminds me that I need to move one of my Ivory Princes because it's not getting enough sun. I found the other day that I have more Hellebore seedlings from where I had a potted Hellebore sitting. They are growing up through the sedum Angelina, which makes a nice little babysitter. I'm going to try to get a bunch of these potted up to give to Michael at the end of the summer. I guess my north-facing slope of a clearing in the woods is good for something!

Have you all seen this site? http://www.hellebore.com/

I have also been potting up starts for Michael. Bleeding heart, fuchsias, hebes and hellebores.

My seeds are all up and my tomatoes are getting really big. Will have to re-pot soon.
Gave Ruth two bachelor buttons and a hardy fuchsia today. Planted a bunch of bachelor buttons out by the road to cover a bank and put a few in the iris beds. I also cleaned the brick in the courtyard. Busy day.

That's a nice picture. Heavens, Willow, you have been a busy bee.

Bonehead, the first Hellebore is Ivory Prince. I actually left the tag by it, which is such a good idea- but doesn't happen very often.
Thanks for the encouragement. I will try the lime trick, and perhaps potting it up again. Its still in its 1 gal pot as I was worried about the 'spots' spreading to my others.
It should give new shoots without spots if I lime up the soil - did I get that right?

I have an Argutifolius - 2 actually that were pretty nice this year.

This is my favorite little 'plop' of spring in the midst of the lawn. Primroses mostly which the slugs love to hide under. That makes them easy to find in the daytime.

I read elsewhere that planting a few Castor Beans - even if they don't thrive does something in the soil that the rodents avoid. So, if I had voles - thankfully I don't I'd give it a try. They sound really bad! The Beans are poisonous, so pick them off. Its the roots that leave a nasty taste to the voles.

Beautiful primulas! I do love all kinds of primroses. They are so cheerful in the spring.

Right about the castor beans. I started probably 20 of them this year and have them planted here and there in the garden, wanting the roots to spread nicely. I don't care much about the leaves, although some of them have really awesome leaves. I have several cultivars, so I'm looking forward to lots of roots! I will be leaving the roots in the soil come fall.

I can only watch threads like this. You guys are so fortunate to get started so early. When my flowers get going you guys have posted so many of those I can't see it. So Here is what is blooming in my garden. Nothing.

The sunlight is blooming in your garden, Steve.

Here is a current pic of my tortured hellebore... :)

That looks good to me. Love the topiary what is it? Azalea?

Jean Marie

King of Shrubs I think. Never had a tag/

Can't remember this one.

My fellow gardeners.