Garden Projects # 9

Jo, thanks for the iris pictures. It was that third one, which must be Creative Accent, that got my attention. I'm gonna have to try to find one of those.

I have to say I'm so impressed by how everyone here seems to keep such good track of plant names. I'm forever troubled by that. I don't like having white labels all over the place, so I used to bury them just behind the plant, but they were prone to breakage, I'd find half, and try to guess from there. Then I tried sketching the garden and labeling on paper, but I'd move stuff later and forget to fix the paper...its a battle, for sure.

Creative Accent is from Mid America.

Jen love M's room!!
Jo those iris are lovely, like the color combos.
I totally understand about not liking labels sticking out...it's a pet peeve of mine too. Most of my plants are memorized, of course that seems to be narrowing as I get older. :)

Quercus robur 'Concordia' has arrived from Avant Gardens.

I feel the same way about lables,I am a geezer and a visual person so I take photos and keep files. OCD that way.
I gleen images from the website I am ordering from and off of Google .These files are kept in a huge garden folder.

nice celeste

I've tried everything to label plants....I guess I didn't get the right tape for the label-making machine, because even that wore off....and something...chippy?...pulled many labels out of the ground....

Probably squirrels they just do that to mess with ya

Anyone use the metal markers? do you use a carbon pencil with those?

Also found that writing on the plastic markers with regular pencil works, the pencil markings do not fade, the tag might disappear and be found somewhere else but the writing is still there, LOL

Nothing works here.....have tried reg pencil, pen, markers & tape...plastic, metal, wood....Louise used tape with raised plastic letters....will try that next....

here is a rock cairn project i did over the winter and have finally installed. they are 3 feet, 3 1/2 and 4 feet tall. very happy with how they came out.

VEREEE cool, wha!!!

Thats really great.

love those Bill!!!

Very cool!!!!

This is the guy destroying all my monarda
http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/go/843/
grrrrrrr

Cool Bill
I felt a sting on my leg and it was a green caterpillar, not sure if it was the feet clinging on or if it stung me, not sure where it came from

I got bit by an ant and one of those tiny blood suckers today...what the heck!!???

Jen, love your daughter's new room. How nice. I would have loved a room like that when I was a kid.

Jo, what lovely irises. I just love all of them.

I don't like labels, either, but I do have them, as I like to know what I have. Can't remember all of them, though it's surprising what I do remember. Probably about 80% of what I have I don't need to look at the label. I have heard paint pen on flat river or beach rocks works really well. I haven't tried it. I use cut up mini blinds with Sharpie, but they do fade. I write on the bottom, too, where it goes into the ground, so when the top fades I still have the bottom to see what it is.

Celeste, I love the new oak! How gorgeous!

Bill, your rock cairns are spectacular! Wow!

Oh no, Jen, I have that bug, too! I didn't know what it was. Now I know. I get it on my agastaches, lemon balm and shasta daisies, mostly. I have sprayed with Bonide systemic insecticide. I've also used that for the lily beetles this year, and on anything that's getting eaten by caterpillars. Tried it also on certain daylilies that get damaged by thrips every year.

Karen

Those are fantastic Bill!!!!!

thanks everyone!

Those cairns add a wonderful vertical line....they look really nice with the JMs! Karen, I dusted with Bonide for the lily beetles...then the storm came...guess I have to try again tomorrow....

I've been using Spinosad since Karen told me about it on her visit last year. It seems to help, at least for the beetles

Yes, I have that, too, Pam....nothing seems to get rid of the devils....

Your never done with beetles. I spray several times a season.

I spray at least once a week, more if we stay longer than the weekend or if it rains. I'll keep my fingers crossed...

Had a lunch and your from the NYBG today with my wife. Great time. Met some real nice people and toured The Cloisters in upper Manhattan.

Sounds like fun, Victor.

I just started using the Bonide this year. I'm using the systemic spray, so the plant absorbs it and rain won't affect it. We'll see how it goes.

Put new tires on my big wheelbarrow today. Got some cleanup work done in my potting area the past couple of days. What a mess! I wish I could put a potting shed in there. Would be so nice. Looks really ghetto right now, but it was worse before I cleaned and organized it.

I also got some annuals potted up, as well as some canna tubers that I bought for $2 each, big ones, at a local garden club plant sale. This will be my first time growing cannas.

Karen

I've been growing them in a pot for several years....they are the dwarf ones.....

any ideas on what might be eating my pulmonaria?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eevie-beevie/7307845642/in/photostream

my vote is earwigs.I have a salvia that looks like lace. I dont have a solution for you but hope someone answers.

I saw some little black worm looking things on my dahlias

Interesting part of the tour yesterday was the tour leader explaining how many plants got their common names in the Middle Ages.

No idea on what's eating your pulmie, Eevie. I've never had mine eaten, and I have plenty of earwigs around here. They like to get into my daylily flowers, and will often chew the base off the anthers (the part that holds the pollen), so that they fall out. Not enough for me to get out the spray, though.

Marilyn, do you overwinter your cannas directly in the pot, or do you remove them?

Karen

They stay right in the pot in my cellar....once I start watering, green appears....Eevie, my lungwort was totally eaten as well....don't know what did it either, as the only insects I see are the red lily beetles....

Now that that stinking bug ruined the monarda it has moved on to the hostas, butterfly bushes, rudbeckia, absolutely desimated the mums, aquilegia, daisies....I don't even want to look out there anymore....I sprayed again, but don't know how long that will last, looks like rain again :(

I really like the cairns, Bill

Very sorry about everyones bug troubles. It's so disappointing to have some insect come along and destroy what we look forward to seeing every year. I finally identified the bug that would suck my astilbe buds dry every year. It was the tarnished plant bug, and that Bayer rose care systemic stuff took care if it. I wish there was something systemic for slugs!

I have never had any luck with Sluggo, but the Sluggo Plus has Spinosad, which is supposed to work on earwigs and cutworms. The problem I had with that was that the chipmunks would eat the Sluggo plus grnules as fast as I could put them down. I solved that by getting black wire baskets from the dollar store and I put the Sluggo under that so that chipmunks can't get it.

My daylilys get thrips every year, though I have yet to actually lay eyes on a thrip or figure out how they get in there. I just know the darker DLs have a lot of ugly buds every year.

About 6 hrs out there today. DEAD! But got a lot done.

Since I was delayed by so many things this spring, I never cut back any clems. Guess what - having a banner year! Same with roses, though some are leggy. But blooms galore. I always say - nature has done a fine job for millions of years without us! In general, we do too much. Too much fertilizing, cutting, fussing. Of course, some of us are type AAAA garden personalities. I won't mention names. ^_^

Lost my American tea after 15 years. Weird. Not a great shrub so it's okay with me. More concerned with the clem growing through it!

It is a wonderful year for clems....they are huge & plentiful...I lost a Morden Blush rosebush ......supposed to be very hardy....want to be in the garden weeding, but am wary of the bees....took my Mom to the doc's today because she had a cut on her leg which wasn't healing ....he took one look at my swollen face & gave me a shot.....delayed reaction from the bee sting, as I was fine yesterday!

Good thing you were at the doctor anyway, RD

Glad you were able to spend some quality time in the garden Victor. I don't know ANY type AAAA garden personalities do you?

Sorry to here your bug is having a buffet at your place, Jen

wow - and i have tried to appear calm here other than the projects ............

sounds like my mil when i pre-empted a short cut when we were painting her home - if i am involved it will be done right :)

This message was edited Jun 2, 2012 10:08 AM