YAHOOO! Job well done.
Somebody else probably has more experience transplanting mature trees/shrubs, but I'd suggest cutting back the branches by a good 1/3, to balance out the top growth with the now-much-smaller root ball.
Gita, have you thought about enlarging your new sunny bed while you're at it? that would give you a lot more sunny space for plants.. I think you'd enjoy having room for new plants, well room for a season or two anyway! If you let the bed go all the way to the driveway/walkway edge, you could just make a curved edge on the other side. You could even wrap the bed all the way up the side walkway... even if it's just 18 inches wide as it goes past & beyond your porch, that would still give you good planting space. Since the area is right at the end of your driveway (easy delivery), you could opt for the easy way of using something (landscape bricks, timbers, whatever you like) to build up an edge, kill the grass, and then dump a load of nice soil & leafgro on top, all ready for planting. Just a thought, because you go all wistful looking at a new plant and wishing you had space enough or sun enough for it!
spring time plant shopping
Jill--That seems like almost impossible for me to do--too old--and no one to help.
Besides--I am used to the way things are....no changes envisioned. I like what I have and just make do.
Maybe I should stop complaining that I have no room---things always work out one way or another,
even if i have to dig something up. Renewal is good!
I will have a whole free bed, at least the whole front of it) where the Dr. resides every year.
A good 1/3 of the shrub already got cut back by Paul--just to close the door of the van.
There were 3' long branches i was cutting up after he left.
Look again in the picture with Paul next to the van--all those ends sticking out got chopped.
Bedsides--I gave it a serious thinning and sawed off quite a few whole stems in January.
Look at the very first photos--the before and after....and the newly slim-shaped shrub.
I am sure Paul will even out any last minute chopping he did here to close the door, with a few more snips.
G.
-The sprawling Dr. Seuss--it takes over everything in this bed...This bed is 10' long....
It seems to smother everything....Behind it are 2 large, perennial ferns you cannot even see--
as well as my Electric meter...
Buried also behind it is a nice clump of Begonia Grandis I cannot even find....
I will, happily, give the Dr. his own spot to show off in, as more people will get to see it there...
AHa.. I thoroughly enjoyed the Tale of the Dig. Thanks GIta. I think you did a Beautiful job of thinning and pruning before Paul arrived, and that it was inevitable that more would have to come off during the job. I think its all good.
I like Jill's ideas but digging sod is SO difficult, esp with the healthy grass that you have, so I understand your not jumping at that. THe new Brug bed will be awesome.
Remember when you plant around the Brug, that you'll be pulling it in fall.
I have to confess, I don't dig sod unless there's another place I want to put it... If you put black plastic down over the area for a week or so, that should kill off the grass, and it'll break down for extra organic matter in the new garden area.
I can't wait to see what Gita puts into her newly-emptied round bed! I agree that Dr Seuss will make a great centerpiece. :-)
I have always put the same thing around the edges there--Red Wax Begonias.
By end of summer--they all have grown together and form a solid red edging.
I am a creature of habit--and do not take to changes too well. Sameness=comfort....
Now that i will have a little more room--I may do 2 kinds of plantings..but still--
most of it will end up under the 'wings" of the Dr.
I do not, generally , plan ahead. I see something i like--buy it--and then go looking
for a spot to plant it in. Sometimes--i DO have a certain thing in mind...
Tried to find a picture of the ring of begonias--but gave up....G.
Gita, thats OK. Begonias work! You put lots of color in all your beds and they are beautiful.
Whew! I'm tired just reading about 'the dig'. Great solution for both of you!
I participated in HD's sale today. There was a line of cars picking up mulch after paying for it inside. Show the guy the receipt and he initials it and loads up the van. Very thankful for the help. Also picked up some sweet box, an aucuba, and 2 red azaleas..
OK--
Found this one--good enough! It is from last year...
For those of you in the DC MD metro area there is a cute little plant sale at a house near holy cross hospital. I didn't get a chance to go in but if you drive to holy cross you will see signs.They will be doing it again tomorrow 1-5, Tilton Dr. Find it!
Thanks for the heads up, Paul. I'll stop by there tomorrow. :)
That wintersweeet dig puts our big dig at Becky's to shame! I hope it does well for you.
Gita, Thanks for the Blow by Blow. Great story Paul you the Man.
Really enjoyed the whole show. LOL the battery going dead sounds like something that would happen to us.
lol Holly
"It's not a project if there isn't some damage" !!!!!
Happy, are you still looking for large pots? Costco has very large barrel-like planters for 15 bucks. They're made of some sort of resin material and can stay out all winter.
I saw these 20" pots at HD for $12.99.Copper colored with nice subtle raised design in center band.
Thanks to both of you -- I am looking for big pots, and both HD and Costco have been on my list, but I haven't had time to shop -- story of my life!
FYI
All of the Spring Swap at Jans threads are now stickied at the top of our forum.
This should help the organizationally challenged among us
(we know who we are! lol)
to always be able to easily find all Spring Swap threads.
Just look at the top of the forum.
When these threads have served their useful life they will be 'un- stickied'
lol Happy, no time to shop. There is a new selection of liriope that I have been reading about called 'Isabell'...that has fine textured leaves like Mondo grass but grows and spreads much faster. Good in full sun to full shade. Recommended as lawn grass alternative or borders. Mow once a year
http://idignewplants.com/ozbreed-new-plant-spotlight-liriope-isabella/
Did a' little' shopping at MamaJack's store http://cubits.org/notfortheserious/thread/view/74014/ - should receive my order by next week!!! Waaawhoooo
I'm shopping with MamaJack also!! Dozen rose bushes, Passifloras, and lots of other stuff. Did LOTS more with ChefMike of AllPlants. More coming from Palatine and Chamblees Roses, Santa Rosa Gardens and High Country Gardens. Need to get all the beds ready by early May!!
Roses - do you have a link to ChefMike's stuff?
Here are the two that I went crazy with, Chantell. I'm sure you can find more from him if you'd like.
http://allthingsplants.com/thread/view/15206/Hibiscus-Geraniums-Scented-Butterfly-bushs-vines-Echinacea-cone-flw-Chefmike/
http://allthingsplants.com/thread/view/15048/NEW-SALE-Lily-Clemantis-Gladiolus-Dahlias-Cannas-and-more-ChefMike/
Just received my order from Bluestone Vib compacta, hellebores and free Echi Tomato soup...all are VERY healthy looking
Cruised by my HD last evening and they had gal pot of Phlox divaricata - tall Blue Woodland Phlox for $6.98. Propagate by seed or division. Spring bloomer native wild flower. Bees and butterflies like it.
As kids we used to gather arms full of these. They smell nice. too. Good edge of woods plant. Also covers those drying daffodil leaves! Grows in shade and morning sun...We called it 'sweet william'
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/37539/
Holly, these might do well in your new front bed along the road...Did I mention they are blue.
I saw a climbing hydrangeas at HD the other day. I stood there for a good 5 minutes, staring at it and dreaming. Alas, it was 100 bucks, and I just couldn't pull the trigger. I have the perfect wall for it. Apparently, they can climb brick without support and doesn't damage the mortar. Sigh... One of these days...
Judy---They are just beautiful!
Now--If I only had a woodland edge......Maybe they would do well in my "YUK" bed?
Talking about that---Please, think back a year....WHO gave me the starts for the blue,
spreading Verbena H. Purple???? I put one in my bed up front--and the other
in front of my Day Lilies in my "YUK" bed.
At this time--I see NO signs of life on either of the two I got. Will it sprout later?
Is it past due? Is it dead???
Thanks. Gita
SS-- We have 2 of them in our HD Garden....
Here they are....They must be several years old already--to be so nicely espaliered....
ssgardener -- Are you sure climbing hydrangea don't damage their supports? I've been wary....
Gita, that's it! I know you can get smaller ones for a lot cheaper, but I guess I'm just impatient...
HM, I've read in several places that they can climb brick without support. They all could have been wrong, though!
Maybe it grows like Boston Ivy--using little suction cups to adhere to the brick.
I love Boston Ivy--it only grows one leaf deep. Can cover a huge wall in a matter of a few years--
turns red in the fall and then all the leaves fall off.
We have it in the Estonian House courtyard. I planted it--way back in the 80's.
The courtyard is 4 sides of brick--4 stories high--and it is completely covered with the Ivy.
Beautiful!!!
I got a climbing hydrangea start a few years ago, and I think this might just be the year it takes off. I've got a metal obelisk for it to climb, toward the back of the bed, so I don't know anything about how it climbs brick. I have heard that ivy will damage brickwork over time, though.
Yes, It will grow up brick and stone walls without support. You see it growing in the more southern states all over the buildings and it is just beautiful. Ric & Josh built me a large trellis to support mine. I got them last year at Lowes and was quite surprised to see them for sale. They like a shady spot and I am trying to get a few branches to root so I may have a couple of very small ones at the swap.
I bought our DD Suzy on of those for her ultra shady garden a few years ago. This will probably be the year that it really begins to take off. Can't wait to see it bloom. I recently bought a 2 Pistachio Hydrangeas to put on either side of the shed doors. They'll go in pots for a year or 2 with Caladium around them until the Hydrangeas are large enough to make their own statement.
"They'll go in pots for a year or 2 with Caladium around them until the Hydrangeas are large enough to make their own statement.
Read more: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1303167/#ixzz2QLVf1SgH
Good plan!
"stuff" rather than plants, but Kinsman has free shipping through this Monday, just in case you have something on your wish list from them. :-)
I say a climbing Hydrangea vine for each of my 5 tall oaks!
From LazySSFarms I'd get all three they offer
Evergreen Climbing Hydrangea Z: 7-9 in good soil part sun/part shade
Hydrangea integrifolia Evergreen Climbing HydrangeaDifficult to find in the trade (well unless you're on our site) but worth finding. An elegant, graceful clinging vine that's wonderful all year round. New growth emerges bronzy, contrasting with the older green leaves. Huge rounded flower buds open to white blooms reminiscent of lacecap hydrangeas. Vigorous so needs good support but clings by aerial rootlets so will cling to walls, especially ugly ones! One of the few vines that will bloom well in the shade. A 'Great Plant Pick'
Soil: Well-drained H: 10-30' W: 5-6' Varies w/ support B/M: White/5-7
Climbing Hydrangea Z:4-8 Part sun/shade
Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolarisA Missouri Botanical Garden Plant of merit from Japan, Kore and Taiwan that's a vigorous, sprawling vine that clings/climbs by aerial roots. Can be grown as a groundcover, each plant covering up to 200 square feet of garden. In May through July, if features 6-10" wide flat corymbs (clusters of blooms) that are fragrant and lacecap in style. The Heart-shaped, lustrous 2-4" dark green leaves remain on the vine into late autumn. When they're gone, the pealing, cinnamon reddish to orangish brown bark on mature vines as it twists and turns and is as attractive as ANY deciduous vine in winter! Superb when it stark naked! Needs STRONG support if grown vertically.
Soil: Well-drained H: 30-50' W: 5-6' Varies w/ support B/M: White/5-7
Hydrangea a. subsp. petiolaris 'Firefly' PP11038 Variegated Climbing Hydrangea Z:4-8
COMING SUMMER 2013. A spectacular new variegated climbing hydrangea that holds a special place in the garden growing up a tall oak tree or westward facing brick wall. The yellow variegation on the leaf margins in the spring turn to chartreuse during the summer months.
Soil: Well-drained H: 10-30' W: 5-6' Varies w/ support B/M: White/5-7
And I also like a number of the offerings at hydrangea.com, like "moonlight'
http://www.hydrangea.com/shopping/pgm-more_information.php?id=3&=SID#MOREINFO
The one at the HD's seem some different variety..
The leaves are quite small--smooth--and bright green.
I have seen a mature Climbing Hydrangea at an office complex--and the leaves
were large and a bit "rough'...the stems were reddish, kind of like the one in the 2nd link coleup posted above.
The HD ones could be some kind of a "Chinese" climbing Hydrangea...
Too bad they never put the exact name on the tags.....
G.
Gita: Boston ivy will definitely damage brick. At the college I went to, which was famous for its brick walls covered with Boston ivy, they pulled all the ivy off a few years after I graduated because it was discovered to have caused serious problems. It was a shame, because the beautiful red of the ivy in the fall was a sight to behold.
Oh those hallowed halls of ivy!!!
Happy, some of my wish list for plants is just that, a wish because I also know the reality! To illustrate, of my 5 tall oaks (no brick walls, just cedar siding) one has Winter Creeper up about 30 feet. Another has Virginia Creeper up 40 feet. My other trees I keep free of English Ivy, honeysuckle, wild grape. cat briar vines?, and poisen ivy. Neighbors trees are not maintained free of vines and sport all of the above. Every Spring one of my yardening chores is to cut back or pull out the encroaching vines attempting to go vertical, Skip a year at one's own peril. Vines like English Ivy/euonomus and probably climbing hydarnges when removed from a 'wall' pull away parts of the wall and leave bits of their holdfasts behind leaving a vinefree surface that takes many hours of labor to restore to pre-vine condition. Pulls bark off of trees and is strong enough to pop off shingles or gutters it gets behind.
An "ivy covered" cottage may be picturesque and romantic, but will sell less quickly me thinks! Just like puppies grow up to be dogs any plant that matures at 30 to 60 feet takes some 'knowing the end before the beginning' and if you only have a 20 foot ladder, the commitment to cut it back as opposed to letting it go!
lol, I like climbing hydrangea because it gives us a number of years to reconsider our decision before it is neigh impossible to reverse. When I trim back my viney yard I think how glad I am not to be dealing with Kudzu! 7 inches per day!!!!
http://www.mdinvasivesp.org/archived_invaders/archived_invaders_2008_08.html
I told you not to park there! Honey, have you seen my pruners?
I can see the first photo is a Civic and those are grape vines ,,.
If that was a little farther south / or we were making economic humor we could title that photo
Mercedes in Kudzu !! (?)
If you all think that was bad , My first thought when saw the Cottage (or read it was there I should say) was:::
Nice camoflage job!!!
My next two questions ,, How did that car get there ..?
and : Was (or is) the driver still in there?
I going back to my corner now ,, Only I cannot behave,( like those vines) goodness,, imagine cleaning those off of there? eeek !!!!
That is pretty, picturesque