FALL 2013

lol

The DEEP estimates we have between 100-150 moose living in CT.....the only one I ever saw was in Kent...this was a young male, but had a nice rack.....police said they had to kill him because he was heading for a major highway & the DEEP didn't arrive in time with the tranquilizers......Rosemary, what color camellias did you buy? I planted Winter's Star, a pink, in my back garden....it looks good right now, lots of buds......need to get some type of cloth to protect it this winter......

Its always sad when animals have to die for their own protection and ours.
I wouldnt want to hit one with a car.
I have a new gardening helper.It has a basket in front that can be removed and placed under the seat.

In response to Marilyn, the two babies are tender ones which will overwinter in my basement and garage just as Tiffany did since it came home from the Tower Hill show in Feb. They are both traditional ones: Glen 40, a formal red double, and RL Wheeler, a red semidouble with a pouf in the center. Tiffany is now 3 feet high and covered in buds. I hope by February to have a voluptuous plant with flouncy pink double blooms. I have had my eye on Harlequin, a multicolored pink and if these work out, will order a baby from Nuccio's nursery in Calif.

I am told that having the growing medium correct is very important, so I mixed my own soil from the Mass Camellia society and other websites. I think soil as well as weather are what did in my first tries, in spite of the fact I dug down and replaced soil in the proper Ph about five feet by 6 feet square for each one, as the books and websites said to do. We just have enormously acid sandy soil which leaches into everything. That's not all, as it was just too windy and changeable temp. even for the potted ones in that location. This year, I am doing it all differently to aim for an even temp.

My hardy ones include Snow Flurry in a prepared berm from two summers ago, and others in pots: Winter's Red Rider and Winter's Rose (both shrubby and low when mature), as well as Spring's Promise which is still a zone 6b or 7, and in need of protection. They won't be planted out this time until it's proven I can grow them into pretty good sizes in pots. I thought I might do better with some dwarfs that don't reach quite as deep into the soil. For fun I also have a c. sinensis or tea plant.

This message was edited Sep 27, 2013 6:30 PM

We don't really have the right windows for house plants. Just one faces west & gets light.

irisMA: Same here in spite of all the windows the best winter south facing one is in my livingroom and I experienced knats one year that drove me nuts for 9 months.

Camellias don't need much light, and if there's a cool place (even below 60) for them, they're fine, so in some cases they are a great houseplant. I am still learning about them and can visit a gorgeous camellia greenhouse at lunch time to learn more. They also like being around other camellias, so now I have three to grow indoors with little investment.

Jo, I love your new garden helper.....should make you feel more secure in the beds......Rosemary, those new arrivals sound wonderful...I never thought of growing a camellia indoors....thought they were all tree sized....hope the one I have survives the winter....it is about 3 ' tall.......

They only get tree sized in the South, but 5-6 feet is possible for some after a few years. Who knows where I'll live then?

True!

If you go south you can dig em up and take em with you. Been there done that!

Ohh, and that means it would be possible to have crape myrtles and magnolia grandifloria too!

Rebloom on Cranesbill
Rebloom on Salvia
This 4 o'clock got HUGE
Toadlily
Cyclamen

Love this 4 o'clock
asters
mums growing thru bench
rose

Great happy plants, Jen!

Thank you for posting the photos.

My cyclemins are smaller this year.Might be in the wrong spot.

So pretty! Love the flowers growing through the bench!

I love that 4 o'clock as well, & the cyclamens are beauties! My Seashell cosmos finally opened...it's only Oct.! Two years ago I had a cuphea planted in the same spot one appeared this year......must of have been all the rain that germinated the seed....my tall white anenome finally opened as well.....

Ooo, that Cosmos is really pretty
Better late than never!

Thanks....I took Seashell & a bunch of other cosmos into art class today to paint.....

Robindog: I love the seashell cosmos.I had some but they didnt reseed,maybe they dont reseed anyway the most successful cosmose I have are the vright orange ones.

I like cosmos flowers, but for some reason find the foliage annoying.

Oh, I like the foliage.....delicate. I've never had Seashell reseed, just the common varieties, but it's nice having colorful bloomers this time of year, so I let the cosmos come up wherever they choose!

I greatly admire ornamental grasses this time of year, and especially like Miscanthus sinesis Morning Light because it doesn't need staking. Of course, all ornamental grasses have that unfortunate phase in the early spring when they look ugly, but so many things do then. Most of the time, this one is pretty attractive.
Wynne

looks good wynne - I have that one here as well although kind of hidden in a bed - your looks nice with the smokebush

That does look nice.......I have one grass that needs to come out, it's very ratty looking & the dog keeps chewing it up!

here are a couple - swamp maple always the first to turn - amaranth now self seed and I weed them our easily and keep the ones the pop up in the right place - purple dome aster - have some others, rain did a number on them we shall see if the bounce back with sun

my purple asters blooms nice this year and my immortality tall re blooming iris is so amazing.The sedum did well in the shade.

Maple leaves are turning red or yellow, depending on the type of maple.

yep great fall color except in valleys like where I live, but we even see it when we look up the hill.

I think the amaranth plant is fun. I want either that or a chenille plant or love lies bleeding, unless they're all the same. There's always something new to learn about plant groups.

I've tried to grow Love Lies Bleeding, but not much sucess...it was pretty tiny for me......guess I should try again. Immortality is blooming away in front of our library right now, our funeral home also has a nice clump in front.

Amaranth or love lies bleeding is not my taste, always looks too floppy imho

Volunteer salvia(excuse all the weeds behind it...YIKES! I need to revamp that entire area)
Button mum....the last of them....I guess the area was too crowded for them or something...I had 6 of them all disappeared except this 1 that is sooooo tiny
Montauk Daisies
Goldenrod with Asters

I love the look of fall gardens,all arching and growing into their neighbors,little flowers amongst the larger blooms.

Me too. There was a lot of volunteer goldenrod in my garden. That and mullein are two things I don't touch.

not sure where we were talking about recent purchases - anyway here are the names of what I got.

Caryopteris summer sorbet - got three of these variegated green/yellow from rarefind, nice large plants - had one of these before and I killed it by chopping it to aggressively.

Caryopteris - Sterling Silver this one has blue/silver foliage and is a dwarf

Cotinus Black Velvet got two of these for a back drop on a bed in the top front yard - will move a purple one in back.

Hellebores Amethyst Gem, Peppermint Ice, Rose Quatz - these will go in the side shade garden by one of the new walls.

done until spring

Sounds great, especially the Cotinus.

I'm picking things up here or there. Today it was Geranium macrorrhizum 'Czakor,' a supposedly improved Bevan's variety. Purple d-oro DL came in the mail, too. I had forgotten why I was keeping its spot empty.

Sterling Silver sounds like it's making my wish list!

very inexpensive at deer resistant plants I think $8.35 each - they are not big plants - caryopteris grow very fast

Thanks. Bill!