Plant Combinations for the corner area

This is a great idea, growin. Added "Arctic Fire" to my project list.

estreya, exactly right, anomatheca is just about the same height and spread of muscari. Gently self seeds here - where muscari can be a tad on the rampant side. But love it.

Picking up on the interest in a rambling rose for that area, since the area is fairly small, how about one with a smaller flower that would put out hips for winter interest? Maybe growin knows one off the top of her head. Some of the older roses have a wonderful scent. I've purchased many a rose from Heirloom Roses (www.heirloomroses.com). They sell roses grown on their own roots. The come smaller, but by the second year they have caught up and they are more disease resistant than grafted roses. They also tend to have more blooms. You could add a clematis that reblooms in the fall and have flowers in the verticle spot for most of the season, plus winter interest in the rosehips.

If you decide on a cascading grass to edge the bed, you might consider alternating the grass with a nice catmint such as Nepeta 'walker's low'. If gives billows of beautiful blue flowers and a grey-green foliage. It blooms all summer, can be sheared midseason and then reblooms. I generally take about a third of the blooms off of mine every month. This keeps the blooms coming and the plants looking full and lovely. In the fall you could plant spring bulbs underneath the catmint and grass. Then they would come up through these plants as they are just emerging in the spring. As the foliage from the bulbs dies down, it will be hidden by the billowing border plants.

I love the idea of the daphne odora! I have one as well and the scent is simply stunning!

I was looking yesterday for catmint and here is your post, Pixydish. Thank you, it's great, i'll pick "walker's low".
The only my concern is my neighbor's cats. Will it make them to live in my garden?

I am not very good with roses, bought one brier rose (because i live in Brier), it did not flower for me, i moved it to another location where it flowers but does not set hips.

I don't think you 'll have to fear your neighbor's cats. Cats do like it, but I'm mine never attracts cats outside of my own.
You might take a look, if you are interested in roses but just think you can't grow them, at some of the old rose varieties. They can be foolproof, and some, especially the white varieties, can tolerate a bit of shade. Not all roses set hips. The newer hybrids might not. but generally the older ones do, and some of them have the most heavenly smells. Generally, if you give them a spot of fertilizer for roses in the spring, or a good topping of compost and manure, and give them enough sun, they will bloom.

Huh! Roses in a bit of shade? Can they take a full on northern exposure?

Well, not really likely full north. They'll need a bit of sun, but I know that Climbing Iceberg can take a bit of shade if it's light shade.
Here are some roses for partial shade. Remember that our partial shade up here will be 'shadier' than partial shade in , say, Texas. They still need 5-6 hours of sun, but that's not considered 'full sun'. The first link shows Altissimo. I tried this rose in a location that got little direct sun and it did not do well. I'd say it likely got only a couple of hours of sun during the summer, and none during the spring. An experiment that went badly.

http://www.amityheritageroses.com/ShadeTolerant.html
http://www.ashdownroses.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=357
http://www.regannursery.com/getting_started/staff-recommends/shade_tolerant_roses.htm

You can find plenty of info about 'shade tolerant' roses by typing that into Google. Lots of info! I have an alba rose, a rugosa, that I had planted in a very shady location. I didn't realize how shady it was in the summer until summer actually came. The rose did okay, but not spectacular. I moved it to a location where it gets a couple of hours of afternoon sun and it is doing great now.

Cornus 'Midwinter Fire' from yesterday.

Gosh, that midwinter fire is soooo amazing. And thank you for the rose links Pixydish! I'm sorry you lost your Altissimo. I just know i'm going to cry when i loose my first plant, which is probably inevitable .... :)

I love that 'midwinter fire'! Just glorious!
Yes, it is inevitable that you will lose plants. It's just part of the process, and when you tend to press the limits like I do, you lose even more. I have come to look upon it as an opportunity to buy another plant. :)

"Midwinter fire" is so great, like a real fire!
Pixydish, i like your approach to occational lose of plant, should get the same.

It's easy Brier. Here's what you do: bury the plant in the compost pile while singing a sad song. Then rationalize the killing of the plant by realizing that it will return nutrients to the soil, so it's not a total loss. Then go to the nursery and shop! See? Couldn't be easier!

Pixy - and I have been doing this without the song! I knew I was missing something!

Oh yes, Laurie! LOL! The 'ritual' is very important! It allows closure and an opportunity to 'move on' (to the next plant, that is)!


Brier, where exactly is Brier,, WA? I am currently in the middle of a major garden redesign and I'm wondering how far you are from me.

Pixydish, Brier is north to Seattle, long time ago it was a part of Lynnwood, now independent city, close to Montlake Terrace and Lynnwood. What Lakewood do you live? I see two Lakewood's, one in Snohomish and another in Pierce County.

I will need to find a good song to sing when i put my plants in compost pile. Long time ago my daughter has couple small rodents as pets and when one of them died, she was playing some song on violen (at that time she was taking music class) and then buried pet.

I'm in the more southern Lakewood.
Are you coming to the plant swap in Renton on the first weekend in March? It will likely be a good place to get plants for free.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/687538/

Renton is "another side of world" for me. I am not driving by myself (my problem after car accident time ago) further then neighborhood, my DH is not a fun of gardening (it's just my hubby), sometimes he or DD can give me a ride but it's unpredictable.

Sorry to hear it! In know that Gwen on Whidbey island said there is a something like this up in Everett later on. If that's close, you could find out about it through her. Her Dave's name is Gwendalou.