NeoFarmer needs Help with Plant Names

Hello PNW crew!
I have had little time to post lately as I have massive projects
to complete before I start teaching again in three weeks.
I have updated my garden blog to include a tab for
plants that I don't know the names. Some were here when
I bought the house, others I moved from Bainbridge but lost
the name tags.

http://davesgarden.com/community/blogs/m/neofarmer/

Stop by my blog and check out the new chocolate bunny, too.
Also if you could let me know how slow the images
are to load, that would be great. I think they may be too large.

Hopefully I can stay involved with the postings and meet up
with everyone at the next get together.

Kathryn

Hello Neofarmer,
I am sorry I cannot help you identify any of your plants. I so loved your photos, I am in need of the Shin de Shojo Maple. I have 4 full size different J. Maples and several sticks about 30-36" tall, some about 18" tall and some only 4" tall. I do not know what they will be when they grow up but I love them. I loved all the pictures of your baby maples too! Makes me feel a little saner about growing all of mine...lol

I love the orange/red flower with no name, it reminds me of my "sun rose" Helianthemum. The yellow one does too, but I can't be sure. I have one in Pink with the greyer leaves, and one in red with shiny green leaves. You might want to check as there are many in that family.

I love the little leaf spreader, if you get an id on that one let me know what it is...and is it sun or shade?

Keep posting pictures, your photography is great, feels like I just took a tour!

Thanks Kathryn for sharing,
Carla

The varigated one in the back is a varigated weigelia. The ferns are Maidenhair. Both are great plants. The images load quickly for me.

Thanks Carla! I just bought a 10 megapixel Canon SRL to be used
for my upcoming Digital Painting of Floral and Fauna class.
Yes, the JMs are so addicting,
and who cares what they turn out to be, eh? They are all gorgeous.
Helianthemum is a good place to start researching.
The tiny leaved spreader is in a shady spot, planted by the previous
owner who knew what she was doing.

Willow, weigelia sounds familiar now, thanks. I thought the ferns were Maidenhair
but wasn't sure. Glad the images are loading good.

Kathryn,
Who is Dan? and tell him he is a wonderful carpenter! love the bridge!
The benches are great too!
When is this weather going to let up so we can all paint, I have some to do too! Maybe we will get sun by July 5th...lol

The tiny-leaved spreader is Vancouveria Hexandra, a native, related to Epimedium. Common names include Duck's feet, and inside-out flower. It likes shade. As the plants get older, the leaves can get to be about 2" across.

Hi Sue,
I need that plant thanks for the ID, it is a cute little thing! Where to find it now, up here...lol

I've got lots, actually. It's one of my very favorites. I'm finally to a point where I have extra. I'd be happy to share it with you, but I'm not sure about mailing this one. So we'll have to meet up at some point and I'll bring you some-or I'll send it through everyone else to you...

Thanks Sue,
I would love some, we will surely meet up this summer I hope...What can I get for you?

cocoajuno, Dan was my DH who passed away in January
from a sudden heart attack. He was 46. And yes, he was a great carpenter!
I have quite an inventory of birdhouses that he was going to sell at the farmer's market
this summer, along with my goat milk soap. We bred our Pygmy doe but the baby
died a couple of days before she went into labor. She was not able to deliver it,
so one c-section later, I now have a $2,000. goat! I promised her I would never
try to breed anything but rabbits ever again.

So I am left with way more house, yard, garden, animals, etc., that I can manage.
I am pretty overwhelmed at this point, and have to go back to work in a couple
of weeks. Flowers are my happy place. Life would be so dreary if I couldn't
dig my hands into the soil everyday. Dan took care of all the housework,
laundry, cooking, etc., so I could go to work in Seattle and put tons of time into the gardens.

susybell, Duck's feet! now that I can remember! I think the bed they are in is probably
five years old, so they are quite large in places.
So now I am eating a lot of canned soup! But I would rather spend my time outside
than in a kitchen. :)

Carla, What can you get for me? Space, or someone to do the weeding I'm very behind on, lol! Seriously, I've got so many new plants and seedlings that I can't think of a thing I want right now. And, I need to relocate some anyway, and I'd rather have it go to a good home.

This message was edited Jun 4, 2008 2:08 PM

Kathryn,
So sorry and so young, I do not know what I would do without my DH.
Please keep posting your pictures, they are such an inspiration. You have a fabulous eye for detail. I am out to decide how much more rock I need to complete my dry bed, yours is great!
Thanks again,
Carla

Sue, we need to see more pictures of your vegetation!

Thank you Carla, I decided to post my photos on the blog instead
of taking up space here in the forum. So stop by from time to time
to see the progress and new photos as flowers come into bloom.

Kathryn,
I certainly will stop by your blog, but I think you should post them on this forum for all to see! Your work is an inspiration and so many ideas are shared on this forum....You NEED to take up some of the space...GREAT PICTURES!
Thanks again,
Carla

I agree, we love to see pictures.

Well, I did go and look at all the pictures in your blog. I'm at a loss for words to describe how I feel about what you have accomplished. Your animals, your gardens, your selections, all you are doing and re-doing. You are a marvel and should write a book on how to do it right with flare. Love it all.

And, that, Carla, is why I don't post more pictures of my garden, lol! I'm good at knowing plants and growing plants, but not so sure about arranging plants...

Well I went and looked at all your pictures in your blog. There are not words to describe how I feel about all you have accomplished. The animals, the gardens, your selections and combinations are super. I think you should write a book on how to do it all properly. And give tours. You are amazing.

Willow, you are very kind. We bought this house two years ago and it had
a lot of landscaping already done. I didn't touch it for the first year, to get a sense
of when everything bloomed. Now I am moving things around, and starting new beds.

I was looking at your wonderful photos
and I see we share a common interest in aquilegias.
I have colors and shapes this year that I KNOW I didn't buy,
and honestly hadn't thought about them crossing.
I will put up some photos of my favs.

I used to park my car at a friend's house when I lived on Bainbridge
and walked to the ferry. There was a yard with a red and white star
that was shoulder high. I haven't been able to find anything quite like it.
May have to know on her door and ask for seeds. :)

This message was edited Jun 4, 2008 3:27 PM

I brought these pink ones with me and after two years I am overrun!

I planted these purple ones last year and they were putting on a good show
until the hard rain yesterday. I had staked half of them, but the others are on the ground.

This message was edited Jun 4, 2008 3:31 PM

Sorry I posted that twice. When I came back to the thread I didn't see it and thought I had forgotten to send it. I do that sometimes. LOL Love that last pic of the purple and white.

Yeah, I have it tucked in shade area under a big rhody,
and it is my favorite so far. I collected seeds from it last year,
and put them in the fridge last month, but forgot to plant them!
I plan to have some growing where I can see them instead of climbing
behind the rhody. :)

Now that is a pretty picture.

In the evening when the sun hits the Hood Canal water, it throws liquid gold
light my way. I can kinda see the water through the neighbor's trees.
If they thinned them a bit, I might actually have a view of the mtns too!
Which of course would probably raise my property values, ha.

If they took all the trees down up on this hill I might be able to see the canal also.

You have so many lovely pictures. I love your close-ups and scenic garden views. The bridge is a treasure. I'd walk back and forth many times a day if I had one as beautiful as that.

I'm way late chiming in on the plant identification, but glad to see I knew a few: #3 Vancouveria, #9 Maidenhair fern. Both of those are beautiful, but I can't grow them because of lack of enough shade. Maybe someday when my trees are more grown up. The first 2 pics also reminded me of helianthemum, and #5 looks a little bit like a Hebe, but I'm not sure.

I thought maybe hebe on that one also.

Here is an orange Helianthemum to compare:

I don't know any of the unknown plants but I adore your goats! So few people appreciate their antics and personalities. Just lost the last of my pygmies a couple weeks ago. :( What a wonderful habitat for man, bird, beast, and plant alike! The bunny looks very much at home there; and the cat too.

I have white and pale yellow aquilegias, no name on the white one, if you care to add them to your mix next year, just say the word.

And here's a red helianthemum:

So sorry about your goat, Poochella. You must be missing them with their lively personalities.

first 2 pics are definately helianthemum. I'll check on the varieties; I was collecting these but lost several over the winter.
Also - the grey foliage with white is a Hebe, as MHF pointed out.

mauryhillfarm, Thank you so much, I do love taking flower "portraits"
And I enjoy walking across that bridge! But I am also afraid of walking on it
too much and damaging it.

Willowwind2, Katye: Helianthemum it is! Those close ups look exactly like mine.
The strange thing this year is that the orange one starts with yellow blossoms at the top,
the turns light orange, then dark orange as it moves down the plant. Could this be a
difference in soil from one side of the plant to the other?

mauryhillfarm, Willowwind2, Katye: Hebe, of course! I knew the leaf pattern looked
familiar but couldn't put my finger on it. It is a small, low growing variety that is
practically buried by vinca and foxgloves. I will definitely rescue it because those
tiny white blossoms are just too pretty. Thanks for the ID!

Poochella, Oh, I am so sorry about your pygmy. Mine are so sweet and loving,
you must be experiencing such a loss. How old was it?

I love pale yellow blossoms, like the moonbeam coreopsis, so a pale yellow aquilegia would be swell.
Just save a few seeds for me, please. I have a white one that has amazing chartreuse variegated
leaves, and is my absolute pride and joy! I have babies finally coming up this year.

Here's a shot from earlier in the Spring before it let loose, I'll take another one today.

Wonderful contrast with the red foliage adjacent! Okay, I'll save a pale yellow for you, no problem.

I do miss the pygmies: they were brothers. One died in November, the other in May after enjoying 8 or 9 years here with us and several years at the neighbor from whom we got them. We're down to 2 younger Nigerian Dwarfs which aren't nearly as friendly as the others, but are still entertaining.

I can only imagine how sad the brother was when his buddy died.
Mine are completely inseparable, I can't take just one for a walk
or the other one will just stand there and scream. :)
Mine are 3 this year and I understand they live to be 12 to 15.

Kathryn - I'm thinking that picture four in your plant id thread is thimble berry - a native and a weed, from my perspective. Is the next one maybe an oregano. The leaf looks oregano-like.

I agree with all the ids - and they are the ones I would have gotten. But I'm really interested in the others that I don't know. Have you thought about posting them to the plant id thread? It's very cool and you get a response pretty fast.

Neo, have you heard the story of Poppy the pygmy goat in today's news? Funny stuff.

Yes, there was much subdued behavior with the loss of each goat, not only the surviving brother but the other two herdmates as well. I'm thinkin' there's nothing cuter than a baby pygmy goat, but we'll see.

Poppy's 15 minutes of fame at the link. I would have loved to see the busdriver's expressions! Google for more links if you wish. The 911 tape was pretty unique as well.
http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=121251994761290100

Neo - nice blog, really enjoyed it! And smashing photos, gardens, and animal family! But do populate the threads too, we love photos! And it spurs the rest of us on - vegetable photos were marvellous - the one with the peas and chard, and I don't know why - but the remaining 6 trays. isn't that a curious one to choose - well........ I don't know why! I just liked it.