Mauryhill Photo Tour

This one shows the colour - green & aging to bronze.
(I really liked the way this geranium grew, too.)
I wish it was Spring again...

Katye, that's a lovely geranium, with dramatic leaf color. Is it hardy here? A graceful looking carex, too.

Finally have time to catch up and look at this thread! Awesome shrub borders, Holly! And that 'Dark Star' is just stunning. Absolutely.. Would look great with tall white tulips if you could find some to bloom at the same time. Or white allium. You know me, always looking for plant combinations.

Before I forget, Tills,, you should definitely take Kayte up on the offer of the bronze sedge to go with the feather grass. The feather grass is absolutely my favorite grass because it is so graceful. I have many of them. I fear I may have too many but we shall see. The bronze sedge looks awesome with it and does not go crazy. The Carex 'frosty curls' is a bit of a seeder. I have not minded because I'm putting them between the large concrete stones in my little concrete patio. This year I moved 5 babies, so that's not really much at all and it's a totally worthwhile plant for texture.

The ice dance is a 'runner' type of carex (sedge). It's going to spread nicely if you give it good soil and plenty of water. If you give it marginal soil and less water it will be better behaved, but it's still a spreader. One good thing about it is the slugs don't touch it. The edges are too sharp. Here's a photo of where yours came from. It's around the edge of that bed. It worked well for 2 years and then, you know the old saying: First year sleep, second year creep, third year leap. By the third year it was too much maintenance to keep it contained. I dug it all out, gave a bunch away, and still have a goodly amount that I plan to let go a bit in the rear shrub border. It will keep the weeds down nicely and does not need grooming.

Holly, forgot to say I really like that pistachio tree. I'm going to check those out. The form is very nice. Also, what else are you planting in the iris bed? I think iris look nice among grasses because the grasses have interest all year pretty much. So even after the iris are gone, their leaves kind of blend in with the grasses.
Forgot to say that my other favorite grass is New Zealand Wind Grass. I can't believe I don't have a photo of it, but I believe it's on front of the latest Fine Gardening magazine. It's really a graceful grass, too.

I love Pony Tails . I have some seeds if anyone wants some.

Hi Pixy (the combinations queen extraordinaire), I think I'll try white alliums with the Ceanothus. The deer wouldn't bother those. It's hard to plant under because it takes no water in the summer and nothing can get established unless I get it together to Fall plant. Also, the doggy packs the soil down on one side of the bush with his comings and goings and nappings, and no plant can survive his companionship. He loves that spot, so I have given it up to him for the rest of his years. I do have to do something about the roots he has exposed on the downhill slope. I got some burlap bags that I'll try once I get a little compost deposited over the roots. If I pin them down, I hope he can navigate over them without trouble.

My plan with the iris bed was to put in some hebes, one with black stems and silver leaves, one with reddish stems and dark green leaves, and I was going to have some creeping groundcovers-haven't figured them out. And possibly a potentilla, maybe a carex or 2 and perhaps a hellebore. BUT, when I brought out the irises (which I potted up last August, not having the bed ready yet), I discovered that they took up practically all the space. Now I am at a bit of a loss. Spatial relationships is not my forte at all. I didn't want only irises, but I have nowhere else ready and they need to be in the real ground for the Winter. So I guess this is a temporary planting, and I'll move things around next year.

My bulbs arrived from Van Engelen this week too (the allure of the Fall sale took over my brain)...oh where to put them. Some can go along the edge of the irises. I got some small daffodils, crocus, and species tulips for that

Are pony tails a grass too? I got a funny mental image of horses waving their tails up in the air. It must be late and my tired mind needs to go to seep.

The pistacio tree, though touted as poisonous to deer ( I was feeling particularly ungracious towards them when I bought it) was munched by them when it was young and now has a shrubby shape rather than a main leader. It does look good now that its crown has risen up over the mock oranges. One of those did not fare well in the snow last year (half of it broke off at the base), so may need to be replaced with something else. You can kind of see that behind the rosemary.

I took this picture of Pony Tails today as I was out collecting seeds. Stipa tenuissima

Your Iris bed is going to be beautiful.

White allium would be great with that ceanothus, and would do well with the summer lack of water. Plus, not attractive to wildlife except for bees, so it's a winner! That is just a stunning shrub. I may have to replace one of my 'victoria' varieties. I don't think the color is nearly as nice.

There is a creeping groundcover hebe that you might consider in your iris bed. I put some in last year along the front edge of my 'dryish' bed out front and I do like the form. Hebe prostrata or something on that order. I got it from Heidi. I am in love with hebes and have put in several this year. No muss, no fuss, the bees love them, and the flowers are beautiful. Who could lose with that combination?

That iris bed is going to be filled quickly if you already don't have room for more in there. They do reproduce quickly when they love their bed, and yours looks like iris heaven, if you know what I mean. All that full sun. I would avoid putting a hellebore there. It will cook in the summer. Sedums would also make a nice groundcover in that bed. Penstemons: lovely. Bee heaven. Maybe a clump of helenium for late summer color?

If I can make another suggestion about that iris bed: your hebes will offer great evergreen texture, but how about something in a 'conical' shape to give some evergreen height? You could do a dwarf conifer like the dwarf alberta spruce. (I know, it's been done, but I do love them so. They look like tiny Christmas trees all year.) Also look good with grasses.

The shrub that broke, are you talking about the Mexican oranges in the photo with the pistachio tree? The ones with the really fragrant white blooms? If so, that is really too bad. They don't grow back very nicely with that kind of 'hard' pruning. They can take quite a long time to recover. But in the photo it appears that the one on the left is missing about 1/2 of it? And the other half is still there? That doesn't look too bad. If it doesn't fill out, you can always put something else in front of it. There is a variety that has golden leaves. I put a very small one in last spring. I hope it gets a bit bigger next year.

Stipa is aka "Mexican feather Grass".

MHF - the geranium is a Pelargonium, definately not hardy, but I am hoping to dig them up to overwinter. Its name - P. 'Vancouver Centennial'; is one of my favourites & a stellar performer. Flowers are orange to orange-red.

OK, now I'm catching in to some of these several plant names for the same thing. A feather grass by any other name...

I'm going to look for that hebe groundcover. Sounds like just the thing. Sedums are another good idea. I have a few I can take cuttings from and get rooted in. A spruce would be really pretty, but the ground there is clay based, and I'm not sure how it would handle it even though I raised the bed a couple inches so the irises would have some drainage. Garden center people always steer me away from spruces when I admire them. Something with a little height for variety would look good though, so I'll keep my eye out. I have a plant in the pot ghetto that I think is a penstemon or an agastache with light orange tubular flowers. I don't really know what they look like, and must study some pictures to figure it out. It was a tagless plant on the 'dollar table.' I'm putting it right in this weekend. Then, when everything is all wildly growing together, I'll move them around. That seems to be my usual gardening strategy. Aaaghh.

Yes, the shrub that broke is the Mexican orange by the pistacio tree. I was really bummed, as it had filled in so nicely the preceding summer, and I love their scent when I'm getting out of the car at night. I was thinking of putting a red flowering heather there that looks good with the light blue trailing rosemary. Maybe it will work out to put it in front of the broken shrub rather than ripping it out. I did try one of the gold leaved Mexican orange, but in my sun it always looks a bit burnt and started to revert to green. Your more shady yard might be just the perfect environment!

Either agastache or penstemon - both would look good. I do love you shrubs. Can't wait until mine look more mature.

Katye, also put me down for the bronze to, Oh what the heck, I'm game for almost anything. But being a little careful. I'm still years away from ever getting half this place planted. LOL You will see when I start my tour. There has only been 3 DGers out here that have really seen it as a hole. This is a lot of ground to cover LOL

Holly, I can't wait to see what your Iris bed is going to look like, reading all those Ideas. Sounds cool. Do you have your Irises yet? I just got my orders a few weeks back, some are with the Dals the other 40 are heeled in, in the Vegie garden for now, got caught in the moment, plus half are from Carlas. which I have some to share of hers. If you would like.

Hey Tilly, I'd say heeling in iris is a good use for the veggie garden in the Wintertime when it doesn't see a lot of other action. I planted lilies in the strawberries last year because that was the only spot available, and I decided I kind of like them there.

I got 16 irises from 1Anjils co-op, 8 tall ones for the back of the bed by the fence, and 8 miniatures for the front. Before I say yes on any more irises, I better get another place ready. I have plenty of unused space in my yard, but every new bed I create is hard won from the pasture grasses and buttercups.

Pix, I looked up my mystery plant, and I think its an agastache.

Yum! They smell so good! And the bees just love them, too.
I'm so excited! I finally got a new camera. Couldn't wait to get home and take a few photos, but, alas, it was already dark when I got here. Maybe tomorrow, if it's not raining. I am NOT going to get this one wet!

If you think you might let me know.
I just use may my vegie beds for other uses too. I'm never home to cook much anymore, and 90% of them are givin away anyway. I always plant to much and have no time to can, blanch, freeze and all that stuff. used to before I started working to pay the bills, When DH lost his job at the mill when it close down and I got high on the ladder, so to speak, now I have no life much at home but the flowers gardens.

Oh pix, What you get? I got a new one too.

Holly, this all looks very exciting. some of your plants are just knockouts - and I like your use of the concrete for making walls. Has a wonderful contemporary edge that goes really well with the house. Nice use.

Looking at the Pistacio tree area - I'm wondering if it would be a nice place for another stand of the gladwyn iris instead of another shrub. I love the soft, unassuming, appearance of those lavender/ghost blossom - and with their sword foliage and orange seed pods they would make a lovely contrast to the the other bouncier folliages. Their deep green will help set off the red of the autumn leaves. I find that the Gladwyn bulks up nicely, and because they are evergreen, using them in various places will create a very nice thread through out the border. They will germinate very quickly from fresh seed - I've literally had them come up in days in the greenhouse. But from dried, stored seed they can be a bit slower and its does help if you soak them over night. I usually keep a row of them in my nursery bed to use in areas that need filling (although I have to get them sown again, I really went through them this year) - they are as happy in deep shade as they are in full sun. Brillant plant in my opinion.

In the full sun iris bed, have you considered using various low growing thyme. They come in some really good leaf colours, and will work as ground cover. Very little care is needed, and again, they will be a lovely contrast to the fans of sword like leaves without being the star turn. And then there is the scent when your brush them - just heavanly!! You might even want to consider mixing thyme with marjorams and mint - they all come in various colours, strength of scent, and varying heights. Interplant with chives and the deer will leave them alone. You can use quite small plug plants, and they will spread in quite a quick period without becoming invasive (well, except some of the mints - they can be a bit thuggish). And you can pick your own seasonings as you go into the house!!

Laurie, Thank you for you enthusiasm and ideas. With your encouragement, I'm going to try growing some Gladwyns from seed, and fill in several places with them. I like the idea of edible herbs among the iris. My DH, who is the cook in our family and always asks me, "Can you eat it?" when I bring home a new plant, will also approve of these additions.

Here is the iris bed with irises in it. As you can see, I will need to transplant some of them to other places next year if I want to have much else there eventually.

To continue my tour, I must first say you must all understand that the weeds abound, the perennials need trimming, there is junk on the porch, and many buckets of rocks sitting here and there, being collected for eventual rock paths around the house, so it can be painted and maintained without tromping on my plants. This is the real life, as-it-is, yard not cleaned up tour.

Here is the open gate leading under the grape arbor to the front steps.

After entering the gate, there is a narrow bed on the right, by the house.It is bordered by rocks and driftwood, but these are now mostly covered by woolly thyme. I have some low growing things, such as a tuft of Armeria maritima, a variegated thyme that does not appreciate this location (soil too heavy on the clay?) Euonymous emerald creeper, lihtodora, creeping phlox, a Euphorbia, and a rosemary that just about got killed by the lithodora climbing all over it. I excavated it, but the form is a bit strange now. There is also a pink Schizostylis, Lavender in great need of a trim, and a white flowered Heath

Hey, I have a normal garden. I just ticked all of those points - rocks in buckets, tick, perennials in need of hair cut, tick, junk on paths/patios/everywhere, tick. You forgot - spade left in bed just incase (actually because you were working in dark), tick. Plants dug out to move and left on lawn, tick. Plants in pots in bed trying out location for two years, tick. Camera left out overnight, tick. Ooops.

I am still a novice when it comes to iris other than gladwyn and the siberian (which are different type altogether). But it is my impression that iris need lifting and dividing every few years to refresh them (they die from the centre). So in truth, you shouldn't have any problem with this bed really becoming over burdened, you will just have lots and lots of new plants for establishing Iris threads all through your garden (and passing on at the swaps).

I like having a thread plant - it stops the garden from looking 'spotty' and really helps the visual flow. You might want to have a seasonal thread - bulbs for the early months, iris for spring........dahlias/asters for the autumn, just makes a nice pull along the paths.

Here's the overgrown lavender and a Juniper by the front steps. Buckets of rocks are getting a rain water bath beforeeventual placement on rock paths.

So you already have some of the herbs for the Iris bed - the variegated thyme will look lovely against the deep green of the iris. I wouldn't worry too much about the rosemary - it is one of the plants that grow all year round, and does well with cutting (NOT into very old wood) - so give it a trim (or move it) and it will be fine. Is the wooly thyme the hummocky plant? Looks extremely vigourous!

How are you going to use the rocks? Nice size (we get chunks, rather than the nice rounded pebbley rocks you get). Just looking at the rocks in the buckets I find myself thinking it would be nice to make a 'channel' of them in front of the beds - owwww, I'm envious. Nice rocks.

What a relief, Laurie, that I am not the only gardener here with a continual mess here and there, and of course insanely working until after dusk has fallen. I really, realllllly need a headlamp for Christmas.

I have a box of bulbs that need to go in tomorrow, crocus and daffodils for the iris bed, and species tulips for somewhere inside the deer fence. Also bought 50 Camassia (what can I say, they were on sale 40% off) that I haven't a clue where to plant. They are the native, edible kind, so DH will be happy to hear this news.

The rocks are the work of the glacier that carved out the Puget Sound and deposited the island I live on in the middle of the channel. Rocks are often roundish, sort of potato shaped. My plan was a 2 foot wide path between the house and the garden beds all the way around eventually. I don't have a real foundation, but instead plywood skirting that really isn't good to have garden soil up against.

I'm hoping to eventually have a pathway from the house out to the parking area that has a smooth surface for my mother to walk on, since she has balance problems. It probably has to be concrete to be flat and even enough. Maybe a channel of the glacier rocks by the garden bed would make it look more natural. I also saw some cool ceramic fish a friend of mine had implanted in a concrete walk which made it reminiscent of a river. they came from a construction resale store, so not easily found there again unfortunately.

This message was edited Nov 23, 2008 1:20 AM

Yes, woolly thyme is the hummocky one. That is actually a large piece of driftwood log under there. The plant itself grows pretty flat along the ground.

I think I am going to move that rosemary. This bed was my very first attempt at anything ornamental. I had only done vegetable gardening when living in rentals. I discovered the rosemary is a prostrate variety and does not make much of a bush shape. I could put in a more upright form or try something else there altogether.

This message was edited Nov 23, 2008 1:19 AM

Holly, If you think you have junk LOL just wait till you see my tour, I'll bet you money mine is the worst. And I don't care, someday it will be what I want. This all use to be a horse pasture.
Just love the wooly thyme, wish I could come over and get a hole bunch.^_^
I don't think any of us have the perfact garden, like Laurie said in all her Ticks, We all have are own special yards that fits us. DH has lost 3 shovels some where out here, To funny and the only one I can find has a big chip off the point. One day I will find them, just not when I need it.
Love the Iris bed.

Tilly, I suspect we'll be neck and neck an the junk. We have a friend who stores his belongings on one corner of our place. This includes 2 campers, 2 or 3 old trucks, and excavator, piles under blue tarps, etc... Then there is the old '48 Chevy that belongs to us but no longer runs, and the falling apart old tool shed behind it that it towed from our previous dwelling. Both landed in their current locations because the truck quit right there. And the piles of stuff DH hauls home from work---projects in transit. And the piles of construction debris from tearing down ancient sheds that were here before us and building the new outbuilding. And tubs with irrigation tubing and parts, posts that will be part of a new fence someday, bags of leaves that I have yet to distribute as mulch................

Holly, I had to find this photo from the 2006 Seattle Flower and Garden Show. You have the makings of a very unique garden ornament in that nice blue truck. The color is perfect!

I am in love with your arbor! Did you make it? And do I see a small tuft of Mexican feather grass in that bed with the wooly thyme? That's a very nice bed you have going there. I do love the schizostylis giving you nice autumn color.

Like Laurie, I was ticking off the 'fall garden' points as you listed them, including buckets of glacial till rocks! I just had my son take care of a couple of them yesterday. The only issue I have with them is that they get too heavy for me to move. So I either have to call someone else to do it or get the dolly to move them. Laurie,, please do not be envious of our rocks. They are such a pain for the most part. Gardens edged with glacial till are ubiquitous in the PNW. After all, how many 'dry river beds' can one create? And in my yard, even those don't really last that long because the fir needles cover them in no time at all.
I'm working on posting my garden 'tour', complete with all of the above, too.

The planted car is hilarious! Does Gordon know about this planter option for his "Man Garden" Nursery? Not sure Harley is ready to part with his truck in this way, however. He believes he can get it running, and I imagine this could be possible someday.

Harley made the arbor and trellis out of copper plumbing pipe, soldered together. the design was a cooperative effort. he did the arbor and I drew up a picture of how I wanted the trellis. The actual assembly was a bit more complicated than anticipated, but it worked out in the end.

Yep, that's a feather grass being swallowed by the woolly thyme. Who knew something so small and innocent could eat its neighbors?

To continue my tour, this is the patio garden from the front porch. It is constructed of large chunks of broken concrete from someone's old driveway. Our friend who has his junk treasures stored on our property cleared the area for the patio with his excavator. We put down driveway cloth, a load of sand, and then the excavator was needed again to place the large pieces of concrete. I filled the outer spaces between them with soil and planted walkable ground covers. The central area is supposed to be grouted, and My plan is to embed colored tiles to decorate it. Another project partly completed as I rush on to start the next!

Some shots of the patio garden from the outside. A few of the plants visible are Sunshine blueberry bush, Lingonberry ground cover around it, Pacific coast iris, a red leafed ground cover whose name I can't remember, another untrimmed lavender. The viney shrub sort of climbing the wall is a winter blooming Lonicera that is not at all happy with its location...maybe too hot, maybe not enough root space, so i have to come up with a different plan for it.

Moving on around, 2 shrubs that are not really working, which I planted the first year we were here when I was clueless about ultimate shrub size and sun/shade needs. The Camellia is growing into its own shade, and tilts further in that direction as the foliage in sun langusihes. It usually blooms in late December or January, but this year is flowering now. The Burning Bush has interesting twigs and great Fall color, but it will be outgrowing its situation soon. It was supposed to be a dwarf, but keeps growing larger, and I read that they really get to be 15 feet tall and wide in this climate. There is a blueberry bush between them that will have room to grow if I move the others.

My shade garden, under a Japanese snowbell tree. I widened it this year. It has a Tiarella, Pulmonaria, Polemonium, Heucheras, Lady's mantle, and Hellebores, among other things.

On the other side of the fence from my new iris bed is my Ginkgo bed where some of my dad's ashes are scattered. I have also used it as a nursery bed for some small shrubs that are getting big enough to transplant in the Spring. I hope this works, haven't done it before

Across the yard to the west is my vegetable garden. You can see the strawberry bed, the garlic bed, one that's fallow, and then the hoop house with greens for the Winter. Beyond that is an artichoke and a few asparagus, not sure if this is at all visible.

Moving to the North are some 6 year old apple trees that I need to learn how to prune properly. The one with apple is a Melrose that is late ripening. Beyond them is a Giant Sequoia planted about the same time.

Note: I skipped over the burn pile in the large pit over which used to be a six-seater outhouse (had to be taken down due to floor rot and safety issues). We tried to move it to use as a garden shed, but it collapsed. It was there from when the property used to be a current farm which hired many pickers at harvest time. This was their facilities.

Next to the young apple trees moving Eastward the outbuilding Harley built, currently housing our son's drum set and music set-up, storage at the back for the apple press (among other stuff), and an upstairs that is going to be my garlic drying space.
Pile of wood chips in the front.

This message was edited Nov 23, 2008 7:18 PM

On the East side of the out-building, I am just collecting materials to make a lasagne bed, eventually to be a new home for the Camellia so it will have relief from the afternoon sun.
There is also another burn pile with some old apple trees that we had to take out because they had been dying and breaking apart in ice and wind storms. One was lying on its side, but still putting out some apples on a live branch.

A small fig tree is in the foreground.

This message was edited Nov 23, 2008 7:38 PM

At the northwest end of the hose, I made a lasagne bed last year, which is just ready to plant now. I have put in a Corylopsis gotoana, a dwarf red twig dogwood, and plan to put in a blueberry by the back steps, a sarcoccoca under the bedroom window and beneath the apple tree where it will get some shade in the summer, though not in the winter.

There are several bags of oak leaves lying around in the bed, waiting to be used as part of the next lasagne bed I start.