No matter what I set out to do, something else always grabs me. All gardeners are familiar with this phenomenon (and some have already written winningly about it!). I went into the greenhouse with every intention of shifting pots from bench to bench in an attempt at organization. It was inevitable really that I’d discover that some plants needed water so of course I checked the whole place. In the middle of that sidetrack I discovered that the larkspur seedlings were eaten (grrrr!) and spent the next 10 minutes on a slug patrol. I checked the bottom of every peat pot, booted the little devils and unceremoniously squarshed them. (I think sometimes I should pick on someone my own size but a couple of these nearly were.) Anyway I’m getting sidetracked. So, I was in the middle of doing that when I noticed that the pitcher plant (Sarracenia leucophylla ‘Tarnok’ - ‘Judith Hindle’) flower was starting to unpeel and because I promised a couple of visitors last week that I’d post a picture I had to run right then and grab my camera.

I’m so sidetracked right now by spring that I might as well just get off the train for awhile. This is the other stuff that hooked me today: New leaves on the Red Chestnut (Aesculus x carnea ‘Briotii’) still have their puppy fur. Anyone know what the fuzz is for? My guess would be frost protection but then why do only some early openers have it?

The Pasque flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris) is furry too.

The Quince (Chaenomeles) reminds me of popcorn which reminds me that it’s ages since I went out to the movies…

The Winter hazel (Corylopsis glabrescens ‘Longwood Chime’) is still shaking out her skirts.

The Water Garden Cherry (Prunus x yedoensis ‘Akebono’) is in bloom - this tree would stop you in your tracks too.

And of course the Daffodils. Peak-a-boo! Most of the ‘Ice Follies’ have bleached to white and might go by in the next couple of weeks but the late bloomers will distract you completely. This one is Narcissus poeticus. When your daffs go by, it’s ok to deadhead them but be sure to leave the foliage on to nourish the bulb for at least 6 weeks. (Ideally you should let the foliage turn completely yellow and pull it when it comes out easily.) In case you’re wondering, we do not deadhead all 50,000 daffodils but we do tidy up the ones in and around the gardens and hope that we’ve been clever enough to plant something that will fill in and hide the clumps. Do you plant cover-ups? Do you braid the foliage à la Martha Stewart? Are you so easily sidetracked that you stop noticing it?

And I almost forgot! (I was thinking about popcorn.) - The Bosquet fountain is on! I’d never seen it in action - it’s been pretty much out of commission for nearly 10 years. Thanks to a generous grant and lots of hard work it’s a water feature once again. It would be lovely to sit and listen to the trickle… FYI: our restrooms are located to the right of the mansion entrance.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! A day early for Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day, here are blooms galore (mostly from the greenhouse). Every day I work around plants that I want. I go around sometimes saying, “I want you. and you. and yes, you too … and you … and …” - I think you should tell your Valentines that you want them (every day) - even if they know they’re already yours!

Click on pictures for a larger view with caption or hover over for caption alone. Is the new font size better for everyone? (I’m not squinting nearly so much) Also, if you’ve been having trouble reading these posts using IE, that’s working better now too. Thank you, Scott (and thank you, Wiseacre for very constructive criticism - it’s always welcome here)!

The light is definitely changing. I have to be quick now because in the middle of the afternoon the sun angles in the potting shed windows, arcs across the monitor screen and slides underneath my eyelids like it’s trying to poke me awake from my wintertime torporific stupor. Ground Hog’s Day has always been my favorite holiday because for me it marks spring within reach. Regardless of whether we get a Blizzard of ‘78 anniversary event or even snow in March, spring is still inevitable and closer by the day. The birds are singing, the sun is high enough and warm enough to send the greenhouse vents flapping and we’re getting into gear - a slow first gear to warm up our engines for the big spring push starting for us, in March and April.

A couple of volunteers came in today to help Gail and me tackle the weeds. Just like any other garden, the greenhouse desperately needs to be weeded every minute and the Kenilworth Ivy (Cymbalaria muralis) had gotten ahead of us. I think it looks pretty but it’s a very tasty harbor for the dreaded whitefly. Maybe thanks to my pest-icidal tendencies (I’m a killing machine armed with a soapy water spray bottle), we didn’t have clouds of whitefly up our noses and instead just suffered the discomfort of out of practice squats and deep knee bends. (Gardener calisthenics)

I know I’m not the only one to be easily distracted in the garden, or in this case, the greenhouse (Carol at May Dreams Gardens has written a lot about it) but you’d think because I do this every day and for a living that I might have achieved a little more focus by now. This morning I very purposely started unpotting this poor potbound Colocasia (C. fallax), then I’m not sure what happened - maybe I noticed a weed or wanted my camera or saw something shiny and the next thing I knew hours had gone forgotten by. My hori-hori was still impaled in the pot and poor babies were high and dry on the floor. All is well though. I went back to it and have it almost all divided and repotted now. Hey look, the iris are starting to bloom!

I guess I was a little distracted on Bloom Day this month because I missed these little sweetums blooming (outdoors!) practically right under my nose. Walking from the greenhouse to the house I pass this little clump of heathers (or are they “heaths” when they’re winter flowering?) along the Enclosed Garden path. It was only when I walked that same path in the opposite direction the other day that I noticed them blooming away. Ericas like well drained, acid soil and full sun (according to AHS A-Z) and these definitely exhibit more blooms on winter’s sunny side. — So if you want to plant them for color from a winter window, think about placing them north of your view. This grouping includes Erica carnea ‘December Red’ (purple in the middle), ‘Springwood White’(front), ‘Myretoun Ruby’ (right) and E. x darleyensis ‘Mediterranean White’ (in the way back).

Taking the path from the Bosquet to the Water Garden yesterday I snuck up on the witch hazels and was surprised to find what I was looking for - Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Diane’ is starting to pucker up her lipstick blooms. Have you checked your witch hazels lately? Yo-yo winter weather might get them started before you know it.

In the greenhouse another fun surprise: Our Graptopetalum -probably a cultivar of G. paraguayense- is busy making babies.

If that’s not an excellent example of survival of the of the most opportunistic I don’t know what is. (Of course I gave new homes to all the kids I found.) Anything suprise you this week?

was the catalog photo…

There is something about browsing seed and plant catalogs that doesn’t feel like work to me and without Gail here to say “it’s ok!” and “we need to get the orders in by the end of the month!” I’m inclined to put it off until the “real” work is done. (That only gets more complicated when I enjoy the “real” work so much that I put it off too.) It’s like waiting to have dessert until after dinner. Eat dessert first; browse catalogs now! Or first thing when Gail is back. For me it’s less productive to shop alone and a lot less enjoyable. I love settling into the quiet, chilly potting shed companionship of a browse with Gail. She’s always got the more interesting catalog in front of her and I’m forever craning over the table to see what she sees. And I need her to bounce off my “what about this’s?”. Half the time whatever I’m taken in by was tried before I got here with disatrous results (ie. infestation and/or “Julie doesn’t like it”) and the other half of the time Gail rewards me with a “ooh! I love it - put it on the list.” Guess what I live for! We haven’t gotten all of the catalogs in yet - the stack is usually at least 6″ thick and so slippery we’re constantly chasing landslides. I’m going to wait (maybe I’ll sneak a peek and dogear a page or two during lunch) but I promise to get right on task (and tell all about it) as soon as Gail is back at work. Do you browse catalogs alone or with a friend/partner?

Meanwhile, for those of you who took Julie’s bulb forcing class last October - and anyone else who started bulbs this past fall, have you checked on them lately? The Iris (Iris reticulata ‘Clairette’) that Julie has been keeping in the cold dark of her bulkhead steps are ready for the light and we brought them home to the greenhouse this morning. For the first 3-4 days they need to adapt and should be keep cool (55-60 degrees F. - we put ours in the coldest house which can dip to the 40’s) and in indirect light. After that they can be given a warmer, full sun spot. It can take another 10 days to 3 weeks for them to start blooming. Keep in mind that temps of less than 65 degrees F. are best for prolonged bloom and they prefer to be kept even cooler than that at night. In a couple of weeks we’ll think about bringing the tulips up into the light…

Snow snow snow! And a Garden Blogger’s Bloomday (hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens) a day early. I practically wore out the shutter of my little camera taking pics yesterday and today (I think I could smell it smoking…) so here are an end of the week bunch. As always, hover over the pictures for a title and click for a larger view.

If I hadn’t overheard Dan say the cherry was blooming I probably would have missed it! Prunus subhirtella ‘Autumnalis’ blooms a bit in the fall - it’s subtle!- and again in the spring. It seems like our recent cold temps should have nipped it in the bud (so to speak) but even a fairly major snowfall didn’t stop a few from opening. Follow my tracks through the Rose Garden to find this tree.

The Harlequin glory bower (Clerodendrum trichotomum) berries are a bluer blue than my camera captured - you’ll have to come see it for yourself!

The Leucothoe fontanesiana shows up multicolored in the snow.

The pond and Rock Garden are sepia toned.

The Burning bush (Euonymus alatus ‘Compactus’) looks like a nest. And the snow has revealed a nest within the nest.

I didn’t want to tread on the Bosquet’s hem - it’s dressed in its finest winter robe. Sometimes I wish I could hover over the surface and not mess it up with burly boot prints. Other times I want to flop around and make a dozen angels. What do you do with the first snow?

The greenhouse inhabitants are in full winter finery too - this selection in honor of Bloom Day includes stock plants - Cuphea micropetala and Salvia vanhoutii ‘Paul’, a Farfugium japonicum ‘Aureomaculatum’ - not blooming but I love its sunspots!, a Camellia chandlerei that just opened, and two views of a Plectranthus hilliardiae ‘Candelabra’ on the low-light houseplants bench. There are many more bloomers - come by for a coat of color! (The greenhouse door is open weekdays and most weekends between 10 and 4 .)

Were you ever scolded as a child -or do you scold your own children- for making a mess? The answer for most of us is probably “you bet”. I submit though that it’s in our natural nature to love a good mess. I think it’s satisfying to fling things and gratifying to tidy up. This morning I admired the aftermath of this weekend’s storm (nature flung things).

My boss, Julie had already picked up sticks in the Bosquet and made piles - sometimes I think she’s actually tempted to go out in a storm and catch sticks as they fall. When I asked Fred if he wanted/needed extra hands (mine) to help clean up he said “it’s not that bad. Unless you have a burning desire to pick up sticks…” I don’t. It’s always less fun to pick up someone else’s mess, don’t you think?

So after doing some stick-picking-up anyway, I made my own mess.

I love to pot up. The potting shed is designed to contain messes. I can spill soil with wanton abandon and groom dead leaves straight onto a floor pile. I don’t have to be careful of the furniture! Today I took the wedding pots apart and divided and repotted the phormiums. Phormiums (New Zealand flax) aren’t as hard to divide as you’d think. I set them on the floor and parted the blades until I found a mid point with at least a semblance of a seam between the fans of blades. Then I stabbed the seam with my hori-hori and wrestled until I felt and heard the rip tear of roots. It was totally satisfying mess making… and I can’t put off the gratification of cleaning up any longer… Do you have a place you can make a proud and uncareful mess?

It just occurred to messy-me that I should tell you that those fingernails will be clean next Thursday for the Annual Garden Design Luncheon and there are still some seats available!

Do you remember the 1970’s? I have hazy orange and brown memories of fads like macrame, yoga, clogs, avocado colored kitchen appliances, silk-screened monochrome bull’s-eye wallhangings, and houseplant jungles. What goes around comes around. For some, bell bottoms and backyard vegetable gardens never went out of style. Others of us rediscover trends and treasures when the time is right. I don’t know who decided that enough time had passed (was it Martha Stewart?) but terrariums are all the rage again. I think they’re so cool I have to wonder why they ever went out of style in the first place. And I have to admit that I’ve gone a little nuts. Some people put up jars of tomato sauce. I put up jars of mini indoor gardens.

Ingredients: clear glass jar (water bottle, fish bowl, jam jar, brandy snifter…) or a wardian case (looks like a mini greenhouse), fish gravel for drainage, fish tank charcoal (activated carbon) for purity, moistened soil (one part compost to 2 or 3 parts potting mix), any landscape elements you like (rocks, tiny houses, plastic dinosaurs…) and plants that love warm, humid conditions. — Indoor winter heat is tough on some plants. I had a little eyelash begonia that was a gasp away from death and when I put its last nubbin in a mason jar, it immediately decided to thrive. Look around and see what needs rescue. And go shopping! Some of your local nurseries stock perfect terrarium plants (we go to Peckham’s Greenhouse in Little Compton, RI) and there are plenty of mail order places too (such as Logee’s and Kartuz)

Place a layer of gravel, lightly topped with a layer of charcoal in the bottom of a clean container. The depth of this layer depends on the size of the container and should probably be 1/2″ to and 1″ for decent drainage.

Thickness of the soil layer also depends on the size of the container. It should be deep enough to hold the roots of your plants while not taking up more than the bottom third (including drainage layer) of your container. Terrariums are all about balance. Plants take in water and transpire it out. In a perfect little world, they essentially water themselves. I’ve gone for months without having to water some of my jars! When you choose and plant your babies, make sure they don’t take up any more than half of the air space in the jar. Plants that grow by leaps and bounds should be tended regularly and clipped back so they don’t strangle themselves or their neighbors. And fertilizing is a definite no-no — it wrecks the balance and plants grow too quickly.

Water your plants in just a little to make sure the soil around their roots isn’t full of air pockets and cover the jar (poke holes or leave the lid a tiny bit open for fresh air transfer), and place it in a bright but no-full-sun spot. You should be able to see the transpiration almost immediately as fog on the glass. If your terrarium ever gets so foggy that you can’t see the plants, uncover it for a while (and think about whether the plants need a trim).

Once you start making terrariums, it might be hard to stop! (or is it just me?)

This week we’ve had cool nights, a little rain, and no frost yet but the garden is just beginning to have a tattered Fall fading Miss Havesham Raggedy Annie sort of look to it. I’ve always had a soft spot for those characters and I am as facinated with the coming apart at the seams Fall as I am with the fresh flush of Spring baby growth. I spent days watching this fellow (left) - a monarch who has obviously been around the block and has lived as fully as flutterbyly possible. Right near where it was anchored, a butterfly’s worth of wings were on the ground looking for all the world like there had been a bar brawl. Gail watched our guy gimp off flying out of reach yesterday. (Amazing that it could still get loft with all those holes!)

The excuse of rain gave volunteers their first days off in a while and kept us in the greenhouse. I finally potted up some things that have been making me cringe all summer. The Container Bed was short shrifted this year because of other garden projects. We didn’t buy any new special specimens and potting-up the ones we already have was not a priority (can there be more than one priority?) and was so far down the list of things to do that it just didn’t happen. Now though, I’m putting potting-up at the top of the list (priority number 2 or 3 at least)! This Agave americana ‘Mediopicta Alba’ was heaving itself out of its pot (like this bromeliad had) and you can see why - the roots had nowhere to go but up and the babies were hurling themselves up and out. Mother and children should be happier and healthier now.

I love and covet things like Agaves but have a slightly conflicted feeling about keeping them even in a greenhouse. Are potted plants like caged animals? Do they long to run free? When I see pictures of Agaves in their preferred environment I think “yeah - that’s a happy plant!” But then I want it and the cycle of guilt and plant torture continues… I know there are some gardeners out there (who are you? - speak up!) who won’t keep plants indoors. As conflicted as I am sometimes, the pleasure I take in green growing around me (especially in the winter) outweighs the guilt and I know I will always bring the garden in.

And speaking of gardening in - Gail and I are teaching a terrarium class tomorrow and that, I think, is one of the best kinds of indoor gardens. It’s self-contained, pretty self-sufficient and the plants seem to not think it’s torture - actually any diminutive plant that likes a warm, moist environment thrives on jarred benign neglect - now that’s my kind of garden!

I plan to post about jar garden how-tos next week (the class is full) but first stay tuned on Monday for Blog Action Day (thousands of bloggers around the world -plus me- will be writing about the environment) and Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day.

Today dawned damp and foggy. Whenever the air and water temperatures duke it out, we get horizonless vistas, amplified sounds and a glimpse of the world wide spiderwebs — rather than obliviously crashing into spidy infrastructure, this morning we could see all of the guy wires and danced the limbo through the bosquet.

We’re getting on with the move in because even with warm nights continuing in the forecast it’s a good idea to at least start thinking about bringing plants in.
Remember how you gently weaned your houseplants to the outdoors last spring? They want that love in the fall too - bringing them some cold day into an already heated house could be a little shocking! Gail and I are starting with the succulents. In the greenhouse, the temperature climbs to the 90’s on a sunny day, and because there’s nothing much in there for us to water yet, the humidity stays pretty low. Our tender succulents will much prefer to bake a few extra days in the hot dryish than sit in the cool damp of day starts and stops lately - they should be shocked into thrive with the change.

As we load plants to carts, we groom them and set any aside that are in desparate need of repotting or special t.l.c. - This is another reason we plan ahead and stick to our schedule regardless of the weather - it takes time and it’s an important step for anyone bringing houseplants back inside for the season. Check for bugs and treat them; take off scrunky leaves, and repot! This mother bromeliad had several children and -poor rootbound thing- was launching herself out of her pot. With some of the kids detatched and a brand new house, she already looks less suicidal!

I think this might be a good long weekend to tend to your soon-to-be indoor garden. I’m on my way home and have every intention of taking my own advice! What will you do this weekend?