Anyone out and about today in this part of the world knows it’s a glorious day (condolences for anyone stuck indoors). And anyone who’s out and about at Blithewold today knows this is absolutely the place to be. Here’s a taste for any of you who can’t be here and a pre-weekend update for all who are thinking of making the trip:

(As always, hover over images for the caption or click on them for a larger view)

Have a fabulous spring weekend and hope to see you here!

There’s a new page in my sidebar - check it out! Just in time for the holidays we have a special offer for blog readers — we hope to tempt you to give yourself - or a gardener you know who already has every*thing* - the gift of a Blithewold membership! (Even if you don’t live close by, there are benefits you can take advantage of. Blithewold participates in the American Horticultural Society’s Reciprocal Admissions program. So by supporting Blithewold, you can visit other public gardens closer to home!) Take it from Gus-gus who says, “It’s the coolest present ever! …buuurrrrupp yup…”

Can everyday be Action Day? There are bandwagons all over the place that I want to jump on. Here is a post about the three R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle) that reminded me to rave that Fred and Dan, Blithewold’s groundsmen are expert at Reusing/Recycling. They took sills from the old greenhouse when it was renovated and rather than hauling it to a scrapyard, they re-invented it as a bed edge and grass stair risers. Sometimes with a wide open to the possibilities imagination, a useless cast-off can be rescued from the landfill and transformed into the perfect solution!
This morning I found a sidetrack bandwagon in this (otherwise really interesting) post. I’ve been on a (passive) lookout for an alternative to the soilless potting mix that we use in the greenhouse. Most (all?) potting mixes are made with peat which is not a renewable resource. It also bears mentioning that peat harvests are killing precious bogs and I don’t want to be a party to bog death. I perked right up at the mention of coconut coir in this post and did just a little searching and found that it’s available by the brick and bale. I’m curious now - has anyone has used it either in or as a potting medium? What’s your source? Did you and your plants like it? Do you have any other peat-free potting medium recommendations? Enquiring gardeners want to know!

And if everyday is action day (sometimes action is not about Activism…) the volunteers have had a couple very active days! Here’s a before and after of the Cutting Bed - note that Gail and I have allowed the Asclepias physocarpa ‘Oscar’ (a.k.a. Hairy balls) to live on for the time being!… Next week we’ll be planting tulips.

And the Fairies have been pretty active too. The fairy family at 4 Dust Ave. has acquired some overstuffed furniture! Looks like they’re still working out how to get it up the stairs and down the hall…

I am constantly on the hunt for the right-tool-for-the-job and both Gail and I have amassed an array of sunscreen that is starting to resemble a pharmacy shelf display and is draining our wallets. Last week one of our volunteers brought in a copy of a Consumer Reports article that rates all the sunscreens (Neutrogena 45 and NoAd 45 got the highest ratings) and it also brought up the question of whether nanosized particles of the minerals, titanium dioxide and zinc oxide might be small enough to enter the bloodstream and travel to the brain causing diseases like Parkinson’s. According to everything I’ve read (just a little this morning) the jury is still out on nano particles. The Consumer Reports article also said that a lot of sunscreens aren’t actually protecting us against UVA radiation. Great. And according to other sources, there’s some debate over whether sunscreen really protects against skin cancer and all the chemicals in the non-mineral based sunscreens might cause big problems too. This article from National Geographic sorted it out a little for me - at least it was what I wanted to hear: mineral based sunscreens are probably the best bet - just make sure to use a lot and reapply after sweating or swimming. (I haven’t found that they sting when I sweat either and I have canary-in-the-coalmine skin…)

Even on a fog bound, rainy day like today, it’s important to wear the screen (just in case) - it’s those UVA rays, doncha know… This morning the Rockettes scoured the Rock Garden for weeds, yellow leaves and deadheads while Gail and I tried to name and label all of the plants. Thank you again, Marion Murray (our Rock Garden Guru transplanted to the wilds of Utah) for keeping such great lists!!. I think we’re ready to show off at the Soiree tonight! After tea, while it rained, we all washed the sooty mold and scale off the citrus’s. They look so much better! One visitor (my mom, having an Alice in Wonderland sort of day) said they looked like we were painting the roses red - it was that kind of job!

Another “part 2″ for today is the Tamarix is blooming again! Here it is with Amorpha and a chorus line of cormorants. Another visitor (not my mom) commented that she was surprised to see it blooming so early (she was more surprised to hear from me that it had already bloomed a month ago) but she got me wondering and sure enough I had the wrong name all along. It’s not Tamarix ramosissima (which blooms late summer) but either T. parviflora or T. tetrandra. Fred, Dan - Help me out!

Gail and I need a good catch-up day in the greenhouse and the rain is forcing us to stay in and get to it! There are seedlings that still need transplanting (poor stretched out, pack-bound little things…) and plants to pot up for our sale table (open daily at the visitor’s center — bring $5s and $10s and $20s for the honor box) and pinching back to do and weeding and deadheading and tidying the potting shed and and… !

It’s also a great day for the new and improved Rose Garden to settle in. Yesterday we and the Floribundas planted 2 dozen new shrubs and 11 new roses (in 2 and a half hours!). For years the Rose Garden has struggled through humid summers and tough winters and although it’s always beautiful during its June peak, after that it gets to looking like “black-spot on a stick” (I can’t remember who said that but I know I can’t claim it). We can no longer allow the first garden that visitors see to be anything but stunning every day. The problem is that the garden has too many roses and not enough other stuff! A mixed garden is a healthier garden (everything in moderation! - A rule that applies where ever obsessions reside.) So Gail has come up with a design that is heavy on fragrant shrubs and has planned for a scent rotation from spring to fall - Lonicera fragrantissima, March-April; Daphne x burkwoodii, Daphne transatlantica, Viburnum carlesii ‘Compactum’, May; roses, June; Clethra alnifolia ‘Sixteen Candles’, Buddleia davidii ‘Adonis’ and Buddleia davidii ‘Petite Indigo’, July. Old fashioned heliotrope will waft it’s grandmotherly comfort scent as soon as it’s safe to plant it (soon) through the season to a light frost, and we’ve got Datura and Nicotiana sylvestris waiting in the wings for their gorgeous August evening perfumes. My contribution to the overall design (besides saying “mmm that sounds perfect!”) was suggesting planting three Pinus strobus ‘Blue Shag’ because I love the little blue muffins (I could have baker’s dozen!) and thought the garden could use a 4 season living rock-formation.

I also spent some time with the Sylvan Nursery catalog choosing a new round of high-hopes roses. Last year we got some Knock Outs and we understand now what all the fuss was about. Personally I like to do a little rose maintenance now and then because I find the challenge perversely gratifying. We didn’t touch the Knock Outs all summer -just to see what they would do - and they bloomed on and on and the foliage never looked terrible. This year we’re trying ‘Home Run’ - another one that’s over marketed for being (too) easy; Carefree Beauty, Delight and Wonder (the names say it all!) - these are Bucks roses which were bred in Iowa by a Griffiths Bucks who selected for toughness and vigor; Rosa ‘Champlain’ which is one of the Canadian Explorer Series - known for hardiness and disease resistance; Rosa ‘Angel Face’, reputed to be very fragrant and disease resistant as well as an AARS winner; Rosa ‘Betty Boop’ (if it’s half as cute as it’s namesake, I’ll be happy) and climber ‘Fourth of July’ (because Bristol is home of the oldest 4th of July parade) - both AARS winners. So cross your fingers for us and with any luck I’ll have success stories to share (although sometimes failure stories are funnier…)

In other news, just a quick note (because today is the day I wish I had about ten rain barrels filling up at my house): Rhode Island has its very own “Water Lady” who buys barrels in bulk and passes the cheaper-by-the-dozen savings onto anyone willing to pay ahead and pick them up at her house in South County. Sounds like an excellent reason for a road trip to me! The barrels she buys are big, attractive and half the price of buying retail not even counting shipping! It’s water-wise and wallet-wise. Click here for more information.