On Tuesdays, Alison at Bonney Lassie encourages us to post images of areas of our gardens that are looking not so great. For those of you with weak constitutions, please avert your eyes now. If you read/look further, it's at your own risk. You've been warned.
Out in one of the parking strips, I planted an Indian Horse Chestnut (Aesculus indica) years ago. I didn't realize until I removed the grass and underplanted the tree with other things that the leaves take years to deteriorate and like to get caught. Blowing them usually lodges them deeper into the branches of the euonymus beneath and raking pulls at those same hidden branches. They'll eventually bet pulled out by hand but it'd sure be swell if they'd simply rot in place.
Oh no, not lazy, just encouraging fallen leaves to insulate the beds for winter. Yeah, that's the story, organic mulch...
Here's the part that will certainly test your ability to hold down lunch. (To be fair, this was taken a while ago.) Each spring swaths of crocus bloom near the front of this bed. While there are some grasses that fill in a bit, there are still holes here and there where potted specimens get plonked for the summer. They're hidden by other foliage but if they're not removed, the ugly truth becomes evident. Thank goodness for the warm weather as these have been moved back to the pot ghetto to allow the crocus to shine and the tan grasses have been trimmed to the ground. BTW, the brown bits on the lawn are fallen buds of Tetrapanax, cut down bu February's cold temperatures.
As if being messy weren't enough, here's a confession that will cause the revocation of my plant geek card (Thank goodness, spewing botanical Latin was becoming exhausting.) I paid money for a pot of this noxious weed, Vinca minor 'Illumination' Forgive me, I'm weak and, well, gold foliage... True to it's name, it brightens up this corner. In a few weeks, it'll be replaced by the staghorn fern currently in the greenhouse.
Oh I'm so glad you have areas that are messy. I've barely made a stab at cleaning up. My whole garden looks like your photos.
ReplyDeleteLots of messy areas, snow-bent foliage that must be pruned, the regular spring stuff - it all seems a bit overwhelming at the moment but once I get out there and spart puttering it'll be fun.
DeletePhoto 3 is the closest to what every part of my garden looks like right now, but without the green turf. And with more mud hills (darn moles!) and deer droppings.
ReplyDeleteNice to know that mine isn't the only messy garden at the moment.
DeleteYep, organic mulch is my trick too for both the birch and pine. I'm usually so excited for the approaching Spring that the clean up is joyous and very satisfying. (Especially the pine needles removal: talk about un compostable organic matter...)
ReplyDeleteI think the golden vinca is magnificent. What will it's future be?
I'm hoping that the Vinca will be happy in a pot for some time as it may end up in the corner where the Mimosa tree used to be.
DeleteCleaning up fallen leaves does seem pointless when leaves are still falling, or so I told myself yesterday afternoon ;) As to the Vinca, you performed a service by keeping it in a pot rather than allowing it to spread willy-nilly. (Is "willy-nilly" still an expression or am I inadvertently channeling my mother again?)
ReplyDeleteWhen we first moved to this garden, I was so happy to have inherited an entire slope where lawn had been replaced by vinca. (Just the plain green kind.) Yikes, that stuff, left to spread higgelty-piggelty, is difficult to eradicate. (I still use willy-nilly.)
DeleteSince we are retired And do not “work”, we have spent many hours cleaning up in the garden so it’s looking pretty spiffy.. We started spreading a heap of compost today but the 79° temperatures have driven us to the shade. More work tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteYou may not be retired but you sure do work! Your garden looks fabulous in the pictures you've shown on your blog. I'm hoping to join you in the retired-from-teaching category in four years - maybe five.
DeleteI'm sure there is a garden under the snow somewhere around here...
ReplyDeleteYou must be itching to see what's under there after all this time.
DeleteIt is good to practice patience, despite dying of envy. ;)
DeleteLate winter/early spring is always an unattractive time for the garden. Layers of seed shells from the bird feeders, soggy half rotten leaves showing from under dirty melting snow. Ahh, but at least it is melting. All promise the growing season. Yeah!
ReplyDeleteOnly half my garden is presentable at the moment, the half with all the spring bulbs, the other half is dreadful, I just have to avert my eyes! Slowly, it will get done but it never all looks wonderful at the same time any more.
ReplyDeleteSorry sir, while these actions are punishable by fine, they do not fit the needed requirements for removal of garden geek card. Fine will arrive by mail, please remit within 30 days.
ReplyDeleteI'd say your card was only briefly suspended, not revoked. Around here this is kind of the ugly season for the garden, anyway. Yours doesn't look too bad. And I have some regular Vinca in a few spots growing as a groundcover.
ReplyDelete