Growing with Plants

Pelargoniums, and a new potting bench

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:45:00 +0000

Pelargonium oblongatum, another precious summer dormant species of pelargonium ( geranium), that blooms while dormant, and without any leaves. I am really starting to collect more of these amazing species from South Africa, my collection just can't be large enough! It spends its life under glass, in a pot set on a bed of sand.

An inexpensive Ikea purchase is transformed into a potting bench. It probably won't last long outdoors, but as we have a new floor installed into the studio, this piece was destined for the dumpster, but now has a second life outdoors.

I've been wanting to place a simple potting bench outside of the greenhouse, not for potting plants, as I have a large proper potting bench inside the greenhouse, but just some shelves where I can store tools, and mostly to use for preparing watering cans with fertilizer. A task that always breaks my back, as I am often mixing solutions for bulbs or containers, and bending over with the hose. This little bench, a prop we bought a few years ago for a display I designed for the New England Spring Flower Show for only a couple of hundred of dollars, as it looked a bit like a Japanese-influenced potting-type bench, we've been keeping it in the studio where it just collected junk. Now, at least it has a purpose. Not designed for outdoor use, it will probably only last a few years with our weather, but it's better than throwing it into the dumpster.

June in the formal garden. There is a gap in bloom this year, and few vegetables as the puppies are also kept on this side of the yard. Everything is looking a little shaggy, as the boxwoods and bay laurels still need to be trimmed, but that won't happen until late June, when I return from my trip to San Francisco. For now, I am lucky that it looks half-way decent. It looks much better in this picture than it really does, believe me.

The bench gives me a place to store some plants away from the dogs such as this Deuterocohnia brevifolia, a bromeliad that looks more like a cacti than a pineapple relative - they form perfect mounds when grown in containers. Yes, those
are Devil's Tongue Arum in the back. I am having a second childhood!

Pelargonium dichonrifolium ( or P. exhibens). Help! One of my summer dormant species that spends its entire life under glass, in a sand bed.

Pelargonium sidoides, a great container plant for decks and terraces ( I keep thinking of the specimens I saw in the South African garden at the Denver Botanic Garden's last summer. This plant, I planted in a large urn.

Just to confuse you, this is a true Geranium, not a pelargoinium. The giant of all geraniums, G. maderense spp. alba is a common cottage garden plant in northern California, but most everywhere else, it is a rarely seen Mediterranean gem, making a magnificent potted plant, and if you are lucky to get a pot of this giant to bloom, even better. This one self seeded into a number of my container plants which spend the winter in the greenhouse.

Propagating Hakonechloa, and a new planting scheme

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 03:32:00 +0000

Hakonechloa, or Japanese Forest Grass is stylish and attractive, and most any garden will benefit with a planting of thjis award winning plants. It even thrives in the dry shade garden, but plants are expensive, and the best cultivars often sell out quickly. If you have a mature clump, you can divide it, often resulting in dozens of new plants, but this is a task best undertaken during a brief window of 2 weeks in mid spring, just as the plants are exiting dormancy, and beginning to grow new growth.

If you're like me, you dream of having sweeping drifts of perennials and other herbaceous plants, interplanted with bulbs and the occasional annual, inspired by the current trend of more natural landscape schemes, such as those designed by Piet Oudolf and his contemporaries, but the sheer volume of plants required to achieve such looks can be out of reach, financially, for most of us. It's been my long-term goad to redesign our back yard ( garden) to slowly eliminate the lawn and to replace it with such a planting scheme, but, such aggressive design takes time, but perhaps, not as much money as I might have dished out, simple because I am propagating many of my own plants which are either already in the garden, or, from seed and cuttings.

As if I have nothing better to do, I am in the middle of redesigning a large part of our property - essentially, the entire back 2 acres which we can see from the house. All this amidst preparing for a large presentation next week at HOWlive in San Francisco, an even bigger app design project at work that every child under ten around the world will want next Christmas, and, yes - planting the summer garden, containers and vegetables. So naturally, it's the perfect time to propagate some plant material, right?

Dig a large clump of Hakonechloa early in the spring just after the new growth begins. This is the only time one should attempt to divide this valuable plant. One mature clump however, may provide you with a dozen or more divisions.

Propagating ones one perennials is extremely cost effective, and as my design plants call for dozens of Hakonechloa, or Japanese River Grass, I'd much rather propagate my own, rather than dish out $18.95 for a one gallon pot, which is, after all, just a liner ( division) from someone else. My process started early this spring, in early May, for Hakenochloa must be divided after it has started new growth in the spring, but not any later than late June, as its rhizomes form roots shorty after extending, if not at the same time.

If one attempts division too early in the spring, or too late in the summer, the resulting divisions would need to be larger as the plant, not unlike bamboo, forms long, trailing growth, which all connects back to the central plant. The problem is that these long growths have no roots, as the plant grows and divides much like a spider wed, extending rhizomes during the summer, producing foliage, but the roots on these extensions don't emerge until the following spring, just as the plant starts to extend new rhizomes, and this is the 2 week window when the plant can be divided into many small plants. Just as the new growth is 2 or 3 inches tall.

Bring your clump of grass up close, on a table or a potting bench, and carefully start to remove the soil. Root systems on Hakenochloa are weak, and most likely, your soil will drop off cleanly, leaving a tangled web of rhizomes and sprouting stems. Now you can begin to divide the clump by cutting away sections with root systems on each one.

I dug up one of our larger golden Hakonechloa selections during the first week of May, just as the plant was starting into growth, and brought the entire clump into the greenhouse so that I could examine and divide it while it sat on the potting bench. In this way, I could carefully remove soil, and see exactly where I needed to snip apart the strong, bamboo-like extensions.

This section is almost too small to plant, as the runner only shows one root. It may fail, if potted up.

One needs to look carefully, tugging and pulling apart slowly the clump, looking for extensions that have both new growth as well as at least 3 or 4 growths. You will notice that some have no roots at all, and these I discard.

The root system on Hakonechloa is complex, and teh runners that connect each section are woody-like, and hard to cut - use garden Fiscar brand scissors or wire cutters, and cut segments carefully, looking for both roots and new growth on each section.

I use a commercial soiless mix, combined 50/50 with composted bark, a mix common in the nursery trade, but one that perennials and many seedling like, as it combines peat, bark and lots of air space for oxygen. I pot up each division into 5 inch pots, paying close attention to the planting depth, keeping the new growth and roots at exactly the same depth as when the mother plant was growing outdoors.

Once potted, I place the trays on a bench in the greenhouse for a week or two, as full sun will injure the new growth, and I fertilize with a 9-17-49 Fertilizer to stimulate root growth, which is essential at this stage, as Hakonechloa are slow at rooting, even during their most aggressive growth spurt of the year. Divisions should spend time under shade cloth or outdoors in a protected, cool area for 6 - 8 weeks, to allow roots to fill the container before planting out in the garden.

Plants in June, are well rooted and ready to plant out into the garden.

My planting scheme calls for 48 Hakenochloa, as a more natural blended garden requires large drifts of grasses for textural interest and color. This particular design uses golden Hakeonochloa in a meandering 'stream-like' planting, which runs through the center of this large new bed. Hakenochloa, when mature, appears fluid - the foliage lies in one direction, providing a flowing texture which few plants can offer, but to achieve this effect, one does need multiple plants. You can do the math, as I saw plants at our local nursery no larger than my divisions for $18.95. Combined with my seed raised perennials such as Rogersia, Anemone and Primula species, you can see how dollars can add up. I'll share more about my design plans for the largest part of my garden, until then, back to work. There is much more to plant.

Primula seedlings and Rogersia seedlings ready for transplanting. These plants had a long journey, spending a winter out in the cold frame being stratified, and then time spend being grown on in the greenhouse. Some of these seeds we wild collected while hiking in the Alps two years ago ( the Primula elatior). I imagine large swaths of P. elatior, as we saw them in the wild, and then interplanted with perennials, which will provide interest throughout the rest of the year.

So this is where my scheme becomes weird - I am combining Asiatic primula, such as this Tibetan native Primula denticulata in the same planting scheme, along with other Asian herbaceous plants, with European natives. Shhh, don't tell the purists! My theory on landscape design sometimes clashes with those who are more formally trained, but I support the global collection sometimes, yet as I mature, I like to keep things more natural.

I am planting a few dozen seedlings of Anemone hupehensis, formally Anemone japonica, (or A. hupehensis var. japonica) to provide an autumnal display. These need a year in the garden before they will bloom, but I can wait. I just love their graceful wands of pink anemone blossoms, and interplanted like this, they should make this bed a standout in the garden come late September. Starting these plants from seed, again, saves on plenty of money, as one autumnal Anemone can cost $18 -$20 dollars. I have 3 flats of 36 plants each. Nice.

The final planting scheme, which is misleading here, as the plants appear too close together, but remember that the Primula will bloom early ( the P. denticulata will bloom in March), followed by the P. elatior. I also planted 48 Columbine ( 'Songbird Series') which I also started from seed, which will bloom in June. The Anemone will start blooming in late August and September, and the grasses will carry the scheme through the summer, and even the winter.

Another view looking north. Ignore the wire in the background ( and the little bog garden that our friend Glen Lord gave us - it's full of Pitcher Plants, which are just beginning to bloom!), the wire is for our tortoise, so that he can dine on the lawn.

Oh, and in case you are wondering what Rogersia is - here is a brief intro: ( I know, sometimes I forget, assuming that everyone is familiar with all of these plants that I yak about!). Above is a photo I took today of some Rogerisa which I started from seed five years ago. I was introduced to Rogersia many, many years ago, while still in high school, while working as a gardener at the Stoddard Estate, a Fletcher Steele designed garden. It can be difficult to find, unless you look for it at specialty nurseries. Rogersia is not rare, just not common.

You generally will find two species: Rogersia aesculifolia ( because, this species has foliage which looks very much like Aesculus, or the common Horse Chestnut), and R. pinnata, which is what I propagated this year from seed. The seed is quite tiny, and challenging to germinate, so I don't expect many of you to try growing it this way, but it is by far the most economical way to grow this slow growing plants, as, like many good plants, Rogersia are expensive. At $35 for a one gallon container, I try to add one or two of he red-leaved cultivars to my collection each year, but from seed, the plain green is just as attractive. Architectural and long-lived, it sits high on my must-have plant list for shade gardens.

How to grow the healthiest tomatoes

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 11:57:00 +0000

My tomato seedlings are strong and have good root growth, thanks to my new fertilizer which is lower in nitrogen, and rich with micro nutrients. The roots are at the perfect stage for planting out, just reaching the edge of the 5 inch pots, and the leaves are just reaching their second pair stage. No flowers, and no hormones or growth regulators used, and in those found at most garden centers. These will catch up with any tomato planted a month ago, and out perform.

It's scary to think about, but this is about the 48th year that I am planting tomatoes in my garden. I think I first planted tomatoes when I was about 5 years old, with my dad - following along side the wheelbarrow as he dug compost from the larger compost pile where we used to dump all of the garden clippings, raked leaves and old manure from the coops. In the 1960's, dad would do what many Americans did, create rings of paper or felt to keep cutworms off of the plants, and it was one of my first chores to tear pages from Life magazine ( and one year, a Playboy magazine which I was sworn to privacy about, but apparently he ran out of Life, and one could never destroy a National Geographic). It was my job to fold the pages into neat, tight bands, which would then slip over the weak seedlings that we started in the cold frames, and the he would apply the paperclip or masking tape, to hold the ring in place. I would then get to use the trowel to fill the ring with soil.

It all seemed so magical to me - scientific, really, since it involved a wagon with galvanized buckets of manure, fertilizer and limestone. Each element assembled in some sort of alchemy which I never understood, deep in a hole which would then have one of my mothers precious seedlings placed in it. I did understand that this was food for the baby tomatoes, never really appreciating how good a home grown tomato was, they were all I knew. I had little contextual reference at that time. I think all I really associated with tomatoes was "what's all the bother? There was planting, which was fun, and eating our in the garden in the warm sunshine ( even better, along with a fresh cucumber or pepper and a salt shaker), but there was the weeding, and....the weeding. The staking followed, and eventually the harvest and the massive canning process out at the fireplace that stood near the woods ( the same one we use today when we slaughter the turkeys.

Oh Mom, really? 801 quarts? Of course I was born 12 years later, but this gives you an idea of what I was born into - child labor - garden labor at an early age.

Today, Tomatoes are precious, so, I must be old. As no work seems hard, even though one may become sore after a day of digging simple holes. Back when I was a kid, dad would brag about how many plants he had planted, and my mother would type long lists of canned goods that demonstrated and documented their hard efforts ' 265 quarts of tomato sauce, 125 quarts of whole tomatoes, 183 pints of piccalilli. I'm lucky if I can 12 quarts every year. Sad, but true. Sorry mom.

But it is tomato planting season again, but on a much smaller scale. The greenhouse and tall trees now stand where the largest vegetable garden once stood, but even through I've reduced the gardening space to 8 raised beds, the soil is still deep and rich, a gift my family has been blessed with for over 100 years on this land. I try not to get too geeky about tomatoes, accepting a few years ago that what will happen, will happen - blight, late blight, Phytophora infestans, whatever, if it comes, it comes, and it will - eventually. All I can do is try to keep my plants as healthy as possible for as long as possible.

Tomatoes are best planted in new locations each year, and this year, I am growing a few in some raised beds which I allowed to rest over the past two years ( I grew cut flower sweet peas in these last year). Turned over by hand with a pitch fork, the beds were covered with straw from the duck coops all winter, and ground limestone was added.

I don't know about you, but with all of the rain we've been getting here in New England, I'm a little late in planting my tomatoes, but, waiting until mid-June will have little effect upon my tomato harvest, for regardless of what the garden center sells us in April ( yes, I saw tomato plants being sold two months ago!), June is still be best time to plant warm-loving tomatoes into most gardens.

My tomato plants are at the perfect size to transplant into the ground. Sown around mid to-late April in the greenhouse ( April 21st this year), the plants have been grown on in sterile soil (ProMixBX), in 5 inch pots, and hardened-off outdoors for ten days. They are now all ready for planting out into the raised beds and containers which I have prepared.

Grounds horticultural limestone is added at a rate of 5 lbs per 8 x 10 foot bed makes my hands look like I am an Olympic gymnast. Oh, OK, I know my body looks like one too - shut up!, But that still doesn't make my tomatoes grow any better - with our acid soil, I need lime to neutralize the soil, which allows the plants to access more nutrients ( that's why you apply lime). The proper pH for tomatoes fits within 6.0 to 6.5.

There are many things to consider with planting tomatoes as study after study has proven many many home remedies as false ( Epsom Salts, Aspirin, Molasses) for simple science is all you need to know about. Proper soil temperature ( 60º - 70º for optimum root growth), proper nutrition ( a granular well balanced fertilizer dug-in at planting, or a balanced organic applied 6 months earlier), a soil test and appropriate pH balance additives such as ground limestone, and not granular lawn lime in my case, and the best varieties you can find - I am planting a mixture of new hybrids as well as some interesting heirlooms.

Tomatoes are heavy feeders, but like us, they should not eat junk food all the time. A fertilizer with the analysis of 10-10-10 might make a great kick-off meal, but a diet with this ratio provides far too much nitrogen, and you will have healthy looking plants, but they will have mostly leaves with few fruit. Look for a formula where the first number is the lowest.

Although a good balanced granular 10-10-10 fertilizer is dug into each hole at planting, along with a half bushel of compost and rotted manure, for the rest of the year, I use my special tomato liquid blend that I mix myself ( more on that later, and no....I never use manure tea or compost tea, another legend many we laugh about over beers when I get together with horticulture professors).

I grow most of my tomatoes in containers with fresh, sterile soil which I buy each year ( never, ever save it, for it carries disease and virus'). In the garden, most diseases begin in the soil, so good old black plastic landscape mulch works fine. Sure, there is little else one can do ( leading botanists have even proven that copper fungicide rarely works well), and most diseases arrive through the air, so eventually, every plant will succumb to something icky, but the goal is the discourage any breakout for as long as possible, and to pray for hot, sunny weather!

Check out my Marigolds...this year I was fed up with commercial nursery annuals, as they are all drenched in growth regulators ( just try to find a marigold in a 4 pack that is taller than 5 inches and that does not have a flower on it!). This variety, a tall growing classic Burpee yellow will reach 4 or 5 feet tall, and I am planting these along the back side of the tomato bed - no, not to discourage insects ( so funny, right:? But you'd be surprised at how many gardeners still believe in this legend), but I plant them because I love them.

Pole beans were planted today also, this time where I had tomatoes growing last year. With two days of warm rain coming, and warm soil, it was a rush to get many of these warm-weather loving plants sown including cucumbers, squash and sunflowers. Let the rains begin.

Nostalgia and the June Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 02:56:00 +0000

I picked a few old world roses from the early 20th C. and some vintage peonies that were once my grandmothers from around 1910. In this 600 year old Chinese vase, this almost looks like an arrangement from Saipua! (sorry for the blur).

Last week while visiting my friends iris breeders Jan and Marty, we were discussing how we both had some of our grandmothers peonies in our gardens. Jan had transplanted ( saved-slash-rescued some of her moms') and I, some of my moms, although I still live on the same property, so it was not really a 'rescue', as it was "oh, I thought I got rid of those, and now they are back" sort of thing. Peony's are terribly long-lived and tenacious, except when you want them to be.

Today, I wish I was more careful with the peonies that once lived in our garden, but most were crushed under the tractors when the greenhouse was built twelve years ago, and few, if any, survived. below, a pink one from the late 1800's still blooms ( intensely fragrant!), and I know I can replace some of our older ones as I have the vintage names, but its just been something I have been putting off. To be honest, I think I am more attached to the newer selections, especially the inter-sectionals, or Itoh Hybrids, which are a cross between a tree peony and and herbaceous kind ( the sort that die to the ground each winter). These intersectional peonies are stronger, more robust in growth and flower, sometimes not even needing staking. I keep some antique varieties off the the edge of the garden for nostalgia's sake, but if they don't perform as well as I expect, they are sometimes put out of their misery. I don't have time for willy nilly emotions when it comes to some plants ( others, I will take a sword for - you know that).

A 100 year old unknown peony that was once my grandmothers, still blooms in the garden where it was first planted around 1910.

A new intersectional peony, a lovely yellow form, blooms upright and sturdy in the perennial border. Even the foliage is nicer with these newer crosses.

An heirloom iris has strong, rootbeer-like grapey fragrance, but it barely compares with newer crosses such as the big German Bearded below.

This large new (2010) German Bearded Iris "Greatest Show on Earth" has on-trend coloring and massive flowers.

Other new German Bearded Iris have striking stripes and colors, such as the aptly named"Crows Feet" introduced in 2006, which has brilliantly striped falls.

Some new Itoh Hyrbid Peonies have pure yellow blossoms, with little or no red in them.

Just an update on those pansy's that I started last summer and transplanted into the garden in the autumn - this is the proper way to grow pansy's, as when others are failing in summer heat, these are growing stronger and bushier. Hopefully, they will self sow for next year.

Artichokes are growing fast ( with little chokes already showing!). The pansy's probably should be pulled out to provide more air movement around the base, but I just can't bring myself to do this just yet. Maybe in another week or two.

Baby Artichokes! These will probably be ready to pick while I am in California amongst the 'real big artichokes being harvested' in two weeks, as I will be in the San Fran area.

The lemons that provided us with many jars of marmalade in January, still have a few fruit on them, but these will be harvested as the trees are well budded and ready to start the season over again, now that they are out from the greenhouse for the summer.

In the alpine troughs, the late blooming silver saxifrages are starting to bloom. I always enjoy their delicate white flowers, sometimes produced on long panicles, and other times, just like this. They always remind me of the Italian Alps and the Dolomites, where they grow on the highest, limestone mountain peaks.

In the vegetable garden, the seedling onions ( 'Copra' from Johnny's Selected Seeds) that I started in January, are already thickening up. Some are already being harvested as green onions for weekend morning omelette's.

There was a time when every onion we grew came from onion sets. Then, I discovered that the finest onions are grown from seed, and that onions ( as well as other alliums such as leeks and shallots) must be sown early, indoors, often as early as late January here in Massachusetts. It's always surprising to watch them mature faster than those grown from sets in my side-by-side comparison studies. With plenty of water, good sandy loam and fertilizer low in nitrogen, my onions can grow as large as those found at Whole Foods by the end of July, but what really wins me over is the texture - crispy and sharp, home-grown onions are superior to store bought ones.

The many primula ( Primrose) species which Is started from seed this winter, are ready to be placed out into the garden, where they will bloom next spring. I dug a new bed this weekend ( I have blisters to prove it!), and most will be going in there. These are Primula denticulata - blue forms, from the Himalaya, but I have at least 7 species that I will be transplanting over the next few weeks.

Primroses are best grown from seed for many reasons, but mostly for cost. Sure, it's hard to find most varieties and species other than those polyanthus or acaulis types grown for the potted plant trade, which are rarely hardy once planted out, but when grown from seed, primroses can be very hardy, often withstanding very cold temperatures, even in Alaska and Canada - so there are no excuses why you should not grow some next year. My favorite for garden performance are the drumstick Primroses ( Primula denticulata, and the Polyanthus forms, Primual veris ( the wild cowslips in England), and Primual acaulis. The only thing 'acaulis' means is that the flower does not have a stem, just a pedicel, so the flowers sit down low in the rosette of foliage, whereas the Polyanthus forms have a stem, and then pedicel, like a magic wand, if you will. In the garden, stemmed forms are usually better, but they are rarely sold in pots as the stem once wilted in the garden center, rarely comes back with full force. Primula veris have stems, but the flowers are not that showy, a characteristic I happen to appreciate, so I grow many of these, and the fact that they are the easiest to grow from seed, helps.

Sunday was beautiful here, bright blue skies, cool temperatures and hardly a breeze or a cloud in the sky. The perfect June morning for home made Black Cherry Buttermilk muffins.

Inspired by Artisional Iris

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 17:19:00 +0000

The fields at Joe Pye Weed's Garden show off some of the incredible and talented breeding results performed by
passionate life-long iris breeders Jan Sacks and Marty Schafer in Carlisle, MA.

Today. I want to talk about my favorite group of iris, those known as Siberian Iris, and for that, I am visiting a friends Siberian Iris breeding farm, to show you not only some amazing new colors and forms, but to help rally more interest in this overlooked group of Iris.

First, some Iris 101 - Everyone can close their eyes and visualize what an Iris looks like, but this massive genus ( with 300 plus species) can make a new gardener feel over-whelmed, and an experienced gardener, well, overwhelmed too. Without getting too geeky on you - if you are interested in growing iris,my executive brief for you would simplify the top line groups - you know, those that grow from bulbs vs roots, vs rhizomes. If you prefer to generalize, which can be easy in a huge genus where close-ups of each flower may all look at first, to be similar, I would organize all the different types of iris into 6 buckets.

Bearded Iris - those flouncy huge Iris which gardeners either adore, or hate - you know, those with thick rhizomes that look like ginger roots. Your grandmother grew these...

Siberian Iris, with grassy foliage, hardy as and oak tree yet harder to find, and yeah, your grandmother grew these too, usually purple, often surrounding a gazing ball...

The Japanese Iris, - unless your granny was a serious gardener, most likely, you've only seen these painted on Japanese screens at a museum. Lovely, but a bit more demanding.

Florist Iris - you know, Dutch Iris - those blueish-violet ones you get at the florist, often as tight buds, but the flowers last for a few days.

Louisiana Iris - Iris that I cannot grow, but similar to Japanese Iris for more southern gardeners

Rock Garden Iris - here I included dwarf, bulbous ones, or those dwarf species that grow from creeping Rhizomes

Collector Iris hard to grow Alpine House forms - from the Middle East and Turkey - Aril's. Junos and the like

A ginger colored seedling - expands the color range of Siberian Iris

This sorting is rough, and not anything like the way the American Iris Society organizes groups, but it helps me think about what I can and cannot grow. One needs to be realistic with a plant family such as iris, as someone walking into a nursery asking for and iris plant, could be thinking about any one of these. The AIS divides first all iris as bearded or non bearded, and then includes species as a group, but truth be told, there are species in all of these groups ( species, meaning how that particular iris appears as a wildflower where it is native).

Siberian Iris a known for being long-lived and floriferous. Making them ideal candidates for perennial borders.

More advanced gardeners divide Iris by HOW they grow. Like... Rhizomes, clumping roots, bulbs or just roots.For more info, check out the American Iris Society site. There you can lose yourself in the acronyms ( SDB - Standard Dwarf Bearded. MDB - Miniature Dwarf Bearded, what iris don't have beards, why an iris would ever want a beard, etc. Knock yourself out, but I'll be thrilled if you just takeaway that there are many types of iris', and that you have a rough idea about what iris group you are talking about the next time you go to a nursery - this is important, and each type requires a different cultural treatment. Also, if you are looking for cut-flower iris, know that the bulbous types sometimes last longer than a day, but that most flowers only last a few hours to a day. Just important FYI if you pin these to Pinterest, hoping to get some for a wedding.

The breeding fields at Joe Pye Weed's Garden are jam packed full of incredible, new iris varieties. Each one gets a different colored flag, unidentifing whether the seedling is worthy of the compost pile, or for additional breeding.

Without writing an essay about the broad and diverse word of Irids, I really just wanted to talk a but about some fine garden iris - particularly, those known as Siberian Iris'. These are clump forming, often long-lived iris' that seem to be overlooked by many contemporary gardeners, and I really don't know why. I could guess that first, there are few if any commercial growers growing them anymore, so the distribution channels are dry, or I could guess ( rightly, so) that there are few breeders dedicated to advancing this group, so the public as well as buyers at wholesale nurseries over-look them, or I could guess that perhaps people associate Siberian Iris with the few, antique cultivars that most every gardener has seen - a very 'wild' looking, purple strain with rather unremarkable flowers - yeah, the one your grandmother grew that was passed on to you.

Gentle grey tints, and mustard gold colors are emerging as hot trend colors with Siberian Iris. Few flowers can offer this palette.

My friend Jess admires the Siberian Iris' big cousin the German Bearded Iris, which is more common, but often
plagued by more disease and the need for constant care.

Jess responded " But with all of these amazing colors, like custard yellow, butterscotch, mustard gold and those gray ones, they would be so hot right now at hip nurseries like Terrain..why arent' they being sold there?" "good question" I added. Yet, I knew the answer was clear. Plants developed for large retail distribution must meet specific criteria to even be considered worthy of micro-propigation, let along the years of field testing required for a large Dutch corporation or an American distributor to even think about marketing a plant variety to the masses. I am not being critical here, as shelf height, performance under the stressful conditions of black plastic nursery containers, and long shelf life are essential for big box stores if they are ever going to purchase a truck full of a particular, over performing plant which is also well behaved.

" But why don't we see these colors at nurseries then?" Jess asked.

Jan knew the answer " Because it takes at least ten years for one of our selections to even make it to a wholesale grower. Breeding iris is not difficult, but it does take time. A couple or three years for seedlings to grow before they even think about blooming, then at least 5 years of perfomance in our field, where we evaluate each seedling looking at a variety of traits, be it a new color, a better color, flower form, height, either tall, or short. Quantity of flowers produced, branching or not, resistance to diseases and pests..." and the list went on. " If you are buying a Siberian Iris at a nursery today, you are most likely buying a variety that was hot in the 1970's or 1980's".

I love the new brown tints, as well as the golden mustard colors when combined with berry tones.

I would add that if you get one from a friend or family member ( as these are on the short-list for pass-along plants), then you are most likely getting a default form from the early part of the 20th Century or late 19th Century - a time when the Siberian Iris was common as a perennial plant, encircling bird baths, lining walks ( as it can be divided annually), or engulfing a gazing ball. Siberian Iris however are worth re-discovering, as they offer some of the finest characteristics that most other iris cannot compete with - over performance. It's easy to fall in love with those giant, flouncy German Bearded Iris' that smell like grape jam, and look as if they were constructed from delicate tissue paper and hand painted in bright, watercolor type tints, but the lesser known Siberian Iris has one thing over its fancier cousin - it gets better with each year, rather than requiring annual division of fans.

All from the same seed pod, one of the skills needed by any plant breeder is the ability to edit
offspring. Just look at the variety here, and imagine how you would choose the best? Would your
criteria include height? Fragrance? Amount of buds or flowers? Color? Awesomeness?

The Siberian Iris' offer something year round in the garden, so I feel that they are far superior. Their grassy blades of erect foliage along always looks nice, adding a well needed vertical texture in the perennial bed, the flowers of course, are produced in abundance, whereas the German Bearded Iris in all of it's forms, only offers a few flowers during its short season. Siberian Iris' also have artful seedpods, which can be left on the plant for winter interest, or picked for dried arrangements. The only problem I know with Siberian Iris is that they are difficult to find - which just may be the first thing I address when that big company calls me someday for me to put together my ultimate curated set of top 10 plants that I will market under my own brand ( heh heh). Until then, you now know that these amazing plants exist, and you know where to find some of the newest varieties - Jan and Marty's Joe Pye Weed's garden.

Soft pinks and mauves have yet to win awards with Siberian Iris ( just check the RBG awards list - where seletions from 20 years ago only feature purple and one yellow variety). Clearly, there is something far more interesting and important
happening with the Siberian Iris - so who is going to move to exploit this trend?

Asclepias incarnata, one of our native mildweeds, stems are pinned to a sweet pea fence, so that the Baltimore Orioles can use the dried bard to make their long, stocking-like nests.

As soon as we walked down the sloping hill in Jan and Marty's back yard, we could hear both Baltimore Orioles and Rose Breasted Grosbeaks - two of our most colorful summer migratory songbirds, and both have a similar song which is so appealing. Jan pointed out that these Orioles seem to return each year, and that this year they have at least 3 nesting pairs on their property. It's easy to see why they return, which their large pond off to the side, where they draw their irrigation water, and towering white and red oak trees that Orioles prefer, the location already has much to offer, but Jan shared a secret which I found fascinating - a few years ago Jan and Marty discovered that their Baltimore Orioles had very specific nest building resources on their property - they discovered that they prefer to use the peeling, white bark on the perennial weed Asclepias incarnata which they used to pull in after frost in their large cutting garden, but now, they allow it to not only remain all winter, they actually cut the stems and clamp them to their pea fencing, as the Orioles continue to pull the 12 inch strips of strong, stringy bark, so nesting couples are so territorial, that they won't allow the other nesting pairs to harvest their cache, leaving Jan and Marty to cut string and yarn, which they leave on their porch roof, which the other orioles use.

On the left, a Baltimore Oriole nest constructed with the bark of Asclepias incarnata, a native milkweed which
has long, stringy fiberous bark when allowed to dry in the field through a winter.

These reminded me of epaulet's on a British Captain's jacket, but then again, how many iris are named after that? Jess asked Jan how they name their plants, and she responded with "Many of the names come from country dances as we used to be folk dancers".

The breeders weren't keen on this color and form, but I lust for it!

With such a color palette available, I would hope that those of us who care about such things, will help promote these iris in our own gardens.

Product Review - Troy Bilt TB30 Neighborhood Rider

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 00:27:00 +0000

The new Neighborhood Rider manufactured by Troy Bilt offers value and practical features wrapped up in a unique design that allows this ride on mower to do things average ride-ons could never do before - like fit through gates.

I am not a lawn geek, but...there was a time ( like, 1972?) when along with my two brothers, I would have cut my the family lawn. Now, I'm not saying that I am competitive ( humph? Really?) but, when it comes to my brothers and I, cutting the lawn was a very big deal - Dad wanted nice stripes and grids, and, we were ( and continue to be) perpetually 'old-school' - meaning, push-mowers. It took guts, gear and talent. My brothers got the guts and gear, but I got the talent. Today, the lawn is much smaller, but it still the same lawn, only now, it has more trees, more beds, and more things to navigate around, so I have avoided investing in a ride-on mower because although it would be fun, I just could not justify it.

Ride Forest, Ride - The TB30 Neighborhood Rider allows the rider to see exactly where the edge of the lawn
is, allowing one to navigate close to rare plants and flowers beds, without giving them a hair cut.

Today, My older brothers have their own homes, and their own lawns, leaving me (the youngest) with our old family lawn. All 2.5 acres of it - we have the largest lawn in the neighborhood, but no ride-on mower. All of our neighbors have riding mowers, which they use to cut their puney quarter acre lots, but a riding mower just never made my short-list. That is, until the folks at Troy Bilt came along, and I discovered this odd, yet appealing design.

I'm not a small dude, and little things like leg room can often be a make or break design flaw. With this TB30
Troy Bilt Neighborhood Rider, I have room to spare, clearly it's because of it's scooter-like design, it's comfortable,
as if I am seated in a chair. No, that is not a horn in the middle of the wheel - I tried. But look at those lines,
nice design for a wheel on a mower, right?

When I chose to review a ride on mower, the decision did not come easy. Believe me, Troy Bilt makes some serious lawn equipment, but if I was to really be honest about this review, I wanted to find something new, not just accept a fancy ride on with headlights and all the bells and whistles just because it was free. Sure, it would have been fun to ask for a giant lawn tractor, or even a zero-turn beast just like the one that the landscapers use ( hey, Joe still isn't talking to me!), but as a product designer, I was not finding anything interesting - from a usability point, about the more typical tractors or mowers. This past March, while in Scottsdale at our Troy Bilt Saturday 6 kick off, I saw exactly what I wanted to write about - this crazy smaller ride-on mower that looked like something one would see cruising down the chip aisle at your local WalMart than on a golf course. I had to know more about this thing.

Although we no longer have sweeping, large lawns, we do have many 'garden rooms', and each one requires
some mowing, This mower fits through our garden gates, which is essential - some push mowers in the past
have not been able to squeeze through our gates.

The TB 30 Neighborhood Rider, isn't even called a mower, it may look a little less 'buff' than it's bigger bro's, but this little red beast has some impressive features - the main one, being practicality. When I asked the folks at Troy Bilt who where helping us test ( "play with") the equipment while in Arizona, what they were thinking when they designed this thing, they replied far more answers and reasons than I had asked about. First, The "scooter-like" design was intentional - for a very good reason.

The TB 30 Neighborhood Rider is designed to do things that it's greater kin, cannot. For example, first - it can fit through ones average 30" garden gates ( bing - we have lots of those!), Second, the Neighborhood Rider is designed not to have a long tractor-like front ( you know, the hood and long vents where farm tractors usually have their engines - not necessary on any lawn mower, but in this case, it allows one to see exactly where they are cutting - how brilliant is that? No more cutting into beds, nipping off rare plants as you turn, or guessing where you are cutting.

Thirdly, the 18 turning radius allows one to turn as if navigating around pallets of Oreos at a Wal.....wait - I mean I can carve around by alpine beds without trimming a single precious saxifraga from Tibet. Seriously, this is a huge plus as most ride on mowers are designed not for practical reasons, but for aesthetic ones. And forth, the chair-like seating allows ones knees to be in a comfortable position, leaving lots of room, especially around the steering wheel. I rarely find this in other ride-on mowers. So guy's, this is not just for you ladies, you too can now ride it - no excuses ( don't worry, the designers at Troy Bilt still took care to add a beer holder. Mow responsibly.

See how the wheels steer? While sitting in the seat, I can see precisely where the lead wheel is running, allowing
me to cut close to beds and hedges without hitting cobblestones or dropping off of the edge.

The techy specs themselves, I will leave up to you, check out side-by-side comparisons here. I rarely look at those sort of things, opting to buy first for looks ( I know, right? I can't help it.), and then second, I buy for cost. Third, comes pracicality, so OK..I am being honest. But let's be real, this machine is not ugly, if anything, I love it's black and red motif, and, it matches my chickens.

The blades on this ( an most of the Troy Bilt machines) devours grass, so few clipping are produces - most just get chomped up underneath. That said, you can use a bag if you save your clippings for mulch or the compost pile.

The Troy-Bilt Neighborhood Rider is not a big pricepoint either, retailing for just over $1000, it's has so much going for it, that many home gardeners might find it practical and useful. Great for both small, or large gardens, it takes up far less room than most ride on mowers, it is easy to start ( like many of the Troy Bilt products), it cuts the grass so cleaning and tightly, that I didn't even use a bad, or need to rake up and the grass cuts again and again, underneath, as all well designed mowers should do, but few do well. On the down side, it doesn't have headlights, (or a horn - I know, wouldn't that be just fun? Then again, I am a toy designer.) It does have a drink holder though, and a cushy seat with springs. When you stand up, the mower automatically turns off!

All in all, I can say this about this mower - the way I feel about ride on's has changed forever, as now I can be flexible in how I cut, and with less of the fuss than that which comes with a larger tractor. If you've been looking for a mower that you can ride on, but one that is smaller, less expensive and more maneuverable, than finally, there is one.

The Troy Bilt TB30 Neighborhood Mower and Troy, our official Troy Bilt Rooster ( sold separately).

NOTE: Full disclosure, naturally - Troy-Bilt provided this TB30 Neighborhood mower for free ( but I got to choose what I wanted to test as well as write about), as part payment for being a 2013 Saturday 6 blogger. I was encouraged to be honest, to share my opinion. Honestly. So...OK. A headlight would have been nice! Stay tuned for an awesome Troy Bilt giveaway coming soon this summer on this blog - you won't believe how generous it will be.

Jewels of the Eastern Forest

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Tue, 28 May 2013 01:58:00 +0000

A big find for both of us ( a life list bird for me, and a new phase for Kim) was this Indigo Bunting passing through a

A Red Eyed Vireo calls from a branch in a newly leafed out Choke Cherry ( Prunus virginiana).

Sure, I could do a post on what is happening on the ground this week in our forests, but who wants to see another photo of a pink ladyslipper....so today, I got up at the crack of dawn, and went birdwatching. There may be no better time to go birding in the Eastern deciduous forest than in May, just as the new foliage is opening with a green so bright, it can seen almost un-natural. Each week in May brings new migrating song bird species to the forests and meadows here in the Eastern US, and as my guide and neighbor Kim Allen explained ( who is also a fellow blogger ), some decide to stay and mate, raising their brood in territories defined roughly by habitate and food sources, or, they simply stop and rest, on an even longer journey north, into Canada to breed.

Collectables, Treasures, and Native Plants in My Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Sun, 26 May 2013 23:41:00 +0000

Sinocalycanthus raulstonii 'Hartlage Wine' is an under used shrub, an intergeneric cross between our native Eastern Sweetshrub Calycanthus floridus and the Chinese counterpart, Sinocalycanthus. Still relatively new ( created in the 1990's) the larger this shrub gets, the more I adore it.

In many parts of the country, especially here in the North East, this weekend which typically marks the unofficial start of summer, feels more like winter - with ice pellet yesterday, and night-time temps dipping into the 30's tonight, summer seems like a long way away. It makes me happy that I have waited until after Memorial day to plant my tender annuals and vegetables ( I just transplanted my seedling tomatoes last weekend!), but there is no holding back spring, which I can see as I strolled around the garden today during a break in our well-needed rainstorm. The sun broke through the clouds, and even though a bitter, cold breeze kept gloves on even while I weeded, I took some time to snap some shots of some remarkable plants blooming in the garden on this chilly, spring weekend in late May.

Another native American tree rarely seen in garden is the Snow Bell, or Halesia monticola more commonly seen in mid-Atlantic states than in New England.

Saruma henryi, a Chinese native woodland plant blooms on the north side of the house. With pale, yellow blossoms and velvety heart-shaped leaves, this shade lover is winning my heart. This year, it is nearly a foot and a half, tall.

Primula polyneura blooms out near the chicken coops. Less thug-like than its close relative, Primula kisoana ( as if P. kisoana is really thug like, but it does spread a little), this primrose has more of a candelabra stem, and blossoms which are more showy in the garden. I have no idea where we got these plants, but I have a colony growing near the woods.

Our native Mayapple has sweet blossoms, but they are always hidden below the umbrella-like foliage of this Podophyllum. I have to pick a few, just to get a photo of the flower which nods below the single leaf.

Our Goldfinches are in full, breeding splendor now - with brilliant yellow feathers, they are fearless, visiting some of the feeder near the kitchen window. This one seems to want some sunflower seeds to augment his diet of thistle seed.

Aesculus pavia, our native red Buckeye, a relative of the Horse Chestnut, brightens a green corner near the greenhouse with it's firecracker-like blossoms. A small tree, this one never seems to get taller than I am.

Yellow Rhododendrons remain rare, and this one blooms with trusses that first open pink, then turn bright yellow, and later turning to a pale primrose yellow. I long lost the variety name.

I was so excited to see this visitor to our suet feeders ( which I have decided to keep up for the summer to encourage catbirds, and other insect eaters closer to the house). This Brown Thrasher is a large relative of the Catbird, and as an omnivore, he enjoys both insect and nuts.

A large (tall) native water iris, Iris pseudacorus blooms in our pond. Nearly 5 feet tall, this is one which we found growing near our fishing spot with white flowers, in the wild, it is more typically yellow ( as in the foreground).
It prefers wet feet, but it also grows well in the border.

Trade Secrets - Round Up

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Fri, 24 May 2013 17:29:00 +0000

Succulent wall planters and a great felt wool goat puppet ( these are what Martha was buying when I met her!). Aren't they great?

I had so many good photos from last weekend's visit to the rare plant and garden antique show TRADE SECRETS in Sharon, CT, that I thought that I would share more of them. I think you may find these as inspirational as I do. Enjoy!

For more pics, click below.

Mexican glass cloche's from Campo de' Fiori in nearby Sheffield, MA

Lion Rock Farm is a functioning farm in Sharon, CT, they host the event each year on their beautiful property.

Here is a view of that incredible Davidia involucrata ' Vilmoriniana' , along with D. involucrata 'Sonoma', one of the newer selections of Davidia that bloom at a smaller size, at the Broken Arrow Nursery booth. Broken Arrow Nursery, located in Hamden, CT offers some of the finest in rare trees and shrubs.

Great home made bird houses - I love the one with the faucet as an entrance hole.

My long time good friend Karen Perkins was there selling Epimediums from her nursery Garden Vision Epimediums. These shade loving plants are becoming more and more popular, and every botanist knows - this is in part ( a good part) due to the efforts of this nursery. Check out their new website here. So when nurseries like Plant Delights talks about Epimedium guru Darrell Probst, this is where they came from.

Succulents never looked so fine - thanks to the talents of Snug Harbor Farm in Kennebunk, Maine.

Some starving Nepenthes, awaiting a snack of flies - sadly, this farm has no flies! (naturally - come on!).

I liked the way these gardens where planted. ephemerals, a few choice hosta and hellebore varieties, and then, four trained Catalpa trees, which surprised me. I always associate catalpa with messy gardens, but these were so architectural, thatI think I may move mine.

Succulents planted as a wall hanging. Best use of a bed spring yet!

Love, love, love this color combo.

More Campo de' Fiore pots, this time with grapevine spheres and some well placed passion fruit vine. Attention everyone, the 80's is back, and grape vine never looked better!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend everyone! Now get out into your garden~

Growing Awesome Wisteria

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Thu, 23 May 2013 03:00:00 +0000

My wisteria tree, is still a vine, simply trained as a tree. This takes an incredible amount of heavy pruning two or three times a year, with whips and stems often 4 or 5 feet long being removed in mid-summer, autumn and a bit in the early spring. With such care, even this young vine produces a prodigious amount of flowers.

Few plants can compare with the romance of wisteria. Even the name conjurs up romance - of palaces with dripping, violet-tinted vines cascading like waterfalls in a Disney animated film. For gardeners who are more savvy, the vine can cause dread and fear, in much the same way that a timber bamboo can, as few plants can be as invasive as an untamed wisteria, out of control and overtaking every tree and shrub in its path. Yet once can master training this vine, as it needs training. Here is how I do it.
Click more, below for my tips on growing and training wisteria.

Most vines can be challenging, some gardeners will tell you to avoid wisteria, for it can be weedy, invasive even, but the truth is all vines can be invasive, it's in their nature to be aggressive, spinning and twining their stems in a desperate effort to reach a position where they can take advantage of light. Vines are botanically designed to climb, through bushes, scrub and trees, aggressively trying to get above any competitive foliage.

Japanese strains are supposed to be more fragrant than Chinese forms, but I think this is all silly, for I have some Japanese strains that have hardly no scent, such as this large-flowered violet form, while some Chinese forms smell exactly like orange blossoms.

Even though Wisteria can be extremely invasive, even seeding in woodlands threatening native species, but at the same time, it's a vine which has charmed us, captured in artwork and in iconic old gardens in Italy and France, many who start gardening dream of someday having a wisteria vine in full, cascading bloom. They present the ultimate in romantic garden displays, Hollywood frequently drapes pergolas and trellis' with silk wisteria (fooling only a few of us when we spot it in a film), and classic artisans such as Tiffany capture the iconic image of twining wisteria in stained glass lampshades and in windows. But how can a home gardener tame a wisteria vine, and then, once tamed, how can one get a wisteria to bloom? For we've all heard about their fussy behavior through legend and lore. I, am about to set things straight.

Wisteria macrobotrys has long, drooping trusses, which when completely open, can make my fence look like a waterfall of cascading color.

My collection of wisteria varieties is growing, but I still have room for more, the problem I have with wisteria is not getting them to bloom, but is simply trying to find reliable and named selections that are accurately true to name ( as they cannot be raised from seed, unless one wants a lesser throw-back). Wisteria deserves a second look by us gardeners. If you have a fence, a pergola or even a space where you can train one into a tree form, a wisteria vine can be very rewarding. Even if you only have room for a large tub, a trained vine in a container -even as a bonsai, can make for a very impressive plant. The trick with wisteria is not in fertilizing ( they they rarely bloom if presented with rich soil) - success comes with proper pruning. Wisteria must be pruned back fearlessly, and hard - ideally once in July, cutting all whips and stems back to the main trunk, leaving a foot or so of stem which can be allowed to form buds for the following year, and a second pruning in early spring, or late winter - just before the vines start to grow, and flower buds begin to swell.

I keep 5 selections of both Japanese selections, and Chinese forms. One really never knows what one has when it comes to wisteria, as seed raised strains are far more prevalent than clones. The name wisteria has a story behind it too - the genus should have be named Wistaria, and not Wisteria, as it was named in honor of Professor Caspar Wistar of the University of Pennsylvania, but an unfortunate misspelling while registering the genus has for ever kept the name Wisteria. Regardless of misspelling gripes and muddled genealogy, there are today countless strains and selections once one starts looking, and each has its qualities, be it fragrance, color or floral quality. Some varieties have very long trusses, nearly 2 feet long as in W. macrobotrys, others, particularly some of the newer Japanese floribundas have large, individual flowers on short trusses. Another interesting fun fact is that reportedly the Chinese varieties have stems which twine clockwise, whilst Japanese forms twine in a counter clockwise manner. I have never tested this, but it's legend in many gardening books, and I would love to hear more about why, and if it is actually a true fact.

This white Chinese wisteria, has an incredibly rich scent which drifts across the entire garden - it smells like a lemon tree in full bloom. It's more tender than any other variety I have, but after 12 years, it still produces flowers each spring, unless we have a very cold winter. It has never had so many flowers as it does this year.

There are pink, rose, reddish mauve, violet and white forms of Wisteria, all with varied lengths of trusses. The choices selections tend to bloom before the foliage emerges, others, just as the foliage opens, and the more wild forms, bloom after the foliage has unfurled.

If you are interested in growing wisteria, I just ask you to buy named varieties, and not allow someone to pass on a vine to you, as it most likely will be seed raised, which will result only in disappointment. If you are going to bother pruning and training a vine that can live well over a century, you might as well spend that effort on a choice variety.

My trained wisteria tree, is not really a tree, but simply a young vine of a particularly large flowered form, pruned hard each year, which helps to force the vine into bloom. After ten years or so, the stem will be strong enough to stand alone, without a stake or rope to keep it erect.

A Japanese white form, called White Snake, or Shiro Naga Fuji, has spectacular white blossoms. I keep this one trimmed short, it is almost free standing in the garden, yet it rarely twines at all, a Japanese maple helps to prop it up. That said, if I missed just one year of pruning any wisteria, my garden would be overrun.

I have many fond memories of wisteria as a child. In the woods behind out house, our neighbor allowed long wisteria vines to clamber up into tall ash trees, which would transform into bloom in May with long, purple blossoms making what could have been a boring street tree to suddenly become a giant wisteria tree, to memories of Nice, and Cannes in France, where like many of the coastal villages on the Cote d'Azur, wisteria arbors come into bloom over walkways in public parks and gardens. I Nice, I remember a long walk under such an arbor where steel archways and long wires connecting each one transformed into a violet tunnel one spring.

My RSS Feed is moving to Feedly from Google

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Tue, 21 May 2013 00:02:00 +0000

If you’re a user of Google Reader you probably know by now that Google has decided to shut down the service as of July 1, 2013. Many people, myself included, use Google Reader on a daily basis and have found it to be the best RSS reader available. Sadly (or not), it's all changing.

This post is simply to inform all of my great readers that starting this Thursday, I will be switching from Google Reader to Feedly. I'm not really a geeky type, so I am assuming that many of you are not either. Hopefully all will go smoothly. All this means is that if you get my posts sent to you in an RSS feed, most likely you are using Google Reader. If you are, then you will need to change to another reader, and will need to relink my site.

If you use Feedly or one of the many other readers, you will need to make minor adjustments.

Any questions, or concerns, this article will help you find options.

http://rebekahradice.com/migrate-google-reader-to-feedly/

This is helpful too. Social Media Today - How to Transition from Google Reader to Feedly

If you just access my blog in your bookmarks, or saved the URL somewhere, nothing will change. This only affects the 1500 Google Reader fans that I have.

Thanks!

Matt

Endulging at Trade Secrets

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Sun, 19 May 2013 02:43:00 +0000

Whose that with Martha Stewart in the middle of this image? Why, no other than Kevin Sharkey. I covet my Podophyllum pleianthum as much as Martha does, which only confirms her secret that many of us in the plant world already knew - that she really does know great plants, and appreciates them too.

It's become an annual fete - and one every plant and garden lover should attend, for thirteen years now, the private home and farm of Elaine LaRoache and her Lion Rock Farm in Sharon, CT opens it's gates offering many of us so privileged to attend, access to simple the best in rare and unusual plant, garden sculpture and pottery, and well, imagine jumping into the photo of one of the finest British gardening magazines ala Alice in Wonderland, and you get the picture. Trade Secrets is just that sort of experience. No kidding. It feels edited, fancy, down-to-earth, and authentic, and the plant material is choice. I should add, I expected everything to be out of my price range, but I barely spent more than $100 for each tree and shrub ( many under $50) but the selection was impeccable.

If you are a stylish gardener or even a plant collector living in the New York/New England area, then the posh garden sale/event called TRADE SECRETS, should come as no surprise, most likely you already know of this even, and have made the trek to the small, idyllic Connecticut town of Sharon, CT. What started thirteen years ago by interior designer Bunny Williams, of Bunny Williams Inc ( one of the world's largest and most prestigious commercial design firms), when she started what then seemed to be simply a small fundraiser - a simple plant sale to help raise money for Women's Support Services (WSS provides services to persons in the north west corner of Connecticut who have experienced domestic violence of abuse). Today, the event has grown into something more like the sales tents at Chelsea crossed with Brimfield Antiques Fair ( on one of those really good days!). Now, throw in rare plants, and you can begin to get an idea of what Trade Secrets is like.

Here are just a few of the many things that I saw.

First time exhibitor, our friends from Kennebunk, Maine, Thanks to the always inspiring and talented Todd Carr from Snug Harbor Farm.

I drifted between the beautiful and tempting displays of some of my most favorite nurseries, from Ed Bowen's Opus Nursery, to this year newb Todd from Snug Harbor Farm in Kennebunk Maine, and the impressive work of Todd Carr. Broken Arrow Nursery is clearly everyones first go-to booth, for rare trees and shrubs ( thier Davidia involucrata in full bloom kept iphones and cameras out.

Hand made garden tools, books, as well as plants were for sale.

I was so happy to be able to meet Guy Wolff today. We've chatted on line, and we even tried to meet up a few times but things just got in the way. Of course this is his territory - his studio is nearby. and we buy our clay just up the road at the same place, Sheffield Pottery. So really, there is no excuse. I really need to go spend some time in his studio.

Guy's always so warm and nice, and approachable. People just smile when he chats with them.

I could have spent a gillion dollars....but my lottery ticket won't be available until tonight, when I will the big one.....but I still left with a huge Guy Wolff Rhubard forcer! Joy. I have always wanted one. Well, ten, but I can start with one.

I fell in love with this fox, but it was out of my price range.

I also had to leave with this fabulous bird house from Snug Harbor Nursery. It was so well made.

Yes, there were plants too. Oh, the plants. Nothing common, which made for some challenging budgeting. I did leave with the golden English Oak and a few amazing plants from every one's fav nursery, Broken Arrow Nursery in CT.
Thank God I paid the extra fee for early admission.

I was delighted to be introduced to these beautiful copper plate illustrations by botanical illustrator Bobbi Angell, who just finished illustrating the latest ( and, sadly, last) book by Joe Eck and the late Wayne Winterrowd entitled TO EAT - A COUNTRY LIFE, which will be published on June 11, 2013. Bobbi's illustrations are remarkable, not just because of her style and talent, but becauseshe too is a gardener, if not a horticulturist so there are illustrations of horticulturally interesting plants.

The rural farm, where the even is held in Litchfield County, CT, near the Massachusetts and New York border.

Epic Trillium at the Garden in the Woods

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Sat, 18 May 2013 03:48:00 +0000

Yes, that's nurserydude and author Joseph Tychonievich admiring the awesome stock beds of trillium
at the New England Wild Flower Society's Garden in the Woods, in Framingham, Massachusetts

There are days in May when everything comes together like kismet, bright sunshine, blue skies, warm temperatures, migrating warblers, and woodland wildflowers. Today, my good friend Joseph Tychonievich ( from Arrowhead Alpines) visited me, and we spent the day touring my lousy garden, then lunch and a visit to the Garden in the Woods, in Framingham, Massachusetts. Run by the New England Wildflower Society this renowned botanic garden is special enough, but never so special as it is in mid-spring, when the trillium species bloom. Joseph and I could not have planned a more perfect day to hike the trails, and to visit the propagation beds ( where were you Dan Jaffe?! I know, we should have called first). These trillium beds show the fine work of propagator, Dan Jaffe.). Mr. Jaffe was probably resting while his trillium beds bloomed their butts. We stopped to take some photos of the many trillium species, and to catch a few birds - a Rose Breasted Grosbeak and a Baltimore Oriole sang high in the oak canopy.

Trillium grandiflorum in massive clumps.

Joseph's new book which I will be reviewing soon ( as soon as I get on from his publisher) PLANT BREEDING FOR THE HOME GARDENER (2013 Timber Press)sounds more than terrific, it sounds practical and even fun, as just talking about it with Joseph had inspired me want to go try some plant breeding again - something I do every now and then, but not nearly at the level that Joseph does. I hear the book is selling out fast, so be sure to try and order one before it goes into a second edition.

Raising your own varieties from seed has many benefits, and as Joseph and I chatted, I soon realized that we both shared a lot of the same concerns about growth regulators used on annuals and most commercial crops ( most every thing at big box stores) and how this limits performance in the home garden significantly ( it's why many annuals that we buy in-bloom in six packs, fail once planted into our own gardens. Joseph's book will show you step-by-step how to try your own hand at crossing your own annuals and veggies, and even how to develop some of your very own original varieties and selections. Even if you are interested in saving your own seed, this book will be essential. Go find one now!

Back to the trillium species at Garden in the Woods - the stock beds reminded both of us why we want to continue starting our own trillium from seed, yet we joked at the time involved ( sometimes taking more than 5 years to bloom from seed) and we shared hints and secrets about Gibberelic acid, sowing fresh or green seed, and division as alternate methods. Joseph's nursery carries and impressive selection of trillium species ( as well as many other native woodland plants from North America), but it's always fun to see how other people are growing them. One rarely sees any trillium in such numbers, it's a precious and rare site for any garden or plant enthusiast.

Trillium recurvatum

A sessile Trillium cuneatum v. lutea

Trillium cuneatum

Bothe Joseph and I were overwhelmed by some of the selections in the raised stock beds. Clearly, Dan has been doing some creative work here.

Trillium rugelii, one of the nodding trilliums - this one is actually the Southern Nodding Trillium

Trillium flexipes

Trillium grandiflorum cv. multiplex, the double white Wakerobin, or double trillium.

Gotta love my fav, Arisaema thunbergii ssp urashima ( I think, just guessing here, but it is my favorite and I get to see it so rarely). Love those little 'mouse tails' emerging from the spadix.

Japanese Primroses and Bleeding Hearts

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:04:00 +0000

Primula sieboldii selections from our garden ( from two years ago) range from delicate snowflake shapes, to phlox-like pinks, to nodding
geisha types which are so treasured in Japan.

In the great world of primroses, there are hundreds of species, most, unfortunately never make it into our gardens for various reasons, either nurseries rarely carry them, they are simply hard to find, or home gardeners simply don't know about them. The early-blooming delicate woodland primrose, Primula sieboldii from Japan, is one such plant. A species with hundreds of fabulous selections so treasured in Japan where there are clubs, public parks and even events organized around the blooming of this plant, here in America, just try finding even one selection. It takes some work, but there are a handful of nurseries ( mostly on-line sources) who carry this creeping, barely a ground cover but certainly mat-forming perennial primrose. I say - find one, and see for yourself how wonderful this plant is. Then throw away your creeping phlox that everyone has, and raise-the-bar horticulturally in your neighborhood.

I love this lavender veined form. I took this photo two years ago, but sadly, I think we've lost this selection.

Many of our own seedlings are variable, yet being prolific seed producers, each year we save packets of seed
with the hopes of finding even more, better, selections. More-better. Yeah.

Nostalgic plants return year after year, often reminding us of our earliest gardening experiences, and so it is with the common Bleeding Heart, typically found in its pink form, this white selection is less common.

This nodding form is a favorite in Japan, as it expresses a more demure gesture, so appreciated there.
This selection is called 'Pink Geisha'.

Our Primula sieboldii brighten the spring garden, as they grow in woodland-like duff below trees in partial shade.
Like most spring woodland plants, the show is brief, yet spectacular. The foliage remains for most of the summer,
unlike most woodland ephemerals.

Hellebores - a year after dividing

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Tue, 14 May 2013 02:35:00 +0000

I have a soft spot for dark, slate colored selections of Helleborus. This one is a classic Heronswood selection.

Last year, I divided all of my hellebores ( see here how to do it, it is easy!) and this is the best time to do it, right after they bloom ( but the gardening books won't tell you that!). Sometimes, it's best to take a chance and do it. The truth is, in New England, the soil is still damp and rains come every few days, so May is the safest time to divide these somewhat fussy, yet long lived perennials. Here are a few photos which I will bless you with few words, as I need to go outside to cover plants due to a late frost arriving tonight. Fingers are crossed, that it won't be as bad as one 12 years ago ( Christopher Lloyd was visiting here that night when we lost most every oak tree in the forests due to a May 15 frost). Davidia, davidia, davidia - please be safe!

More upright, and early, this Helleborus foetidus has a form that is quite different than other hellebores.

Daphne gets curious with a Bumblebee.

Hosting #gardenchat tonight! 9:00 EST

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Mon, 13 May 2013 12:06:00 +0000

Get your gardening questions ready ( and make them interesting!). Tonight, I and a few of my fellow Troy Bilt Saturday6 bloggers will be answering you toughest gardening questions tonight on Gardenchat #gardenchat. This will be be first Twitter event, or is it Facebook too? Guess I'll find out tonight! As soon as I have more info, I will let you know, but this looks like fun and I am so excited to be able to connect with some of you more directly.

Here is a sample way for you to ask us questions :

Tomorrow on #gardenchat Twitter we welcome Dave Townsend (@THGarden) from Growing the Home Garden, Matt Mattus (@MattMattus) from Growing with Plants, and Helen Yoest (@HelenYoest) from Gardening with Confidence : You are invited to join in the conversation with the #Saturday6 sharing gardening tips!

Fill in the blank: The first plant I grew from a seed was ________________.

( of course, for my questions, you can ask something more...challenging, if you want!

Ghost Trees and Rarities

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Mon, 13 May 2013 00:11:00 +0000

The Ghost Tree, or Fabled Dove Tree, Davidia involucrata surprised me this spring, by finally blooming after 15 years.

Perhaps in no other time than that brief moment in May, do I feel as if I live and garden in a true plant collectors garden. Of course, this is certainly more of a plant collectors garden than it is any other sort of garden, but more often then not, to the 'plant collector' himself, the garden can feel a bit too familiar, too predictable, or even - dare I say - ordinary. I don't know about you, but I often forget about plants which I have collected and planted each year, they surprise me "Oh, that's where I planted that!", or "I totally forgot about that tree seedling!". Sometimes, I even scream out with surprise - as if I saw a rare bird ( well, not rare, but I did see a Baltimore Oriole flitting about on the edge of the woods with his bright, orange finest of feathers! He just flew in this week as our spring migration continues, along with my first catbird and house wren).

Gardening books often say that the Davidia looks like it has a bunch of handkerchiefs hanging in it. OK, it's a stretch, but sure is different than most other trees in the garden right now.

The biggest surprise this week was something I have been waiting for - for 16 years - the blooming of our Davidia involucrata, or The Fabled Dove Tree ( or Hankerchief Tree if you like silly names). A true Zone 7 tree, I took a chance in our Zone 5 garden, and planted a young tree 16 years ago. Each year, hoping to see it bloom with it's distinctive white bracts fluttering in the wind on a May day - but I just about gave up, as the tree is now 30 feet tall, and seemed to suffer with nips of frost every other spring. This year, it finally bloomed ( the flowers are actually hidden underneath the white handkerchief-like bracts, looking not unlike blackberries. Rejoice! Introduced from China

Davidia trees are no longer 'rare', but they are something you would need to order online from a specialist nursery, as they are still uncommon. The Davidia is one of those plants with a good story behind it. First described in 1869 it was named after a French missionary, Armand David. Scottish plant hunter Augustine Henry found only a single tree when exploring in China near the end of the nineteenth century, and sent a collected, dried specimen to Kew. In the early part of the 20th Century plant collector Earnest Henry Wilson traveled through China in search for the single tree that Henry found, but discovered that it had been cut down for construction material. He later found a grove of trees, but they were growing on a steep cliff. Eventually, after a boat disaster, and disease, he was able to collect a few specimens to bring back to England.

There are many special selections of Japanese maples ( Acer palmatum) which have snow-white foliage in the spring. I've lost most of the Japanese names for many of the trees I have in my collection, but who cares when they look this nice! My best advice? Plant as many choice Japanese Maples as you can possible afford in your garden, they only
get better with age, never too large, and always graceful.

Some of the variegated Japanese Maples that I have planted near the house, are illuminated at night with spot lights
placed underneath them. Even on a rainy spring day, they glow.

Small trees like Japanese Maples create the perfect shade for many choice woodland collector plants.
Here, my Podophyllum collection grows in the leaf duff and compost under a half-moon maple.

Close-up images in plant catalogs might lead you to believe that these Japanese Maples with variegated foliage
could look sickly or ill, but in the garden, that is not the case - the overall form and color transforms
into a tiered, elegant structure which enhances any small garden.

Another small tree is all about tiers - check out the layered effect created by this variegated Wedding Cake Dogwood, Cornus controversia var. variegata.

Golden trees virtually glow in the spring garden. This Golden Locust, Robinia pseudoacacia 'Frisia'
keeps its bright, chartreuse foliage right until fall.

Planting Celery and Artichokes

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Wed, 08 May 2013 11:38:00 +0000

Home grown celery that will be comparable to commercial farm-raised celery is not an easy task for anyone, but with some weekly care ( mostly fertilizer and water), healthy, yet thinner-than store bought, crispy flavor-intense celery can be had throughout a long growing season. Think of home grown celery more as an herb, a seasoning rather than something you would stuff with peanut butter. The greener it is, the more bitter it will be.

Celery and Artichokes are two crops often over-looked by home gardeners, and for a good reason, they are long-growing crops, not particularly easy, and they are not space savers ( although, as you can see in the photo above, I sneak in my celery seedlings into my onion bed!). Both Celery and Artichokes need deep, rich soil and lots of moisture, as commercialy, these are both cool-growing and irrigated crops. So plan on plenty of hose runs, and tri-weekly watering. Still, growing your own is better than supporting commercial growers who are doing God-knows-what to their crops, and then flying them to you. Growing these in your back yard makes far more sense, and, naturally, the results are healthier.

OK, I know - just mention celery to most home gardeners, and they respond "It's just something I don't grow since all I get is bitter, dark green leaves.". It's true that celery as a crop requires lots of fertilizer, rich soil and sunlight, and a copious ( i.e. crazy) amount of constant moisture, to even come near the thick, crispy stemmed type one finds at the market, but don't assume that you cannot grow it at home, it just takes a little planning, and care.
I grow celery because its one of the top 5 toxic vegetables ( commercially, it requires more chemicals than most any other vegetable) but at home, that is unnecessary, aside from a little liquid fertilizer ( or, a lot!), I feel that at least, my home grown celery offers a healthy alternative for a few months to the large, foreign-looking monsters one finds at the market. Here how I do it.

Celery seedlings are set out into the garden after growing from seed, these seedlings are 4 months old, started under lights in January, transplanted into individual pots in the greenhouse, and fertilized weekly to keep them strong. What makes these different than store-bought plants or store bought veggies? I use no growth retardants, no chemical insecticide, and I know exactly what fertilizer I am providing ( 15-16-17 with micro nutrients, and limestone).

Celery takes a long time to grow well, seed must be started early, generally in late January or early February indoors. carefully transplanted, the seedlings are grown on in individual pots ( I use 3 inch plastic pots that I wash out each year, but choose something where roots can spread out and grow while young, for celery has roots like trees, and one wants a good root spread at a young age to avoid tangles and unnecessary disturbance when planting out. I set plants out into the garden in mid-May, and provide them a drink of fertilizer rich in phosphorus and potassium. Water-in well with a good drink of vitamins, and provide plenty of water every week, and before long, you too can be harvesting celery that actually has flavor. On that note, if you want to skip fertilizer all together, grow celery for the leaves alone, which are essential ingredients in home made stocks ( irreplaceable in chicken or vegetable stock) and a flavorful addition to tuna salad. One can pick leaves right through frost.

Fertilizer is essential when growing celery, as this is a crop that demand plenty of nutrition and constant moisture. Blanching is rarely needed with new varieties, but one can still place boards or even better, tar paper cones wrapped around the plant in late August if you want whiter stems (I like the stronger celery flavor, but after harvesting, I place plants in vases of cool water for a day which tempers the bitterness). Remember...bitter means healthy vitamin-rich antioxidants !

PLANTING-OUT ARTICHOKES

An update here on my artichoke project ( in case you are following along). Now planted out into the garden, my plants are positioned 2 feet apart ( a little close, but plant no closer - 36 inches is best). Like celery, artichokes need a consistent and adequate supply of both water and fertilizer. If you are stingy with either, then you just are not following good horticultural practice, and you will end up with few flowers, and small plants. I eat healthy, take vitamins, eat nutritionally-dense food, and, so do my plants. Just be sure to provide the "right" nutrients, and not unnecessary ones ( like crazy home-made Epsom-salt blends!).

It's might be helpful here to share how weather affects artichokes, for these are plants that prefer frequent fogs, cool temperatures and when combined with deep, rich soil and moisture, you will achieve the maximum yield. Be sure to plant enough plants ( I am only growing 6 due to room) but if I had the space, I would plant a long row with a couple of dozen plants 26 inches apart, for one wants a bowl full of artichokes to work with in the kitchen. Plan on flower buds being about a quarter of the size of the fancy California chokes, but they will have far more flavor and a remarkable texture. Each plant will produce one to four primary stems with a large bud, and then each stem, after initial harvest, should produce side buds which will be smaller.

Artichoke seedlings require at least 10 days of cool temperatures outdoors ( under 50º) if they are being grown to produce buds as an annual crop. Thankfully, my plants have been planted out for three weeks now, and each night temperatures have dropped well below 40º F. Called vernalization, this tricks the plant to believe that it lived through a winter, which will stimulate it to produce flower buds ( which, are artichokes!).

The artichoke seedlings, which have been growing on - first in the greenhouse, and then for the past few weeks,- have been set out into the garden where they have been recieving 3 weeks of temperatures below 40º which is needed for proper vernalization. These are being grown as annual plants, as artichokes are not hardy here in New England. Even though I know that these will provide smaller buds than the giants grown on the coastal plains of northern California, they will be fresh and crispy, and - home grown, and nothing beats that. Plus, I can enjoy fresh artichokes in mid to late summer, when they are out-of-season in California.

Another heavy feeder, artichoke seedlings are fed weekly with a balanced liquid feed and they are planted in a rich, compost created with our own duck manure. The leaves are really huge!

I will share images throughout the season, and then recap the entire process filing it under VEGETABLES and STEP-BY-STEP for you all to follow next year! If you have any questions on other step-by-step projects, just send me a note or ask me on my Facebook page, and I will be happy to either answer it, or grow the crop to perfection and document it! Now....get out into the garden!

The Birds of Paradise Project

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Wed, 08 May 2013 00:51:00 +0000

Last night, after four days of plant society meetings and work at home, I treated Joe and myself to an amazing lecture and presentation in Watertown, MA, just outside of Boston, The Birds-of-Paradise Project, a study which lasted 8 years and took 18 expeditions. It documents the journeys and studies of two men, Cornell Lab scientist Ed Scholes and National Geographic photojournalist Tim Laman who, after 8 years and 18 expeditions to New Guinea and Australia, captured the most incredible and moving images of all 39 species in the bird-of-paradise family for the first time ever.

You all know I am obsessed about plants, but my real love has always been birds. Yesterday, which happened to another spectacular May day with bright blue skies, and cool temperatures, could have been a very bird-enhanced day, as, I had wanted to get up early ( I took the day off to recoup from the weekend!), as I wanted to go for a pre-dawn hike in the mountains nearby, to simple listen to the morning chorus - as the peak warbler migration is nearing, and the forests here become alive at 4:30 am with vireos, redstarts, warbler species, robins, thrushes and most every migratory bird who arrived here over the past two weeks. But, instead, I laid in bed just thinking about getting up, but I could not drag myself out! I knew I would regret it, as these days are rare, and this weekend, it is supposed to rain. At least I had this lecture planned.

I know this is not plant related, but I think you all will enjoy this regardless - check out their introduction video below ( this is how they opened their presentation) and it is so well done - also be sure visit their well designed and content-rich website, as it has so many cool features, such as the ability to click on any of the species and see footage, or hear the song of each one, it's far better than any nature show ( no sharks, dramatic music or ....well, sharks). In these videos you experience just the sounds of the forest ( Oh man, is it too late for me to become a wildlife photographer?). Be sure to check and see if these guys are coming to speak near you, as this was a monumental undertaking and the spectacular footage, as you will see, will leave you wanting more. This video below provides just a glimpse of their beauty, and the amazing photographic work presented in this study.

I too was very impressed with the quality of the entire presentation itself ( they used no Powerpoint or Keynote, but rather a new cloud based program called prezi, which by itself I found inspiring). In the end, I totally regretted not majoring in ornithology at Cornell, as was my life-long dream ( to become a wildlife artist), but at least, with modern tech, I can still participate in some small way. Enjoy this video, the footage is incredible. Oh, and be sure to order the book too! (BTW- no one paid me to post this, or even asked - it's just something I believe in, and I have a feeling you guys might enjoy it too!).

I did get some birding in this weekend, at the Tower Hill Botanic Garden, a few Yellow Warblers in the forest behind the garden, my first of the year as they just arrived this week ( plus, a few Palm Warblers, Pine Warblers and a few mystery Warblers! I have so much more to learn! Warbler ID is HARD!

Two Spring Plant Society Shows

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Sun, 05 May 2013 14:30:00 +0000

It's a magnificent spring here in New England, with daytime temps above freezing, and night temperatures near freezing, which has allowed native trees and plants, as well as spring bulbs and garden plants to extend their display to their maximum potential, a rare event as it is far more common for weather to swing into extremes of warm, wet , or cold. Across New England, even though we are dryer than normal, we are all appreciating the bright blue sky and stunning display of flora.

This weekend, as many of you know, we hosted the National Primrose Show members at our home for a party, and, we have been participating in the actual national show being held nearby at the Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston, Massachusetts. If you live near to Boston, this Sunday may be the day you make a day trip to Tower Hill, for you can get two shows for the price of one, as the Seven States Daffodil Show, as National Daffodil Society sponsored show, a show that was cancelled last year due to hot weather ( no Daff's), but this year, the benches are full, as well as the National Primrose Show sponsored by the New England Chapter of the American Primrose Society.

Enjoy the spring pics. as I need to run back up to Tower Hill for a lecture!

Neat rows of award winning daffodils at the Seven States Daffodil Show at Tower Hill Botanic Garden

Drama ensues as judging commences as entrants check their status.

There were so many entries this year, that beer bottles were recruited to help

Technology is beginning to emerge in some of these plant societies.

The National Primrose Show had fewer entries than in the past, but there were far more unusual species. Here,
early blooming Primula denticulata from Tibet, the 'Drumstick' primrose.

A beautiful fire-colored Primula x polyanthus

Primula veris and related species, sub-alpine meadow primroses, which are ideal garden candidates if you can find them.

Judith Sellars' award winning Hose-in-Hose form ( which means two-flowers stacked on top of each other).

A rarely seen species here, Primula rosea, small and sweet.

I entered only one plant, and I did win a ribbon in my class, ( a class of 3, but still!).

Some other highlights from the show, these auricula entries - always an audience favorite.

Tower Hill Botanic Garden looks great at any time of the year, but in early spring, it really puts on a show. One can walk in the woodland, meadows of daffodils, or simple stay on the many paved paths, strolling in the warm, spring, sunshine.

I really struggled last fall when picking out my Color-Blends tulip collection, I wanted this one, but decided on another ( which I will post soon), but next year......this might be it.

Rarely seen here in New England, a primula relative, Soldanella. A common high-elevation plant in the Alps, but challenging in a container, let alone in an American garden. There is a class for any plant included in the Family Primulaceae.

Tower Hill Botanic Garden is located on a hill overlooking a resoirvoir, and on a nice May day like this, the view is amazing.

The new winter garden at Tower Hill Botanic Garden, the glass house beyond, is the Orangerie.

The Stoddard Visitor center at Tower Hill ( I was Mrs. Stoddard's summer gardener years ago, when I was in high school and college, so I remember her every time I visit here. She would be pleased that her endowment created such a grand gift to the Worcester area.

Spring Garden Party Flowers

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Sat, 04 May 2013 05:38:00 +0000

Red an golden garden flowers paired well with black hellebores, salmon gasteria and vermillion nasturtiums from the greenhouse, just one of the arrangements we made today for our annual cocktail party for the American Primrose Society.

We've been so busy this week, trying to get the garden, greenhouse and house in order for our annual American Primrose Society cocktail party and dinner that we host every year as the society holds its national primula show near us at the Tower Hill Botanic Garden, in Boylston, MA (if you live in the Boston area, be sure to check it out both Saturday and Sunday until 4:00 PM).

I always feel unprepared for garden tours, but less so when more knowledgable guests are coming, as they often can look through such things as bad lawns and dumpy garden furniture, focusing more on the rare or unusual plants. Tonights party always is a hit, and many of the guests are noted botanists, horticulturists, and well known plantspeople. We know who is coming - like Taylor Johnston, greenhouse manager for the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum and her husband, a professor at Harvard, former nursery owner ( and friend) Ellen Hornig, Botanist, author and garden designer Kris Fenderson. There will be officers from the North American Rock Garden Society, and many members from local chapters, and last year Darrell Probst stopped by and partied with us until the wee hours of the morning, so we always get a good list of who's who in the plant world, particularly from the Primula Society. Tonight, we are also having as special guests Merrell Jenson from the Jensen-Olson Arboretum in Juneau, Alaska. These are serious plant people.

A black hellebore has stayed in bloom.

What this mean is that I need to cook alot of interesting food, which I don't mind doing, it means that I need to stock up on lots of wine, and it means that I need to pull out more interesting plants to decorate the house, or call out more interesting plants in the garden. The trillium and wild flowers are looking fine, so I am not worried about that, and even the more common bulbs are in peak bloom this year, given out long, cold spring, so all I needed to do was to pick some branches for the house ( my annual giant 8 foot tall arrangement of yellow magnolia flowers for the studio), and some planted troughs near the doors to capture the attention of the plant-saavy group.

The Frittilaria imperialis are in peak bloom right now, which I am thankful for.

Erythronium, or Dogs Tooth Violets, are just opening.

To die for - this Podophyllium delavyi just emerging is still under the protection of the glass in the greenhouse.,

I planted a new trough near the entrance to the house. ( not the blue 'Lagoon' Verbascum - new this year to the trade!).

Muscari, or Grape Hyacinths make a simple arrangement for the bathroom.

Branches, even if they only have small oak leaves on them, sometimes can make an arrangement. In this one, I combined native trees, shrubs and wild flowers in a granite container.

Yellow can be a difficult color to work with, but combine different shades of yellow, and sometimes it can work.

Each year I struggle with this very nice yellow magnolia, as it shades the greenhouse, and few plants can grow under it's dense shade, but during these few weeks of bloom, it is stunning, and I always change my mind. For now, it stays!

This black iris has no name, but we have shared it with more botanical gardens than any plant I have. Most recently it went to the collection at Wave Hill. It was one that my mother had grown here since the 1940's. Isn't the color amazing?

In Search of the Heirloom Pansy

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 00:49:00 +0000

Heirloom Pansies (Viola x wittrockiana) are selections that predate 1900. These old fasioned
Chalon varieties have ruffles petals, so favored by the victorians. These are young, and will
form more ruffles with age, as long as the weather remains so delightfully cool this spring.

We live in a world of super fancy pansies. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for 'super fancy', especially when it comes to plants, but generally always appreciate 'old-fashioned fancy' - heirloom, antique varieties that were once the 'super fancy' of their time. For Pansies, their time was 1870- 1900 - a time when viola and pansy societies attracted many active members in the UK. Of course, not everyone joined these exclusive 'leisure societies', as then, generally speaking, ones status and class divided the working class from the rich and privelidged who could not only afford choice plants, but whom also had free time.

In North America, it was a different story, as viola's ( pansies are a cross within the viola genus - Viola-wittrockiana), as well as their other kin within the broad genus of viola, the 'Johnny Jump Up's, the violets- both scented, and non, and other selections of violas became popular cottage flowers and even cut flowers in most American gardens. Their ease of culture during those years of coal and wood-fired glass houses, meant that they could be grown to perfection in nothing more than a hot bed ( a cold frame heated with farm manure), ensureing that every class could afford the happy, cheerful face of the pansy in early springtime.

Today, pansies are swept aside as a disposable annual, promoted along side annuals which are far showier, but on sale far too early ( Impatiens and marigolds are already rushing off the shelves at my local Home Depot - a full month before they should be planted outdoors). Like many things, the pansy is suffering from an un-informed cunsumer who thinks they are buying something which may bloom all summer, not knowing that pansies perform best when sown in the autumn garden, or that pansies 'call it a day' once temperatures rise well above 75º F. This means little to opportunistic garden centers and home stores as they push and promote pansies along side 'far-too-early' tomatoes and other tender annuals, even selling them in hanging baskets, plastic bag-tubes and other novelty plantings. I think we have lost what is so special about the pansy - which is an appreciation for simplicity.

You may see 'old-fashioned' or even 'herloom' pansy seed offered by some seed catalogs, but true 'heirloom' varieties are lost. Many have been trying to back-breed, or re-breed similar selections, which are quite nice, but those once grown and introduced by the Vilmorin Company in paris are gone forever. Rumors inform me that the Dutch are experimenting in exploring older-looking varieties ( those with larger, ruffled flowers, or those with interesting rich color combinations with stripes, speckles and happier faces, but no one has yet been able to match the forms once so popular in the 1800's. Grower Kees Sahin keeps more than 10,000 varieties growing in the Netherlands. Try Renee's Garden for some heirloom mixes. I scour my local nurseries every spring, looking for mixes the look old fasioned. I tend to like muddier colors, browns, gold, black and putty colors. I'm not one to go for bright, solid colors with no faces on them, it's just not my style.

Mssrs. Veitch & Sons in London, once carried hundreds of selections of pansies around 1840.

I love to line the edges of my raised vegetable beds with two or three rows of pansies, which brightens up the grid of plots, and helps lift my spirits - at least until late June when the pansy season around here, is over, as hot and humid summer weather is the pansies enemy. They prefer cool, damp and misty spring conditions, but there are a few things you can do to let your pansies blooming as long as they possible can. First, keep the dead blossoms ( and most importantly, their seed pods) picked off. Second, fertilize them with a good liquid feed low in nitrogen. This will keep the roots study and deep, and the buds forming. I use 5.36.17. Third, grow your plants from seed if you can, for pansies do best if sown in the autumn, and allowed to grow slowing into winter weather. Don't worry, they can freeze, and we spring comes around, they may be later than the one that show up at the home center - but once they start blooming, they may continue all summer.

Pansies that I planted as seedling that I started last August, are still in their raised beds, and they are slowing starting to bud up. All the pansies in this post were purchased, but these such as the one in this picture, were wintered-over. In a few weeks, these garden plants will be lush, mounds of color.

Since we are hosting a garden/greenhouse party next Friday night for the opening of the American Primrose Society National Exhibition being held at Tower Hill Botanic Garden, I need some color in the greenhouse. Since I am primula deficient right now, pansies will have to do. I was inspired by the old Auricula Theaters one sees in England, where individual pots are set in row, and then tiered on steps so that one can appreciate each primrose up close. This sort of display works well with pansies, too. So this is how I am decorating the potting bench in the rear of my greenhouse. When guest walk through the greenhouse next Friday night with a glass of wine in hand, they will be surprised by these tiered rows of antique pansy varieties.

This weekend I found some ruffled exhibition varieties at a local garden center, which thrilled me, because all I could find at Home Depot were huge, floppy over-fertilized monsters. These, are what pansies are supposed to look like.
I potted some in home made pots to show off the young plants, but soon they will be upgraded to larger containers.

I have this problem when I visit garden centers and nurseries in the early spring, when trays and trays of pansies are lines out in neat rows.. My problem is that I cannot choose my favorite one, and usually leave with either too many, or none. You see, I am very particular about my color palette when it comes to pansies, those selections from the genus Viola, that we can have a love/hate relationship with. I have a long history with pansies, as it was one of the first plants that I ever grew, or at least, potted up, as my kindergarten teacher helped us plant pansies in egg shells one Mothers Day, as my elementary school happened to be across the street from a large glass greenhouse, one which grew pansies every spring.

Each year, I must buy a selection, but I vary the color palette each year, trying to not choose new hybrids, but instead, seeking older varieties, and maybe even exhibition varieties that were once so popular in England. At my first job as a gardener while in high school, I remember that the owner of the estate that I worked at insisted on light-blue pansies, which had to be planted out by the thousands in sweeping arcs ( all bordered with blue festuca grass - as the garden was designed by Fletcher Steele). Today, I still like these light blue pansies, but I find them more difficult to find amidst all of the new hybrids.

Don't turn away from some of the more difficult colors with pansies - check out how this combo worked last year for me.
Red, black and blackberry colored Primroses, Pansies and Anemones.

Tiger Eye Pansies are another favorite. The mustard gold color might seem difficult to integrate into the garden, but
pansies are supposed to be brown, muddy and messy with their coloring. Why not celebrate these odd tones and hues?

These ruffled giant pansies will look much better in a few weeks, but for now, they are enjoying an Impruneta
trerra cotta pot from Italy.

Thanks everyone!

87PY96R7RJ4D

Behind the scenes - the awful truth

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 02:34:00 +0000

Most of our 2.5 acres is an old garden, planted by my parents in the 1920's -1960's. Today, 70 years later, the garden has
become more of a restoration project, and a maintenance project than a design project. Little by little, I am introducing better trees and shrubs, and not quite sure about design yet. Add in four dogs, and a whole lot of free range poultry, and quickly, I am discovering that the garden is getting destroyed. No vegetable garden, as the dogs will eat it, and if I move it to the other side of the fence, the turkeys and chickens will destroy it. I'm not really sure what I am going to do. Still, I try to garden, and you all know, I cannot stop!

OK. It's time I fessed up. My garden is not perfect. My friends know this, people who visit here know this, and now, you will know this. The truth is, most of the images on this blog happen in a small part of our garden - in fact, in about 20% of it, near the greenhouse, in a fenced in area on one side of the house - it's about the only part of the garden I can focus on given my job, and time. The rest of our 2.5 acres is, well....unkempt. Messy. Even worthy of, well being shut down by the city for pure nastyness. There are times in the summer when we can only get to cut the lawn, if you can call it that, about once a month. Weeds thrive. Garden design is out of control, since many of the trees are over 100 years old ( all planted by either my parents or my grandparents), and sadly, many now need to be removed - a task that is just too massive and costly so we try to remove one every other year.

Here are some of the photos of areas that we have been able to begin restoring, bit-by-bit, and then, some of the problem areas which I still need to confront. Then, some of the new problems that have arrived - puppy problems. We are discovering that four Irish Terriers can destroy a garden overnight. Yesterday, they ate 3 large Crambe cordifolia plants right to the ground, today, they ran races around the greenhouse, and tore out more than 25 large Gladiator alliums, and destroyed the alpine garden. This week, they have eaten saxifrages in the troughs, bitten off most of the Pulsatilla blossoms, and broken most of the tulips. Lawn? there is no longer any lawn.

This was a problem area that I was able to overcome five years ago. In an effort to reduce lawn, I converted our front entrance into a woodland alpine garden, complete with a river rock dry creek bed ( just an illusion of a brook), and many small shrubs, alpines and woodland plants. This, was a good idea, and it is easy to take care of. I like the mountain look.

When I was a kid, this, our second driveway, was lined with huge weeping willows that towered over 100 feet tall.
After many Thunderstorms, a tornado and old age, they are gone, leaving me with 5 foot diameter trunks, and a long,
dirt driveway that is just crazy to keep weed free, even after 10 tons of gravel. The Dumpster is a necessity, but there is no hiding it. The house that you can barely see behind it is the one I am selling, along with that corner of my property.
This should help provide more money ( one less mortgage for me!), so that maybe I can build a garage.

Looking from the same position, back toward the back yard, and the house, you can see how much dry shade we have.

Another problem area, this needs to be opened up, which means these large white pines need to be removed, as well as about 4 tall Norway Spruces. Right now, it's just crappy vinca, pine needles and weeds. Bare dirt is everywhere, and very little lawn.

Our Martin House has been over-run with English Sparrows, an invasive species which are noisy, and difficult to eradicate. We finally needed to paint the house, and clean out the nests ( two giant black garbage bags full!), plus a whole lot of eggs. We are going to install black screen inside to keep the birds out, as the only species that will nest in this community house would be these English House Sparrows, as Purple Martins don't migrate this far north into New England ( I just fell in love with the design of this Martin house, as it looked like an old English Dove Cote). It's an important design statement in the garden, so it remains, and without the English Sparrows, the house wrens and other song birds can nest peacefully in our many smaller bird houses.

The English Sparrow eggs are pretty, but I dont' feel sad removing this invasive species, or at least, slowing it down.

Some dog crazyness - and I mean crazyness. we've had to add turkey wire fences, and now, we need to install a chain link fence - 200 feet of it! I am freaking out, but I am afraid there is no turning back. I fear I have lost this nicer side of the garden, where I keep the Hellebores and most of my ephemerals. I will just have to relocate them, and I think the dogs will keep most plants broken or dug up.

The dogs, raising Hell. All I need now is a house trailer. Ugh. Good thing that pot is plastic, as they broke a large terra rosa pot this week that had a beautiful rosemary in it.

They chase each other around, jumping over hedges looking like liquid -1,2,3,4 as if they were running in a steeple chase, and they were the horses.

Weasley leaping onto the alpine wall, where there are many rare and unusual bulbs planted.

I usually don't like wood bark mulch, but this year we were able to get some two year old mulch. It is more composted, and looks more natural. It's about the only thing I can do to try and make the garden look more presentable for next weekend. It's still a mess, but with the poultry walking around, and all of the dogs, there isn't much more I can do.

If you remember a post last October, I planted a few hundred blue small bulbs under these Hornbeams. They are blooming, but they won't look awesome until next year, when they begin to spread more.

OK, back to the nicer side of things. I promise I won't complain more about the ugly parts, but I will admit one thing - when visiting many gardeners homes, I feel better when I see that they are 'normal' too! I think if I only had this side of the garden to take care of, I could focus more, and perhaps keep up with it, and I dream someday of living
in a home where only a natural planting in a woodland exists. No lawn, no mulch, no weeds.

Dividing Perennials Through Simple Division

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 02:18:00 +0000

This clump of Helenium is at the perfect stage of growth for proper division, a task which must be carefully timed if you intend to avoid any disturbance in growth.

There was a time when the bi-annual division of perennials consumed most of a gardeners time in early spring, but that was at a time when one either started perennials from seed ( I still do with some), or obtained choice varieties from a limited number of nurseries. This was a time before the internet, before mega-nurseries, before eBay. But some perennials are still difficult to track down, and so it is with many of the more beautiful helenium selections. Helenium is all-American, with most species native to the eastern half of North America. A choice perennial hoarded by those 'who know' and shunned by others who hate it, until they see one in bloom. It's one of those plants which I continually am asked to share, once visitors see it in bloom. Three or four feet tall ( unless you choose to cut it back early in the summer so that it will branch), helenium over-performs, and that's something which I never complain about as a gardener.

Helenium can help carry the perennial border through the hottest days of summer

As spring starts to arrive here in the North East, ( and a glorious spring, at that) - we gardeners are grateful for this cool, gradual introduction to summer, as it is kind to plants, and it offers us time to divide perennials such as hosta and phlox, which must be divided while only a few inches tall. In most years, I either forget to divide over-grown perennials, or I just run out of time. This year, I am already ahead of schedule, having divided a few choice hosta selections and other perennials like asters. Why divide? Well, first of all, division is essential for good health with many perennials such as aster, phlox, daylily, echium and helenium, as after thee or four years of continual growth, a sizable crown will begin to deteriorate in the center, resulting in a less than spectacular display, and if you never divide these perennials, they will eventually become weaker and weaker.

A few years ago I decided to invest in four selections of helenium, an under-rated perennial not often seen at garden centers, as it blooms in late July and early August, and come on - who goes to garden centers then! But although some of you may sneer at orange, gold or even brownish flowers, I crave their heat during these hot summer days, because they put on a spectacular display, and one that lasts for weeks. Aside from the fact that helenium are rather disease free ( sure, it can suffer with a little powdery mildew, which one can avoid if you water in the early morning), the genus is worth introducing to your perennial border.

Sure, you can plant just one, for a mature clump can be impressive alone, but I crave 'wow', so this year, I have divided my three clumps into 20 clumps ( and I love imagining what those gallon-sized containers would have cost me if I had purchased them on-line or at the garden center! I am not planting a perennial border that only someone who has won Mega Millions could!

After washing off as much soil as you can with a hose, take a sharp ( old) steak knife, and begin to remove sections. Don't be stingy, and try to cut away clusters with at least 8-10 sprouts. If you want to be frugal, you can cut out individual plants, but most perennials prefer to have neighbors, so plan on clusters, unless this is a hosta - those you can divide into single crowns.

No fancy tools are needed, but a sharp knife will be handy. I just keep an old steak knife out in the greenhouse just for such tasks, but helenium are easy enough to divide that all you will need is a pitch fork or shovel, and your hands. I first like to use the hose to remove an much of the soil as possible, a trip I learned from a hosta breeder, who once showed us how to propagate ( divide) an expensive hosta - one of those that cost $150. Just the sort of plant that you would want to divide into single crowns, with just a single bud to a each division. There is no need to be this frugal with helenium, but if you feel that you might need 182 divisions, feel free to go for it! I only need about 15-30 of each variety to appease my vision of massive drifts of color.

Plant crowns into fresh soil, and I like to provide them some comfort time in the greenhouse - my intensive care unit, for a week or two, but that is not necessary if you have time to plant them directly back into the garden. If you are like me, and planning to relocate your divisions into a yet-to-be-prepared new garden, you could always line them out in a raised bed where you plan to grow vegetables. I have even left them there for a year.

I repurposed some Anderson tall pots in which once houses plants from Plant Delights Nursery, which reminds me - now what would these have cost if I ordered them on-line? About $12 each in these pots! Division is by far the easiest method with plants like Helenium.

Newly divided and repotted Helenium sit in the greenhouse for a week or two, to grow new roots, and be carefully fertilized and watered as I prepare their new bed. Right now, there is much to do with planning for a garden party in two weeks, the American Primrose Society national show, and working on painting my other house next door to get it onto the market to sell.

Since Helenium are easy to propagate, there is no reason to ever buy more than one of each variety, and then divide them every year until you have a summer display which is epic.

Upcoming Rare Plant Sales

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Mattus) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:30:00 +0000

If you live in New England or New York, these four plant sales offer plants found no-where else! Plan to visit a few
over these next four weekends.

By this point, your local nurseries and garden centers are stocked to the brim with their first shipment from branded and wholesale growers. It's also a time of year when garden centers push for big sales knowing that Mother's Day often drives as many sales as any other Holiday. As you become more of an informed gardener, you will learn that what looks pretty in-market, often won't do well once planted into the garden. So pass on the greenhouse forced Gerbera, Martha Washington Geraniums, blue florist Hydrangeas in foil, and azaleas, and consider buying something more interesting.

Corydalis solida can often be found in pots at some spring plant sales. Since the bulbs go dormant by June, these
gems rarely show up in nurseries.

My best advice for you? Consider some of these upcoming plant sales held by plant societies and botanic gardens - for these often offer items rarely found at the commercial garden centers - over the next three weekends there are at least four must-visit sales here in the north east. Make plans to visit early, as these plant sales have loyal patrons who will arrive early, and bring lots of cash, for you never know what you are going to find. Many offer hard-to-find plants, or those plants not offered anywhere else. Most invite small, micro nurseries who will bring things that are in such short supply, that they never make it into the catalog.

Some of my best spring flowers have come from plant society plant sales.

Saturday, April 27

The 7th Annual North American Rock Garden Society Plant Sale at Stonecrop Gardens the following nurseries and vendors will participate in the sale:

- Wrightman Alpines, Ontario - Grower and supplier of choice alpine plants and rock garden plants.
- Evermay Nursery, Bangor, ME - Specializing in alpine plants and Primula species.
- Garden Vision Epimediums, Templeton, MA - Grower and supplier of Epimediums and other choice shade perennials.
- Debra Pope, Auburn, MA - Creates unique, custom hypertufa troughs.
- Don Dembowski, Pelham, NY - Spring Ephemerals and Woodland Wildflowers.
- Bill Perron, Cortlandt Manor, NY - Offers a variety of Cyclamen species, Arisaema, and Hellebores.

Fee: $5/Free to members
garden@stonecrop.org | 845.265.2000

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Sunday, April 28

The Manhattan Chapter of the North American Rock Garden Society annual plant sale

"Sassy Succulents for Sunny Sites, and other uncommon plants for city folk"
El Sol Brillante community garden, NYC
10 AM until 1:00 PM

This is plant sale is my # 1 choice for interesting plants, and it is one not to miss, since these gardeners are both serious and friendly, and they curate an amazing collection of plants. After all, these are people who garden high on the balcony's and penthouses of America's greatest city and they really know their plants, as each one must be important (Be sure to tell them that I sent you!). They will be offering plants grown by their knowledgeable growers and many from selected premium nurseries in the New York area.

El Sol Brillante community garden
522-528 East 12th Street
(between Avenues A and B)
Subway - L Train to 1st Avenue and 14th Street

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Brooklyn Botanic Garden Plant Sale

Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s Plant Sale, May 1 and 2 - there will be a members-only preview sale on April 30; for more information, check out bbg.org

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Saturday and Sunday May 4th and 5th
The American Primrose Society National Show

Tower Hill Botanic Garden, Boylston, MA

Two days of amazing primroses, and plant sales. See those rare auricula primroses, and hundreds of other types including companion plants. Also, it's a beautiful time to visit Tower Hill! Look for me, and I am one of planners for this show, and Joe and I will be running around like crazy!

So if you've been curious about stocking that hypertufa trough with rare, high-elevation alpines like saxifraga or if you've been wanting to start a collection of unusual hard-to-find epimediums grown from seed collected in China by Darrell Probst, or if you want to plant you very own primrose path, any of these three plant sales come highly recommended by me - but get there early!