Camellia 'Leslie Ann'

The Lady Garden remains a work in progress. One thing that has been lacking is a defined entry. The skimpy stone/wood path doesn't provide much impact, though it does direct the feet toward the central urn. After mulling the matter in my mind, I decided to look for a shrub for each side of the entrance. Here in the Southeast USA, now is the best time to plant shrubs. Fall planting gives them a full season to establish roots before spring growth begins, and plants are better grounded before the heat of next summer arrives. Fall planted shrubs also require less watering than spring planted ones.

I wanted something evergreen, columnar, growing to about eight feet. Holly? Perhaps, if I could find a nice variety with smooth leaves. Upright juniper? Not sure about that.

I headed for a local nursery earlier this week. It was an off time of the day, and I was one amongst only a handful of customers. I wandered up to where the evergreens were displayed in long rows. I stopped when I saw the sprinkler system, spraying large swaths of water across all of the plants I had determined to examine. I looked around to find a nursery worker, hoping to get the water turned off. I didn't see anyone. I skirted the evergreens, dodging the water, and thinking if I timed it right I might be able to see what they had.

For my efforts I received a jet of water across my face. 

I sighed and headed back toward the front, searching for someone to shut off the sprinkler. I halted at the shady garden area, eyeing a display of camellias.

Camellia! Why not upright camellia?

Before long I was headed home with two Camellia sasanqua 'Leslie Ann'.

Nothing says Old South like a camellia. There are two kinds. Most noted is Camellia japonica, with varieties blooming in late winter to early spring. I already have several of these. Just as beautiful but for some reason not as celebrated, Camellia sasanquas bloom fall to early winter. It's easy to remember the difference: japonica - J is for January; sasanqua - S is for September. Sasanquas tend to be more cold hardy than japonicas and most will finish blooming before hit by hard frosts. 'Leslie Ann' does well in hardiness zones 7-8.

'Leslie Ann' is the first sasanqua for me. I am thrilled to have a shrub with beautiful blooms this time of year. It is a prolific bloomer from October through November. The two to three inch, semi double blooms are white with raspberry tips. The two I purchased each have a couple of open blooms and are covered in buds. They should soon be in full bloom.

"Leslie Ann" is an upright, column grower, to about eight feet tall with a width of four to five feet. It has glossy, dark green leaves, oval with slightly toothed edges. My baby camellias look scrawny, but I am promised the shrubs will become dense. After blooms have faded I will lightly prune to encourage fullness.

All camellias grow well in semi-shade to sun, in well drained, acid soil. I dug wide holes for mine and added compost to the native soil before backfilling around the root balls. I watered well and then added pine straw mulch around the bases. Camellias should be fed up to three times a year with a slow release, acidifying fertilizer, in early spring, summer, and  fall. 'Leslie Ann' is said to grow about eight inches a year. However, I have learned that plant tags don't always read the plant's mind, so I will have to watch. Hopefully, I have left enough space between my camellias for a nice entrance to the Lady Garden.

Here are some shots of my new camellias. Everything is very wet, because the weather cooperated for me and began to rain just after I planted them.

A Dinosaur Egg in the Fall Garden

A long time ago when my son Josh was four years old, dinosaurs roamed our home. They were made of rubber, but that was beside the point. Tyrannosaurus Rex, Brontosaurus, Triceratops and many others engaged in mighty hunts and battles across the bedroom, down the hallway, and even into the far corners of the kitchen.

One day Josh came into the house, his sweet round faced flushed and his blue eyes shining.

"Look! It's a dinosaur egg!"

He held up his hands. In his palms rested a great, egg shaped rock. It was smooth, and it did look like a dinosaur egg, even to me.

"I'm going to let it hatch!"

I thought about that.

"Well, Josh," I said, "I think dinosaurs take a very, very long time to hatch. Why don't you put it back out in the yard, and you can check on it from time to time. But I think I read somewhere that dinosaurs can take years to hatch."

Josh was satisfied with that, and he returned his prize to the woodlands. I don't know how often he checked his egg, but eventually he grew up. Dinosaurs were forgotten, and guitars and girls and the price of gasoline became more important.

But it all came back to me when I found a great, egg shaped rock in the woodlands. It hasn't hatched yet, and I decided to put it on a chunk of wood, to make a rustic pillar, marking the back entrance to the woodland garden. I just hope it's not Velociraptor that eventually comes out!

The egg isn't the only thing that's making me smile recently. After our droughty September, I was afraid all the leaves would turn brown and fall off the trees, without going through the usual color changes that bring so much pleasure to me this time of year. It's true; the colors are more subdued this year, and many leaves do have brown edges. But when the light shines through a certain way, the colors still take my breath away.

Here are some scenes from the fall garden:Top: The blue bench stands out against fall colors in the front garden. Middle: Forsythia beginning to change colors; A view overlooking the woodland garden from the front drive. Bottom: A view through the arch by the patio; A wooded hillside.

Some pretty fall leaves:Top: Dogwood, cornus florida. Bottom: Japanese maple leaves beginning to turn; River birch leaves against the sky.

The 'Waterfall' Japanese maple in the woodland garden is amazing. Below, the top photo shows this tree as its leaves began to turn at the end of September. The bottom photo shows the same tree this past week.

More colors in the fall garden:Top: Euonymous alata; oak leaf hydrangea. Middle: Winter kale; purple aster. Bottom: Moonvine, my vote for most romantic vine!

And finally, here are scenes from the woodland garden:

As fall turns toward a busy holiday season, my hope is for every day to hold a blessing for you, and may you be content enough to receive it!  Deborah