Plants that Survive

I was gazing at a garden magazine the other day. It featured an English garden in late summer; colorful masses of blooming perennials mocked me from the glossy pages. Sigh. My garden will never look like this public domain photo.In my garden, except for a few scraggly annuals, there is almost nothing blooming. Even plants advertised to flower from late summer into fall have decided to forget it. The goal is survival. 

September here can be good or bad. This year it has been awful. The problem is that in the past 6 weeks we have had a total of 0.3 inches of rain (according to my rain gauge), and at the same time we have had daily near triple digit heat. Remember, I don't live in a desert. In February, we received 13 inches of rain. Plants have to survive wet winters with mild temps interspersed with hard frost, as well as steamy, hot summers that are subject to drought. What plants can survive that? The biggest challenge is summer. We water constantly, but plants that thrive in other seasons may not make it through the summer. By the end of September there is always a death toll.

Ignoring shriveled leaves and dead branches, I took a walk in late afternoon one day to take shots of the garden. Most of what is doing well is green. Here are scenes from the woodland garden: 

Evergreens that flourish with minimal care and little extra watering:Clockwise from above left: Juniper 'Saybrook Gold'; Deodar cedar 'Feelin'Blue'; Various camellias - this one was here when we came in 1985, and I don't know its name; Rosemary.

Here are some undemanding decorative trees:Clockwise from top left: Cryptomeria japonica; Southern Magnolia; Burford holly (All types of hollies in my garden are doing well.); Crape myrtle, which has bloomed for months. Japanese maples have done fairly well, though I did lose a mature one to ambrosia beetles last year. Some leaves are looking fried, but most are OK so far. If the drought extends another month, I think the leaves will turn brown and fall before they can assume their fabulous autumn tints.The leaves of Japanese maples are just beginning to show signs of coming fall colors.

Here is a September view through the jasmine arch. Green is supreme:

One can see signs of drought inside the front garden. Dogwood trees are wilting badly. Some won't make it:

The winged fruit of this trident maple, as well as other types of maples, are called samaras.

This Hydrangea 'Lady in Red' needs daily watering during the droughty, hot weather we are experiencing.

Here is the "Lady of the Woodlands." She has acquired a lot of patina over the years. Her current hairdo is variegated creeping fig:

Finally, as the sun is setting, dusk hides faults within the garden. The air is cooler, and I know fall is eventually going to arrive, along with rain. Blessings to you all,  Deb

Are You An Extreme Gardener?

My eyes are riveted to the television as a snowboarder speeds through a half pipe or launches from a ramp to perform gnarly, gravity-defying tricks. Or a person hurls himself off a cliff and soars into the beyond with arms and legs spread inside a wingsuit, personifying Batman. How in the world do you learn to do such extreme sports without killing yourself first?

Extreme gardening is much safer. In fact, one can argue that extreme gardening has many physical and emotional benefits. Nevertheless, some people may shake their heads and think that an extreme gardener is a bit strange, if not outright nuts. The jasmine arch by the patio is blooming.

How do you know you are an extreme gardener? I have compiled a list of ten traits that, while completely unverified and unscientific, may indicate you are an extreme gardener:

1.You garden, no matter what your environmental conditions or living arrangements. You find a way to garden, year round, in one form or another.My arbor garden swing is a good place to relax and enjoy the garden.

2. When people visit, they ask to see your garden. If they don't ask, you show them anyway.Here is a view inside my perennial/pollinator garden, planted since last August.

3. People you don't know have come up to you and asked for gardening advice.

4. You own at least 50 gardening books, not counting garden magazines. No way you can count all those.

5. You have gardened at night under the floodlights around your house. 

6. You arrange vacation time around gardening activities. 

7. You know the botanical names for most of your plants. Amaryllis 'Apple Blossom' (Hippeastrum) has 16 blooms on it this year!

Planted earlier this year, Acanthus 'Whitewater' has its first bloom.

Fatsia japonica 'Spiderweb' is a shade-lover with beautiful leaves.

8. You have attended a demonstration or lecture about hydroponics.

9. You publish a garden blog.Views of my little blue bridge in the woodland garden have appeared many times on my blog. I recently moved a blue bottle tree to its side.

This large urn was one of the first features I put in the arbor garden when I began developing the space a decade ago. 

This green rabbit is one of a collection of rabbits that appear throughout my garden, in addition to the real ones!

10. Gardening is your favorite form of physical therapy for such things as hip replacement, torn meniscus, and recovery from debilitating infection.

If you are positive for any of the above, chances are you are a real gardener. The more traits you have, the more serious you are about gardening. If you own up to six or more, you may indeed be an extreme gardener. I confess I am guilty of all ten. But at least I am not putting on a wingsuit and jumping off cliffs.

So, how extreme are you?

Wishing all you gardeners the very best!  Deb