Landscaping
- Spring-blooming Bulbs
- June Contests for Gardeners
- Landscape Garden Hedges
- Memorial Day - 2008
- Deer-resistant Flowering Plants
- Cercis canadensis
- Kilowatt Ours
- Vernal Equinox and Spring Flowers
- Ireland's Gardens and Plants
- Wave® Petunias
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Designing a spring-blooming bulb garden now, along with buying bulbs to plant anytime from September through November, are not priority tasks for most gardeners.
However, this is probably the best time in the gardening-year to do just that! In my recent article Spring-blooming Bulb Designs Now, I elaborate on why I think so. And then in the followng article Pest-proof Spring-blooming Bulbs, I offer some practical design ideas for gardeners being overrun with bulb-eating and bulb-flower-destroying pests.
The reason I feel that midsummer is the time to plan for spring-blooming bulb gardens is that every spring, I hear stories from disappointed gardeners who spent a great bit of money and time in the previous autumn planting dream bulb gardens. Unfortunately, the dream often results in nighmares of green leaves and no flowers, a smorgasbord for neighborhood deer, or patches of bare ground. Why do these gardeners have little to show for their autumnal efforts?
The reason I feel that midsummer is the time to plan for spring-blooming bulb gardens is that every spring, I hear stories from disappointed gardeners who spent a great bit of money and time in the previous autumn planting dream bulb gardens. Unfortunately, the dream often results in nighmares of green leaves and no flowers, a smorgasbord for neighborhood deer, or patches of bare ground. Why do these gardeners have little to show for their autumnal efforts?
- Lack of planning, and
- Buying bulbs on Impulse.
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Enter a garden contest to show off gardening knowledge and win praise from fellow gardeners. Prizes make winning garden contests pleasurable and profitable.
Most gardeners love to show off their landscapes. Entering and winning a garden contest harvests praise and respect from gardeners other than those within our immediate circles. Monetary prizes or valuable garden-related goods make winning even more pleasurable.
My U.S.P.S. mailbox and e-mailbox contain at least one announcement for an interesting and appealing contest each day. Here are a few of those I consider most interesting:
My U.S.P.S. mailbox and e-mailbox contain at least one announcement for an interesting and appealing contest each day. Here are a few of those I consider most interesting:
- The Preen® Garden Makeover Sweepstakes ends July 1, 2008. United States (U.S.) residents can enter by one of two ways:visit the Preen® Sweepstakes website and submit the Official Online Entry Form; or print complete name and address including zip code and e-mail address (if available) on a 3- by 5-inch piece of paper. Mail in an envelope with First Class postage to: Preen Garden Sweepstakes, P.O. Box 268, Lancaster, PA 17608-0268. All mail entries must be postmarked by July 1, 2008.
- Rachel's Organic offers British gardeners a VIP day at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show, July 8 – 13, 2008. For the VIP winner, Rachel's Organic will arrange transport; provide an exclusive insider tour and an indulgent lunch. Visit the Rachel's Organic Competition website for more information and to submit the official online entry form.
- The Oasis Award for Outdoor Kitchen Design recognizes exception outdoor kitchen design. This competition is open to all architects, landscape architects, landscape designers, kitchen designers, interior designers, and students. The October/November ASLA Awards issue of Garden Design magazine and its website will feature the 2008 winning entry. Complete entry details and application form are at the Oasis Award website. Entry deadline is August 1, 2008.
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Landscape hedge problems are easily avoided when the project is well thought out. Questions to consider include those of design, style, plant choices and maintenance.
My greatest fantasy is evaluating, perhaps correcting and then looking after every landscape garden hedge I see. Yes indeed, monitoring hedges locally and worldwide is the foundation of the duty roster for my alter ego super hero, "Landscape Lady."
Many times, in the course of a real day, I am able to help correct troublesome and inconvenient problems. Moreover, judging by e-mails received at landscaping@suite101.com, many faithful readers say that landscape garden hedges do create misgivings and problems.
Landscape hedge problems usually begin by failure to consider basic questions and observations:
Design
©Text by Georgene A. Bramlage. 2008. Reproduction without permission prohibited
Many times, in the course of a real day, I am able to help correct troublesome and inconvenient problems. Moreover, judging by e-mails received at landscaping@suite101.com, many faithful readers say that landscape garden hedges do create misgivings and problems.
Landscape hedge problems usually begin by failure to consider basic questions and observations:
Design
- What is the function of the hedge?
- Does plant material reflect this function?
- Is the hedge style relative in design and proportion to nearby buildings, walkways, etc?
- Does plant material reflect basic design and proportion of chosen hedge style?
- Is plant installation correct?
- Does the person responsible for maintenance possess a clear understanding of necessary and appropriate upkeep?
- Does a maintenance budget – even homeowners need this! – include adequate time and money for proper hedge upkeep?
©Text by Georgene A. Bramlage. 2008. Reproduction without permission prohibited
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Here are some blogs and articles that offer garden-landscape design ideas for using corn poppies (Papaver rhoeas) to enliven summer gardens while symbolizing remembrance.
Papaver rhoeas, corn poppy or Flanders poppy, a sign of blood and new life since ancient Egyptian dynasties, is now a poignant symbol of wartime sacrifice and remembrance. Growing up in the Midwest U.S., I remember little red paper poppies sold by veterans as a symbol of Veterans' Day (U.S.A.). I also remember pictures of the Queen of England wearing a red paper poppy for Remembrance Day ceremonies (England and Commonwealth Countries) in the autumn. More and more, corn poppies also represent Memorial Day (U.S.A.) in early summer.
Memorial Day – 2007: Poppies (Papaver rhoeas) for Landscape Gardens, a Landscaping article, outlines six Suite101 Landscaping articles and three blogs about growing and using poppies in garden landscapes:
Memorial Day – 2007: Poppies (Papaver rhoeas) for Landscape Gardens, a Landscaping article, outlines six Suite101 Landscaping articles and three blogs about growing and using poppies in garden landscapes:
- Corn Poppies Grow in Wheat Fields
- Poppies and Landscapes of War
- Poppies and Remembrance
- Landscapes of Poppies
- Poppies and Landscape Design
- Poppies and Landscapes of War
- Integrate Poppies into the Landscape
- Poppies in Residential Gardens
- Annual Poppies as Landscape Focus
Deer-resistant Flowering Plants
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
It is possible for landscape gardeners in eastern North America to outwit large populations of white-tail deer by carefully choosing plants for their designs.
Each growing season landscapes become buffet tables for white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). And questions about deer-resistant plants start coming ito me.
Yes, it is possible for landscape gardeners in eastern North America to outwit large populations of white-tail deer by carefully choosing plants for their designs.
Lists of deer-resistant plants flourish on the Internet. Now, I'm adding to these numbers! What makes my lists different?
Experience shows that at times Viburnum quercifolia (goosefoot / Oakleaf hydrangea) and Viburnum dentatum (arrowwood viburnum) 'Blue Muffin' are little more than tasty snacks for really hungry white-tail deer.
Yes, it is possible for landscape gardeners in eastern North America to outwit large populations of white-tail deer by carefully choosing plants for their designs.
Lists of deer-resistant plants flourish on the Internet. Now, I'm adding to these numbers! What makes my lists different?
- I don't choose lists from unverified sources. I assemble my own based on my personal experience and on interviews and discussions with respected experts in each plant category. So far, I've posted two lists – one showing shrubs and the other, small flowering trees. Ones still to come list annuals, perennials, and spring-flowering bulbs. Landscape Gardening with Native N. A. Plants is an index of my articles about deer-resistant and non-resistant native plants.
- Personal experience has taught me that plants native to a location are usually more than likely to be deer-resistant. However, this is not always a workable solution! My sad experiences and those of many readers lead to a strict caveat:
Experience shows that at times Viburnum quercifolia (goosefoot / Oakleaf hydrangea) and Viburnum dentatum (arrowwood viburnum) 'Blue Muffin' are little more than tasty snacks for really hungry white-tail deer.
- Now, it is easier than ever for readers to add to my lists. Faithful observant readers may leave anecdotes of their experiences by using Suite101's new "Comment" option. Find this option after each article. I read and carefully consider each comment. However, while I can't respond to individual comments, I can use comments as a base for a Blog entry or amend an article.
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Why this writer chose Cercis as her nom de plume (pen name). Trials and errors of growing Cercis canadensis in severeal residential landscapes.
Cercis has been my nom de plume (pen name) since I first started using the world wide web and writing landscape gardening articles. Readers of my landscaping articles here at Suite101 usually recognize Cercis as the eastern redbud, native to eastern North America.
However, those friends and readers not familar with native species of eastern N.A. always ask, 'Why do you use such a strange nom de plume (pen name)?'
There were no eastern redbuds where I grew up in Cleveland, OH. My first introduction to Cercis canadensis came when I was a botany student at Miami University (OH). I fell in love with these trees. They are as wisps of red-purple smoke in understories of acidic woodlands.
I have consistently tried to grow eastern redbud trees in my garden landscapes. However, there has been little success.
In Eastern Redbud Trees in the Landscape, I write about Cercis canadensis, its cultivars and its place in landscape gardens. Professor Michael Dirr's comments about seed source selection affecting redbud hardiness verifies my attempts to grow southern selections in my northern landscapes.
However, those friends and readers not familar with native species of eastern N.A. always ask, 'Why do you use such a strange nom de plume (pen name)?'
There were no eastern redbuds where I grew up in Cleveland, OH. My first introduction to Cercis canadensis came when I was a botany student at Miami University (OH). I fell in love with these trees. They are as wisps of red-purple smoke in understories of acidic woodlands.
I have consistently tried to grow eastern redbud trees in my garden landscapes. However, there has been little success.
- Seedlings were collected from southern OH woods and transplanted to amended clay soil in Cleveland, OH. They grew, but never became very large or flowered vigorously.
- Seedlings were collected from a vigorous landscape planting on the University of MA (Amherst) campus and transplanted a dozen miles north and higher in elevation. Soils in this garden were acidic and fertile. One redbud survived, despite early winter dieback and splitting from snow.
In Eastern Redbud Trees in the Landscape, I write about Cercis canadensis, its cultivars and its place in landscape gardens. Professor Michael Dirr's comments about seed source selection affecting redbud hardiness verifies my attempts to grow southern selections in my northern landscapes.
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Review of a presentation and film about climate change at a recent chapter meeting of the Virginia Native Plant Society. Change energy consumption habits or lose plants.
I recently attended a chapter meeting of the VA Native Plant Society that at first seemed to have nothing to do with plants or landscaping. However, the messages presented by Mark McClain, from the Roanoke Valley Cool Cities Coalition, and the Film Kilowatt Ours: A Plan to Re-Energize America by Jeff Barrie were loud and clear.
McClain emphasized that unless energy consumers - most of us - change direction in how we obtain that energy there will not be any plants, gardens or landscapes about which to worry.
One surprising fact stressed by McClain and empasized by the film is that the southeastern states of the United States use more electricity than any other section of the country.
McClain emphasized that unless energy consumers - most of us - change direction in how we obtain that energy there will not be any plants, gardens or landscapes about which to worry.
One surprising fact stressed by McClain and empasized by the film is that the southeastern states of the United States use more electricity than any other section of the country.
Vernal Equinox and Spring Flowers
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
The Vernal Equinox and a mild weather forecast for southwest VA mean blooms from spring-flowering bulbs and blossoms from ornamental trees and shrubs for Easter Sunday.
Vernal Equinox, Full Moon and Easter
Each year, the synchronous occurrences of the Vernal Equinox and Easter bring to my mind a chant I've taught to students and my own children to answer the question, "How do we determine the date of Easter?" The traditional formulaic response says, "Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox."
The date and time for the Vernal Equinox - 2008 is, according to the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, March 20 at 5:49 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). On this day, the sun shines directly on the equator, and the length of day and night are nearly equal in all parts of the world. The first full moon on or after the Vernal Equinox is March 21 at 18:41 UTC. So, Easter Sunday is March 23 - the earliest Easter I'll see in my lifetime.
Date and Time Facts
Today's temperatures here in southwest VA are in the high 60s reaching toward the low 70s, but with wind, dark clouds and rain. The forecast for Easter Sunday's sunrise services, egg hunts and family walks promises moderate temperatures in the 32 to 55° range with modest sunshine.
Easter Sunday Blooms
Each year, the synchronous occurrences of the Vernal Equinox and Easter bring to my mind a chant I've taught to students and my own children to answer the question, "How do we determine the date of Easter?" The traditional formulaic response says, "Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox."
The date and time for the Vernal Equinox - 2008 is, according to the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, March 20 at 5:49 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). On this day, the sun shines directly on the equator, and the length of day and night are nearly equal in all parts of the world. The first full moon on or after the Vernal Equinox is March 21 at 18:41 UTC. So, Easter Sunday is March 23 - the earliest Easter I'll see in my lifetime.
Date and Time Facts
- The last time Easter celebration on March 23rd was 95 years ago in 1913.
- Easter will not be this early again until the year 2228.
- In 2285, Easter will be one day earlier, March 22nd, the earliest it can ever take place.
Today's temperatures here in southwest VA are in the high 60s reaching toward the low 70s, but with wind, dark clouds and rain. The forecast for Easter Sunday's sunrise services, egg hunts and family walks promises moderate temperatures in the 32 to 55° range with modest sunshine.
Easter Sunday Blooms
- Daffodils, hyacinths and crocus
- Viola x wittrockiana (pansies)
- Helleborus niger and H. orientalis cultivars
- Rosmarinus officinale (rosemary)
- Vinca minor and V. minor 'Sterling Silver'
- Forsythia cultivars
- Magnolia stellata (star magnolia) and M. soulangiana (saucer magnolia)
- Pyrus calleryana (callery pear / 'Bradford')
- Prunus cerasifera cultivars (purple-leaf plums) and P. x cistena (purple-leaf sand cherry)
- Salix caprea 'Pendula' (weeping goat willow) and S. melanostachys (black pussy willow).
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Ireland's great houses, castles, plants and gardens are part of Irish history, heritage and cultural uniqueness.
I fell in love with the plants and gardens of Ireland during an Irish garden tour five years ago. Irish gardens, due to vicissitudes of Irish history, are pages in a garden history book. They are firmly interwoven with Ireland's manor houses, historic castles and ancient ruins.
Here are some of my articles for Landscaping at Suite101:
Here are some of my articles for Landscaping at Suite101:
- Ireland's Oldest Garden, located in Bray, county Wicklow, demonstrates this historical allure. The Brabazon family (Earls of Meath) has continuously owned Killruddery Estate since 1618. Killruddery contains Ireland's oldest garden features. In recent years the house and garden have provided shooting locations for many films and TV series.
- Ireland's Oldest Garden – Part II is a virtual exploration of some existing 17th and 18th century landscape features existing at Killruddery. Twin canals and a turfed amphitheater are the most distinctive design constructions.
- Killruddery Gardens' Victoriana demonstrates renovations, begun about 1840 and shaped by popular tastes. These features persist alongside of Killruddery Gardens' original 17th- 18th- and 19th - century garden features.
- Killruddery Gardens' 19th Century shows that early 19th century maintenance was ongoing. The owners purchased contemporary cast-iron statues and installed more features. However,Killruddery Gardens retained their original 17th- and 18th- century garden features.
- Shamrocks for the Home Landscape explains why you probably need look no further than your lawn or nearest pasture for a shamrock. The lovely book, Shamrock: Botany and History of an Irish Myth, by E. Charles Nelson, explains why.
- Druids, Saints and Trees tells how author Niall Mac Coitir assembles folklore of native Irish trees. His book Irish Trees: Myths, Legends & Folklore shares with us druids, saints and common folk and their love and use of plants.
Posted by
Georgene A. Bramlage
Georgene A. Bramlage
Wave® Petunias provide garden landscape color and design solutions. They are relatively inexpensive, easy-to-grow, and low maintenance. Perfect for beginning gardeners.
Certain of my relatives always, within my knowledge, planted petunias. And they loved to talk about them, extol their virtues, and draw onlookers into the circle of admiration. In those early days, petunias were not my cup-of-tea. There were too many other plant pleasures for me to enjoy.
Petunias, according to University of GA Professor Allan M. Armitage, were the number-one-selling annual from the 1950s through the 1980s. By the 2000s, they were in second place, with annual impatiens now number-one-sellers.
However, high-performance hybid types like Wave® Petunias continue and extend petunia popularity because they are relatively inexpensive, easy-to-grow and low maintenance. They are available in trendy new colors that make landscape focal points.
Gradually I became a petunia convert , putting them in full-sun hanging baskets and tucked into small beds that cried for a bit of the dramatic. There was no success, however, when I forgot or ignored petunias' love for full sun and well-drained soil. I am looking forward to more experiments this year!
Here are four recent articles in which I enjoy telling readers about one of my favorites, the Wave® Petunias.
Petunias, according to University of GA Professor Allan M. Armitage, were the number-one-selling annual from the 1950s through the 1980s. By the 2000s, they were in second place, with annual impatiens now number-one-sellers.
However, high-performance hybid types like Wave® Petunias continue and extend petunia popularity because they are relatively inexpensive, easy-to-grow and low maintenance. They are available in trendy new colors that make landscape focal points.
Gradually I became a petunia convert , putting them in full-sun hanging baskets and tucked into small beds that cried for a bit of the dramatic. There was no success, however, when I forgot or ignored petunias' love for full sun and well-drained soil. I am looking forward to more experiments this year!
Here are four recent articles in which I enjoy telling readers about one of my favorites, the Wave® Petunias.
- Wave® Petunias in Built Landscapes: Growth Specifics, Care Requirement, and Garden Landscape Design Use
- Wave® Petunia Landscape Designs: Garden Landscape Color and Design Solutions
- Wave® Petunias Design Solutions: Design and Complete One Weekend Projects
- Construct a Wave® Petunia Tree: Handyman Garden Project Generates Creative Landscape Displays
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