Camellia Catastrophe

Last week when we returned

The 'Thanksgiving Camellias' were in their glory.

Camellia sasanqua 'mine-no-yuki'

(More about this on my November 2014 blog, 

inevitably these shrubs get lovelier each year, so I always want to share them)

I cut a few to preserve them for a few more days

After two consecutive nights of 25 degrees of cold.

They are now brown blooms, boo-hoo!

Fantastic Fungi

Several years ago we had a couple of sweet gum trees that over-hung the house taken down.

Now these bunches of fungi have risen up around the stumps.

At first I thought they were mole runs.

Then these mysterious mushrooms popped up. 

They almost look like eggs in a nest when surrounded by pine needles.

Confederate Rose

This fantastic fall weather, warm sunny days after Hurricane Matthew has brought forth some beautiful blossoms.

The Hibiscus mutabilis is blooming like it never has before.

At the Pitt County Arboretum we have been thinking about propagation of our plants in advance of next year's plant sale. (May 20th)

Here is some advice for a very simple method.

http://www.walterreeves.com/gardening-q-and-a/confederate-rose-rooting/

Sungold Tomato Keeps on Giving

Tomatoes for Hallowene

The fruit has reached the other side of the arch

I planted this tomato plant at the outside of the trellis in May. Throughout a very wet growing year & a searing couple of months this summer it sulked & I almost pulled it out with the rest of the laggards. Hardly any fruit & frazzled foliage. Sungold  has always been a good provider for me even though I have root knot nematode in this area. I have tried marigolds & asparagus here both of which are supposed to discourage said nematodes. Maybe they are starting to have an effect.

This arch of cattle panel is about 6 ft high in the center

Deer have trimmed the foliage that hangs outside the fence but they don't seem to taste the fruit.

Rain Garden

After Hurricane Matthew, bright sunny days make the rain garden sparkle.

Even if rather left leaning!

 Swamp Sunflower & Beautyberry

Helianthus angustifolia & Calicarpa americana

What a way to start your day

coming out of the garage to hundreds of flowers enjoying the sunshine

Muhly Grass on a Misty Morning

Looking like something suitable for Halloween 

the Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris) at the curb is weighed down with the morning mist

The Gaura mimics it's neighbor.

Gaura lindheimeri is unusually short & much more controlled this year.

The cars don't have to swing around it's trailing tentacles thanks to the dear deer!

Colorful Autumn Natives

Bidens aristosa also known as Tickseed Sunflower

Grows wild at the side of Paramore park on Fire Tower Road, which is where I collected the seed for these in the Wildflower Garden at the Pitt County Arboretum.

A true Pitt County native annual!

The October 6th tour at 10 am

 at the Arboretum

will feature seed collection

especially in the wildflower garden

http://pittcountyarboretum.blogspot.com

Hardy Ageratum (Conoclinium coelstinum) is another fall flower you see blooming on the side of the road here. An aggressive spreader by root & seed, but the color is something I could not be without.

It seems to go on forever here in the circle.

The trick to having this in your garden is to pull it all out in the winter

Magically it always appears again next year. Not necessarily in the same place!

Pairing this with Muhly Grass

(Muhlenbergia capillaris)

at left, just starting to bloom,

would be a fine sight to see.

Fruitful Autumn Natives

The birds are enjoying the fruits of the Calicarpa americana

I have seen Robins, Mockingbirds, Catbirds, Cardinals & Finches on this shrub this week

They also enjoy the Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana)

This large specimen is several years old

I know people here think this a giant weed but it is really ornamental

Maybe I will start a trend....or not!

Signs of Autumn, at last

A little cooler & less humidity

seems to deepen colors 

The Salvia 'Indigo Spires' with Helianthus maximiliani

I try to pull this sunflower out of the circle but some root always remains

then in a rain storm these tall stalks fall over & mingle creating a perfect contrast.

Unsurprisingly Mother Nature knows better than me

Pollinators enjoy these flowers too

The Self-Seeding Garden

With cooler weather approaching & a break in the searing heat

 my self sustaining garden is showing off.

Above Verbena bonariensis with Coneflowers & the annual Zinnia pauciflora

Below the same Zinnia with it's cousin Zinnia angustifolia 'Star White'

These plants love to germinate in our gravel driveway.

Pollinators love them too

Formosa Lily

Lilium formosanum is from Taiwan, formerly known as Formosa.

These are about 6ft tall in half a day sun under an old crape myrtle tree on the driveway.

This plant has two seasons of interest as the seed heads are rather ornamental.

Beware, if like me, you leave the seed-heads on for more than one year it depletes the bulb so that it does not bloom successfully in following years. 

After I deadheaded it for the next couple of years the flowers came back again.

In Australia this fragrant lily has escaped from gardens & is considered invasive .

It not only propagates by seed but also by increase of the bulb

 I have found the seedlings pop up all over the garden.
At right the dried seed heads in the potting shed.
They make great, tall, dried arrangements
if you like that kind of thing.
I am thinking of using just the pods to make a wreath
so many ideas, so little time.

An enormous number of seeds are stacked like 'Pringles' in the seed pods so no wonder they seed around.
I read that they will bloom in just a couple of seasons.
I usually just dig up seedlings & pot them up for the
Pitt County Arboretum Plant Sale
http://pittcountyarboretum.blogspot.com

Downy/Hoary Skullcap

Wether you call those hairs on the stem, hoary (old fashioned word for grey or white hair)

 or downy (a more charming version) this native skullcap is a great July bloomer in my garden.

2014 North Carolina Wildflower of the Year

I got my start from the Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill & have propagated it by seed.

Planted in 3 different places in my garden & two in the Pitt County Arboretum Wildflower Garden

This plant seems to be very adaptable. Shade to full sun it has bloomed well. 

Mine are about 2ft tall after 2 years but said to get to 3ft.

 I did pinch back a couple of stems & they have yet to bloom but will soon.

Well drained soil in both places but some say it will enjoy nice loamy soil too.

The difference in bloom color here maybe just light at photo time.

I do not water ornamental plants in either garden after they are established, so these are viewed as drought tolerant. I  notice many bees visiting these & another low growing skullcap in my garden. See one in the bottom photo obviously a good pollinator plant, perfect!

Rudbeckia laciniata 'Herbstsonne'

Originally a gift from a friend many years ago, this super summer bloomer embraces our July heat & humidity. Increasing it's clump each year so much so that I can usually dig some divisions for the

 Pitt County Arboretum plant sale each year.

It is the much better behaved offspring of the native Green-headed coneflower

 (Rudbeckia laciniata)which spreads rapidly by underground stems & would be better in a field rather than a garden. Since this variety has a German name (herbstsonne) meaning autumn sun it can only be concluded that those Tuetonic plant breeders whipped that rambling native into garden shape. leaving us to enjoy it's clumping nature.

Six feet tall in my garden I, unusually for me, dead-head it a little bit to keep the blooms coming.

Pollinators are quite as impressed as I am with the flowers.

Storm damage

This is what is left of the Carolina Silverbell (Halesia tetraptera) that was on the property line with the park.

The newspaper reported 60 - 80 mph winds during Wednesday night.

Ironically we had talked about how the canopy of this tree was starting to encroach on the power line to the house, well nature took care of that for us.

My husband is trying to use large branches that come down to make a deer fence in parts of the garden, so we hope this will be of some use. Sad to see the tree go though.

Rudbeckia variety

Just one of the many versions of Rudbeckia hirta in my garden

Allowed to go to seed & multiply this native, sometimes perennial, annual produces amazing variations. Saving seed of a particular one of these will not necessarily produce like offspring. 

Enjoy the genetic diversity of this fabulous flowering plant.

Pale Purple Coneflower

Echinacea pallida the Pale Purple Coneflower is native to much of the USA

My clump now in it's third year is very tall this year with all our recent rain.

Often, in the early morning, bees are waking up on the cones.

Below you can see the difference between species pallida & purpurea

The pods are from poppies

I read that Echinacea comes from a Greek word meaning hedgehog in recognition of the bristly cones

http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=ECPA

Carolina Wrens in a King's Head

A few years ago, before we screened in the front porch, a Carolina Wren made a nest in this decorative king's head that I brought home from England.

When enclosing the porch my husband created a dog door by overlapping 2 pieces of fiberglass screening. This spring a Carolina Wren (they mate for life) made a nest in the same king's head.

Not only built a nest but fed & nurtured 5 baby birds by using the dog door. Hopping in & out by pushing the screen apart. 

When the babies made it out onto the porch they huddled together for a day or two & the parents tried feeding them by pushing food through the tiny holes in the screening but finally decided they had to come inside to be successful. We opened the doors to let them all fly out last week.

Such a delight to have the time to watch all this unfold.

Purple Tiers in the Shade Garden

The cool wet weather of late spring has made a lush shade garden

Above Chinese foxgloves (Rehmannia elata) that some call Beverly Bells

http://www.plantdelights.com/Rehmannia-elata-for-sale/Buy-Beverly-Bells/ is growing through Hydrangea serrata 'Beni Gaku'

Another delightful Hydrangea serrata is 'Purple Tiers'; a gift cutting from my friend Teresa. It has taken 2-3 years to get to this lovely little shrub.

Catchfly in Bloom

This week the annual Catchfly (Silene ameria) is in full bloom.

 I love this with the blue larkspur, above & below, it is covering the dying foliage of daffodils something it figured out on its own no interference from me.

 Opposite it has crossed the path to infiltrate the 'Paprika' Yarrow somewhat psychedelic.

Catchfly produces prolific seed & I usually collect some for other parts of the garden. Original seed came from Wildseed Farms in Texas.