May 2016 Bloom Day

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day
What's blooming in the garden on the 15th of the month

Not much happening this May, so there are only a few photos this month. Instead of photographing the garden, I will be spending time looking through the other blogs. Most of these plants have been featured here before, but there is one new iris.
I helped organize and run a plant swap this spring for our county master gardener group. This bearded iris was picked up there. No name to it, but that doesn't matter. The color is really spectacular -- almost black and darker than the colors my camera picked up.

This is iris germanica 'Clarence' who is actually fragrant, and reblooming.

This is kalmia latifolia 'Sarah.' It is one of the darkest colored mountain laurels with red buds and deep pink blooms.

Geranium sanguineum is an unknown, obtained from a local neighborhood plant swap years ago, and a darn good ground cover. It resembles a magenta version of the popular 'Rozanne.'

Coreopsis auriculata ‘Nana’ -- another pickup from a neighborhood plant swap.

Check out other garden bloggers bloom day photos on our host's at blog May Dreams Gardens.

May 2014 Bloom Day

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day
What's blooming in the garden on the 15th of the month.

A few blooms, as that is all I have -- few blooms, unless someone wants to see green beans blooming.
First a gaggle of iris, and a matching gaggle of coreopsis. I just found the name (I think) of this purple one. See the previous post.

Iris germanica 'Fantasy land'		Coreopsis auriculata 'Nana'

Ready for their closeups, the geraniums really came on strong this year. They look great close up, but until this year, were too sparse and got lost in the garden. Dutch iris are just beginning.

Iris hollandica 'Discovery'		Geranium macrorrhizum 'Bevan's variety'

Staking the stalks on Invitation iris. I wish they could stand on their own two feet (or one.) Camassia is a first for me this year.

Iris germanica 'Invitation'		Camassia leichtlinii spp. leichtlinii

		Rhododendrons also took off this year. I think they heard me talking about trimming them back, and responded. "Don't cut me back, bro. I promise to do better next year."
Rhododendron 'roseum elegans'

And a final composition with the Walmart iris ('Clarence') and the geranium on the side yard.

You can find other garden bloggers' May bloom days at the blog May Dreams Gardens.

The Bedbug Plant

Coreopsis never appealed to me in photos and descriptions that catalogs produced. I saw a bland plant, not stunning or capable of being a signature centerpiece or attractive border or backdrop. That changed a few years ago with the Autumn Blush coreopsis I bought and with one from our neighborhood plant swap.

Coreopsis seemed to be popping up everywhere in the 1990's as the latest fad; one to fulfill the persistent low-maintenance, drought-tolerant quest. I soon saw many new coreopsis on the market, and some appealed to me. I gave Autumn Blush a tryout [posted 2010.06.08]. Although taking its sweet old time to emerge every spring, it is attractive and reliably blooms all season. In that same year, a neighbor gave away this coreopsis at our plant swap. She purchased it (Coreopsis auriculata 'Nana') but found its cultural requirements were not what she expected, and gave it up. Lucky me.

It has spread and bloomed every year, even surviving a major relocation. No pests or diseases bother it. Well, maybe there's a little mildew in late autumn. What seems to set Nana apart is its thick carpet of dense green leaves and the way it holds its blooms. The glowing 1-inch (3 cm) orange blossoms are held above the dark foliage on very thin stems. This makes the blossoms appear to float above the leaf clump hugging the ground.

The orange flowers burst out in spring, tapering off through the summer. Maybe some deadheading would help that.

Coreopsis is also called tickseed. The name coreopsis derives from Greek meaning 'bedbug' - because the seed on spent flowers look like bedbugs? I don't think so on this plant - I am not letting dead blossoms linger this year so there are no photos of them.

For some reason, last year it threw up a healthy litter of leaves, but few flowers. I thought this might be due to overcrowding, and gave it a buzz cut last fall. That did the trick. Even though the 16 inch diameter (40 cm) clump still looks very thick, there are more blooms this year. Sometimes we need a little tough love.

For The Record:   • Clay soil improving with organic amendments   • Full sun   • No fertilizer   • No serious pests/disease   • Easily spreads Garden Calendar:   • Blooming: Bearded iris, coreopsis, salvia, tradescantia,     california poppy, rose

Society Blooms Continued

The late spring walk through the American Horticultural Society was most intriguing at the meadow. It was wild and natural, yet at the same time tidy and cultured. I felt like walking inside an impressionist painting. The meadow was also an attraction for wildlife - fox dens were found, birdhouses had no vacancies, and butterflies used it as a stopover hub.

Native golden coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria) were found blooming. What I thought to be another coreopsis was actually the Prairie Coneflower (Ratibida columnifera), sparse but calling attention to itself with its vibrant red color among the green and with its unusual shape. The Coreopsis grandiflora, red version, also stood out.

Coreopsis grandiflora		Coreopsis tinctoria
Ratibida columnifera

Perfuming the air around the grounds were the old giant magnolia tree and the lilies. The lilies were not labeled.

Garden Calendar:   • Blooming: pink cosmos, mexican zinnia, petunia, red cosmos, nicotiana,     calendula, phlox, cleome, coneflower, salvia   • Harvested: 3 cucumbers, 1 tomato (season's first)

Unlicensed Propagation Prohibited!

Unlicensed propagation prohibited! This is what PP#18184 means on the coreopsis purchased last spring - Plant Patent #18184. Coreopsis 'Autumn Blush' from Wayside Gardens came in the mail after it was selected as one of the new plants for the garden last spring. After reading about its care this spring, I find that it has a 'Plant Patent,' here as well as Canada. PPAF, in case we run across that one, stands for 'Plant Patent Applied For.'

When reviewing online nurseries selling this coreopsis, I see that all have some non-descript tag or asterisk that probably raises no red flag for most people (like me.) Only after some sleuthing does one learn what the nomenclature and anacronyms refer to. Can I be fined by the Plant Police (um. . . I mean the 'Plant Variety Protection Office') if I divide the plant? Will I be hauled off to the slammer if the plant decides to reproduce itself? Not to worry - the plant is sterile, probably bred that way to prevent unauthorized propagation.

So who holds the patent? I cannot find that information online at the Patent and Trademark Office. I did find PP#18183 (the number before #18184 coreopsis) is an Alstroemeria. I also found the following information about plant patents at the US -PTO Office:
The law provides for the granting of a patent to anyone who has invented or discovered and asexually reproduced any distinct and new variety of plant, including cultivated sports, mutants, hybrids, and newly found seedlings, other than a tuber-propagated plant or a plant found in an uncultivated state.

Three or four blooms created only disappointment when it was planted last spring. After a summer pampering and a hearty winter, the plant peeked out in late spring, then bolted into the loose, lacy mound of foliage now exhibited. Blossoms are coming on strong and are incredibly interesting.

Two-color petals attract attention without the gaudiness they would on a larger plant. Don't believe the photos in the catalogs (as if you ever do.) Although the coreopsis has grown into a foot high mound (30 cm), it is anything but thick and dense. Descriptions also state "Attracts butterflies and bees." Attracting nothing here. "Forms a compact mound." Try sparse and floppy. "Blooms repeatedly." Maybe later this year.

If you want a piece of the action (er, a piece of Autumn Blush) at our next plant swap, meet me in the parking lot - I will be the one in the trench coat and sunglasses carrying the brown paper bag.

For The Record:   • Heavy clay soil with organic fertilizer in spring   • Full sun   • No pests Garden Calendar:   • Blooming: coneflower, hydrangea, salvia, phlox, nicotiana,     calendula, hostas, bletilla, spiderwort, alyssum

The Garden of Doom

With the fourth annual Spring Plant Swap behind us, it may be a good time for an evaluation of the swapees that followed me home in past years. First, we must remember the departed that never made it after finding my yard a garden of doom:

• The First Nandina - This was planted after a fall plant swap. It went into dormancy and stayed that way. A second Nandina obtained a year later is alive and well.

• Shasta Daisy - This was also planted after a fall plant swap. It grew well into the spring, began budding, then, well, began pushing up daisies.
• Rudbeckia - seeds were planted after a fall plant swap and grew nothing but dirt in the spring
• Coneflower - again with the seeds. After planting in the fall AND spring, they at least provided some organic matter to the soil.

• Lily - an unknown peach Asian lily was planted after two separate swaps. They hit a home run, thriving and multiplying in their home yard, but struck out in my yard. A third lily was obtained last fall (the donor cannot give them away fast enough) and is now growing this spring!

It's not all doom and gloom. Of course, there are success stories. Money for nothing and your plants for free:

• Mahogany Iris - these did not come with a name, and after an exhaustive search of the internet, are still nameless. Growing well.

• Dwarf Coreopsis - ('Nana') this was picked up last spring with two blossoms. Today, there are dozens - very happy in its location.
• St. John's Wort - ('Brigadoon') picked up last spring. This lights up a shady spot with chartreuse green, but to date hasn't grown much.
• Dwarf Hosta - again, no name is associated with these 3-year old donations.
• Purple Iris - (no name again) a handful of small rhizomes from last fall produced one flower stalk this spring. However, I was expecting a Japanese iris from the gardener's description last year.
• Spiderwort - these took off upon planting last spring. Today they are a blooming, healthy, happy bunch.
• New England Asters - I donate some purple ones every year, but picked up some magenta. You can't kill 'em if you tried.
• Gooseneck Loostrife - [22.6.2008] after two years, this ground cover is covering a lot of ground, requiring spring cleaning.

Garden Calendar:   • Blooming: dutch iris, bearded iris, rose,     spiderwort, coreopsis, salvia