Green Lawn Safety

Opinion
Opinionator: The Dandelion King
By By ROBERT WRIGHT
Published: April 20, 2010, NY Times
Wild, weedy lawns are greener, but can we consider them prettier, too?

I could not live with a lawn full of weeds but I do not use chemicals on my lawn. Some of the approaches I take are listed via a link at the end.

SafeLawns.org

The site is very detailed and includes instructional videos. A variety of hand tools can be used to do manual weeding to get directly to the root of the problem. A Ball Weeder is a Victorian invention and good for weeds as is an Asparagus Knife.

Big Fern Takes a Holiday / Have Clay Pot Will Travel

December 2009: Fern, a prehistoric plant, surrounded by 20th century lit.

This was Fern as she looked in December after being inside for a bit over a month. She does not look - sadly - this bold or robust now. Wintering in a warm, dry and less humid house did not suit her like the grand outdoors courtesy of my deck. However, she will be going back out there in a couple of weeks. I will post the after winter photo soon. It's the least I can do because I know she will be beyond last season's prime in no time at all. More on fern care.

Holiday Bulb Forcing Update

The paperwhites are racing ahead as we close in on Christmas day. The amaryllis bulbs are proceeding much slower than previous years. I planted them all on November 22, 2009.The terracotta - the nursery believes - isabsorbing too much moisture from the dirt and suggested increased watering. The red flowers could just be holding out for a patriotic holiday like President's Day in February. See progress so far.

Cranberry Mold: A Success Story / Blooms in Waiting

I blogged about the purchase of this mold back in November. I followed the instructions for un-molding and it jiggled out to freedom on the dinner table.

A selection of bulbs prepare to awake from a dormant slumber. The collection populates a rectangular drip tray to protect the wood top of the buffet.

The week before Thanksgiving I potted a selection of paper whites and amaryllis bulbs to - hopefully - bloom in time for the holidays. I will update their progress. I have had success with bulb forcing in the past. They do grow faster when you plant in a decorative glass vessel resting on a collection of stones or river pebbles. Water level should be just to the bottom to allow roots to sprout and not begin the process of rot. This year I planted most of them in a mixture of peat/potting soil and finished the pots with mood moss. Amaryllis bulbs can last 40 years with proper care and patience. The Guy Wolf pottery mossed over nicely this summer outside. The large center pot looks like it was procured from an old English garden.

Urban Scarecrow Called Jack

I created this gourd-headed scarecrow a few years back in my urban Cambridge postage-stamp sized yard. The Scarecrow is based on a modified version featured a few years ago in MS Living as the Frightfully Fun Scarecrow. They suggested using a Funkin instead of a real pumpkin for the head. They look more realistic that faux pumpkins sold at Michael's craft stores and are easier to carve since they are made of a firm foam. The molds are taken directly from real pumpkins and are not perfectly round. Some years they are more realistically painted than other years. I bought one that was way to neon orange to be perceived as a real pumpkin. A. C. More, Jo-Ann Stores are a couple of chain stores you can find a selection of them available. Funkins are not indestructible but will last year after year when stored with care.

Jack wears a vintage L.L. Bean plaid shirt. Excessive rains caused the shirt to do the opposite of shrink. The weight of the wet hay caused him to "fill out" even more. I also choose a classic expression that would not be perceived as trendy. I wanted Jack to last as many spooky seasons as possible. His head and shirt were reused several times but hay was bought new each year.

Memories of a Mimosa Tree

A healthy Mimosa tree with several trunks and forks.

The beans appear in late summer and early fall.

The pink flowers attract butterflies and humming birds during the summer. Fern-like foliage also closes up and "sleeps" in the evening.

I remember the pink flowers of the Mimosa tree (Silk tree) being sticky and pink like the texture and color of cotton candy. These trees served many purposes for me during my childhood. I would climb their smooth branches and trunks before building forts under them. The forts would end up having more grandaddy long-legs spiders protected behind their four walls than people. Tree foliage and fall beans provided tons of play opportunities. However, admitting to having played "restaurant" with the tree's leaves and beans sounds less adventurous than having built a fort at the base of the trunk. The small individual leaves of the fern-like fronds would also be stripped off and used as confetti. I recall also using the beans as currency for a made-up primitive or post apocalyptic world - it was the 1980s during the Cold War, after all.

How did all of this memory jogging come about? I was driving through Charlestown, Massachusetts and saw a very large example on Monday. I did not know they could thrive this far north. But we seem to be on the edge of a favorable growing zone since we are on the sea coast and have slightly less harsh winters. My garden may be the proud owner of one of these memory laden trees someday.

Toffee Twist Grass / Four-Season Garden Border

A Toffee Twist "bouffant" emerges from a pot.

Recently I discovered this new grass thanks to Martha's blog entry documenting the planting of her terrace at her Maine estate, Skylands, once owned by Edsel B. Ford. Toffee Twist appears dead but grows in a tight mass with wispy ends that trail in the wind. I think it will make a nice accent when fall approaches as well as a spooky element to planters for Halloween. Unfortunately, in our growing zone, the grass is an annual but will bounce back in zones with warmer winters. Gordon Florist & Greenhouses in Ipswich, MA is a smaller nursery with an eclectic selection of plants. They offer a nice selection of ferns and begonias in their greenhouse. I also found a great selection of plants for rock gardens and for use as ground cover. The nicer aspect of going to a smaller nursery with a great selection is that you do not have to go up and down massive rows of the same plant. They also were the source of a few Curly Wurly plants for my garden and deck.

NY TIMES
In The Garden
A Tapestry of Color, Unfolding All Year
By ANNE RAVER
Published: August 13, 2009
A recent tour of the new four-season border at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx introduced me to coneflowers unlike any I’ve ever seen.

Brown Snakes Make for a Happy Garden

A couple of days a go I spotted two baby brown snakes in my garden. It was early evening and they were getting an early start hunting for dinner. Having an urban garden, I don't often see as much wild life as my more rural counterparts do. I was very excited and at first thought they were very healthy earthworms. Sadie has been hunting them around the rock wall which is a great habitat for them - I hope they will survive and outsmart her hound instincts. The best part is that they love to dine - like the French - on snails. Also, they have an appetite for slugs which are in health supply in my garden. I now may not have to rely on another remedy to rid my garden of squishy slugs. There are some other natural ways to void the garden of slugs. For now, I will let the snakes feast on the abundance. I hope they will make my garden their home.

Garden Update Part Two

The Elepahnt Ears (Colocasia) finally broke trough the top layer of mulch. Due to the cool June, they didn't find the time to do so until July came around. The Coleus blumei did not thrive during the many cold nights in May and June. Normally, the plants would be thick and bushy with many colorful leaves. Perhaps, they, too, will show better in August.

Update from the Garden

Warmer weather has come at long last after much fog and rain. The clematis is finally blasting off and adding a dramatic splash of color against the house's buttery exterior.

Plant stand from Martha Stewart's K Mart collection. Neat design but quality is not the best.

Close-up of Juncus effusus 'Curly-wurly'

Mixed Container Gardening Update

Now.

On April 30th, I posted some photos of some new container plantings. Here is how they have progressed in a little over a month. A couple of other recent additions to my plant menagerie are also included.

Then.

These new additions will hopefully thrive. They have more height when compared to first round of plantings.

Martha Plants Terrace with Home Depot Finds

Planting my outdoor terrace at Skylands
posting from Martha Stewart Blog

Posted using ShareThis

Usually, Martha uses plants grown from her private greenhouse or other speciality plant suppliers. She may have a deal cooking with the big orange box store and is simply sharing the love. Whatever the reason is I like it when she makes affordable choices elegant. One of her plantings inspired me to do the same in one of my garden pots. I will update you on that latter. Perhaps, the long holiday weekend will offer us all the sunny weather for fun and gardening with time to rest.

Martha's selections before planting.

I believe the cycads are $22.99 a pot at Home Depot. In my experience with HD plants it's best to catch them as close to their stock date as possible. Some locations do not give them the care a smaller nursery provides. I am planting one indoors and one outdoors.

Mixed Container Gardening

This past weekend I planted a large terracotta glazed pot container garden that I hope will fill out nicely in the weeks to come.

Featured Plants:
Bacopa, white
Marguerite Sweet Potato Vine
Spikes, Cordyline
Ace of Spades, Sweet Potato Vine
Sedum Angelina