The Obsessive Neurotic Gardener

Monthly Archives: October 2012

What f’n Red Sorrel taught me

Posted on by Posted in How-to, Weeds .
I originally hated writing this post about a friggin weed. 
It pained me to no end. 
I felt like a weed didn’t deserve my time and effort, so all I really wanted to do was wallow in self pity about how this weed was slowly bringing me to my knees. 
And then I realized I couldn’t have been more wrong. 
The weed in question, red sorrel (aka sheep’s sorrel) has been plaguing me for years. I would do my best to eradicate it by hand (no chemicals here) only to see it come back ten times worse. I’m talking carefully pulling out the roots and rhizomes like I was detonating a bomb. Some times the roots would extend two to three feet but I’ll be damned if I didn’t get them all. 
I just pulled and pulled, never taking the time to actually research what I was pulling out. I was like a caveman:
“Weed bad, must pull.”
In fact, it wasn’t until I started this post that I even knew what this weed was called. It took a desperate plea on Facebook, along with the photo below to get an answer as to what it actually was:  

Once I got the name and confirmed that it was in fact accurate, I began to read up on it. As I learned more and more about this plant, the skies opened up and shouted “Now learn from what you are reading dumb ass”. OK, got it.

So here is what I was able to dig up and how that bit of info taught me more about my soil and growing conditions than I ever anticipated:

  • Prefers, even thrives in acidic soil – I would have guessed this soil was closer to being alkaline but either way, I NEED to get my soil tested. I’ve been too damn lazy to do it but why I deny myself this important bit of info is just plain dumb.
  • Thrives where there is a lack of nitrates – Reason #147 why I need a soil test.
  • Thrives where there is poor drainage – No friggin surprise there 
  • Thrives where there is little competition with other plants – The best solution to handling weeds has always been to provide them with competition and “weed” them out. I need to take this to a new level and plant more where there are any open spaces. Now that, is music to my ears.  
  • Pulling out these weeds can actually promote more to appear as each broken root can produce another rosette – I’ll never get that time wasted back. Will definitely rethink my approach when dealing with these. Here I am pulling the weeds a few weeks back: 

And how it looked when I was done: 

And then sadly,  a few weeks later:            

  • Is commonly used as greens for salads and is loaded with nutritional value – you mean I could have just pulled the leaves and made a f’n salad? Get me the blue cheese dressing already.

It took a weed to teach me that I need to “get in touch” with my soil and I thank it for teaching me that lesson. I’m so caught up in buying a plant, finding a space for it and then hoping it will all work out.

Remember, it all starts with the soil.

John  

The day has arrived

Posted on by Posted in Uncategorized .

This momentous day arrives around this time every year dating back to 1999.

It holds a special place in my heart and will continue to do so for years to come.

I take special precautions the morning of this event to ensure I can enjoy it to the max. 

The day packs such a wallop that by the time I fall into bed at night, I cannot move.

And this day often spills into the following day prolonging the festivities.

Can you guess the occasion? Are you waiting with bated breath? Well, here it is:

It is the first day of the year that … I get to enjoy … through the artistry of my wife … the most complex and deeply satisfying … wait for it … wait for it … FIRST F’N CHILI.

Surprised? Well let me tell you, this is a big friggin deal. I kid you not. And let me start with the back story.

My wife first dabbled in making chili back in 1999, before children, when we lived in our first house post wedding. She had never attempted to make it before and was sort of following a recipe she found on the internet. That first iteration was good, but nowhere near where it is today. Over the years, she experimented with adding to the original version until it reached perfection back in 2003. From that day forward, it was dubbed “Catherine Street” chili, named after the street we lived on.

Each and every year I am told we cannot dine on this chili until the weather cools down in early fall. I argue we should have it year round, but I get nowhere with the boss. I have to admit, I get it. It would lose some of its luster if we had it in the dinner rotation. So I stay patient and wait.

This chili has been served on various occasions including birthday parties, Christmas and New Year’s Eve, and everyone went nuts eating it.      

Quick cross sell alert: I have no right to write about cooking (just ask my wife) but I am absolutely an expert in eating as evidenced in my other blog that is all about lunch, that you can conveniently access by clicking here.

What I do know is that the ingredients in the chili include: chipotles, cinnamon, chocolate, beer, tomato paste, kidney beans, garlic, onions and Frank’s Red Hot sauce. My wife makes it by “feel” rather than exact quantities and each time it blows me away.

I mentioned before that I have specific preparations the day of the first chili and it is no exaggeration. Here they are in chronological order:

  1. Extra long and hard morning run to remove guilt from the equation
  2. Only yogurt for breakfast as it’s all about clean eating early that day
  3. A light, sensible lunch to make room for stuffing my face later on
  4. Plenty of water throughout the day to prevent dehydration
  5. Loose, comfortable clothing to allow for the bulging of the stomach

So now back to today.

This year, there was an added bonus. My wife made the chili last night to allow it to do its thing in the refrigerator for twenty four hours. The more it sits, the more complex and flavorful it gets. It’s simple science.

Around 5:44 PM or so, I placed the pot on the stove and began to shake a bit watching it heat up. The day was really here. Here’s a quick glimpse of what I was witnessing:                        

You’re fired up too, right? I’ll invite you all over soon enough, don’t you worry.

The next step was to locate the beverage to accompany the feast. Check:

Now we get to a bit of controversy. My wife loves pouring her chili over corn bread. I have to keep it real and cannot allow that corn bread to take up any real estate in my stomach. I love the hell out of corn bread, but I have to stick to my guns and say “no”:  

When it’s warmed up and ready to be devoured, I take my seat at the table, ignore everyone, and dive the hell in:

I take it so seriously, that I didn’t realize that my wife snuck the camera to the table and snapped a pic of me about to take my first bite:

Do you see the concentration and excitement?

As I write this, I almost physically cannot move other than my two fingers typing away. And I love it. It is part of the process and a necessary evil.

I will be working from home tomorrow and can you guess what will be for lunch, say around 10:45 AM? You know it. The gift that keeps on giving.

Oh yeah, I love that woman.

John  

Hawthorn Winter King

Posted on by Posted in Tree .
Eight years ago, when moving into our new home out in the “country” here in New Jersey, the yard was a blank canvas.
There was literally zero landscaping. The only mature trees were in the woods at the back of the property.
It was exciting to be able to create something from scratch … and terrifying to have to create something from scratch.
Since then, I’ve done my best to try and add as many trees as possible, but as we all know, trees aren’t exactly cheap. And with that hefty expense, comes the pressure to make sure that the trees purchased produce the biggest bang for the buck.
Which leads me to our discussion for today. A tree that I’ve only had for roughly two years but already love – Hawthorn Winter King:

Some information on this tree:

  • Height ranges from 20 to 30 feet with a similar spread
  • Zone 4-7
  • Full sun
  • Deciduous
  • Blooms for about two weeks in early to mid May here in zone 6B
  • Filled with berries in summer that emerge red and turn orange into winter
  • Leaves turn a mix of gold, red, bronze in autumn
  • The silver bark peels to reveal the orange bark underneath
  • Shape is upright and dense; vase-like
  • Native to North America
  • Tolerates clay and wet soil (woo hoo)
  • More disease resistant than other Hawthorn trees

And here’s what I’ve witnessed in the two short years since I purchased this gem.

The leaves and buds of Hawthorn Winter King emerge almost simultaneously at the end of April:

And the blooms appear soon after, lasting about two weeks:

One quick side note: I read that these flowers are “malodorous” which in simple terms means “they smell like hell”.
Now as you may know, I have virtually no sense of smell but even I could attest to the fact that they do not smell so great. But who cares? Who gets their nose all up and in there?
Most importantly, I have a new word for my vocabulary that I will be sure to drop in a conversation real soon. Back to our discussion …
After the blooms have faded, the leaves have held up well through both a wet and dry summer, which works for me.
Eventually, the Hawthorn Winter King berries emerge red in color, slowly transforming into a shade of orange like they are as of today. Through research on the web, it appears that songbirds dine on these berries more than any other bird but I’ve yet to catch any in the act. They must not taste so great since these berries survive on the branches deep into winter:

I have yet to witness much of a fall color on this Hawthorn other than some yellowing of the leaves, which soon turn brown and drop:

However, one of the best, if not THE best attributes of this tree is its peeling bark. As larger pieces of the bark fall off, the orange bark underneath is exposed giving it awesome “winter” interest:

From winter to early spring, Hawthorn Winter King, even in its earliest stages of growth like I am experiencing, has a phenomenal silhouette and stands out in my landscape:

I am expecting more of the same as this tree evolves over the next few years and will be sure to report out on its progress.

John

Early morning pics

Early signs of autumn … and deer karate

Posted on by Posted in Deer, Fall color .
Autumn is here and there isn’t a hell of a lot I can do about it. 
I miss the summer already but I vow not to wish my life away. It’s not that I dislike the fall as much as I despise the winter and fall is a reminder it’s not too far off.
But enough of my bitching …
There are signs all over the yard that “things are a changing”; some subtle and some not so subtle.
Come with me on a journey to view these changes, won’t you?
Miscanthus ‘Purpurascens’ is out of its mind with color right now:  

Hydrangea ‘Endless Summer’ bloomed like shit for me, but the foliage still looks good:

Viburnum fall color comes and goes real fast so I am enjoying it while I can:

Amsonia (Bluestar) is just now showing signs of its amazing fall color and when it is at its peak, I’ll probably dedicate an entire post to it:

Even the geraniums are joining the autumn color brigade:

Fall color on a Monarda ‘Bee Balm’ isn’t something I typically count on, but I’ll take it:

It may not be a foliage change, but the fading blooms on Helenium (Sneezeweed) always gives me the fall chills:

Not overly exciting, but the “yellowing” of the River Birch leaves backed by some serious “redding” is not so bad:

Not gonna lie, the transformation of this Panicum saddens me more than I am letting on:

The tour is complete … but it wouldn’t be fall without the deer taking up permanent residence in the landscape. And raising holy hell in the process.

We had a bit of a stare down:

He threatened me with some sort of “Karate Kid” like move:

And then he ran when I screamed bloody murder with fear of being karate chopped by this SOB.

Another day, another battle.

What I do for my garden …

John

Calamagrostis (Feather Reed Grass) ‘El Dorado’

Posted on by Posted in Uncategorized .

Yes, more ornamental grass talk. Deal with it.

Today’s topic my fellow grassophiles is Feather Reed Grass ‘El Dorado’:

‘El Dorado’ is a sport of the most famous of feather reed grasses, ‘Karl Foerster’ and a grass that I have placed all over my landscape.
Some specifics before I proceed with my experiences with this OG:
  • 4-5 feet tall and about 2 feet wide
  • Survives zones 4-8
  • Works in full to partial sun
  • A gold variegated color 
  • A cool season grass – puts on most of its growth in the early spring before temps reach about 75 degrees.
  • Starts to bloom in early summer when blooms emerge pinkish and eventually mature to a wheat like color
  • Deer resistant like most ornamental grasses    

Let’s walk through the progression of this grass chronologically, shall we?
By the time I am ready to cut down all of the ornamental grasses in late winter, this one already shows signs of new growth. I like that: 

Within weeks, ‘El Dorado’ is starting to take shape:

An up close shot of the variegation:
By the middle of June, the blooms first emerge:  
Within a week’s time, the blooms begin to turn a pinkish color:  
And then to a much deeper pink shade:
And finally settles in at a nice tan/wheat/brown color:
As I mentioned previously, I have a bunch of these throughout my yard:

While I would never call them focal points or stand-outs, I do enjoy the vertical aspect they bring to the garden and they are reliable as hell, and that point cannot be forgotten. Especially in my nasty old poor draining, deer infested, wet clay.

They do tend to flop a bit more in partial shade as seen in the photo below:  

And are much more upright in full sun:

One final thing. While most websites indicate this grass gets to be between 4 and 5 feet tall, mine max out at about 2 and a half to 3 feet. We’ll see if that changes as they become more established.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this grass. Success? Failures? Somewhere in between?

John