December 2013 - The Obsessive Neurotic Gardener

Garden resolutions for 2014

Posted on December 31, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Uncategorized .

Resolutions are useless.

We get a temporary jolt that “this will be the year”, but we all know, shit ain’t going to happen.

Exhibit A – take a look at my garden resolutions from last year:

Soil test – fail
Compost – fail
Education – fail

I couldn’t have made my resolutions any more attainable and yet I still went 0 for 3.

Dope.

So for this year, we are going to shake it up a bit. A little reverse psychology if you will.

Here we go:

Growing your own food really is a waste of time. I would much rather just buy our produce from a big old supermarket and pay more for it. So let’s make a promise to grow less fruits and vegetables this year:

I love having to move large shrubs once they outgrow their location. The pain of digging it out and trying not to destroy all of the plants in its path once it is unearthed is the frickin best. I vow to ignore proper spacing rules in 2014:

I love taking my chances on a plant that deer love to chow down on. Those plants that are not deer friendly, like Allium, are so boring:

I find berries on shrubs/trees to be such a distraction and an unnecessary mess. Plus all those annoying birds come and devour them. No more plants with berries in 2014:

One of my favorite moments in summer is when we go on vacation and I fail to line someone up to help water the containers. I love the mystery of returning home to see if any of the flowers or even the plants survived. Pure adrenaline. I am going to do more of the same in 2014 and even try to plan our vacation for the hottest and driest part of summer:

The wear and tear, cost and effort of cutting the grass is so worth it. It is so rewarding to spend most of my free time sitting on a lawn tractor. So let’s remove more of those garden beds and add more lawn:

Native plants are so uninteresting and do not add a lot to the garden. In 2014 we eradicate them all and add more yuccas and hostas:

Ignore what my daughter has to say and do my best to fail to live up to her expectations:

Remove all blue foliage plants from my garden:

Keep ignoring my conditions and try to fit a square peg in a round hole. I refuse to attempt to grow a bog garden:

Happy New Year my friends and let’s ignore our resolutions in 2014.

John

2013 – A Gardening Year in Review

Posted on December 26, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Uncategorized .

As I sit here and review all of the gardening photos I’ve taken in 2013, I am both anxious for the warmer temps of spring and dare I say, enjoying the serenity of the winter garden. Yeah me! The goal has always been to find plant enjoyment 365 days out of the year and while there is still work to be done at that front, progress has definitely been made.

So won’t you please indulge me and do me a solid by checking out this look back on all that went down in my garden (and a few pics of others gardens) in 2013? Grab a beverage, sit back and relax and dream of what is soon to come and what has been.

In chronological order starting in January of 2013:

A little winter interest to get us through the cold dark days of winter:

They are never too young to get involved with power tools … in freezing temperatures:

Starting seedlings indoors couldn’t be easier. Transplanting them outdoors … that is another story:

Cool season ornamental grasses are a must as they grant you some green blades when all we desire is green:

Is there anything more encouraging and promising than the signs of the first birds in spring?

I was never a “bulb guy” back in the day as I found them too fleeting and not worth the effort. That was dumb:

Dividing large grasses in the spring is a friggin effort, but oh so worth it as the divisions take root so easily and spread the love:

More massing, greater impact:

Raised beds are a must to improve issues with drainage:

Deer in fact, do like peonies:

Anything that blooms in the morning-only when I’m typically not there to see it, really doesn’t bloom at all:

Add me to the list of believers in weed control via cardboard:

Native plants = good:

You can (almost) never go wrong with a path:

Visiting other gardens is the greatest inspiration of all (thanks “Gardens at Federal Twist”):

Texture > flowers:

Pinching back buds in early summer is a good thing as the bloom period extends that much further into the fall:

Green is good. Too much green is not. Poor planning John:

Seating under a shady tree is always warm and inviting:

You mean I can actually grow my own food? Who came up with that brilliant idea?

Note to self: Good idea to locate fantastically scented plants in an area where they can be enjoyed by others and at night:

Scarecrows that resemble real people will scare the crap out of your family and neighbors:

I dare you to sample that sharp bladed grass you destructive bastard:

“Well look at that, you genius viburnum cross pollinator you”:

Blooms that last into the fall cannot be appreciated enough:

Ornamental grasses can work in tandem with each other:

When the blooms are spent, the party isn’t over:

Have I mentioned that visiting other gardens is an inspiration? Even more so in the fall. Repeat thanks to “Federal Twist”:

When life gives you poor draining soil, you plant tulips in containers:

Clethra (Summersweet) never gave me any semblance of “fall color” … and then that all changed:

Thanks Google (specifically “Google Awesome”) for automatically adding falling snow to many of my winter pics. It doesn’t look corny or anything:

Happy Holidays

Posted on December 22, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Family .

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from me and mine to you and yours.

Panicum virgatum ‘Cheyenne Sky’

Posted on December 20, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Uncategorized .

In a continued series of looking back on new plants I introduced to my garden in 2013 (or technically late 2012), I wanted to share with you my brief but oh so wonderful experience with Panicum virgatum (Switch Grass) ‘Cheyenne Sky’.

I planted a six inch plug of this native grass in late October of last year in a location that ended up being the wettest area in my entire landscape. And that my friends is no exaggeration. It was the last available spot in the garden so I dumped her in and never looked back.

Cut to spring of this year and miraculously, the grass survived the winter and the brutally wet conditions. While the growth was minimal and barely visible, by the late summer, the color of the grass was off the charts:

Pretty frickin awesome, eh?

As I am want to do, I moved the ‘Cheyenne Sky’ to a much more prominent location in the summer, banking on it putting on a damn good show for years to come.

Now we wait to see how the OG actually grows and evolves.

From a quick browsing session on the Internet, this warm season grass looks like it has outstanding blue/green color from mid spring until summer and then gets that outstanding color, or some similar version of it, by July/August. Also, with a max size of about ‘3 x 2’, this one will be easily added to multiple new locations throughout the yard.

Yet another Panicum that appears to be a must-have.

John

Eupatorium dubium (Joe Pye Weed) ‘Little Joe’

Posted on December 17, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Perennials .

Some times smaller is better … or least just as good.

That is my take on Joe Pye Weed ‘Little Joe’ even after only having added it to my garden this past spring.

I have gushed incessantly in the past when speaking of my love for Eupatorium (Joe Pye Weed) so why wouldn’t I love a smaller, therefore more versatile, cultivar? I found three of these remaining at my favorite garden center, Ambleside Gardens and Nursery, and immediately snatched them up.

Once home, I put a plan in place to determine exactly where these native perennials would go. And when I say “plan”, I mean a thirty second, half-assed analysis before finding a location on a complete whim.

In the ground they went and by mid summer, they were all in full bloom:

Now I know I can’t judge a plant in a matter of a few months, but I already know I’ll be dividing these in the not so distant future and will spread the love throughout all of my landscape. Why it took me so long to acquire these dwarf cultivars I don’t know, but I am thrilled to have finally done so.

By early October, as expected and as witnessed with their larger brethren, that familiar gold/orange fall color emerged:

Nothing off the charts, but a solid counter punch to all of the red fall hues.

A few weeks after that, all of the leaves had fallen and those kick ass seedheads were on display:

As I mentioned in a post last week, I don’t see the need to bore you with all of the details of ‘Little Joe’ when you could easily find them in a web search. But what I can tell you is that I have mine in full sun and in a spot where the deer frequent frequently. No issues to date in any way.

Here is one last shot, back in August, of the surrounding plants next to my collection of ‘Little Joe’. If you look closely, you’ll see that Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly on the right is leaving a Clethra ‘Hummingbird’ and heading over to visit ‘Little Joe’ on the left.

Good times.

More snow and more ice

Posted on December 15, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Winter interest .

Sorry, couldn’t resist posting more photos of the snow and ice.

Am I actually evolving?

Posted on December 13, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Uncategorized .

This post was originally going to be a straight forward take on how much I love Swamp Milkweed after having planted it for the first time earlier this spring. But after locating and posting the photo below, everything changed:

Allow me to explain …

When I started this blog just short of four years ago, I really had no plan or concept of who I was as a “gardener”. It was only at that time that I even started taking photos of my plants. I figured the blog would be a diary of sorts; a place where I could upload some pics and maybe share with my friends and family. And if I wasn’t happy with how it all looked, I could stay quiet and never promote it.

As time passed, and I started posting on a regular basis, I began to find my voice. And it was kind of an annoying complaining voice. While it all came from an honest place, damn did I bitch and moan a lot. Too high maintenance for my liking now and obviously how the title of this blog came about. I wanted to “keep it real” and talk about the not so sexy side of gardening and plants, but this dude needed to chill out a bit.

Now, if you look back over the past year or so, you’ll see that the negatively toned posts have diminished to a large degree (although I’ll never stop mocking myself over bad planting decisions) and I seemed to have relaxed a lot more. Again, this isn’t contrived, just a true reflection of me at the time. Somewhere along the way I gained perspective and may even, dare I say, evolved. Before, I judged my gardening “talents” based on a successful bloom, now I fully enjoy the non-blooms.

A few months back, Martha f’n Stewart made her infamous comments about bloggers not being “true experts” in their field. You can read more about it here if you are not up to speed on what she had to say. While she may have been specifically referring to lifestyle bloggers, I took her words to apply to all bloggers. Upon hearing her comments, I once again started to reflect upon the purpose/direction of this blog. That’s just how I roll.

I know I am not close to being an expert on anything garden related. Shit, I downright suck at it at times. I’ll never dole out “advice” or take a definitive stand on garden design because I am still learning/evolving like everyone else. But I’ll be damned if I don’t have the passion and love for this gardening thing. I enjoy simply showing readers what is going on in my garden, warts and all. I also enjoy including my emotions in the mix, be it immature and whiny like in my early blog days, or more reflective and mature as I think I am doing now (even I’m smirking at that one). And to top it all off, I do my best to incorporate how my family/real life ~~gets in the way~~ intersects with my gardening efforts.

When I take all of this into account and take a high level view of ONG, I realize it is really the story of one gardener and how he has, and I apologize for the repeated use of the term but it is so accurate, evolved. And I think that “evolvement” (sp?) is something people can relate to. You aren’t coming here to better understand soil compaction or how to root prune. You’re coming here to share in the pain of deer damage or to see if it is possible to have a garden solely composed of ornamental grasses or to see if Amsonia can withstand wet feet or how my experimental pruning of a shrub played out in the long run. Did I mention some pretty sweet photos too? This is my unique voice and one that couldn’t be shared prior to the creation of the “blog”. While I reference hardcore ‘how-to” or “fact filled” websites for garden info, nothing resonates more than reading about a real person and their unique/real garden experiences.

Which brings me back to that photo at the beginning of this post; that photo of an open seedpod of Asclepias incarnata (Swamp Milkweed). Not too long ago, I would have complained about the ugliness of that scene and how it was detracting from the beauty of my garden. But as time has elapsed over the years, I’ve come to appreciate exactly what is going on in this pic. I am proud to now fully understand the need to grow more Milkweed to aid in the production of nectar for the monarch butterfly. Actually, I am proud of the fact that I am “seeking” out information on milkweed and the monarch butterfly. Speaking of which, check out this article for a depressing take on the state of the monarch.

And let’s extend this further. The monarch example lends itself to a discussion on the use of native plants. This was something that I glossed over years ago but now find myself consumed with. Where I fall on the debate of using exclusively native plants vs some or even none is still falling into place. But it now has an impact on my gardening practices and that is a good thing, giving the landscape even deeper meaning. Yet again, I give you a great article on this topic that you can check out here. And be sure to read the comments after the article as well. Good back and forth.

So as we move forward and I write about a particular plant, I am going to shy away from the factual stuff; you can all find that out for yourself through a simple Google search. I am going to focus even more on my personal adventures with said plant and how it has affected me, both positively and negatively.

And f you Martha.

But before I go, a photographic reminder of why you MUST grow more milkweed.

Snow Snow Baby

Posted on December 11, 2013 by jmarkowski Posted in Winter interest .

First it was an ice storm, and then yesterday it was snow.

The kids were home from school and a little bit too giddy for my liking. Hell, if you look closely in the pic below, you’ll see they are actually enjoying each other’s company:

And check out the funny girl chucking a snow ball at me (How perfect is that snowball by the way? Look at the top middle of the photo):

As much as I have grown to despise the cold, there is no denying the beauty of the winter garden. A time for quiet reflection, a look at the bones of the landscape, the enjoyment of plants dying with dignity and with purpose and a chance to regain our breath.

For shits and giggles, check out the “afters” and “befores” below. Beauty in all of the seasons: