The Obsessive Neurotic Gardener

Talking “ugly”

Posted on by Posted in Uncategorized .
When I returned home from vacation last week, I was pleasantly surprised that everything in the garden held up well. Of course, we were fortunate enough to have extensive rain over that 10 day period, but all things considered, I was digging my garden.
Until I didn’t  …
I like to take a gentlemanly stroll through the yard each evening and reconnect with my plants. It is a means of relaxation and a quick assessment of what needs to be worked on (answer = everything) in the near future. Some nights however, turn dark quickly as I get frustrated with “what isn’t working”.  When that hits, I want to set all of my plants on fire and start over. Yes, it’s irrational, but it happens and there isn’t anything I can do to fight it off.
Let’s take last night as an example. 
I make a right turn out of my garage and immediately I am drawn to this mess on my right:          

There has been poison ivy growing within the bowels of my Russian Sage for three years now and I’ve yet to do a thing about it. Scratch that, I think there is poison ivy growing there but I haven’t confirmed it. But I can’t take my chances reaching in there and making contact with the evil being to then require steroids to survive the oozing rash the next day.

So other than bringing in a backhoe to rip it all out, I am paralyzed by indecision. I’m hoping one day I’ll just get frustrated enough and throw caution to the wind and jump into this mess with a hazmat suit on and pull it all out, itchiness be damned.

Next we approach the back deck and all it takes is one perennial on its death bed to set me off again:       

This horrifying looking Bee Balm greets you as you walk up the steps of the deck. Welcome to my home and my collection of dead looking things. What is so frustrating is that the other two Bee Balms nearby look great so this one is a mystery. I did scratch the soil near the base of the plant and could see new growth so it isn’t beyond hope and it will most likely be OK, but in the short term, homie is pissed off.

Speaking of “pissed off”, I had such high hopes for my Serviceberry ‘Autumn Brilliance’ when it was planted a few years ago. White flowers in early spring, berries for the birds in summer, orange/gold foliage in fall (hence the name) and even an interesting multi-trunk for winter interest. What I missed in the sales pitch was the bare legs it would have almost all year round:     

Yes the flowers are great:

And the autumn color is solid:

But those bare legs leave a lot to be desired. I have done some reading and further research to determine if this is the nature of this tree/shrub and it appears it is to some degree, but typically not this bad. I am willing to wait it out a bit, but it sticks out like a sore thumb as I enter my driveway each and every day.

Son of a …

And finally, let’s talk dull and green:    

This bed is right at the entrance to my front walkway and nothing says “this dude is boring” like this painfully uninteresting spot.

In spring, there was a lot more color and interest: 

 

But as of now, it fails miserably. How I let this happen is a mystery but I am so determined to change it and to change it soon. Maybe I just need to focus on colorful annuals each year or maybe we’re talking overhaul here. Only time will tell.

And there you have it.

Quite the spoonful of negativity, eh? It makes me feel better to have it out in the open and hopefully forces me to take action in the interest of this blog.

My apologies in advance if I brought you down with me.

John     

MLB All-Star FanFest

Posted on by Posted in Baseball .

As I mentioned in a previous post, my son and I went to the MLB All-Star FanFest yesterday. It was an amazing time and my son still hasn’t stopped smiling.

So please forgive me today for a truly non-gardening post.  

Birthday gift

Ready to take advantage of all they have to offer  

Former Mets pitcher Sid Fernandez

Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry

Former Met 2B and current 3B coach Tim Teufel 

One of my favorite players from my younger years, Fred Lynn 

Howard Johnson (aka HoJo), a fave Met from the 1986 World Series champion team  

The infamous Met closer from back in the day, Jesse Orosco 

My personal fave pic, Jack with New York sports radio personality “Mad Dog” Russo 

A Cal Ripken spotting

“The Wizard”, Ozzie Smith

New York sportswriter, author and radio host, Mike Lupica 

Sweet Jose Reyes shoes

Jack with his hero, David Wright

Couldn’t get close enough to see him in person, so watched David Wright on the big screen

One last pic from an incredible day

Back to gardening tomorrow, pinky swear.

John

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day – July

Posted on by Posted in Blooms .
We just returned from a ten day vacation down south and my son and I are off to the MLB All Star Game Fanfest in New York City, so I am not really capable of full sentences at this point.
I’ll be back in full swing in just a few days.    
Until then, here are some current pics from the garden as much has changed in only a week and a half:   ï»¿

“Prune in June” – Sneezeweed

Posted on by Posted in How-to, Perennials, Pruning .
Quick one today as I continue with my 2nd year of doing the “Prune in June” series.
I cut back one Sneezeweed (Helenium) by 1/2 in mid June last year hoping it would bloom without falling over. Here is that plant a few weeks later:  
After further review, this was due to really poor drainage in this spot more than anything else.
Another Sneezeweed that was cut back by 1/2 bloomed at a much smaller height and did manage to stay upright.
A third plant was left untouched but had sufficient support when it bloomed at close to four feet tall.
Now we fast forward to 2013. 
The Sneeezeweed that was located in poor drainage has been moved to a new spot, chowed down multiple times by a family of rabbits and will not be part of this pruning experiment.
The other two have been cut back by 1/2 a few weeks later than last year:    

Now we kick back and wait.
John 

“Prune in June” – Boltonia

Posted on by Posted in How-to, Perennials, Pruning .

Here in zone 6B New Jersey, Boltonia typically blooms in late August/September and any blooms that time of year cannot be understated. They have a fantastic flower color and can be statuesque if situated in the right spot where they can be supported by other plants.

Unfortunately, I have struggled to get these perennials to NOT topple over once in full bloom:   

Last year, I finally took things into my own hands and cut them back by 1/2 in early June. By the time they started blooming in September, they were about a foot shorter than normal at 2 1/2 feet:   

The results were a marked improvement from prior years but I still think I can do better and keep them even more upright.
So this year, I waited two weeks longer before cutting the three Boltonia back by 1/2:
Now we wait and see if this will make a difference at all.
Have a great weekend.
John  

“Prune in June” is back – Sedum ‘Autumn Fire’

Posted on by Posted in How-to, Perennials, Pruning .

Last June, I started my “Prune in June” series covering perennials I cut or pinched back in June to control the ultimate height and/or look of said perennials. June has come and gone already, but I logged my cutting back of these same perennials to once again closely analyze the results.

Today, we are talking Sedum ‘Autumn Fire’ but my guess is this same approach can be applied to other upright Sedum cultivars.

As a recap, here is what a pinched plant looked like by late Summer:

And a photo of an unpinched one:

A pinched plant in October:

And again, an un-pinched plant at that same time:

As you can see, the pinched plant bloomed later (by about 1 – 2 weeks) and provided extended color deeper into the Fall. That works for me.

The number of blooms on each stem was also greater on the pinched back plant which gave the Sedum a “fuller” look. Again, a win.

So for 2013, I pinched back each and every bud on each and every Sedum ‘Autumn Fire’ plant. Here is how they looked pre-pinching:

And how they now look post-pinching:

As I did last year, I’ll be tracking the results throughout the Summer/Fall. This is life changing info we all need and I am here to provide just that for you.

You are most welcome.

John

Big time clean-up

Posted on by Posted in Uncategorized .

Two big “projects” have been completed and I am enjoying kicking back and enjoying the fruits of my (and maybe some others) labor.

This area under the only mature tree on my property has been a mess since we moved in to the house back in 2004:

So there was no better time than now to take action. Lots of weed pulling, weed digging, cardboard laying, limb trimming and mulching later, and we have this:

The kids playground area has admittedly been ignored for two years now (Yes, I am a selfish SOB) and I am embarrassed to actually show you how bad it got:

Well, Dad has made it OK to slide down the slide again and dammit, the kids better take advantage before it falls into disarray again:

So now I’ll kick back on the deck and simply stare at these two wonders … and pray I can maintain them this way.

John

Deep thoughts … about plants

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A quick tour around the garden and some subsequent thoughts:

Back to the container attempts again.

This time I’m trying a variegated Weigela with some purple petunias at the base. Kind of digging how it will potentially look once the Weigela starts to gain some size:

Picked up these dahlias real cheap, loving the dark foliage color and the bright blooms. Not normally my color scheme or style but I’m all about branching out and trying new things in my old age:

Yes, I’m cheating by using a knockout rose, but my daughter sees pink roses and thinks I’m a star. She’ll never know the difference:

The foliage looks fantastic on this Hydrangea ‘Endless Summer’ but dammit the blooms are severely lacking:

I swore I would never buy another Arborvitae but got suckered in by the variegated-like foliage on ‘Sherwood Frost’. We’ll be keeping an eye on this one to see how it performs:

Along those same lines, loving my ‘Moon Frost’ Hemlock and its white new growth. Lights up this spot when shaded in the afternoon:

Remember my ‘Endless Summer’ issue mentioned before, no issues on this one:

They are fleeting, but the red berries on this Viburnum ‘Shoshoni’ are a nice bonus I’ve been afforded the past three years now:

‘Fragrant Angel’ Coneflowers about to bloom:

And hot damn, do I love Amsonia. That texture is off the charts and I have been steadily adding more and more throughout the yard:

Enjoy the weekend!

John

Wordless Wednesday

The Garden of Dorothy and John Meggitt

Posted on by Posted in Local, Public Garden .
Today I am sharing photos from another garden I toured on Saturday as part of The Garden Conservancy’s “Open Days Program”. This one – The Garden of Dorothy and John Meggitt – is located in New Hope, PA and well, let me share the description of the garden with you right from the Garden Conservancy website:   

John and Dorothy Meggitt have a love of English gardens, so theirs overflows with perennials and specimen trees. The garden is approached across Pidcock Creek and up a hill where it presents itself as a wonderful surprise. It lies on the side of a valley and is designed so that views of Solebury Mountain can be enjoyed. The hillside is terraced with stone stairs, dry stone walls, and a pergola, so there are numerous places to sit, including a secluded belvedere. There is a water garden with hardy lilies, lotus, and many marginal plants. This is home to specimen koi and a large school of goldfish. A growing collection of significant statuary adds further interest. Much of the ten-acre property is in its natural state to provide a habitat for wildlife and can be explored by trails that lead to the creek.

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

On to the pics:

Damn, I have work to do on mine.
John