Soil Organic Matter

http://www.soilandhealth.org/01aglibrary/010120albrecht.usdayrbk/lsom.html

Interesting article on soil organic matter.

Master Gardener

http://milwaukee.uwex.edu/mg/index.cfm

I mailed in my application to become a master gardener today.

$140 for a 13-week course.

If I get in, because space is limited.

And if I pass the background check.

Hardy plants for hardy souls

http://www.coldclimategardening.com/

Interesting web site.

Drama Queen

I always wanted to grow opium poppies.

Papaver somniferum 'Drama Queen'

https://www.anniesannuals.com/signs/p%20-%20r/papaver_dqp.htm

http://rosecottagegarden.blogspot.com/2007/06/drama-queen-poppy.html

Chihuly

The Desert Botanical Garden is excited to announce the upcoming exhibition by renowned artist, Dale Chihuly. The exhibit will feature new and unique works of glass sculpture located along the Garden’s trails. The exhibition will open Saturday, November 22, 2008 and remain until May 31, 2009.

“The Desert Botanical Garden is thrilled to host the beautiful work of Dale Chihuly in our magnificent desert environment,” said Garden executive director, Kenneth J. Schutz. “I am excited to see his work, with its colors and textures, placed amid the amazing palate of our desert plants. This is Chihuly’s first exhibition of his works in a desert garden environment, and is certain to be enjoyed by all residents and visitors to the Valley of the Sun.”

- Desert Botanical Garden (link here)

We visited the exhibition on Saturday, November 22, 2008 and it was excellent.

Shaina

Incredible, eye-catching red foliage all summer turning beautiful crimson-red in fall.

Unusual dwarf, bushy, tufted habit and spectacular foliage! Originally discovered as a witch's broom mutation on the popular Japanese Maple 'Bloodgood', the leaves of 'Shaina' are the same dark red all summer, but are clumped in masses for a lovely tufted look. When fall arrives the showy foliage simply intensifies, turning brilliant shades of crimson-red.

Especially choice shrubs or small trees, Japanese Maples are magnificent in form and foliage, delicately textured in spring and summer, and, in many cases, unequalled in fall color. Very tolerant of heat and humidity, they add year-round interest to the garden. Their beauty increases with age making them a lifetime investment in the landscape.

Wayside is pleased to offer this choice Japanese Maple, a proven performer in American gardens. Expect it to grow 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide within 6 to 8 years. Plant in sun to part shade and well-drained, but evenly moist soil. Zones 5-8.

- Wayside Gardens (link here)

Added to my wish list.

Chestnuts

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/food/foodanddrink/sns-fdcook3-wk4,0,4463796.story

Interesting article on chestnuts and chestnut trees.

Refers to Susan Freinkel's excellent book on chestnuts which I read and greatly enjoyed.

Recent plantings

Planted the following seeds & seed mixes:

1 oz Shady Area Wildflower Seed Mix (Wildlife Nurseries)

1 oz Bird 'n Butterfly Mix (Wildlife Nurseries)

1 lb Fall Maximum Mix (American Meadows)

Miscellaneous seeds given to me by generous neighbors

3 pkg. Wild cucumber (from Yuko)

1 ziplock bag Silver Dollar (from Hales Corners Historical Society)

Recent plantings

1 Belgian Mum 'Camina'

1 Belgian Mum 'Pobo Lavender'

1 Belgian Mum 'Remos Lilac'

Silky Fleece

The most irresistible Lamb's Ear ever, this delightful plant is covered with fine, silky silver hairs that glisten in garden or container. The rounded, super-soft foliage is held almost straight up on low-growing, dense, evergreen plants that spread nearly a foot wide and make a charming ground cover. Add to all this the spectacle of long, colorful lavender bloom wands in midsummer, and you have a splendid year-round accent for any sunny to lightly shaded spot!

The fuzzy foliage is just made for touching, so be sure to plant Silky Fleece where you can enjoy its fine texture and soft, silvery color up close. Bees and butterflies adore this plant, and it asks very little from you aside from regular watering during periods of drought. Best in low-humidity climates, if stressed it will sulk a bit, then rebound. Silky Fleece is very long-lived and adaptable, not at all the delicate plant it appears to be!

Don't miss this exquisite new Lamb's Ear for your garden and best containers. It will repay very little effort with many seasons of beauty. Zones 5-8.

- Park Seed (link here)

Added to my wish list.

Garden Paths

http://mptv.org/garden_paths/index.php

I try to watch Garden Paths whenever I get the chance (Saturday mornings on the Milwaukee PBS affiliate station).

They have some interesting segments, particularly those hosted by Horticulturist Melinda Myers.

Monches Farm

http://www.monchesfarm.com/index.html

Yet another area attraction that I have never visited.

Crushed oyster shells

An excellent source of calcium, these shells are a must for the veggie garden. They are also known to sweeten the soil (i.e., increase the pH), improve drainage, help keep slugs away and increase organic matter. Smashed oyster shells are particularly useful when planting squash, tomatoes, lavender or lilacs. Simply crush the dry shells with a hammer or brick (be sure to use safety glasses and gloves).

- Garden Wise (link here)

I might have to try this. I can get a 50-pound bag of crushed oyster shells at the local farm supply store for about $10.

Sequim Rare Plants

http://www.sequimrareplants.com/

They offer some interesting selections.

The variegated lily of the valley is just gorgeous.

Recent plantings

100 Crocus tommasinianus 'Roseus'

100 Crocus species mixture

100 Tulip clusiana var Chrysantha

This brings the fall total to 797 bulbs.

Groundcovers

I have to admit that groundcovers require a certain amount of work; despite the advertisements, there is no such thing as a no-maintenance solution. The soil around the plants needs to be weeded occasionally and replenished yearly with compost.

- Organic Gardening (link here)

One of the great understatements of all time.

Garden Girl TV

http://www.gardengirltv.com/

Interesting web site with lots of information.

Aster divaricatus

http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=H170

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/wildflowers/aster_divaricatus.html

An aster that thrives in the woodland garden.

Definitely on my wish list.

Baby Joe

Eupatorium Baby Joe

http://www.dutchbulbs.com/store/perennials/65641

Definitely on my wish list.

Cobra

Nasturtium majus 'Cobra'

It's finally available - and ONLY from Thompson & Morgan! Our flower breeders won a Fleuroselect Novelty mark back in 1999 for this beautiful new variety, but it has taken some years to build up the seed stock to be able to offer it to our customers. The bushy, dark-leaved plants will quickly trail through borders or over the sides of containers and baskets, whilst the contrasting dark red, double blooms, exclusive to this variety, make Cobra a spectacular 'must-have' for your garden this summer!

- Thompson & Morgan (link here)

My resolution is to plant more nasturtiums next year, and this is definitely one to try.

Black Dragon

Breathe a little hot color into the shade border or sunny window this season with 'Black Dragon', an unusually richly-textured, warmly-colored foliage plant. Compact, very showy, and easy to grow, it's a must-have for anyone with a patch of shade (or empty flowerpot!) to call their own!

The leaves are spectacular, both for their red-to-midnight-purple color shading and their rippling edges, which give the plant much more presence than most Coleus. The leaves will turn color and begin to pucker at a very early age, making this one of the most fun seeds to start indoors. (For even fuller, bushier plants, pinch back the young tips a few times during the growth season.) I sowed a packet of 'Black Dragon' in successive waves about a month apart, just to enjoy the young leaves that much longer!

- Park Seed (link here)

I have to try this.

Recent plantings

1 Giant Allium

5 Gladiator Alliums

8 Woodstock Hyacinths

7 Mixed Hyacinths

40 Mixed Dutch Iris

10 Tulipa tarda (species tulips, recommended for naturalizing)

This brings the fall bulb total to 497.

Firefly

Plant Patent #11,038. Whether your garden needs some vertical color and fragrance, groundcover beauty, or even a neatly-trimmed flowering shrub, 'Firefly' can do the trick! This rare variegated form of Climbing Hydrangea is easy to grow, very dependable, and just about the most beautiful sight in the spring garden.

The leaves are heart-shaped and glossy green, emerging with a bright yellow outline in spring. By late spring and into summer, they are joined by large "lacecap" blooms of creamy-white. These consist of an inner circle of tiny flowers surrounded by an outer ring of much larger, open florets. Fragrant and long-lasting, they are superb for cutting, and will perfume the entire garden.

'Firefly' is usually grown as a climbing vine, reaching 25 feet long and about 3 to 4 feet wide. Its most dramatic presence is upward along tree trunks and into overhanging branches, but it also blankets unsightly fences and other structures, or scrambles across the ground. It can even be grown as a shrub about 3 to 4 feet tall and wide, provided you keep it pruned. Such versatility!

This vine is deciduous, but it's hard to mourn the passing of its leaves in winter, for this season reveals its fascinating peeling cinnamon-brown bark. It takes a season or two to become established in your garden, and then sets to work, adding about 2 feet of growth every year. No pruning is necessary unless you like; it thrives in any well-drained soil receiving full sun (farther north) to partial shade (farther south). Discovered by Dan Benarcik in New England, it is one of the most exciting new plants to grace the garden. Enjoy! Zones 4-7.

- Park Seed (link here)

Black Hills Spruce

Picea glauca var. densata

http://www.2shoptrees.com/blackhillsspruce.htm

http://www.arborday.org/treeguide/TreeDetail.cfm?id=174

http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/forestservice/towner_nur/bh_spruce.htm

Sorbaria 'Sem'

Sem is an improvement in just about every way over older Sorbaria varieties. Compact, better-branched, and more dense than others, it creates a tight, bushy little mound in the garden, making a fine low hedge or accent planting as well as a shrub border standout. Next, it offers pinkish-red spring leaves that turn chartreuse and remain that way till frost. Finally, it covers itself with white blooms over a long summer season. Elegant, space-saving, and beautiful!

Sem forms a neat 3-by-3-foot shrub in the partly shaded garden, adding great texture to the garden. Not "patchy" or "thin" like other Sorbarias, it covers itself first in foliage, then in charming blooms that last from midsummer till season's end.

This shrub is easy to grow and quite adaptable, thriving in any well-drained soil. It is especially valuable for northern climates. Zones 2-7.

- Wayside Gardens (link here)