Garden Writers Workshop

I was lucky enough to be invited to the fifth annual Garden Writers Workshop at Midwest Groundcovers located in St. Charles, Illinois http://www.midwestgroundcovers.com/  They are an industry leader in the propagation, growing and wholesale distribution of nursery stock and deliver all over the Midwest.

It was a beautiful day and we began with a presentation on native plants and how important they are to our environment.  We saw how a formal garden can easily incorporate natives without looking unkempt or wild.

Another presentation was on Butterfly Habitats and no matter how much we thought we knew about butterflies we learned much more!

As we walked out on the patio to begin our tour of the gardens this field of grass greeted us.  I was so impressed by the glory of it I didn't ask the variety of this grass in the distance. 

Sunjoy Gold Pillar Barberry

Our guide loved this variety because it contains all of the fall colors.

Sporobolus heterolepis Tara

More upright than Prairie Dropseed

Blue Heaven Little Bluestem

I know many of us have read Piet Oudolf's books and seen photos of his gardens.  But, I have to tell you that after reading his design book over and over it all came to life and understanding when we walked over to see his gardens.

If one has learned anything from studying the Piet Oudolf gardens is that you cannot look at them and see a patterned or programmed design.  However, there is repetition but it is so subtle it looks like this garden occurred naturally.

We are seeing this garden in the fall, not at its peak but always interesting.  Piet came in this year and decided which plants should be removed and replaced with more appropriate varieties.  I loved this because don't we all do this when something is not working.  He is big on getting rid of plantings which become invasive.

Calamagrastis brachytricha

This is a feather reed grass like Karl Foerster, will tolerate some shade.  This grass is repeated in the background of the Piet Oudolf garden

Aster October Skies

Calamintha nepeta

Amsonia Hubrichtii

As we walked over to the island area the blazing red of the sumac caught my eye.  I had not seen this variety before.

Rhus Prairie Flame

Viburnum  Redwing

Aronia Iroquois Beauty

We walked on to a large stretch of hydrangeas with their fall color and characteristics on display.  I must say that the Limelight Hydrangea was the most beautiful and pleasing

This Limelight Hydrangea which has been out in an open field is much more tan than mine.

This grass was introduced to us as Miscanthus Little Kitten, but I wonder if it isn't Adagio, seemed much too big to be Little Kitten.  Oh well I guess I will find out because I have Little Kitten in my front garden!

Sedum Jaws

Sedum Mr. Goodbud

Viburnum Nudum

Molina Poul Pederson

Molina grasses are often overlooked as being too sparse but they are wonderful grasses to plant as "see through" grasses that add a floating feeling to the garden.

A beautiful planting of Rozanne Geranium

This is Allium Summer Peekaboo which will be introduced in 2014.  You are not seeing the flower at this time of year but you can see how compact it is and blooms later than many other alliums.

This is a Veronia that has no immediate plans for introduction because it is so slow to propogate.

These were our gifts as we left, Panicum Northwind, Maidenhair Fern and Anemone .

It was a wonderful day, wonderful tours, presentations, lunch and a great appreciation for garden writers and bloggers.  It was such fun to meet some of the Chicago area writers whom I had only known by name.

Thanks Midwest Groundcovers!

***Header is Prairie Dropseed

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Around The Garden

We haven't been around the garden in a while so I thought before there is nothing to show, I would take a stroll.

The alley garden is a work in progress.  I have learned that when anything is planted against a structure it tends to lean forward and needs to be supported to look its best.  The grasses were ringed this year along with the Centranthus.  I will be doing the same with the agastache next spring.  If nepeta Walker's Low is cut back after blooming it will rebloom in the fall.

Eupatorium Chocolate is a welcome sight in the fall, used to cover a utility in this case.  The leaves are a dark burgundy all summer but then turn lighter when flowering, wishds they stayed dark!

Clematis Barbara Jackman planted by the back gate is new and putting out its first bloom.

Who knew cabbages could be so pretty in the hayracks on the shed.

In the planters by the garage

Home Run Rose is developing hips and is supposed to keep flowering unlike other roses.

Pansies are so great in the fall and will survive through a frost.  In the colder areas they must be purchased in a larger size or you will not get much flowering before they freeze.

I love the mahogany color but they do not name this pansy and put them in baskets with multiple colors.

I noticed I had a ruffled one in the hayracks, again no name because it was included in a basket mix.

You can see in this photo why it is called Knockout Rainbow.  The colors change as it first blooms in a darker peach, then pink and finally into a very pale pink.

The geranium is a common summer annual and many seasoned gardeners tend to avoid it.  However, it is a plant that goes lightly into the fall continuing to bloom and withstanding light frosts.

Ninebark Summer Wine a little sad looking in its Proven Winners pot from Home Depot, the only one I could find.  I am adding this to the other three that I have along the north side front garden.  I have decided not to clip it back at this time or I will lose any flower buds that it might have.

This is one of my previously planted Ninebark Summer Wine clipped a few times before August 1, for shaping.

I have moved Amsonia Northwind Select to this area.  They look pretty meager right now, hope they fill out next year.  I am going to have some bluestone moved to go around the Magnolia in this area so I can't plant too much at this point until I see what I have available.

Now the Gerber Daisy decides to bloom!  Even though it is a striking flower I will not grow this again.

Heuchera Autumn Leaves, don't they all begin to look alike?  I have put these on the north side front behind the Amsonia.

Fall Around The Neighborhood

I woke up this morning and all of a sudden realized fall was upon us!  Looking up I saw the trees turning color. I had not noticed how vivid they were until today, reds, golds, yellows and even browns and purples.

This wonderful tree is across the street from me.

This one is next door.

We try so hard in the colder areas to have at least three seasons of bloom and this is certainly achievable with some planning and four seasons are possible by adding structures and enjoying the plantings that can be left up over the winter.

Hydrangea Limelight
The flower heads will continue to dry and do hold up throughout the winter.

Looking South in the Fall Border

Yellow line in the middle is the umpteenth time the gas company has marked off for new repiping!  It doesn't seem to matter that we are a newer home with new piping!

The Miscanthus Udine plumes are coming into full bloom against the fall sky.

Panicum Northwind is developing seed heads and turning color.
This is a grass that will also stand straight during the winter.

Penstemon Hamlin
Looks great all winter

The border looking north shows daylilies that have been cut down and rejuvenated, Southern Comfort Heuchera, Greenstem Forsythia and Dark Horse Weigela.

Bronze Mums and aster in the front garden,  Crotons will not last in the fall garden.  I see many of them in nursery fall planters.  They do not do well below fifty degrees and I hate to tell you what happens below that!

I have to admit that Mums give that punch of color to the fall garden.

The Rudbeckias look great with the fall colors.

The cabbages have their own beauty as they open up.

I stopped and took this photo as I was driving through the neighborhood, very effective use of mums and cabbages together.

This is Aster Purple Dome and has never looked good for me, bare on the bottom, eaten by the rabbits and just tattered looking all season.

I am growing a last crop of lettuce in containers on my patio.  Anything edible planted in the veggie garden was eaten by the rabbits as soon as they sprouted.

Eva Cullum Phlox is a later and longer blooming variety.

Franz Schubert is an early blooming phlox but is still going.

There is nothing like the roses in the fall garden.  This is Pink Promise an All America Winner a few years ago.  However, it is very tall, over five feet.

Roses single and double Knockout, they add color like no other fall flower!

Rainbow Knockout

Pink Knockout

David Austin's Mary Rose

Home Run Rose Pink