New Shade Garden Plants: Part 2

Yes, I know it’s bit insane when you consider how many new plants I’ve introduced at Sutherland this year. But in my defense, most were on sale, or purchased with my employee discount at the garden center. And a bit of review for the newer readers: we have spent the last several years painstakingly clearing, cleaning, and amending the property and soil so we could at long last begin the fun part– planting! The following concludes my list of shade loving plants that were incorporated into the garden this season. I hope you see something you like, or better yet, have some personal experience with any of them that you can share with me.

Hosta ‘Fire Island’

The brilliant yellow leaves of this Hosta really caught my attention earlier this spring. By summer, the leaves had turned chartreuse and the base of each leaf stained with red from the petioles. As this plant matures, it should develop rippled edges and just a touch of corrugation (already evident on some leaves). I’m a sucker for yellow and chartreuse in the shade garden.

Height: 10-14”

Spread: 15-30”

Exposure: Part shade, Full shade

Bloom time: Midsummer

Bloom color: Lavender shades

Water: Even moisture, regular

Hosta ‘Hollywood Lights’

Whenever I see a pretty green Hosta, I snatch it up. So often, the green plants take a back seat to the blue, yellow and variegated variaties. The asymmetry of the variegation is refreshing after seeing so many “perfect” specimens at leaf shows. Each leaf is distinctive with the interplay of dark green margins and chartreuse centers.

Height: 23”

Spread: 43”

Exposure: Part shade, Full shade

Bloom time: Midsummer

Bloom color: Pale Lavender shades

Water: Even moisture, regular

Hosta ‘Hyuga Urajiro’

I can hardly pronounce the name of this little guy! It’s by far the most unusual Hosta I have in the garden. The top side of the leaves are frost blue with fine yellow streaks while the underside have a metallic silver sheen. The blooms are fantastic on arching stems– white with just a hint of pink. I’m not a fan of streaked Hostas, but I had to give this odd plant a try.

Height: 8-10”

Spread: 14-16”

Exposure: Part shade, Full shade

Bloom time: Midsummer

Bloom color: White shades

Water: Even moisture, regular

Crytomium x fortunei - Fortune’s Cold Hardy Holly Fern

Can ferns be macho? I say yes, and tend to be drawn to those that appear more masculine. Fortune’s has tough-looking woodland style with strong upright form and holly-like leaf formations. A nice departure from the more dainty ferns, which tend to resemble green doilies in the garden.

Height: 18-24”

Spread: 15-18”

Exposure: Part shade, Full shade

Bloom time: NA

Bloom color: NA

Water: Even moisture, regular

Dryopteris erythrosoia - Autumn Fern or Japanese Shield Fern

When I created my first Hosta bed, I envisioned a collection of mostly Hostas sprinkled with an occasional Hellebore and some gold grasses for contrast. As the bed grew, so did my appetite for differing plants, and dare I say color? I really like the contrasting warm tones on the new fronds of the Autumn Fern against the many shades of green, gold, and blue from the neighboring plants.

Height: 12-18”

Spread: 12-18”

Exposure: Part shade, Full shade

Bloom time: NA

Bloom color: NA

Water: Even moisture, regular

Polystichum polyblepharum - Tassel Fern 

Maybe what I really want is a fern garden!? Here’s another fern that I’ve introduced to the Hosta garden. The Tassel Fern is all about texture. It’s a sturdy fern with luscious shiny dark green fronds that bend backward after they emerge. The word “polyblepharum” means “many eyelashes.” Oh, and did I mention, deer resistant?

Height: 18-24”

Spread: 12-15”

Exposure: Part shade, Full shade

Bloom time: NA

Bloom color: NA

Water: Even moisture, regular

Euphorbia x martinii ‘Ascot Rainbow’

This was a great find! It looked terrific in the pot and has just gotten better and better since it’s been in the ground– even through the drought. The foliage and bracts are stunning in shades of cream, lime, and green. As the weather cools, the ends should become red, orange, and pink shades. Chalk this up as an excellent heat and drought tolerant plant. Technically not a ‘shade’ plant, it resides in sunny area within the shade garden.

Height: 20”

Spread: 20”

Exposure: Full Sun, Part Shade

Bloom time: Late spring

Bloom color: Multicolored

Water: Low to Average water needs

Heuchera ‘Plum Pudding’

As noted in a previous post, I’ve planted around 40 of these in one mass planting. I’m a big fan of purple/burgundy foliage plants. I find the lovely plum-purple leaves with dark purple veins on this Heuchera quite sumptuous. It blooms in white/cream shades, but I find the flowers on most Heuchera quite distracting, so I cut them off immediately after they bloom. Looking forward to a big batch of plum pudding next spring.

Height: 8-10”

Spread: 12-16”

Exposure: Full Sun, Full shade

Bloom time: Late spring to midsummer

Bloom color: White shades

Water: Average water needs

Heuchera ‘Purple Petticoats’

The photo your are looking at was not taken by me. It’s actually from the Terra Nova website, where I learned that ‘Purple Petticoats’ placed first for winter foliage at a top horticultural show during one of Holland’s toughest winters. The frilly edges of the leaves are accentuated by the clinging frost. I hope to witness this chilly effect in my own garden this coming winter.

Height: 12”

Spread: 24”

Exposure: Full Sun to Part Shade

Bloom time: Spring

Bloom color: White shades

Water: Average water needs

Shade Gardening with Hostas

It recently occurred to me that the thing that got me into ornamental gardening is the thing I rarely talk about on my blog– Hostas. A few years ago, I was perusing a White Flower Farm catalog when I came across a photo that ignited something in me. That image led me to create my very first self-expressed garden.

I set out to recreate that Hosta garden using the same collection of plants pictured in that photo. Since then, I have branched out on my own, trying new plants here and there, but the original plants have more or less become the bones of my Hosta garden. Here are a few of my Hostas today.

Hosta ‘Liberty’

 

Hosta ‘Blue Angel’

Hosta ‘Pineapple Upsidedown Cake’

Hosta ‘Risky Business’

Hosta ‘Stained Glass’

Hosta ‘Lancifolia’ 

As you can see, I don’t get all crazy and collect rare plants– I’m not that kind of gardener. In fact, many of my plants are ordinary specimens that can be found anywhere. And every now and then, a friend will point me in a new direction and I’ll try something different at their request, but I can honestly say that I don’t derive any pleasure from boasting about my rare-hard-to-find-aren’t-you-jealous-of-me plants.

Why garden with Hostas?

Generations of gardening enthusiasts have turned to Hostas as the “backbone” of their garden and landscape designs. Here’s why: Hostas tolerate shade. Hostas are low maintenance. Hostas have a three-season presence. Hostas blend beautifully with other perennials, annuals, trees, and shrubs. Space limitations need not discourage you from gardening with Hostas as many are suitable for growing in containers as well.

I hope to share more Hosta growing tips through the season. Until then, happy shade gardening!

Going Green

Don’t worry! This isn’t the post where I rant and rave about sustainability and recycling. Instead, I simply want to celebrate summer’s arrival and celebrate the color green. Please enjoy the images that I captured today after mowing the lawn for the 13th time (yes, I’m counting). 

A view of the backyard after mowing. For some odd reason, there were no mature trees on the East side of the back yard when we moved to Sutherland. We’ve added four new trees this spring and two of them are visible (barely) on the right side of this image. The northernmost tree is a Golden Dawn Redwood, Metasequoia glyptostroboides Ogon. Below that is ‘O isami’ Full Moon Maple, Acer japonicum ‘O isami’.

I love the giant heart-shaped leaves of the old Catalpa tree. The leaves remind me of Hosta leaf forms. Sitting beneath its canopy always transports me and I am transfixed for the duration.

This is a ‘borrowed view’ of the Catalpa as its trunk sits just over the property line. The tree has a strong lean to the South and receives quite a bit of attention from visitors because of its impressive form and stature. The extremely large leaves provide very dark shade.

The Hostas are sporting wonderful shades of green. The excessive rainfall and mild climate has kept them lush and growing. Hopefully the temperature will remain balmy. Hot temperatures combined with humidity and moisture are a recipe for Crown Rot Disease which can destroy the entire plant and contaminate the soil. For more information on this fungal disease, click here to read a publication by Iowa State University Extension.

A detail of a dwarf Japanese Juniper, Juniperus procumbens ‘Nana’. The new foliage is bright green and turns to a bluish green as it matures. Travels to Asia during my corporate career really ignited an appreciation for all plants native to Asia.

We’re very excited to introduce this new groundcover to Sutherland. Over the past 6 months I’ve become very interested in Epimedium, also known as Barrenwort. Some people call it Horny Goat Weed, but I can’t say that without smirking. A large majority of Epimedium are native to southern China. We specifically chose a variety recommended for it’s ability to survive in dry shade, but in all our excitement, we failed to notice that not one of the 3 flats purchased had tags in them. Not to worry. We now have a great excuse to go back to Arrowhead Alpines to solve the mystery and get more!

Even the herbs are in on the green act. The luscious leaves of this Chervil plant are great with vegetables as well as salad, soup, chicken, white fish, and egg dishes. It has a lovely parsley-like flavor with a hint of aniseed. Personally, I love it on new potatoes with butter. Grown outside and positioned in semishade, it is a “cut and come again” herb.

Pipe-hittin’ Gardener

Are garden catalogs the “crack” of avid gardeners?  I find them to be a highly addictive and powerful stimulant that deliver an intensity of pleasure beyond the bounds of normal human experience. And throw in good photography? Well, you might as well be speedballing.

But seriously, I’m pretty darn sure that it was a photograph in a White Flower Farm catalog that sent me over the edge. I used to get that catalog, or “the pusher” as I now refer to it, for many years. Then one spring, a featured Hosta collection caught my eye. That single image of the most spectacular grouping sent me into euphoria. A high like no other I had ever experienced.

I’ll never forget that summer. Racing around to every garden center like a desperate crack whore, pouring through hoop house after hoop house, trying to fulfill my plant list. Damn that catalog! They say crack cocaine is a substance that affects the brain chemistry of the user, but it’s no match for Hostas. Thus, my education into the life of an addict began. I was addicted to gardening.

From a first time user’s perspective, the garden turned out remarkably well (shown above). Three years have since passed and I still can’t escape the intense desire to recapture the initial high. Time to hit the pipe again. The Seed Savers Exchange catalog has just arrived.

P.S.  I don’t really use and I have the waistline to prove it.

The Importance of Mapping

It’s no secret. I’m fastidious about certain things. I’ve been gardening about 4 years now and from the beginning, I instinctively started documenting where and when I planted things. At first, my ‘maps’ were simple black and white drawings from hand. As the garden grew and changed, I became more and more obsessed about how I could accurately keep records of everything that was going on. It’s a work in progress, but I think I have the mapping part down.

Throughout the growing season, I make notes and draw on plain paper with a pen or pencil. Less obsessive gardeners can stop there. Since I have a graphic design background, I utilize some fancier tools to finalize the hand drawn maps. Adobe Illustrator is my program of choice because it allows me to work in layers. I can easily turn layers off and on with the click of the mouse to focus on particular aspects of the map. Sometimes I need to zero in on utility lines. Sometimes I only want to see the trees and shrubs, or maybe the hardscape only. If you’re inclined to use a computer, I suspect that any basic drawing program would do just fine. Just remember to save early and save often.

Just use circles to signify a plant on the map. I try to chart in the approximate size of full mature spread. ‘Mature Spread’ simply means how wide the plant is expected to be at full maturity. The circles will help you plan for size and quantity as you begin to plan for new additions. Other great reasons for mapping include:

Locate Individual Plants and Structures  Ever forget the name of something? Chart it on your map and you’ll always have a record of it. Chart where the gas or water line is before the backhoe digs in, etc.

Chart and Compare Growth  Keep notes in the margins or in a separate document to compare changes from year to year.

Document Color Grouping  Color in the circles can signify foliage or bloom colors. This is particularly useful for grouping by color which helps provide visual continuity.

Plan for Future Additions  Know where you have blank space and designate proper quantities. Not sure what to plant? Take your map with you to the garden center or nursery so they can fully understand your site.

Consider Space Limitations  Be familiar with mature height and spread before you plant. Draw it on the map first and see if it fits. It’s easier to move a circle around than it is a Dogwood tree.

Locate and Mark Problematic Areas  Document areas where plants don’t thrive and mark this on your map. Investigate the reasons and keep records of your amendments.

These are just a few reasons I find it useful to draw maps of the garden. If the task seems daunting and you don’t know quite where to start, here’s a tip: capture an image of your property with Google Earth and use it as a guideline. Oh, and if you ever move, be sure to leave a version with any of the plants you leave behind charted on it. I wish someone had done so for us when we moved in!