GardenDesignOnline

The Sea and Me

When you're getting ready to depart the heat and humidity of DC (said to be the closest equivalent of New Delhi in the summer) and head to the coast for the summer, you suddenly realize once again that it takes special talent to design a garden that can withstand salt air, wind, and very sandy soil.  Seascape Gardening (Storey Publishing) by Anne Halpin, with simply gorgeous photos by Roger Foley, is much more than just a guide to the how-to's of ocean-scape gardens.

It's an inspirational look at seaside gardens from New England to the Carolinas.  It includes a garden inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright on Kiawah Island, SC, and designed by Clyde Timmons of DesignWorks in Charleston. Clean lines and trailing plants abound and architectural features of the house are pulled out into the landscape.  A narrow lot in Edgartown, MA, designed by Robbie Hutchison of Donaroma's Nursery is elegant and colorful and captures the vision and spirit of the owner. On Long Island, Edwina von Gal uses a spare and simple plan with ornamental grasses and native perennials to evoke the natural landscape. Captivating designs by landscape architects Mario Nievera of Palm Beach and James van Sweden of Washington DC illustrate that nothing more is required for stunning seaside gardens than a great imagination and a solid knowledge of plants.

This book includes a section on top seaside plants and a discussion of ways to deal with sometimes challenging coastal conditions.

(click on image to purchase book)

New Roses for 2007

It's apricot season, and this new rose-- 'Strike It Rich' -- is just the right accompaniment for the real thing. It's got spicy fragrance, a truly fabulous apricot color, and it is said to have natural disease resistance. (Somebody try it & let us all know how it does). Plus, its got red stems to show off the dark green leaves. This is one of 10 new roses for 2007 announced by Weeks Roses.  There are striking new colors among them, including 'Burgundy Iceberg' -- a deep purple; 'In the Mood' -- a very deep red with grayish-green leaves; 'Night Owl,' a repeat-flowering purple climber with bright yellow stamens in the center of the bloom.

It's not often you see a rose that's bright orange, but they appear to have mastered the color with 'Vavoom.' (Where do they come up with these names?) New growth on this rose is described as a deep mahogany red. Sounds like a great contrast all around with deep green leaves.

I also liked the description of 'Topsy Turvy,' long white buds opening to a scarlet interior. It's apparently a low grower that can be mistaken for an azalea at a distance.

All the new roses at www.weeksroses.com

(photos: Gene Sasse (c) courtesy of Weeks Roses)

July/August Happenings

July 7-9 International Orchid Fair, Santa Barbara, CA
Santa Barbara Orchid Estate (800) 553-3387
July 8 Berkshires Garden Tour, Lenox, MA
10AM-4PM. Annual Tour by the Lenox Garden Club (412-298-5225). Six gardens on display in Lenox & Stockbridge.
July 8-9 Garden Conservancy Open Days Tours, CT, IL, MA, NC, NJ, NY, OR, WA
CT: New Haven Cty; IL: Lake ; MA: Nantucket, Worcester Ctys; NC: Buncombe; NJ: Bergen, Hunterdon; NY: Tompkins, Ulster; OR: Washington, Lane; WA: Kitsap
July 10 Carniverous Plants, Del Mar, CA
6:30 PM Lecture by Horticulturist James Booman. Surfside Race Place, Del Mar Fairgrounds. Sponsor: San Diego Horticultural Society
July 15-Oct 15 Garden Sculpture Show, Framingham, MA
Rock On! Celebrating Stone in the Garden. Exhibit of New England sculptors at Garden in the Woods.
July 15-16 18th annual Garden Tour, Bainbridge Island, WA
10AM-5PM 7 Stunning gardens. 206-219-3182.
July 15-16 Garden Conservancy, IL, MA, ME, NY, PA
CT: New Haven; IL: Cook; MA: Worcester, Berkshire; ME: York; NY: Suffolk, Westchester
July 16 Garden Tour, Cushing & Thomaston ME
10AM-5PM. 15th "Gardens in the Watershed Tour." 8 Lovely Gardens.
July 16 Gold Coast Garden Tour , Chicago, IL
12noon - 5PM. 20 award-winning gardens, jazz & classical music. Admission includes hardcover book on Gold Coast Gardens.
July 16-22 APLD Summer Conference , Philadelphia, PA
Annual Meeting, Assn of Professional Landscape Designers
July 17-21 Landscape Architecture and Community Design Conference, Chatauqua, NY Landscape Architect James van Sweden, author Sarah Susanka and more.
July 22 Water Garden Tour, DE
9AM-4PM Gateway Garden Center sponsors self-guided tour of 8 water gardens. Proceeds to Delaware Center for Horticulture
July 19-25 Water Gardening Symposium, Ft. Lauderdale, Vero Beach & Orlando, FL
The International Waterlily & Water Gardening Society holds its 21st annual symposium.
(941-756-0880)
July 20-22 Founders' Day Celebration. Kennett Square, PA
Longwood Gardens Celebrates its 100th Anniversary: Fireworks, Concerts, a huge birthday cake and more. (610-388-1000)
July 22-23 Garden Conservancy, CT,IL, MA, ME, NY, WA
CT: Fairfield, Hartford, Litchfield, New London; IL: Cook, Lake; MA: Berkshire; ME: Knox, Waldo; NY: Dutchess, Westchester; WA: Kitsap
July 28 Woody Plants Conference, Swarthmore, PA
Scott Arboretum, Lectures by Tony Avent, Julie Moir Messervy, & more. (610-388-1000 ext. 507)
July 29 Grass Class. New Hope, PA.
10AM-1PM Class on grasses, rushes, sedges. Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve.
***July 29-30 Garden Walk, Buffalo, NY
Free tour, 200 plus gardens -- dont' miss this one!!
July 30 Garden ConservancyTours, IL: Du Page Cty
August 5-6 Garden Conservancy Tours, MA, ME, NJ, NY
MA: Berkshire; ME: Hancock; NJ: Bergen: NY: Columbia, Dutchess, Westchester
August 6-20 Lecture Series, Framingham, MA
New England Wildflower Society
August 12, August 20 Garden Conservancy Garden Conservancy Tours, CT, MA, NY
CT: Hartford, New Haven; MA: Berkshire; NY: Putnam
August 14 New Plants, Del Mar, CA
6:30PM  Lecture by  Nicholas Staddon, Director of New Plant Introductions at Monrovia  Nursery. Surfside Race Place, Del Mar Fairgrounds. Sponsor: San Diego Horticultural Society
August 25-28 Garden Writers' Assn Annual Conference Valley Forge, PA
58th Annual Conference featuring architect and author William McDonough and others.

LOOKAHEAD:
October 6-9 Am. Society Landscape Architects Annual Conference Minneapolis, MN
NOV 6-10 Aqua Show , Las Vegas NV
Nov 28-Dec 1 Pool & Spa Expo / Backyard Living Expo, Las Vegas, NV

Thinking Winter

Designing gardens that look good in fall and winter is always a little tricky.  Unless you live in the tropics, you sometimes think you're reduced to the reds, yellows, and oranges of autumn leaves; to evergreens, interesting bark and great architectural form.  Now, along comes British designer Noel Kingsbury to remind everyone once again that grasses and perennials offer much to the astute gardener even when the plants die back.

In the foreward to Kingsbury's new book, Seedheads in the Garden (Timber Press), landscape architect James van Sweden notes that "autumn is equally as important in garden beauty and interest as spring or summer ... and foretells winter, -- the year's final garden display that I like to describe as a 'dried bouquet'."

With gorgeous photographs by Jo Whitworth, Kingsbury illustrates how to place Achillea filipendulina 'Gold Plate' so that its dried seedheads are set off against a backdrop of Calamagrostis; how to achieve a magical frosty winter view with different types of Stipa and Miscanthus. A master of the natural landscape, the author explains the botany of seedheads, offers tips on cultivation and design, and concludes with a full directory of plants to use in fall and winter.  A very useful compendium for anyone interested in year-round gardening with a different kind of impact.

(click on image to purchase book)

Volunteers (of Many Types)

The first year we lived in our house, my husband bought a Have-A-Heart trap, baited it with Ritz crackers and peanut butter, and carted off more than 30 squirrels to a tonier neighborhood on the other side of town, where he wished them a very happy new home.  Eighteen years later, their surviving descendents are still at work. This oak was uprooted in the bed underneath my river birches.  There are no oaks in close proximity to my yard, so this one was obviously the work of squirrel. After all, most of the 200 or so snowdrops I planted one fall now populate Angie's front yard two doors down; nearly all of the crocuses are now next door; and my alliums are ?

"Volunteer" plants -- those that you yourself did not plant -- arrive in many ways: bird droppings (the source of all my cursed porcelain vines); squirrels or other animals; simply the wind.  While they occasionally land in the right place, most volunteers are simply a nuisance and should be pulled out.  With a good start, however, some volunteers can be carefully nurtured and re-planted in a perfect location. My late neighbor, Hubert, dug up a gorgeous Japanese red maple from Ted's yard next door.  It's now nearly 20 feet high and in its full glory.  My oak is going from Washington DC to Woods Hole, MA, where I hope it will flourish in the huge back yard that's in need of big shade trees.  So watch those volunteers carefully -- pull out the ones that don't fit, and re-plant the others in a space where they can be fully appreciated. 

Design Medals 2006

The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) has announced its 2006 medal winners, to be presented at the organization's annual meeting in Minneapolis this coming October. This year's design medal goes to landscape architect Steve Martino, FASLA, of Phoenix, AZ, who was the first person to really figure out how to landscape in the desert. 

Martino's bold and dramatic designs are identified with the natural southwest landscape.  His lush combinations of native plants for color, texture, and form are very distinctive. His pioneering use of plants that require very little water has inspired countless others to practice xeriscaping and sustainable design.

(photo: Steve Martino)

Stylish Sheds

There's a brand-new style out there for garden sheds, and what it's NOT is just a storage area for tools, garden gloves, packets of seed and the like.  This new shed, rather, is a very personal place with a personal style -- used for dining, for reading, as a sanctuary or landscape hideaway.

Author Debra Prinzing, also columnist for the Seattle Post Intelligencer, is seeking photos and stories of unique garden sheds from landscape architects and designers for her new book, Shed Style, which will be published in 2008 by Clarkson Potter/Random House. Contact her if you know of a shed with unique architectural style and features, insider or out. Photos to be by photographer William Wright.

(image courtesy Debra Prinzing)

Azaleas for Fall

If you're an azalea addict, you probably should consider planting "Encore" azaleas.  After spring blooms have faded, new ones emerge again in mid summer and in some areas of the country, continue through the fall.   Autumn Belle, left, is a new 2006 Encore, with pale pink blooms flecked with magenta. 

Another new introduction is Autumn Moonlight,  which has white blooms and a yellow throat.

Encores resulted from a cross between traditional spring blooming azaleas and a summer-blooming azalea from Taiwan, Rhododendron oldhamii.

There now are 23 Encore azaleas. They're recommended for zones 7-9, they're evergreen, and said to be resistant to disease and pests.  (Let me know if you grow them and they're not).

Both of the new azaleas grow rapidly and will reach five feet high by four feet wide.

(photos: Encore Azaleas)

(click on images for larger view)

Workman Acquires Timber Press

Workman Publishing, a large, independent publisher of trade books, has acquired Timber Press, the premiere US publisher of garden books.  Timber will retain its name and remain based in Portland, Oregon, and it's expected to work closely with Storey Books, a Workman subsidiary that is the leading US publisher of illustrated, how-to, country-living books.

According to Workman, the combination of Storey and Timber, along with Workman's own gardening titles, will create "the strongest collection of professional and consumer gardening books available."

Workman founder Peter Workman said "the addition of Timber and its highly regarded program allows us to energetically and fully serve the gardening audience, from the beginning enthusiast to the professional."  Bob Conklin, owner and President of Timber Press, said he's proud of Timber's "unique position in horticultural publishing" and expressed confidence that "our peerless authors and outstanding staff will continue to flourish."

Timber has more than 400 titles in print and a number of well-known authors, including Michael Dirr, Tracey DiSabato-Aust, Rick Darke, Noel Kingsbury, Piet Oudolf, and Allan Armitage. Storey Publishing is located in North Adams, MA, and publishes about 40 new titles a year on gardening, cooking, crafts, home reference, and other subjects. Workman, founded in 1968, publishes adult and juvenile trade books and calendars. It's best known titles include the Silver Palate cookbooks, B. Kliban's Cat, and The Official Preppy Handbook.

Negotiations between the two companies concluded the last week of May.  The terms of agreement between the two privately-owned companies were not announced.

A Garden, An Unusual Theme

The next time you're en route to or from Martha's Vineyard via the ferry at Woods Hole, make time for a visit to Spohr Gardens, just off the main route.  My husband and I stumbled across this garden back in the mid-80's, when it was still in private hands, but open to visitors any time at all.  After a walk in the woods, we strolled down Fells Road and came upon a wondrous site with a simple sign that welcomed visitors into the gardens.

The garden was lovingly created  over a  50 year period  by  Charles and Margaret Spohr, who left it to the public through a trust they created to maintain the gardens as long as possible.  The six-acre site overlooks Oyster Pond in Falmouth, MA, and comes alive every spring with tens of thousands of daffodils, followed by huge drifts of azaleas, rhododendrons, other flowering trees, shrubs, and perennials.

The ingenuity of this garden is the "millstone" theme that runs all the way through it.  Mr. Spohr, a professional civil engineer, tracked down and collected more than 75 historic millstones that serve as the backdrop for many plantings, but are also built into stairways and patios and fashioned into fountains.  One of the millstones came from a paper mill in Maine, two from mills in Sandwich, MA. Another, from New Jersey, was once used for grinding mustard.

Wide paths of grass lead visitors into the garden, where one can continue following a circular path along the shore or ascend a series of staircases up into the gardens, where narrow paths wind through thousands of rhododendrons, azaleas, Japanese andromeda, and scores of other shade-loving plants.