GardenDesignOnline

The Irish Touch

Helen Dillon has been gardening and writing for many years, and her own garden in Dublin, Ireland, is testament to her artistry. On the garden's website, she says she can never decide whether she's a plant collector or a maker of garden pictures.  Clearly, she is both, and it's evident in her latest book, Down to Earth With Helen Dillon (Timber Press, 2007).

Dillon takes you through all the basics:  planting, feeding, weeding, pruning, staking, deadheading.  And she gets right to the point about design in direct, straightforward chapters: Hiding the neighbours, Roses I still grow, The May gap, Burglar-proof plants, Dog in the garden, and so on.  The chapters are brief, the reading is breezy and easy, and each is packed with information.  One cautionary note is that many of the plants highlighted in the book are not going to grow well in many US climates, and some of the cultivars she mentions will be difficult to find.  However, the photographs are gorgeous, and they alone impart valuable advice about planting combinations and effective design.

There was one thing I liked very much about this book.  Dillon keeps the details to a minimum, so you can pick it up at random, or keep it by your bedside, read a chapter in a few minutes and absorb a great deal of useful information.  For people who like to be out in the garden (rather than just looking at one), this is a book you'll want in your collection.

(click on link to purchase book)

New 08 Plants (III)

Spiraea x vanhouttei 'Levgold'
(Firegold™ Spirea)

You can never have too many plants with golden leaves, and I can't wait to try this as a standout hedge or a stand-alone specimen.  From Bailey Nurseries, this Vanhoutte spirea has lemon-lime leaves, the standard white flowers that appear along arching branches in spring, and -- hooray -- yellow orange fall color instead of sickly green.  I use this shrub all the time because I love its vase-shaped, arching habit and profusion of spring blooms, and now there's a reason to use it even more. Zones 4-8, About 4-6' x 5-7'. Discovered by Denis Levac of Quebec, Canada.

Berberis thunbergii 'Moretti Select
(Cabernet™ Barberry)

There can never be enough small barberries, and this one is a compact form of 'Crimson Pygmy.' It's only 2 feet high and 2-3 feet wide, so it naturally would be a good fit in tiny gardens when you're after a bit of bold color. The foliage is said to be very, very dense so that the shrub requires no pruning.  (Although everything at some point needs to be lopped a bit) Zones 4-7. Discovered by R & V Moretti Nursery of Madison, OH.

Hydrangea macrophylla 'Bailday'
Light-O-Day® Hydrangea

There are now so many hydrangeas on the market that I don't really know how anyone keeps them all straight.  I still have my favorites (especially Hydrangea serrata 'Preziosa'), but I wouldn't necessarily pass up this one if I came across it at a garden center.

For starters, it's a lacecap with white-edged leaves, and the outer ring of flowers are bright white.  The inner ring varies from blue to pink depending on the acidity of the soil. (Yes, blue in acidic soil, pink in alkaline -- and you should know that, if you don't). Zones 5-9, 3-5' high and wide.

(click on images for larger view)

Designing for Fall

There's no reason to give up on the garden just because the temperature is dropping, the leaves are down and squirrels are digging holes all over your yard.  Successful planting design always includes four seasons, but if you haven't got a clue what will work throughout autumn and into the winter season, consult Fallscaping (Storey Publishing, 2007) by authors Nancy J. Ondra and Stephanie Cohen.

They take you through the basics of how to care for everything in the fall (dividing, deadheading, pruning, etc), but if your level of knowledge is well beyond that, just head straight for the sections on stunning fall plant families and successful combinations.  Aside from the hollies, viburnums, dogwoods, and maples, the authors profile the "not-exactly-evergreens" -- abelias, heaths and heathers, rhododendrons and nandinas -- whose leaves can provide a splash of welcome color.

Beautiful photographs by Rob Cardillo show you the way to combine perennials, shrubs, and ornamental grasses for maximum effect.  Wait until you see the photo of brilliant purple callicarpa berries against a background of golden amsonia.  Or Artemisia 'Powis Castle' setting off the seedheads of showy sedum and orange coneflower.

Finally, the authors have developed a number of planting plans for front entries, sunny side yards, shady corners, and other locations that serve as useful guides for those who don't have the knowledge, time, or confidence to take on the task themselves.

It's an indispensable book for anyone who wants to extend the garden's interest until spring comes around once again.

(click on image to purchase book)

Longwood's New Wonderland for Children

Children's Garden  at Longwood Gardens Opens Oct 27

This new garden, more than ten years in the making, is designed to spark the imagination of tens of thousands of children with a shooting jet that rings a bell, a water curtain animated by a leaping glow worm, a bamboo maze, and a gigantic drooling dragon, shown here, which resides in The Secret Room.  The dragon is one of 17 water features in the 4000 square foot indoor garden designed by Tres Fromme, formerly Longwood's Planning and Design Leader who is now with Mesa Associates in Dallas, TX.

Some of the highlights of this plant-filled enchanted garden:

• A Central Cove with flower-shaped water jets, mosaics that look like jewels, and three spitting animal sculptures that shoot streams of water into the pool from overhead.
• The Square Maze with an Obelisk Tower in the center.
• A Rain Pavilion with a glass ceiling and water curtains on both sides.
• A Grotto Cave and Tunnel, with a fog-covered pool activated by sculpted snakes coiled overhead.
• A Bamboo Maze with five inter-active water features and ornate sculptures of birds.

Special events for Opening Weekend include jugglers, a soap bubble show, tattoo and bug stations, and a kite-making workshop.  And if your children like to eat, they can make their own "dirt" dessert.

Longwood is open daily 9AM-5PM (610) 388-1000.

Happenings November 2007

Through Nov 18 The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum, Bronx, NY
Special exhibition, NY Botanical Garden (718) 817-8747
Nov 1 Halprin, Nature & Place, Philadelphia, PA
6PM, Penn School of Design, Lecture by Landscape Architect Laurie Olin (215) 898-6591
Throughout NOV: Green Roof Design Classes, Various Locations
Charleston SC, NYC, Atlanta GA, Raleigh NC, Kansas Cit MO, Madison, WI;Eugene OR; Omaha NE; Hartford CT; San Diego CA; Chicago IL; Oakland/San Jose CA; Ann Arbor MI; Phoenix AZ
Nov 3 "Green" Garden Tour  San Diego, CA
9AM-3PM, 3 locations, Kearny Mesa, lectures at each site 9AM, 11AM, 1PM. Sponsored by San Diego Horticultural Society (760) 295-7089
Nov 5 Framing Forest & Field, Bronx NY
6:30PM, NY Botanical Garden, Lecture by Landscape architect Stephen Stimson (800) 322-6924
Nov 8 Sustainable Landscape Design, Kennett Square, PA
7-9 PM, Lecture , Longwood Gardens: Green Roofs, Rain Gardens, Paving Alternatives & more. (610) 388-1000
Nov 9 Turning a New Leaf, Annandale, VA
8AM-6PM, N. VA Community College, 2nd Annual Conference of the Chesapeake Conservation Landscaping Council (410) 634-2847
Nov 12 Free Admission Day, Portland Japanese Garden, Portland, OR
10AM-4PM. Admission to the garden is free with the contribution of two non-perishable food items for the Oregon Food Bank. (503) 223-1321
Nov 12-16 Aqua Show, Las Vegas, NV
Mandalay Bay Convention Center: Trade Show, Seminars, Design & More
Nov 14-16 Community Forestry Conference, Baltimore, MD
Tours, & three days of lectures on trees, cities, conservation, etc by top experts in the field, including Landscape Architects, city planners, urban forestry experts, etc. Sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation (402) 474-5655 or (888) 448-7337
Nov 14 Landscape Water Conservation, Los Altos, CA
7PM, Lecture, Covington School, Western Hort Society (650) 948-4614
Nov 15 Annual Garden Design Luncheon, Barrington, RI
10AM Lecture by Landscape Architect Douglas Reed and lunch. (401) 253-2707 ext. 21
Nov 15, Real & Imaginary Limits, Philadelphia, PA
6PM, Lecture, Penn School of Design, Swiss Landscape Architect Paolo Burgi
Nov 16 Trees in the Urban Landscape , Boylston, MA
9:30AM-2PM, Symposium, Tower Hill Botanic Garden. Speakers: Landscape Architect James Urban; Dr. Michael Dosmann of Arnold Arboretum
Nov 22-Jan 6 Winter Fantasy, Kennett Square, PA
Longwood Gardens Christmas Show (610) 388-1000
Nov 27-30 Backyard Living Expo, Pool & Spa Expo, Orlando, FL
Orange County Convention Center: Exhibits, Workshops, Lectures

In the Magazines Nov-Dec 07

House & Garden NOV

• Central Park's renovated Bethesda Terrace, original design by Frederick Law Olmsted & Calvert Vaux. WOW.
• A survey of some of the highlights at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, including its special collections (roses, peonies, lilacs), its bluebell woods, Japanese Garden and waterfall, the Osborne Garden, a three-acre Italian landscape designed by Harold A. Caplan.
• A trip along the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway.  26 of its projected 32 miles are now complete. Note the striking bosque fountain in Battery Park designed by Piet Oudolf.

Garden Design NOV

• Featured: 11 gardens that won top awards this year from the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA).  More of the award winners in Garden Design Online last April.
• Contemporary containers
• A new landscape by I.M. Pei in his hometown of Suzhou, China.

Fine Gardening DEC

• New & uncommon ornamental grasses: Vetiver, Ruby Grass, Berkeley Sedge, & more.  Can't wait to try some of these.
• Designing connections for garden areas.
• Designing with plant forms and texture
• Winning shrubs for autumn: not a lot new here for those in the know about plants, but a good primer for those who are not.  And I did like the Fritsch Spirea for the Mountain West region -- wonder how it would do in the Mid-Atlantic or Northeast? Anyone know?

Mia Lehrer - Orange County Great Park

Work is now underway on the transformation of the El Toro Marine Base in Orange County, CA into a 1300 acre park, complete with botanic gardens, a two-and-a-half mile long canyon, a great lawn, museums, a nature preserve, and much more.

The design team includes landscape architect Ken Smith and Mia Lehrer & Associates of Los Angeles. Lehrer was interviewed recently about the project by Metropolis Magazine, and you can read all about it here.  Mia fills everyone in on the park's main spaces, its sustainable features, and its connection to the landscape and to the surrounding community.  Worth a few minutes of your time.
 

Power Trees

Best Urban Trees

Scientists at the USDA's Agricultural Research Service have identified several trees that are able to tolerate tough city conditions;soot and salt and extreme weather conditions, from ice storms to drought and wind.

Over the past four years, researchers have evaluated a number of trees that can withstand the stress of an urban environment and maintain a certain size and shape that will allow them to grow under utility lines without risk from power company  chainsaws.  The Power Trees Project aims to identify the varieties and cultivars that require little maintenance, act as air filters for greenhouse gases, are resistant to pests and disease, and that will not interfere with power lines.

Research scientist John Hammond said the team considered many trees developed at the US National Arboretum in Washington, DC, including "maples, dogwoods, crape myrtles, elms and cherry trees."  They also found that container grown trees survive better than those grown in open ground.

Some of the winners include the Frontier Elm, (Ulmus 'Frontier), shown above, which has a high level of tolerance for Dutch elm disease, a lovely reddish-purple autumn color, and reaches a height of about 25 feet with a crown spread of 15 at 19 years.  Zones 5-8. It also marks the first commercial release of an elm with spring and fall-flowering parents. (U. carpinifolia and U. parvifolia).

(image: USNA)

Landscape Book Awards

The Foundation for Landscape Studies has announced the winners of its 2007 John Brinkerhoff Jackson book prize, citing three recently-published books for their "significant contributions to the study and understanding of garden history and landscape studies."

Anita Berrizbeitia, associate professor of landscape architecture at the Penn School of Design, was awarded the prize for her book Roberto Burle Marx in Caracas: Parque del Este, 1956-1961 (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005).  In the book, she explores the cultural, political, and economic conditions that influenced the renowned 20th century Brazilian landscape architect.  Parque del Este is one of Burle Marx's major landscapes, a 200-acre urban park that took five years to build.  According to Choice magazine, "this wide-ranging study of a single major work ... places Burle Marx within the context of a Latin America intellectual and creative renaissance."

The award also went to Kenneth Helphand for his Defiant Gardens: Making Gardens in Wartime (University of Texas Press, 2006) and to Finola O'Kane for her 2004 book Landscape Design in Eighteenth Century Ireland (Cork University Press).

The Foundation for Landscape Studies cited Helphand for his "moving narrative of the ways garden making has empowered human beings to survive the most horrendous tribulations with dignity."  And it said O'Kane's book is a "nuanced and rich examination of the role of garden aesthetics and design in the physical and intellectual environment of Georgian Ireland."

(click on image or links to purchase books)

Plants: The Obsessed

We all have met them:  A gardener obsessed is passionate, determined, competitive, often stressed, and always somewhat crazy. Whether they're developing new roses, grafting apples, designing the ultimate herb garden or growing vegetables, they share a lot of the same traits.

In her new book, Backyard Giants (Bloomsbury USA, 2007), the Wall Street Journal's Susan Warren, deputy bureau chief in Dallas,Texas, takes the reader inside the annual quest to grow the world's biggest pumpkin. She follows Rhode Island farmers Ron and Dick Wallace throughout 2006 as they try again for the big prize.

"What makes a man spend half his year busting his guts to grow a giant pumpkin?" she asks. The answer is really quite simple:  "A need to break barriers, to defy the odds, to test the limits of one's own abilities." The book is perfect for this pumpkin season.  Beautifully written, it's engaging and heart-breaking, entertaining and hilarious. Warren lets you in on selecting the perfect seedling, the battles with deer, mice, and foaming slime.  And then the record-breaking pumpkin, the appearance on the Martha Stewart show and the entry in the Guinness Book of World Records.

But the quest goes on for Ron and Dick Wallace: this year's winning pumpkin, just announced, weighed in at 1689 pounds! Read more about it at www.bigpumpkins.com

(click on image to purchase book)