As Winter Exits: Part 2 - Fragrant Edgeworthia

This Edgeworthia papyrifera was a 6" potted plant just five short years ago. It has become one of my favorite garden plantings. Edgeworthia keeps long, light, silvery foliage well into the holiday season, until the long fuzzy buds begin to open. The blooms are large, maybe reminiscent of the size of Snowball Viburnum blooms. The blooms of Edgeworthia are light yellow, textured like velvet, and are heady with lemony fragrance. I planted this one as close to my back door as possible. Why not reap those effortless rewards?

I understand Edgeworthia chrysantha is supposed to be more winter hardy than my papyrifera variety. I do not see how another variety can out-perform my beauty, but I will plant one and see!

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As Winter Exits: Part 1 - The Happy Face of Viola

We are starting to round that corner toward springtime! The tiny signs of new life are starting to show. The shrubs are beginning to bud with new leaf, and the bulbs have sprouted from dormancy. But there have been plants throughout the winter that have bloomed beautifully, keeping a smile on my face.

The potted purple pansies have brightened our decks and our vase arrangements this winter, and I will miss them when they are gone. Pansies come in many colors and varieties. I mainly chose the purple Viola x Wittrockiana and Viola Tricolor (aka Johnny Jump-Up) this year, and think their deep velvety shimmer is just stunning. My stepmother used to keep a couple blooms in a tiny vase on her kitchen window sill and I always thought it made such a precious sight. I commented once that I could always count on seeing pansies in her window during certain months and she told me "I love pansies. They have such happy faces." That stuck with me, and I agree that they do indeed have happy faces! I now have several small vases for my own indoor pansy enjoyment.

Pansies are annual; they do well from the beginning of October through to the end of May, but I will compost them in April to make room for summer color. I like to plant them as soon as they go on sale so they will grow and build strength before the cold temperatures come. The containers are prettiest when you dead-head them regularly, but otherwise they are very low maintenance. The rewards certainly outweigh the responsibilities.

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Winter Snows

We do not get snow every year in Raleigh, but we have several inches now. Oh, how I love the snowy days.

The evergreen berry-bearing plants are the most remarkable plants in the snow. The dark greens and bright reds against a bed of pillowy, crystallized, white snow is such a picturesque scene. This Nandina domestica appears to have been waiting for just this snow to flaunt its beauty.

I hope for a long slow melt.

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A New Year Begins in January

A new year brings fresh promise of things to come.

Though I am looking forward to being a close part of this earth and the warm air again this coming growing season, I am in no hurry to wish away these winter months. The calm and quiet of January gives me, like the plants, time to rest and rejuvenate. If I pray too hard for the arrival of springtime, it comes too fast. I much prefer to earn the days of spring surprises by appreciating all the days of repose required beforehand.

"The color of springtime is in the flowers, the color of winter is in the imagination." -W.E.Hour

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Purple Coneflower

A North American native, Echinacea purpurea has a multitude of uses. It has been documented as one of the worlds most important medicinal herbs. It has been shown to increase the body's resistance to infections by boosting the immune system. Other therapeutic uses include relief from allergies and skin infections.

Of all the essential uses this pretty pink daisy-like coneflower has, my all-time favorite is as a supplier of nectar to butterflies, like this beautiful Black Swallowtail. It does not matter what I have in mind for my camera when I walk out the door, there is always a butterfly in my little blooming patch of Echinacea purpurea. Always.

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Maryland State Flower

When the Rudbeckia blooms I think of my first family and my first home. I think of my brothers, my mother, and my maternal grandparents. I think of the gentle and constant rolling hills, the family dairy farms, and the four full seasons.

Rudbeckia hirta, or Black-eyed Susan, is the State Flower in my home state of Maryland, and I remember staring at it in full blaze as we zipped past it down the highways and byways in my youth. Such a beautiful sunny coneflower, and loved by all. I have planted Rudbeckia (moreso fulgida than hirta) in many gardens in North Carolina, and it thrives in most U.S. climates.

Many poems and songs have been written about this flower. It is considered a staple in the signature designs of acclaimed architects Oehme and Van Sweden, amongst many other well-known designers. It's used for prairie restoration, erosion control and lasts 10 or more days in cut vase arrangements. Though she does not stand upright during her full bloom season in my yard (we know by now I have a lack of sun), she does continue to bloom in full with her warm yellows and spreads for me more each year. A summer perennial bed does not seem complete without this show-off, especially for this Maryland girl.

My husband and I make an annual trip to visit family in Maryland, and I am grateful that it always seems to be while the Rudbeckia are in bloom.

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Hedera Entangles

Morning has broken here on our wooded lot. I love nothing more than to sip coffee while I watch the constantly changing sunbeams cut through the trees. But the Ivy is blocking my view this morning.

My predecessor planted quantities of English Ivy (Hedera helix) on the floor of the natural space to help prevent erosion. Indeed we are the low spot of the neighborhood, but thirty years of growth is a lot of Ivy growth. As lovely as it may have looked to me at one time, I am in the process of trying to remove the Ivy from our trees.

In addition to reducing the biodiversity in the area and destroying the habitat for native wildlife and creatures, Ivy can kill trees by climbing into their canopies and shading out sunlight. It will also make them so top-heavy they become weak and eventually fall over. We must always try to take care and be responsible gardeners.

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