I’m a member of this cool little online community and we are doing this secret pal sort of thing. Well my ‘bitch’ has been spoiling me rotten. A few weeks ago I received a gardening magazine along with some gourmet teas and just a few days ago an envelope with these seeds from Hawaii arrived in my mailbox:

I have Papaya, Guava and Kona Coffee! Tonight on the back deck we had a seed planting extravaganza. I filled the pots, Cailey poked the holes and Granny popped the seeds in. Here’s my little helper:

We’ll see how they do in my new mini-greenhouse during the summer. With any luck, I’ll have a house full of exotic plants come the fall. Thanks Bitch!

Once again, the weather and my health has not really cooperated this week and I have not spent very much time outside. Here’s a few pictures I managed to snap early one morning:

Transplanted iris from Anita’s garden:

and my wisteria which is nowhere near as glorious the one we saw yesterday at friends Mary and Dave (wish I had taken a picture of it) but still rather pretty:

What’s blooming in your garden this week?

Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in every Sunday, visit As the Garden Grows for more information.

While inspecting the blooms on my new Eastern Snowball tree a few days ago I discovered this:

Kind of hard to see as I couldn’t get my camera to focus right, but almost all the leaves have been munched upon by little green caterpillars! The little buggers! Just as the tree was coming into bloom.

So I called the garden centre that I bought the tree from and they recommended BTK.

BTK Biological Insecticide is a safe, easy-to-use and effective control for caterpillars including tent caterpillars, gypsy moths, spring and fall cankerworm, Spruce budworm, Jack Pine Budworm and other insects which infect shade trees, ornamentals and evergreens.

So I’ve just finished spraying the tree and I’ll reinspect in a day or two to see if it has helped.

I also noticed some small red ant like creatures on the buds of my peony blooms so I gave them a little squirt too.

Apologies to my fellow GTS bloggers.  Life is crazy with a toddler, a teething baby and a husband who works out of town.  I just haven’t had the time or energy to visit much lately.  I wish I did!

Two weeks after we planted them, my Scarlet Runners have emerged. I can’t wait to start eating them!

My two newly planted blueberry bushes at front and rear, parsley and strawberries in pots. Some rather sad looking tomatoes in the background.

What’s blooming in your garden this week?

Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in every Sunday, visit As the Garden Grows for more information.

Alan Titchmarsh takes us on a fascinating tour through the history of Britain’s royal gardens from medieval times to the present day. Taking in existing royal gardens as well as many that now only exist in paintings, Alan uncovers the stories behind the gardens and the colourful monarchs who created them.

From Hampton Court Palace to Kew Palace and Gardens, to Osborne House and through to the modern day developments at the Prince of Wales’ home at Highgrove, Alan takes a highly personal canter through Britain’s gardening heritage.

Fully illustrated with original plans, designs, letters, planting records and full colour diagrams of the major surviving gardens, this is a sumptuous book charting some of the most outstanding gardens in Britain.

…an outstanding collection of history for those or you interested in Britain’s royal gardens.

I’m looking forward to a good read. Thanks Mum!

April 2007 - We planted three new trees on the new extension to the perennial bed (on Earth Day in fact). I’m looking forward to watching them grow over the next few years (another reason we can’t move, Bart). The following pictures are not mine as mine are nowhere near that exciting … maybe next year!

Planted in order from south to north:

Pyrus Chanticleer / Ornamental Pear

Common Name: Ornamental pear
Genus: Pyrus
Species: calleryana
Cultivar: ‘Chanticleer’
Skill Level: Beginner
Exposure: Full sun
Hardiness: Hardy
Soil type: Well-drained/light, Dry, Moist, Sandy
Height: 50 feet
Spread: 20 feet

An unusual, stately, deciduous, thorny Chinese tree (introduced to the West in 190 which has superb late autumn colour. This particular cultivar, with flamboyant red autumn leaves, comes from North America and is now very popular because of its terrific show of early spring blossom, its relatively tall, thin, spire-like shape and its ability to tolerate pollution, which is why it’s often seen in cities. It has been given the Award of Garden Merit (AGM) by the Royal Horticultural Society. The variety ‘Bradford’ was the traditional alternative, but there are also other forms, like ‘Autumn Blaze’, which produces striking late-season colour.

Viburnum opulus ‘Sterile’ / Eastern Snowball

Family: Caprifoliaceae
Genus: Viburnum
Species: opulus
Cultivar: Roseum
Additional cultivar information: (aka Sterile)
Medium-sized to large-sized ornamental shrub (cultivars are smaller)
Species form matures at about 10′ tall by 10′ wide, although sometimes larger
Upright oval growth habit in youth, becoming arching and spreading with age.medium growth rate
Full sun to partial shade
Prefers moist, well-drained soils of average fertility in full sun, but is highly adaptable to permanently moist to wet soils, dry soils, poor soils, soils of various pH, heat, drought, and pollution

Masses of pure white snowball-like flower clusters make a showy display in summer. Bright green leaves have a purplish-red fall coloring. Spectacular landscape specimen. Deciduous. Full sun. Moderate grower to 12 feet tall, 10 feet wide, larger with age. Cutting grown.

Cornus ‘Rutgan’ STELLAR PINK / Stellar Pink Dogwood

Common Name: dogwood
Zone: 5 to 9
Plant Type: Tree
Family: Cornaceae
Missouri Native: No
Native Range : None
Height: 15 to 30 feet
Spread: 15 to 30 feet
Bloom Time: April - May
Bloom Color: Pink
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium wet
Maintenance: Low

This flowering dogwood cultivar is a small, deciduous tree which typically grows 15-30′ with a low-branching, flat-topped, broadly pyramidal to uniformly broad habit. Profuse bloom appears in spring, with each “flower” (3-4″ in diameter) featuring four showy, petal-like, slightly overlapping, light pink bracts which surround a small, yellowish-green, center flower. In autumn, the oval, dark green leaves (3-6″ long) gradually change to a uniform red to purplish red. Bright red fruits (poisonous to humans, but loved by birds) mature in early fall and usually persist until the middle of December.

Those aren’t mine.

April 2007 - I planted two blueberry bushes and they are currently both covered in tiny white flowers. A good sign that I might actually get some fruit this year?

On the north-side of the raised bed is a Northland:

• old hardy, vigorous and spreading plants that are consistently very productive. Berries are medium sized and very sweet. They ripen early-midseason

On the south-side of the raised bed is a Reka:

• Plants are upright, very fast growing and extremely productive. Tolerates wetter ground than other varieties. Berries are dark blue, medium sized and firm. They ripen early.

Plant in full sun or partial shade into well-drained, preferably acidic soil.  Keep moist through the growing season.  Use light amounts of acidic fertilizer in the spring.  Prune out old wood on established plants during the dormant season.

The funny thing is that I don’t even really like blueberries!

Spring 2003 - NW corner as it was when we moved in (an RV and boat storage pad full of rocks and weeds):

Summer 2003 - After construction of a raised bed and my first bounty:

Summer 2004 - The following year we built a second raised bed just to the right (not pictured):

Spring 2007 - Fence has been replaced and moved back 8.5 feet, extending the upper bed. Since I don’t need this much vegetable garden space at this point, we’ve since used most of the lovely FREE topsoil to top dress the other beds.

The plan this week is to finish emptying the upper bed, divide it in half and fill the upper half with playsand for a custom sandpit. Bart has built a playhouse for Cailey which will sit beside the sandpit, then multch the rest for play area and toy storage. The remaining lower bed will be planted with the usual Scarlet Runners, tomatoes. herbs and two new blueberry bushes.:

You can also see the half finished retaining wall and path we built three summers ago. Having kids has sidetracked us, but this is the year I really want to get this all finished!

UPDATE: It’s now mid-May 2007 and we have just about finished the enclosed play area of the backyard. Here you can see the sandbox (which we decided to make a bit smaller than initially planned), mulched play area and playhouse. To the right of the playhouse I have planted two blueberry bushes, strawberries and parsley (in pots). Then on the far right, is my reduced but much more manageable veggie plot:

Here’s another shot of just the play area with builder (dad) and Cailey:

I’ve always had Box planters on my front porch, but after a winter of neglect, they weren’t doing so well. I found a new home for them via freecycle and started the hunt for something new.

This is the result. Phormium (?), surrounded some winter pansies that were in very sad condition (but on sale!). They are thriving in their new home.

Happy Gardening and Happy Mother’s Day to all you Moms out there!

What’s blooming in your garden this week?

Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in every Sunday, visit As the Garden Grows for more information.

Planted May 2007 (pictures of my actual plants to follow):

Saxifraga

Can anyone further identify this?

Pulmonaria ‘Sissinghurst White

Delicate, pure-white, funnel-shaped flowers in early spring and white-spotted, bright-green leaves. This dainty pulmonaria is perfect for shady areas. One of the first to flower, it looks lovely alongside dwarf narcissus. Best in a soil that remains moist over summer, since mildew can take hold if the roots dry out.

Position: full or partial shade
Soil: humus-rich, moist, well-drained soil
Rate of growth: average
Flowering period: March to April
Flower colour: white
Other features: white-spotted leaves
Hardiness: fully hardy

Garden care: Lift and divide large clumps everythree to five years after flowering or in autumn. Cut back plants affected by mildew to the ground, water and feed - the plant will regenerate and produce new leaves later in the year

Eventual height: 25cm
Eventual spread: 45cm

Omphalodes

Native to Turkey, this forget-me-not relative makes a complement for late-spring bulbs and perennials. It forms a low-growing mound of mid-green oval foliage. This is topped with lots of starry, bright-blue blooms in spring. Plants will grow on most soils but produce the best results on a moisture-retentive but free-draining soil. Plants resent disturbance and should only be divided when they become overcrowded. Plants will self-seed prolifically.

Common Name: Navelwort
Genus: Omphalodes
Species: cappadocica
Cultivar: ‘Cherry Ingram’
Skill Level: Beginner
Exposure: Full sun, Partial shade
Hardiness: Hardy
Soil type: Well-drained/light, Moist
Height: 40cm
Spread: 40cm
Time to divide plants: March to April

Heuchera sanguina (Splendens Coral Bells)

Compact, clumping perennial with scalloped-edged, roundish, dark green leaves with lighter green marbling, 1-3 inches long. Late spring borne, loose, wiry-stemmed panicles of delicate bell-shaped blooms contrast well with the attractive foliage. ‘Splendens’ bears brilliant scarlet flowers and grows to 28 inches tall and spreads 12 inches. Makes a nice cut flower. Excellent for the shady border in hotter areas. These plants are a natural for rock gardens and woodland paths, and make great companion plants for hostas, ferns, strawberries, begonias, irises, lilies, and peonies. Native to the southwestern U.S. and Mexico.

Common Names: Coral Bells
Flower Color: Shades of Pink/Red
Height: 8″ to 14″
Light: Part Shade
Zone: 5-9
Water: Average
Soil: Average to Rich
Maintenance: Low
Other info: Loved by the hummingbirds! Remove spent bloom stalk for continued bloom. With ample fertilizer and moisture, plants may bloom all season. Plants may be short lived unless older plants whose crowns have died out are lifted and the side growths replanted every 3-4 years.