The November Colour: Front and Back Gardens Part 2

Well I've finally figured out how to use the proper settings in my camera other than automatic! alot of the images I have used in the blog so far have been borrowed from Wikipedia Commons and Webshots thumbnails but none of those are included in my gallery section.  If at all possible I want this blog to have most of its images taken from my camera.  No doubt my photography skills will grow as I master these settings.


The weather was good today so it was my first opportunity in a whole week to take some shots of what's looking good in the garden just now. Continues from Part 1

From the Front Garden

Viburnum Eve Price will be in flower until Spring

Cotoneaster White flowers will follow in the spring

Corylus Contorta - yellow catkins will appear in February

The twisted stems look good in frosty conditions

 

 Saxifraga (left), Hebe James Stirling(bottom right) and Cornus MidWinterFire (top right)

From my Standard Weeping Cotoneaster 

 

Euonymus Alatus - I missed capturing its glorious autumn shades of red/pink leaves - its not called the Burning Bush for nothing - just now I can  look at the corky wings on its stems - you can see these closer on the image to the right

Erysimum (perennial wallflower-left) along with Skimmia (top right) and Erica (bottom right)

Carlina - looks even better with frost on it!

Cineraria (left), Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens' (top right) 
and Heuchera 'Mocha Mint'(bottom right)

Its still a baby! My little Acer Griseum - with its peeling cinamon bark 

with little poach egg plant seedlings surrounding it and the Carlina in front

From the Back Garden

Skimmia Reveesiana (Left), Leucothoe 'Curly Red' (top right) and Euonymus Blondie (bottom right)

These are in a group together in the garden along with Heuchera Marmalade and Acer OrangeDream

 

A close up of the Mahonia flowers

Click on this image, then click the next image for a close up

Berberis (left), Sedum (top right), And one of my Olives (bottom right) - yip I would have had more if I had brought the tree into the warmth but I just move it in its pot to a sheltered part of the garden for the winter.

Calicarpa Profusion

Clematis seedhead (left), Santolina (top right), Hellebore flowers emerging (bottom right)

Malus Sentinel  - those won't be on there long once the Blackbirds get hungry!

Heuchera 'Georgia Peach'

Heuchera 'Crimson Curls'

Heuchera 'Midnight Rose' alongside Santolina 'Lemon Fizz'

I've lots more I could have taken photos of but its not easy when the sun sets at 3.35pm! and its soooooo cold outside - snowing  further north today.

How to Raise your Senses in the Garden: The Sense of Smell

 Aromatherapy in the Garden....................


Fragrant flowers are nectar rich and so essential to have in our gardens to attract the wildlife.  Some of our most fragrant flowers are Monarda, Lily of the Valley, Dianthus, Stock, Peony Roses, Philadelpus, some of the honeysuckles, and especially for winter - Sarcococoa and Witchhazel.

Monarda left, Stock top right, Witchhazel bottom right

Now during the winter months everything is dormant in the garden but we can use houseplants indoors to give us a lovely fragrance in the home during these dark dreek days. Its very pleasurable to every now and again pop back to your favourite plant and have a little smell into those blooms.   The best plants for the job are Citrus, Jasmine, Gardenia, hyacinths and Stephanotis and all are available in most garden centres at this time of the year.

Gardenia: left, Jasmine: centre top, Stephanotis: centre bottom, Citrus right
Just a pity there's no scratch and sniff on the www! 

If you have an open and exposed garden you won't be able to appreciate far away scents but if you have a closed in garden with a fence, hedge or a brick wall - the boundary will guard against the wind and contain the scent in the garden much better and it will be easier to smell the fragrance.

 
Some plants you can smell the perfume quite a distance away like Roses and Honeysuckle, while there are others that you need to get right up close to appreciate the scent like the flowers on a Mahonia or daffodil. Some plants only release their scent at particular times of the day like in the evening due to temperature change or later in the morning once the frost has melted from their petals.  Those that release their scent in the evenings are best situated in a westerly position in the garden - ideally near a seat or bench so that in the evening time you can appreciate their scent as you sit leisurely in the garden tho I might add that those that release their scent in the evenings have not got eye catching flowers - they are normally quite dull looking  and not at all showy but what they lack in looks they make up for in their aroma.

One of the best evening scented flowers is the Night Scented Stock - sow some seeds periodically in the same area and you will have a continuous scent over the summer months. What I  normally do with the night scented stock is grow some Virginia stock amongst it - its quite a similar growth habit to the night scented stock with small pink flowers that open during the day unlike the night scented stock whose flowers only open in the evening.  Other good plants for scent in the evening are phlox, honeysuckle, nicotiana (image to left) and evening primrose.

The plants that release their fragrance in the evening are pollinated by moths rather than bees.  So here's an idea - go into the evening at dusk sit near those night scented plants - hopefully you will have alittle group of them in a little sheltered area. Bring a torch with you and watch the moths come and go - and you never know.... you might get a little surprise and catch a bat swooping down to feast on some of those moths. 


Did you know that bats are attracted to strong musty scents while bees seek out light floral scents while birds don't really have any sense of smell at all. Cats have an incredible sense of smell - they certainly find the roots of my Actinidia Kolomikta very interesting - I've never even noticed a smell of the roots but it seems to attract the local moggies.  Many a cat leaves my back garden in a high after rolling about in my catmint as the fragrance and the oils seemingly produces a semi hallucinogenic effect in them.

One scent in the garden that I don't find very attractive is that of the Rowan Tree flower (image to right)  The flowers are pollinated by flies - so to attract the flies the flowers smell of rotting meat!


Scented Leaves

Then we have the scented leaves and the fragrance released due to crushing or brushing against them. The best examples of these come from the herb family such as Thyme, Rosemary, Mint, Lemon Balm, Scented Geranium, Helichrysum (curry plant),Lavender and my favorite since a child - Artemisia Old Man's SouthernWood.

Our feet are great asset to have around the garden - especially if we plant the crevices of our paths with different types of thyme and maybe even some corsican mint and let those feet get those invigorating pungent aromas released. You could even create a herb or chamomile lawn or even a chamomile or thyme seat - tho I have not been that successful in growing chamomile in my garden - I think my soil is just too wet and heavy.  Just watch out for the bees before you sit on it!!




 And we're not forgetting those non plant odours in the garden.  The three or four odours I don't like in the garden are when the farmer decides to manure the field near my house - especially when I've got my washing out on the line - plus another smell I seem to be able to detect is whenever a neighbour is using weedkiller, and then there's the smell of Jeyes fluid and Armilitox but besides those we have the lovely smell of food cooking on the barbeque, the burning logs in the Chimenea (make sure the washing is off the line or you will be reminded of it for days to come!), the citronella candles keeping away all those mozzies, freshly cut grass, freshly chopped wood and newly laid bark mulch.


A Little Story..........


A few years ago I laid about 8 bags of pine bark down in the garden and the scent of the bark was so strong that it attracted a huge, noisy wood wasp into the garden.  Never in my life had I seen one of these - I was quite scared I can tell you - I saw what I thought was the sting at the end of its body and it was huge and did not want to confront that noisy wasp - it seemed to be intoxicated by the smell of the bark.   I was certainly intrigued by the noise of its wings - hoping that it would not fly too near me!. Turns out that the wood wasp is quite harmless and what I thought was its sting is really the part of its body where it lays its eggs the ovipositor!  Seemingly the wood wasp lays its eggs in pine bark so the scent from my mulch attracted it into the garden from the woods.  I've only seen one twice now in the 8 years that the garden has been maturing.

Low Calorie Option 

I can even provide in the summer time one that smells of chocolate - and it really does! many a time I have my nose in this one I love it so much - Its called Chocolate Cosmos (image to right)   (and no there is not a plant called the milky way......... this is directed to someone reading this blog as I am writing this btw!)


 


Allergies

There is a growing population nowadays of gardeners and some members of their families that are allergic to strongly scented flowers in the garden.  Some have asthma and hayfever and the strong scent can trigger an asthma attack or irritate peoples eyes and nasal passages.  Its best for gardeners who suffer from these allergies to create a  low allergy garden with plants that contain low pollen levels.  The best plants are normally female ones as they don't contain any pollen.  I am hoping to cover low pollen level plants in a future blog article.


Memories

One thing that scent can do for someone is  evoke past memories .................  my Manager loves the smell of sweetpea's as it reminds her as a child smelling the sweetpeas that her father  used to grow. Mine is the smell of old fashioned roses as my grandad had a lovely rose garden at the front of his home.  You will also find that its not the new hybrid varieties of plants with the strong scents but the old fashioned types.  One of my favourites is Reseda odorata or Mignonette (image to right)  and you'll probably only find these old fashioned plants in a seed catalogue these days. Now what flower scents evoke strong memories for you? 



So if you want to have an aromatherapy session ..............  get out there and follow your nose!



Final part: The Sense of Taste will be coming soon

How to Raise your senses in the Garden: The Sense of Sound

Do you want to create some subtle moods in the garden?  The whisper of weeping plants such as willow and birch can calm the senses.  Then there's the rustling of ornamental grasses such as Pampas grass and bamboo, and the sudden burst of a seed pod if you listen closely.

The best plants for the sense of sound in the garden are bamboo, stipa, birch, pine, Lunaria (Honesty:left),  Physalis (Chinese Lanterns), Platycodon (bottom right) and  Oenothera (Evening Primrose -btw this plant is excellent at making a sound when its buds pop open - top right).





Other sounds such as running water, the crunch along a gravel path and wind chimes all make excellent audio signals especially for those gardeners with restricted vision as it helps them navigate themselves in the garden. 


Close your eyes and imagine listening to the sound of the wind rustling through the trees and stems and the rattle of seed heads.  The buzzing of bees, the odd grasshopper, birds singing, water running, dripping or splashing over cobbles, wind chimes and more than likely there will be the sound of a lawnmower somewhere in the distance!!

How to Raise Your Senses in the Garden:The Sense of Touch

Our gardens are full of different textures that we can touch and feel and glide our fingers over.

We have rough surfaces such as walls, bark and lichen.
Smooth surfaces like leaves and pebbles
and soft surfaces like moss.

And then there are the surfaces that are hot to touch when the sun shines on them and the cool surfaces in the shade and the same with water in the garden also - hot and cold.

Then there is the stickiness of the soil when wet and the lovely crumbs of garden compost and the cripsiness of old fallen leaves.

Plants can have textured, prickly, spikey and hairy leaves. 

The softness of the conifers and hebes and how tactile the ornamental grasses are as you run your hands through them.

Some of the best examples of texture in plants are Miscanthus, Artemisia, Ornamental Cabbage, Stipa, Carex, Buxus, Phormium, Sea Holly, Corkscrew Hazel, Fennel, Houseleeks, Dianthus, Stachys, Santolina and Iris.

Finally if you want to add an ornament or two into the garden then a garden sphere is quite fitting for the sense of touch with its smooth round surface.


See Also: Sense of Sight

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How to Raise your senses in the Garden: The Sense of Sight

All of us like to look at a lovely garden but we can make it more exciting and appealing to others when the senses are stimulated as we wander around it.

You can easily make certain areas for each sense or else make a sensory trail along a garden path or around the whole garden.



I wrote the following primarily for a group of people with restricted sight but all the ideas can be used very successfully in anyones garden.


The Sense of Sight

People with restricted sight can focus on growing strong vibrant colours in shades of red, orange, yellows and deep pink.  Azaleas are very strongly coloured along with many bulbs and other herbaceous plants.


The bright colours won't attract more wildlife into the garden as they see only see UV colours in the flower, but birds have similar eyesight to humans
so the coloured berries will certainly attract them into the garden.

You can incorporate these colours in the leaves, bark, stems and berries throughout the seasons.  Some good examples are heucheras as their leaves can be from purple with splashes of silver or pink to lime green to coppery colours such as in the picture below showing Heuchera Peach Flambe, the cinamon peeling bark from Acer Griseum as you can see in the picture to the left, the Cornus Siberica and its red stems in winter in the picture below and the magenta berries of the Calicarpa.  Most of what I have mentioned here really stands out during the Autumnal and early winter periods in the garden which is quite a difficult time of year to have interest in the garden.  Its certainly alot easier during the spring and summer months to get colour in the garden.

Then we have the hard landscape materials such as cobble stones, pebbles, pea gravel, grit and slate that we can use as a mulch around the plants to keep the weeds undercontrol and give a very nice finishing touch to the garden especially when you use different sizes of pebbles and cobbles etc.

Movement

Movement is also important for stimulating sight.  There is the natural movement in trees and ornamental grasses such as Miscanthus, Stipa and Calamagrostis.  To have the greatest effect for the sense of sight place these in areas where they will catch some breeze.  The garden wildlife will also create movement - from the bees, hooverflies, butterflies, birds, lacewings, dragonflies during the day and the bats and moths in the evening.  Finally garden ornaments such as mobiles can also provide movement and some will catch the sunlight too.


See Also: The Sense of Touch

Perfect Houseplants for the Bedroom

While most of our houseplants give out oxygen during the day there are some that do this at night – so are perfect for the bedroom.

Bromeliads:  

Tillandsia

Bilbergia 

Vriesea

Aechemea

Guzmania

Orchids:

Most including

Phalenenopsis

Dendrobium

Succulents:

Zamioculcas

Sedums

Sansevieria

What are the best natural humidifiers in the home?

As mentioned in an earlier blog post plants give off not only oxygen but also moisture – approximately 90% of the water we give them goes back into the atmosphere which is a great benefit when so many of us have central heating.

The following are the best plants as natural humidifiers:

Cyperus (bottom right) – it can sit in water very comfortably

Bamboo (top right)

Asplenium – Birds nest fern (bottom right)

Asparagus fern (top left)

Chlorophytum – spider plant (centre)

Ficus Pumila – creeping fig (top left)

Schefflera – Umbrella Plant (top right)

Bougainvillea (bottom right) 

Dwarf Musa – Banana (centre)

Plus did you know that when the air in the room is more humid the dust particles drop to any hard surface  - so its easier to dust them away with a damp cloth.

Plants that Absorb Noise Around the Home

Plants with a large leaf surface absorb noise.  You will notice this particularly if you have laminate flooring or tiled or concrete flooring.  You won’t notice the difference in carpeted areas to the noise levels.

The best plants for absorbing noise are:

Weeping Fig as it has lots and lots of tiny leaves (Centre)

Banana Plant/Dwarf Musa (top left), Anthuriums (top right), Philodendrons (bottom left) and Aspidistra (bottom right) due to their large leaves.

The November Colour Part 1

I thought I would take some photos of what is looking good in the garden this week during the month of November  - I've so far just ventured into the back garden!
 

Mahonia in the background with the Malus Sentinel red crab apples and the Orange Pyracantha

Mahonia, Sorbus Vilmorinii and Osmanthus with tinkling toadstools

 

Red and Orange Pyracantha , Sorbus, Carex and Japanese Quince which I think look their best in early November

I've just realised that I forgot about the Calicarpa and the birds got to my Malus golden hornet  before I could get taking photos!  I was sinking in mud trying to get some of those photos today!

Looking forward to the Witchazel's coming into flower next!

Go Green – Grow fresh air in your Home!

Did you know that houseplants can reduce the toxins that pollute our homes?

Houseplants can be so beneficial in our homes especially for those of us that suffer from allergies.  Not only do they purify and renew the stale air but they also filter out the pollutants given off from carpets, paints, aerosols such as perfumes and deodorants, MDF and laminate flooring. 



Having about 15 plants in the average home can reduce the amount of pollutants quite significantly just ask NASA they did research on this for the space shuttle - they took plants with them to help keep the air in the shuttle clean.


Plants absorb the carbon dioxide and give off oxygen and also add some moisture - about 90% back into the air again - which in turn also helps the plant as the foliage does not like dry air - especially in centrally heated rooms.  Plus the airborne particles are suppressed in the moist air.


Some of us that live in the countryside can keep the air flow nice and fresh in our homes with having the windows opened frequently - but thats not the case if you live beside a busy road or in a built up area plus no one really wants their windows open on a cold winter day.


Not only do houseplants absorb the toxins but they also trap the dirt and dust particles from soot and car exhaust fumes.


Here are some toxins and the most effective plants at removing them from our homes.

Formaldehyde: This is found in carpets - especially rubber backed ones, chipboard, laminate flooring, underlay and MDF to name a few..........  

• Boston Fern
• Pot Chrysanthemums
• Gerbera
• Dwarf Date Palm
• Dracaena
• Parlour Palm
• Rubber Plant
• Ivy
• Weeping Fig
• Peace Lily
• Areca Palm
• Umbrella Plant – Schefflera

Benzene: This is found in paints and varnishes and related paint products along with cigarette smoke and car exhaust fumes.

• Hedera – Ivy
• Dracaena
• Spathiphylum – Peace Lily
• Chamaedorea
• Ficus

Trichloreoethylene:  This is found in inks, paints, lacquers and glue.

• Dracaena
• Spathiphyllum

So maybe a few houseplants around the house will mean fewer trips to the pharmacy this winter!

Tree O'Clock World Record Attempt - Saturday 5 December

Now this is an international event not just in the UK and its called Tree O'Clock.  The BBC will be advertising it from this weekend onwards.  Click on this link from Friday to get details of where to go to pick up your whip which is a very young tree.  Most large garden centre retailers will be getting involved in this world record attempt and you will probably see lots of the Tree O'Clock signs around participating centres.

Break a world record in 4 easy steps:

Step 1. Get a tree
Step 2. Plant your tree
Step 3. Take a photo
Step 4. Email your photo
And enjoy your tree for decades....

A tim'rous Beastie visit this morning

Well this ,morning as I stood at the utility window I noticed something dash across the stones around the pond - I thought oh no a rat! but then I looked and it was little mouse.  I don't mind watching his antics around the pond as long as he stays around there and does not look to get into the house or garage for a little warmth!  I will have to make sure that I have the camera at the ready tommorrow morning to see if he pays us another little visit.  He seemed to like hiding in the stones around the waterfall - last Spring the wild bees seemed to like that particular spot themselves when they made their little next in there.

I can see the local moggies spending alittle more time in my back garden if they catch his scent!

Houseplants: My Orchids

Over the last 7 years or so I have cultivated most of the houseplants available to the UK market.  I suppose the one I always have in flower in the house is the Orchid.  I really find that the Phalenopsis orchid for me is the best value for money due to its longetivity of flower spike and another bonus being that they are easy to bring back into flower again and thrive on neglect!  Some of the other species of orchid are spectactular and some have the added bonus of a scent especially the Nelly Isler Cambria ones.

I've one in flower just now and one flowering spike regrowing after resting for 10 months.  My other phalenopsis are the Little Kolibri types which have a smaller flower.  They stoped flowering 8 weeks ago so for now they are getting lots of light and less water than normal to encourage them to send out some more flower spikes. Once I see that a new leaf has formed I will reduced the temperature alittle more and move them to a different position to encourage the flower spike to form.   For now they  show no intention of flowering from the main  spike so I may soon cut the stem down completely.  One orchid specialist has told me that he does this with all his orchids as they "burn out" too quickly when they are allowed to flower from the same stem for too long a period of time plus the secondary blooms are always alot smaller than the first set.



Iam also growning  the following orchids:

Neofinettia Falcata :  here is one in flower

Below is mine:

The orchid is  also known as the Japanese Wind Orchid - its easy to grow and if you can get it flower it will reward you with a beautiful scent.

From A History of the Orchid by 
Merle A. Reinikka................

"Samurai warriors grew Neofinetia falcata, known as an orchid of wealth and nobility."

Samurai warriors would travel for miles in the search for this tiny orchid to bring back to the royal court. If the warrior succeeded in his quest, it was considered a sign of his bravery. Even today, Japanese royalty prize Neofinetia falcata for its beautiful foliage and wonderful fragrance of the dainty flowers.

The other type of orchid I grow is  Masdevallia Patricia Fyfe:  here is one in flower

This one does like the cooler temperatures so is suited for my house during the wintertime if only I could remember to keep it moist at all times.   Its an orchid that originates from South America but detests high temperatures so I have to keep it to a northerly aspect during the summer months.

Below is mine:

I will update with more photos as the orchid progress in their growth.


See Also: Go Green Grown Fresh Air in Your Home

Picture Gallery

Iwanted to place some of the photo's here that I made my first youtube video with.  Unfortunately with the video alot of the image quality was lost but hopefully the images are alot clearer in these photographs..............

Click on the individual pictures for a larger image.  Click here for the Front Garden 2008 

Below is one of my favourite pictures just now......... with the architectural leaves of the Phormium Jester against the billowing cloud of Thymus and the Red Flowering Carpet Standard Rose.

 

In this picture you can see that I went a little bit mad growing some Calendula seeds - they made a good show and I made sure that I lifted them before any could set seed.

I love the purple Verbena Bonariensis in the picture above and below - and how it looks so graceful in the garden even tho it towers above everything else and the Golden Hop is certainly starting to cover those pergola arches really well now.  I have not started to call it a thug in the garden yet - but have discovered that I am allergic to its leaves and stems - they bring me out in a rash - so its long sleeves and gloves from now on working with those climbers!.

I made this little circle of planting surrounding the patio in the summer of 2007  - this picture was taken 1 year later so I am really pleased with the way this planting area has turned out.

In the above picture things are really showing their autumn hints and seed heads.

Oh how I love my heuchera's and since this photo was taken I have acquired many many more.  I do forget some of their names but the one in the about picture is Creme Brulee and Key Lime Pie behind that again and Silver Scrolls to the right.  To the left I have a little sedum and then next to that the dwarf Artemisia and Chives just behind that.  Overall that part of the border is full of texture and colour from Spring to Late Autumn

I worked well into the wee hours one night with some florist wire and some raffia to put this bamboo fencing together.  I will post the instructions in a futher post.  But you should  take them into the garage to store over the winter months.

A view from upstairs

 

I made a little water feature a few years ago with the Pot Belly pot in the picture above - it has water gently pouring over the edge of it unto cobbles - with a hidden sump in the ground.  Below is my little pond - I have no fish in it.  I did introduce a newt to it a few years ago  but have never seen it again.  We did have a resident frog - but not sure if he's still a resident!  I've since made my pond a little more wildlife friendly as the edges are very steep - so hopefully the wildlife can come and go as they please nowadays rather than get in and find that they can't get back out again!

Click here to see more photos: Front Garden

Click here to see photos from Spring 2008