Japanese Forest Grass: Fingers Crossed That It'll Grow!

The fact that I can't find Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola' - Golden Japanese Forest Grass at any nurseries in Charleston makes me nervous. This is a gorgeous ornamental made for the SHADE for zones roughly 5-9. That's me! That's Charleston! But when I read about it....grows on a japanese island called Hakone, grows well in the Northwest, and then I find websites for it all over the place closer to zone 6. I begin to wonder....

I've been talking about this ornamental around the house for so many months now that Lee and Piper almost know the Latin name. I mean, I WANT this in my garden! So I start small. Experiment officially in progress. I keep repeating over and over again in my head, "A clumping variegated ornamental that thrives in the shade in zone 8b? Why do I feel like I am the only one in Charleston looking for this?"

So, I ordered it from a garden mail order company in the midwest. The mail carrier dropped it at my door in its poofy green plastic bag, and each of the three very small clumps of grass were cleverly package in cardboard, rubber banded, and really looked quite happy when I took them out (pictured above). My husband couldn't believe that anyone could actually order plants via mail, and that they come in mail-quality packing, and even look pretty good upon arrival. He made me laugh while pondering the possibilities of ordering garden plants by mail.

Middle photo is from the Heronswoods Nursery in Seattle.

Or check out Charleston Home Magazine editor Ellen McGauley's blog where she talks about my love for this fantastic grass.

http://www.charlestonmag.com/home/blog/all_star_ornamental_grass

Crazy About Coleus

Last weekend I took my wonderful husband, Lee, and garden-elf daughter to the nursery. I kept going on and on about the coleus. The colors! The textures! They look at me and simply smile. I think to myself, "Thank god they indulge me....this has the potential to be incredibly embarrassing!" They lovingly help me carry everything to the car, and then watch me "dig holes," as Lee says, and promptly put them into the ground. I love them for that.

Coleus are part of my upbringing. Part of my "fabric" when I really needed something predictable and reliable every year. When I was young, my mother used to plant coleus in a huge antique rusty kettle. They were usually maroon and dark purple. These days they're downright exotic! Wow! You almost wouldn't think they were coleus at all. The super frilly varieties are not in yet, but I look forward adding some of those in with the others soon.

THE COLEUS BONUS: Colorful, textured coleus with big personalities offer a great alternative to those of us who don't have sunny spots to grow brightly colored flowers. And for envious 8 hours of sun-per-day gardeners there is now a "sun coleus."

Above are the ones I bought that day with my husband and daughter. The names are intriguing...and I think that's probably half the sell.... Top center is "Red Dragon," bottom center is "Henna," and bottom right is "The Flame." I absolutely had to have a coleus called "The Flame!"

Lady Banks Rose: A Southern Garden Staple

My lady banks rose is in full bloom! I wait all year long for this. I took this photo of my daughter Piper underneath it today. The cascading double petal flowers almost feel like they spilled right out a romance novel. Sometimes I imagine that if it could talk it would softly say, "Hey, y'all." This rose begs to be stared at. The streets of downtown Charleston are gorgeous this time of year....lady banks spill over porches and gardens everywhere. I often see visitors to the city stop and gaze at these beauties until their eyes meet the top, all the way up the 3rd floor.

I've had this lady banks for four years now. It's a seriously vigorous climber. Give it a wide berth when you plant it. I've secured it to a post on the back porch of my house, but I bet it would also look wonderful laying over an arched trellis at a gated entrance to a garden. (Maybe that's what I'll do with the next one)

And how can you not love a rose that has no thorns!

Climate: Hardy to zone 7
Fragrance: Light rose
Light: Full sun to partial shade
Soil: Moist, well-draining, with lots of organic matter added to the planting hole. Otherwise it is not picky about soil types.
Water: Water regularly until established, then it shouldn’t need a lot of extra irrigation except in severe heat or drought.
Blooms: Single or double, white or yellow miniature blossoms in spring. Blooms only once per year.
Size and Pruning: Lady Banks blooms on old wood, so be careful not to over-prune the older branches. You’ll be busy enough trying to contain the size of this rose – it’s not meant for small spaces and easily grows to 30 feet or more.

This Roof Top Xeriscaped Garden Grows in an Unlikely Space

Last night my husband, daughter, and I went to eat at a Charleston institution. Bowen's Island Restaurant near Folly Beach: fresh roasted oysters, seafood, and beer. It was an exciting outing mostly because this is where Lee and I were married 13 years ago, and now our daughter would see it for the first time. After a fire destroyed it nearly four years ago just months after winning the 2006 James Beard award for food preservation, it's now back open for business! If you've never been there it's likely that you won't get it at first. You hear everyone asking, "Where do we order our food?" "Where do we sit?" "Where is the restaurant?" It epitomizes "casual." I mean, where else can you eat and sit right next to a room full of old refrigerators (not the cool vintage kind, just the old junky kind) piled up on top of one another?

As we were climbing the stairs and getting our first look of the sun setting over the creek for the first time in 13 years, I noticed that the roof of one of the old outbuildings had a full-on rooftop garden. How spectacular. I couldn't help but wonder, seeing as there is junk everywhere, "How could someone have thought to add such a beautiful touch?" So instead of staring right down on to a hot gravel roof, patrons will have something interesting to look at as they meander up five zig zagging ramps to the 3rd floor bar and dining area that is nearing completion.

Amazing cacti that bask in the all-day sun, rosemary that trails over the edge, flowering dianthus, a few varieties of ornamental grasses expertly clumped together, and some other small "stepable" succulents. I thought the design, or the "layout" was so well done. Room to grow and fill in but still very interesting to look at right now. A small oyster sculpture that punctuates one side is the only indication of how the garden relates to the restaurant at all.

Dinner was delicious. I had the crab cake platter, Lee had the fried shrimp platter, and Piper had the chicken fingers. And as we left I had to look at the rooftop garden one more time....a brand new lasting memory of Bowen's Island for all three of us.

www.bowensislandrestaurant.com

Take a Class from a Charleston Garden Expert

Tommy Blizard, Charleston County Park's resident garden expert, will lead participants through six gardening workshops all aimed at helping you develop your 'green thumb.'

http://online.activecommunities.com/charleston/Activities/ActivitiesDetails.asp?ProcessWait=N&aid=1047

Even After 50 years, Charleston Plantation Garden Photos Still Look the Same...

I am amazed at the preservation of our local plantation gardens. The gardens in the background of these old photos (top) of my Mother with her brother Hugh (and his wife, seated) taken in May, 1959 at Middleton Gardens look exactly the same today. When so many things change in the world, this is what Charleston is good at. Preservation. When I took my daughter to Magnolia Gardens this morning (just 2 miles down the road from Middleton) I imagined that it's exactly as it was when my mother used to visit in the '50s and '60s. So here we are 50 years and two generations later. The gardens are unchanged, well preserved, and the photos look the same...just like as if it was May, 1959.

What amazed us at Magnolia:
• Gorgeous winter rye mixing in with fields of many varieties of daffodils.
• Peacocks everywhere. Some were busy bodies, trying everything they could to snatch sandwiches out of the hands of little ones.
• The ornamental trees in bloom were spectacular.
• So many alligators basking in the sun in the old rice ponds.
• Migratory birds, like the white faced coot. Coots are cute!
• The Peacock cafe, although pricey ($8 for a chicken salad and pecan sandwich) served pretty good food.
• The Nature train was a relaxing way to enjoy the breeze and get a birds eye view of wild turkey's, turtles, frogs, and many species of trees and plants.
• Tourist infra-structure. Everything you need is right here.
• The indoor Barbados Tropical Garden which my daughter thought was "AWESOME!"
http://www.magnoliaplantation.com

Teeny Tiny Landscapes....

When my daughter and I saw these displays at Hyams Garden Center on James Island, our mouths dropped. They had created miniature landscapes out of long hay racks. They're so fabulously teeny tiny that we figured it is sure to be a cozy place where fairies go in the evening to entertain all of their little friends from the glade. It's complete with walkways, birdbaths, seating areas, and "trees." So we decided to create our own(top photo). It was fun trying to find things from the yard that would work as a wall of "logs" for the little dwelling. We now have several small snails that have taken up residents among the smooth pebbles and "lawn" (aka: moss). Perhaps they're little friends that belong to our very own flock of fairies....

To Make Your Own Teeny Tiny Landscape:
1. Start by asking your local nursery how large some plants will get if you're not sure.
2. Choose a container. We chose a rectangular terracotta pot approx. 9" X 14" in size.
3. fill dirt halfway and begin placing your small plants in an arrangement that you're happy with.
4. Fill in the remaining gaps with potting soil.
5. For Structures: Use sticks, rocks, or small vines or grass tied together to create a dwelling. Sticks can also make wonderful "bridges" over a small river of rocks/pebbles.

Plant Suggestions:
• Small oxalis (clovers)
•Hen and Chicks (succulents work well because small ones are easy to find, and grow slowly, therefore don't take over the teeny "yard.")
• Blue fescue
• Creeping Jenny
• Low growing nettle
• Sprigs of dwarf mondo grass
• Petite ferns
• Moss clumps (easy to find somewhere in almost any yard)

Other Hard Scaping: Stones are easy to find. Many stores like Hyams now carry miniature porcelain figurines made for Bonsai gardens, but they work great here!