Stewartias in Full Blaze

Two Stewartia pseudocamellia trees with bright orange foliage in the morning light in the Lower Garden. I planted these trees from seed I collected at the Arnold Arboretum in 1996. I collected both seeds from the same parent plant hoping to get similar progeny. I failed to realize that all the stewartias species are planted together and there could be any number of genetic crosses in the seed I collected. My trees have slightly different bark and stature but similar autumn foliage. Last year's fall color was disappointing. This year was hit.

Great Expectations Realized

Now that I have finally seen the smoldering fall foliage on my three toddler Lindera glauca var. angustifolia plants in the Woodland Garden, the purported four-season usefulness of this shrub has been confirmed. I first encountered this plant at the Arnold Arboretum in the winter when the persistant foliage turns a tawny tan color. I have placed this plant in the woodland garden along a path on a steep slope so the shrub will create a year-long visual and physical barrier ensuring that the garden visitor will not physically, and psychologically, roll down the hill into the garden below. This particular plant is placed forward to our native hemlock, Tsuga canadensis, which should be an effective combination all winter. During the summer, the  foliage is a pleasing light green color with glaucous tones on the undersides.

A second specimen is planted against the back of the yew hedge of the Lower Garden, a terraced garden room above the Woodland Garden. Here, I have combined it with Hydrangea quercifolia 'Snowqueen' whose massive leaves will be a nice contrast to the long glossy leaves of Lindera glauca var. angustifolia in any season.

Lindera glauca var. angustifolia does best in a semi-shaded site with ample moisture and will grow to about 5 feet; a few feet smaller than the very similar, and more well-known, Lindera glauca var. salicigolia. I chose this plant for its smaller stature which should fit in nicely in my diminutive woodland garden. As an added bonus, female plants produce small black fruit following tiny yellow flowers in early spring.

Boccelli Garden: the End of the First Season of a Public/Private Partnership Project V

This weekend is 'Peek into Peterborough'. Busloads of tourists come to New England and Peterborough to see the fall foliage. I was hoping things would still be looking vibrant at this point in the season. Now that the grass has grown in, the new project at the Boccelli Garden is looking well-established.

The fall foliage of clethra (yellow) and enkianthus (red) in the far left of the new gardens can be seen from across the Nubanusit River.

We got several new Adirondack chairs for the downtown parks this year.

 About a month ago, we enlarged the new bed below the retaining wall. The original idea was to leave grass below the last 5-6 feet of the retaining wall to create a bench, but I think the enlarged bed envelops the new terrace and existing Boccelli Garden and is an improvemnet even if the "bench" has been lost.

The Boccelli Garden as it has always looked in October.

The Aussies Arrive

The ASA (Australians Studying Abroad) Tour called "Gardens, Art & Fall Foliage: Coastal Maine to Philadelphia including Boston & New York" stopped in earlier this week to visit my garden. A tour led by John Patrick (far left above) was spending 23 days visiting North East America to see gardens including Wave Hill, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Longwood Gardens, Chanticleer and several private gardens, including mine. When I was asked to be a stop on this tour and saw the list of gardens they would be visiting, I was honored to be included.

The night before their arrival, the temperatures dipped to 34 degrees F and many of the tender plants were hit by a light frost. I watered the lightly frosted foliage of the coleus and begonias in this flower box before the sun hit the leaves. This old trick of florists seemed to work because the leaves survived unscathed. Apparently, the cell damage to the leaves occurs as the sun melts the frozen water on the leaves but if warm water melts the ice, there is less chance of damage. The afternoon turned out to be a lovely sunny autumn day: perfect for garden visiting.

I learned that the Eucalyptus gunnii ‘Silver Drop’ that I use as an annual in the Lower Garden grows to become a large tree in Australia. John Patrick also pointed out that Plectranthus argentatus, another silver-foliaged-plant that I use as textural plant in the Lower Garden is also native to Australia.

The most admired plant on the Blue Bench Terrace was Pelargonium sidoides, a tender geranium with gray foliage and tiny magenta flowers which spilled out of the central planter.

                     

  

Being such a small garden on this tour had its advantages because the participants got the chance to use the seating throughout the garden to take a contemplative moment to rest and actually "be" in the garden.

I thoroughly enjoyed the invasion of friendly Aussies to my garden. Australia has always intrigued me. I hope to get the opportunity to visit gardens in their country one day.