G is for Groundcover – Gill-over-the-ground

  • Post published:04/08/2016
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G is for Groundcover like ground ivy (Glechoma hederacea) otherwise known as gill-over-the-ground, seen here creeping from my lawn into the new Lawn Beds. There is a lot of cross-over, if not confusion, about what is a wildflower, weed, or ‘real plant.’  A friend was trying to figure out how to rid of the gill-over-the-ground that had suffocated the strawberries growing under her grapevines. We discussed carboard and solarizing, but another friend asked why she didn’t just leave…

F is for Foam Flower

  • Post published:04/07/2016
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F is for foam flower, more properly named Tiarella cordifolia.  Foam flower is a delicate perennial shade loving groundcover that sends up plumy racemes of white or pale pink flowers in the spring and early summer. The heart shaped foliage explains the ‘cordifolia’ in its proper name. When the flowers are finished the plant will continue to spread by runner (stolons) over the ground making a very attractive groundcover.  It prefamp humusy soil. However it cannot thrive where…

E is for Epimedium or Fairy Hat

  • Post published:04/06/2016
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  E is for Epimedium, a beautiful lowgrowing groundcover with heart-shaped leaves that likes dry shade. I admired it for years, but never planted it because I thought it was tender.  That was a mistake. Epimediums are hardy in zone 5 where I live. My new house and garden might even be zone 6, the climate is changing so rapidly. The MissouriBotanical Garden website says epimedium flowers are showy, and they are in their own way, but they…

D is for Dappled Willow

  • Post published:04/05/2016
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  D is for Dappled Willow. A friend has a beautiful garden in front of her house that is enjoyed by the whole community. I watched the foliage a shrub that she planted turned cream and pink as it matured. Needless to say, when we started planting shrubs in our very wet new yard/garden I ran out to buy a dappled willow of my own. Why did I especially want a Dappled Willow? First, Salix integra ‘Hakuru Nishiki,’…

C is for Clethra – or Sweet Pepperbush

  • Post published:04/04/2016
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C is for Clethra alnifolia, otherwise known as sweet pepperbush. It was one of the first plants I put in my new, and very wet, garden last summer. It has everything I need: is very hardy, likes some shade, tolerates clay soil, likes a wet so much that it can be used in a rain garden where there is occasional flooding. Clethra is also the right size for my garden. It will grow between 4 to 6 feet…

Save Money with a Culinary Herb Garden

  • Post published:04/03/2016
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How much do you spend on parsley over the year? Or fresh basil or cilantro? The $1.99 supermarket bundles don’t cost that much but it all adds up over time. If you want to save money, have fun, and very little work, an herb garden is the answer. Lots of books about herb gardens have beautiful photographs of herbs set out in geometric parterres bordered with box or some such, but that elegance takes work to maintain. My…

B is for Button Bush

  • Post published:04/02/2016
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  B is for Buttonbush, more properly known as Cephalanthus occidentalis. I was thrilled to find this native woody shrub which will grow to about eight to ten feet because it is not only wet tolerant, it has been known to live on river banks where the water often rises enough so that the buttonbush is actually growing in the water. My garden is periodically inundated for days at a time after rain. However, I am trying to…

A is for Achillea – often known as yarrow

  • Post published:04/01/2016
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A is for achillea, a wonderful perennial that has an ancient history. It is named after Achilles, the legendary Greek hero. He was the son of the sea goddess Thetis and the mortal king Peleus. Thetis, wanting to make her baby invulnerable dipped him into the River Styx. She had to hold him my his heels which never became wet leaving that spot vulnerable. Hence comes our saying that someone might have a weakness, an ‘Achilles heel.’ The…