Lol Bill, I never saw this thread originally, but it came to my attention today after you updated. But as I'm reading through, I kept thinking wait.... Bill did NOT post this question! Why is everyone piling on Bill for his junipers? LOL! And quite frankly, doing it in a rather rude manner! Sorry you got so much heat just for trying to help someone. As they say, no good deed....

Anyway, your junipers look great and I'm glad they work for you!

kitasei, I hope your junipers worked out for you too! I've considered some low growing junipers on a slope along the road but I keep hesitating due to height. I need to keep sight lines in mind (busy road, driveway in the middle of a blind curve exacerbated by a telephone pole and neighbor's stone wall!) so for now the slope is still just weedy grass!

:)

Dee

Thanks Dee!

I'm always looking to keep the maintenace here low by planting zone hardy, drought tolerant woody conifers and trees, that will grow around here.

I acquired these as seedlings, mail order, from reesville ridge nursery (Summer of 2021?) if anyone is interested.

He who laughs last.... 🤣

Lol that's too funny, Marie. (BTW I messaged you through GW/Houzz)

MG, Agatha Christie came to mindn for me as well, but I couldn't remember any specific garden scenes or refererences. I guess it was just the general "quaint English village" vibe.

Agatha Christie is one of those book series (like Nancy Drew lol) that I have to make sure I have time for. Quick reads, but once I read one, I have to get my hands on every single one and read them all! They're rather addictive!

:)

Dee

Marie, Enola is just north of Harrisburg and once had the largest train yard in the US. The trains are right across from the bookstore.

Im not looking at a map so really have only a vague idea of PAs geography. ….Its about an hour from lancaster where my daughter lives. i was thinking of a side trip….it sounds like a cool place

Update: I finally got one! I brought an eastern redbud home with me yesterday, along with another river birch (I have a deep-seated love of river birch). The redbud is not a named cultivar. Got them planted today.

Beautiful specimens, porkchop! Very nice indeed. Good luck with them. River birches are really quite beautiful.

:)

Dee

I feel like you all must live in another world. One without deer! The deer pressure in my NY metro area makes native plants very difficult to protect. In unfenced areas there is no regeneration of oaks for example. Wooded landscapes are dominated by invasives. We gardeners still are committed to restoring native plants but it requires a whole lot of strategy, and many compromises.

Gee I live in a fairly rural suburb - old farms, protected open space, patches of woods - and I have lots of wildlife, including deer. There's a deer path straight through my yard. I hardly ever see any deer damage to my natives. The sassafras is never touched, I have oak saplings, maple saplings, and lots of other small trees that I'm constantly removing from garden areas (they may not all be natives but I think there are cottonwood and juniper trees in there). The virginia creeper is never touched, nor the poison ivy, and I don't know if they are native or not, but lol the weeds are NEVER touched. Seems the only thing deer and other critters go for is my planted garden plants - hostas, daylilies, phlox etc. Maybe there are enough "cultivated yards" so that the deer have developed a fussier palate!

:)

Dee

Please report back with the color of the flowers when in bloom.

Hey @diggerdee zone 6 CT

I hadnt forgotten about your request and I can report that there were no flowers on any of the 5 CC I have. I have no idea why as they look just fine otherwise. Its weird. Here is one today:

That's odd... not necessarily a BAD thing in this case, hahaha. But seriously, it is interesting that they did not bloom. But they are looking good!

:)

Dee

Wow how beautiful! What a range of colors!

:)

Dee

Yes really gorgeous variation! The peachy tones are lovely and there are not nearly enough plants within that palette. All of them are terrific.

Thanks Marie, with the very wet summer conditions being as is this year, am finding it challenging to keep my spirits up and especially upon noting just how extreme the weather is acting out globally! There's a good group here, but unfortunately having much dwindled for all too many moving on in one way or the other.

Claudia, I suspect 'Prairie Splendor' growing nearby contributed the pollen, thus also lending the additional seedling vigor.

Peren.all, yes, most are keepers, especially so the unique ones and those of nice peachy tones, a real color favorite!

rouge, you're killing me! Once again, a (pick one) gast station/fast-food joint/ pharmacy that has a nicer garden than I do! Haha!

:)

Dee

Very nice and lovely for the community. Wish our drive thur did such a nice flower garden! 👍

How pretty. I wish our various businesses did the same.

I do not know the variety :( can’t fond the tag

I keep forgetting to take photos! My dahlias are so-so this year. Some are growing like gangbusters, others right next to them are dying. And I lost three to moles/voles I think, just last week. I had three stragglers on the patio in little pots, and I kept thinking, I MUST get those planted out before they die! I planted them out in the garden and three days later I could tell the moles/voles had worked their evil. Sure enough, I went over to them and lifted the stem straight up. Shoulda left them in the pots lol.

I'll try to take some photos tomorrow morning. I plan on cutting a few and I'll try to remember to take pics before cutting!

:)

Dee

Lol, it's alot more WORK selling them as plants! But I guess I always worry that if I just sell the tuber, it may not be viable. Even if I sell them after eyes appear, I worry. Which I guess I shouldn't. I BUY them that way from big-name dahlia nurseries lol. But still.

So I dig out a hundred pots from my garage, and pay for my expensive potting mix (which is actually why I sell them for a few bucks, hoping to make back some of the money from the potting mix!) and spend HOURS potting up, and at least if they have leafed out I feel the rest is now on the buyer.

What is the small yellow flower in the arrangement you posted? That IS your arrangement, right? It's really so beautiful!

:)

Dee

@diggerdee zone 6 CT, Thanks for your kind words. Yes, this is my arrangement. All from my garden. The small highlighter yellow flowers are Hunnemannia fumariifolia (Mexican Tulip Poppy). It‘s one of my favorite colors, and the bloom has a surprisingly good vaselife. Buds will also open in a vase.

Yes gardenho, I think that's one reason why I stopped actively growing them from seed. They returned nicely for me, so I got to crossing new seed off my list (you know how it is, you go through a catalog, make a list of a "few' things, and before you know it, you're at $700 worth of seeds - just from one catalog! And you still have 4 more to go through!)

Anyway, I guess the reseeding petered out over the years, but I still kept crossing them off the list, since they were something I stuck out by the road - i.e not in my "garden proper".

But I really should grab another pack of seeds. It was nice to pull in my driveway to the beautiful little colorful blooms, and I think the walkers enjoyed them too, as I used to see them pointing to them. You gotta take - and spread! - joy wherever and however you can these days!

:)

Dee

I am with Claudia in that I love those hot orange portulaca. but I have not grown them for a number of years because I don’t start much from seed (I am in transition between the midwest and New England in May) and I haven’t seen them recently in nurseries.

I thought of this thread when I came across this out of place singleton red portulaca:

What is funny is I havent planted any portulacs for the previous two seasons AND this small bed you see was created this spring, where previously it was grass lawn.

Wendy I think they look great! And your seed-sown ones are better than the purchased ones. And boy they grew fast since June, huh?

Congrats!

:)

Dee

P.S. Boy looking at your photos I'm thinking I have to grow these again. Love the blooms, love the foliage.... putting these on the list for my fall seed orders!

I have had Violet Queen for years. It usually self sows well but over the winter, only one seedling came back. I will have to collect the seed and toss them where I want them in the fall.

More cleome love...I just saw hummingbirds feeding on them!

Lol, I refuse to give up that early! It's summer to me until September 22!

:)

Dee

(although it IS getting darker out earlier!) :(

Yep, crispy death all round. The Japanese anemones I have had in my garden for over 35 years have diminished to one smallish clump. Truly, a whole re-think is in order...but doing so at an advanced age is always a bit of a triumph of hope over experience -not that experience has ever really added that much to my overall competence...but hope - I am big on that.

rouge your gardens are looking fabulous!

R. triloba is flowering but A. Robustissima has just buds. If yours is A. R. then you are doing a great job of keeping the glorious thug in check.

Good questions Dee.

A couple of reasons I moved it:

- it was at the back and was going to be too small to be noticed (I replaced it with a variety that should grow taller)

- I think it will more reliably produce more blooms if I can bring it into the garage over the winter

Thanks rouge. I was just telling a co-worker about this hydrangea this morning, after seeing this thread. She is new to gardening and lives in a condo. While she has a bit of land to plant in, she is using a lot of pots. I told her this one may work in a pot but we're not sure about overwintering yet. But she is going to look into it (or maybe those other "groundcover" hydrangeas that were on a recent thread)

:)

Dee

I thought of this thread while entering my back door yesterday. Ok, this may not be a supertunia (honestly can't remember what I had last year) but seeing this made my eyes look to the heavens in exasperation.

I've lamented on many threads here that I do not have success with petunias. No matter how much I try to care for them they just fizzle and look awful by midsummer. Then I see this...

Seriously? I plant you in pots with expensive, high-quality potting mix, or in the ground in my beds that have soil that has been nurtured for years, nay, decades. I give you sun, maybe a bit of shade if the sun is too hot and wilts you, I water, ferilize, adjust all of the above to try to encourage you along.... and you grow in a CRACK in the patio?! Against a brick wall? I'm so done with you.

I suppose at least you're not a show-off like your friend the begonia, who had to actually grow out of the SIDE of the wall.

At least you stayed at ground level lol. I'll give ya that...

My neighbor has a bed of volunteer petunias in pea gravel that come back each year

Whatever might have popped up in the crack of a wall - or in pea gravel - they are not supertunias. They are sterile and do not grow from seed, only plugs or cuttings.

Can't be of any help, but watching this, hoping to get some info on the peonies. I have the same problem with them.

:)

Dee

For the rudbeckia take a look at "American Goldrush".

https://www.waltersgardens.com/variety.php?ID=RUDAG

Or a smaller one ” ”viette’s Little Suzy” gets good reviews for disease residtence.

Lol Rouge ok lets change it to ’Lone garden stalker’ !

I will take notebof the address and then return at a later date :)

Lol you are indeed very dedicated! And we are so glad you are, because then we get to see all the great photos of things around town!

:)

Dee

Wow. Yeah I'd be a bit worried about the effect on the house. It must be nice in the fall though - doesn't BI have nice fall color?

:)

Dee

We have Parthenocissus henryana on our house. It needs trimming at least four times a year to keep under control. Creepers on buildings are fairly common here and in mainland Europe. Apart from looking attractive they can help cool the interior. But our buildings are solid walled and don't have siding.

Ivy-clad walls keep homes cool during summer, RHS research shows / RHS https://share.google/bqdWwp66dxm92uazN

Came across this covered building while on vacation.

I think you need some kind of tallish (possibly evergreen) shrub as an anchor, maybe in that back corner. Maybe a smaller rhodie, about 5 feet tall? A pieris or yew?

fothergilla? holly - evergreen and/or deciduous? aralia Sun King? Hydrangeas?

Sorry, I'm switching over to a lot of shrubs so I have shrubs on the brain lol.

I have digitalis grandiflora that do well in shade. They aren't as spectacular as the biennial foxgloves but they are reliable, low-maintenance, and have a lovely soft yellow color. Bees love 'em. The "spikes" get up to 3-4 feet tall.

Actea/cimicifuga

larger astilbes

aruncus

monkshood

lobelia cardinalis is lovely and did well in lots of shade for me, but that was in a very wet garden so I don't know if it could handle shade AND drier soil.

Not that tall but lovely to brighten up a shady spot - hakone grass. Not sure if you have too much shade for that though....

Good luck! Let us know how it turns out!

:)

Dee

gardenho I was thinking tall garden phlox as well, but wasn't sure about the sun.... I have some in partial shade, but they do get morning sun. L Clark if you think you have enough sun, I agree the white phlox would look nice there and some are very fragrant as well.

:)

Dee

lets start with the basics. We are given a substantial list of plants that failed and we should figure out why.

Are there any water sucking trees nearby, such as maples on your side or the other side of the fence?

whats the soil like?

Does it have a “ History” ? that might be affecting its fertility?

what have you done to improve it?

whats its waterholding capacity-dig a 6-8 ” hole,then fill it with water,; see how long it takes to drain, poke a ruler or dowel down to see how deep the water penetrated.

have you ever had the soil tested to see how much organic matter there is?

if youve already done these things and your information says something should live there, the only thing that cime to mind is lack of water. For instance Even though astilbe is a tough plant it needs regular watering. just because an areas shady doesnt n mean it that ” should” remain damp. thats why theres that entire area in the nursery for ” dry shade”

very curious what your actual conditions are there. personally, i wouldnt spend a penny on plants until I could be sure the environment could support them , or that you have the time time and energy to get them established

marie

Sensible suggestions, Marie. IF ferns have dried out and didn't make it through the winter, you might consider soaker hose on this area and cover it with mulch. Really a 2-3" layer of bark mulch over everything would improve the moisture of the soil there.

But I agree with Marie, IF you really want to do it once and be done with it, I'd do enough investigation to determine if that area has everything plants will need to thrive. Then you can decide how much effort, and money you want to invest to provide it, if it is lacking in anything.

Beautiful!

There is a lovely, well-kept house around here that has a row of evergreen conical shrubs alternating with what seem to be a Limelight(?) type hydrangea - big white blooms fading to green. They are SPECTACULAR. However, as luis alluded to, they are too big for the spot, at least imo. It's possible the homeowners wanted privacy (they line the house side of a stone wall along the busy road) but they are getting very large and very crowded with those evergreens.

Unfortunately I can't get a photo easily. The house is on a busy road, with no sidewalks, no place to pull over, and is also in a curve on a hill. Dangerous photo ops, if any lol. Most of the time it's even too hard to just LOOK at them while driving lol. Their house at Christmas is also SPECTACULAR and I've been wanting to get a photo for years. Really a bit over the top but so elegant, so coordinated, and just so gorgeous, but now, it's more and more hidden behind those shrubs. :(

I'm actually seeing a lot of these big white hydrangeas that sadly seem to be planted in the wrong spot. I don't think people realize how big they get. You can count me in in that group. I planted what might be a Limelight (got it at a swap and can't remember what it is) and it has gotten way bigger than I expected. At least mine is along the edge of patch of woods and not in front of my living room window. Lol already had to deal with that scenario thanks to the previous owner!

They are a bit ubiquitous around here, but I'm okay with that. IMO, they are like daffodils in spring, or mums in fall. Yes, they are everywhere but they are so beautiful I'm happpy to see them everywhere!

:)

Dee

The house is on a busy road, with no sidewalks, no place to pull over, and is also in a curve on a hill. Dangerous photo ops,

Now we dont want to put you in mortal danger but I am confident that you can find a way Dee!

I have seen this display for a few years but it is just yesterday that I decided to park and take a couple of pics. The symmetry appeals to me.