The Mysterious Garden Muse

If a landscape is very formal in design, does that mean it inevitably has a stiff, sophisticated ambience? Does a more natural design automatically create a more relaxed effect? The ambience or “mood” of a landscape or garden design can certainly be influenced by the types of plants selected and the way the plants are arranged, but the effect may vary with the seasons. Hardscapes and artistic motifs can be used to create a unifying theme between the architecture of the home and the design of the landscape. If the house is of a distinctive architectural period, or if the hardscapes and garden structures feature prominently in the landscape design, those features alone could conceivably create a mood. The type of ambience would largely depend on the style of the house -- a plantation-style house surrounded by live oaks and magnolias would only need a tray of mint juleps to recall the old South. A house incorporating native stone, and repeating native stonework in the outdoor hardscape...

There is something about daffodils that seems to inspire poets, most famously Herrick and Wordsworth. Tulips have brought out completely different reactions over the years, most famously “Tulipomania”. Daffodils and tulips are far and away the most popular flowering spring bulbs, so why does one seem to push buttons with collectors while the other brings out the muse? Maybe it is just because the sunny yellow flowers of daffodils (Narcissus spp.) are such a change from the drab colors of winter. Also, when the daffodils bloom it means that warmer days are just over the horizon. Whatever the reason, it’s hard to find anyone who doesn’t like daffodils. What’s not to like? Unlike fussy tulips, daffodils will live and multiply for many years after planting, if the conditions are suitable. And while critters might dig up daffodil bulbs, they don’t eat them -- the bulbs are toxic to most animals. Even the nicest daffodils are relatively inexpensive and easy to find. Nearly all daffodil sp...

Aromatherapy has been a hot topic for some time now, but it shows no signs of fading away. Far from it – scented candles have pushed other merchandise off the shelves in malls across the country, while our television viewing is interspersed with ads for scented air fresheners in liquid, solid or oil forms, plug-ins, machines that shoot puffs of fragrance into the air, even CDs that “play” different fragrances throughout the day. Since many of these synthetic fragrances are meant to convey images of the great outdoors, fresh cut grass as well as floral fragrances galore, many people assume that just by planting flowers, a fragrant garden is sure to follow. Those who have more experience know that while many flowers are virtually without scent, the needles of some conifers, the bark of some trees and the foliage of numerous plants can often compete with the fragrance of the most valuable perfumed flowers. Think perfume and many people instantly focus on roses, lilacs or mock orange bloss...

At the moment I am moderating the Home and Hobbies book club at BN.com (and I visit a lot of the other clubs on a regular basis). The Home and Hobbies club is about to be revamped so topics like knitting will have a different moderator, and there will be a new book club, that I will moderate, discussing four or five gardening books each month. I've given the powers-that-be some suggestions for books to discuss including several soon to be published titles and a couple of classics. We may also include a "board" to discuss gardening mysteries, since there are a lot of those available now. The book clubs are free and now that people are becoming more familiar with the new format (as opposed to the old online university classes), the message boards are getting busy again. Stop by BN.com to say hi, and to talk about new and interesting books on garden topics. By the way, the photo has nothing to do with the topic of this post. I just wanted to see some summery flowers -- I...

Short of dropping Chicago smack into the middle of the Mohave Desert, it may be hard to conceive of cacti and succulents growing in this area. If Midwest gardeners have grown these plants at all, they were most likely grown as houseplants or greenhouse specialties. Certainly, in order to survive a Chicago winter, the great majority of cacti and succulents would need to be overwintered indoors. But with exotic gardens and distinctive container plants attracting more and more interest, these fascinating plants are escaping the confines of the house, if only for the summer. Since cacti and succulents tend to be desert plants, the soil and weather conditions in Chicago are a stretch. Luckily, one of the best things about container gardens is their flexibility. If a plant needs well-drained, sandy soil conditions, those conditions can be made to order in a container. If a plant needs plenty of sun but shelter from the wind, containers can be sited in exactly the right spot. And if the su...

Pansies are sometimes considered to be an old-time flower favorite because they have been around for years and they never really go away. Kids like them because of their friendly flower “faces”, while garden lovers favor them because they will bloom even when winter’s chill is in the air. Whether they are planted in a solid mass of a single color, or a vibrant mix of many-colored flowers, pansies are a welcome sight in early spring, when bulbs are about the only other flowers in bloom. Landscape contractors like pansies because they can plant them in beds, borders and even baskets and they will look good for weeks at a time, during the transition from spring to summer. Pansies and violets are often confused, but generally speaking, pansies are annuals and violets are perennials. Both belong to the genus Viola -- pansies are Viola x wittrockiana, which may have evolved from the European Viola tricolor. Pansies can act more like tender perennials at times, though, due to the introducti...

“Persian Shield: A Rising Star” By Becke Davis Five to ten years ago, if you had mentioned “Persian Shield” to a home gardener, a landscape contractor or a professional nurseryman, odds are their response would have been a blank look. At that point, Persian Shield was mainly used as a houseplant or as a specimen in tropical gardens -- a relic from Victorian times. Today Persian Shield is a hot topic at flower shows and in garden chat rooms, and both the media and the garden industry are taking notice. A survey taken on one garden website resulted in no negative ratings for this plant. As an added benefit, deer and rabbits are said to ignore it. Persian Shield (Strobilanthes dyerianus, sometimes listed as Perilepta dyeriana) is now recognized as a stunning addition to containers and window boxes, as well as a colorful accent in the mixed border or flower bed. Although Persian Shield does sometimes produce small, delicate violet-blue flowers in late spring to early summer, its distinct...