Making a start

I had all sorts of plans for work in my garden before I left to join the Puget Sound Garden Fling.  However, shortly after I returned, I was downed by a bout of COVID.  Once that was behind me, late summer's intense heat blossomed into a full-blown heatwave, sidelining my plans still further.  I managed to get in a few chores, like spreading mulch, but I've only made an impact in cleaning up two areas, neither of which was on my original list.  Still, it feels like progress in the right direction.

Before the heat soared, I took an initial stab at cleaning up my street-side succulent bed.

This is what the street-side succulent bed looked like in early July.  The mass of pink in the middle of the bed are flowers of Oscularia deltoides, a low-growing succulent with gray leaves and dark pink stems.

Sadly, by mid-August the plant was a mass of dead brown flowers.  When I examined it closely, there was more dead material than fresh foliage so I ended up pulling it all up, collecting a relatively small number of cuttings.

After the Oscularia and a couple of clumps of burned up Aeoniums were removed, work was suspended due to the extended heatwave.  I took this photo on September 11th, showing new sun and heat damage to the agaves.

Both the 'Blue Flame' Agaves on the right and the mass of Agave attenuata on the left had more damage than I was prepared to live with

Agave 'Blue Flame' doesn't let go of it's dead foliage willingly and conducting surgery on damaged foliage is even harder.  The dried-out leaves of Agave attenuata are easier to remove but the plant produces even more pups than 'Blue Flame' and these were encroaching on its neighbors so I ended up removing one large pup and three small ones.

Wide shot of the bed taken yesterday after I'd cleaned up the agaves

Closer look at the 'Blue Flame' Agaves.  The rosette hanging over the rock wall should probably go later this year before it falls into the street but I left it in place for now.

View from the back of the bed.  Removing 4 pups of the Agave attenuata gave the Yucca rostrata and the Aloe lukeana more room to spread out.

The largest Agave attenuata pup (left) is sitting in an empty pot to allow it to develop some roots before I give it away.  The smaller pups were damaged and I tossed them.  I potted the Agave 'Mateo' pups on the right after I rescued them from the pot containing their parent, which had been nearly buried under the Oscularia.

I'll plant cuttings of the Oscularia deltoides soon but it'll be a few years before the plant makes a statement like it did earlier this year.  I plant to remove and replace all or most of the remaining heat-scarred Aeoniums with fresher rosettes once I can be reasonably certain that the heatwaves are behind us.  Fall can't be counted on to arrive on September 22nd in our part of the Northern Hemisphere.

The other area I tackled was a bed in the northeast corner of the back garden.

This photo was taken in late June for my July wide shots post.  The area directly surrounding the smaller of the 2 strawberry trees (Arbutus 'Marina') was the focus of my efforts this month.

This is a view of the same area from the opposite direction, also taken in late June.  It may be difficult to see but there are 2 very large shrubs growing underneath the strawberry tree, both of which into its upper canopy.

Sonchus palmensis (aka giant dandelion tree, left) should've been cut back in late June when the flowers were spent but I never got around to it and I hate to think how many seedlings it may produce next year.  Melianthus major (right) develops tall branches and even taller flower spikes.  The photo shows its seed pods.

I cut back the Sonchus and the Melianthus to about a foot in height, lightly pruned the nearby Leucadendron 'Jester' and the Leucospermum 'Royal Hawaiian Brandi', and pulled up the ivy that relentlessly climbs into the area from the back slope.  The heatwave arrived before I had a chance to pick up more mulch to cover the bare soil and replant some succulents so those tasks remain on the "to-do" list.

"After" closeup of the area in question

Shot of the same area from the back patio

Given that the heatwave stretched out for six days, peaked at 108F (42C), and night temperatures barely cooled, I expected more damage than I've seen thus far.  I deep watered my cutting garden three times during the heatwave.  While a lot of blooms and foliage shriveled in place anyway, everything but a few recently planted zinnia plugs survived.  A few newly acquired plants in pots are in poor shape and a variety of annuals, including most of my Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum), croaked.  But most of the trees and larger plants should be fine once they grow new foliage to replace what was toasted.

The small Agave attenuata 'Ray of Light' in a sunny bed in the back garden (left) looks like it'd prefer to be moved to a shadier location.  The leaves of the large Coprosma 'Plum Hussey' planted alongside our south patio (right) was burned on one side but I expect I can prune out the damage. 

 

Phormium 'Apricot Queen' received a bad sunburn but should recover

I've got a lot of self-seeded Polygala myrtifolia (sweet pea shrubs) so this one won't be missed.  I've already dug it up.

Large patches of the creeping thyme planted between the flagstones burned so I'll be looking for flats of thyme to replant the affected areas this fall

I didn't even notice that this Yucca gloriosa had a bloom stalk until 2 days ago.  Many of its buds are singed and it remains to be seen whether it'll look presentable when they open

In other cases of severe heatwaves, the lemon tree at the bottom of our back slope has dropped all its fruit, setting its production back a year or more.  I was surprised that there was so much fruit left on the tree this time.  I've yet to test the fruit's quality, though.

Some plants show no signs of heatwave-related damage whatsoever, at least thus far.  That includes all the 'Cousin Itt' Acacias, Leptospermums, Leucadendrons, Leucospermums, Callistemons, Coleonemas, and other large, well-established plants I can't bring to mind at the moment.  A couple even seem to have thrived in the heat.

While many agaves showed sunburn damage, the 3 'Blue Glow' Agaves shown above had their own sunscreen in the form of a Chondropetalum tectorum, aka a small cape rush.  The rush itself is flowering abundantly too.

And I'd swear that this Vitex trifolia shot up another foot in height during the heatwave

The heatwave also brought three unexpected visitors to our garden.  Although their visit was brief, it created something of a stir.

Meeko and I caught sight of the 3 from inside the house at about the same time.  By way of explaining the poor quality of this shot, I caught them in action through the window with my phone's camera.  All 3 appear to be juvenile peafowl but I can't be certain of their genders as their tail feathers haven't developed.  At least one appeared to be a female.

When I went out to chase them down, I captured Meeko watching them from inside the house, looking interested if possibly also a little peeved

I should acknowledge that, even though the heatwave stretched into the coastal areas this time, delivering six days of temperatures over 100F (38C), we got off much easier than people living in the inland areas of California, which saw record temperatures in many cases.  In fact, the entire US Southwest has had to deal with a difficult summer.  I'm hoping that the heatwaves are over for the summer season but I know we can't count on cooler autumn weather yet.  Although my fingers are itching to cut back all the burned foliage in my garden, it's probably best to wait awhile until we're sure the cooler temperatures are going to last.

My best wishes go out to anyone dealing with wildfires or smoke or flooding from hurricanes and tropical storms.  I hope everyone has a safe weekend.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Fling visit to Heronswood Garden

We visited Heronswood Garden in Kingston, Washington at the start of the third day of the Puget Sound Garden Fling in July.  We had the entire morning there, which you'd think would've been enough time to cover the fifteen acre site but it wasn't.  I entirely missed both the Traveler's and Renaissance Gardens but I know other attendees have covered both so there are other sources readers can tap to cover my omissions.  I probably should've skipped lunch, which was provided on site.  I also should have done some homework before I headed off to the Fling but that's water under the bridge.

By way of background, renowned plant hunter, Dan Hinkley, and his partner, architect Robert L. Jones, created Heronswood Gardens.  They began developing the site in 1987, in time expanding their original ten acre lot to fifteen acres.  The grounds feature many of the plants Hinkley collected on his regular trips to countries around the world.  They also founded Heronswood Nursery.  In 2000, they sold the garden and the nursery to Burpee, a US-based plant and seed company.  Six years later, Burpee abruptly closed both the garden and the nursery.  In 2012, the Port Gamble S'Kallam Tribe of Native Americans purchased the property at auction.  They operate the garden to this day, with input from Hinkley.  I won't try to tell that story in more detail but you can find a summary on Heronswood Garden's site.  A much more detailed overview of Hinkley's life and projects can be found in his book, Windcliff.

We received a brief introduction to the garden before we were set loose to wander in whichever directions we chose.

This chalkboard style billboard offered a unique approach to alert visitors to plants to look for

Like hydrangeas, gorgeous lilies were in full bloom everywhere in the Puget Sound and Heronswood was no exception

Immediately across from the main entrance was the Rock Garden, which was created during the pandemic and subsequently dedicated to those lost their lives to COVID_related ailments, as well as those who fought to help them.

The Rock Garden is planted with species that thrive in high-elevation settings

I headed to the Woodland Garden next.  As was the case with many of the gardens toured during this Fling, I was at a loss to identify many of the plants I saw there; however, I've identified them when I could.

These "ruins" are a construction created by Little and Lewis.  I read their book, A Garden Gallery: The Plants, Art, and Hardscape of Little and Lewis, years ago and their style was immediately recognizable.

Puget Sound abounds with big-leafed plants.  The one featured on the left is Darmera peltata, the umbrella plant.  I'm unsure of the identify of those featured in the photo on the right.

While I can't identify the large shrub on the far left, I believe the climber is Hydrangea petiolaris

I loved the way these Hydrangeas were snuggled into their woodland settings

My guess is that the variegated plant mixed in with the ferns may be Impatiens omeiana, a species I've never seen among those sold in Southern California

The plant on the left may be Polygonatum variegatum, aka Solomon's seal, but I don't have a clue as to the identities of the other 2 plants

Flowering plants, from the upper left: noID, a lily of some kind, a variegated Pelargonium, and what I assume is a Symphyotricum

Ponds are scattered across Heronswood's site but this was the largest one I came across

A truly impressive tree stump

Some equally impressive tree ferns

A downed tree functioning as a natural garden decoration

The S'Klallam Connections Garden, still a work in progress, flows from the Woodland Garden.

During the brief introduction we received, we were told that the traditions of the S'Kallam tribe require that fallen totems are allowed to remain and decay where they fall 

From the Woodland Garden, I moved on into the Formal Garden that surrounds Hinkley and Jones's original home, now used as offices for garden staff.  I spent a lot of time in this area before we broke for lunch.  There were plenty of flowers in bloom, which may explain that preoccupation on my part.

I photographed the beds surrounded by boxwood from numerous angles

A decorative fountain in a garden that generally let plants shine without man-made accents

Miscellaneous flowers that I could at least identify by genus.  Top row: dried Allium, Astrantia, and Eryngium
Middle: Heliopsis, Hydrangea, and Lavatera
Bottom: Lilium, Persicaria, and Rosa

What my phone app consistently identifies as Inula helenium, aka Elecampane and elkdock

A bountiful Clematis

Closer to the house/office, there were still more interesting plants and flowers, including a small pond surrounded by carnivorous specimens.

Note the unique hedge used to enclose the area

Heather and Denise posing with my camera pointed toward an opening to another area beyond the hedge

Closeup photos of the pond and its plants

There were a lot of other interesting plant combinations

Beds close to the house/office

I loved both these shrubs but couldn't identify them, not that I expect either would be happy in my hot, dry part of Southern California

A few more plants that I could identify, at least in general terms.

My guess is that the plant on the left is Cercis canadensis 'Rising Sun', which I've only seen once in SoCal, fried almost beyond recognition.  I tried growing the Mukdenia rossii shown in the photo on the right once but it didn't survive long.

The garden also supported a few clumps of the lilies I later had identified for me as Lilium 'Zeba'.  I was obsessed with this plant and, upon learning its name, I pre-ordered 3 bulbs for delivery in February.  I've had success with some Orienpet lilies but I don't know how well this one will do.

2 other lily varieties I can't identify

6 more flowering plants I saw, clockwise from the upper left: Acanthus, Agapanthus (a genus of plants I can grow!), more dried Alliums, Dierama, Eryngium, and Sanguisorba

That does it for a summary of my Heronswood tour.  You can find more comprehensive coverage in Gerhard Bock's post at Succulents and More here and in two posts by Pam Penick at Digging here and here.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party