Tulip Time (A Bit Early)

Tulips are blooming well in the gardens right now albeit a bit early. This species tulip (Tulipa tarda) is one of my favorites with its white-tipped, bright yellow petals. It's not very tall but is heavy on impact. If you plant it in an area that doesn't get a lot of supplemental water in the summer, it will last for many years. Tulips in general will persist longer in those well-drained soils that don't get overly wet during the summer. The image below is a better shot of the 'Orange Queen' tulips out front. They opened up significantly today and revealed a lot more glowing orange. We've had lots of comments on these thus far although we're still asked about our Tulip Time display (2000 and 2001) that featured over 25,000 tulips representing 500 varieties and species. It was spectactular but was removed after two years when it lost vigor and appeal. I wish we had the money to replicate it again....

We're continuing to dig up perennials around the gardens for our perennial division day this Saturday. I'm flagging perennials around the gardens that are in need of division or will be removed entirely from the collections (because we usually have plenty of that type). I'm very pleased with our spring progress and at the risk of jinxing it, I'd say that we're way ahead of where we've been in past years. Crunch time is coming and we have lots of plants rolling in daily (see below). The yard will start to fill up and before too long, we'll have 100,000 plants to poke in the ground, label and maintain. It's all good though. It's a lot of fun too.

An "Octobery" April Day

The orange tulip in front of the building is 'Orange Queen'. We're getting lots of comments on the vividness of these tulips. We planted 1000 of these last fall in groups of 20. We plant them 6" deep in a tight clump to simulate a "bouquet" effect in the garden. These look dynamite and are a nice transition to all the orange we'll have for summer color in the exact same location. Once these lose color, we dig them up for volunteers with the instructions to plant them immediately and let the foliage continue to die back. We have no shortage of volunteers interested in adopting these colorful bulbs.


The weather was frigid this morning but warmed up enough to be quite comfortable while working out in the gardens. We didn't get close to frost temperatures and hopefully wont in the near future. The cooler temperatures should help lengthen and "preserve" tulips and other bulbs blooming right now.

I walked the entirety of the gardens which I always enjoy. Of course it's tough to put "blinders" on as I see weeds and other distractions. I take a notepad now to write down some "action items" as my memory is not what it used to be. I'm always ready with back up projects for volunteers and wont run shy of things to do until December at this point. I took many pictures today and caught this neat grape hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum 'Mt. Hood') with its little "snow-capped" tops. Years ago we planted 50 taxa of Muscari and there are some neat ones out there. Weed control efforts are in full swing as we're seeing lots of little devils popping up everywhere. Time spent now with proactive weeding saves a lot of time later in the season. We're only limited by the number of hands helping out there right now!


Don't ever forget to enjoy the beauty of emerging foliage on deciduous plants. Many times the new foliage has a neat color and/or texture. This image below is of the golden cutleaf elderberry (Sambucus racemosa 'Sutherland Gold' with pinkish new growth that will age to bright gold and shoot up to 6-7 feet tall in one season. Note how far it was cut back in winter (down to 15"). Love this new growth (and this shrub in general).

Chilly But Constructive Today

I scraped some ice off my windshield this morning but really can't complain as the day ended up being nice enough to accomplish a lot of work at the garden. The founder of Rotary Gardens, Dr. Robert Yahr, is back from Arizona and we had a nice walk thru the gardens and looked at some areas that we hope to improve in the future; including the future garden for his late wife Nancy. He is a true visionary and really has an eye for design. It would not be an exageration to say that Rotary Gardens would not be what it is today without Dr. Yahr's persistence, ideas and tenacity. The grape hyacinths (Muscari armeniacum) look great today and the cool temperatures will help preserve the blooms. It's going to get a bit frosty but that's no surprise. The curveball for us will be bringing plants in and out every day. They need sunlight and fresh air but can't take the chilly nights at this point. It is a true juggling act that could be avoided if we had a greenhouse. However, a greenhouse would bring some of it's own challenges as well as some added expenses.

One of my favorite tulips is pictured here ('Prinses Irene') and is blooming in front of our visitor's center. Every fall we plant 2000 new tulips in that garden. The other variety is an orange one ('Orange Impression'?) that I'll show in the near future. When all of these tulips are done blooming, we dig them out and give them to volunteers to plant at home. This display usually corresponds to our color scheme that year (lots of orange this year, and blue!). Tulips are certainly a classic and I wish we had more $ to put them in every fall. Our talented "carpentry Grumpies" built this bench to surround one of our hackberry trees (Celtis occidentalis) in the gazebo garden. I envision this bench being used quite often. Special thanks to the talented Dave, Jim, Bob and Vern.

Enjoy It While It Lasts!

A nice day despite cooler temperatures. Spring will again show this week that the influence of winter is still here despite the recently nice weather. Highs in the 50s and lows in the 30s. Ugh! This image shows the 3' of green on our 8' arborvitaes. The original intent of this hedge was enclosure and definition of the sunken garden. Bambi(s) really nibbled away up to 5' or so as the snow levels extended their reach. Not much we can do about it except hope that these arborvitae will regenerate and fill out again (while also relying on more protection on our part; repellants, fences, etc.). However, it's tough not to get discouraged when you see this damage daily.

The bleeding hearts (Dicentra sp.) have emerged very quickly. Cool temps will slow them down this week but look for them to bloom by the first week in May. We enjoy this perennial immensely and love the white variety 'Alba' as much as any. Your decision as the foliage yellows in July is whether or not to cut it down as it goes dormant. We cut some do

wn to make room for neighboring perennials that are filling out but will leave some with their dormant golden/yellow foliage for interest. Try the variety 'Goldheart' for a beautiful golden leaved variety that looks good thru the entire growing season and has a nice, deep yellow coloration.

We have more bagged compost coming tomorrow, plants from Nebraska (Bluebird Nursery) on Tuesday that will have to be protected inside and a big perennial division work day this Saturday. A busy week interspersed with less than desirable weather. This is WI of course so we'll cope! Summer teaser below.

A Sassy Saturday

The weather today was windy and cold to say the least! I didn't work today but I'm sure Larry, Janice, Jerry and the volunteers all had a productive day. I spent the day in Richland Center which is about 2 hours northwest of Janesville. I was helping some friends lay out some windbreaks and other trees on their rural property. The topography in that part of Wisconsin is spectacular with rolling hills and limestone outcroppings. Their land sloped down to a woodland hugging a stream. I took this picture of Dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria) that was among many wildflowers. I was happy to see the lack of garlic mustard and European buckthorn (at least not yet) in their woods. They have some other issues to deal with but overall, have a beautiful property. Interestingly enought, the seeds of Dutchman's breeches are spread by ants that will take the seed (assuming it food) to their "nests", where they later germinate. This plant was used by Native Americans to treat syphilis as well. I always wondered how the herbal uses of plants are determined? Trial and error could be (and probably was) fatal in some instances I'm sure.

A neat plant that I photographed yesterday is this fumewort (Corydalis solida). In the poppy family and under 10" tall, this plant is planted as a tuber in the fall. They like well-drained soil in part sun and obviously bloom early. The foliage is very similar to the Dutchman's breeches seen above. The dainty purple/violet flower is beautiful above the lacy foliage. This is another example of reaping the rewards of fall work. Not sure how long this will live as it can be fussy but we'll enjoy it while we can. Summer teaser below of our All-American Selection garden last summer.

Do We Really Need More April Showers!?

With such gloomy weather today (thundershowers), I thought I'd show a nice colorful combination from last year. While it looks like a variegated rose bush, this is the combination of the shrub rose 'Pink Mass' with a new, variegated forsythia called 'Kumson' (Forsythia viridissima koreana 'Kumson'). The rose is one of my favorites and I love the silver veination of this forsythia even though the blooms aren't very profuse. This shrub can be cut back severely even twice per year as it tends to splay out and take up a lot of square footage. Imagine a branch of this in a fresh arrangement though.

Our rose garden has a wonderful collection of shrub roses from Bailey Nursery (MN). Installed last year, over 100 roses represent 28 varieties in their Easy Elegance series. We are one of very few trial and display sites for their roses. The deal is that we pretty much leave them alone and take observations and notes during the year. This data is then sent back to Bailey. The benefit for us is the ability to show some truly, low-maintenance roses for the home landscape. We used to have lots of hybrid teas, grandifloras, etc. but I don't miss having to put on the white suit, block off the garden and poison the environment with my Solo MistBlower shooting out various chemicals to maintain the appearance and health of roses that most homeowners would not be interested in maintaining anyway. I probably lost a couple years of my life being in close proximity to so many chemicals.

Not much to report about today. We're getting our containers ready outside and continue to dig perennials for division. We find it easier to remove the entire perennial, dice it up, pot the divisions and later return a portion of the plant (if warranted) to the original site. It's amazing how many divisions we've made already. We brought some plants, soil and pots inside for the Saturday volunteers to work inside on division. We certainly don't want any idle time at Rotary Gardens! Summer teaser below.

Back to April Weather

Hepatica acutiloba up above. It's a great woodland ephemeral. The temperatures were still on the warm side for this time of year but the winds and overcast skies allude to both more rain and falling temperatures thru next week. I took this picture of hyacinths ('Kronos') in front of our visitor's center. We did a collection of hyacinths years ago and displayed over 80 varieties. My favorite variety is this deep, blue-violet 'Kronos' which has a nice scent as well. Hyacinths, planted in October as bulbs, should be in areas where they don't get a lot of water/irrigation during their dormant time. They will last longer in those soils and come back for many years. They sure do pack a lot of "flower power" though for such a short plant.

The crew from Wisconsin Public Television came to shoot a segment of The Wisconsin Gardener. Shelley Ryan, the host came with Kerman, Frank and Greg. They are a fun group and despite some retakes due to wind, visitors and other distractions, we ended up with two pretty good segments on horsetails (Equisetum) and hellebores (Helleborus). These four work well together and have a great sense of humor. Shelley does such a wonderful job "on the fly" and we certainly had fun today (and beat the rain that started in the afternoon).

Boxes are arriving daily with plants for the gardens. The UPS and FedEX guys visit often this time of year. It's just like Christmas when we open these boxes and see what "goodies" have arrived. Of course, the "goodies" are immediately in need of repotting, labeling and basic TLC. It's always a juggling act to deal with plants that are shipped from warmer climates. Many times these plants are weeks ahead of where they would be in our climate. We don't like leaving this tender growth outside over night, so we'll move plants in and out during the day and pamper them until it gets past mid-May and they can be planted in the garden. Many plants will be coming in next week as well.

The Calm Before the Storm

The past couple of days have been unseasonably warm which is not unusual for April. I had a call today asking if it was ok to plant coleus (tropical) outside now. It would be alright if we were in mid-May but as the forecast is already showing, the threat of frost is still quite real. It's a shame to see some early blooming bulbs and other plants finish flowering quickly because of the heat. However, you can't help but enjoy another harbinger of the season; the forsythia ('Happy Centennial' is the variety shown here). There are some neat golden or variegated foliage forsythia out there that offer extended interest beyond the 10 days of typical blooms. We accomplished a lot today and I was able to spend an hour exploring the entire garden with my camera and notepad. Tomorrow we have Shelley Ryan coming from Wisconsin Public Television to film a segment for her show, The Wisconsin Gardener. We'll look at Hellebores and horsetail (Equisetum). Hopefully the predicted rainfall will hold off until later and we can get some good footage. Shelley has been a huge advocate and proponent of Rotary Gardens. This segment will be the 10th segment shot at Rotary Gardens in the past 12 years.

We're continuing to divide perennials as time allows but are now shifting to more lawn care duties and weeding. Many weeds have germinated and will have to be dealt with ASAP. Time spent in April and May weeding will save lots of time in mid summer if you can tackle that first wave of weeds. Some other unique bulbs are blooming like the white checkered fritillary seen here (Fritillaria meleagris). This is a long-lived bulb and while the "checkering" is hard to see on this white variety, the dark pink blooms have a conspicuous maroon checkerboard pattern as well. Plant these bulbs in well-drained locations in October. No summer teaser today but a glimpse of the peak bloom of the star magnolia (Magnolia stellata) that will be hit with light frost soon and the flowers will be done. Enjoy.

Unseasonably Warm Today; Implications?

More tulips sprung open today with the onslaught of late May temperatures. It was almost 80 degrees today which I'm sure put everyone in a good mood (although the plants were confused). You can literally see the day to day changes as plants stretch out of the ground and the buds on trees swell and begin to open. It's not unusual to have an April hot spell. However, the danger is in being duped in to thinking that winter's touch (frost) is no longer a danger. We'll have more frost and the early emergence of tender plant growth may be susceptible to damage in coming weeks. However, why not enjoy the sunshine!? Unfortunately, many of the early bulbs will finish sooner than normal with more unseasonably warm days on the way. It sure is good working weather though!

This image is from Saturday and shows some of the wonderful youth of Janesville helping us pot up perennials for our May plant sale. I was very impressed with these kids. We have worked with many teens that need to fulfill community service hours and they can be difficult to motivate when we are part of their "forced servitude." However, enthusiastic groups like our Saint Matthews helpers were motivated and hard working. Our larger workdays can be a challenge to prepare for and orchestrate, but with the help of other staff and volunteers, we manage to pull it off successfully. We never want a volunteer to feel that we're not prepared to maximize their valuable contribution of time!

The image below is one of my favorite spring bulbs. This windflower (Anemone blanda) is planted as a small bulb in October. While short in stature, this plant has lacy foliage and very large, daisy-like blooms. It is probably one of the more asked-about bulbs out in the spring garden. The blooms emerge in late April and last a week or two depending on the temperatures. The foliage goes dormant and disappears by mid-June. Buy these bulbs by the dozen and look for the pretty blue variety too!

Well, It WAS a Daily Blog...

I had a good run for awhile there. Saturday was crazy at the gardens with a wonderfully productive (albeit chaotic) work day. Daffodils are going crazy (Note Narcissus 'Pistachio' to the right). We had 25 teenagers from St. Matthews youth group come and help pot up perennial divisions from the garden. The forecast was for rain all day so we set up everything inside our Horticulture Center. The weather was nice and I had another 20 adult volunteers in need of a job out in the gardens. The kids were very productive and once we hit our groove, we had volunteers digging perennials from the garden, dividing them and then getting them to the kids for repotting, labeling and pricing (May 17 sale). We must have added another 2,000 divisions to our growing collection. Our work days are always fun and this was no exception. We had a donut break and although I was surprised by the number of teenagers "chugging" coffee, I didn't mind the increased output....

I think visitors miss a lot of the subtle features of the garden like this wall "sculpture." I can't remember the history of this piece but I will say that the hard scape of the gardens is superior; retaining walls, sculpture, brick work, etc. We do a lot with plants no doubt, but the overall setting of the gardens is a combination of elements that goes well beyond just flowers. There are many focal points and subtle design features that relay to the visitor that they are entering a new garden space or "garden room." These same techniques can be used effectively at the home garden scale.

The summer teaser is of our salvia collection last year (150 varieties). This year it will be annual vinca (Catharanthus) of over 170 varieties. More about that later....

The Momentum Builds...

Colorful species tulips blooming today. This is a nice "hot spot" with heat from surrounding rocks. I'm not sure which Tulipa this is but it sure stands out with that blue Chionodoxa. Back in 2000, we planted over 500 varieties of tulips in tight groupings of 50. That first spring (we left the display in for two years) had cool temperatures and really preserved the vibrant display. It was an unbelievable collection. I doubt we'll ever replicate that display as it was quite costly (and labor intensive!). We have tulips around the garden but not to the extent that we used to. Regardless, it's beauty like this that should encourage and motivate us to continue gardening in the fall with the intent of planting bulbs for spring rewards.
The daffodils shown here are determined to do their thing despite the "damp" conditions. Years ago we planted 20,000 daffodils along our north path, both along the shoreline and up the slope of the old sand and gravel pit. It's inspiring to think that visitors will see these daffodils in 100 years and wonder when they were planted. Unfortunately, these submerged clumps are doomed. Oh the vagaries of nature!

By the way, if you are reading this blog, there is a a little blue "comment" tab at the bottom of each post. Feel free to comment, add input and/or ask questions. The intent of this blog is not only to give a "smidge" of what is going on daily out in the gardens but to interact with volunteers, visitors and those interested in what we're doing at Rotary Gardens. The image below is of a small, golden fullmoon maple (Acer shirasawanum 'Autumn Moon') in the Japanese garden near one of our lanterns. Of course deciduous plants haven't "leafed out" yet, but they will soon. Are we forgetting about winter yet?!

A Terrific Thursday

Even though there was a threat of rain all day, it held off and we had a level of "high productivity." Our "Grumpies" spread compost, worked on carpentry projects, dug tree stumps and did many miscellaneous chores. This historic group of volunteers (primarily men) are named after the Grumpy Old Men (of movie fame) and were started at the inception of the garden. The group has grown to include over 25 guys that bring all sorts of talents (carpentry, electrical knowledge, engineering background, etc.) as well as a solid work ethic. I am truly amazed at how much this group accomplishes and how active these guys are at their age (no disrespect intended). I wouldn't want to arm wrestle any of these Grumpies and the gardens are fortunate to have their support and dedication. Many of them are also on our Board of Directors and serve in other volunteer capacities at the gardens.

Note more Chionodoxa forbesii in our front sign bed. This bulb has perennialized and has been there for my 10 years at the garden (I remember planting them). Lots of daffodils (Narcissus) blooming on time in the gardens. Years ago we planted over 300 varieties and probably have over 50,000 bulbs in the ground. Leaving the foliage to photosynthesize thru June is important although they can sure look sloppy in the landscape when the foliage flops and sprawls. Try mixing daffodils amongst other perennials that will emerge later and obscure the foliage. I'm often asked what the difference is between a daffodil and a jonquil. Narcissus encompasses all daffodils which are categorized into 13 divisions. Jonquils are just one of the divisions. I believe there are over 30,000 varieties of daffodils right now. We've planted them en masse (typically in groupings of 25 bulbs) and enjoy their contribution to the April garden. Summer teaser below with a monarch enjoying South American verbena (Verbena bonariensis). Coming soon!

A Heat Wave (With High Winds)!

More hellebores blooming today (Helleborus orientalis) among many other things! Temperatures reached over 70 degrees today although the winds were pretty extreme. We were able to work on the last of our pruning and applied a lot of compost over the entrance garden in front of the Parker Education Center. We had some volunteers come in and help pot up perennial divisions for our upcoming sale. We've already potted up irises and daylilies. We'll move on to ornamental grasses and sedums next. We brought in soil this afternoon in anticipation of possible rain tomorrow. We'll be ready to work inside if the weather warrants it. The next picture gives an idea of the progress thus far with perennial division. Warmer temperatures may necessitate dividing even more perennials in the next week or two as they emerge quickly from the warming soil.

We're also keeping a close eye on our interpretive signs. We are "re-sinking" signs for trees and shrubs and are straightening our metal signs for perennials. We have over 400 signs for tree and shrub memorials; plus another 4,000 metal labels out in the gardens. They all need to be checked annually for replacement, repair or removal. Our signage is primitive but effective I feel. Much of our audience is interested in the "experience" of the gardens, not so much the names of the plants. However, with our mission "To promote horticultural education and appreciation for all people," we need to be able to keep track of what we have and both accurately and effectively relay that information. There is a fine line or balance between appropriate labeling and not cluttering things up too much.

Note the "summer teaser" below with images of our new terrace garden. A nice place to relax and enjoy the gardens. The gardens around this terrace are being developed over the next couple of years!

The "Snowball Effect" in April

All sorts of bulbs are starting to bloom. With warmer temperatures finally arriving, the flush of blooms comes fast and this "snowball effect" will reveal something new every day. The drawback of unseasonably warm weather is that plants may bloom earlier than normal and/or finish blooming in a tighter window. Regardless, we have no control over that and can only enjoy spring color like that of these glory-of-the-snow. The larger pink blooms are Chionodoxa luciliae 'Pink Giant' and the smaller blue are Chionodoxa forbesii. These October planted bulbs are extremely long-lived and while under 12" in height, are a delight in the April garden. Plant them en masse for future generations to enjoy. They go dormant by mid-June only to return the following spring. Look for them at garden centers this fall and from reputable mail-order resources.

We were out today spreading blended mushroom compost around the gardens. This is a great time for us to address large areas before perennials engulf the space. We are careful to taper the compost away from the emerging plants. We apply a 1" topdressing every year to existing perennial beds as an organic mulch that will eventually break down and enrich the soil.


Sculpture is an important part of the garden. We have many statues and about a dozen metal art pieces. This rose sculpture (note the cardinal on top - also metal) is one of my favorites and was created by local artist Brady Lueck who does wonders with sculptural steel. Many of these pieces are commissioned as memorials and go thru an acceptance process with our Garden Development Committee. I'm not a huge fan of modern art but I do like most of our pieces at the gardens and particularly those that have a link to horticulture or nature in general. As with all additions to the garden, we have to consider proper location, future maintenance and adequate funding to perpetuate the existence of these features over time. Very little lasts in perpetuity, which is something we try to relate to donors. We'll be putting up a cool sunflower sculpture this year as well as an enormous bronze sculpture (12' tall) of bear cubs climbing a tree trunk. Come check it out!

Blue Skies and Sunshine!

A previous posting showed these "pillars" on the ground before installation. Here they are used as an upright element along a raised border that will be almost entirely focused on blue. These 4" pvc pillars will be modern containers with all sorts of nice things spilling out. The blank grounds space will be filled with all sorts of "goodies." It was beautiful today and the blue sky echoed this long border. I feel blue is underutilized in the garden. The quest for "true blue" continues with plants such as roses, dahlias, gladiolas and some other plants. Remember that the "visual cooling" provided by blue is not only pleasing to the eye but also is quite relaxing. We will have blue throughout the gardens this year. With all of our obelisks and pillars of blue out there, the April visitor already has a hint of what is to come. It's not too difficult to find seasonals with blue blooms (petunias, salvia, etc.) but with so many shades of blue out there, we'll focus on sky blue and a true dark blue. The "purplish-blues", while beautiful, wont be our focus this year. Can blue be overdone out in the garden. NO!

We have lots of Siberian squill (Scilla siberica) blooming right now. This little bulb packs a lot of punch when it comes to a bright blue color in spring. These bulbs are easy to plant (in Oct.) although the warning is that they will reseed prolifically and in open beds, you'll have the "grasslike" foliage of the babies filling in the gaps the following year. It then takes a couple years for these to bloom and seeds continue to drop. We don't mind these "colonies" as all the foliage of this plant will go dormant by early June and disappear until the following spring.

Lots more visitors are streaming in to the gardens and this week looks to be sunny and dry for a couple of weeks. We're finishing pruning, composting beds and otherwise, getting ready for the "fast and furious" time of year. Even our formal garden cherub is happy to see the sun today (notice blue drifts of squill in the rose beds behind the statue)!

A Sunday of Anticipation

I normally don't work on Sundays unless it's during our plant sales. However, I put in 30 minutes of time at 12:30 am this morning when the Janesville police called to say that our alarm had gone off at the Horticulture Center. They needed someone to let them in to check the place out. I was out the door 5 minutes later and I'm sure looked quite disheveled when I arrived to meet the two squads that were waiting for me. It was an errant alarm so no big deal until I was on the way home and saw red and blue lights in my rear view mirror. Of course I freaked out but it only turned out to be one of the officers I had just met and he mentioned there were some lights still on at the horticulture center. I said they were motion activated and would go out. Needless to say, the heart rate was accelerated as I hadn't been "pulled over" in 20 years (for forgetting to put my lights on at night in case you're curious!).


This statue is in our reception garden and depicts a female druid. She is cradling a small pine tree. This is one tough woman. She looks good after 100 years and has a long history in Janesville. She originally stood on top of the House of Mercy (nunnery) in Janesville which was the precursor to the Mercy Health System that has spread throughout Southern WI and Northern IL. She is on permanent loan from the Rock County Historical Society and was refurbished before being put in place in 1992. Unfortunately, she has been vandalized over 5 times; being pushed over many times and once was struck with bricks. Ron Sutterlin (Sutterlin Restorations) in Janesville has refurbished her twice now and she looks great. In a couple months, she'll be surrounded by white and blue flowers and is an important part of Rotary Gardens and Janesville. Best wishes for her "continued health"! The summer teaser below is a shot from last year of a moth (not a bee) on a 'Merlin Blue Morn' petunia. We like visitors of all sorts at Rotary Gardens.

Wishful Thinking Will Net Results

Today was our first Saturday work day of the season. We had five people help with some indoor dividing and potting of bearded iris (Iris germanica). A typical work day might have two dozen volunteers but we were happy with even this modest turn out considering the cold and wet weather. The 500 or so iris divisions that were potted up today will be part of our spring sale on May 17th. It was time well spent, although admittedly, not the best time of year to dig up and divide irises. I remember an early April work day from years ago that involved us planting trees thru three inches of snow. The first image here is of a crabapple blooming last May but if you look closely, you'll see our arched bridge in the distance. This shot was taken by Santos McGill, a frequent visitor with a great talent for photography. He's been very generous when sharing interesting or rare shots such as this one. This crabapple doesn't bloom for awhile but will certainly signal a transition to warmer summer months on the way.

We had 210 cubic yards of shredded bark arrive in three loads over the past two days. The semi almost got stuck in the muddy morass of our back yard area but managed to dump all three loads successfully. We'll start spreading this shredded bark as it dries out and we can both access the piles and drive thru the garden without tearing up the saturated turf. We typically put another 1" topdressing of this material over existing areas of the same material as it does break down over time and requires refreshing. We'll use rougher, larger woodchips (donated) in more peripheral areas or those with just trees and shrubs. Regardless, we're stockpiling materials for spring use once the weather is more conducive to those activities. I'm looking outside at light flurries as I type so hopefully next week will be our target week to really get out there and achieve some "momentum". Summer teaser image below. This image is from our red/maroon collection last year and hopefully relays the importance of every volunteer at Rotary Gardens!

A Friday of "Productive Preparation"

We had a great Friday here at the gardens and typically get lots of work done in preparation for the weekend. We have a work day tomorrow but the weather forecast includes rain and/or snow... We dug up some bearded iris to divide and plant in pots for an indoor project tomorrow. Normally you don't divide bearded irises until late summer but these are specimens that we're removing from the gardens to sell at the spring plant sale on May 17. We don't like having any plants in the gardens that can't be identified and/or labeled. We are maintaining and developing our plant collections with the intent of being able to always identify all plants in our "outdoor musem."

I can't say enough about foliage. We all enjoy those first blooms of spring but seeing lush green foliage like this emerging (picture taken today) is a welcome sight. Most people confuse this foliage with that of daffodils (Narcissus). However, this is the foliage of the resurrection lily (Lycoris squamigera). This foliage will photosynthesize and store energy in the bulb portion of the plant. The foliage later dies down in June. In August, you'll see the leafless stems of this plant emerge, topped by beautiful pink, trumpet-shaped blooms. The flowers last about two weeks and this plant is reliably hardy to zone 5. Mulching will help with hardiness as well. These bulbs will form very long-lived colonies.

We're looking forward to an exciting spring and the gravel yard at our maintenance facility will soon be filled with over 100,000 annuals, 4,000 perennials and dozens of trees and shrubs, all looking for a home. Lots of neat things coming up and the busy time has hit full force. Summer teaser below:

The Spring Saturation of 2008

Note the beautiful reflection of overhead cottonwoods and oaks in the shallow pool here in our Japanese garden. The problem here is that this is supposed to be a dry sea with raked gravel (simulating waves). The pond level should be 30" lower than this! I've never seen flooding up this high and it continues to rise. It is important to mention that this picture is from Wednesday, before we had a mini-typhoon the past 24 hours. April showers do bring May flowers. They'll also bring lots of work repairing paths and dealing with the after effects of these issues. In the grand scheme of things, I shouldn't even be complaining as this is a negligible issue when compared to more serious flooding around the nation and the continued after effects of Katrina and other past natural disasters. It's scary that the National Weather Service is predicting a lively hurricane season this year....



We're doing a lot of pruning this time of year as our window of opportunity begins to diminish. We like to accomplish most of our pruning during the winter and finish by the end of April. This time of year we can really examine branch patterns and potential issues with deciduous woody plants and we like to do structural pruning on our conifers as well. I enjoyed seeing our golden Virginia pine (Pinus virginiana 'Wates Golden') with it's bright spring needle coloration. It will fade to a chartreuse in our hot summer but is hardy and can tolerate the poor soils in which it is planted. I can't stress enough the importance of conifers in our landscapes. I'm not talking about the ubiquitous yews and/or junipers around everyone's foundation, but the more interesting conifers used for color and form. Look in to it! We're about two weeks from seeing daffodils (Narcissus) peak blooms at the gardens (although some have already started in those "hot spots").

Who's Next in Line?

Warm afternoons have brought on a flush of new blooming bulbs that are even tough to keep up with my daily photography. The bulb to the right is called striped squill (Puschkinia libanotica). This bulb, planted in October, sends up a cluster of bell-shaped blooms reminiscent of Siberian squill (Scilla siberica). Each flower petal has a thin, sky blue line running thru the middle. This photo doesn't catch it real well but these are great bulbs to plant en masse and are effective under deciduous trees as they will bloom and go dormant before the tree leaves have fully emerged and cast deeper shade. We have used this bulb extensively in some of our lawns as well. The intent of a "bulb lawn" is to have very early bulbs poke up and bloom above dormant turf and subsequently go dormant by the time you have to do your first spring mowing. The Siberian squill (typcally blue or white) is effective for this as well. Visitors will start to see our bulb lawns come to life soon. We will then mow these lawns (including the bulb foliage) after Mother's Day. We've had these bulbs come up reliably for years. Planting can be done with a "dibble" or better yet, aerate your lawn in October and use those little plug holes as a start for putting these little bulbs 2" in the soil.
Our bagged mushroom compost sale started last Saturday and continues to be very successful. We'll end up selling over 1800 bags of this wonderful organic amendment over all the Saturdays in April and May. Be wary of what might be termed "mushroom compost" or "mushroom soil". True mushroom compost is the byproduct of a mushroom farm. The primary ingredient is aged horse manure. Our bagged mix contains this manure, peatmoss and shredded bark fines. The material is great for incorporating in to garden soil and is also an effective topdressing in the garden that will eventually enrich the soil over time. We utilize over 300 cubic yards of this material every year in the garden. Our annual beds get 2" of compost annually and we use this as a topdressing around perennials. When spreading compost around existing perennials, be sure to taper it away from the base (or crown) of the plant as the compost may retain a lot of moisture in that vicinity and shouldn't be mounded directly around the base of the plant. Mushroom compost is also slightly alkaline which might be an issue in soils that you are trying to acidify. The other comment regarding this material is that not all plants require rich soils to perform well. In fact, there are many perennials that prefer "lean" soils. Overly rich (or composted) soils, while encouraging active growth, may make these plants go "gang-busters" and produce lots of overly large, floppy foliage. Sedums are a good example. They can take pretty tough soils and would be very top-heavy and floppy if planted in our composted annual beds for example. Regardless, organic amendments like mushroom compost help enrich the soil and can benefit plants of all kinds. We even use some in our containers! Morning glory teaser below:

It Smells Like Spring Out There

Plenty of rain today but it didn't "smell" like winter. There was a hint of spring in the air. I noticed this peony today. Of course, the buds have only just started to swell with blooms in 5-6 weeks from now. This is a rare and expensive peony donated to us by Roy Klehm, a wonderful plantsman and serious peony lover. This Rock's peony (Paeonia rockii) was brought back from China by Joseph Rock as seeds in 1926. I have high regard for the work of historical and present day plant explorers. China continues to be a rich resource for new plant material but urbanization continues to threaten plants at an alarming rate. Extinction rates of plants from around the world are directly related to human causes and impacts. Anyway, back to the peony. This is a tree peony that will grow from woody stems above ground. Our specimen is 7 years old and very beautiful. Sometimes it only blooms for a week but it is worth it. We have always planned on collecting seeds as we watch the pods ripen, however, we have an unscrupulous visitor(s) that have cut off and taken the seed heads the past couple of years. We have had some plant theft in the past and I've never understood the motivation. For someone to decide that a plant in a public garden with 100,000 annual visitors is better off in their garden (or sold for profit) is unreal. Oh well.

This Saturday is our first work day. We schedule around 13 workdays during various Saturdays, April thru November. This is a wonderful opportunity for existing Rotary Gardens volunteers and the general public to come help out with group projects that will vary depending on the time of year. Projects in April may include tree planting, mulching and more spring clean-up. It's nice to have a volunteer army of 30+ volunteers that are all eager to get out in the gardens (or maybe it's the donut break in the morning that brings them in?.....). Our "Wall O' Tools" is ready to go. Anyway, spring is a welcome visitor in 2008!

Lots of Progress Today

Chillier temperatures today than over the weekend but all in all, pretty good working weather. We did a lot of sod removal today. Marv and Terry put up more obelisks and the blue pvc pipes seen here. These will be "modern planters" after this bed fills out. The blue theme is still prevalent in this area. Marianne and Janice did lots of clean-up and we had a lot of our veteran volunteers help with other duties. One volunteer commented on me actually being outside and working with them (sod removal). I took it in stride and realize that my job duties have shifted to more deskwork and less fresh air. I do miss being outside more often but understand that the desk work is equally as important. Our great grounds crew and dedicated volunteers do a wonderful job regardless of my helping hands!





It's nice to see more in bloom today. The vernal witchhazels (Hamamelis vernalis) are in full bloom and I'm seeing more bulbs preparing to bloom. Interesting to note that our first perennials are starting to bloom. We have hellebores and Adonis blooming right now with more to follow in quick succession. I lost track of what the bulb (shown here) actually is. It looks like striped squill (Puschkinia libanotica) but those are barely starting to open. I think it's a Ornithogalum but will have to check our records. It is truely a struggle to keep up with what we have planted and of course, where is it located?

The Obelisks Go Up!

Like clockwork, the obelisks (vining structures) are going up. Marv and Terry have put up most already and will finish this upcoming week. Regardless of the fact that there wont be anything growing on these for 6 weeks or so, we do like having them up for interest and also to give the public an idea of our color schemes (is the blue obvious enough?). I ran across a picture of one of these in a garden catalog years ago and asked our "Grumpy" volunteer carpenters to make three. Since then, they've made them in many heights and we've painted them different colors when warranted. They are a nice focal point in the garden and help add a nice vertical "exclamation point" out in the gardens. The trick is to adequately anchor these structures to withstand the wind and the rampant climbers that may engulf some of these. Some obelisks are left out with no vines. We've sold these at our plant sales from time to time and have them available during our spring compost sale which started this past Saturday.

Apparently it was a busy weekend at the garden's. No surprise considering that it's been over 6 months since we had a sunny Saturday and Sunday over 60 degrees! Great weekend to clean up the yard and visit the gardens. We're still tidying up but will be planting in a couple of weeks. Lots of plans this year. It is a nice time to look out in the garden and see where conifers might be warranted. With leaves just thinking about emerging on the deciduous shrubs and trees, it's nice to appreciate the value of an evergreen and perhaps identify some locations to include these garden stalwarts. I like golden conifers like this golden white pine (Pinus strobus 'Winter Gold') that add great color in late winter and early spring before fading to green. Some conifers maintain their golden coloration thru the year. Regardless, understand that green and blue aren't the only colors for these essentail "bones of the garden."

Spring Gets Another Foothold!

It is interesting to note the speed in which plants will emerge from the ground as spring progresses. I imagine that soil temperatures will encourage plants like this Christmas rose (Helleborus niger). This wont bloom around Christmas for us but the first week in April is a nice time to see this long-lived perennial come out of the soil. The flowers will open bell-shaped and arch downwards. Other hellebores (Helleborus orientalis) are just emerging from the soil. These plants seem to spring up over night and it is certainly a challenge to keep up with daily spring changes in a warming landscape. It's interesting to note that plant records from 100 years ago that noted the times that plants bloomed seem to, on average, indicate that perennials are now blooming 2-3 weeks earlier than they did a century ago. The climate is changing. We're actually starting to see more seedlings of Norway maple and Japanese barberry around the gardens. These woody plants have become invasive in the warmer climates out East but haven't gained much momentum here. However, with our milder winters (this year being an exception of course), these plants are re-seeding and will have to be dealt with in the imminent future.


While observing our current flooding levels today, I ran across a plant that was at Rotary Gardens when I started and in all likelihood, was here hundreds or thousands of years ago. The primitive horsetail (Equisetum sp.) was around 400 million years ago when the dinosaurs roamed the earth. This plant reproduces by spores and does not have flowers or seed. Called "scouring rush" by pioneers, the rough texture of these vertical, segmented stems were bunched up and used to scrub pans and pots. Visitor's think it's a bamboo but we're quick to explain the difference. This plant does not respond to herbicides so in areas that it's invaded (it spreads like crazy), we have to hand dig it repeatedly to eliminate it. I still love the look. Kids call it "tinker toy plant" because you can separate the segments and place them back together.

Beauty Amongst the Rising Tide

More crocus opened today and defied the attention of rabbits thus far. It is always amazing to experience the change in the season outside. In public horticulture, the benefits of being outside are considerable. We get great exercise, fresh air and get to enjoy the transition of plants and wildlife throughout the year. We are certainly not running out of things to do in the garden. I've finished marking the beds for the irises that will be arriving in August. We've enjoyed working with the Madison Area Iris Society in regards to establishing and displaying this collection in 2010 for the American Iris Society conference. We are currently a National display garden for the American Hemerocallis Society (daylilies) and the American Hosta Society. We also have a sizeable collection of ferns that we will continue to expand in conjunction with our affiliation with The Hardy Fern Foundation. While taking photos around the garden today, I decided to check our current "flood levels". The enclosed photo gives an idea of the current problem. My concern is that another 3" in depth will cause serious and potentially expensive problems. It's odd that fish can now nibble at plants in our alpine garden that are normally a foot over the normal pond level. With all our spring activities, I hope this flooding issue doesn't "de-rail" our normal priorities. We've currently blocked off three paths due to dangerous conditions resulting from high water.

Essential Garden Clean-Up

The grounds crew was outside most of the day after it warmed up a bit. We're still collecting the remnants of our Winter Wonderland Walk and tidying up around all garden areas. The best distraction from the horrible deer damage and the rising pond level are the earliest blooms; like these crocuses seen today in the color rooms garden. The rabbits enjoy crocus "snacks" so these might look a bit different tomorrow! Regardless, well appreciated and enjoyed! We've been cutting down perennial foliage and grasses from last year. We're also doing a light raking in areas that still have leaf debris from last fall. All garden areas are in need of some attention to get them ready for the influx of spring-starved gardeners (which is already arriving). It wont be too long and we'll have most of our time taken up with planting, weeding and watering. April is a nice segway to the color of May. I always have a digital camera with me (Olympus Stylus 710) and find it handy to shoot all sorts of things. I probably take 4,000 pictures each year to record plants, people, collections, special events, etc. The true struggle is to quickly download and label these photos before I forget what they are. If there is a label with the plant, I'll take a picture of that as well. I then sort all my photos based on different criteria. I was happy to make the transition from 35mm to digital but I do miss some of the benefits of the "old fashioned" photography. However, creating PowerPoint presentations is quite easy and it's nice to have all the photos labeled and stored for consideration and future use. One of the best shots of the garden is seen here. If you line up a shot thru the gazebo, it will frame the arched bridge across the pond. What a beautiful view any time of year. This shot was taken today.

A Contagious Spring!

Today was a nice day despite the cold start in the morning. Tuesdays are typically a bit light with both grounds staff and volunteers. However, we had five grounds people and about a dozen volunteers wandered in for various duties such as grass cutting, painting, spring clean-up, label making, etc. It always amazes me how much the volunteers accomplish. We have such a dedicated group, all with their own interests, talents and unique personalities. Rotary Gardens truly has a family atmosphere with everyone interested in promoting and preserving the quality of the gardens. While we've fallen in to some routines, the "group effort" approach has served as well in so many ways. Our talented carpenters have created more obelisks (vining structures) for the gardens. They have been painted in some cases to tie in to a color theme or other design intent as it relates to their final location. Years ago we had just three six foot tall obelisks. Now we have over 30 that run the gamut in heights (4', 6', 7', and 9'). In most cases we'll train an annnual vine up these for vertical interest and blooms. However, we've also placed these obelisks with no intent on vines. They are simply architectural elements in the garden and/or focal points. Look for orange and blue obelisks around our visitors' center and main parking lot this year. With more rain on the way, we wonder about increased flooding issues. We'll have our irrigation system turned on next week, which can be a monumental task. During dry springs, we'll run our system but don't feel so inclined this spring with such saturated soils. Regardless, it wont be long before things dry out and we're dragging our 3,000 feet of hoses around the gardens. Some things never change.