The Wind Was A-Howlin' Today

The wind was brutal today. The weather was strange in that it was overcast and drizzly this morning but relatively calm. It then became sunny but the wind became increasingly more significant. Nice shot above over our observation pier to the arched bridge in the distance. I was able to finish fertilizing the lawns today and the predicted rains tomorrow should soak everything in nicely. I'm also in the process of trying to "spot" where the daisies from our 'Petal Thru the Garden' art project will be located. We should have all 27 of them up by Mother's Day and will start tomorrow if possible. Nice shot to the left of a neat hosta called 'White Feather'. It emerges a whitish cream color but later will have streaks of green thru the leaves. We ordered three and will transplant them out in the gardens later. There seems to be some debate as to the summer leaf color (which will vary depending on climate I'm sure) but I'm sold simply on that fresh spring foliage. Neat-O. To the right is lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis) that is beautiful (and fragrant) in spring but can get quite ratty (and rampant) later in the year. We have many forms of this groundcover including the pink-blooming and variegated forms. I can't wait to get the golden-leaved form in the future...

The weather didn't slow down the staff or volunteers today. Larry worked on pumping out the sunken pool, cleaning it, filling it and getting the copper fountain set-up and functional too. This is a full day project and he was bummed about all the debris blowing in to his freshly filled water feature. He also had time to do some mowing and odds and ends. Little Jerry mowed the arboretum, worked in the Japanese garden and is laying out a new path that will take some elbow grease in the coming weeks. Janice worked on sorting daylilies, plant sale signs and potted up transplants with her Thursday volunteer crew (see below).The Grumpies did another nice job this morning and were spread over multiple projects. Gary, Ron B. and Jim worked with Del and Pat on mulching the east border and also the west slope off the main building. This involved running, spreading and smoothing out over 30 cubic yards of woodchips and the guys did a nice job. Big John, Dick H., Maury and Rollie worked on installing new fence sections that will eventually connect with what was put up last year. They are working on a slope which necessitates more time but the progress was impressive. Dr. Gredler worked on all sorts of projects today. The carpenters worked on finishing up the 20 cucumber supports and took them out to the horticulture beds for installation (see below). From left to right is Jim, Bob A., Dave and Vern. It will be fun to grow and taste these heirlooms (good source of fiber and potassium among other good things). We also saw Geesje today who brought in some nice treats for the gang and joined us for break. Marilyn H. was back in action this spring and took on the challenge of dealing with an enormous garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) patch that was just starting to bloom. The danger with pulling it now is that it will still set seed despite being removed. My understanding is that the plant, once ripped out, decides to enact vengeance and puts remaining energies in to dropping seed very quickly. I was lucky to have sprayed so much of this weed back in March and despite that, we still have plenty out there. Marilyn placed these in black garbage bags (see to right) that will go to the dump (as opposed to a compost pile or other location where the potential seeds may become a problem). She did a great job and more than pulled her weight in garlic mustard today. After blogging about Fothergillas recently, I took a nice shot of Dave W.'s specimen in front of his home. Not sure which variety but the blooms were quite showy and fragrant.

The Bower City Garden Club (BCGC) luncheon was very well-attended and we had a full parking lot most of the day. Unfortunately, I think the winds kept many participants from enjoying the gardens but at least our tulip display out front was showy. The BCGC is sponsoring our globe amaranth (Gomphrena) collection this year and has collectively been a huge supporter of the gardens. Many of their members are volunteers here and I believe one or two of the ladies are on our Board of Directors. Some other plants of interest today included the "bouquet-flowering" tulips below (unknown variety). Note the gazebo in the background. These are a classification of tulips and while the flowers are a bit smaller than a standard tulip, you get lots on a sturdy stem that then divides in to smaller support stems. Look for them in the fall bulb catalogs (many colors). Beneath the tulips is a close-up of the white-flowering redbud (Cercis canadensis 'Royal White') that might not have the pizzaz of a crabapple but the flower architecture is unmatched. At the bottom is a foliage close-up of our golden little-leaf linden (Tilia cordata 'Akira Gold') in the fern and moss garden. The color right now is eye-catching and will continue to offer a chartreuse look thru summer as the brightness fades in our WI summer heat. This specimen has grown overnight (actually 6 years or so) from a stick to a 12' specimen and is a focal point near our moss island.