Next Blog From Amsterdam

It was another nice sunny day but fairly cool with a breeze and temperatures in the mid 50 degrees F. I had hoped to see more rain this past weekend but it wasn't enough to wet the whistle of any plantings out there! I spent most of the day preparing lists and organizing deliveries, projects, etc. prior to heading to the Netherlands for the next eight days. I do hope to blog during the trip so keep posted. I probably wont post until Wednesday night. During my brief tour of the gardens this morning, I was able to capture plenty of color. The top photo is the close-up shot of the blossom of dwarf leopard's bane (Doronicum orientale 'Little Leo') which is usually our first composite (daisy-like) perennial blossom out in the gardens (with the exception of some bulbs). I like leopard's bane for the clear yellow flowers but also its adaptability in partly shaded conditions; although it does prefer decent soils. Directly above is the colorful foliage and forming flowers/bracts of a perennial spurge (Euphorbia amygdaloides 'Ruby Glow') in the woodland walk garden. To the right are the bright and showy (albeit small) blooms of another popular barrenwort (Epimedium x warlyense 'Ellen Wilmott') which is quite exquisite when you take time to really look at those dangling blossoms. I'll continue to order and accumulate barrenworts for the gardens as they are showy and tough! To the left is the cool foliage (nicely backlit) of bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis). This woodland perennial is done blooming but the foliage has a nice contribution of pattern and form. We have some nice clumps of bloodroot in the woodland walk garden. To the right are the large papery blooms of the Japanese wood poppy (Glaucidium palmatum). This peony relative is fairly rare and expensive but once established, is a remarkable spring bloomer. We have specimens in the woodland walk garden (as seen here) and gazebo garden. I like the rugged foliage too but the blossoms really steal the show. I've read that the Royal Horticultural Society named this plant one of the top 200 plants introduced in to horticulture over the past 200 years. Below are some of our creeping phlox (Phlox subulata) starting to peak. We have many varieties around the gardens and they are always strong bloomers for a couple of weeks and are a common groundcover for sunny areas, walls, etc. Directly above is Bill scraping the railing on our "soon-to-be-repainted" observation pier. Another target for scraping and repainting can be seen across the water (the arched bridge). We have four large structures that we'll be repainting yet this spring and the nice weather will allow us to start sooner than planned. Pat and Big John will probably be helping with this process. Bill (above) was one of many Grumpies that came in to help today. Dennis was in early to organize our plant sale tents and later went out with Stan to do some major composting. Ron W., Bob C. and Ron Y. worked on spreading compost and shredded bark in the North point garden. Del was out collecting leaves and debris in the woodland walk and Dr. Gredler as in to mow and work on his turf aeration project. Bob A. and Jim worked on building a support system for one of our new vertical gardens to be installed shortly. Maury ran for supplies and helped paint some of our urn/pipe planters. Gary brought over Mary, our new Executive Director, to meet everyone and we welcome her to the RBG family. To the right is another barrenwort (Epimedium sp., unknown variety) blooming in the gazebo garden. Those flowers are quite "orchid-like" in appearance. We also saw Darcie O. and Mike M. here for a meeting this afternoon.

We had a strong contribution from the grounds staff today. Larry worked on installing our six new garden signs and also worked on some other projects as well. Marv and Terry spent most of the day hauling out our many large containers and filling them with their custom potting soil blend. The guys have done this task for many years and do a nice job of prepping everything for planting. Marianne worked on tidying, weeding, clean-up, label inventory, cutting display and other tasks. Janice worked on some odds and ends but was also out in the garden helping tidy up, weeded multiple areas and continues to pamper our moss island. She's already seeded the start of our Grains of the World collection and we'll see more progress in that area over the coming weeks. To the right is the 'Bandit' barrenwort (Epimedium grandflorum var. higoense) looking nice with the morning light. I think I've featured this variety previously but this is a better picture! To the above left is the summer snowflake (Leucojum aestivum 'Gravetye Giant') which is a fall planted bulb and is blooming nicely right now. Note the green specks on each of the white flower petals. The plant is apparently lightly scented but I've never noticed anything in terms of scent. Directly below is the golden-leaved, Dream Catcher beautybush (Kolkwitzia amabilis 'Maradco') which is finally getting some size and has the typical, arching form. The standard, green-leaved species has nice pink spring blooms but little else for interest. This variety will extend visual interest with that gold foliage both prior to and after the flowering. Olbrich Botanical Gardens (Madison) uses the arching form of this woody plant in container arrangements for color and texture. At the bottom is a dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) in full seed set already! Literally one second after I took this shot, the wind dispersed half this sphere of seeds. UGH!