We had overnight rain (about 1") and showers in to the early morning hours. I was worried about a "rain out" today but the weather held off for the most part although there was occasional mist and some afternoon drizzle as well. We were able to get a full day outside although there were a couple of essential indoor tasks to accomplish too (labeling work, etc.). There is a chance of rain every day this week including Saturday which is another of our Volunteer Planting Days (8 am until 12 noon). Above is a neat tree peony (Paeonia suffruticosa 'Kokumon') which is at peak right now in the woodland walk with flowers near 12" in diameter. I think Cindy included this one in the cutting display today as well. Directly below is the 'Herman's Pride' yellow archangel (Lamiastrum galeobdolon) which has a nice clean variegation and these late spring blooms. This clumping perennial is great for part shade or even deep shade where the foliage silvering becomes even more valuable. The next photo down is a classic example of what a reseeding plant, in this case golden lemon balm (Melissa officinalis 'All Gold'), can do after a nice, long hot year.... Now that's a lot of lemon balm! The third photo down shows the perennial globe flower (Trollius europaeus) opening up in the Scottish garden. I like that "namesake", lemon yellow bloom and these plants are going on 15 years old and still doing well. They prefer moist soils and are happy where they are located.
The wet weather (and holiday weekend) affected our "outdoor Grumpy" attendance although we had some indoor work as well. Below (left to right) are Dick H., Vern and Jim D. The guys were working on a planter that will be part of the popular Dinner Dance auction. Check out the RBG website for more information on the exciting 2013 Dinner Dance. Dick H. made some trips to the dump as well. Dr. Gredler (second photo down) was out mowing and we had both Del and Bill O. helping tidy up the Horticulture Center. Dennis J., RBG volunteer among other duties, came in to pick up the kiosk we're donating to the Ice Age Trail Alliance. Terry and John helped him load it up and secure it on a trailer for relocation today. Gary came in for some computer work as we're upgrading some of our computers including the one for the laser engraver. Maury was in to run some errands. Mary H. came in and planted a good portion of her area and we also saw Rollie, Dr. Yahr, Becky, RECAPPER ladies and many others.
The grounds staff had their raincoats on more today than off but toughed out the variable precipitation quite well. Big John and Janice went on a plant run to get perennials from The Flower Factory (a nice selection returned). Janice also worked extensively on labeling and some garden clean-up. John dug up more perennials from an area we'll be replanting. He also push mowed, mulched and helped over at the other building. Jenny did a nice job with creating and matching up more labels out in the gardens and out in the yard. Cindy did the cutting display right away and spent the remainder of the day on garden clean-up duties. Cheryl worked near the gazebo garden removing weeds and bulb foliage from a long border. Terry did quite a bit of path edging, push mowed, helped Dennis and worked on other projects as well. Pat weeded the parking lot islands, did more mulching in the arboretum (looks great) and push mowed as well. It was a busy day for everyone but certainly not a lost day out in the gardens. We may have lost a day of planting but will make up for it tomorrow (hopefully).
Directly below are the single, fragrant blooms of the Scotch rose (Rosa spinosissima) which is peaking in the Scottish garden. The next photo features the showy foliage of the variegated sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus 'Variegatus') which catches everyone's eye in the color rooms garden. The next photo down shows the emerging foliage of the variegated catalpa (Catalpa bignonioides 'Variegata') which has a nice variegation through June which later fades to a solid green. I like the large leaves of catalpa and this variety sure is showy in spring. More planting tomorrow hopefully.
Below are some exciting shots from Sunday that were the result of one of our water lines bursting in the woodland walk garden. Some of our AAS beds were temporarily flooded but the plants seemed ok today. Thankfully John caught it in the morning and turned off the water. Larry will have some more repairs soon and this "mini-lake" drained off fairly well a couple of hours later. UGH!
No comments:
Post a Comment