Streamlined & Productive

I'm glad we spent so much time getting ready for the iris division on Saturday and despite some quick adjustments, the work day went as planned and was very successful. We had over 50 volunteers helping throughout the morning and had each stage well represented with talented volunteers and supervised by a grounds staff member. Big John had the first group of 15 or so diggers in the wishing well garden. They made quick work of digging and cleaning those irises then the diggers moved to the iris planting near the arboretum. Stage 1 was the digging and rinsing, then the irises moved to the gazebo garden where Janice & Marianne helped coordinate the physical division of the irises (as seen above with Cindy and Alice). Marianne also supervised the diggers in the arboretum area. Processed irises in the gazebo then went to the horticulture center yard where they were processed by four members of the Madison Area Iris Society, led by John B. They needed to pull out rhizomes for their display garden and process all the irises that will be returned to the hybridizers (that shipping bill will be huge!). This stage was initially slow but Marianne helped expedite the process and the last stage for our irises was a dip in a bleach solution, drying and packing up in boxes. After an 8 am start, I was on the way by 12:30 pm with the truck and trailer (packed with irises) with Bob and Bev following in their car (also full of irises). We met Dan & Tom down in Beloit and unpacked the irises and arranged the boxes in Dan's cool and dry warehouse. We'll later process and further package these irises as we get near the sale date of August 28th. Nice shot to the left of Jumbo Jim who was a great help hauling irises through their various stages and he brought four RECAP ladies out to help as well. There's Lily to the right who was keeping her Grandma working hard at division. Below are Shirley and Sandy who were in charge of the bleach dip tanks (to sterilize the irises prior to storage). It was a great turnout and we fell in to a perfect rhythm. Special thanks to Big John, Marianne, Janice and Bev for helping coordinate this work day with so many volunteers. And of course, a big THANK YOU to all the volunteers that helped out and contributed to a streamlined group effort!!!

The Big Divide (Tomorrow)

I really like this annual 'Denver Daisy' (Rudbeckia hirta) seen above. The flowers are almost 5" in diameter and catch the eye from long distance. This variety was selected for city-wide beautification efforts on the occasion of the 150th Anniversary of the founding of Denver, CO. While the beautiful golden flowers with rusty red rings are huge, the height is quite compact at under 24", assuring sturdy stems, no flopping and a colorful, long-lived display. This variety is part of our American Garden Award (www.americangardenaward.org/) program that has four varieties for which the visiting public can vote on their favorite. The other three selections include a zinnia, purple coneflower and ornamental hot pepper. Check out the website for more information on this neat program. RBG is one of only 18 gardens in the country displaying this collection/program. Nice shot to the left of the golden foliage (huge leaves) of the golden Southern catalpa (Catalpa bignonioides 'Aurea') that we use for a bright, tropical look. We butcher these back to a foot each year and they rebound 12'+ with large leaves in one season. To the right is one of my favorite coleus' (Solenostemon scutellarioides) in our red/maroon collection. This is the variety 'Redhead' and looks very rich in full sun (need oodles of water though...). Below is Dick H. repairing our Cushman which Marv put in to good use today. Dick is so handy and we're fortunate to be able to utilize his skills.Marv spent most of the day (similar to Wednesday), running irrigation, moving sprinklers and watering containers. We do very heavy watering on Fridays to get thru the weekend. Considering we missed all that rain, we're struggling trying to keep up with watering needs throughout the entire gardens. Marv also skimmed dead sod and mulched a good sized area. Terry pushmowed and spent plenty of time watering as well. Janice mowed, watered and helped prepare for our iris division project tomorrow. Marianne did her normal tidy and watering in front of the building, did her cutting display and was a great help pulling together tools and supplies for our work day tomorrow. Big John came in to help haul tables out for our division project and repositioned some irises for us. Dr. Gredler was here to mow and we had Del out continuing to work on his re-graveling project. Jan R. and two helpers weeded in the Scottish garden. Both Mary and Dave H. were here taking care of their area as was Sara. Vern was here working on carpentry and we also saw Dr. Yahr, Maury, Mary, Mark, Geesje, Katy, Travis, Julie and others as well. To the left is a beautiful zinnia (Zinnia elegans) called 'Benary Giant Wine' that is blooming nicely in Sara & Magda's garden and the subtle beauty of a single borage (Borago officinalis) blossom along our ornamental edible wall planting (seen to the right) can stir poems out of the toughest of us (or not). That flower is edible too, as are the leaves. Big day for the iris divide tomorrow. Thanks to Bev, Marianne, Janice, John, Marv and Terry for all the prep work. Another nice petunia in our trials can be seen below. This is 'Opera Supreme Light Blue'. Subtle, yet effective. At the bottom is one of our cucumber supports working to perfection as the cucumbers have grown bonkers in the past week or so. Should see fruits shortly.

Vital Volunteers

It is truly remarkable how much the volunteers accomplish here at the gardens and how motivated/dedicated they are to "the cause." Even the volunteers that are not traditional gardeners (i.e. many of the Grumpies), have a solid commitment to improving the gardens. Many visitors see our volunteers out in the gardens but we have volunteers helping with every aspect of the organization (education, gift shop, tours, etc.). We are very fortunate. Not much rain last night and it looks like all the false promises for rain will result in a lot more work for us to keep everything watered. Oh well. The shot above is of the drumstick ornamental onion (Allium sphaerocephalon) peaking. A nice looking bulb (fall planted) but drops quite a bit of seed. Another shot to the left of Quickfire hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata 'Bulk') that blooms weeks earlier than other panicled hydrangeas and gets the nice transitional color from this clear white to a nice pink, then to amber over the winter. Many visitors have asked about this plant as it is quite showy and highly recommended by me. To the right is a hyssop (Agastache barberi 'Tutti Frutti') which is a tall perennial (just hardy, z5) for full sun and will get close to 48" tall. Here one of the stalks (with whorled, trumpet-shaped blooms for the hummingbirds) is adjacent to the Tiger Eyes sumac (Rhus typhina 'Bailtiger'). Hyssops also have fragrant leaves and a very long bloom time. Speaking of fragrant leaves, below is the dwarf bee balm (Monarda hybrida 'Petite Delight') which is a nice, compact, mounded form covered with blossoms. Many bee balms get tall and leggy (36"+) and are prone to powdery mildew (thereby losing many lower leaves over the summer). This variety is resistant to mildew but if you look closely, you'll see some whitish mildew starting on the leaves after that damp June. Still a remarkable variety in my mind.
Larry worked on running irrigation, watering and pumping out the sunken pool to clean it up as well as the fountain pump. Little Jerry was here to mow and tidy up and Janice coordinated our volunteers and moved on to her own projects. We had a great weeding crew here of Glenna, Mary, Suzy and Marilyn. It is amazing how they can weed thru a large area so quickly (alleviating my stress at the same time about our weed problems). What a great team. The Grumpies were here as well. Big John, Bill, Pat, Bob C. and Ron worked on lifting irises in advance of our division and later assembled more of our tables. These are irises that we wont be selling that will be returned to the hybridizers. We're getting them out today so they aren't part of the general "dig and divide" this Saturday. We'll be spending tomorrow getting ready for this huge work day and are trying to minimize confusion early on in the process. Del and Charlie worked on regraveling paths while Jim, Vern and Dave worked on hanging gates on a new arbor. Bob T. worked on edging and we also saw Rollie, Maury, Doris and others. Another nice day. I took the afternoon off as tomorrow and Saturday will be challenging (since watering will be a priority too). Below are two more plants that have foliage as a primary feature. The vine is the golden silver fleece vine (Fallopia aubertii 'Lemon Lace') that has really done a nice job softening this south-facing wall. We have five of these vining arbors secured along this wall and the gold really shows up from a distance. These will be covered with white flowers in late September. Beneath the Lemon Lace vine is a leaf of the variegated sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus 'Variegatum') that has no two leaves looking identical. At the bottom are some neat shots of the tendrils from the gourds that seem to have a life of their own as they search out something to grasp and help aid their vertical ascent.

Still Waiting...

Precipitation looked promising this morning but we ended up with another partly sunny day with plenty of just plain "stickiness". We had some sprinkles around 6 pm but I don't think it amounted to very much. I hear we have an 80% chance of rain tomorrow (Thursday)...we'll see. The shot above is of the pergola in the French formal garden. The dangling silver plant in both the hanging baskets and urns is the aluminum plant (Dichondra argentea 'Silver Falls') that we've used many years here at the gardens as a trailer in containers and as a ground cover. These hanging baskets should dangle another 3-4' yet this summer! The first Wednesday of the month (April thru October) is free admission at the gardens and it was packed today. We saw lots of kids, a senior citizen tour, special needs groups, etc. and it was really nice to see everyone enjoying the gardens. The amount of traffic was challenging with getting thru the gardens and watering but we made it thru this crazy day. To the left are the beautiful blooms of a hosta ('Honeysong'). While we will cut down spent flower stalks of most hostas later in the season, I do enjoy them while they are here, particularly the fragrant varieties. To the right are two of our new volunteers, Susie and Vito. They did a great job weeding (primarly purslane) and moved on to some planting. We hope to see both in the near future and maybe we've hooked another youth on gardening. I was excited this morning to observe the flowers of the apple gourd (Lagenaria sp.) right near my car at the Horticulture Center (see below). This bloom is about 3" wide and the creamy grey(?) color caught my eye. The flower was shriveled (pollinated?) by the afternoon. Glad I caught the shot. Needless to say, all volunteers and staff were soaked thru with sweat today. Marv did a great job running irrigation, putting up sprinklers, etc. and I was so glad he did after the sun peaked out and it became very hot. He also mulched and weeded. Marianne did her cutting display and some weeding but spent most of her time going thru the irises and flagging various varieties prior to our division project this upcoming Saturday. This was an important and challenging project that she accomplished quite efficiently. Big John and Terry planted some shrubs and moved on to digging up Siberian irises (Iris siberica) and some miscellaneous species iris for the division that occurred tonight. John and Terry both worked on other projects that included significant hand watering. Little Jerry worked on more pruning and garden clean-up. I bounced around doing various projects and preparations. To the left is another neat lily (Lilium, unknown variety) with dangling, spotted blooms. I really am going to bulk up on our lily collection at the gardens in the coming years. We have some lilies along the south side of the woodland walk (sunny) that are over 8' tall. To the right is the vivid dwarf morning glory (Convolvulus tricolor 'Royal Blue Ensign') that is such an eye catcher in the reception garden. Unfortunately, this rambler (12" tall) is tasty for woodchucks and many are not blooming yet as they are in the "nub stage" after being targeted by our resident "land beavers". Below is one of the petunia varieties ('Rhythm & Blues') from Ball Seed Company in our trials. I like this shade of blue and proportion of white edges.
Aside from Susie and Vito mentioned above, we also had Dr. Gredler mowing and sealing (preservative) some new obelisk lumber being cut by Vern today. Kay came in and did a fabulous job planting and weeding but was in some tough spots with either little air circulation or oppressive sun. She's a trooper and so much appreciated by everyone. Del came in to regravel some paths and we also saw Rose, Maury, Gary, Geesje and Katy. Janice and Big John did a great job coordinating the iris divide tonight. As I was over at a potluck dinner / orientation for our Home Garden Tour & Luncheon (HGT&L) at the other building, I missed all the action but checked later to see that they finished despite the rainfall this evening. We already have a couple hundred divisions but should produce 4,000+ this Saturday. The potluck was well attended and we're in good shape for our July 24th HGT&L. Thanks to all the homeowners and volunteers involved with this annual fundraiser. Below is another neat seed trial petunia from Takii Seed (Japan) called 'Opera Supreme Raspberry Ice'. Look at that subtle veination!!

Overcast But Not A Drop

We haven't hit the odds for rainfall over the past three days and hope to have some rain soon. We had dark clouds all day but we all had the "vibe" that it wasn't going to rain. In fact, Janice promised it wouldn't rain so we blame her for jinxing our precipitation percentages. Larry ran irrigation all day thankfully and both Janice and John did some watering as well. Above is some premature fall color on the Tiger Eyes sumac (Rhus typhina 'Bailtiger') that caught my eye (and is not uncommon with this plant). We had a great day today with plenty of volunteer assistance. Below are Ron and Del putting together our sturdy tables that will be used Wednesday night and Saturday for our iris division. Janice worked on watering, planting (petunia replacement in the reception garden) and other tasks while John mowed, dug out some major weeds and spent the afternoon planting and watering. Larry also mowed and did a fine job keeping up with watering/irrigating most of the gardens. Little Jerry did some mowing, pruning and planting. We also had Kay here doing a nice job weeding out two areas. She should be the poster girl for how to efficiently (and ruthlessly) clear out an area of weeds. Vern was in doing some carpentry and Dr. Gredler was here too. Lisa stopped by to talk about our 2011 calendar she's arranged (looks awesome) and we also talked about our daylily collection. We also saw Dr. Yahr, Bob T., Tim T., Dave E., Dave, Julie, Mike, Jean and Mary W. To the left is the summer onion (Allium tanguticum 'Summer Beauty') that really looks sharp thru the hottest summer months. 'Summer Beauty' also holds the spherical flower form well after the pink fades. The fruiting structures to the right are from the Italian arum (Arum italicum). These berries will turn orange/red and are reminiscent of our native Jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum). The marbled foliage of this plant has gone dormant but will return in fall to combine with the future, showy red fruits. Below is the vigorous (emphasis on vigorous), but beautiful, gooseneck loosestrife (Lysimachia clethroides). I love the blooms of this perennial but unless you contain it, it will triple in size (width) each year in good soils. A "beautiful thug" as they say. I talked with John today from the Madison Area Iris Society regarding our iris division project. John offered some great advice and he and some other Society members will help facilitate this process. We'll divide the Siberian irises tomorrow night and finish the rest on Saturday. We'll hopefully end up with 4,000+ divisions that will be offered for sale at our August 28th iris sale. The Rock Prairie Master Gardeners will be instrumental in accomplishing the division and facilitating the sale. To the left is my favorite clematis (right now). This is 'Rooguchi' which is covered with these dangling bells thru mid-summer. This shot was taken at Dave W.'s garden and really shows off this floriferous hybrid variety. Look for it out at the garden centers and you will not be disappointed. To the right is a wonderful white astilbe (Astilbe chinensis 'Diamonds & Pearls') that really shines right now. Many white astilbes look "dirty" as they fade but I think this variety will be quite showy for an extended period of time. Remember that astilbes need lots of water and don't mind the sun if properly irrigated. Below is another impressive variety of astilbe (A. chinensis) called 'Love & Pride'. At 36" tall, this upright, mounded variety is known for heat tolerance and superior blooms. Our daylily (Hemerocallis) collection is really looking good although Lisa and I agree that we need more reds out there and look forward to augmenting the collection in the coming years. At the bottom is 'Golden Hibiscus'. Neat-O.

Hoping For Rain...Soon!

As usual after a vacation, I spent a good portion of the day catching up. The gardens looked great but are in need of a good soaking rain. With chances of rain over the next four days, I hope we get something significant as we've been pampered thus far with reliable rainfall and aren't real excited about the hose/sprinkler "shuffle". Nice shot above of Dahlberg daisy (Dyssodia tenuiloba) that is a tough annual for full sun and poor soils. This plant is "self cleaning" and keeps producing solid masses of daisies until frost (12" tall). The wispy foliage is fragrant too.

Marv and Terry worked on shearing today as well as watering and mulching. The guys do a great job shearing our boxwoods and yews in the formal gardens twice per year (again in early September) and also shear many other specimens around the gardens. Marianne watered, tidied and did some "filler planting" as well. I think everyone watered today as Larry spent most of the day on containers and dry areas in various gardens spaces. We find "irrigation shadows" in many irrigated gardens where the irrigation heads are blocked by plants or other objects, creating a dry shadow that needs attention. We are constantly trying to cut back plants and re-locate heads to maximize the effect of our irrigation. We'll see Little Jerry, Big John and Janice tomorrow for grounds. Nice shot to the left of compass plant (Silphium laciniatum) with showy yellow blooms. A prairie native, this perennial can get quite tall and got its name from pioneers that believed the leaves pointed in a north/south orientation. This is mostly true but not always reliable. What a showy plant though. To the right is another native, the buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) with telltale spherical flowers. Buttonbushes can take lots of moisture and this specimen has been submerged (shallow depth) for over five years and looks great (10' tall). Note the bee working over the flower. And since we're talking about natives, I took the shot below (today) of rattlesnake master (Eryngiuim yuccifolium) with the start of the globular, thistle-like blooms that will age to an amber color later in the summer. I love the "architecture" of this plant in general.

We had a nice volunteer turnout today and expect to see more trickling in thru the week as they get back from various trips and vacations. The Grumpies were here and Big John and Del started right in with gravel skimming and replacement in some of our path areas. This is an arduous task but really helps the gardens look nice and lessens weed issues in our older gravel paths. After moving some plants in the yard, Pat, Ron B. and Gary moved on to skimming/replacing gravel as well. Vern, Bob A., Jim and Dave T. continued to mass produce obelisks and still have plenty on their "to do" list. We also had two Marys here; one weeded while the other planted. We also saw Bev, Dick H., Kay, Dr. Yahr and of course, Dr. Gredler was here mowing, etc. To the left is a double white purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea 'Milkshake') that looks nice but doesn't overwhelm me to be honest. My favorite purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) continues to be 'Pica Bella' seen to the right. Very vivid and intricate. Lots of things coming up this week including our big iris division. We still have some plants in the yard but will get most planted over the next two weeks. Below is the 'Brightside' shasta daisy (Chrysanthemum maximum) which offers a clean white and is easy to grow (beware the seedlings though!). At the bottom is some of the more pink foliage of the 'Haight Ashubury' tropical hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella). Leaves on this variety can be maroon, pink or usually a random pattern in between those extremes.

Looks Like A Rainy Week Ahead

Looks like a rainy week ahead and the fireworks tonight might be a damp scenario. Nice shot of chicory (Cichorium intybus) above growing along all our roadsides and looking quite colorful thru mid-summer. Chicory flowers open and close at the same time every day. Each flower only lasts a day and opens up in the morning and closes/fades in the hot afternoon sunlight. Brought from Europe back in the 1700s, chicory has naturalized over a good portion of North America and has become a fixture along our gravel road edges. Chicory has a long history as a coffee substitute (no caffeine though!) as the roots can be ground and brewed in to a strong coffee. Related to endive and radicchio, chicory roots can also be consumed as a vegetable after being boiled (raw is ok too) and have been eaten for thousands of years. Flowers and young leaves are also edible and there are many folk remedies for the use of chicory as well. I'm sure many of you have notice the Japanese beetles back in your areas. My yard has a significant population that has started on our kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate (Polygonum orientale). Nice vacation but a busy week ahead with preparations for our upcoming iris division and Home Garden Tour and Luncheon.