It was damp today. That sums it up. Actually, this morning was the only time we had to be dry out in the gardens (between 7 am and 9 am). The rest of day has fluctuated between drizzle and heavy rains. Everyone got caught out in the first downpour and I think Big John and Jenny got the worst of it over the r
est of the day as they tried to dodge raindrops. Nice shot above of the common elderberry (
Sambucus canadensis) that can be seen along roadsides, woodland edges and other areas and is very noticeable right now because of the huge flower clusters that will later become the drooping clusters of dark purple berries in late summer. I love most elderberries for the range of colorful foliage from select varieties, but this species has the most impressive blooms at almost 12" across. Not far from where I took the elderberry shot this morning near the Horticulture Center, I was reacq
uainted with the 'Young Lady' smokebush (
Cotinus coggygria 'Young Lady') and its wispy, billowing flowers (like smoke) that catch the eye over the course of the summer. The wispiness isn't the actual flower but a related flower structure. This variety is known to be quite compact (8' tall and wide) and has a nice yellow-orange fall color as well. This is certainly an eye catcher. We severely prune some of our maroon-leaved smokebushes ('Royal Purple') for fresh growth each year but lose the flowers. I envision using more of the 'Young Lady' variety elsewhere in the gardens. Below is one of our Bailey Nursery test roses called 'Minnesota Red'. This caught my attention this morning as it certainly doesn't look like a shrub rose and has done remarkably well with literally
zero attention. I hope this one is introduced in the near future.
It was a relatively small crew today but despite the rain, lots of projects were checked off the list. Big John hauled out tools and kneeling pads for our Cloverbud 4H camp to plant although that activity was understandably a wash out (pun intended). John moved on to removing thug ferns, cutting b
ack perennial geraniums, planting roses and did his mowing stint in the rain. Larry did his mowing as well and worked on various inside projects as well as buying lunch for everyone (thanks!). Jenny worked on matching up labels and didn't let the rain slow her down. Janice worked on various projects, the most exciting of which is an actual "mini-trial" with our biodegradable pots. I'll post pictures tomorrow regarding this activity. She essentially planted the same plant, purple coneflower (
Echinacea purpurea) in our five different biodegradable pots (similar size) and planted them
out in the same space (for similar sun and rain exposure). She'll be examining how fast these pots break down, observe root penetration rates as well as take observations regarding the actual plants themselves. This should be neat. Little Jerry and Dr. Gredler got soaked mowing the larger lawns and I was out placing plants in some of our remaining open beds for installation later in the week. Gary and Ron W. came in this morning and worked on clearing weeds and debris from another neglected border. They were poised to mulch the space but got rained out. Kay spent more time weeding in the shade garden but being so sweet, melted with the rains. We also saw Dr. Yahr, Maury, Bob T., Art and Judy over here today. Nice shot to the left of the 'Pewter Lace' Japanese painted fern (
Athyrium niponicum 'Pewter Lace') with a wide range of interesting coloration. I really enjoyed the fern garden today while marking ferns for removal (ostrich and sensitive) and took the image to the right of the golden fullmoon maple (
Acer shirasawanum 'Autumn Moon') nearby. I can't wait until this gets bigger with bright yellow spring leaves, chartreusy summer leaves, then a nice orange-red fall color. Below is some additional foliage of interest that I'd like to share. I love all ginkgos (
Ginkgo biloba) but spend the most time looking at the variety 'Saratoga' below that has a dense canopy with variable leaves, most of which droop and have a dramatic split. For those that know ginkgos, this variety strays from the standard leaf shape and is quite ornamental (nice yellow fall color too!). At the bottom is the variegated forsythia (
Forsythia viridissima var.
koreana 'Kumson') that while not a strong bloomer, has very dramatic leaves with prominent silver veination. We cut ours back severely if they get "rangey" and they are a nice groundcover in masses. Very showy.
It was damp today. That sums it up. Actually, this morning was the only time we had to be dry out in the gardens (between 7 am and 9 am). The rest of day has fluctuated between drizzle and heavy rains. Everyone got caught out in the first downpour and I think Big John and Jenny got the worst of it over the r
est of the day as they tried to dodge raindrops. Nice shot above of the common elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) that can be seen along roadsides, woodland edges and other areas and is very noticeable right now because of the huge flower clusters that will later become the drooping clusters of dark purple berries in late summer. I love most elderberries for the range of colorful foliage from select varieties, but this species has the most impressive blooms at almost 12" across. Not far from where I took the elderberry shot this morning near the Horticulture Center, I was reacq
uainted with the 'Young Lady' smokebush (Cotinus coggygria 'Young Lady') and its wispy, billowing flowers (like smoke) that catch the eye over the course of the summer. The wispiness isn't the actual flower but a related flower structure. This variety is known to be quite compact (8' tall and wide) and has a nice yellow-orange fall color as well. This is certainly an eye catcher. We severely prune some of our maroon-leaved smokebushes ('Royal Purple') for fresh growth each year but lose the flowers. I envision using more of the 'Young Lady' variety elsewhere in the gardens. Below is one of our Bailey Nursery test roses called 'Minnesota Red'. This caught my attention this morning as it certainly doesn't look like a shrub rose and has done remarkably well with literally zero attention. I hope this one is introduced in the near future. 
ack perennial geraniums, planting roses and did his mowing stint in the rain. Larry did his mowing as well and worked on various inside projects as well as buying lunch for everyone (thanks!). Jenny worked on matching up labels and didn't let the rain slow her down. Janice worked on various projects, the most exciting of which is an actual "mini-trial" with our biodegradable pots. I'll post pictures tomorrow regarding this activity. She essentially planted the same plant, purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) in our five different biodegradable pots (similar size) and planted them
out in the same space (for similar sun and rain exposure). She'll be examining how fast these pots break down, observe root penetration rates as well as take observations regarding the actual plants themselves. This should be neat. Little Jerry and Dr. Gredler got soaked mowing the larger lawns and I was out placing plants in some of our remaining open beds for installation later in the week. Gary and Ron W. came in this morning and worked on clearing weeds and debris from another neglected border. They were poised to mulch the space but got rained out. Kay spent more time weeding in the shade garden but being so sweet, melted with the rains. We also saw Dr. Yahr, Maury, Bob T., Art and Judy over here today. Nice shot to the left of the 'Pewter Lace' Japanese painted fern (Athyrium niponicum 'Pewter Lace') with a wide range of interesting coloration. I really enjoyed the fern garden today while marking ferns for removal (ostrich and sensitive) and took the image to the right of the golden fullmoon maple (Acer shirasawanum 'Autumn Moon') nearby. I can't wait until this gets bigger with bright yellow spring leaves, chartreusy summer leaves, then a nice orange-red fall color. Below is some additional foliage of interest that I'd like to share. I love all ginkgos (Ginkgo biloba) but spend the most time looking at the variety 'Saratoga' below that has a dense canopy with variable leaves, most of which droop and have a dramatic split. For those that know ginkgos, this variety strays from the standard leaf shape and is quite ornamental (nice yellow fall color too!). At the bottom is the variegated forsythia (Forsythia viridissima var. koreana 'Kumson') that while not a strong bloomer, has very dramatic leaves with prominent silver veination. We cut ours back severely if they get "rangey" and they are a nice groundcover in masses. Very showy. 
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