Above is the neat bloom of the cardoon (
Cynara cardunculus) which is alwa
ys beautiful to behold. We plant 50 or so cardoons each year around the gardens and this close, artichoke relative always is impressive with rugged silver foliage and the occasional bloom as seen above. Most years we never see a bloom on this non-hardy plant. The stems of cardoon are edible but should be blanched prior to use to alleviate some of the natural bitterness. I would never have a full sun garden without cardoons! We had our small crew today and I hardly get out in to the gardens due to various meetings. I met with Kathy and Tom who grow our hanging baskets for us and supply the vast bulk of our specialty annuals. It's always nice visiting them and their nursery (Jenka Blossoms) is one of the cleanest and most organized I've visited. Kathy and I went over the order and are always both collectively excited about the upcoming season. To the right is the fragrant tuberose (
Polianthes tuberosa 'The Pearl') which comes as a bulb in early spring that we start in containers in April with the anticipation of these very fragrant bloom spires (almost 48" tall) in August and September. This is one of the more fragrant plants that really emits a sweet scent over a wide area, particularly at dusk. We stagger the planting of this bulb in pots so their final bloom window is staggered as well. This shot was taken at the Chicago Botanic Garden but ours are starting to bloom as well. Below is the shot of our cover crop display starting to fill in over the past couple of weeks (thank you UW Extension!). These thirteen beds were irises for the past two years and once the irises were lifted in July (for sale this Saturday!!!), we opted for this e
ducational display. Janice researched and created the signs while Big John got all the sign posts installed today. This has been a learning experience for me as I've not heard of many of these "green manures." Our intent is to till all of these in to the soil this fall or next spring to improve these beds for a different spring planting (as yet to be determined). These cover crops include berseem clover (
Trifolium alexandrinum), winter rye (
Secale cereale), oats (
Avena sativa) and the Daikon "tillage" radish among other selections. The radishes have gone bonkers and will also loosen up tough soils. Neat stuff.
Larry spent the day running irrigation, watering and mowing. Big John, aside from his sign work above, worked on mowing, watering, fertilizing and some odds and ends. Janice did a lot of watering and came in later to pick some gourds for the upcoming Garden Festival (also this Saturday the 28th, 11am-4pm). Kay was here to weed and tidy up and Dr. Gredler was out doing a nice job with his mowing. We also saw Kay F., Dr. Yahr and many others stopping by as well. Tomorrow is our ground staff "day trip". We're going to a home garden in Waukesha that we visited many years ago and were very impressed. Dale's one acre garden is meticulous and features expansive moss gardens, containers, water features, a formal garden, rockery, etc. Unbelievable. I've mentioned Dale in past posts as "Mr. Moss" for his talents. We'll then travel down to the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL (Chicago suburbs) which is one of the top 5 arboretums in the country. We'll get a tour, have lunch, and do the tram ride around 1700 acres of collections and gardens. I grew up in the Chicago suburbs and my dad dragged my two brothers and me to the arboretum as kids. We sure resented him taking us out in to nature (for goodness sake!) but it is now one of my favorite destinations and a wonderful place to visit for relaxation, education or both. The "Morton" is tied to the Morton Salt company. Interesting history worth looking in to. They have a neat new children's garden and their display gardens continue to expand and improve. Looking forward to it and I should have some sweet shots for the blog tomorrow night. Nice shot below of elephant ear (
Colocasia esculenta) looking bold near the gazebo garden. This is another "can't do without" tropical for the full sun or part shade garden (needs lots of water!).
Above is the neat bloom of the cardoon (Cynara cardunculus) which is alwa
ys beautiful to behold. We plant 50 or so cardoons each year around the gardens and this close, artichoke relative always is impressive with rugged silver foliage and the occasional bloom as seen above. Most years we never see a bloom on this non-hardy plant. The stems of cardoon are edible but should be blanched prior to use to alleviate some of the natural bitterness. I would never have a full sun garden without cardoons! We had our small crew today and I hardly get out in to the gardens due to various meetings. I met with Kathy and Tom who grow our hanging baskets for us and supply the vast bulk of our specialty annuals. It's always nice visiting them and their nursery (Jenka Blossoms) is one of the cleanest and most organized I've visited. Kathy and I went over the order and are always both collectively excited about the upcoming season. To the right is the fragrant tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa 'The Pearl') which comes as a bulb in early spring that we start in containers in April with the anticipation of these very fragrant bloom spires (almost 48" tall) in August and September. This is one of the more fragrant plants that really emits a sweet scent over a wide area, particularly at dusk. We stagger the planting of this bulb in pots so their final bloom window is staggered as well. This shot was taken at the Chicago Botanic Garden but ours are starting to bloom as well. Below is the shot of our cover crop display starting to fill in over the past couple of weeks (thank you UW Extension!). These thirteen beds were irises for the past two years and once the irises were lifted in July (for sale this Saturday!!!), we opted for this e
ducational display. Janice researched and created the signs while Big John got all the sign posts installed today. This has been a learning experience for me as I've not heard of many of these "green manures." Our intent is to till all of these in to the soil this fall or next spring to improve these beds for a different spring planting (as yet to be determined). These cover crops include berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum), winter rye (Secale cereale), oats (Avena sativa) and the Daikon "tillage" radish among other selections. The radishes have gone bonkers and will also loosen up tough soils. Neat stuff. 
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