An April "Scorcher"

It was a hot day for April with temperatures reaching close to 83 degrees F.  It was warm out there although it looks like the remainder of the week will be more characteristic of April.  There are plenty signs of spring out in the gardens like the 'Leonard Messel' magnolia (Magnolia x loebneri) seen above near the sunken garden.  Below is a nice reflection of our arched bridge this morning.  We had a super duper day of volunteerism out in the gardens and our grounds staff did an excellent job as well.  I feel we're at full speed right now and wont look back until July for a quick breath after everything is tidied, mulched, composted, planted, primped, primed and ready to rock and roll.  

 'Royal Star' magnolia (Magnolia stellata) - woody tree

Above are some of our tour guides (current and future) from our Saturday training

With 800 baby plant plugs and 2,000+ caladiums needing to be planted quickly, I had Kathy and Eva (above, Eva in red) start on plugs while Cindy was nearby planting the first of our caladiums for the big Caladium Collection.  Kathy and Eva later went out to clean up leaves from our streams.  Marv B. (below) always does a nice job primping the moss areas which he has tended for many years (and previously with his lovely wife Marianne).  Ron R., Lloyd and Bob C. spread a lot of mulch today in the woodland walk and beyond.  Alan and Rollie (second photo down), along with Dick H. and Vern, started putting together our tables for the plant sale which is no small task.  Gene did more sanding and staining while Dr. Gredler mowed and painted.  Bill O. had some tasks and Gary worked on more labels.  Pat C. was out inventorying and repairing labels.  Our daylily division team included three excellent RECAPPER ladies, Bob D., Bev D., Mary W., Ruth, Joan, Corky, Mary and Deb.  Maury had plenty of errands and we saw many others as well.

Our grounds staff kept very busy.  Cindy processed a whole bunch of incoming plants and started the flow of plants to our hoop houses.  She also planted a lot of caladiums.  She was then out in the gardens working her kung fu.  Larry H. had some tidying, watering and moved on to significant mulching.  John and Terry worked with our garden art projects (hummingbirds), composted, rototilled and had many other projects.  Work started on our aquarium project today and we're excited to see the daily progress.  I had myriad tasks and continue to prepare for a spring that is already here.

Marv B.

Alan (left) and Rollie

Corky and Joan

Corky, Joan, Bev, Mary, Ruth and Deb (left to right)

Ron R.

Lloyd (left) and Bob C.

 wind anemone (Anemone blanda 'Blue Shades') - perennial (fall planted corms)

 golden weeping willow (Salix alba 'Tristis') with a nice reflection on the pond

 'Papageno' pasque flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris) - perennial

 Dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria) - perennial

perennial periwinkle (Vinca major) in bloom

our containers are painted and ready to go!

Fantastic Friday

The weather was spectacular today with sunny skies and a high temperature around 73 degrees F.  While the morning was a bit chilly, it warmed up nicely and it looks like the next week or so will be very similar.  It was the perfect day to enjoy flowers like the fragrant garden hyacinths (Hyacinthus) seen above and to get some serious gardening accomplished.  While I didn't garden much (I did spread some mulch!) today, our grounds staff and volunteers kept very busy.  Tomorrow we'll be selling pansies as part of our Spring Compost Sale and we're not too far away from our Mother's Day Plant Sale (see our website for details).

 'Northern Gold' forsythia (Forsythia x intermedia) in bloom - woody shrub

 'Concerto' tulip (Tulipa) out front of the Parker Education Center

We had an excellent volunteer turnout today including students from Oakhill Christian School (seen above with their teacher, Kath).  The students did a wonderful job mulching the woodland glen and moved on to a portion of the woodland walk.  Students from this class have helped both in spring and fall for close to 9 years!  A few of the giant piles of mulch they spread today can be seen directly below as can some of their activities.  Kathy, Kay and Eva all did a great job tidying up in various locations out in the gardens.  Lisa I. was out in the daylily collection which she manages so well.  She's marking some specimens for division and/or relocation.  Pat C. was back in action assessing our labels for repair or replacement out in a couple of garden areas.  Dick H. finished repairs on a trailer which is our primary "hauler" for incoming plants.  We also saw Marleen, Vern, Lynn Y. and many others today.

Big John and Terry had plenty of action today which ultimately included our first wave of push mowing (tis the season!).  Cindy (third photo down) did a nice job weeding in multiple locations and also spread a large quantity of our pre-emergent weed control which we hope will help save some time later this spring.  The weeds are already coming up quickly.  Janice was a huge help with the students this morning and moved on to putting together the cutting display as well as details for our Pansy Sale and future Spring Plant Sale.  I had a wide range of tasks today both inside and outside.

Kathy P.

Eva

Cindy B. (in the house)

 mosses are thriving in this weather - here getting ready to release spores!

 pasque flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris) - perennial

 our raked gravel sea in the Japanese garden was striking today!

 marsh marigolds (Caltha palustris) - perennial

 Canadian ginger (Asarum canadense) is emerging and starting to bloom - perennial

 daffodils (Narcissus) are peaking all over the gardens!

 bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) - perennial

'Peppermint Ice' hellebore (Helleborus) - perennial

Fun Fifteen

I'm back to work today after my trip to the California Spring Trials (CAST) and barely got out of the office with all the piles and phone calls that needed attention.  We had a productive group of volunteers today which included Lloyd and Bob C. out mulching and Alan A. edging.  Kathy, Eva, Peg and Cheryl D. all worked on garden tidying and clean-up in a couple of different garden spaces.  Dick worked on some vehicles while Maury ran errands.  Ron P. continued repairing lights prior to storage and Gary B. finished painting multiple structures.  Gary continued with sign and label production.  Dr. Gredler was out mowing and pulling along a turf aerator.  Hal R. spent time tidying up his assigned garden which is always looking good as it is front and center along Palmer Drive.  Bev, Bob, Bev (and her crew) all helped sort out our surplus plastic pots so we know what we're up against.  We also saw Bill O., Maryam, Linda B., Larry O., Big Jim and many others.  Big John and Larry had a long day but also helped stage a whole lot of mulch for our student volunteers tomorrow from Oakhill Christian school.   

This blog included 15 exciting plants I saw over the last five days at the California Pack Trials.  There were so many neat things to look at out west and I appreciate being able to go on this trip.  I'll likely feature some more in the future as these 15, while beautiful, are just the tip of the iceberg.  I'm focusing my energies on looming events like the start of our Pansy Sale that joins the compost sale this Saturday (8 am - 12 noon).  Our Spring Plant Sale is only a couple of weeks ago and is scheduled for Mother's Day weekend.  See our website for details and you can also view or download listings of our vegetable and herb offerings.  Enjoy the color seen below and above with the vivid 'Trilogy Rose' petunia (Petunia sp.)!

 'Adore Dragoste' begonia (Begonia sp.) - annual

 Arizona Series ('Sun', 'Sandstone', 'Sunset') hyssop (Agastache hybrida) - non-hardy

 Armor Series cockscomb celosia (Celosia cristata) - in yellow, red, purple and orange

 'Summer Jewel Lavender' salvia (Salvia coccinea) - annual

 'Nagoya White' kale (Brassica oleracea) - annual

 'Floral Showers Apricot Bicolor' snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus nanum pumilum) - annual

 'Dragon's Breath' plume celosia (Celosia plumosa, 24") - annual

 'Rosanne Black Pearl'  tulip gentian (Lisianthus grandiflorum) - annual

 'Blue Harmony' anemone (Anemone hybrida) - annual

 'Meerlo' variegated lavender (Lavandula allardii) - not hardy

 'Happy Yellow Orange Stripes' petunia (Petunia sp.) - annual

 'Colissima Raspberry' coleus (Solentostemon scutellariodes) - annual

 Nemesia Babycakes Little Orange

'Heureka Seasons King' coral bells (Heuchera sp.) - perennial