More Signs of Spring

It was a cool, sunny day out in the gardens with more evidence of color here and there.  The hellebores (Helleborus sp.) are opening up nicely as seen with the variety 'Mellow Yellow' above and some selections below.  Spring bulbs continue to emerge although there is also evidence of significant deer and rabbit damage on particularly our tulips (Tulipa).  We transition to admission based entry this Friday, April 1st so we are getting everything tidied up for our spring visitors.  While we still have a few larger cords and elements from the Holiday Light Show (HLS) to collect, we are mostly done with that event until later this upcoming summer when we begin testing lights again and starting the set-up all over....Next week looks chilly but that's not unusual for April.

 'Royal Heritage Strain' helleborus (Helleborus) - above and below

We had a huge crew of volunteers at the gardens today.  Terry (above) worked with Marv on hauling back benches for Gene to sand and re-stain.  Terry worked on trimming back roses as we assess our losses which were surprising after such a mild winter.  We have a new rose donation coming in this spring which will infill this garden in a very colorful way.  Kay helped process handouts and plant sale labels in the office while Jenny continued preparing and organizing labels for our incoming annuals.  Gary worked on labels for our future Heirloom Garden.  Lloyd, Bob C. and Kevin C. worked on mulching the main parking lot islands.  Alan M. worked on tidying the sunken garden while Kathy and Eva (seen below, Eva to the right) bounced between a couple different areas for tidying.  Vern and Ron Y. worked on carpentry projects while Dr. Gredler accomplished more painting.  Maury and Dick H. hauled back our Santa houses (see below) and had some other projects as well.  Jim H. worked on more clean-up in the Japanese garden. We also saw Rollie, Mary W., Maryam, Terri N., Kris K., Roman, Chuck S. and many others today.  Larry H. worked on multiple gardening projects while Janice focused on the Spring Plant Sale.

 Santa's workshop and the elf house have been loaded for storage

 we're using more of the signs above to let people know what's going on

 'Carsten's Wintergold' mugo pine (Pinus mugo)

 reticulated irises (Iris reticulata)

 'Goldheart' bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis) is emerging nicely

Today I was checking on our orders for the plantings in our Hummingbird Haven theme this year and am excited about the wide range of plants that will be featured.  I included two of them here as I think they'll also be quite showy for our visitors too.  Above is 'Red Neck Girl' forsythia sage (Salvia madrensis) which will get well over 5' tall!  Below is lion's tail (Leonotus leonurus) which is a beautiful orange summer bloomer.  Both of these will be annuals for us and we also have another 50-60 selections for that garden featuring trumpet shaped blooms for our area hummingbirds to enjoy.

lion's tail (Leonotus leonurus) - annual

Mother Nature's Gentle Reminder

I had some presentations yesterday and travel conditions fluctuated between ok and bad.  I was watching the temperature alternate between 30 and 34 degrees F and noted quite a few cars off the road later in the afternoon.  With heavier snows further north, we were spared the worst of it but still had some white stuff come down.  All the photos here are from Olbrich Botanical Gardens (Madison, WI) last evening when I arrived for my presentation (The Sensory Garden).  I couldn't resist a brisk (literally and figuratively) walk and had the gardens to myself.  Above are some colorful dogwoods (Cornus sp.) featuring excellent winter interest with bright stems.  The other photos below have captions.  

We had a great crew yesterday although everyone was inside as the pounding rain turned to slush and ultimately light snow later in the day.  Gary, Alan and Dr. Gredler were painting chairs and other structures inside while Ron Y. put primer on some new Adirondack chairs that will be for sale in our Cottage Garden Gallery soon.  Vern, Dave and Marv B. worked on assembling more chairs and Dick H. had some projects.  Jenny E. continued to work on processing labels and Gene continued sanding and staining benches.  Larry H., Big John and Janice all had indoor projects and Maury F. ran some errands for us.  I'm sure there were more folks in that I just didn't see.

Today we had help from Jim and four RECAPPERS who did some major digging out in the gardens.  Bill O. and Maury F. and some projects as well.   We also saw Patrea, Urban, Hannah and many others.  Big John, Janice and I worked on a wide range of projects and the snow is now melting quickly.  We're heading in to "full speed ahead" mode out in the gardens and we had Paulson-Kimball Construction come today to help load up our "Santa's Village" houses on to a trailer for storage (until November).  

 cool willow (Salix) and dogwood (Cornus) tower

 snowdrops (Galanthus sp.) with snow

 crocus (Crocus sp.)

 bridge between the woodland garden and rock garden

 the herb garden (above and below) accented with snow

 vernal witchhazel (Hamamelis vernalis) - unknown variety

 cool brick pattern with snow

 vernal witchhazel (Hamamelis vernalis)

 'Arnold Promise' witchhazel (Hamamelis x intermedia) - above and below

 hellebore (Helleborus) shrugging off the snow

 China Snow Peking lilac (Syringa pekinensis 'Morton')

 'Bergeson Compact' redosier dogwood (Cornus sericea)

 'Dripping Cherries' Corneliancherry dogwood (Cornus mas)

 'Bud's Yellow' yellowstem dogwood (Cornus sericea)

nicely trimmed boxwoods (Buxus) showing strong form

 ice formation of climbing hydragea (Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris)

 nice ice formations on crabapples (Malus sp.)

Adaptive Gardening Tools

With the advancing rain/sleet/snow storm on the way, the weather was cool and cloudy with light rain started this morning.  Big John and Larry H. both had outdoor duties including more tidying, pruning and bed preparations.  Myrt, Nancy, Gena and Patty were in for some major painting on our entrance garden pyramids which have A LOT of collective surface area. The ladies always do an excellent job although I'm wary of getting too distracted by the "girl talk" going on which is always interesting albeit disturbing at times....  Janice had some office work to accomplish and I continue to prepare for Spring which is already here if you look at the calendar (not outside the windows).  Bill O. was in to repair some tires and work on other projects and we also saw Mark S., Cindy B., Jenny E. (label work), Dick H., Kay (processed handouts), Maury (errands) and many others today.

The photo above is of Dave Hunt (deceased) and Mary Hunt maintaining their garden space many years ago.  Mary and her daughter Kathy are still very active here but the photo is the introduction to the concept of utilizing more adaptive tools that help us garden as we age.  The ergonomics of many standard garden tools puts significant strain on hands, wrist, arms, elbows, etc.  Tools can be purchased (like those directly below) that minimize strain on the hand and wrist although many existing tools can be actively modified for comfort, minimal strain but still, maximum productivity.  This topic will be part of our July 27th Horticultural Therapy Symposium as we should all consider the benefits of minimizing strain on our aging bodies so we can enjoy gardening as long as possible!  See many examples below.

 The Southeast Wisconsin Master Gardeners have developed an excellent tool collection as part of their Life Long Gardening initiatives and have set up their display (above and most shots below) at RBG for various functions.  What a great asset to see these tools and their importance.

 these devices are neat as they can be a garden seat or kneeling pad!