Wintersowing follow up

Yesterday's strong winds were a blessing in disguise. When I got home from the office, I noticed that the lid from one of the flats I'd wintersown had blown off and was lying across the yard. When I went to replace it, I discovered that I had babies! (Woohoo!!!)

Tiny little larkspur seedlings had popped up all over that flat. Nothing yet in the other three, but spring is definitely in the air.

In the garden itself, the bloodroot is showing and there are lilies and veronicas and, of course daffodils, popping up.

I feel like breathing deeply and shouting "I made it!" to no one in particular.

At loose ends

I spent a little time out in the garden over the weekend. The ground is too wet to do much, but I kept to the paths and cut a few ornamental grasses down and put up some mesh supports for the clematis. (I have 9 or 10 of them, but I can never remember the plural form of 'clematis.' Should it be 'clematises?''Clemati?')

I usually wait until the vines have formed a single, ultra-tangled mass before I think to do that, so I'm feeling pretty proud of myself right now.

This is the first time in many years that I don't' have a major garden project planned for this spring. No new beds (my back yard is covered except for a little patch of green lawn that I've left for future croquet games with my granddaughters) and my neighbors have yet to embrace the concept of front yard gardens, so I try to keep that area a bit more refined.

But 'no plans' is an odd feeling: A little like being at loose ends; a little like betrayal. (Though I have no idea who I would be betraying other than several retail nurseries!) Even though I'll be adding a few plants here and there, something feels 'not right' or missing.

I don't think I like it.

New local gardening forum

When we started the O&E website, I thought the most important component would be a local gardening forum -- a place where gardeners in the area could come together to discuss plants, offer each other advice, and just generally commiserate about the joys and frustrations of gardening.

That forum is now a reality. (www.ornamentals-edibles.com/forum)

There is no other place that I know about where Kankakee-area gardeners can gather any time of day to talk about our favorite subject. I hope you'll take advantage of it. Visit often. Encourage your friends to, as well. And don't be afraid to post topics or respond to others gardeners' questions. This is a learning process for us all.

And heaven knows, I'm getting pretty tired of talking to myself!

Corydalis 'Ex Dufu Temple'

I tried growing Corydalis 'Blue Panda' once, but I think the plants only lasted a year or two. It wasn't until later that I learned that the blue-flowering varieties were notoriously fussy.

I just got word of a new introduction that is supposed to remedy that. This information is straight out of a press release, though, so take it with a grain of salt:

"This new variety from the Sichuan region of China is not only fast-growing and very floriferous from spring into fall, but it also tolerates any soil pH, thrives in sun or partial shade, and may even reseed. The tubular blooms begin in spring, appearing in shades of blue that can range from powder to violet, in clusters atop glaucous, finely-cut foliage that may remind you of Corydalis' cousin Dicentra. This plant is just a few inches high out of bloom, but when in flower can reach from 4 to 12 inches tall, and spreads about a foot wide. The blooms continue all summer and into early fall, keeping this low-grower very colorful. Superb for the border, as edging, in the woodland garden, or even in containers, 'Ex Dufu Temple' is a standout for color, vigor, and length of bloomtime. Give it well-drained soil of reasonably good fertility and let it go. It is cold-hardy and long-lived."

More about Buddleia 'Blue Chip'

When I wrote about the dwarf 'Blue Chip' buddleia a couple of weeks ago I said that the plants wouldn't be available until Spring of '09. Yesterday, however, I received a catalog from Wayside Gardens in the mail and guess what was on the cover.

Bingo!

Apparently the company has exclusive rights to offer the plant this spring. They're charging $14.95 each.

Visit www.waysidegardens.com if you're interested.