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 Thursday, June 14, 2007
Primulas from Michigan
By Nan Sinton, Director of Programs
It was a cold February day when I chatted with my friends Marcia and David at the Horticulture winter symposium in Troy, Michigan. I first met this gardening duo when we traveled together on Horticulture garden tours and I have come to know them as international travelers, avid gardeners, and lovers of music. I’ll never forget persuading David to sing on the stage of the Greek theater in Taormina, Sicily during one of our tours. His magnificent voice gave us some idea of what a performance there could have been. Back home in Michigan he and Marcia tend a garden ‘up north’ and over the past thirty five years they have cultivated Primula japonica in a damp spot. These candelabra primulas thrive, and now, thanks to the wonders of over-night shipping, they have shared their bounty and sent me some to add to my own garden. When I got to the office I discovered a package of seedling primulas waiting for me, carefully packed and fresh as can be. I am thrilled to have these small treasures to grow in my garden. There is nothing quite as delightful as a shared plant and I look forward to many springs admiring the primulas in bloom.
Michigan gardeners enjoy some of the finest wildflower and woodland garden displays found anywhere. Think of blankets of trilliums, yellow and pink lady-slipper orchids, the pristine white of bloodroot. Now is definitely the time to take note of gaps in our spring garden planting so that we can add more plants for an event prettier display next year. Read Meg's Blog
6/14/2007 9:22:36 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00) 
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Thursday, June 07, 2007
Apples and Oxalis
By Nan Sinton, Director of Programs
Is it apple cider or apple pie? The scent of sweet shrub (sometimes called strawberry bush), Calycanthus floridus, fills the air in spring with what reminds me of ripe apples. The dark red blooms are about the size of a large strawberry and a powerful presence at the edge of my spring woodland. (If you’d prefer a pale yellow blossom then look for the selection ‘Athens’.) Clean glossy deep apple green foliage, adaptable to part shade to sun, this native of deciduous woods from Maryland to Florida and Mississippi is perfectly comfortable in more northern gardens (Zone 5, maybe 4, to 9). Calycanthus has an Asian cousin, the beautiful, though unscented, Sinocalycanthus chinensis. Its’ flowers remind me of a tiny single peony –elegant and tough. And, yes, I’m growing Sinocalycanthus too. My plant started as a tiny mail-order rooted cutting. Now, three years later, it is a sturdy 4’tall shrub and blooming profusely. The late Dr. J.C. Raulston made a number of crosses between Calycanthus and Sinocalycanthus, most notably ‘Hartlage Wine’ (Calycanthus raulstonii ‘Hartlage Wine) with large deep wine red blooms. Now there is another outstanding new hybrid, Calycanthus ‘Venus’ from the propagation work of Dr.Tom Ranney. It has blooms as large as those of Sinocalycanthus and a delicious fragrance. Just imagine collecting all of these--the possibilities for a garden display are amazing.
Less amazing, in fact daunting, is the world class crop of oxalis that has appeared in my beds and borders this spring. What should I do? I’m all for 4 leaved clovers and shamrocks but I have oxalis by the zillion. I know that hand weeding may cut down on the population but all those tiny thread like roots will quickly re-colonize the area. Should I smother it with newspapers and mulch? Try very careful weed wiping with glysophate? Suggestions welcomed before the oxalis starts having territorial ambitions and heading for the house!
Read Meg's blog
6/7/2007 9:12:25 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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