tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38907862654754294482024-03-17T03:13:30.958-04:00Roche Fleurie GardenDiary of a Frugal Gardenerrochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.comBlogger245125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-16617137892298646402018-03-11T16:52:00.001-04:002018-03-11T16:52:36.583-04:00All about spheres<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Looking at photos of the garden, you might have noticed cement balls placed in strategic spots. These are chiefly ornamental, although they also serve practical purposes. Their use is even historical.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp5lpzpUyKs5_uOxeTDXw2_XMQxIxWnb-X68ZihFF8qat6Fd2PyJEypnFGYlnFnpmBOj_CeVX6m3uJkScnDsifyy6qeuT3mthZXFWxp-uqmBaO-HnXJQaUX-99hdNXIsNIk7uc3GQBTcW6/s1600/DSC_0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1504" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp5lpzpUyKs5_uOxeTDXw2_XMQxIxWnb-X68ZihFF8qat6Fd2PyJEypnFGYlnFnpmBOj_CeVX6m3uJkScnDsifyy6qeuT3mthZXFWxp-uqmBaO-HnXJQaUX-99hdNXIsNIk7uc3GQBTcW6/s320/DSC_0002.JPG" title="Concrete spheres at Roche Fleurie Garden" width="212" /></a></div>
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I first saw such spheres in photos of Victorian gardens reproduced in <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/JARDINS-OUBLIES-1860-1960-Reford-Alexander/dp/B0013G4FF6" target="_blank">Des jardins oubliés, 1860-1960 by Alexander Reford</a>, a collection of photos of Quebec gardens taken between 1860 and 1960. Here is a good example:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRTp_4R3Fh2xt6hTPgqU_1dOGKYOXDWwsDmfpTD7IhWEeijUQp9eN8saHfvJRVHtetMy8kID_QnvMBw8tpFwr9jYp-TvbIzIIhjtj4pDAozWYIYM2gbKo1U7p9qGO387xs-RvlW7ZaeRzn/s1600/DSC_0026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt=" ISBN 2-551-18097-X" border="0" data-original-height="818" data-original-width="1191" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRTp_4R3Fh2xt6hTPgqU_1dOGKYOXDWwsDmfpTD7IhWEeijUQp9eN8saHfvJRVHtetMy8kID_QnvMBw8tpFwr9jYp-TvbIzIIhjtj4pDAozWYIYM2gbKo1U7p9qGO387xs-RvlW7ZaeRzn/s640/DSC_0026.JPG" title="REFORD, ALEXANDER. Des jardins oubliés, 1860-1960. Québec, Les Publications du Québec, 2000, 209 p. ISBN 2-551-18097-X" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo reproduced from <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/JARDINS-OUBLIES-1860-1960-Reford-Alexander/dp/B0013G4FF6" target="_blank">Des jardins oubliés 1860-1960 by Alexander Reford </a></td></tr>
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I expect that in the past such balls had mostly practical purposes. In the photo above, they would have protected the plant border from vehicles (horse-drawn carriages) as they circled this magnificent island bed (a testament to what Victorian gardeners could achieve with annual bedding plants) to reach the front door. In fact, next to the balls in the above photo, you can actually see marks left in the gravel by such carriages.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-A03AOWxLQmaHk-0qIMZ7lLowpnPQ-keh0Ygi9PUzuIir8Cy8-lKytYsRfvMzAIYqrNlGCs_wVY9VB4FHDYcnZ8yvUu-zcpsKbAwQK7uBIai0Ic8LmgPedP43NhEJ62N29r7_L8gt6QZ/s1600/Collage_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-A03AOWxLQmaHk-0qIMZ7lLowpnPQ-keh0Ygi9PUzuIir8Cy8-lKytYsRfvMzAIYqrNlGCs_wVY9VB4FHDYcnZ8yvUu-zcpsKbAwQK7uBIai0Ic8LmgPedP43NhEJ62N29r7_L8gt6QZ/s320/Collage_Fotor.jpg" title="REFORD, ALEXANDER. Des jardins oubliés, 1860-1960. Québec, Les Publications du Québec, 2000, 209 p. ISBN 2-551-18097-X" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photos reproduced from <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/JARDINS-OUBLIES-1860-1960-Reford-Alexander/dp/B0013G4FF6" target="_blank">Des jardins oubliés 1860-1960 by Alexander Reford </a></td></tr>
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The purpose would have been the same in the above examples: making sure no one took a short cut across the planted areas. Placing them at the intersection of two roads makes for a classical, balanced use of ornaments. The balls frame the space, serving as markers.<br />
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We have similar cement balls in the garden. They serve the same purpose of protecting the planting and better defining the space by framing it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFcKB4h8bLtvjLWSx0jaGg6bwjjzAnNnFVeAnX3D_65yilb7TorCL4LzA0GZ_Gnok_KYStPfZDCAap-f9B1k3eDTWADwTmWVMo7Y3acMMXjArt1N6MYn8Y8fxSoz4WhmT6GbpNy85xFna_/s1600/DSC_0023_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="928" data-original-width="1396" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFcKB4h8bLtvjLWSx0jaGg6bwjjzAnNnFVeAnX3D_65yilb7TorCL4LzA0GZ_Gnok_KYStPfZDCAap-f9B1k3eDTWADwTmWVMo7Y3acMMXjArt1N6MYn8Y8fxSoz4WhmT6GbpNy85xFna_/s320/DSC_0023_Fotor.jpg" title="Concrete spheres at Roche Fleurie Garden" width="320" /></a></div>
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Used singly, as in the two pictures below, they can act as a focal point that brings together unrelated elements and anchors the view. They are eye-catching because of the strong contrast between the permanence of the concrete and the ever-changing plants through the seasons.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPEdsxHRLu0IfucWF4BkqOlrxvp46lVmTzjAgHU3l_KbPPnhdpDulVFJL3azUqMV5zzfXFUnIYgBDxA0AXZsdZJ9OYEgycRp7Pdn87SnZAfJR0n9IuGs7zIjzsfIMjDiKi7r1LFwtBtz2Y/s1600/DSC_0028_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="804" data-original-width="1426" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPEdsxHRLu0IfucWF4BkqOlrxvp46lVmTzjAgHU3l_KbPPnhdpDulVFJL3azUqMV5zzfXFUnIYgBDxA0AXZsdZJ9OYEgycRp7Pdn87SnZAfJR0n9IuGs7zIjzsfIMjDiKi7r1LFwtBtz2Y/s320/DSC_0028_Fotor.jpg" title="Concrete spheres at Roche Fleurie Garden" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzXJyICZjaALGx79ZBijoea1I4S9qmDFJn9n3hA08QYD8PGtXuZCly2npkGltM1CIbu6WbDeNU7UBiTvdlWjThbxj7D8RbIcEBU542OqS0jRmCVCoum6JT74FPWRNJSls7cQuZrLdl5WCb/s1600/DSC_0001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzXJyICZjaALGx79ZBijoea1I4S9qmDFJn9n3hA08QYD8PGtXuZCly2npkGltM1CIbu6WbDeNU7UBiTvdlWjThbxj7D8RbIcEBU542OqS0jRmCVCoum6JT74FPWRNJSls7cQuZrLdl5WCb/s320/DSC_0001.JPG" title="Concrete spheres at Roche Fleurie Garden" width="320" /></a></div>
They can also be used in various fashions as a finials.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-Gx5oWApIXpRa0dG1H8Jatuf2T2HkDVC3DKTl0ivpT6Aw0s-nrmN2DbHOQ5Yg2Dr6h0PvjfZLZqrZZCYcvFqsSa8WXG9Tf3fOixyvnpd441CNBOkAqB-ith8d9yxDmFUxPeU89dcBXWS/s1600/CollageB_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-Gx5oWApIXpRa0dG1H8Jatuf2T2HkDVC3DKTl0ivpT6Aw0s-nrmN2DbHOQ5Yg2Dr6h0PvjfZLZqrZZCYcvFqsSa8WXG9Tf3fOixyvnpd441CNBOkAqB-ith8d9yxDmFUxPeU89dcBXWS/s320/CollageB_Fotor.jpg" title="Concrete spheres at Roche Fleurie Garden" width="320" /></a></div>
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Finally, you can see them as a connection to the past, a link between contemporary gardens and gardens from previous centuries.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-77732177321483932762018-02-17T11:06:00.000-05:002018-02-17T11:06:14.210-05:00"Cherry Garden" - Portrait of an Iris<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Iris pumila "Cherry garden" is a dwarf bearded iris.<br />
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I thought I would write a plant portrait of "Cherry Garden" because what I find in various references simply does not do it justice.<br />
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These references all neglect to mention what is most characteristic of it.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCTWnKov6srGp4F1HMXvjRRCrXnRlGwwDiqfa495aTugia1aIKMmTU_fdyXCzdsMrEbv47R4_ua14c7hQRA4KgBAHxA4ajKgJIzceTglsmdwpLQq46hUTzkI4xuBHgWO-dqf2z55zAv-u/s1600/Iris+015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCTWnKov6srGp4F1HMXvjRRCrXnRlGwwDiqfa495aTugia1aIKMmTU_fdyXCzdsMrEbv47R4_ua14c7hQRA4KgBAHxA4ajKgJIzceTglsmdwpLQq46hUTzkI4xuBHgWO-dqf2z55zAv-u/s640/Iris+015.JPG" title=""Cherry Garden" a dwarf pumila iris" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Cherry Garden" a dwarf iris</td></tr>
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I have had "Cherry Garden" iris for quite a few years, but having got it in a plant exchange, I did not know its name.<br />
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In 2016, I mentioned this purple iris in a post and two readers, Linda B. and Angie, identified it as "Cherry Garden".<br />
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It is one of the major advantages of having a gardening blog that you learn a lot from other gardeners.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVjRpYTsSY7Tv2kSJgSvjJABBK5pDGIJMxZ3dXgNK-hWbt9rTPvORX-ZDoUK6E4t7vLmtXNsb7pgtxfnbFL_7LZ7GtOzLDpJc51DCSYscO6wo37gx9QGJTEboQMJJY-hLsUKN15BkDh108/s1600/DSC_0064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVjRpYTsSY7Tv2kSJgSvjJABBK5pDGIJMxZ3dXgNK-hWbt9rTPvORX-ZDoUK6E4t7vLmtXNsb7pgtxfnbFL_7LZ7GtOzLDpJc51DCSYscO6wo37gx9QGJTEboQMJJY-hLsUKN15BkDh108/s320/DSC_0064.JPG" title=""Cherry Garden" a dwarf pumila iris" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up of "Cherry Garden"</td></tr>
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It is not a modern variety. It was introduced in 1966.<br />
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It is not that dwarf either at 30 to 45 cm.<br />
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As for <b>hardiness</b>, depending on which reference you use, it runs the gamut from zone 3 to zone 7. My own experience is that zone 3 is not far from the truth.<br />
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It is described as a mid-season bloomer. At Roche Fleurie all dwarf irises bloom at roughly the same time at the end of May.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzn9wR1khOdOsm7nSYooIXYGtbulKRCpEIfx5TYahPK-TkDZrto5ibN8FCL5xy24s_V3rhDKfCFK0WrvoaLFHw5nSJ1NOSm73veNyvUN8OUY83u01M8iLOOzA9k5D0GHXPNM9jz636h0Q3/s1600/DSC_0022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Iris pumila" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzn9wR1khOdOsm7nSYooIXYGtbulKRCpEIfx5TYahPK-TkDZrto5ibN8FCL5xy24s_V3rhDKfCFK0WrvoaLFHw5nSJ1NOSm73veNyvUN8OUY83u01M8iLOOzA9k5D0GHXPNM9jz636h0Q3/s320/DSC_0022.JPG" title=""Cherry Garden" iris" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Cherry Garden" is actually purple, not as red as it seems in this picture. As for the shorter white iris with a blue beard in front, it is another of my "no name" irises - if you do know its name, please let me know</td></tr>
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So what is <b>most characteristic</b> about it?<br />
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At Roche Fleurie, "Cherry Garden" is much more prolific than any other irises .<br />
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If you plant two tubers, you are likely to have six the next year. This might be a blessing or a curse, depending on whether you need a lot of irises or whether you want the clump to stay the same size - although removing extra tubers is not a serious problem and it needs to be done only once a year.<br />
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Some northern European gardeners say it is not particularly prolific in
their gardens, but I believe this is due to their climate.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCpx2MkbcMHmYusPd6nWd4fkjNt4OuSy0ylwpKot-CET53hwI-I6g0TLGTWE3kfD0ETAQLkdR-mGM2Sd6nvcIUmAr4wZOpJDk_JbhWm67nTpzsFxnRNJfaOA7HpswYWvoaUPh5NobI4qnV/s1600/Iris+purple.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1504" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCpx2MkbcMHmYusPd6nWd4fkjNt4OuSy0ylwpKot-CET53hwI-I6g0TLGTWE3kfD0ETAQLkdR-mGM2Sd6nvcIUmAr4wZOpJDk_JbhWm67nTpzsFxnRNJfaOA7HpswYWvoaUPh5NobI4qnV/s400/Iris+purple.JPG" title="Cherry Garden iris" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
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Not only is it prolific, but it is also a generous bloomer.<br />
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Among the various irises in the garden, several varieties, especially old-fashioned ones, resent being transplanted and might take up to four years to bloom after being divided.<br />
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"Cherry Garden" blooms profusely the very next year after you divided it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIq4PUtlCbbivKCxzuJdlmbKDQykFB2A0XJv8Vc9alCwe6ED4pmWernb-dpOdq1Skk4xBol1JqTT6aS5pllH8oel3PNAIzlE0HuFIM8x_ZaAWHCWFucFuq8SG7pt5X2AYVAo-uV-JPCVLZ/s1600/DSC_0018+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Iris pumila "Cherry Garden"" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIq4PUtlCbbivKCxzuJdlmbKDQykFB2A0XJv8Vc9alCwe6ED4pmWernb-dpOdq1Skk4xBol1JqTT6aS5pllH8oel3PNAIzlE0HuFIM8x_ZaAWHCWFucFuq8SG7pt5X2AYVAo-uV-JPCVLZ/s640/DSC_0018+%25282%2529.JPG" title="Dwarf iris "Cherry Garden"" width="640" /></a></div>
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-18518077443964764152018-02-03T15:24:00.000-05:002018-02-03T15:24:37.042-05:00 Smooth Green Snake<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The previous post on slugs brought back to mind the smooth green snake, because slugs are part of its diet!<br />
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I have mentioned that snake before, but not in detail. I wish I could convince this beautiful small snake to settle in the garden, but that leads me to a conundrum - perhaps it would if I had more slugs!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDv8k3JdAeZR1K3IJiItmiKOeaDW3t4lAhcFl_q-0eYuXz95ZqmIpr3wh3tEjuuIZpdN-zxvOCXXKf8h9D-yeMLvU7Dj2d8LKBJz3RIIUl32Ha11m8dWewnxr7R_TBfsj7DAPieTXSX_nz/s1600/MLU_6213_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Smooth Green Snake at Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDv8k3JdAeZR1K3IJiItmiKOeaDW3t4lAhcFl_q-0eYuXz95ZqmIpr3wh3tEjuuIZpdN-zxvOCXXKf8h9D-yeMLvU7Dj2d8LKBJz3RIIUl32Ha11m8dWewnxr7R_TBfsj7DAPieTXSX_nz/s400/MLU_6213_Fotor.jpg" title="Opheodrys vernalis" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smooth Green Snake</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>They are not rare, but I only see one every three or four years.<br />
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They keep to grassy area and, as you can imagine from the picture, with green on green they are very hard to spot. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnQlDc18M_n8XOils6YEyhB62UCIdZjp7TLBXy8SqBMD1aG0l8Qz0zEVndB7AcCnzfn4-gC7nBJku9bgqQa_wY0bvNiL2cMzB___LvfGr25QMr5qVkvdskbgHPHoDO_aKZO8VmBRXxV8Zj/s1600/MLU_6218_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="758" data-original-width="1600" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnQlDc18M_n8XOils6YEyhB62UCIdZjp7TLBXy8SqBMD1aG0l8Qz0zEVndB7AcCnzfn4-gC7nBJku9bgqQa_wY0bvNiL2cMzB___LvfGr25QMr5qVkvdskbgHPHoDO_aKZO8VmBRXxV8Zj/s320/MLU_6218_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It would appear that they will stay perfectly still, to blend in the vegetation. This can be a drawback for them.<br />
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The picture above was taken after I had released this green snake last summer. For several minutes, it stayed where I put it, not moving a scale, convinced it was invisible.<br />
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In the grass, being perfectly still is an excellent idea for a green snake. On bare earth, it might be a liability. I expect they are rarely out of the grass as around here there is freshly turned earth only in the garden.<br />
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In my experience, they are not in the least aggressive and usually allow humans to come close, never trying to bite you.<br />
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I have read that they will become defensive if handled a lot. They are non venomous and are described as docile.<br />
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Apparently, like our garter snake, they can smear attackers with a nasty-smelling fluid. I have never experienced this.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEginzijeEs8CXdKA1JUKAYbAvh4ir7sF8KahvzTZfTyTAU_T7B1GXMSfaKCHVzL1mLrQ1x8UvfKsSrkKEgdRm9O_g1L0VJq2XhRRIaV76JMKoDMij4b6oJ78ad2k7qFzAsQ_tNpi52vsqHC/s1600/MLU_6209_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEginzijeEs8CXdKA1JUKAYbAvh4ir7sF8KahvzTZfTyTAU_T7B1GXMSfaKCHVzL1mLrQ1x8UvfKsSrkKEgdRm9O_g1L0VJq2XhRRIaV76JMKoDMij4b6oJ78ad2k7qFzAsQ_tNpi52vsqHC/s640/MLU_6209_Fotor.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The smooth green snake (Opheodrys vernalis) is hunted by the red-tailed hawk, great blue heron, rough-legged buzzard, bears, raccoons and foxes. In our area it would also be eaten by Sandhill cranes.<br />
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One of the main reasons they are not rare in our area is that there is no industry or agro-business and consequently no use of pesticides.<br />
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Beside slugs, its diet consists mainly of insects and spiders, including spineless caterpillars, daddy-long-legs, moths, ants, snails and worms. </div>
rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-85496477639901078672018-01-23T14:09:00.000-05:002018-01-23T14:09:12.511-05:00A "maximus" we could do without<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Slugs!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIwr-7HmLWCvhs0D3TyFQCvYoc4rfNWCHLPerpmVYG40LX5yWW9I1ZW_mGkjCI2fdoZCSg3q6a6Py0Nso-tFtU1b4806wz5iw1rdlA2YaJw-YYbg4Id3sAiai3nZRWknrtmz6BaCeGQMgz/s1600/MLU_7148_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="European giant garden slug" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1313" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIwr-7HmLWCvhs0D3TyFQCvYoc4rfNWCHLPerpmVYG40LX5yWW9I1ZW_mGkjCI2fdoZCSg3q6a6Py0Nso-tFtU1b4806wz5iw1rdlA2YaJw-YYbg4Id3sAiai3nZRWknrtmz6BaCeGQMgz/s320/MLU_7148_Fotor.jpg" title="Limax maximus" width="262" /></a></div>
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Through my gardening years, I have had to deal with only two kinds of slugs, both a few centimeters long (I call them the whites and the greys, not having the required competence to identify these slugs by their proper scientific names).<br />
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The first, the little whites, vary from beige to brown and have very thin skin (they can easily be dispatch with a trowel). The other kind (the little greys) are always the same colour - dark grey on top with a snow-white belly. These have a very thick skin the texture of a piece of leather.<br />
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However what this post is about is a third kind of slugs for which I did find the Latin name: Limax maximus. Here is another photo of it in all its splendor.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJhM-Ru_0s4mkvSr83V9O9YQ5LB39FK19eGc8fr9Q-b3cO6Xg6lYQHLB8h5RtWRH5U4gwyCRCbk_5JH7nIQyzSD7WK88TC0fBjovTBfwVw0kJ51XycMcqfqk7K8_R8tq9Jz0YjwQ_MtFT/s1600/MLU_7184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="European giant garden slug" border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJhM-Ru_0s4mkvSr83V9O9YQ5LB39FK19eGc8fr9Q-b3cO6Xg6lYQHLB8h5RtWRH5U4gwyCRCbk_5JH7nIQyzSD7WK88TC0fBjovTBfwVw0kJ51XycMcqfqk7K8_R8tq9Jz0YjwQ_MtFT/s320/MLU_7184.JPG" title="Limax maximus" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">European giant garden slug</td></tr>
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Commonly known as the European giant garden slug, or the spotted garden slug , it appeared in the garden for the first time last summer. No doubt it hitched a ride in a potted plant. In fact it has probably been in the garden for a while as I did find <b>six</b> of them over the summer.<br />
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I was shock to read in the Wikipedia article about <i>Limax maximus</i> that "The adult slug measures 10-20 cm (4-8 in) in length". This means that what for me were humungous slugs were actually babies! How much of a hosta does an 20 cm slug eats in a night?<br />
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Reading that "This species has a very unusual and distinctive mating method, where the pair of slugs use a thick thread of mucus to hang suspended in the air from a tree branch or other structure." I realize I will now have to look up as well as look down for slugs!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizITuUelFUhDd3Wc2O3VELDt_O6sZ1nyOlZ9qnRI0OnwPIf6dYK57yZc9d7WioOEUYNGaY-zKfrwBGH2IubeHcPSYVpACwnvMT34DE1wz-tIexL1iRncPlon3pfW1d8zjWKgpnaWQT6nJY/s1600/MLU_7186_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="European giant garden slug" border="0" data-original-height="977" data-original-width="1600" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizITuUelFUhDd3Wc2O3VELDt_O6sZ1nyOlZ9qnRI0OnwPIf6dYK57yZc9d7WioOEUYNGaY-zKfrwBGH2IubeHcPSYVpACwnvMT34DE1wz-tIexL1iRncPlon3pfW1d8zjWKgpnaWQT6nJY/s320/MLU_7186_Fotor.jpg" title="Limax maximus" width="320" /></a></div>
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Wikipedia adds "Although native to Europe, this species has been accidentally introduced to many other parts of the world."<br />
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I wonder if other North American gardeners have seen it and if the European gardeners have special ways of dealing with <i>Limax maximus</i>?</div>
rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-29261073268568436942018-01-16T09:54:00.000-05:002018-01-16T09:54:58.432-05:00Cold and Snow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The news are full of comments about how bad the weather has been in the northern hemisphere, particularly in the American Mid West and in Eastern Canada, and we wonder how the snow and very cold temperatures will affect ours gardens. Although the intense cold is not welcome, a great amount of snow is good for perennial plants, if not for humans.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiMCs6z98HknMPiPMVR8hvhx0lPF8hcWVU1hyphenhyphenmoJIBeiSwNqqmRCQ_CMBrAvjXDS6G0_vyrsEfOP2z2VtHHd1G3Ad77L9TjS-doa6z0SDiXhn0xFlMIyrGSfVOf5ZQcVZw9xAKx_foKAqg/s1600/Collage1_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiMCs6z98HknMPiPMVR8hvhx0lPF8hcWVU1hyphenhyphenmoJIBeiSwNqqmRCQ_CMBrAvjXDS6G0_vyrsEfOP2z2VtHHd1G3Ad77L9TjS-doa6z0SDiXhn0xFlMIyrGSfVOf5ZQcVZw9xAKx_foKAqg/s320/Collage1_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A very snowy winter</td></tr>
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Of course in milder places, like the southern United States where winters are normally very mild, the cold that was experienced earlier this year will kill a lot of tender plants.<br />
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However in our northern climates (USDA Zone 5 and less), for perennials a good winter is one with lots of snow that covers the ground all winter. While a bad winter is one with patchy snow on ground that goes through cycles of freeze and thaw.<br />
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A case in point is the winter of 2016-2017. This was one of the mildest winters we have known in this part of the world, with several thaws in the coldest months of the year, something we are not used to and something we paid for dearly later on.<br />
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Many tender plants that normally spend a cozy winter under a blanket of snow started to grow in the mild spells and were killed when cold seasonal weather returned. Here are a few examples of <b>plants that did not survive the 2016/17 winter because of the irregular snow cover that winter. </b><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn8HBb5gHkOsDUke8eNP2IjXCGuYtK-5vph6iLPUG9_xKR_eFhgqvD5TmhP4wsvOxvpQMTp9hFDhFhXzwN8Q2hdxMQniC2fT0_n7V5WlgO_PNfM3TozyquQxPzSTdyn2Y9HhWS5rskp0tX/s1600/Anacyclus+pyrethrum+%25284%2529_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Mount Atlas Daisy at Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn8HBb5gHkOsDUke8eNP2IjXCGuYtK-5vph6iLPUG9_xKR_eFhgqvD5TmhP4wsvOxvpQMTp9hFDhFhXzwN8Q2hdxMQniC2fT0_n7V5WlgO_PNfM3TozyquQxPzSTdyn2Y9HhWS5rskp0tX/s320/Anacyclus+pyrethrum+%25284%2529_Fotor.jpg" title="Anacyclus pyrethrum" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mount Atlas Daisy (Anacyclus pyrethrum) </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjO5guMeUWTUI0JuzVpbzwvPf3ka7MXNJa90HWGi8nNL-X8hzZ_oMcqe0jcmsRgXFX6I8ep43NC3c4Zmnv-AM5W-1cx-0zTeZNnlYfjy08Les8cw3oEdTqbenxI-hhbJmhyphenhyphen6CTBUstaKpN/s1600/Erinus+alpinus_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="823" data-original-width="1237" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjO5guMeUWTUI0JuzVpbzwvPf3ka7MXNJa90HWGi8nNL-X8hzZ_oMcqe0jcmsRgXFX6I8ep43NC3c4Zmnv-AM5W-1cx-0zTeZNnlYfjy08Les8cw3oEdTqbenxI-hhbJmhyphenhyphen6CTBUstaKpN/s320/Erinus+alpinus_Fotor.jpg" title="Erinus alpinus" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Although a zone 4 plant, Erinus alpinus still did not make it</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy-FHN7EXHx1GbhOMOhHGfclpQtsGvbf1DJ2O02oLhyz7eQsDQ5KbAscGR1BMk7MJc89J7yNJhoR9WcSjSdM53oCFubt8BQANyyeFRF6yA7EZGYHWN_ewW0VfCqt8DjHclzG4Q0Jy6xam1/s1600/Arenaria014_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sandwort at Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy-FHN7EXHx1GbhOMOhHGfclpQtsGvbf1DJ2O02oLhyz7eQsDQ5KbAscGR1BMk7MJc89J7yNJhoR9WcSjSdM53oCFubt8BQANyyeFRF6yA7EZGYHWN_ewW0VfCqt8DjHclzG4Q0Jy6xam1/s320/Arenaria014_Fotor.jpg" title="Arenaria montana" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sandwort (Arenaria montana)</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeHNLVTlu0dZtytKxVXQsX0BqJUIBvBQ1CWGUWt3vITs8UYWWFxAVWQehPsuzHwojR24mi8EPsU45qMXGNjx4p8oF3q80ljQESC6cw1VGukVKHTYc5NUKM6KegsAteMff9xpua0vORmEkG/s1600/DSC_0025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ground cover at Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeHNLVTlu0dZtytKxVXQsX0BqJUIBvBQ1CWGUWt3vITs8UYWWFxAVWQehPsuzHwojR24mi8EPsU45qMXGNjx4p8oF3q80ljQESC6cw1VGukVKHTYc5NUKM6KegsAteMff9xpua0vORmEkG/s320/DSC_0025.JPG" title="Isotoma fluviatilis" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Isotoma fluviatilis</td></tr>
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Other plants did survived but barely. Some, especially bulbs, were in large part decimated.<br />
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The clump of Crocosmia "Lucifer" pictured below in 2016 was very lush and had been increasing for many years. In the summer of 2017, only a few sprays were left. My two other cultivars of Crocosmia, less hardy than"Lucifer", completely vanished.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoewG68kywzYZDd168njruiHaSeKtxcH1TIRJwBh3GamYsFGJGYU7ykfGJJJEN2P6D1mMUw3euX75HOq6DTSYK3pPrDbTT0OOkS5ZGHeK2l5RzwShe-Owh1CiKuhB_-XO0LG3gD8I47K1v/s1600/crocos_0003_Fotor_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="932" data-original-width="1139" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoewG68kywzYZDd168njruiHaSeKtxcH1TIRJwBh3GamYsFGJGYU7ykfGJJJEN2P6D1mMUw3euX75HOq6DTSYK3pPrDbTT0OOkS5ZGHeK2l5RzwShe-Owh1CiKuhB_-XO0LG3gD8I47K1v/s400/crocos_0003_Fotor_Fotor.jpg" title="Border with Crocosmia "Lucifer" " width="400" /></a></div>
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The same thing happened to all of these:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWXvmg4kd_xUltH5oFSLLgJriU8hbrjRfV-24xBufSj7cejTNCm4ZsLJRo8wk1p_TA4OyRCiluFCTW_rsu39v2N28RHkV09EpPzYihr_vn6lYsIZRbU__Zcxlc30xKdt0TpVcdRdKlOJaQ/s1600/A+blanda_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWXvmg4kd_xUltH5oFSLLgJriU8hbrjRfV-24xBufSj7cejTNCm4ZsLJRo8wk1p_TA4OyRCiluFCTW_rsu39v2N28RHkV09EpPzYihr_vn6lYsIZRbU__Zcxlc30xKdt0TpVcdRdKlOJaQ/s320/A+blanda_Fotor.jpg" title="Anemone Blanda" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anemone blanda</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzTGE3ToQf4jGo_yvQ6OpU2kzWw61ZdCioFKV2ND7we-roHUWdGlsA1-keZcrF6AuwnZhQYuBWevCpWkbAiSBOHfvHQde2afLKq87aBkYFRvEfkL4vHBFeTbzGsrOa7srg37DmFPuGuzKX/s1600/Raoulia_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzTGE3ToQf4jGo_yvQ6OpU2kzWw61ZdCioFKV2ND7we-roHUWdGlsA1-keZcrF6AuwnZhQYuBWevCpWkbAiSBOHfvHQde2afLKq87aBkYFRvEfkL4vHBFeTbzGsrOa7srg37DmFPuGuzKX/s320/Raoulia_Fotor.jpg" title="Raoulia australis at Roche Fleurie Garden" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raoulia australis had taken about 10 years to get that size (20 x 20 cm). Not much of it was left in 2017</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZSOu5Op7mvKhyphenhyphen_nDdZSgMdwqHc_Fx_WLzSBaym9kg1o4jasaADznDOzWoyHtft6fCq11UW4qcE2gtI6bbkJQMsdqCPcnUFFWEcdWG30m0d3kGugbXUgoJ69QkE7DEoPrZQCX7d-25gCuv/s1600/Mazus_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Majus reptans at Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1504" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZSOu5Op7mvKhyphenhyphen_nDdZSgMdwqHc_Fx_WLzSBaym9kg1o4jasaADznDOzWoyHtft6fCq11UW4qcE2gtI6bbkJQMsdqCPcnUFFWEcdWG30m0d3kGugbXUgoJ69QkE7DEoPrZQCX7d-25gCuv/s320/Mazus_Fotor.jpg" title="Majus reptans" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Majus reptans is more vigorous (invasive for some of you) - fortunately a small patch of it was left</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbYZAwFSEWsFeK14oNHfu43mid-gUuE9MNpOll7_Oc2Z4G7bN1mMLWIIYeGN_Kw765GAFrMAyev4-IQUV6-8R75QKnvJ-Tur9Le4s6Y1bf2ZmvNnr0Z_Mc5HDuy3b0GWZihalDXj9DYA7u/s1600/DSC_0013+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Cyclamen Coum at Roche Fleurie Garden" border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbYZAwFSEWsFeK14oNHfu43mid-gUuE9MNpOll7_Oc2Z4G7bN1mMLWIIYeGN_Kw765GAFrMAyev4-IQUV6-8R75QKnvJ-Tur9Le4s6Y1bf2ZmvNnr0Z_Mc5HDuy3b0GWZihalDXj9DYA7u/s320/DSC_0013+%25282%2529.JPG" title="Cyclamen Coum" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cyclamen coum - a plant I will not attempt to grow again, as I had to remember to shovel off the snow<br />
covering it each spring as here it bloomed under the snow!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The list of plants that barely survived the previous winter due to poor snow cover goes on.<br />
I could add, for instance, Agapanthus or Trifolium repens 'Atropurpureum'.<br />
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Many of the plants listed above are rock-garden plants. Although on the whole, these are very cold-hardy, a warm spell in winter will often do them in.<br />
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With a good snow cover, I can grow in my zone 5A garden, a better selection of plants than I could in my previous zone 6B garden, provided we can avoid winter thaws. <br />
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We had a fair bit of rain last week. Fortunately the snow accumulation was so thick that plants are still well-insulated. We can only hope it will stay that way till late March.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-35876522431122066812017-07-15T20:54:00.000-04:002017-07-15T20:54:07.924-04:00Rainy Summer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I mentioned in a previous post that the summer had started rainy. Well, it still is rainy. A few drops are falling as I am writing this, and the day before yesterday a downpour lasted several hours.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKFjy4Tm7_mk7rCLb91a2snZjrenpZfHUA6nkc1xiLr3vSF-PB_ik25TdrJTKNLeLSaV930KUzoVG0StkaEhdjTTRtH_AgjGFpyR_3ifL7PpXIkGIChLi-WcQ3e8INrnKwk_jLG2vhnUzl/s1600/MLU_6777.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKFjy4Tm7_mk7rCLb91a2snZjrenpZfHUA6nkc1xiLr3vSF-PB_ik25TdrJTKNLeLSaV930KUzoVG0StkaEhdjTTRtH_AgjGFpyR_3ifL7PpXIkGIChLi-WcQ3e8INrnKwk_jLG2vhnUzl/s400/MLU_6777.JPG" title="Lilium michigansis" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Lilium michiganense</i> - native to our area though rare in the wild and now included in Lilium canadense</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>I am not actually complaining, though it sounds like I am. A rainy summer means no need to water, and consequently a free hour or two every night that do not have to be given over to watering.<br />
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As I mentioned in that previous post, plants that have never grown or had not been seen for a few years have made an appearance with all this extra water.<br />
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The rill, which is usually about 50 cm below ground level, looked like this after the downpour two days ago.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzysYzbGuD_FJFvPT5gY5P8bpOzTqqFJZZe29Er0A5UJydFr5aEBCXxXk400l4pOt-C-7CzJx75jx4Wxq_i-eKqYbgtqHhjeI28Z8LYcSfTtqmSCHEAvTK6Hw-8DYZRt30WPIcrJ-819ZZ/s1600/MLU_6766.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzysYzbGuD_FJFvPT5gY5P8bpOzTqqFJZZe29Er0A5UJydFr5aEBCXxXk400l4pOt-C-7CzJx75jx4Wxq_i-eKqYbgtqHhjeI28Z8LYcSfTtqmSCHEAvTK6Hw-8DYZRt30WPIcrJ-819ZZ/s640/MLU_6766.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The overflowing rill</td></tr>
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Fortunately, when we do get sunny days, they tend to be hot and rather dry which helps. Many plants are enjoying this weather. All lettuces seem quite happy.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMMiYRhpKiokJ4jpeVYRB-hskIJxJR9eAKY0NORaCBiDY2PCi3yXV1SoJ5ZcsjRCAkQbl0Kk355RgSldzGVFA_7Gus-VWI_dqRK64iw3gS5n7ltpzLcUK2yk8ztg2-0ZCsHn6kCcyk52y/s1600/MLU_6818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMMiYRhpKiokJ4jpeVYRB-hskIJxJR9eAKY0NORaCBiDY2PCi3yXV1SoJ5ZcsjRCAkQbl0Kk355RgSldzGVFA_7Gus-VWI_dqRK64iw3gS5n7ltpzLcUK2yk8ztg2-0ZCsHn6kCcyk52y/s320/MLU_6818.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parris Island lettuce (a variety from the 1940's)</td></tr>
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On the whole, things are much more lush than they usually are.<br />
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A few things would prefer it dryer. This is the case with tomato plants, the foliage of some of which has started to turn yellow at the base. So far, the tomatoes themselves do not seem affected.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-50325997555484248182017-06-30T14:00:00.000-04:002017-06-30T14:00:46.515-04:00Raised Beds<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We have always had raised beds in the southern half of the garden, but not in the other half.<br />
The soil is very thin here in the Bruce, and so anything that can increase its volume is most welcome.<br />
These first raised beds were made when the garden was first created, around 2007, and are very permanent, made of stones and concrete. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglODv5BpPxhePJrZYs3B-5eQw0gOdO2RLxnij8-kxkJGQ0ooYfJ2Ilot8_kZjpnxeQbOa2Jpv9UIe0IAmYNzV47PaIgGqaWmtLPaZefqPfYSj5Euhul_m-Ji1IGLQz64SmZr8CLTZtenj7/s1600/MLU_6524.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1060" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglODv5BpPxhePJrZYs3B-5eQw0gOdO2RLxnij8-kxkJGQ0ooYfJ2Ilot8_kZjpnxeQbOa2Jpv9UIe0IAmYNzV47PaIgGqaWmtLPaZefqPfYSj5Euhul_m-Ji1IGLQz64SmZr8CLTZtenj7/s400/MLU_6524.JPG" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The existing raised beds made of stones and concrete</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>The new raised beds are simply made of boards, not of pressure treated wood but rather of cedar (Thuya). This is a wood very resistant to rot, and it happens to be the most common lumber around here. It is also milled locally.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGgYFaPs0BfIKXgG7E-_hSgby0KH0JD95bfxUxzkTwn6WvKnP4QcAjRGfz_1FCX7SyhlcxEPXiRkxyjwHeGl7k6akYA-xaT3a2vrZDP5WNFTn0NHba0cgcuzOIt1QCi8NnAL-wkA8ta2K/s1600/MLU_6494.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGgYFaPs0BfIKXgG7E-_hSgby0KH0JD95bfxUxzkTwn6WvKnP4QcAjRGfz_1FCX7SyhlcxEPXiRkxyjwHeGl7k6akYA-xaT3a2vrZDP5WNFTn0NHba0cgcuzOIt1QCi8NnAL-wkA8ta2K/s640/MLU_6494.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The new raised beds</td></tr>
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Some of the beds, like the ones on the right with poles for beans, will have to wait until the autumn to get their frames, since they were already planted by the time we were ready to "encase" them.<br />
In hindsight, we might not have bothered with pole beans this year, because so far our summer has been cool and very rainy. Beans that did manage to sprout (after several seedings), have just been sitting there, waiting for warmer weather.<br />
<br />The plastic cloches below are to give a boost to the peppers and eggplants. The weather this year is far from ideal for growing eggplants since they want a lot of heat, but the cloches seem to keep them hot enough as they are growing very well. On the other hand, the weather is perfect for lettuce in the bed on the right.<br />
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As you can see, we like growing perennial and especially annual flowers together with vegetables. The raised beds make it simpler by creating a definite demarcation line between the one and the other. They also make the vegetable garden neater.<br />
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The garden is very lush with all the rain (there has been a shower just about everyday and a couple of downpours every week). With global warming, forecasters have been talking about rainier summers for our area. This seems to be indeed the case as the last few summers have been wet. In the 90s, we had severe drought just about every summer.<br />
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As all gardeners know, weeds seem to benefit from this wet weather even more than garden plants. At least the cool weather has lengthened blooming periods, and we still have some herbaceous peonies (even if these are the side shoots).<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com7Bruce Peninsula, Northern Bruce Peninsula, ON N0H, Canada45 -81.33333329999999319.4779655 -122.64192729999999 70.5220345 -40.024739299999993tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-21903059826521669652017-06-15T12:44:00.000-04:002017-06-15T12:44:19.489-04:00A Summer of Revenants<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The last four or five weeks have been rather wet in our part of the world, and hot days have not been numerous (hot days for us are above 25 C).<br />
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Even if humans do not enjoy that kind of weather, most plants do. In fact, a good number of plants I thought dead, some for many years, have made a comeback.<br />
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I expect the extra water is the reason for these "resurrections". The most spectacular is Camassia.<br />
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I bought Camassia bulbs more than ten years ago. I planted them in a damp area of the field and waited for them to grow. Nothing happened. I thought they might have rotten or somehow died over the winter as I never saw a Camassia.<br />
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In fact, they never bloomed through all these years, but I expect they produced some leaves which I did not notice as they were scattered among other plants in the field. <br />
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This year, three of them bloomed. Once I was able to see what their leaves looked like, I identified a dozen plants or so.<br />
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I don't know if they will bloom only in wet years or, now that they are presumably better established, they will bloom every year in the future. Unfortunately, they seem to flower for a very short period (less than a week).<br />
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Ben at <a href="https://diningoutwithhistory.com/2017/04/24/fiddlehead-nursery-edible-landscaping/" target="_blank">Fiddlehead</a> (a wonderful nursery, which specializes in perennial edible plants), tells me that you can wrap Camassia bulbs in foil, like you would a potato you wanted to bake, throw them in a wood stove and, after three days (!), they are cooked and ready to eat.<br />
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Crambe cordifolia also made a come back. However that was not as surprising since in this garden this plant seems to be on a two year cycle, coming back up only every second year.<br />
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There was no sign of it last year, but it is now timidly back (though I doubt it will bloom).<br />
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Some plants, that came back regularly over the last few years but did not bloom, have finally shown some flowers this year.<br />
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This is the case of a crab apple whose variety name I lost. It also has been in place for over ten years. It has never shown any flowers in previous years, but it has bloomed generously this year.<br />
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The iris below also bloomed for the first time. It was planted in 2012. Acquired at a plant exchange, I do not have any variety name. I am glad to see that it is probably an older cultivar as the petals are not too frilly, and the plant stands up very well without any support.<br />
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This Rogersia, emerging out of the woodruff, was thought to have given up the ghost in 2015. Obviously, the extra rain encouraged it to make a last try.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTMRpnYPFlF_14bt7df9GYdg4bDncCh1kzGXaeOiaRVn6dTcvmVawtqCqbrhbCbFCjg7FbGSS4WazbB3PtJVWefb-tqVwvT8Az3hLafOkr-B8Gmry1YhEb0fnfB8iHQO3aQYtxAZijfh9R/s1600/MLU_6317.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTMRpnYPFlF_14bt7df9GYdg4bDncCh1kzGXaeOiaRVn6dTcvmVawtqCqbrhbCbFCjg7FbGSS4WazbB3PtJVWefb-tqVwvT8Az3hLafOkr-B8Gmry1YhEb0fnfB8iHQO3aQYtxAZijfh9R/s320/MLU_6317.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Finally, a "Kinshi" tree peony bought last year was not expected to bloom right away. However it produced one sensational flower.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-22622845864578038782017-05-13T12:51:00.001-04:002017-05-13T12:51:19.071-04:00Bulb Query<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I have some questions about two spring bulbs that some of you might be able to help me with.<br />
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The first one has to do the small daffodil, Narcissus bulbocodium, often called hoop petticoat daffodil.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjICas1dBg6jgHVXBgNUs1tPFW1CUmLwbT-Kl8wZOPFx5lKnbAEEON416Z3ODe4Qbv-sesz3Kw00h96w35T1nWtoxZ9XXWgMDPzNSAo8v4ooOBKcyhhJAkaxe_mJwDqqlg90P4pw1C3j5qi/s1600/MLU_6120_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjICas1dBg6jgHVXBgNUs1tPFW1CUmLwbT-Kl8wZOPFx5lKnbAEEON416Z3ODe4Qbv-sesz3Kw00h96w35T1nWtoxZ9XXWgMDPzNSAo8v4ooOBKcyhhJAkaxe_mJwDqqlg90P4pw1C3j5qi/s320/MLU_6120_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Narcissus bulbocodium</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>I attempted several times to grow this bulb in our old garden where the soil was rich and deep, but I never succeeded. The bulb invariably died in the first winter.<br />
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When we bought the property here, I put some bulbocodium bulbs in a field where the soil is at the very most 6 inches deep. It gets flooded in winter and spring as well as getting baked in July and August.<br />
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They have survived over many years, but they have not flowered much. Five or six blooms a year is all they produce. Yet there is always a fair bit of foliage. This spring I decided to dig up a clump with no blooms.<br />
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To my surprise, there were literally dozens and dozens of bulbs.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglcofmY0u4LASbL6Eu797zwVXnI-7QU9_0dUvG_5StrHZZXniun8WFrIZdbEikZwvLQhE33rG-FZMA5dmY-IPQmIrMZMObRvSp-Ije6Q52-GXyzfSJwuc9uLMzKZrnxfNpqvWxc8waDFnL/s1600/MLU_6116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglcofmY0u4LASbL6Eu797zwVXnI-7QU9_0dUvG_5StrHZZXniun8WFrIZdbEikZwvLQhE33rG-FZMA5dmY-IPQmIrMZMObRvSp-Ije6Q52-GXyzfSJwuc9uLMzKZrnxfNpqvWxc8waDFnL/s320/MLU_6116.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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They have done very well as far as reproducing (there are 25 times more bulbs than I ever planted). I only dug up one clump, and there are many clumps.<br />
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You might think they are too crowded, but why didn't they bloom more in the first few years when crowding was not a problem?<br />
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Any suggestions to have them bloom?<br />
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My other Spring bulb question has to do with <span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle"><i>Puschkinia</i> <i>scilloides</i> var. <i>libanotica. </i></span><br />
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<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">In the old garden, there was a clump of Puschkinia. It produced beautiful, lush flowers. </span><br />
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<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">When we moved here, I took it along, and it is still doing beautifully.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0d3YA9eFLbaeslAJ1xT2hXmkJLlnhttPaTXx_hlyXIW4T9FV72Y03y3EqITNZ-mzhMDtZuxG7A_ys9cSzQ0Y-n3bQnj6CJoCv-JDJrsNvvIQ2SzbRg1rDJo7PHPJ16JnLEkUU0hjW7K-n/s1600/IMG_0815_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0d3YA9eFLbaeslAJ1xT2hXmkJLlnhttPaTXx_hlyXIW4T9FV72Y03y3EqITNZ-mzhMDtZuxG7A_ys9cSzQ0Y-n3bQnj6CJoCv-JDJrsNvvIQ2SzbRg1rDJo7PHPJ16JnLEkUU0hjW7K-n/s320/IMG_0815_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The "old" <span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle"></span><span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">Puschkinia</span></td></tr>
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<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">However, every time since that I have tried to buy </span><span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">Puschkinia, both at the old garden and at the new, I have ended up with these puny little flowers which are never as nice as the old ones (they are about half the size of the old ones and much less numerous).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1JTo18Qitow2KFMkNWpkkYNgcd5TtMg8uxIMUExEZWo_5i1Pai23itemBYZsIvIlL1WWTzy09MgeNh71rQq41du6GDSdge9hlem6mBf0SKa0l3P9G1Imwiwfv0A1gKRXp3FyJwfwh68F4/s1600/MLU_6155.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1JTo18Qitow2KFMkNWpkkYNgcd5TtMg8uxIMUExEZWo_5i1Pai23itemBYZsIvIlL1WWTzy09MgeNh71rQq41du6GDSdge9hlem6mBf0SKa0l3P9G1Imwiwfv0A1gKRXp3FyJwfwh68F4/s320/MLU_6155.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The "new" Puschkinia</td></tr>
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<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle"><br /></span>
<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">The name </span><span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle"><span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle"><i>Puschkinia</i> <i>scilloides</i> var. <i>libanotica.</i></span> suggests that there is the species and then a cultivated variety called Libanotica. Some reference treat scilloides and libanotica as syn</span><span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">omyms.</span><span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle"> This has been my experience in commerce and reference works. I have never seen a distinction made.</span><br />
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<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">At first I thought they might be bigger because they were older (they would have been originally planted at the old garden in the 70s at the earliest). </span><br />
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<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">However I am more inclined to agree with my friend Glen who is of the opinion that it is a different cultivar. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmNUzICLAdXCFozmlW8Xzm1iqixdO8LJHwZQFoLkOACt5mH1p_Mxs_j1yTrjQIa4EI2dxS6pYRpOipLjdZefdB4GRfcUxVc8Almfi0eB8xlceo5dFyk6frQiuX9zT7FjU0l9AIvou4lBHH/s1600/IMG_0814.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmNUzICLAdXCFozmlW8Xzm1iqixdO8LJHwZQFoLkOACt5mH1p_Mxs_j1yTrjQIa4EI2dxS6pYRpOipLjdZefdB4GRfcUxVc8Almfi0eB8xlceo5dFyk6frQiuX9zT7FjU0l9AIvou4lBHH/s320/IMG_0814.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span id="dnn_srTitle_lblTitle">Any ideas to explain this difference?</span></div>
rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-51156036347375471022017-05-02T12:20:00.001-04:002017-05-02T12:20:58.203-04:00When we find ourselves in the place just right<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The majority of gardening jobs have to be done in spring and one that takes a lot of time here is moving plants. Finding the right spot for a plant might seem straight forward enough, but it is much more difficult than it appears.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA7k8vNBChj0wmWG_T3HHQdsyEaX-YbKvX0Ui41EHTr2VXqnuC4ft0Cvh2uasMIdKCLirc0rZVIMntnZ6xlUOoPm-hOu-VGQRH21jhORcSkFdsCZZPRKiR9pmumXiPRD8iiXWojEWIxp4R/s1600/MLU_6107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA7k8vNBChj0wmWG_T3HHQdsyEaX-YbKvX0Ui41EHTr2VXqnuC4ft0Cvh2uasMIdKCLirc0rZVIMntnZ6xlUOoPm-hOu-VGQRH21jhORcSkFdsCZZPRKiR9pmumXiPRD8iiXWojEWIxp4R/s400/MLU_6107.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The herb garden on May 1st</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>Much of the transplanting we have to do is not complicated. For instance, I have mentioned on various occasions that we have a hybrid Rudbeckia (Gloriosa daisy) that is best grown here as biennial and that self sows profusely. However, like most self seeders, it does not appear where you want it.<br />
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We like to grow it in the grass, outside the garden proper. However, it does not come of its own in the grass because there is too much competition. It most readily appears in the vegetable garden. If you want drifts of them in the grass you can manage it, but every single plant has to be moved as soon as possible in the spring. I have moved about 50 in the last week.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkKKtVHhsNhdNdCI19Q8vPyglV_mWMjo9snKTBUkV0yknQQEa-rhv8_-c7eN2crpOSCu78-kWyjRrbQoiDn-GNDMdnHeddwASzfgYWuzjY4XAS2t2CJOaUUD_nfvgFqsvLEshqCKXfE0g/s1600/MLU_6096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkKKtVHhsNhdNdCI19Q8vPyglV_mWMjo9snKTBUkV0yknQQEa-rhv8_-c7eN2crpOSCu78-kWyjRrbQoiDn-GNDMdnHeddwASzfgYWuzjY4XAS2t2CJOaUUD_nfvgFqsvLEshqCKXfE0g/s320/MLU_6096.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gloriosa daisy moved in the grass in early spring.</td></tr>
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Later this summer, they will bloom generously where you transplanted them.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAkFLUk_pcJRrdssWcbgebFzOy1m31T6uCGVWjiYJVOvAL33Nvz9PjRgWcQwd36Y1e0pVI0e2iYUKJuETYCNZR1HtL272kBvYrO6UsWLXBiHPaCUSzty-hoTEpvsXORdiNPoYl5KSLj3V/s1600/MLU_0954.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAkFLUk_pcJRrdssWcbgebFzOy1m31T6uCGVWjiYJVOvAL33Nvz9PjRgWcQwd36Y1e0pVI0e2iYUKJuETYCNZR1HtL272kBvYrO6UsWLXBiHPaCUSzty-hoTEpvsXORdiNPoYl5KSLj3V/s640/MLU_0954.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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As I was saying above, finding the place just right for a plant is not always easy. Judging how much sunshine and how much shade an area gets at different times of the year can be tricky.<br />
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One of my favorite primula is Guinevere, and these last few years I have tried to increase my stock by dividing them. Last year, I decided they would do better if I moved them as they were growing in full sun. I transplanted them in a spot that gets a lot of sun in spring, but not much in summer.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl9UUh2Uj34RvHvpN4QCT0jaOVg6RWngzj07w8Gs4qPlNKY-NRTIj_lvD26iF_hdoXf7TrSXTJg2Tjzwgq6Jk8HP1ceqxnrmL8Tt3fr9nWabqeKTiNC_MB9dY6p6z0SVFNWxQOho46FB0v/s1600/MLU_4422.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl9UUh2Uj34RvHvpN4QCT0jaOVg6RWngzj07w8Gs4qPlNKY-NRTIj_lvD26iF_hdoXf7TrSXTJg2Tjzwgq6Jk8HP1ceqxnrmL8Tt3fr9nWabqeKTiNC_MB9dY6p6z0SVFNWxQOho46FB0v/s320/MLU_4422.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Guinevere primulas being moved to a new spot </td></tr>
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They were sure to prosper in that new spot. In fact, they all died except for one small plant! Here is a picture of the tiny lone survivor.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz7wbuBiepBRv7yW_uk-jMn3xOZV60efdMwV9rU1W9qg0T91IeRL8Pj4o7xQtp6Vq0nb04vKaGlO-zPk6Ru-unNQ83futoADKcyuxO0r5RcwrL_-Zl6H2mTIMQu10FPFb8P4o4AABKu0d6/s1600/MLU_6098_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz7wbuBiepBRv7yW_uk-jMn3xOZV60efdMwV9rU1W9qg0T91IeRL8Pj4o7xQtp6Vq0nb04vKaGlO-zPk6Ru-unNQ83futoADKcyuxO0r5RcwrL_-Zl6H2mTIMQu10FPFb8P4o4AABKu0d6/s320/MLU_6098_Fotor.jpg" width="243" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The lone survivor</td></tr>
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Indeed, there is sun in spring where I moved them, but the summer is a great deal shadier than I realized. Fortunately one plant survived. This was a case of not assessing properly the growing conditions of the new spot.<br />
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Another example has to do with Digitalis purpurea. We do not have an ideal climate for regular foxgloves (they do not like our winters). However they can be grown, although we never have much success with them in this garden.<br />
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Last year, I decided to try growing some in a more sunny location, and they are responding nicely. I had always attempted to grow them in a spot that was too shady. It should not have taken me years to try another location. It did because I was convinced that they were in the spot that best met their requirements.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-lfl29lrFYJKq4rzEY3pTwI4SErUccHT25En8FFvOiv4H6IIKIlfUL-_WZDEcqhQEEZvFIWDiZZJ4XZm0YTqTBDbEaoRiF22HozZ3oQH9qE4mnrMf7VYYXHjMVHp8Fec39a7kIif8VOxN/s1600/MLU_6103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-lfl29lrFYJKq4rzEY3pTwI4SErUccHT25En8FFvOiv4H6IIKIlfUL-_WZDEcqhQEEZvFIWDiZZJ4XZm0YTqTBDbEaoRiF22HozZ3oQH9qE4mnrMf7VYYXHjMVHp8Fec39a7kIif8VOxN/s320/MLU_6103.JPG" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The now happy foxgloves</td></tr>
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For plants just as for humans, "Tis the gift to come down where you meant to be".</div>
rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-70344620693550259032017-04-15T08:28:00.000-04:002017-04-15T08:28:35.646-04:00Turnip Top - a lesser known vegetable<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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You might have read one of my <a href="http://rochefleuriegarden.blogspot.de/2013/04/a-turnip-turns-up-unexpectedly.html#more" target="_blank">previous posts</a> in which I wax eloquently about turnip tops, a green I hold in
very high esteem. It is a very little know vegetable and, to appreciate
it, you need to realize two things: first, that turnip top is neither a turnip nor the green leaves of a turnip, and second, that you
should not attempt to eat it as is recommended in seed catalogues. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmsFJWyKJC-4MhcnoQsdJ_S8J1srDHVcv5LsDxEYSXNQ-G4AC5_WItyJUzQo5se9vwh-UQoutC14uFmBx3r6PZujSbBOd9LCp63jY6Dmb35NzcyWA8QBVVow-t_dI0VmVmNzNf7JUYW2Y0/s1600/DSC_0013.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmsFJWyKJC-4MhcnoQsdJ_S8J1srDHVcv5LsDxEYSXNQ-G4AC5_WItyJUzQo5se9vwh-UQoutC14uFmBx3r6PZujSbBOd9LCp63jY6Dmb35NzcyWA8QBVVow-t_dI0VmVmNzNf7JUYW2Y0/s320/DSC_0013.JPG" title="Brassica rapa" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turnip top at its prime</td></tr>
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The few seed catalogues that carry turnip top (I gather that it is more popular in the American South), recommend to eat the green in salad when the leaves are about 6 inches tall.<br />
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Well don't. The leaves are coarse, hairy and, if you have not been
able to control the flea beetles, full of holes. To top it all, at this stage the plant is not particularly tasty.<br />
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However, if you leave it alone when comes fall, the following
spring, just after the snow melts, it will come back up vigorously and will soon produce delicious flower buds, like small broccoli heads or, more
accurately, like what is sold in grocery stores here in Ontario as
"rapini", also known as "broccoli raab".<br />
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Except that turnip top is tastier than rapini, not as
bitter and a lot easier to grow.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvc_xMP4Lmen_Ksf74YbBPgfz7si1vEiH0X8r7nK0Ayb3WTMPA2_SgBqfkTswiNRIB7m0g2Y1y8k7Jv0iKd53h3Cv9Ox7rHFJRn2ms1Uz_Wz-IIDbFzd6arOuNHscGz_LEuBTFw3wOhZLg/s1600/IMG_0803.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvc_xMP4Lmen_Ksf74YbBPgfz7si1vEiH0X8r7nK0Ayb3WTMPA2_SgBqfkTswiNRIB7m0g2Y1y8k7Jv0iKd53h3Cv9Ox7rHFJRn2ms1Uz_Wz-IIDbFzd6arOuNHscGz_LEuBTFw3wOhZLg/s320/IMG_0803.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turnip top waking up in early April after months under the snow</td></tr>
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Here is a picture of what the edible plant will look like in less than a month's time at Roche fleurie. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1b8o526tZ7QCuHJaGcUhpWsSXIRPMXqKPCOQ31GKoSBlI6ngyzK2iaH6uuwfrVc1_2rHKTqhF0f9UWNf87dr1UsmqkHJb8C5LM8ZGiLDuX980Qf3jxBhr0tO3AITXuazhVsP2dCWVLwhH/s1600/DSC_0011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1b8o526tZ7QCuHJaGcUhpWsSXIRPMXqKPCOQ31GKoSBlI6ngyzK2iaH6uuwfrVc1_2rHKTqhF0f9UWNf87dr1UsmqkHJb8C5LM8ZGiLDuX980Qf3jxBhr0tO3AITXuazhVsP2dCWVLwhH/s320/DSC_0011.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turnip top (Seven tops variety)</td></tr>
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In the second year, you do not have to protect it against flea beetles as the beetles appear now only once the turnip tops have gone to seed. A dozen plants produces enough for two people for several weeks.<br />
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This particular variety is called "Seven Tops". When you break the stem to eat it, it is actually replaced by seven new stems (tops).<br />
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After a few weeks, once you have had all the turnip tops you wanted, the plant starts to bloom. At this stage the blooms are too stringy to eat, but the leaves are at their most tender and are delicious steamed or even in salad as they are quite mild tasting.<br />
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The leaves acquire a grey brassica look to them. In fact they look and taste completely different from the leaves of the coarse first year plant.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh3M4I7P4aX3QQy9d7ls_E39rNpnI_7a-RkFdt1LkelgBGWMXuFFfv2xR0qV7wlQ3Aec0jguJCzZuXjDvUBF5m4G4l3j4hW1Xmj0dPOD2PwwLMi9PcNF-ubPIQn_wnYDtuyxnz3VdpXm1v/s1600/DSC_0005_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh3M4I7P4aX3QQy9d7ls_E39rNpnI_7a-RkFdt1LkelgBGWMXuFFfv2xR0qV7wlQ3Aec0jguJCzZuXjDvUBF5m4G4l3j4hW1Xmj0dPOD2PwwLMi9PcNF-ubPIQn_wnYDtuyxnz3VdpXm1v/s320/DSC_0005_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaves when the plant is in bloom the second year contrasted with the hairy leaves of the first year </td></tr>
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Last year I decided to grow, as well as Seven Tops, a different variety of turnip top. The only other variety I found is called "Namenia". I seeded it last year and it came up just like Seven Tops (coarse, hairy, etc.). However each plant produced little round turnip-like roots. These did not survive the winter. Here is what they looked like after the snow melted.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqzXGA_Uac4aWmlWLG_ONoh7-u30e0ZxS0b8UGW02qPGUjLtXoJkdff29Vi3mKaFITzYRW5_QX_CxrnLxlUqCFFfqW2VE9eTGEtMPs5ADDMg8SYMxzfjkgzp6lSonG5hh4Qaw9NdkH3yVx/s1600/IMG_0806.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqzXGA_Uac4aWmlWLG_ONoh7-u30e0ZxS0b8UGW02qPGUjLtXoJkdff29Vi3mKaFITzYRW5_QX_CxrnLxlUqCFFfqW2VE9eTGEtMPs5ADDMg8SYMxzfjkgzp6lSonG5hh4Qaw9NdkH3yVx/s320/IMG_0806.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Namenia" which did not survive the winter</td></tr>
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Most of the time Seven Tops does not make a "turnip" (though I noticed that once in a while one plant will). Here is what its root looks like when you eventually pull up the plant after the second year when you have saved some seeds in summer.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCTEoyVkgMqJ7tkiendKo0tYqB71dXjxLsT3pXuWZzEi8IqPAENmWIy-rzBcSsgknubTYJfM44rzszL35rr5zEWEuM7obxV37djPz1tRWJ33y3PspH4KvwDPy5BTM7qYdgmFG737vuvJFh/s1600/DSC_0008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCTEoyVkgMqJ7tkiendKo0tYqB71dXjxLsT3pXuWZzEi8IqPAENmWIy-rzBcSsgknubTYJfM44rzszL35rr5zEWEuM7obxV37djPz1tRWJ33y3PspH4KvwDPy5BTM7qYdgmFG737vuvJFh/s320/DSC_0008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have not indicated any Latin name. According to Hortus Third, turnip top would appear to be a Brassica rapa of the Rapifera Group. The taxonomy for brassica seem even more nebulous than for thyme or lavender. <br />
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In summary, "Seven Tops" turnip top is a biennial green that produces no edible root but, in the second year, grows delicious stems, buds and leaves. It is not affected by any pest at the time it is eaten.<br />
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Usually some plants self sow and if you keep these new plants or start some seeds, you will have turnip top every year as if it were perennial. We have been growing it for at least 6 years. It has survived through some very severe winters.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-13160887450827362912016-11-15T09:56:00.002-05:002016-11-15T09:56:29.201-05:00Campanula incurva - plant portrait<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One of my favorite new plants this year was Campanula incurva.- - a rock garden bellflower with large blooms, almost as big as Canterbury bells (Campanula medium), but flowering on very short stalks and all the bloms facing up, so they look good from a distance or seen close-by.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHuCLMYn6f8QaLNX-X91c-GdO93HaOYcuzgee6sawwjr5eaAEiuHh1495HNdHcnCTjzruWZp6NECb75azXU_0gE8VobG63Zytez2A94QBy6KmBAKitr9kjHM9uvi2AoPDNc0YW657K3Kb/s1600/MLU_5470.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHuCLMYn6f8QaLNX-X91c-GdO93HaOYcuzgee6sawwjr5eaAEiuHh1495HNdHcnCTjzruWZp6NECb75azXU_0gE8VobG63Zytez2A94QBy6KmBAKitr9kjHM9uvi2AoPDNc0YW657K3Kb/s320/MLU_5470.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Campanula incurva</td></tr>
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<br />
<a name='more'></a>Unfortunately, this bellflower has one drawback, it is monocarpic, which means that it is one of those plants that can survive several years, but the year they bloom is the year they die!<br />
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Not very surprising when you consider how much bloom our plant produced. It must have simply exhausted itself.<br />
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The above picture was taken at the end of July, and the plant has been in bloom ever since. Although for the last two months it has not flowered as profusely. <br />
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Still, as you can see from the picture below that it is still sporting some buds in the middle of November and after two nights when temperatures went down to -3 C.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRLS3DhrWKJkK3JOtdaAtsRUOTyMhTpJaaeZa6UiVTuBwr90MCOV-a3-O1kKESdNPk8XUt0uUL9evBaGPwWz1b-KehNao98a4eFYP_JcSOfKhh5eWhoLWkIdmI5g2LVvzAXFWmyUA_vuiI/s1600/MLU_6086.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRLS3DhrWKJkK3JOtdaAtsRUOTyMhTpJaaeZa6UiVTuBwr90MCOV-a3-O1kKESdNPk8XUt0uUL9evBaGPwWz1b-KehNao98a4eFYP_JcSOfKhh5eWhoLWkIdmI5g2LVvzAXFWmyUA_vuiI/s320/MLU_6086.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I hope against all reason that it will survive the winter as the plant shown above is a side shoot that has developed from the mother plant this summer. Perhaps side shoots can survive? However the fact that despite the frost, it is still lush and green, which means not going dormant, is not a good sign.<br />
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Also called Campanula leutweinii, it is supposed to be hardy to zone 6. The garden here is in zone 5, and we have it growing in a raised bed which means that it is in a spot colder and more exposed to the weather than the rest of the garden.<br />
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It apparently can grow in full sun to partial shade. Here it is in the sunniest place in the garden.<br />
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I have had it for three years, a gift from our friend Bill Snowden who, I believe, grew it from seed.<br />
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This year was the first year and presumably the last, that it bloomed. It also comes in blue. Ours was white, but with a faint tint of blue. We had two plants of it. Here is the second one. When it started to bloom, it quickly spread out and swamped its neighbours. It was too attractive to be ruled in.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjJk3dMZCAljpJjV8fbjMw1y90DAEjnzukiXh9hY0_JpICFcbvqYAXYfdWzB68BvkJGBVr2pfovS7EWtcthP6wsIuVT2gzIUNIXOHVmjUyLDR6gt4TGGUPqWpO2wtcRMNBxwxZ16JjaZb0/s1600/MLU_5466.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjJk3dMZCAljpJjV8fbjMw1y90DAEjnzukiXh9hY0_JpICFcbvqYAXYfdWzB68BvkJGBVr2pfovS7EWtcthP6wsIuVT2gzIUNIXOHVmjUyLDR6gt4TGGUPqWpO2wtcRMNBxwxZ16JjaZb0/s320/MLU_5466.JPG" title="Campanula leutweinii" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Campanula incurva</td></tr>
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In previous posts, I mentioned the grafts I had made on an apple tree, complaining that these grafts took, but the tree did not produce.<br />
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I was too impatient.<br />
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After being grafted five years ago, this year the tree was covered with more apples that we can use or give away. There are still lots that will, no doubt, be composted.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAHLZ5tHzgFizbWUYodym9YhxWNg-GtFmwvBNKrbuUwdH9A5LayuJuCCxRwuHVM2OW3cR_DRDAFt2Lbinh3SUSEy_GI0CABvUyqNuY3Th2_TtHjIC3invYYhpIlRT4i6Vk2AfFaGaTLAuh/s1600/MLU_6090.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAHLZ5tHzgFizbWUYodym9YhxWNg-GtFmwvBNKrbuUwdH9A5LayuJuCCxRwuHVM2OW3cR_DRDAFt2Lbinh3SUSEy_GI0CABvUyqNuY3Th2_TtHjIC3invYYhpIlRT4i6Vk2AfFaGaTLAuh/s320/MLU_6090.JPG" width="211" /></a></div>
Some noticed I had not been writing as much recently. I have decided to take a "blogging holiday". I should no doubt be back in the spring, if not before.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-8840429152312067692016-09-25T18:36:00.002-04:002016-09-25T18:36:53.215-04:00Lespedeza thunbergii<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
In late September this is the shrub that blooms most profusely at Roche Fleurie. The common name is Bush Clover. Being of the pea family (Fabaceae), the flowers look very much like some clover flowers, but the plant forms a shrub, hence Bush Clover.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBBXA8xQH31mXrLMB3urit1ca_Ev0DAQbOkcAQgVUAWANnzOKHgQXENPi14WUAqbhe3qrXC1LyHQ0M61H3j-xWTuASOar57dgRHZOP8Sg1axHSsJUwqU9Zv8cCPomI4CeQlPP2drY9qTOS/s1600/MLU_5942.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBBXA8xQH31mXrLMB3urit1ca_Ev0DAQbOkcAQgVUAWANnzOKHgQXENPi14WUAqbhe3qrXC1LyHQ0M61H3j-xWTuASOar57dgRHZOP8Sg1axHSsJUwqU9Zv8cCPomI4CeQlPP2drY9qTOS/s400/MLU_5942.JPG" title="Lespedeza thunbergii" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bush Clover </td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>It is said to prefer light sandy soil, but I expect it is rather adaptable as here it is growing in heavy clay and seems to be doing very well.<br />
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It apparently can reach almost 2-3 meters. Our plant, which is about five years old, is about a meter tall and perhaps a meter and a half wide. It would no doubt grow taller, if it was not cut down in the late autumn. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWQ_zW2ETNKDYLbNkd7fUnyu37s9XsmFy4LkuY74eKfeLqEnCSKPd2yC5nuH7ooUc591YAD2vFLTWFv_oiJHV59hCBxRwV1a4xiEaUK2z7T0_GFrVpHl7_PhJZcr4AG8FdoQysOAreZDFr/s1600/MLU_5946.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWQ_zW2ETNKDYLbNkd7fUnyu37s9XsmFy4LkuY74eKfeLqEnCSKPd2yC5nuH7ooUc591YAD2vFLTWFv_oiJHV59hCBxRwV1a4xiEaUK2z7T0_GFrVpHl7_PhJZcr4AG8FdoQysOAreZDFr/s320/MLU_5946.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up of the flowers</td></tr>
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The individual flowers look like sweet pea flowers.<br />
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They grow in full sun and require very little maintenance. They are supposed to be hardy to about -30C. Since they bloom on new wood, they should be cut to the ground in late autumn or early spring. They look unkempt if allowed to grow tall.<br />
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It is a pity we planted ours near a path as it half blocks it. However since it is cut down in the fall, you brush against it only towards the end of the season when it is at its best.<br />
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It was named by the botanist Michaux after one of his friends, Lespedez, a Spanish governor of Florida.<br />
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A native of Japan and China, it can be grown from seed in spring or from cuttings in summer. There is a white variety.<br />
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We have never grown Lespedeza bicolor, which is supposed to be hardier and blooms light purple in summer.<br />
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It blooms at the same time as Buddleja and Sweet Autumn clematis (Clematis panciulata or C. ternifolia) as can be seen in the picture below.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-19325818023668824112016-09-11T15:35:00.002-04:002016-09-11T15:35:36.989-04:00Four-legged Johny Appleseed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
September is associated with the ripening of wild apples that surround the garden. As regular readers will already know, lots of apples means that our local bear is often around.<br />
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Very few of these apple trees were planted by humans. The majority comes from apple seeds scattered by raccoons and, especially, bears.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDWVYM5AtG2GFJZOyjiJyPwvaRNp3IZ99If1pVfjoQ939G1Wl0SV2hB0tqYhyb86fBUjgjR8uUEzC6rGnRn9e557liFDLVI9hs5wQ3u3oEVYbmkWktOYvDKLnrDZlEY4yyXSH6zVIYutYr/s1600/MLU_5887_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDWVYM5AtG2GFJZOyjiJyPwvaRNp3IZ99If1pVfjoQ939G1Wl0SV2hB0tqYhyb86fBUjgjR8uUEzC6rGnRn9e557liFDLVI9hs5wQ3u3oEVYbmkWktOYvDKLnrDZlEY4yyXSH6zVIYutYr/s320/MLU_5887_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the "wild" apples</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>You might wonder what I mean by "wild" apples. All these apple trees grew from pips. They are uncontrolled crosses between various kinds, and the majority
are not very tasty.<br />
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Many are too woody and most of them are sour. Three or four trees produce very good apples that can be eaten
fresh, and many of the sour ones are delicious
cooking apples. There are also some wild pears. <br />
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As for bears, I should actually say bear in the singular as the garden is part of one specific bear territory.<br />
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Next door to us is a National Park, and they keep tabs on all the local bears and have even given them names. Visiting the park is how we discovered that we were part of the territory of a female bear called "Ruthie". Here she was last summer, eating wild strawberries with her daughter.<br />
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Fortunately Ruthie is a wise bear in the sense that she is very much afraid of people and runs for cover the moment she sees a human.<br />
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Here is another picture, taken at the end of winter, of the cub quickly heading for cover to join her/his mother.<br />
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At this time of the year, Ruthie needs to get fat to survive the coming winter, and this why she is often around to eat apples.<br />
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She ventures closer to the house, especially in the evening or early in the morning. We know she is around even if we hardly ever see her since she leaves her visiting card - which is also her way of playing Johnny Appleseed.<br />
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She uses two techniques to get to the apples. She can stand on her hind legs, grab the tree trunk with her fore-paws and shake the tree vigorously until apples are sent flying in all directions.<br />
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Another technique, which is not as gentle for the trees, is to smack down branches. They half break and hang down making it easier to get to the apples.<br />
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For Ruthie, this technique has the advantage that the branches keep on growing mostly downward at her level and she does not need to whack them again. The cubs will climb up apple trees, but Ruthie herself is a little big for that.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4EvfpmLyuee7ouOQTEKMGJ59CSGGlPeyGW3Sf3f149qDD0jNG-UBoOogtLhwHJFE71_utYfda_5vYifAmZVn0FFtrx1VpquNeu6CWKfSe_tYmCsiYOyDSNsgjbN4J1DX0tzZ7SkxtqEQx/s1600/MLU_5895.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4EvfpmLyuee7ouOQTEKMGJ59CSGGlPeyGW3Sf3f149qDD0jNG-UBoOogtLhwHJFE71_utYfda_5vYifAmZVn0FFtrx1VpquNeu6CWKfSe_tYmCsiYOyDSNsgjbN4J1DX0tzZ7SkxtqEQx/s400/MLU_5895.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Branches knocked down in previous years by Ruthie</td></tr>
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Over the years she has seeded a great many apple and pear trees which numerous animals gorge on in the autumn. <br />
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In the early 90s, this area was a hay field. It is now a forest.<br />
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Below is how the lane between the house and the municipal road now looks. At least a quarter of all the trees that have since grown on their own between the house and the municipal road are apple trees, graciously made available by Ruthie and family with apples that initially came from an abandoned orchard close by.<br />
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Ruthie is not the only one enjoying the apples. Over the years, we have identified the trees that produce the tastiest apples, and we pick those. The rest are left for Ruthie and company (porcupines, raccoons, even foxes and coyotes will eat apples).<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-6027068601122965562016-09-03T16:56:00.000-04:002016-09-03T16:56:35.941-04:00The Setting<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This is a gardening blog, so the vast majority of the posts have to do with the garden, its plants or its design.<br />
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For a change, it might be useful to talk about the location of the garden in order to place it in its context and give you an idea of its surroundings.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbrgDlWqOapzz2n4P_0NjLO9kwjV2d5Eii2KOfCGyGxuGJW88qlYkePO5I2js8gyC1yU_WLBZb_zEAm9T3LiDZzRxDq4bbntsYTLbZH97qK7Iil8Dkfnpg2iywp6fwAMX1peVQ9JarhL2K/s1600/MLU_4628_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbrgDlWqOapzz2n4P_0NjLO9kwjV2d5Eii2KOfCGyGxuGJW88qlYkePO5I2js8gyC1yU_WLBZb_zEAm9T3LiDZzRxDq4bbntsYTLbZH97qK7Iil8Dkfnpg2iywp6fwAMX1peVQ9JarhL2K/s400/MLU_4628_Fotor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach and marina in the village of Lion's Head in the Bruce Peninsula </td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>The garden is in a region of Ontario, Canada, know as the Bruce Peninsula. If you look at the following map of the Great Lakes, you see on the right hand side the name "Tobermory" in red. The "Bruce" is the peninsula that stretches south of the village of Tobermory.<br />
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It is a long and narrow stretch of land whose climate is influence by the large bodies of water that surround it. On the whole, all this water makes it cooler in spring and warmer in autumn than places that have the same climate, but are situated more inland.<br />
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Traditionally an economically depressed area, there has never been much industry and only marginal agriculture, because the soil is very thin. In some spots the limestone bedrock comes to the surface.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHox-iew8mtVSg8kF5bmyP5VwyvryZSFnVTGvUbg-Iv4joSDE5i8dQEs1zssFcgliGoXivVLLlDWPyEEs0m6DWISrpPjYp-NvVL_VFfC2fgyH4DBD9TfrRUcBEmK9Gkz-Z8TjObA6FMRaG/s1600/MLU_5847.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHox-iew8mtVSg8kF5bmyP5VwyvryZSFnVTGvUbg-Iv4joSDE5i8dQEs1zssFcgliGoXivVLLlDWPyEEs0m6DWISrpPjYp-NvVL_VFfC2fgyH4DBD9TfrRUcBEmK9Gkz-Z8TjObA6FMRaG/s320/MLU_5847.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Little agriculture and no industry means little or no pollution. Nowadays, the Bruce prides itself on its two Canadian national parks, and its main industry is tourism.<br />
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People are attracted not only by the physical beauty of the place but also by its very rich flora and fauna. I have often shown pictures of the <a href="http://rochefleuriegarden.blogspot.ca/2014/02/lady-slipper-orchids.html" target="_blank">numerous wild flowers</a>, and written about the <a href="http://rochefleuriegarden.blogspot.ca/2016/05/love-in-garden.html" target="_blank">various snakes</a> and other animals that visit the garden. These testify to the rich biodiversity of the Bruce which has been designated by UNESCO as a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_and_the_Biosphere_Programme" target="_blank">Wild Biosphere Reserve</a>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiACnGLX6rwBQiDMbmNXiezzQoWgs4KRrdJZ1EOHDeSIbjlX8T-a5rMiwEvO-VMapkAr-7aRTb_XGiycrIktGs_mhnA-4EO1zkT677mFr-I9Quf928J85XDwPujwvt1XcE83_qDepV0G5Xb/s1600/MLU_5841B_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiACnGLX6rwBQiDMbmNXiezzQoWgs4KRrdJZ1EOHDeSIbjlX8T-a5rMiwEvO-VMapkAr-7aRTb_XGiycrIktGs_mhnA-4EO1zkT677mFr-I9Quf928J85XDwPujwvt1XcE83_qDepV0G5Xb/s320/MLU_5841B_Fotor.jpg" title="Grus canadensis" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandhill_crane" target="_blank">Sandhill cranes</a> in a hay field near Roche Fleurie</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF9H-CIC6VEh5FBQ3rotsUwSTHLlpu0D9u9UldSC0zAdGtMrqU7FB_uq_k17rhFdnk2L9V9K18x4aqg1BDYG70UlmcnP_Zp68OhdOA3i9dhnc5-k5F4fYG39_40ZunpBFEyHVzJNLMGkLf/s1600/MLU_5832.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF9H-CIC6VEh5FBQ3rotsUwSTHLlpu0D9u9UldSC0zAdGtMrqU7FB_uq_k17rhFdnk2L9V9K18x4aqg1BDYG70UlmcnP_Zp68OhdOA3i9dhnc5-k5F4fYG39_40ZunpBFEyHVzJNLMGkLf/s320/MLU_5832.JPG" title="Georgian Bay seen from the Bruce Peninsula" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The eastern shore of the Bruce Peninsula</td></tr>
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You can think of the the whole peninsula as a large piece of flat limestone that is sloping into the water on the west side and sticking out of the water on the east side.<br />
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All along the east side is a cliff called the Niagara Escarpment (one end of this cliff, which crosses all of southern Ontario, is in Michigan and the other one in New York state).<br />
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Niagara Falls is the water of the Great Lakes falling off another part of this very same cliff. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNTdqjw1IbM7612UwO8iW183c9JHIqBnBmFTQoXrz0bxzdZ_cA_IwL3NxP-GWyxBdlUrAnLko9wT2AIsrg3B3OzzVMrpZeTG8lFgqkQl5fXjgwBSLTg0RBlJjtmrmbWFU8_T8RhXNxQ2cx/s1600/DSC_0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNTdqjw1IbM7612UwO8iW183c9JHIqBnBmFTQoXrz0bxzdZ_cA_IwL3NxP-GWyxBdlUrAnLko9wT2AIsrg3B3OzzVMrpZeTG8lFgqkQl5fXjgwBSLTg0RBlJjtmrmbWFU8_T8RhXNxQ2cx/s320/DSC_0002.JPG" title="Sun set over the Niagara Escarpment in the Bruce Peninsula" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Niagara Escarpment along Georgian Bay </td></tr>
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On the west side, facing Lake Huron, instead of a cliff you have beaches (rocky or sandy) with a very low gradient. If you walk into Lake Huron from the shore, you will have to go a long distance before water reaches your shoulder.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSoBtQq6tPoXV7n4DzHYS2KrqEJrQSovtpguKTPrVHFVy0UT4mkdZn2IJv5hF4SP9NQUmuh5vel3pZyM0V68yNGMiAUUjqaU_ZbKvwGwt0xkzkK31Y4Rn36_seu6rn90C0JDD94BzqVdhs/s1600/MLU_4668.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSoBtQq6tPoXV7n4DzHYS2KrqEJrQSovtpguKTPrVHFVy0UT4mkdZn2IJv5hF4SP9NQUmuh5vel3pZyM0V68yNGMiAUUjqaU_ZbKvwGwt0xkzkK31Y4Rn36_seu6rn90C0JDD94BzqVdhs/s320/MLU_4668.JPG" title="Lake Huron seen from the Bruce Peninsula" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The west side of the peninsula facing Lake Huron and the state of Michigan</td></tr>
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As a place to garden, the area has one big drawback: the soil tends to be poor and very thin <br />
But it has some advantages. The snow cover is very reliable which means that a greater diversity of perennial plants can be grown than in places with much milder climates like the Toronto area.<br />
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Most of the houses in the Bruce are summer houses. This is Labour Day, the last long weekend of summer. Most summer residents and tourists go back to the city this weekend. On the rural gravel road pictured below, which is near the garden, instead of having perhaps ten cars go by every hour, it will now be at the very most ten cars a day till next spring!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGVPOR_ZU09hqra_GuleCEkcRJBCpuekqYWWlGszYAe2fSXpLSZdwN2kkR1713gD2t18pS1rSWCw6PS1_OwA_788rL9tToyOc3Xo5cwhMn1BiSfLvuW4kCt7Rbqfo46NbEJQ9W3ggr0Mbf/s1600/MLU_5843.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGVPOR_ZU09hqra_GuleCEkcRJBCpuekqYWWlGszYAe2fSXpLSZdwN2kkR1713gD2t18pS1rSWCw6PS1_OwA_788rL9tToyOc3Xo5cwhMn1BiSfLvuW4kCt7Rbqfo46NbEJQ9W3ggr0Mbf/s320/MLU_5843.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A green tunnel on a secondary road</td></tr>
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-1400415447197112322016-08-27T08:57:00.000-04:002016-08-27T08:57:48.419-04:00Late August<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Late August is the time when there are still some blooms, but they look rather tired. Somehow, even flowers that have just opened seem tired.<br />
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More probably, it is the gardener's outlook which is defective. Even if the days are still warm, they are getting shorter and shorter.<br />
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Here are some of the things that are blooming now at Roche Fleurie.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT-EkNiVgRCeoj9V8QhMn_FDJIa6z4uZ0ojNkRgVI0tAymoNa0oBPDIiM5ih0TcV9ntlPf-qczYnw3MUnCRoK9UF5oPAb_T5sEBCCu9aWYLZl4kR3RPzN_kDOGR1FFCLKA1UX6eYShZdJ9/s1600/MLU_5780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT-EkNiVgRCeoj9V8QhMn_FDJIa6z4uZ0ojNkRgVI0tAymoNa0oBPDIiM5ih0TcV9ntlPf-qczYnw3MUnCRoK9UF5oPAb_T5sEBCCu9aWYLZl4kR3RPzN_kDOGR1FFCLKA1UX6eYShZdJ9/s320/MLU_5780.JPG" title="Hellenium autumnale" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hellenium autumnale</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a> Here is a Zauscheria of uncertain ancestry partly because it was grown from seed and partly because the taxonomy of this genus seems in flux. It grows rather slowly and prefers a hot spot to remind it of its Californian origins.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMrXhtnxPHsHJ7pf4nKILzAB5S0ZgjIZxDyaUDhVVk2WNd9L6IC7zjmq250P6tIjqikjfpwNEnOVxhg-Z0G7L0Bcdk2Og3qbkcrVNQwPPN3mCt2rfwGTlnQu3JyicI443QQyGUQVguaezr/s1600/MLU_5758.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="California-fuschia" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMrXhtnxPHsHJ7pf4nKILzAB5S0ZgjIZxDyaUDhVVk2WNd9L6IC7zjmq250P6tIjqikjfpwNEnOVxhg-Z0G7L0Bcdk2Og3qbkcrVNQwPPN3mCt2rfwGTlnQu3JyicI443QQyGUQVguaezr/s320/MLU_5758.JPG" title="Zauscheria sp." width="320" /></a></div>
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A moth mullein (<i>Verbascum blattaria)</i> that is having a second flush of blooms. These self-seed but not a great deal in this garden.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaYRFTbPA9nW5UageQVd20gBVfawrEdDDHnfpi__oUFtgc0c60Tnh1U2g976Kr_UbSAW8iHB5-1my8nPuO5VR9HUWg6VmbwSyrZqmwnWA2VNBpGkVt7r4PVX6l3GpRSL_UBXA_9_U8_aFJ/s1600/MLU_5759.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaYRFTbPA9nW5UageQVd20gBVfawrEdDDHnfpi__oUFtgc0c60Tnh1U2g976Kr_UbSAW8iHB5-1my8nPuO5VR9HUWg6VmbwSyrZqmwnWA2VNBpGkVt7r4PVX6l3GpRSL_UBXA_9_U8_aFJ/s320/MLU_5759.JPG" width="211" /></a></div>
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A real weed for us though is Campanula alliariifolia. It is not invasive everywhere. It certainly was not in our city garden, but here somehow it must find the conditions ideal.<br />
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Every one that comes up is mercilessly pulled out, but despite our vigilance, several manage to bloom every year. Left to their own devices, they bloom earlier and are bigger. A very elegant plant, it is a pity it spreads so much.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7PqXEJja78k6yaZoI4kdd6P6ggohjurGyjamYS0x-9zW9BnSssNHXz8Ropbfe9TbPlAqYNdFAjSD8rOm1DpULS57d8IIp5x7wGAFwkjPweAeoONZQjaLxjMNXg0bmInUxWY_cWJ2nONUm/s1600/MLU_5763.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7PqXEJja78k6yaZoI4kdd6P6ggohjurGyjamYS0x-9zW9BnSssNHXz8Ropbfe9TbPlAqYNdFAjSD8rOm1DpULS57d8IIp5x7wGAFwkjPweAeoONZQjaLxjMNXg0bmInUxWY_cWJ2nONUm/s320/MLU_5763.JPG" width="211" /></a></div>
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Late August is the yellow flowering season par excellence. We have several tall yellow daisies whose cultivar names have long been lost, if they were ever known. <br />
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The following must be an Heliopsis helianthoides. I like it not only because of its look, but also because of its association. It was given to me by a now dead friend when I started gardening.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sT2e9H0SwhLK16w9zQQi9LN3ze0yyOabFeSGi-hjrglSRY3OE6q2KIw4xBE01j2KJz-_8HCNyyMpaUTG9tZ_L1Q-ls4RRSM2GAjGajK8zxUC62vloTUr2fO_NYmWX_pdYVNraqot8Esp/s1600/MLU_5783.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sT2e9H0SwhLK16w9zQQi9LN3ze0yyOabFeSGi-hjrglSRY3OE6q2KIw4xBE01j2KJz-_8HCNyyMpaUTG9tZ_L1Q-ls4RRSM2GAjGajK8zxUC62vloTUr2fO_NYmWX_pdYVNraqot8Esp/s320/MLU_5783.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Several helianthuses are also in bloom. Jason of <a href="https://gardeninacity.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Gardeninacity</a> has a very appropriate name for this type of plant: TYC (tall yellow composite).<br />
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There are so many of them, especially so many cultivars, that they are impossible to identify if you have lost the label.<br />
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The plant that looks the freshest in the dull days of late August is probably the perennial petunia (Ruellia humilis) which has been blooming for a month an a half, never profusely but always reliably, whether you forgot to water it or not in the dry days of July.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpAK427OsrqzzMYgOkR90cHgEzMZZnWJJ15MLH1D1GU0dXfEcy7_vRJHGrRGf6IaICJQuJqhtvB0imyGKkjUhl67318vNWUhVNWSp6bq0ILoK4uq6t0DenZfvBD4U0ZDNy9-Rg0ptqvaUJ/s1600/MLU_5787_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpAK427OsrqzzMYgOkR90cHgEzMZZnWJJ15MLH1D1GU0dXfEcy7_vRJHGrRGf6IaICJQuJqhtvB0imyGKkjUhl67318vNWUhVNWSp6bq0ILoK4uq6t0DenZfvBD4U0ZDNy9-Rg0ptqvaUJ/s400/MLU_5787_Fotor.jpg" title="Ruellia humilis" width="400" /></a></div>
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Two gentians bloom for us at this time of the year.<br />
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The nicer of the two (the one above) is Gentiana septemfida 'Lagodechiana'.<br />
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However the lower one, Gentiana gracilipes blooms for much longer (a month and a half?) and selfseeds, but not a lot. <br />
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The Japanese anemones, which will play major role in the coming weeks, are just starting to open.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaa8mvK44HsKp-YztC07AfCD4b3LAwNN-pw2QuDKDdYUuPAJ7CjNW06aZuHKhNev6T2ICH2IJ2lLKkbflR7FKDMb7_cfKmjVoa2QWr06Vva_3eXvxpMyuez6fOamyrvkw2vrAESL7mdssS/s1600/MLU_5785.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaa8mvK44HsKp-YztC07AfCD4b3LAwNN-pw2QuDKDdYUuPAJ7CjNW06aZuHKhNev6T2ICH2IJ2lLKkbflR7FKDMb7_cfKmjVoa2QWr06Vva_3eXvxpMyuez6fOamyrvkw2vrAESL7mdssS/s320/MLU_5785.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-67902347439635460682016-08-21T14:38:00.000-04:002016-08-21T14:38:55.206-04:00Tolerated Weeds<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One of our shortcomings as a gardeners is to be too inclined to leave attractive weeds to prosper. Some years we am more strict, others more lax, depending on the situation.<br />
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This year, for instance, many of the vegetables that were planted are not going to produce much. Many had to be replanted several times after having been dug up by raccoons early in the season.<br />
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Only one cucumber plant and one zucchini plant eventually grew. Only a quarter of the pole beans planted survived the raccoon onslaught. They are growing and we have started eating them.<br />
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However they are being invaded by Morning Glories which we decided to let grow. There might not be many beans, but at least the poles are not naked.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYp92pRULP42ZncwQz77kV_JRMbBS3pbg75Q7GTNlUn45Z_si5U3QdD_lA2Z7jppy75psGgFccNDmlpYG6q2qgNnt-S0o6ic4mULOWRMUwgVuzEHjDXJTJkNxqFnIRK_YZtCVbZjIo-cIy/s1600/MLU_5676B_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYp92pRULP42ZncwQz77kV_JRMbBS3pbg75Q7GTNlUn45Z_si5U3QdD_lA2Z7jppy75psGgFccNDmlpYG6q2qgNnt-S0o6ic4mULOWRMUwgVuzEHjDXJTJkNxqFnIRK_YZtCVbZjIo-cIy/s400/MLU_5676B_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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You might wonder what variety these Morning Glory are.<br />
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They are what Morning Glory ends up looking like when you let it self seed. Varieties like "Heavenly Blue" revert to the basic type which is either blue or pink.<br />
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Below is the pink version. These volunteer Morning glories that sprout early in the spring produce much sturdier plants than the seed you buy, probably because they are fresher.<br />
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This year, not only are Morning Glories growing among the pole beans, but we also let a volunteer squash settle in.<br />
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Again, it is a question of circumstances. The raccoons have left no winter squash and a single zucchini, so we decided the let this squash grow and see what happens.<br />
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I must point out that you could not do this if you have grown decorative gourds, because your volunteer squash might be an hybrid of a squash and a decorative gourd. These gourds are poisonous, and so might be your hybrid. The danger is not that great, however, as these gourds are far too bitter to eat and so would probably be the hybrid.<br />
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Another weed we do not interfere with is the milk thistle (Silybum marianum).<br />
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It has been my experience that if you collect the thistle seeds and plant them, they rarely do as well as the self-seeded plants. So we usually let one or two grow. Anyhow, not many more than two or three plants appear every spring. They are not prolific in this garden.<br />
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I also let a few biennial Rudbeckia ("Gloriosa daisies") settle in for blooms next year. On the left are the plants I have not removed and on the right what it will produce next summer. <br />
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Contrarily to the milk thistle, however, these Rudbeckias are quite prolific in this garden. They are beautiful, but in this garden a weed nonetheless. We remove thirty for every one that is kept.<br />
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A last example of tolerated weeds - annual coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria<i>) </i>growing through the tomatoes. These annuals are not much of a competition for the tomatoes, and they are useful as cut flowers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm1MtOizIV3mbbimnR-TyjOhm73nj9627fVCSPLeuq8Vfplov0KQCGnSv8UybvGkAUmlFRk3iZEp3rkvDmh2pymXIKuQh2GpFiFC-HshBvJqWE9-33FP_NSjEFh2mIWFqezdHMi9G_01JV/s1600/MLU_5708_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm1MtOizIV3mbbimnR-TyjOhm73nj9627fVCSPLeuq8Vfplov0KQCGnSv8UybvGkAUmlFRk3iZEp3rkvDmh2pymXIKuQh2GpFiFC-HshBvJqWE9-33FP_NSjEFh2mIWFqezdHMi9G_01JV/s320/MLU_5708_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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What the American garden writer Elizabeth Lawrence says about her garden applies to ours: "In my garden everything grows on everything else, and I let them fight it out".</div>
rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-50374604179512916522016-08-14T15:52:00.000-04:002016-08-14T15:52:11.902-04:00A Week in the Shuswap and the Okanagan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The Shuswap is a lake and area of British Columbia where we have just spent a holiday week.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifeuOzVAr4B7rg22a2ezNmd6676l3BG-Rby9mdBBke7aYLhu_EUoTcWnM866BBx9zxpTBUmggV4NzgIZp1mNjUr9qzZHxnH7W8IsNERBqweG2q0LYA10jXIHGpgVSOHRaoLg8YN29HE28d/s1600/MLU_5639_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifeuOzVAr4B7rg22a2ezNmd6676l3BG-Rby9mdBBke7aYLhu_EUoTcWnM866BBx9zxpTBUmggV4NzgIZp1mNjUr9qzZHxnH7W8IsNERBqweG2q0LYA10jXIHGpgVSOHRaoLg8YN29HE28d/s640/MLU_5639_Fotor.jpg" title="Thompson river" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Thompson river in the Shuswap</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>The Shuswap is just north of the better known Okanagan, an area famous for its orchards.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfaHTcce4btuGU8aj8oInep1kkrc56BINPHLECk_PVP7Elv8ZaK_cRI24Qt2wq1M_C1e6U_am7EKbD5zwVEK8aY6GMj8Wu8jdVvHYPVo5308iG85Nrzk6ZOblbMXfj8k_yR9Du5n9bLSy/s1600/MLU_5566.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfaHTcce4btuGU8aj8oInep1kkrc56BINPHLECk_PVP7Elv8ZaK_cRI24Qt2wq1M_C1e6U_am7EKbD5zwVEK8aY6GMj8Wu8jdVvHYPVo5308iG85Nrzk6ZOblbMXfj8k_yR9Du5n9bLSy/s400/MLU_5566.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plumbs, blueberries - all grown locally</td></tr>
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Some of the local plants are similar to what you find in the east, such as chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) and False Solomon's Seal (Maianthemum recemosum).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pa2GaP-fqkDvZm0VC2cd4_XyJz9c812jM2ZLYQg11fVjD7FP_GZF8Fwwlh5jbkQ8Dssrhzoh98zoMbKdT8aQ-oPjG4NIn71l3CkauMAo0zrYtHBFReD4rpIGyXoY3LhEHkENFHtzVnk4/s1600/MLU_5663_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pa2GaP-fqkDvZm0VC2cd4_XyJz9c812jM2ZLYQg11fVjD7FP_GZF8Fwwlh5jbkQ8Dssrhzoh98zoMbKdT8aQ-oPjG4NIn71l3CkauMAo0zrYtHBFReD4rpIGyXoY3LhEHkENFHtzVnk4/s320/MLU_5663_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Among the endemic plants, one of the most common and most interesting is the Oregon grape (Mahonia aquifolium) which covers much of the forest floor. It produces a berry which is edible, but quite tart. The foliage is used in flower arrangements.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsn2h5c358060O7KhvOqyl_7wgGI4pKHlS8cmbh0T-YyI03Z5BSpcCHpiz6zP08_MS56L8BoIG7VfhWZWyWUMY1D2d8LCYZkSFt7ysDWu9d1Q2huN8T-KZ9ceblF98HwKwGa8UGxZoifn_/s1600/MLU_5622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsn2h5c358060O7KhvOqyl_7wgGI4pKHlS8cmbh0T-YyI03Z5BSpcCHpiz6zP08_MS56L8BoIG7VfhWZWyWUMY1D2d8LCYZkSFt7ysDWu9d1Q2huN8T-KZ9ceblF98HwKwGa8UGxZoifn_/s320/MLU_5622.JPG" title="Mahonia aquifolium" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oregon grape</td></tr>
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Like at Roche Fleurie, one of the most common trees is the cedar. But, compared to the Eastern cedar (Thuja occidentalis), the Western cedar (Thuja plicata) is much taller. <br />
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The way the branches hang is much more elegant in the Western cedar.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimTODlFvCV85qfRD626jm9AAXZewQ0xxj0mEWu1mVqBKH55m4jyD2r8AV-ad8XQwijYNJ88bOyN8H6S00Q1i67v4_PJlFrgtHwvDyh1DfoymeBbky0_KYyoEzrWmThVxGDXWNEn8qDYMxK/s1600/MLU_5662_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimTODlFvCV85qfRD626jm9AAXZewQ0xxj0mEWu1mVqBKH55m4jyD2r8AV-ad8XQwijYNJ88bOyN8H6S00Q1i67v4_PJlFrgtHwvDyh1DfoymeBbky0_KYyoEzrWmThVxGDXWNEn8qDYMxK/s320/MLU_5662_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eastern cedar on the left, Western cedar on the right</td></tr>
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As you would expect, trees are a lot bigger than in the east, even if they do not reach the size of those growing on the Pacific coast.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5QgMoymgXclwhBfa7NjY0tj5GH6F7uuhunYzSkPA8K-cMf9tt9IXNcGOZ1T62q2ojEvqOaGs4Y7a87toYE5p245cojJgvUt9-564C99oP47bj8fH5eqjUqqd7GNgujFzipa5e_FTXZ_-_/s1600/MLU_5665.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5QgMoymgXclwhBfa7NjY0tj5GH6F7uuhunYzSkPA8K-cMf9tt9IXNcGOZ1T62q2ojEvqOaGs4Y7a87toYE5p245cojJgvUt9-564C99oP47bj8fH5eqjUqqd7GNgujFzipa5e_FTXZ_-_/s320/MLU_5665.JPG" title="Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park" width="211" /></a></div>
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We were lucky enough to see a skink, an animal we had read about but never seen. They are smaller than a lizard and much slower. That is why we were able to catch this one and take a picture before releasing it. Their tail is sometimes blue, but this one's tail was brown.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitQ5t8YbpyUVkcFdM6RNPAudZFDn8NbFndso2nAwjUUmllTEVds7kG4idK3giG7xyC98NYQl_LrINlwcgFN07Zz3o8Wbt9iWj4KSi4d90n5DE019Yp9VaAIFwyrzPZOsGhUe9XwhC_bn5f/s1600/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitQ5t8YbpyUVkcFdM6RNPAudZFDn8NbFndso2nAwjUUmllTEVds7kG4idK3giG7xyC98NYQl_LrINlwcgFN07Zz3o8Wbt9iWj4KSi4d90n5DE019Yp9VaAIFwyrzPZOsGhUe9XwhC_bn5f/s320/unnamed.jpg" title="Plestiodon skiltonianus" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The western skink</td></tr>
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To conclude, a few views of the Shuswap lake which is very large, shaped like the letter H and made up of 4 "arms" <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6puHiDNimSu5-YG1Q0NmggbVgj1BUSCEJaMffdwCiVrLxYB349cOr_bjtFdpEjvasn2-nzGXazJYKQOoaU1tfPquxcokDH49oAUDfWjiSM0wxQvY2mZ7KtslaQZvVUP4ZNouaK_saNr5D/s1600/MLU_5593_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6puHiDNimSu5-YG1Q0NmggbVgj1BUSCEJaMffdwCiVrLxYB349cOr_bjtFdpEjvasn2-nzGXazJYKQOoaU1tfPquxcokDH49oAUDfWjiSM0wxQvY2mZ7KtslaQZvVUP4ZNouaK_saNr5D/s320/MLU_5593_Fotor_Collage.jpg" title="Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park" width="320" /></a></div>
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com15Celista, BC V0E, Canada50.943942 -119.34957800000001-22.564933500000002 75.416046999999992 90 45.884796999999992tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-77133652924238342032016-08-05T11:56:00.001-04:002016-08-05T11:56:37.539-04:00In Praise of Blackcurrants<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It has been an excellent year for blackcurrants (Ribes nigrum). In fact we had a bumper crop.<br />
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Some years there will be a late frost when the blackcurrant bushes are in bloom, which reduces yield. But not this year.<br />
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This means that we have been very busy picking berries and turning them into desserts, jam and, most popular of all in this household, crème de cassis, the delicious blackcurrant liqueur. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9QjJybueduZarKuBF7VNWfccTFQTAubqtFri_KbQUucQHGAVRKZl9nlEk_iJqiRRBWjxI8Jue31BiDOwOPMwfOuwk3_wRjK8SlqrQJhOpP6O4MBdY0fhM_ND-2qJS9B_fVbM1kc-UwU4x/s1600/MLU_5544.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9QjJybueduZarKuBF7VNWfccTFQTAubqtFri_KbQUucQHGAVRKZl9nlEk_iJqiRRBWjxI8Jue31BiDOwOPMwfOuwk3_wRjK8SlqrQJhOpP6O4MBdY0fhM_ND-2qJS9B_fVbM1kc-UwU4x/s320/MLU_5544.JPG" title="Ribes nigrum" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blackcurrants</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<a name='more'></a>Blackcurrant jam is my favorite, but you have to grow your own currant bushes and make your own jam if you want any, because it is just about impossible to find in the store, at least in our area and in most of North America.<br />
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Besides, if you find any, they usually have skimped on fruit, and the result does not compare with the home-made stuff.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPd7bTsTiG5e7QixhpLj0yTDDL2kL3J0XstO3nyoJLk3m_aQ2ck8alcbof3FT9Dv5MIh7GkhTQMc_S3p_f7ediRIuZHgKf_cfai3N3s1P__umYup4jd8ZxxWfUv43w_Xx8AFlDukBZp8By/s1600/MLU_5509.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPd7bTsTiG5e7QixhpLj0yTDDL2kL3J0XstO3nyoJLk3m_aQ2ck8alcbof3FT9Dv5MIh7GkhTQMc_S3p_f7ediRIuZHgKf_cfai3N3s1P__umYup4jd8ZxxWfUv43w_Xx8AFlDukBZp8By/s320/MLU_5509.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blackcurrant jam</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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It is a jam very easy to make as blackcurrants naturally have a lot of pectin which means you can get a nice consistency without adding any extra pectin.<br />
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You simply bring the fruit to a boil over high heat, stir in about the same quantity of sugar as you have of fruit, bring to a full rolling boil, cook for another minute et voilà!<br />
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It is delicious spread on a fresh baked roll as in the picture below, perhaps even better poured over ice cream.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLy59qo14pDvM5Mij6OHm_s-p2VyAkjvWjV53r6lfPAkd6ipApuEF-R2QJ-rUk2UJtj51hrfcZiypQ-nVW-50oZb1oGalP2xisRxDsY13iIKUJJo7I5Zh_KrauQQCt0cGEe81fiCZ9GMhU/s1600/MLU_5528.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLy59qo14pDvM5Mij6OHm_s-p2VyAkjvWjV53r6lfPAkd6ipApuEF-R2QJ-rUk2UJtj51hrfcZiypQ-nVW-50oZb1oGalP2xisRxDsY13iIKUJJo7I5Zh_KrauQQCt0cGEe81fiCZ9GMhU/s320/MLU_5528.JPG" title="Blackcurrant jam" width="320" /></a></div>
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As for the crème de cassis, many recipes are available on the Net. Here is our own. Take 8 cups of fruit for one and a half litres of red wine. (There is bottle of brandy in the picture as in our recipec brandy is added at a later stage).<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7kEvRdMYtVUVRAtUQty-JinXnoojsFCpoDgrTsM7gvkGQscrOFkCw2ZHXr2Cs5bIdLl9NpwFzTJ8TQmejdfTywjvigWsmKVQZ5-fBarL_aC3G1h1yAdKLLjFS8Lkl-1JzvwwtB8hox-mn/s1600/MLU_5518.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7kEvRdMYtVUVRAtUQty-JinXnoojsFCpoDgrTsM7gvkGQscrOFkCw2ZHXr2Cs5bIdLl9NpwFzTJ8TQmejdfTywjvigWsmKVQZ5-fBarL_aC3G1h1yAdKLLjFS8Lkl-1JzvwwtB8hox-mn/s320/MLU_5518.JPG" title="Blackcurrants, red wine and brandy" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Your main ingredients to make crème de cassis</td></tr>
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The currants can be mashed to get the juice out of the berries. However this step can be skipped as the berries usually break open with cooking.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9tg4RGe1TmIQW2PRWV89TX5NNdYB-eVtkXwjRAB2WBBreBC7H5DBh5JddB2DhaCbrtFe61QydrutcdY7MOvWZkY1HKIR2BFyUTRk5aSoX1GduYq3vPsiOP8jYEKgzDdRqfzZADwlTqfcb/s1600/MLU_5523.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9tg4RGe1TmIQW2PRWV89TX5NNdYB-eVtkXwjRAB2WBBreBC7H5DBh5JddB2DhaCbrtFe61QydrutcdY7MOvWZkY1HKIR2BFyUTRk5aSoX1GduYq3vPsiOP8jYEKgzDdRqfzZADwlTqfcb/s320/MLU_5523.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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You mix the berries and cook them until they have broken up. You then add the red wine and bring the mixture of wine and fruit to a boil for several minutes.<br />
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Be careful not to add the sugar till the very end (when the cooking is done), otherwise, given the amount of pectin in blackcurrants, you might end up with a jelly.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvSPDC3jHyYBKuIMl2_oHBjcMRCyevuvsHDc3uUi-9xazp9DvZn0W5PE7BfjF-9yjDoD3YC4Ejma7suW5nL6ih3Q8CzeE-uq3HHSumuuDJjWOJXI4dEEzIHlZ7Fcc6EE_z24LwsQjg81nO/s1600/MLU_5521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvSPDC3jHyYBKuIMl2_oHBjcMRCyevuvsHDc3uUi-9xazp9DvZn0W5PE7BfjF-9yjDoD3YC4Ejma7suW5nL6ih3Q8CzeE-uq3HHSumuuDJjWOJXI4dEEzIHlZ7Fcc6EE_z24LwsQjg81nO/s320/MLU_5521.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blackcurrants and red wine boiled together</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
You then let the mix rest for a while - some recipes say for one day, others for 10 days (it might depend on how much in a hurry you are to drink it!)<br />
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It is a good idea to mix the fruit and wine with a spoon a few times a day.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJjkIHs3oH1SgtAdQQnG6-9MxjrxSsHTlBZte_7XN2IbvOk8BB5HuX9AvAp1nbirT1Pu7CPeP39I-UH3vR-AFAWDZyMl1ZGeaWoDnE4Qd8rkUFtKJuHHzouErTQ9GNWF_S8Yrn8zBbu-Ey/s1600/MLU_5526.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJjkIHs3oH1SgtAdQQnG6-9MxjrxSsHTlBZte_7XN2IbvOk8BB5HuX9AvAp1nbirT1Pu7CPeP39I-UH3vR-AFAWDZyMl1ZGeaWoDnE4Qd8rkUFtKJuHHzouErTQ9GNWF_S8Yrn8zBbu-Ey/s320/MLU_5526.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blackcurrants and red wine macerating </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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You then strain the mix through a cheese cloth. You have to squeeze the cheese cloth in order to get as much juice as possible. It is a rather messy job.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNq4Z21WZCHYUMFJxXI3evOGntveaXDsY8RMNb4kxzzfO4YE6gXVvmvr3ao5GYSlVZOFfn2_YSnZC4Nb63xLzicwSrNTHuUyGFwit3v7TtOaWwS7eRCX8ZZmn67FtDg65ES0p8UCMIvnSU/s1600/MLU_5548_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNq4Z21WZCHYUMFJxXI3evOGntveaXDsY8RMNb4kxzzfO4YE6gXVvmvr3ao5GYSlVZOFfn2_YSnZC4Nb63xLzicwSrNTHuUyGFwit3v7TtOaWwS7eRCX8ZZmn67FtDg65ES0p8UCMIvnSU/s320/MLU_5548_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then you make a syrup with two cups of sugar and half a litre of water. Two cups of sugar for every one and a half litres of red wine produces just the right sweetness. You can add more syrup if you want it sweeter.<br />
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Once the syrup has been added to the pressed juice, you also add about 250 ml of brandy and mix it all up before you pour the result into bottles.<br />
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You should wait for a month before starting to drink your crème de cassis. Here is what a double recipe produced (18 cups of fruit, half a litre of brandy, 2 cups of sugar, half a litre of water and three litres of red wine).<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEzcYwwZAK-TjAZph6ajkxw0c3RMnxUO37s5pWr24JuGfOI3AhXkkGBmGgyHA8LWNKj0_AHHcEIt-MTfYiAdTsY3R4HuQXKg2N7nkdp96bNl7ZHZEZDbhLWhIEgi_lb2IGkkMtBAa1MRip/s1600/MLU_5552_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEzcYwwZAK-TjAZph6ajkxw0c3RMnxUO37s5pWr24JuGfOI3AhXkkGBmGgyHA8LWNKj0_AHHcEIt-MTfYiAdTsY3R4HuQXKg2N7nkdp96bNl7ZHZEZDbhLWhIEgi_lb2IGkkMtBAa1MRip/s320/MLU_5552_Fotor.jpg" title="Home made crème de cassis" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Best sipped in front of the fire on winter evenings</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The result can be drunk straight as a liqueur or mixed with a "bubbly" to make an aperitif called "Kir". If you use actual champagne instead of an ordinary fizzy wine, it is then called "Kir royal".<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cZ_U3W7DbNe_kmgyfKz6OAb_j2K-ss9QQzvaeBJAJN5hWxtNi1R8T17oZeBxrAXTZtDLDETP48kDBmOE9c7R8o4iDr8Q-dTorVtPF5IdPeXtprOeO61B7HXtEdu7opaTlHCqwKecLOnj/s1600/MLU_5540_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cZ_U3W7DbNe_kmgyfKz6OAb_j2K-ss9QQzvaeBJAJN5hWxtNi1R8T17oZeBxrAXTZtDLDETP48kDBmOE9c7R8o4iDr8Q-dTorVtPF5IdPeXtprOeO61B7HXtEdu7opaTlHCqwKecLOnj/s320/MLU_5540_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It should be added that not only are blackcurrant bushes very easy to grow or to propagate from cuttings, but none of the garden raiders (rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, woodchucks, skunks, you name it) like the taste of blackcurrants, and they leave your berries well alone. <br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-80153718817862541672016-07-31T07:46:00.000-04:002016-07-31T07:46:19.850-04:00A True Dry Shade Lover<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
In this garden, the regular foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) does not do well. It is, in fact, very difficult to grow, mostly because the soil is basic and too dry.<br />
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At the moment of writing this, at the end of July, it has been very sunny for the last two months, with perhaps three rain showers in all, which means that many plants only survive provided they are watered every day.<br />
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However the rusty foxglove (Digitalis ferruginae) is blooming generously, even if it has never been watered except for the little rain we got.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxEwNvK_LiK3r6cPC5hpMIwbSfXyemUkg6KJ9f1JYY3lwE1TsVEJod6fzka_W-EciTXQ7FAofbdISAqEpdJhQAEoVAf5RXnlYzk6nEfmVA03fh402NYJnLSiHq8UZP2F_JLmPPMOymM_2/s1600/MLU_5479_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxEwNvK_LiK3r6cPC5hpMIwbSfXyemUkg6KJ9f1JYY3lwE1TsVEJod6fzka_W-EciTXQ7FAofbdISAqEpdJhQAEoVAf5RXnlYzk6nEfmVA03fh402NYJnLSiHq8UZP2F_JLmPPMOymM_2/s320/MLU_5479_Fotor.jpg" title="Digitalis ferruginae" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Digitalis ferruginae - the rusty foxglove, an easy xeric plant </td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>The rusty foxglove is a good example of that much-talked -about, but rather rare group of garden plants that relish dry shade. As you can see in the picture above, these grow under a large tree, in a spot that gets what sun there is after 7 pm.<br />
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This foxglove is supposed to grow well in full sun, but I have noticed that, here at least, it tends to self seed only in the shade.<br />
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It is supposed to be rather indifferent to soil type. In the picture above, it is growing in only about 6 inches of alkaline soil directly over limestone.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXqcP624ZgOlFflcWxDQstiF5duYBbJjrwkkq1rXfT_EsbHPjhyphenhyphen-vPf5srYu2ohZrzm5QSAEfJYLbHuWej8eyNNktNmkT08E2Vn_wP5Ukg68NhdvG-Ha3BritKNmhITGAO3yrpHk_Fb6vt/s1600/MLU_5475_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Rusty Foxglove" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXqcP624ZgOlFflcWxDQstiF5duYBbJjrwkkq1rXfT_EsbHPjhyphenhyphen-vPf5srYu2ohZrzm5QSAEfJYLbHuWej8eyNNktNmkT08E2Vn_wP5Ukg68NhdvG-Ha3BritKNmhITGAO3yrpHk_Fb6vt/s320/MLU_5475_Fotor_Collage.jpg" title="Digitalis ferruginae" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The rusty foxglove</td></tr>
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It is a biennial or short-lived perennial. We only seeded it once, about four years ago.<br />
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It self seeds, not too aggressively, and so comes back year after year without the gardener having to do anything.<br />
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Like regular foxgloves, the first year it makes a rosette as in the picture below, and the following year you get the three to four feet (90-120 cm) tall flowering stem.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvg2CIUQ2BprxwHkrclsX0dxVrNMkLtC7CIiOawVij6or2qanwtqe63zFElmlKbM-h_pZEaffiwoxpzGmHf8T9FsMtKtsNOTXyNsVuxlKBRInnmnq7XPK_ssG8_nD68P6TQUQJRyO3eCQm/s1600/MLU_5498.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvg2CIUQ2BprxwHkrclsX0dxVrNMkLtC7CIiOawVij6or2qanwtqe63zFElmlKbM-h_pZEaffiwoxpzGmHf8T9FsMtKtsNOTXyNsVuxlKBRInnmnq7XPK_ssG8_nD68P6TQUQJRyO3eCQm/s320/MLU_5498.JPG" title="Digitalis ferruginae rosettes" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rosettes from this year that will bloom next summer</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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It is very attractive to bees and pollinating insects in general. It is also <b>rabbit and deer resistant</b> and adapted to zone 4 to 7.<br />
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Like all digitalis, it is poisonous. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAW9ecfnNDbyATpMZc-eX3ViSfwWSBJiTcH-EZd5_YQTTdSA7LZFWKzf199PZ1mCe19wU1rTouOfXA4UTM_80IKuIZ7ZSD3Dsiu8DLPhMZI_OMICjy1xKyjYsrAKr_HrdYY60HumzeUBZ2/s1600/MLU_5503_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAW9ecfnNDbyATpMZc-eX3ViSfwWSBJiTcH-EZd5_YQTTdSA7LZFWKzf199PZ1mCe19wU1rTouOfXA4UTM_80IKuIZ7ZSD3Dsiu8DLPhMZI_OMICjy1xKyjYsrAKr_HrdYY60HumzeUBZ2/s320/MLU_5503_Fotor.jpg" title="Digitalis ferruginae" width="320" /></a></div>
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Apparently, if you cut the flower stem after it has bloomed, it will produce flowering side shoots.<br />
I have not tried it, but I plan to do so later on. There are a few cultivars, including some darker ones, but ours were grown from seed.<br />
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The rusty foxgloves is sturdy, never needing to be staked. Given the right conditions, it is a very easy and undemanding plant to grow.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-27015283538983216402016-07-23T16:20:00.001-04:002016-07-23T16:20:28.772-04:00Hardy Annuals<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Most years I grow a fair number of hardy annuals. The point about <b>hardy</b> annuals is that they can be started from seed directly in the garden where they are going to grow. They often bloom for a very long time and are inexpensive.<br />
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In fact after a few years of growing them, most hardy annual plants seed themselves or produce a lot of seeds that can be saved and replanted the next year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGBq0IPG-kBE__rj-8TrKIK4yTqFGu_I_alac_5UG0Ta2vuHtoUaGUqxajmSlmw3swYkBNoZGEV7VXqiXdMtT3dF6X1NJBHeGY04hth5Kxa1xbS-oDRKYmg8BSFJ3lPaJRYsAlsfwLpvIj/s1600/MLU_5010_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Love-in-a-mist" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGBq0IPG-kBE__rj-8TrKIK4yTqFGu_I_alac_5UG0Ta2vuHtoUaGUqxajmSlmw3swYkBNoZGEV7VXqiXdMtT3dF6X1NJBHeGY04hth5Kxa1xbS-oDRKYmg8BSFJ3lPaJRYsAlsfwLpvIj/s320/MLU_5010_Fotor_Collage.jpg" title="Nigella damascena" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love-in-a-mist (Nigella damascena) - on the right growing with Dianthus deltoides</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>In the case of Nigella pictured above, it selfseeds and you normally get new ones without having to do anything. In the photo on the right they have volunteered among Maiden pinks (Dianthus deltoides). However they are more numerous when you save seeds and plant them outside in the spring (as in the photo on the left above). <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw3WuYU7f8vQdOLc2iPlpSkIVmNUR34cSh8D0bBACUS8i2vTI6B5WYPMvpDM_O0C1sf-X4_Ik1Tys14GHv96u_9UBfY9j9d73lxdSSrM_nX0SNphdL6EdpNUqFWzzgw8ttZlP9xxZX50Tf/s1600/MLU_5107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw3WuYU7f8vQdOLc2iPlpSkIVmNUR34cSh8D0bBACUS8i2vTI6B5WYPMvpDM_O0C1sf-X4_Ik1Tys14GHv96u_9UBfY9j9d73lxdSSrM_nX0SNphdL6EdpNUqFWzzgw8ttZlP9xxZX50Tf/s400/MLU_5107.JPG" title="Eschscholzia californica" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">California poppies in the garden of my friend Pat</td></tr>
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For many hardy annuals, including the Cafifornia poppies above, the ideal is to have some plants that have selfseeded and some that you have seeded. They likely will not bloom at the same time, and so you will extend the blooming season.<br />
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Seeding them indoors a few weeks ahead of transplanting to the outside can give you earlier blooms. However it is more work starting them indoors and, often times, they do not bloom that much earlier.<br />
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Although the ones seeded directly outside sprout later, they can catch up with the ones seeded inside some weeks earlier because they do not have to go through the shock of being transplanted.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgwhLaE82f0hlrkfRSXjQmD8vRE3BX6IXXbrP5yJAfAQGTTS5sUpWhma2x8HDf-NCYU5DRTFGWPZisX4aE2rYBvlAYuCuCeNWDSPjLnTpNGlYOJMsd096loqfHEq5GfVyPO8L3BAf0FtTp/s1600/Iberis+umbellata_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgwhLaE82f0hlrkfRSXjQmD8vRE3BX6IXXbrP5yJAfAQGTTS5sUpWhma2x8HDf-NCYU5DRTFGWPZisX4aE2rYBvlAYuCuCeNWDSPjLnTpNGlYOJMsd096loqfHEq5GfVyPO8L3BAf0FtTp/s320/Iberis+umbellata_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Iberis umbellata</td></tr>
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Candytuft (Iberis umbellata) is one annual I like to scatter in clumps, often in the vegetable garden. In my experience it does not selfseed much. However it is easy to save seeds for the next year.<br />
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Unless you want only one specific colour, even when you can save seeds, every now and then it is advisable to buy new ones. As years go by, the colours tend to be less and less varied, and "new blood" gives you a better palette.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvv7HNQPwpMDLqzWX-Vx4r6p50bYIxEmL2fKtv2mDFxYrSAHhju9UXQn_QLI2m1zRc2FGdmoWBqRjmBx46p2K0yNZwyFky-3xEagqt3b6ih_79bpa2UmyyaChAvjGncBwhT3MyhVj1Zmge/s1600/Eritrichium+rupestre+%25282%2529_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvv7HNQPwpMDLqzWX-Vx4r6p50bYIxEmL2fKtv2mDFxYrSAHhju9UXQn_QLI2m1zRc2FGdmoWBqRjmBx46p2K0yNZwyFky-3xEagqt3b6ih_79bpa2UmyyaChAvjGncBwhT3MyhVj1Zmge/s320/Eritrichium+rupestre+%25282%2529_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eritrichium rupestre</td></tr>
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My favorite hardy annuals might be Eritrichium rupestre, an annual I discovered only a few years ago. It might not selfseed, but it is very easy to start outside from seed you have collected the year before.<br />
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It is similar to forget-me-nots, but the blue is much more intense and it is not invasive.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nasturtiums come in a great variety of colours and foliages</td></tr>
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Nasturtium is an old standby. Even if they come back from year to year, I always start a few in pots as they are handy to fill gaps. I do not remember what I was going to grow in the black container in the picture above. Whatever it was, it did not grow, and I just filled the container with some standby nasturtiums I had started in pots in case I needed them.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyoHFjzFHOrDks6RnHVGFsz8AtoOlxSFW697dgEOaV8F5zI0e0QNCCM2sW23f38liwEM6latsJyMm1-RR76JV2MazIbF_3ptz807sp2blJlrzybgDQDZfI4kyOSCtxP3xTGSB74ioiNlK/s1600/DSC_0025_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyoHFjzFHOrDks6RnHVGFsz8AtoOlxSFW697dgEOaV8F5zI0e0QNCCM2sW23f38liwEM6latsJyMm1-RR76JV2MazIbF_3ptz807sp2blJlrzybgDQDZfI4kyOSCtxP3xTGSB74ioiNlK/s320/DSC_0025_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Calceolaria mexicana</td></tr>
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This is another hardy annual which I have known for only a few years, but I would feel sorry to be without.<br />
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Calceolaria is slightly more tricky to grow as the seeds are minute, and the plant takes longer to grow to blooming size. It can be started directly outdoor but it blooms earlier if you start it inside.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfQvsj-3TcVn-eOVoJecOcchLGk6tHWUjVK5wV3DK-WRPNABmzwM-O58BbansDph_Cvll1Lf1LXVxnmHWBJEhoLRaqW07wQNs5YXApg9QIMWpa5NL2BR4YdUb5pYend2J7F1-SvMkuVad-/s1600/MLU_5461.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfQvsj-3TcVn-eOVoJecOcchLGk6tHWUjVK5wV3DK-WRPNABmzwM-O58BbansDph_Cvll1Lf1LXVxnmHWBJEhoLRaqW07wQNs5YXApg9QIMWpa5NL2BR4YdUb5pYend2J7F1-SvMkuVad-/s320/MLU_5461.JPG" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annual batchelor buttons (Centaurea cyanus ) also come in white and pink</td></tr>
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I conclude with the king of the annuals that come back year after year in this garden: the poppy.<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-61206041544485866912016-07-18T17:22:00.000-04:002016-07-18T17:22:21.582-04:00Summer Peak<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Many gardening bloggers are talking about the great abundance of plants in bloom in the garden at this time of the year. Here are some of the plants that have been blooming here recently.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGyCu5_8LIv9ciI2voE0AyDdC4Hk3udGSfAWnbPI6d1SKPrNadpwenvXj5ABIRR_gwKflneQ5gKCoE_opwpzh8L2TJsSBmxRxVMFsQe411TIV-K4Iy18bTcrNdJ8D6Z5RbgjaWJgTfmLvD/s1600/MLU_5255.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGyCu5_8LIv9ciI2voE0AyDdC4Hk3udGSfAWnbPI6d1SKPrNadpwenvXj5ABIRR_gwKflneQ5gKCoE_opwpzh8L2TJsSBmxRxVMFsQe411TIV-K4Iy18bTcrNdJ8D6Z5RbgjaWJgTfmLvD/s400/MLU_5255.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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Since early June we have had a lot of sunshine, but not a lot of heat, and the nights have been actually cold. This cooler weather is, no doubt, the reason why a week ago we still had a few peonies!<br />
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The red climbing rose on the trellis at the back is Dortmund, the nearer pink one is Viking Queen. The first blooms profusely and always looks nice.<br />
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Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of Viking Queen which does not bloom as much and has flowers so heavy that they hang down, which is not attractive.<br />
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The bluish plant next to the white delphinium is Salvia sclarea turkestiana, a biennial.<br />
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On the arch shown below grows New Dawn, which is also a very good performer. <br />
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July is also lily month.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9lHTaZNspIHG6LritsRrngoMaj6PMb-XoRFJMLeNb0s4pSSF_VCB98r_OdNHYRMd2j4UNiRqUCoM86q38nN-Dk1KfaOPPZHavcWOPs858abOVzavZyCtIiUrIyqstqHeQ1bczCmryZ1XY/s1600/MLU_5404_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9lHTaZNspIHG6LritsRrngoMaj6PMb-XoRFJMLeNb0s4pSSF_VCB98r_OdNHYRMd2j4UNiRqUCoM86q38nN-Dk1KfaOPPZHavcWOPs858abOVzavZyCtIiUrIyqstqHeQ1bczCmryZ1XY/s320/MLU_5404_Fotor_Collage.jpg" title="Regale lilies" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We have two drifts of regale Lilies, started from seed. They come readily from seed.</td></tr>
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The small-flower clematis above is Arabella. It is herbaceous rather than climbing but here it grows with perennial sweet peas. <br />
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They support each other on three sticks tied at the top.<br />
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The above is a native lily - Lilium michiganense. It does not grow like your usual garden lily. It makes runners, and new stems appear away from the original one. We now have 6 or 7 stems. They come up about a foot from each other.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5KxIU6Mhf-ESPPSvJHYIweJtOCadr3xS9xGWgOG5plV4F2W9gtRHpWvxo4NbHDaaUI7B-l4O8oaki-CTHKVG_UeZXBpahOA1nVVZFRR7RcqEN4SAkKvK2ZNV3Qh7t73aWUi42fm7efDKZ/s1600/MLU_5353_Fotor2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5KxIU6Mhf-ESPPSvJHYIweJtOCadr3xS9xGWgOG5plV4F2W9gtRHpWvxo4NbHDaaUI7B-l4O8oaki-CTHKVG_UeZXBpahOA1nVVZFRR7RcqEN4SAkKvK2ZNV3Qh7t73aWUi42fm7efDKZ/s320/MLU_5353_Fotor2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Notice the frog in the lower left corner.<br />
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For the first time ever we were many weeks without a single frog. A consequence of having more than our share of snakes and not enough rain.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_H8NGU5_cIReOsKTio42F6h2gh65c2SywjGHIuTmSeUatm1kmy4DUUvdcUikaUGuMz36L1SO6aOHt65TLRUY_GZ8sQXwlN6coGZxtAdD0cMs9iys1gYaO9fiWx2GnPhGz5mUgxqIft3f0/s1600/MLU_5409_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img alt="" border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_H8NGU5_cIReOsKTio42F6h2gh65c2SywjGHIuTmSeUatm1kmy4DUUvdcUikaUGuMz36L1SO6aOHt65TLRUY_GZ8sQXwlN6coGZxtAdD0cMs9iys1gYaO9fiWx2GnPhGz5mUgxqIft3f0/s640/MLU_5409_Fotor.jpg" title="Anthemis tinctoria" width="640" /></a></div>
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Golden marguerites (Anthemis tinctoria) and bergamot (Monarda sp.) straddling a low fence.<br />
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I end with two more roses - First Charles de Mills. A rose which was mislabeled, but François at <a href="http://jardindepouzioux.blogspot.ca/" target="_blank">Un jardin à Pouzioux </a>was kind enough to identify it for me.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFk9EpWRVPsIqi6snv8FcccC0WRlt4iplsCXLHEYF2YuPhsmy7Mx6NnaE159uvD0Ir0MTNgVsh5nWFAz7CViJQkQDO_8KWkAMiCRl2M6X06U9MrHkqLJwicC7AgYVSLK_PVO_scqlVz7a/s1600/MLU_5193.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFk9EpWRVPsIqi6snv8FcccC0WRlt4iplsCXLHEYF2YuPhsmy7Mx6NnaE159uvD0Ir0MTNgVsh5nWFAz7CViJQkQDO_8KWkAMiCRl2M6X06U9MrHkqLJwicC7AgYVSLK_PVO_scqlVz7a/s640/MLU_5193.JPG" title="Heritage rose "Charles de Mills"" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Charles de Mills</td></tr>
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And Nearly Wild, a lovey single.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd2lvToIbmEdLfIo-jqpZSm1kV-3mkDOuMDNhgpzb6yI4TaOyeTkXENeydYTIPh_XzoSCrYsMCdFTOLVQ-h2lV651M83rgJlVr3IVCXeAUXqIysgqih177ayq6OfP7P4CTRjN9KwqzhCi7/s1600/MLU_5232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd2lvToIbmEdLfIo-jqpZSm1kV-3mkDOuMDNhgpzb6yI4TaOyeTkXENeydYTIPh_XzoSCrYsMCdFTOLVQ-h2lV651M83rgJlVr3IVCXeAUXqIysgqih177ayq6OfP7P4CTRjN9KwqzhCi7/s400/MLU_5232.JPG" title=""Nearly Wild" rose" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nearly Wild</td></tr>
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-5610280470122987752016-07-10T08:50:00.000-04:002016-07-10T08:50:21.887-04:00A Tale of Two Gardens<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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It is not very common to have two keen gardeners living next door to each other, but it is even more unusual is to have these two gardeners share a garden!<br />
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This post is about two gardeners that have ignored the property line that separates their respective lots and created a single garden right over it.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD7qyYUCHsPdpi5_gp16b4I4yUFddqd1r_JWNimDeBSn2OSYiGELIQctFvlK4xr_4jsTqCyLrp-sbwcBQL3JavXdMRghQac156Za14SjdQJYIcYsfPNx0SYbCc3p5MEbA17lNQW8nBhRXN/s1600/MLU_4655_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD7qyYUCHsPdpi5_gp16b4I4yUFddqd1r_JWNimDeBSn2OSYiGELIQctFvlK4xr_4jsTqCyLrp-sbwcBQL3JavXdMRghQac156Za14SjdQJYIcYsfPNx0SYbCc3p5MEbA17lNQW8nBhRXN/s640/MLU_4655_Fotor.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of the shared garden</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>Pat and Gail each have a magnificent garden of their own next to their respective houses.<br />
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However, over the property line, they made a garden which is a joint undertaking.<br />
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They each take care of their own gardens and work in common on the shared garden.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFgHfb18UyaWTY-UyBn5854hdq33pUN2L12sVM8pgvhfUhr2cl1klkB39nKu3iBJaBVojswF_VVfzsvHYzSBMSuiWOj-9Evj16xxn4ghcVuaPw0XP6KlYyczfZvV1oybWpVK9E4ZT9EkZd/s1600/MLU_5115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFgHfb18UyaWTY-UyBn5854hdq33pUN2L12sVM8pgvhfUhr2cl1klkB39nKu3iBJaBVojswF_VVfzsvHYzSBMSuiWOj-9Evj16xxn4ghcVuaPw0XP6KlYyczfZvV1oybWpVK9E4ZT9EkZd/s400/MLU_5115.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of Gail's magnificent hosta garden</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvocVhIkpS_Tv3FEfDAHzImCqmdDdKV_1f8V6ykdxg0aYCRym2dMIAyCRHBxHInR7DxinuyZYVBhGeGvWvipswCSJBHGHfK-H1BkrTi8PRQfyQ9rWser9QSYlCZVUmWveyjMafMJVDXpJQ/s1600/MLU_4640_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvocVhIkpS_Tv3FEfDAHzImCqmdDdKV_1f8V6ykdxg0aYCRym2dMIAyCRHBxHInR7DxinuyZYVBhGeGvWvipswCSJBHGHfK-H1BkrTi8PRQfyQ9rWser9QSYlCZVUmWveyjMafMJVDXpJQ/s400/MLU_4640_Fotor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pat's main flower bed, earlier in the season</td></tr>
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They also share a driveway.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0WLt5nRzgSDXtmuvUq5eQbf-ynEtf3l0Az6nRdmK3OJQT7RVZc0XzZYmnRIxrI1lphbaKqqOrxnXNMyCTog-7iUqxNkq6VNiDROwPpRbZRwHKkmaIguo1GR-7gb-hJboyfV5vStbW5o6t/s1600/MLU_5077.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0WLt5nRzgSDXtmuvUq5eQbf-ynEtf3l0Az6nRdmK3OJQT7RVZc0XzZYmnRIxrI1lphbaKqqOrxnXNMyCTog-7iUqxNkq6VNiDROwPpRbZRwHKkmaIguo1GR-7gb-hJboyfV5vStbW5o6t/s320/MLU_5077.JPG" width="211" /></a></div>
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This takes you to the two houses.<br />
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The shared garden is the first thing you see, straight ahead of you.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj40MapTqW4NYnjoJYhQfLMpP8Jd0dkKgFw7Dtjv0GA6JJf9sTZmx1KB1H6FLzrz43_SgzAlwBJW_-Qj0298PGQZBj26c_yVz5JQPivdr6K53pVQtx3KDP7I81BayU5GhaBlo-fvb9tsEwh/s1600/MLU_5079_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj40MapTqW4NYnjoJYhQfLMpP8Jd0dkKgFw7Dtjv0GA6JJf9sTZmx1KB1H6FLzrz43_SgzAlwBJW_-Qj0298PGQZBj26c_yVz5JQPivdr6K53pVQtx3KDP7I81BayU5GhaBlo-fvb9tsEwh/s320/MLU_5079_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Below is the shared garden as seen from Pat's house.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbyJRUksZ9rTSTHvAF2io-OcdQv32IzpWfVqGDTmO3niYwcaIjXCDFho9mxqf-OoRRH2ZD4bYcEcmu958Qg6PyCTapiw9aVhTX0QTf21vZcuVKyT4FRiL4jGP6ZL1YkfOVidUP1HGDl-VA/s1600/MLU_4636_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbyJRUksZ9rTSTHvAF2io-OcdQv32IzpWfVqGDTmO3niYwcaIjXCDFho9mxqf-OoRRH2ZD4bYcEcmu958Qg6PyCTapiw9aVhTX0QTf21vZcuVKyT4FRiL4jGP6ZL1YkfOVidUP1HGDl-VA/s320/MLU_4636_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The same garden as seen from Gail's house.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkX0vdQB2Wy0EbMSzuKODBQ7vp90hNjnFRUP8DHEWQVpppfCyrEuDxOc_tr8Iq78zVPIjOCcz7_eLBHfK8e_mo5tl7uQRHz4KsVf_X-weVk0cUFtC4MH6XTOT_k9Hkn0PY9oeq-ESz_029/s1600/MLU_5096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkX0vdQB2Wy0EbMSzuKODBQ7vp90hNjnFRUP8DHEWQVpppfCyrEuDxOc_tr8Iq78zVPIjOCcz7_eLBHfK8e_mo5tl7uQRHz4KsVf_X-weVk0cUFtC4MH6XTOT_k9Hkn0PY9oeq-ESz_029/s320/MLU_5096.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Pat has a small vegetable/herb garden which is rabbit- and porcupine- proof. It includes a cold frame, the cover of which she had to leave open this late spring. It was that or killing this magnificent yellow lupine that got away on her.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNpWSze0rr99a15ux7O0qeOKzhG9FKa6CrJbuhrcawFAfbuGSxQnYJph2dBnJ5BVrOLkSQ2QbsOZD0rEKwb8HTQhedFRFO3cu6fIQk-3N-Ka7ZoSvjaGOnr4j_BPg1oUlQ4QH2ib5ad3fv/s1600/MLU_4650_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNpWSze0rr99a15ux7O0qeOKzhG9FKa6CrJbuhrcawFAfbuGSxQnYJph2dBnJ5BVrOLkSQ2QbsOZD0rEKwb8HTQhedFRFO3cu6fIQk-3N-Ka7ZoSvjaGOnr4j_BPg1oUlQ4QH2ib5ad3fv/s320/MLU_4650_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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On Gail's side, across from Pat's vegetable garden, is another bed with an arch between the house and the garage.<br />
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Pat contends that Gail has a green thumb. In fact they both are great gardeners - few gardens in the area are in the same league or can compete with either their shared or their respective gardens.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-lJ-fzTfSzuUAp9TUYIjS2mOA5T869-OkYazqAPWjgLE1UJBOd2DzrxsYak7i6gCedoArd5LUM67rpYjW9ofx9khHCn4HPuxS0voqUTRQXtC5W0yBQ4KG8_7CV5pK4tox1eaey37EEnmE/s1600/MLU_4643_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-lJ-fzTfSzuUAp9TUYIjS2mOA5T869-OkYazqAPWjgLE1UJBOd2DzrxsYak7i6gCedoArd5LUM67rpYjW9ofx9khHCn4HPuxS0voqUTRQXtC5W0yBQ4KG8_7CV5pK4tox1eaey37EEnmE/s320/MLU_4643_Fotor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I end up with a collage of various plants in the two (three) gardens.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiumTz7VvQ5umKzgFSRgrTaETGgrUagX4WqTTfA92RYsaGg00ribZqRTn8iL7F4vGKMXPlz2SEYA26oRHbU4OnGI7OJYBzW0Nds6oDhfuOE2u-jOanhMiR49U7OHcNcjGlq3N4TBT2lgiTq/s1600/MLU_5093_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiumTz7VvQ5umKzgFSRgrTaETGgrUagX4WqTTfA92RYsaGg00ribZqRTn8iL7F4vGKMXPlz2SEYA26oRHbU4OnGI7OJYBzW0Nds6oDhfuOE2u-jOanhMiR49U7OHcNcjGlq3N4TBT2lgiTq/s400/MLU_5093_Fotor_Collage.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com11Northern Bruce Peninsula, ON, Canada45.1915212 -81.27170960000000844.475429199999994 -82.5626031 45.9076132 -79.980816100000013tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-51793515915916508152016-07-05T20:04:00.002-04:002016-07-05T20:04:52.923-04:00A Love Story<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This post is about the misadventures of two rabbits in love. Destiny tore them apart but, do not worry, it ends well.<br />
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They are reunited at the end of the story and presumably are still happy together.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCNxRc6DMwWydSzQWRFgipddzaSoLWt6c8YVBOhWz1CrABk2vm_6OKDpKEPYnBR6CVS2cB4KDXIaXlonGwiUMjbvxK05BgcHUxWYFog7zt_Ecb9TYG0H4FEyNUmUhZBUNj_-ch4jFJ0EzO/s1600/DSC_0018_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCNxRc6DMwWydSzQWRFgipddzaSoLWt6c8YVBOhWz1CrABk2vm_6OKDpKEPYnBR6CVS2cB4KDXIaXlonGwiUMjbvxK05BgcHUxWYFog7zt_Ecb9TYG0H4FEyNUmUhZBUNj_-ch4jFJ0EzO/s400/DSC_0018_Fotor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the two</td></tr>
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We have a porch with a door at each end to let the draft in on hot days. Yesterday afternoon, sitting in that porch reading, with both doors open, we suddenly felt transported into Alice in Wonderland as a hare entered by one door
and left by the other!<br />
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He (or perhaps she) did not have a pocket watch, but did seem in a hurry and was looking for something.<br />
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Stranger still, he did not cross the porch once, but a few times, completely ignoring humans!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYXeGJ3DH9aDSLctfTPWcdhyphenhyphenEE8emdfOhApwpC9rAf8g3ej-yy-JbZO8JM6iMZoBgNlaASB-jNqZb2-2DWyRF6xwb-mGivpCyW-UMkouVlMeIJKQev6d2FeIJZck95YzZSMR1AIyC7lifx/s1600/MLU_5202_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYXeGJ3DH9aDSLctfTPWcdhyphenhyphenEE8emdfOhApwpC9rAf8g3ej-yy-JbZO8JM6iMZoBgNlaASB-jNqZb2-2DWyRF6xwb-mGivpCyW-UMkouVlMeIJKQev6d2FeIJZck95YzZSMR1AIyC7lifx/s400/MLU_5202_Fotor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The porch with a door at each end</td></tr>
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A
few hours later, having dinner in the garden, we saw what seems to have been the same hare running along the garden fence, desperately trying to find a spot where he could get in.<br />
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There is a chicken wire over the trellis precisely to deter rabbits. We had never seen one so determined to get in. He was circling the house and the whole garden, actually trying as hard as he could to push in the chicken wire!<br />
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Crossing the porch was part of his search for a way into the garden.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBZriQpzyUmEyett_OJ8C3VeZUBZ-nzynrh5Q9jV5eyrofkvxmeE91deNP6cwd8VsAJpAEcSajNI4E741l6Rxod1fbB-pXkCn_sDkRZyTa0bOC-1KtvzTOGDtHI6UIUIflAtFhs4dSBQL/s1600/MLU_5197.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBZriQpzyUmEyett_OJ8C3VeZUBZ-nzynrh5Q9jV5eyrofkvxmeE91deNP6cwd8VsAJpAEcSajNI4E741l6Rxod1fbB-pXkCn_sDkRZyTa0bOC-1KtvzTOGDtHI6UIUIflAtFhs4dSBQL/s320/MLU_5197.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up view of the anti-rabbit chicken wire nailed to the trellis</td></tr>
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In the evening, busy with watering cans, lo and behold, we saw the hare in the
garden! We thought he had finally managed to get in.<br />
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However we soon realized it was a different hare. Right next to where the inside hare stood (hiding under the peas), but on the other side of the fence, the original hare was still attacking
the chicken wire trying to get in!<br />
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We opened the gate and managed to frighten the inside hare towards the opening so he (she) could leave the garden.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMX08mmDBNfsSv5yRFEIH1n5kn6-4Dhpt1GJO-zLQ3osAnLrm_f6Vi1kzvYwU27KJfJbM7RNachd6wdfmwWdunqINAtUolqGe8k6tyohHV1tcxCcYXxb-5UQXFTIyl-ra62nWdiWyBQ6d/s1600/MLU_5175_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMX08mmDBNfsSv5yRFEIH1n5kn6-4Dhpt1GJO-zLQ3osAnLrm_f6Vi1kzvYwU27KJfJbM7RNachd6wdfmwWdunqINAtUolqGe8k6tyohHV1tcxCcYXxb-5UQXFTIyl-ra62nWdiWyBQ6d/s320/MLU_5175_Fotor.jpg" width="183" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Once more free to roam </td></tr>
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We concluded that at one point when a gate was open, one hare sneaked in the garden, but
soon found himself (herself) locked up inside.<br />
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Meanwhile, the hare left outside became frantic trying to join his (or her) mate! </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmpvlVUQTbVzUdjhXvaU9uJrFJ1h3WQ2rOxIHh0YOvFLSCJi8FCnE3BP-hoXX2AcMcflGU_MnlhCbM2qE8yHAs7Jkqfr3oJn4GCplpAWHrmAqBR6eI4kFdDIJ3cYUs_wmj4B7ol3sOp8RV/s1600/MLU_5194.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmpvlVUQTbVzUdjhXvaU9uJrFJ1h3WQ2rOxIHh0YOvFLSCJi8FCnE3BP-hoXX2AcMcflGU_MnlhCbM2qE8yHAs7Jkqfr3oJn4GCplpAWHrmAqBR6eI4kFdDIJ3cYUs_wmj4B7ol3sOp8RV/s320/MLU_5194.JPG" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If the gate is left open for only a few minutes, a rabbit can easily sneak in</td></tr>
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Once reunited outside, they forgot all about getting into the garden and headed together for their favorite patch of clover!<br />
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The story also ends well for the gardeners: obviously the rabbit defense system has once more shown its mettle and has not yet been breached!</div>
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3890786265475429448.post-33952446225307838922016-07-02T20:08:00.000-04:002016-07-02T20:08:40.053-04:00Garden Open<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
In my last post, I talked about an excursion our local gardening club made. This last week, members of the same club were opening their gardens to their fellow gardeners.<br />
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In a month which has been very sunny and warm, the day it was our turn to open, rain was threatening, and it was just about 10 degrees Celsius.<br />
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However this did not stop people from visiting, and we had a very good day.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUjNe4hGen1OfXf4zul1qNpm-X4j3zW75jTjxx1icqVE-RQDjQffAUFkCbqUUtIvXjKOTjUA-iqklS8U3hpGlQUSQR3ewruUBjwBN9ln-rkpSA2BA1qdzbG-mwsj3HsLg5RE8dlaArFuXv/s1600/MLU_4977.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUjNe4hGen1OfXf4zul1qNpm-X4j3zW75jTjxx1icqVE-RQDjQffAUFkCbqUUtIvXjKOTjUA-iqklS8U3hpGlQUSQR3ewruUBjwBN9ln-rkpSA2BA1qdzbG-mwsj3HsLg5RE8dlaArFuXv/s320/MLU_4977.JPG" title="Roche Fleurie, June 2016" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNjgJS1xQfR7dOoDOGwXB-6qOr4PlzDhOvtwCH3CUbUdZkazU0IvhSkuk0jF1VGp79jgbYN5YvWAJSn_ksOxaeXKT8M5c5n_85yqaSsmjLo4hSoVWGrlzK4SFEcPKUeytmPN9t1f-AeTR/s1600/MLU_4981_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNjgJS1xQfR7dOoDOGwXB-6qOr4PlzDhOvtwCH3CUbUdZkazU0IvhSkuk0jF1VGp79jgbYN5YvWAJSn_ksOxaeXKT8M5c5n_85yqaSsmjLo4hSoVWGrlzK4SFEcPKUeytmPN9t1f-AeTR/s320/MLU_4981_Fotor.jpg" title="Main border, Roche Fleurie, June 2016" width="320" /></a></div>
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Having visitors is a good memory test. As you take people around, they invariably ask you the names of plants.<br />
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As a rule, they only ask for the ones you do not remember. It is also a time when plant labels like to play hide and seek!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhec0yL8F-e_unM_FpgttuVd05PKfUI1ZZd4mtf7dTHCH_uuDhKb_LUrZ4zCxNbLw05GFpdnNN-uUhqhW-9ZygSJ7MlF66ybCJOi3k7LZZLs_6XCEm3kaeo8lQIazI5APATKMLoUwEB3tal/s1600/MLU_4973.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhec0yL8F-e_unM_FpgttuVd05PKfUI1ZZd4mtf7dTHCH_uuDhKb_LUrZ4zCxNbLw05GFpdnNN-uUhqhW-9ZygSJ7MlF66ybCJOi3k7LZZLs_6XCEm3kaeo8lQIazI5APATKMLoUwEB3tal/s320/MLU_4973.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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An advantage of opening the garden is that visitors might point out things that do not work as well as they might.<br />
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For instance, this time a group of people took the "wrong" path, one that leads to a utility area behind the garden where we have piles of plastic pots, wheelbarrows, etc.<br />
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Obviously, I should make more obvious where to go.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVOGfk468ydaBrqIuK302m61aQaMBK3xKyQDD3zvhq5eQQKYOooG8StsP5eMCr_YFG3zaMP3kIkqm1wRIyZr4f1NLZVytYhgOyqu4PzwErCENJUVcwe7WOWpto8vlw9GO1YkBBTMuM5Kpe/s1600/MLU_4991_Fotor.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVOGfk468ydaBrqIuK302m61aQaMBK3xKyQDD3zvhq5eQQKYOooG8StsP5eMCr_YFG3zaMP3kIkqm1wRIyZr4f1NLZVytYhgOyqu4PzwErCENJUVcwe7WOWpto8vlw9GO1YkBBTMuM5Kpe/s640/MLU_4991_Fotor.jpg" title="Chrysanthemum argenteum in the foreground and Rosa Celsiana" width="424" /></a></div>
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Some areas of the garden are necessarily less attractive than they were some days ago or than they will be in the coming days.<br />
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It is a good opportunity to practice not being a "you should have seen it last week" bore.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5qiR0LK07uvQNt__TKfu0Q4vLMc7NkBtA32BdlYAYJYHESfGLYeFLqeI32k_n0dpUR0FvxFd1DaRXDMhi5OnwR6fA70iGN4FkRWjzCe1Gg_joVZ-H-KY1cKIkuTK9aa9LEnOhXlAgjuS3/s1600/MLU_4980.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5qiR0LK07uvQNt__TKfu0Q4vLMc7NkBtA32BdlYAYJYHESfGLYeFLqeI32k_n0dpUR0FvxFd1DaRXDMhi5OnwR6fA70iGN4FkRWjzCe1Gg_joVZ-H-KY1cKIkuTK9aa9LEnOhXlAgjuS3/s320/MLU_4980.JPG" width="211" /></a></div>
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When we lived in the city and many more people turned up on open days, sometimes they would not realize you were the owner, and they would make comments you could overhear.<br />
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I remember a visitor saying "someone is trying hard here", quite a double-edged comment.<br />
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However, overheard comments could also be very nice. I remember a women, on a day of many garden visits in succession, saying, as she walked in, "Finally, an actual garden" (no doubt a woman of taste!).<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPE6CR41ybXD0ETgHpUI7Na553NTLXg-zBuy6v7USrrS_cYWudGBPao-KypORcuCvpU-gjvr-GKxZfUfK1sWJ5X61JxjKvXUgddA_Xy_Ynqn9jc2qkZKtC00YR9q6CNg6YRd_eR3HkQssh/s1600/MLU_5019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPE6CR41ybXD0ETgHpUI7Na553NTLXg-zBuy6v7USrrS_cYWudGBPao-KypORcuCvpU-gjvr-GKxZfUfK1sWJ5X61JxjKvXUgddA_Xy_Ynqn9jc2qkZKtC00YR9q6CNg6YRd_eR3HkQssh/s320/MLU_5019.JPG" title="Roche Fleurie, June 2016" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The rose Dortmund climbing on an arch</td></tr>
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I also remember two visitors arguing very hotly about some native fleabanes (Erigeron) I had left in the middle of a flower bed.<br />
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A woman was saying how lovely that was, and a man was reminding her in no uncertain terms that these were weeds.<br />
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I let them sort it out!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7T078ePZO9Z33E4_KqDuTn0Tbd9pL91_SW_NWFN1VYkEbyvjcxqxg6aEBKjD4pkT3HgFTMBFjVP8jpt7G_R380CBsmZxye5XxQPC90GuuroBPQKpVKz105Jad1LV_siSNSrBmNnSYzPe6/s1600/MLU_4982.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7T078ePZO9Z33E4_KqDuTn0Tbd9pL91_SW_NWFN1VYkEbyvjcxqxg6aEBKjD4pkT3HgFTMBFjVP8jpt7G_R380CBsmZxye5XxQPC90GuuroBPQKpVKz105Jad1LV_siSNSrBmNnSYzPe6/s640/MLU_4982.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The blue mound is culinary sage in bloom behind Phlomis russeliana</td></tr>
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At this time of the year, you have to weed out good garden plants of which you have too many.<br />
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As I weeded in the weeks before the open date, I potted up several of these plants and offered them to whomever wanted them. <br />
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In the city, with hundreds of visitors, we had a sale table.<br />
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It is a different thing when you only show the garden to a few friends and acquaintances.<br />
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The main reason for opening the garden is the incentive it provides to strive to do a bit better than you would otherwise.<br />
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Have you ever opened your garden to the public? What was the experience like?<br />
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rochefleuriegardenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06783773632775842680noreply@blogger.com21