the front garden June 2010
I moved winter 2005 to be near to grandchildren (Ottawa, zone 5a Canadian, 4b USDA) and decided that now, given the time freedom of retirement and the incredible information and purchasing resources of the web, was the time to build my own one-colour gardens. The house faces south-east with half the front heavily shaded by an 11 m Prunus serotina that fills with pollinating insects in spring flower and with robins in late summer when its fruit ripens. Much of the rear garden is partly shaded by my house, a neighbour's house, and a row of 15 m Tilia americana to the north-west.
My ideal for a garden is a natural meadow: the only bare earth is where animals walk and dig - the only plants found are those that grow happily together without overt attention - there is always something in bloom somewhere - you are surrounded by nature. I pay special attention to shallow-rooted ground covers that allow other flowering plants to grow unimpeded through them. In a natural meadow, plants intermingle and grade into each other - a suitable ground cover gives a similar effect for separated specimen plants. Such a ground cover also eliminates any need for artificial mulch, reduces weeding to a minimum, discourages squirrels from digging up bulbs, and softens the appearance of plants that are out of bloom.
This is the garden I share with passers-by. The focal view is from the sidewalk, moderately formal with a touch of drama, sun in front, shade behind, with at least one floral focus of interest throughout the year. There is a seating place for me by a back woodland section, screened from front view by tall perennials and house pillars, and sheltered from rain by the eaves.
Plants that have proven themselves here for at least 3 years are in bold. Notes and photos will grow and disappear as the plants do.
the front garden June 2010
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human
insect
| Anemone ranunculoides is from woodland Europe. Although it's supposed to prefer acid soils, it's slowly multiplying via underground rhizomes. It vanishes mid-summer so needs marking. 20% sun. |
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| Chelidonium majus, originally from the Mediterranean, is naturalized locally in mid to deep shade, moist soil. It stays green under the snow and starts growing as soon as days are above freezing. It puts on a great show in spring, but has a lot of seed heads to pick off if you want it to keep blooming through the summer; if you do, it blooms until hard frost. An extract from it is supposed to remove warts; 15% sun. |
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| Chrysogonum virginianum, a North American native along streams, prefers light shade and moist soil. Mine spreads by runners but slowly enough that it's easy to pull up excess, divides and transplants well; some cultivars form clumps instead. A cheerful little plant; 20% sun. |
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| Crocus ancyrensis, native to calcareous mountain soils of Asian Turkey, has been added fall 2010 to the front of the just-removed lawn. In myth, the return of Persephone was signalled by the yellow crocus, this is one of the earliest here. The flowers are almost entirely black in ultraviolet; 60-80% sun. |
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| Crocus chrysanthus, native to calcareous open pine forests of the Balkans, was also added fall 2010 to the front of the just-removed lawn. Some varieties (pallidus) are cream yellow in and out. In contrast to C.ancyrensis its stamens are bright white to insects; 60-80% sun. |
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| Crocus 'Yellow Mammoth' (angustifolius × flavus) produces a brilliant blast of yellow as well as copious offsets that are blooming size the next spring. It's been moved fall 2010 to the front of the just-removed lawn; 60-80% sun. |
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| Digitalis grandiflora (D.ambigua, D.orientalis) from southern Europe was added in 2009 - it's established as an escape in a local meadow with the same soil and is the longest-blooming Digitalis. In Europe it's an early colonizer of areas left after logging; 40% sun. |
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| Doronicum caucasicum from Turkey needs mid-shade and moist soil, and puts on a nice show in spring just after Narcissus blooming time; 20% sun. |
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| Doronicum orientale 'Leonardo Compact' was added spring 2009 - it was doing well so more were added fall 2010 to fill gaps along the back path. Then, the original failed for 2011... 20% sun. |
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| Epimedium ×versicolor (grandiflorum × pinnatum colchicum) needs mid to full shade, has leaves that stay green under the snow and delicate panicles of small sulphur-yellow flowers early spring. Low growing, it spreads slowly by rhizomes, and is doing well. Some say to cut back leaves in spring for best foliage, but I don't; 15% sun. |
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| Eranthis hyemalis from woodlands in Europe was the first to bloom in the garden when newly planted, but the blooms got later each year with 30% sun and it slowly died off. I tried again (fall 2010) in 60% sun, but it's dying off slowly too except for one bulb that has multiplied. The bulb is poisonous so needs no protection from squirrels. |
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| Erythronium americanum, native locally, needs moist mid-to-deep shade. It expends most of its energy producing offsets, but the blooms are lovely when they appear. As many of our native woodland species do, it uses ants to spread its seeds - ants eat a nutritious appendage attached to each seed and leave the rest to germinate where they drop it; 15% sun. | |||
| Erythronium 'Pagoda' (tuolumnense × revolutum) needs moist mid-to-deep shade. One has survived 5 years missing bloom one, but two others failed; 15% sun. |
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| Geum chiloense 'Lady Stratheden' was added spring 2008. Native to South America, this selection's flower stalks are far too weak for its flowers so they flop down in a large circle if not staked. I let them flop, and will probably replace it with something better soon; 30% sun. | |||
| Hemerocallis line the west edge of the garden. From front to back:
Hemerocallis 'First Knight' is an early fragrant reblooming tetraploid that's the earliest to show green in my garden; 60% sun |
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| Hemerocallis 'Winning Ways' is early, with a large flower for a diploid; 60% sun |
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| Hemerocallis 'Andrew Christian' is a mid-season tetraploid with wonderful fragrance morning & evening; 50% sun. |
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| Hemerocallis 'Pudgie' is a mid-season double added 2010; 40% sun. |
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| Hemerocallis 'Joan Senior' was added 2010 and hasn't bloomed yet; 20% sun. | |||
| Hemerocallis 'Golden Peace' is an early tetraploid without much substance; 20% sun. |
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| Hemerocallis 'Stella d'Oro' is a solid performer, blooms early and late summer, spreads, divides and transplants well, and blooms better in shade than any other I have; 20-40% sun. |
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| Inula ensifolia (Aster ensifolius), native to well-drained soils of eastern Europe, has been added 2010 in 50% sun in hopes it can handle the wet soil - the garden is weak in fall when it blooms best. |
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| Kalanchoe in the window blooms there year round. |
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| Lilium 'Tiny Bee', a patented early-blooming Asiatic from Mak Breeding for container growing was added spring 2011; 50% sun |
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| Lysimachia nummularia (L.zawadzkii) cultivar 'Aurea' from Europe needs mid to full shade. It's a 5 cm high golden-green ground cover with a few yellow flowers in mid summer where it gets 2 hours sun or more. It's spreading very well, looks great, allows established plants to grow through them unimpeded, is easily pulled up and trimmed where not wanted, and doesn't mind occasional gardeners' footsteps. My ground cover of choice for most of the garden; 15-60% sun. |
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| Lysimachia quadrifolia, native locally, spreads vigorously by underground runners and must be contained with edging. Originally it was penned with Oenothera tetragona which has similar habit, but soon overpowered even it, so is now in its own pen. Its delicate-looking down-facing blooms last almost a month and make a fine show in a clump, well worth some work with edging. The genus name honours Lysimachus, a general under Alexander who myth credits with using a plant shaped like a spear to pacify a maddened bull. It's true that the European Lysimachia vulgaris repels gnats and flies which upset oxen, however note that bull's horns were the symbol of the sea-god Poseidon and the power to calm seas would have been attributed to any conqueror in the Mediterranean. The modern result of the myth is that any plant with a tall spike of flowers is liable to be called loosestrife in English. Yellow Loosestrife (Lysimachia order Ericales) is totally unrelated to the non-native Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum order Myrtales); 50% sun. |
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| Magnolia 'Sunburst' (parentage acuminata, liliiflora & stellata) was added spring 2011 to replace a failed 'Yellow Bird'; 60% sun. It turned out to be infested with magnolia scale. |
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| Narcissus are spread the width of the garden half way back in 40-60% sun:
Narcissus 1Y-Y: the original King Alfred hasn't been produced for decades, but most 1Y-Y selections are now sold under the name. Some here are 'Dutch Master', others 'Rynveld Early'. |
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| Narcissus 'Rip van Winkle' is a unique 4G-Y miniature with shredded petals and corolla, introduced 1884 |
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| Narcissus 'Yellow Cheerfulness' 4Y-Y is spice scented, was introduced 1937 and added fall 2010 |
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| Narcissus 7/11Y-Y are multiflowered open-perianth yellows. |
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| Narcissus 'Pipit' 7Y-Y looks like a miniature multi-flowered King Alfred to start, but slowly adds white halos over a few days; some turn totally white before fading, added fall 2010 |
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| Narcissus 'Pacific Coast' 7Y-Y miniature was added fall 2008 but is slowly fading - only one in bloom 2012. |
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| Narcissus bulbocodium was added fall 2009; this one bloom is the first. |
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| Narcissus 'Sunnyside Up' 11aW-Y was moved from the back lawn fall 2009. I only got one bulb in a mixture and tried to get some more, it looks so dramatic, but haven't found it in Canada since, so I'm guarding its offsets. 4 blooms 2011. |
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| Oenothera macrocarpa (O.missouriensis), a North American native, grows best in mid-shade. It forms a tight slow-spreading clump that divides only with a sharp spade. A popular garden perennial a century ago, mine originally came from an overgrown old homestead site and has accompanied me for half a century now. One of my favourite plants; 30% sun. |
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| Oenothera tetragona (O.fruiticosa), a variable North American native originally described under at least 6 names now considered subspecies, has lots of brilliant yellow terminal flowers and spreads fairly fast by stolons, so it's contained by edging. It flopped in 20% sun, was moved to 60% sun late 2008 and has put on a superb show since. |
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| Oxalis stricta is native locally; it turns up on its own and is welcome, any excess is easily pulled up. |
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| Potentilla argentea from temperate Asia is widely naturalized locally in hot dry spots, but returns every year here in 40% sun. Its flowers appear as small sparkles spread out over the Lysimachia. |
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| Primula algida from northern Asia bears its flowers in umbels above the leaves; it's growing and flowering well; 30% sun. |
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| Primula elatior from the Caucasus bears its flowers in umbels above the leaves and is growing and
blooming well; 30% sun.
Primula veris from Europe is identical to P.elatior except for technical differences in the corolla throat and leaf petiole, and is also growing and blooming well; 30% sun. |
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| Primula polyantha was added spring 2011, it may be a natural hybrid of P.elatior; 40% sun. |
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| Roscoea ×beesiana (auriculata × cautleyoides), an orchid from the Himalayas, has been added spring 2011 in 20% sun. Garden Imports says it's hardy to zone 5 if planted 30 cm deep. I hope it is; there are very few plants that flower mid-summer in deep shade as it does. |
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| Rudbeckia fulgida, a North American native, prefers consistently moist soil and mid-shade. It produces a great show of summer and fall yellow, divides and transplants well; 30% sun. |
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| Sedum kamtschaticum (Phedimus kamtschaticus) from northern Asia begins blooming late May and keeps blooming until completely covered by snow. Most sedum prefer dry full sun, but this one grows well with as little as 20% sun and is happy with damp soil. Unlike many other sedums, it suppresses seed-borne weeds well; 40-80% sun. |
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| Sedum rupestre (S.reflexum, Petrosedum rupestre), native to central and western Europe, was added 2009 to the bright corner at the front as a ground cover for small bulbs. It blooms only briefly and the blooms are invisible against the leaves as you can see, but provides a yellow background throughout the year with a texture that contrasts nicely with the Lysimachia, which does the same; 70% sun. |
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| Trillium luteum, native to woodlands of eastern North America, was added fall 2010 in 20% sun. It's up spring 2011, but takes several years to bloom after transplanting. | |||
| Trollius yunnanensis, native to moist areas of southwest China, did well for three years in 40% sun, but barely survived the 2010-11 winter. |
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Tulipa species are in the left point of the raised portion. Their commercial cultivation began in the Ottoman Empire,
they were introduced to Europe from Turkey in 1554; 60% sun.
Tulipa batalinii is native to central Asia, its short stems make it totally windfirm; added fall 2009 |
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| Tulipa dasystemon (T.tarda) from Kazakhstan has several blooms per bulb and is happy in mid-shade |
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| Tulipa turkestanica is indeed from Turkestan, its colour varies from almost all white to all yellow, but it's barely surviving here. It's blooms close at night to preserve them for warm sun when pollinating insects are most active. |
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| Uvularia grandiflora is native locally in mid shade woods with moist calcareous soil, and is doing well with 15% sun. |
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| Viola pensylvanica (V.eriocarpa, V.pubescens) is native locally in damp woods and is slowly spreading in 15% sun. |
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| Barbarea vulgaris, native to Europe but naturalized locally, is a gorgeous show of yellow; I cut it down after flowering to keep it under control; 20% sun. |
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| Coreopsis verticillata 'Moonbeam', native to North America, was moved from the back meadow where its sprawling habit didn't fit; against the side wall it forms a nice half mound covered with blooms until hard frost. 1992 Perennial Plant of the Year; 20% sun. |
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| Potentilla neumanniana, native locally, was added summer 2011 to the section in front of the garage. 60-80% sun. |
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| Sedum kamtschaticum from northern Asia is the ground cover under the Coreopsis; 20% sun. |
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| Taraxacum officinale from Eurasia has become naturalized throughout the continent, including on my neighbour's lawn. It's a beautiful flower to all except those who demand that lawns look like plastic; 20-80% sun. |
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