Miss Muffett::Not Sitting On Her Tuffett

If you don't know her already it is my pleasure to introduce to 'Miss Muffett'. She sort of brings out the, gushing, proud-as-a-Mimi, 'giddy' me.

She's a bright chartreuse green, medium tall caladium variety that has been and remains my number one choice for summer foliage from this beautiful genus of ornamental plants.

Planted from bulbs in amended organic soil, that is moist from summer rains but well drained, these lovelies will hold their heads high for all the months from spring to summer. Mix them with reds, pinks, greens, or clump them alone to add splashes of delightful color all over the garden!

The freckly magenta pattern on her heart-shaped face is bright enough to add just the right amount of pizazz yet subtle enough to blend quietly with her surroundings.

Tip: She is a perfect specimen for cut arrangements in water vases. I especially like to reach underneath the larger leaves to cut a few of the smaller leaves for small glass vases to put in the kitchen window sill. They will last for over two weeks in water.

Plant her directly in the ground or in container plants. For a fuller habit in containers she benefits from the de-eyeing process first. Although her recommendations come with full sun capabilities my experience shows she performs best placed in partially sunny to small doses of full sun situations.

This one will make any gardener smile during the hottest, most humid months of the year. And that's really something to boast about.

Tip: I reserve an order of Miss Muffetts bulbs storing them until late August to freshen up my favorite varieties with another planting. A second season of flourishing caladium foliage will extend the beauty in my garden until late fall.

Have you tried adding Miss Muffett to your garden yet? She promises to be a great performer for you, too. This year my healthy and vigorous Miss Muffett bulbs came from Classic Caladiums.

Circle Garden :: Lessons in Patience

When I look today at what's come to be known as the 'Circle Garden' it's a good thing I have some old photos to remember just where it began. It was first created in January of 2010 as a focal point in the back gardens. After (and during) some freezing temperatures that resulted in a very 'brown' garden oodles more lawn was removed and replaced with ground covers and planted beds.

Aren't before and after photos helpful for telling the story and oh, so fun! See all that new growth on the Asiatic jasmine (Trachelospermum asiaticum) in this photo from early spring; March 2011. Not a true jasmine but it was chosen here for the (Florida-Friendly ) ground cover due to its easy care and low-growing habit.

Today (above photo) it continues to work diligently to fill in the space around the container plant that serves as the centerpiece to the circle (side note: dreams include replacing container with a fountain there). Asiatic jasmine makes a dense mat or carpet of glossy greenery and helps define the circular walkway made of natural pine straw. Winding pathways give wandering feet many options. Natural trails carry them into several directions, from the circle, leading to other parts of the garden.

So come with me will you? We'll take a few moments to reflect on the concept of patience and the importance of nurturing those projects in our gardens we lovingly create with lots of back-breaking sweat and humble beginnings.

The beginning. January, 2010 against a backdrop of 'brown' and crispy from many consecutive nights of freezing temps the Asiatic jasmine is just in the ground after removing the lawn in a circular pattern.

Later that year we see some gradual maturity after one of Florida's characteristically hot and humid summers. Complete recovery is evident in the back ground as well as new growth in the circle garden. Patience is key!

Oh dear, January 2011, exactly one year after the circle garden was birthed. The last three winters here have been hard on Florida gardens. But notice the jasmine is evergreen even after our early, record-breaking December (2009) freezes! Patience reminds us that spring is not far away and recovery is again inevitable.

Here we are today. Late August in our hottest, most humid and muggy season and the circle of jasmine is actually *almost* a circle. You may notice the chairs have been changed and moved around during this progression. Those large, weathered Adirondacks were moved to the front garden this past spring when the last trace of turf grass was removed from there.

Established perennial gardens combining Florida natives, Florida-Friendly, and tropical plants fill in the planting beds on the perimeter of the circle.

A view to the tropical pathway reveals the most deeply shaded and probably my favorite place in the garden. I'm not sure it's possible to have a favorite place but I do know this is one of the most peaceful and restful places.

A view in the other direction is the most open side of the back garden. To the north of the circle is the only significant place left where lawn is beckoning removal. I'm determined to ignore the call (and all the ideas that swirl in my head) since that last lengthy patch of green provides the room to play that family get-togethers require.

It's amazing how pictures remind us of our progess. My memory alone surely can't recall just how gradual and yet persistent all at once is the beauty of a growing garden. The lesson :: get started; get growing. Whatever efforts are made whether small or grand are worth the time and energy. In exchange for our toil the satisfaction of listening to our hearts and carrying out our visions is long lasting and beneficial beyond measure to the soul of a gardener.

Hoe and Shovel on Facebook

Hoe and Shovel garden has started a Facebook page. We've got some new friends there but not nearly as many as our readership indicates. This is my invitation to all regular commenters and readers to join us for informal discussions on Hoe and Shovel's page.

It's a place where we'll offer tidbits from everyday life from around the garden ... nitty-gritty stuff and insignificant goings on. We'd love for you to join in on the discussion. So head over there and click the LIKE button to connect.

Of course for those of you who prefer to eaves drop (you know who you are) ~~ you are also welcome. It's a public page and snooping is allowed. But wouldn't it be so much more fun if you came right on in, took a seat, and told us what's going in your garden, too.

Hope to see you over there. (Hoe and Shovel blog will continue~~FB page won't take the place of the blog.)
Happy Gardening,
Meems

A Snapshot of Layering a Lush Landscape

A quick glance at a mature planting bed and the identity of the numerous layers of plant materials might be overlooked at first sight. In our hurry-up culture we have a tendency to instantly take note of the overall view with our mind's eye; summing it up with our judgment of approval ... or not. Then we move on.
Just for a moment what if we linger right here? I'm struck by the complexity that any one segment from the garden represents. Each plant tells a story. Each part of the garden is brimming with its own history regarding the planning, toil, and nurturing it required to get to this point.

In a working garden there is a continual ebb and flow of change. Additions and removal, transplants, divisions, and seeds make up the whole and the parts. Nothing remains stagnant as a garden is where life is abounds.

So if we were to take apart the layers of one scene i.e., the first photo we would see towering scrub oak trees clumped together in their own mini-grove creating the foundation for a naturalistic garden scene. At their base saw palmetto shrubs (serenoa repens) randomly placed evoke feelings of a native Florida oak hammock. These were the starts. The beginnings. Gradually the rest has been added.

There are a few native Scrub palms (Sabal etonia) dotted throughout this mixed bed along with Southern Indica Azaleas.

Mammoth bulbs of 'Red Flash' caladiums peek over the border edged by variegated aztec grass. Also 'Miss Muffett' caladiums clump here and there to blend with all the reds and greens for summer brightness. The large palmate leaves on the Jatropha podagrica (better viewed in second photo) add lushness beside the caladiums.

The medium-height layer includes perennial Xanadu Philodendron. Utilized as a houseplant in most zones but here we put them directly in the ground and mix them up with our Florida native and Florida-Friendly selections.

Tip: plant caladium bulbs between xanadu and aztec grass and the branches on the xanadu help to hold up the caladiums. The aztec grass wedges them in for longer enjoyment at the end of their season when they tend to droop .

Stromanthe sanguinea 'Trio-star' cast a colorful echo of the 'red flash' caladiums. Its foliage is watercolored in green, white, and brilliant red. This one is tender to frost and needs some extra protection during those few chilly nights of winter.

Filling a pocket between palmettos are a few Cordyline 'Chocolate Queen' plants that, like so many of my choices, depend on variations of foliage coloration for their spark of tropical beauty.

What catches my interest most is the unseen. It requires a detailed observer to take an extra moment for a close up view to notice the ground covers. Behind the aztec grass and on the floor level you'll find begonias.

Bromeliads cover parts of the ground areas. Begonias and broms divided and transplanted from other parts of the garden.

And one of my very favorite covers for those otherwise empty ground spots is the 'Satin Checks’ peacock ginger, Kaempferia elegans. But you could easily miss them altogether unless you took the time to lean over the plants in plain view to see the hidden treasures below them.

Layers and layers! Full of surprises and joy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Additional plants in this bed not mentioned:
False blue ginger
Shampoo ginger
Acalypha wilkesiana 'fire dragon'
Aspidistra elatior, Variegated Cast Iron
Clerodendrum wallichii 'bridal veil'
Clerodendrum paniculatum 'pagoda flower'
impatiens
Clerodendrum thomsoniae 'bleeding heart'

Summer Growth

My sincerest and heartfelt gratitude to each one who comforted me with your kind and thoughtful words in my previous post. Losing a loved one this close to me is fortunately not an experience I've had to face in life until now. The grieving process is taking me a bit by surprise as I'm not typically tripped up by my emotions. As a logical and no-nonsense sort of girl, reason and pragmatism guide me in my daily life. Daddy wished for his family to rejoice and not be saddened as he passed over to the heavenly realm. I'm really doing my best to honor his wishes. But I have to admit, my heart is not cooperating fully.

The following photos were taken just prior to my leave of absence to be at my Father's bedside. I'm not feeling particularly creative and words are not coming to me easily but I thought I'd go ahead and share these updated views of the front garden renovation. Progression of this project and the backstory can be read here.

Removing the lawn in this area has been accomplished in stages. During the spring of this year the last remaining blades of grass were eliminated from the front garden. The view (above) from the driveway shows signs of newly planted ground covers filling in from summer's heat and humidity in full force. [The bare spot in the forefront is empty from the recently extracted beach sunflowers. It was beautiful during our dry spring but once the summer rains came the undergrowth turned black and wilted. It does better in a truly 'dry' situation.]

White 'mixed' cladiums are planted in clumping drifts along the front border between flax lily and xanadu. Well, I guess it used to be the front border when grassed edged along its perimeter; now it is sort of the 'middle' border among all the various ground covers.

Both sides of the driveway make up the front garden and only pinestraw pathways and plants fill up the spaces now that the grass is gone. (One clump of beach sunflower remains as the visual above indicates).

Agastache 'black adder' got a trim back after its spring bloom and now it's rebounded with another summer flush of purple spikes for the pollinators to enjoy. A wonderful light licorice scent is the bonus with this blooming perennial.

Morning shade makes this seating area a peaceful place for coffee and quiet before the bustle of the day begins.

In the very center, which is the newest planted area, I used very low-lying ground covers while medium-tall sizes were used along the entire perimeter ... except for the driveway side of course where the two openings to the pathway are accessed. I wanted the eye to graze over the middle out to the edges where the butterfly plants add color and the structural plants provide texture.

Interwoven drifts of varying ground covers that overlap in assymetrical forms keep it from being too predictable. My aim was to mimic the undergrowth of an oak hammock but in an acceptable residential environment sort of way.
The native Mimosa strigillosa or sensitive plant has turned out to be an excellent choice so far. Its airy and fern-like texture is perfect for the center area. [My 12yo grandson took the photo above].

White Wonder Caladiums have a low-lying habit and do well as a border species in sunny locations.

The front garden is a collage of Florida-Friendly combinations mixing in native plants for the maximum effect and least water usage.

Summer is in full swing and the caladiums are shining brightly through all the rain, dry periods, humidity and heat. I'm so pleased at how they fit in with naturalistic appeal I'm moving towards in the front garden.

Solace

Maybe it's because humanity, as we know it, began its journey in a garden that we tend to find peace and comfort surrounded by the beauty of nature.

For as long as I can remember being outdoors, taking in the sight of a magnificent sunset, breathing in the salty air along the Gulf Coast, gazing at the full moon, hiking up a mountain side, listening to the sound of a waterfall, or simply taking a long walk are activities that refresh me spirit, soul, and body.

It stands to reason that my own garden is a tremendous source of therapy. Working with soil and plant life inherently brings satisfaction and enjoyment beyond measure.

It's been a week full with emotions I could not have prepared myself fully for no matter how I tried.

After a long battle with cancer and heart issues my one and only brave, courageous, and loving Daddy passed on from this earth to heaven this week. It was a peaceful and restful outgoing for him and I am so blessed I was with him (in his home) his last days.

When I returned to my home it makes sense the first place I went was to my garden. And the next morning I wandered around in it to allow my heart to find peace.

I'm not sure with whom I will discuss the amount of rain we received or the lack of it from now on. It was my Dad who monitored these bits of trivia with me. And the subject was a source of either rejoicing or lamenting together around the need our respective gardens had for a good rain shower.

Dad is the one who kept me supplied with fresh citrus from his fruit trees all winter long and gave me cuttings of plants from his garden which I've shared with you here.

Dad was an especially handsome, hard working man. An avid outdoors man he loved to hunt and fish and he knew every nook and cranny of Florida like the back of his hand.

And so it is that I have found great solace in my garden these days following his passing. It is the place I know I can go to be lost in thought yet keep a grasp on reality. Because it is brimming with life and beauty it nurtures me in times of sorrow. Yet joy equally fills my soul as I remember our mutual love for the garden and the valuable and treasured gifts he shared with me from his.

I'll miss you every day, Daddy... until we meet again in eternity.