Winter Wonderful

You thought I didn't realize it was the first week of spring with my title. Truth is, I admit, I started writing this blog several weeks ago.

It WAS a wonderful winter and I also realize I have been absent from this blog. Not at all absent from gardening. Honestly, could Floridians have asked for a more beautiful winter season?  Winter is probably the time of year I love most. It's so refreshing when the temperatures drop into the 40's at night and the daytime temps rise to high 60's. Dream weather for me.

Although there isn't nearly the maintenance to keep up with in the garden during winter there are still plenty of gardening days to keep a Florida gardener busy. The weather is so inviting with all that beautiful sunshine and less humidity, it makes you want to find ways to be outside,

This year I sprinkled baking soda on some of the winter weeds growing within the lawn and discovered it killed them without killing the grass. It mostly worked on the one pictured and the Oxalis that invades during winter.
FYI: It didn't faze the more difficult weeds like dollar weed. I know. That would have been too good to be true. 

Weeds and more weeds right? Weeds you don't even see during the other seasons. They pop out because it's also their favorite weather. Cool nights, warm days. Rather than let weeds go all winter and collect them all at once when it warms up, I feel so far ahead of the seed heads that can spread the weeds when I'm diligent to pull them along and along. You will love your garden much more when it's time to trim back in spring if you aren't scurrying around also managing winter weed control. It's so much easier to pull weeds when it's cool anyway.

Florida has so many months of hot, sweltering heat that the cooler months inspire me to get in gear on new projects. I wait for a cold winter day to start new planting beds. This year that meant a mid-January weekend. I watched the weather and in anticipation of a day staying in the 50's F (no sweating on that day) I had potting soil and mulch delivered to be ready for my project.

The southwest end of the front garden. It needed a bit of a balancing refresh. The northwest end (next to the driveway) is all plants. I've been thinking since we moved in here that this end needed plants instead of grass.

For over a year I've been mulling over a solution for this corner of the front garden. The grass needed to go, but there are two pine trees that shed badly above this space. If you have pine trees you know how messy they are. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the needles for mulch. But those same needles get caught in every branch of every shrub and literally layer on top and through the branches of underplantings beneath the trees. It's a catch-22. Love the pine needles to collect for mulch; dislike them hanging in the Azalea shrubs and drowning out the smaller ground covers. In the end I've decided to keep the pine trees and make the best of it.

This photo is taken from the opposite view as the one above. The end of my property line is a couple of feet beyond the cardboard. A strip wide enough for one mower swipe.

First I put a layer of thick cardboard/newspaper over the grass, then a layer of approximately 10-12 inches of potting soil (not top soil which is too heavy), then a layer of 2-3 inches of mulch. This combination will smother/kill the grass in 8-10 weeks (quicker in summer with heat and rain.)

In this photo (taken from the street) it isn't finished, but a good start with perennials and low-lying shrubs.

You know I was chopping at the bit to plant it, but I wanted to make sure the grass and weeds were DEAD before I broke through the cardboard with my shovel. It saves me lots of heartache over the long haul when I wait long enough for the smothering to do its duty.

Making decisions about what to plant in this spot has been interesting. I knew for certain I wanted to add Agapanthus. My elderly neighbor supplies me with an extremely hardy and vigorous variety that we haven't been able to find in garden centers. There is a good number of these beautiful lilies planted at the northwest end opposite of this. It should look pretty great when they all bloom at once. That probably won't happen this year. For some reason Agapanthus like to hold out on me for a good year after being transplanted. I dug up about 20 of them from my neighbor's yard to transplant here and so far they all seem to be adjusting pretty well. I just cut off the leaves that yellow from the shock of dividing the bulbous roots.

This was the best BEFORE photo I could find taken in early January.
From the street you can see the entire corner is entirely lawn. It has a gentle slope toward the street/rocks.

From the street you can see the entire southwest corner of my front yard is entirely lawn. It has a gentle slope toward the street/rocks. You can also see the two 50' pine trees on either side of this space. Again, pine needles make beautiful mulch, messy plants.

Photo taken the first day of spring, 2016,  from the street. See, I really do know it's not still winter in spite of my title.

I'm not quite finished with it because, of course, there will be Caladiums.  So far, Agapanthus, 'Little John' bottlebrush shrubs, Coonties, Dystilium 'Blue Cascade' (a new shrub for Florida/me), Foxtail ferns, Giant Apostle's Iris and bromeliads. Every plant choice is low growing (below 4'), drought tolerant, cold hardy, Florida Friendly or Florida native and they all do well in high-shifting shade. Low maintenance was the primary goal!

Another view of the front garden this week with some of the Azaleas deciding to peak for spring's arrival. We like this patch of lawn that breaks the expanse and gives the eye a rest between gardening beds.

I've removed a lot of grass in this new garden already, but mostly in the back yard. I don't have plans to remove anymore in the front after this. Do you remember my front yard projects from my old garden? There wasn't a blade of grass left in that front yard by the time I took out one section at a time. 

The weather this week in West Central Florida? A surprisingly cool front came through making the beginning of spring feel a bit more like Florida's winter wonderful! I'm loving every minute of it. Happy spring.

Happy gardening,
Meems


* I post to my Facebook gardening page almost daily. If you'd like to join us there to keep up with Hoe and Shovel Gardening here's the link: Hoe and Shovel on Facebook  or if you need to copy and paste https://www.facebook.com/HoeAndShovelGarden/.

*If you've just arrived to this page as a new gardening friend or perhaps missed the back story about how we moved from our home and garden of 30 years to the house next door you can catch up here. 

All material (text and photos) © 2007-2016 is authored by Meems for Hoe and Shovel Gardening Blog. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

Why I Wait to Plant Caladium Bulbs

'Puppy Love'

It is so very tempting to jump the gun and plant Caladium bulbs in springtime when the soil and air first begin to warm. New shoots of Caladiums from the year(s) before respond to the seasonal transition and lingering sunshine. Out they come, slowly unfurling into glorious shocks of brilliant color. Fingers itch to put more of them in the ground right away.

'Burning Heart' is the larger, background Caladium with 'Tiki Torch' bordering.

It's perfectly acceptable to plant Caladium bulbs anytime after your last frost date and when the temperatures warm to above 65F (or so) consistently. But, I like to wait. Caladiums respond best to warm, moist soil, and humid air. These are the conditions that make them best suited for summer foliage plants. As my Florida gardening friends are well aware, our spring season is typically very dry.

'Classic Pink' in the front garden.

I don't know about you, but I tire of dragging hoses around to my newly installed plants in the spring. Caladiums do not tolerate drought conditions for any enduring length of time. As a matter of course, they prefer our summer rainy season. Happy they are to receive a good daily downpour as long as the soil they're planted in drains well. You don't want to put them where water collects.

'Puppy Love' in the front garden.

As difficult as it may be to wait past spring to plant, I do. My bulbs are ordered early from Classic Caladiums for the best selection. I don't actually have them delivered to my doorstep until June and often don't get the last of them planted until July (or later). At that point the soil is warm (day and night) and our summer rainy season has kicked in full force. New sprouts from bulbs rocket out of the ground in a matter of days and colorful foliage unfolds in what seems like time-lapsed speed.

'Celebration' under the blue bottle tree and 'Radiance' on the right in the back garden.

Happy heart-shaped faces of reds, greens, pinks, white, and even salmon colors shine for the entirety of summer, and often into fall, when planted later. The general life-span of Caladium plants each year when they sprout or re-sprout is about 150 days.

'Tiki Torch' mixed with 'Desert Sunset' in pots.

I prefer my annually planted bulbs, with their dazzling foliage show, to peak mid-August into September when many of the spring blooming flowers have faded.

'Lemon Blush' and 'Desert Sunset'

Summer is Caladium season. They thrive with very little attention once the rainy season begins and provides them with plenty of nutritious water from heaven.

'Classic Pink' to the left and 'Lemon Blush' to the right.

My garden is chocked full of Florida-Friendly and Florida native plants, but Caladiums are the stars of my summer garden. Waiting to plant them until after the spring dry season is well worth the patience required.  Especially when August rolls around and there is still ample color gleaming in my garden from their easy-care foliage.

*** All Caladiums shown are varieties from and sold by Classic Caladiums.

*** Other articles I've written on Caladiums.

**** Come hang out with me and other gardening friends for daily updates from Hoe and Shovel on Facebook... here's the link: *** Hoe and Shovel on Facebook **

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you've just arrived to this page as a new gardening friend or perhaps missed the back story about how we moved from our home and garden of 30 years to the house next door you can catch up here.



All material © 2007-2015 by Meems for Hoe and Shovel Gardening Blog. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

Aggies Light Up Spring/Summer Garden

That's my affectionate name for Agapanthus Orientalis. My love affair with these plants is a long running one. I've sung their praises and extolled their easy-growing characteristics numerous ways on this blog over the years. 

I put some of them in the back garden also!

As with so many of the plants in my garden, my sweet elderly neighbor gave me my first one. That one plant multiplied on its own rhizome and I divided it and transplanted it. But that was in my old garden. In my new garden there is another similar story to tell. 

The same elderly neighbor who gave me my first Aggie also gave the previous owner/gardener that lived in this house before me her first one. Only the previous owner NEVER divided hers. When I moved in here there was a ginormous clump of them in the front garden. 

Prior to our decision to stay in this home/garden permanently I dug up that gargantuan clump and divided it into about 40 individual plants. In an effort to help beautify the curb appeal here (because we were planning to sell this house). I filled in an empty spot by the street with some of those divisions. They looked downright awful for about 6 months. It was hard to look at those pitiful plants every time I pulled into the driveway.  Gradually they started putting out new leaves and looking like they weren't mad at me anymore for taking them out of their cozy corner. 

Phone photo

Even before the individual flowers open up, those tight buds are adorable. They will keep you in a state of anticipation for weeks prior to their full-blown flowering. From tight buds to open flowers the display lasts a solid 8 weeks. I even let mine go to seed to enjoy the dried heads in late summer/fall.

Phone photo: One Aggie stem mixed with devil's backbone, purple queen, cast iron leaves, bird of paradise leaves and coleus in a tall cut glass vase.

Cut stems make a nice statement in mixed fresh arrangements. I never want to cut too many though. I like them best out in the garden. *smile*.

I just HAD to get out my ruler to see exactly how wide those big flowers are.

The giant umbels of glorious color atop slender stalks rise 4-5 feet above the foliage. Wherever they are growing they create a dramatic flare. 

My excitement over Agapanthus plants intensifies at this thought. In Florida we just don't have many options for this type of showy perennial. 

Full with buds of promise in mid-May.

This cultivar that my neighbor shared with me is unlike any others I've seen elsewhere. The strappy, leathery leaves are thick, shiny, and wide. In the winter the foliage sails through our harshest weather. Gotta love that.

The green stems with purply-blue trumpets at each end are a magical duo.

A tiny pollen-covered bee the same size as the stamen .

Pollinators, butterflies, and hummingbirds are frequent visitors.

I grow mine in partial sun and partial shade. Partial sun means they get morning sun, filtered sun, then full on sun for a brief part of the day. Partial shade means they are never in full on sun, but lots of high filtered sunlight most of the day. I haven't tried fertilizing them although I've read reliable information that suggests they don't mind some extra nutrients. After they bloom their foliage won't look quite as robust as it does while blooming. That isn't really very noticeable except to the most observant onlooker. Overall this plant is a must-have for a Florida garden. It's one of my favorites EVER in case you hadn't already figured that out. 

****
Come hang out with me and other gardening friends for daily updates from Hoe and Shovel on Facebook... here's the link:

*** Hoe and Shovel on Facebook  **

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you've just arrived to this page as a new gardening friend or perhaps missed the back story about how we moved from our home and garden of 30 years to the house next door you can catch up here... http://www.hoeandshovel.com/2014/07/a-new-journey-bitter-and-sweet.html

All material © 2007-2015 by Meems for Hoe and Shovel Gardening Blog. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

How-to :: Succulent Planter in a Birdcage

It's been quite a while ago, but I used to keep the sweetest, tiniest, chirping finches in this white birdcage. Since then I have thought often about repurposing the cage for something useful again. When I saw the photo above (I think I found it on an FB gardening page), I was immediately inspired. Succulents are fun and unique plants that don't require much attention from the gardener.

I had no idea how to duplicate the inspiration piece, but I thought I'd give it a try recently. This is what I decided would likely work. If you'd like to do it also this is how.





Birdcage
Small pebbles
Sphagnum moss
Potting soil
Perlite (optional)
Succulents
Dowel (optional)
Decorative rocks (optional)

You may not need to paint your cage. I did. I painted my white birdcage Espresso Brown. The cage also has a hanger and a stand. All were painted with spray-paint ~  Rust-oleum primer and paint. I chose this deep brown for the cage so it would blend into the background and allow the green plants to be the focus. After it was painted I let the paint 'set-up or cure' for a couple of days before I began transforming it to a planter. Curing time for paint helps delay deterioration.

Now that it's painted and cured let's get creative. 

Place very small rocks in the bottom tray for drainage. I used about an inch of small pea gravel. This makes the cage heavy so be sure your stand (or hanger) and bottom will hold the weight.

Soak sphagnum moss in water. Wetting it thoroughly helps to make it easily moldable and it stays in place until the next step. I put the moss in a bucket of water and let it drink up the water thoroughly.

Mold the drenched moss using small quantities at a time (squeeze out excess water as you go) to the sides of the cage about 4" or so in height. My cage came with plastic inserts that slide in and out on all four sides. I put those in place to help hold the moss in. When I was ready to plant I removed them. You can better see the plastic slides two photos down.

Mix your favorite potting soil with about one part Perlite. Perlite is optional. See all those white specks? That's Perlite. My favorite potting soil is made with some Perlite in it. I added more Perlite because I had some on hand. Perlite will aerate the soil and help with drainage. Succulents need good drainage.

Soak the soil in a bucket. I find the soil easier to work with if it is already wet for this situation. Also, if the soil is already wet you won't have to run water over the plants and risk movement of any of these components once it is finished.

Pack the wet soil inside of the exterior wall you made with the sphagnum moss. I used the open door to the cage to stick my hand through. It was awkward and slow, but it is the only way to get your hand inside.

I didn't purchase any new plants for this project. I used my newly rooted succulents and a few small pieces of various types I had left over from other projects. 

Plant the inside of the cage with as many succulents as you think fit and look appropriate considering height and mature size. I put in varying sizes/shapes and then added some small decorative pebbles to fill in empty spaces.

Plant the outside of the cage. I used a small dowel to poke a hole between the small wire openings.  A pencil or large screw driver could also work ~ you just need something to penetrate the moss and make a way for the stem to slip into the soil without damaging the roots. I gently inserted each rooted cutting through the opening made with the dowel. I used rooted pieces without soil attached or I knocked off the soil.  There isn't room to fit soil and roots through the narrow wire. I did my best to tighten the interior (wet) soil around each insert to secure it. I placed one hand inside the cage and gently packed the interior dirt around each piece while holding the plant with the other hand outside the cage. I also attached a small Tillandsia to one of the exterior scrolls (without dirt) just for fun.

I won't add water for a couple of weeks or more since my soil was already soaking wet. I'll add more succulents later if I need more to fill it out. I'm kinda waiting to see how these initial pieces take off first.

The newly planted birdcage and stand has found a home on the outside deck in partial sunlight.  This spot never gets midday sunlight but it does receive lots of filtered light and morning light.

I feel pretty confident about the interior plants. They will likely take root and adjust to their new environment eventually. The true test will be the exterior inserts.  If the outside pieces actually root and take hold my copy of the inspiration piece might be successful.

The whole project took me about an hour including painting. It didn't cost me anything at the time because I happened to have all the supplies already on hand. I like that.

Obviously, my planter has some growing up to do before it reaches the amazing beauty status of its inspiration piece. Good thing I'm a patient gardener.

Where's the most unusual place you've planted succulents or other plants? The possibilities are endless when plants are given the proper conditions. I'd like to make a succulent wreath some day ... it's on my list.

All material © 2007-2014 by Meems for Hoe and Shovel Gardening Blog. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

***************************
Come hang out with me and other gardening friends at Hoe and Shovel on Facebook... here's the link:
*** Hoe and Shovel on Facebook  **