Container gardening at Parkway Manor

Since we last posted, the gardens of Parkway Manor have been coming to life. The problem with lots of things is, as soon as they come to life, they usually kick the bucket. Poor soil and zany pests like to wreak havoc. Our past chances at survival are containers and lots of patience. Here are this season's first containers.


Lots of fun color. Pink, yellow and blue, plus some chartreuse sweet potato vines.

My favorite container! Basil.

Peppermint swirl dianthus with some trailing blue flowery thing.

The snow killed my rosemary. Here's what's left. One stick! I transplanted it, removing some of the exhausted soil and added some oregano and decorative grass.

I bought one too many of the decorative grass, so it's in a lonely pot by itself for now. There is one remaining pot--currently it's home to some tubers that may or may not grow again this year. If they don't sprout in a few weeks, we'll re-purpose the pot and start another container.

A couple more flower photos

A few quick ones that I snapped while I had the chance. First, some pale pink flowers on the rhododendron that grows in the small plot next to the sidewalk. It's full of blooms right now:


And you've seen the Marigolds before, but this particular bloom was so vibrant, I had to zoom in for a close-up:

Lots of rain but the color is out

We've had rain, rain, nothing but rain for days! But our lovely garden persists and the flowers are determined to come out to play. Here are a few of our (waterlogged) lovelies.

The last of the bulbs in the square plot are these Yellow Alliums, which are having trouble standing up, but I held one up for a good shot:


This bushy plant with tiny pink flowers I've been able to identify as Spiraea Bumalda, which is a relative of the Eurasian plant called Meadowsweet. It's currently lighting up our front walk.

Out in the back amidst a ton of greenery (I think the Goosestrife are on their way), a few lily-like plants cropped up. I did an internet search on them, and they clearly appear to be Spiderwort. Here's hoping a few more of them can survive the deluge.

The main bunch of Azaleas in back are now in bloom with the last group, these are all salmon pink.

One of the ground cover plants we have out back is this lovely lavender Phlox, which I'd be happy to see fill in a larger area.

Last year our friends Charlie & Steven gave us a set of climbing Roses, which we bought a small iron pyramid for. Over last summer we just had to cultivate them and give them space, and this year we were rewarded with the first blooms - like crazy! They are already giving us a lot, and I think will stick around for a long time if we keep them pruned and well fed.


Coming up I hope to show you the huge Lilies, and maybe even...Blackberries? Stay tuned!

Birds and blooms

It's been wet, wet, wet here in the DC area for a couple of weeks! That's made it tough on our flowers to stay in bloom lately. But we finally had a day of sun yesterday, and a couple of new plants decided to come out and shine.

First, our absurdly beautiful Yellow Irises, which I can never really figure out. They pop out of a two-dimensional base, and then form this complicated structure. They smell like soft lemons - love them!

And over closer to the patio we have a Lavender Rhododendron which is starting to burst forth with puffballs of flowers:


You may have noticed our bird feeders in other pictures. I'm going to try my best to take some bird photos, but without a telephoto lens it's a challenge, and I have to be REAL patient. That being said, I got a couple of decent shots yesterday. You'll have to click on the photos to enlarge and see the birds.

Here are some reddish-purple House Finches - we see a lot of these little guys:

And we also get several types of woodpeckers - this one is a Red-bellied Woodpecker, easy to spot with its brightly red cap:

From Parkway Manor, we hope you all have a wonderful Mother's Day!

.

Flowers big and small

.

As we continue to wait for rain to wash away all the pollen, I'm finding that a lot of the smaller flowers are blooming around the yard. Today was a good time to prowl around and snap some more photos.

Near the back of the yard there is an old arbor that's falling apart - the only thing holding it together is this strong Red Honeysuckle which blooms like mad for weeks.

You've seen the pink and the white, but this week it was time for the flaming Red Azaleas!


One of the surprises we found last year were these patches of rich Purple Columbine. I planted a few more from seed last year, so we may be lucky enough to get a few more blooming soon.

I'm pretty sure that this Rhododendron was in bloom last year, but I certainly don't remember the flowers being so vividly white and pink! It's our surprise stunner to end the month of April.

On one side of the patio we have a small square that has become almost completely overrun with Lily of the Valley. And that's just fine, because with lovely delicate flowers like this, how can one resist?

As for the bulbs in the square planter, our latest bloomer is this strip of Red Empress Tulips. (I think that's the name - Scott can correct me.) This might be my favorite so far!

And lastly, I know I already posted a picture of the Pink Peony, but it's so lovely, I can't resist taking more pictures of it! It's just ludicrously big and fluffy.


.

Pollen is everywhere

.

It seems like there is a coating of pollen over everything outside this week! I'm not sure why - maybe all that rain we had loosened it all up.

But the good news is that we are hitting the high blooming season around the yard. This week it's more azaleas and the peonies!

Out in front we have some small Lilies - not sure of the variety, but they are pretty.



For a few days now we've had tons of Pink Azaleas. It took me awhile to get a decent shot, but this close-up works:



After the pink comes the White Azalea:


This is the gorgeous Pink Peony bush that bloomed all in one day. We're happy to see that some of its seeds are growing nearby, so hopefully we'll have a fuller display in the coming years.

Out in the front yard there's a small dark Red Peony which is starting to burst open also:

Even the grass is in bloom! Or something - these wildflowers are dotting the back yard near the big Oak tree.

And one last shot purely for artistic value. The Parrot Tulip looks interesting, even as the flower dies away:

Next up we should have some more azaleas (red this time), more peonies, and the full unveiling of the Mammoth Blue Hostas.

.

Quick flower photos

The storm was a-comin'! So I had just a few quick minutes to snap some photos of our latest blooms.

This is a new Lily that Scott picked up at Lowe's. It's replacing an insidious ground cover plant that I yanked out last week.


And now we have Tulips coming up in our square planter from last fall's bulbs! Scott says they smell like candy. This first one is certainly sweet - it's called a Parrot Tulip.


These are just a pretty multi-colored variety.


And this pointy beauty is called a Chinatown Tulip.


Lastly here's a close-up of our Bleeding Heart. It starts small and then branches way out - a simple tiny beauty.


Unfortunately I couldn't get a decent shot of our first round of Azaleas - but I'll try again this weekend. I imagine this batch (the dark pink ones) will be in bloom for at least a week.

.

On A Clear Day

The weather was perfect on Saturday. We got some yard work done and spent plenty of time relaxing on the patio as the sun went down and the grill cooked up some tasty burgers.

Bringing the outdoors in

Today we were having guests over for a delicious Easter dinner (check out ScottE's blog for all the photos and details and the food). For my contribution, I took clippings from around the house to attempt my first flower arrangement. It was looking just OK, but then Scott suggested some of the Crab Apple Tree for color and height. That really made the difference! I'm pleased with how it turned out, and the Hyacinth and Tulip really provided some great fragrance all evening.

For whatever reason our weather continues to be on the cool side which is atypical for April in the Washington area. So whenever there is a spot of sun I'm running outside to check out the latest in the garden.

First up, we have progress on all of our new bulbs! They've been coming up amongst the Marigolds and should give us several months of beautiful color in the square planter area. Below are the Narcissus (which I learned today is the same thing as a Daffodil) and two lovely Hyacinth.


Most of the existing Tulips around the yard are pretty old, so they aren't doing too well. But this lovely red one was determined to bloom all by himself next to the patio. While on the other side of the patio, the Hostas are all bursting forth beneath the birdbath.


Now for the mystery plants - any suggestions as to what these are? The first two are big flowering bushes that grow on the east side of the house. The last one almost looks like a weed, but it's come up in the same place for 2 years now. It's pretty tiny.


And lastly there is this pretty thing. What is that, you might ask? It's our Crab Apple Tree! It doesn't really grow any fruit; it's primarily a flowering variety. But it should be lovely for awhile!


Next up we should have appearances from the Peony bushes, and maybe the Azaleas - stay tuned!

.

Blooming trees

Daffodils are the first sign of spring around our beautiful garden. But considering those seem to pop up even when the temperature doesn't get above 40, I look up to get our first sign of warmer weather to come. And it comes from our blossoming trees.

You may know that this week is the National Cherry Blossom Festival here in Washington. But why head down to the mall when we have a lovely Cherry Blossom right in our own backyard? It was hard for me to get a decent photo on such a gray evening, but you get the idea - lots of puffy whiteness all over.

The other bright spot now is the even showier Tulip Magnolia. It bursts into lush pink blooms that last for a few weeks in early spring. Contrast that with our "regular" Magnolia tree that brings forth its white flowers in late summer. This particular shot of the Tulip Magnolia is looking through the middle - it's really quite a sight!

Tucked underneath this tree is a little Camellia bush. It's not very showy, but it does produce at least one red bloom at a time from mid-winter through early spring. Here's her latest:

In the square plot this year we decided to forgo any vegetables this year, getting out of the squirrel feeding business. Instead we bought a bunch of bulbs at Eastern Market which went down in the fall. Scott cleverly covered it all with chicken wire to protect them in the early stages. To help as a squirrel deterrent and for a splash of color, we bought some Marigolds this past weekend to fill in the square. Looking good so far. Can't wait to see all the Tulips, Hyacinth and Narcissus come in very soon!