Well, not a ring exactly but some kind of protection. I'm talking about safeguarding my semi-tenders for those of you who might be confused by my slightly ambiguous prose. Seriously folks, last year my poor defenseless 'Sundowner' Phormium was nearly beaten to death by my ignorance. To take an adage from my kids: "It wasn't my fault." You see for several years, I would stubbornly and incessantly query local owners of the genus Phormium as to their cold hardiness in our Zone 8 climate. "Sure no problem. They sail through our winters," was the universal declaration. So, trusting soul that I am I believed them and found a prominent place for my dear 'Sundowner.' Then as luck would have it, Murphy barged into the season and brought down the mercury. We had the winter from hell.
I liked my Phormium. I should have put a ring on it, or better yet, an insulating bucket or something. [Okay so my attempt at humor is slightly overstretched and I've completely desecrated Beyonce's song.]
Phormium 'Sundowner' [Sep 09] This is the Phormium in question. It survived. I won't post the pathetic photo from last January.
Random photos:
Acer palmatum var. disectum. This beauty was inherited. I love, love, love its fall foliage.
Do you think my lichen-laden fence needs an extreme makeover? Yes, but it looks awfully cool like this.
This is some kind of Begonia with dangling flowers that resemble Fuchsia. I wintered it indoors last year and once I set it out, it grew like gangbusters. The foliage and stems are as pretty as the flowers.
I just loooove how my confiscated [kidnapped] hollyhock baby grew into such a dazzling beauty.
Above and below are shots of the garden in July. Above is a shot of the main axis pathway looking south. My house is to the right. The pink bloomer on the right [leans towards lavender in this shot] is Silene dioica 'Clifford Moor.' A plant I highly recommend.
The pink rose below is 'William Baffin.' The blooms aren't fragrant but the plant excels in every other way so all is forgiven. I think this photo may have been taken in mid-June rather than July.
I liked my Phormium. I should have put a ring on it, or better yet, an insulating bucket or something. [Okay so my attempt at humor is slightly overstretched and I've completely desecrated Beyonce's song.]
Phormium 'Sundowner' [Sep 09] This is the Phormium in question. It survived. I won't post the pathetic photo from last January.
Random photos:
Acer palmatum var. disectum. This beauty was inherited. I love, love, love its fall foliage. Do you think my lichen-laden fence needs an extreme makeover? Yes, but it looks awfully cool like this.This is some kind of Begonia with dangling flowers that resemble Fuchsia. I wintered it indoors last year and once I set it out, it grew like gangbusters. The foliage and stems are as pretty as the flowers.
I just loooove how my confiscated [kidnapped] hollyhock baby grew into such a dazzling beauty.
Above and below are shots of the garden in July. Above is a shot of the main axis pathway looking south. My house is to the right. The pink bloomer on the right [leans towards lavender in this shot] is Silene dioica 'Clifford Moor.' A plant I highly recommend.The pink rose below is 'William Baffin.' The blooms aren't fragrant but the plant excels in every other way so all is forgiven. I think this photo may have been taken in mid-June rather than July.
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43 COMMENTS, Click here to add yours:
Now that song is stuck in my head. lol.
You would need a very large bucket to go over the phormium. Can you just tie it together with string so it doesn't get beat down?
My Phormiums were badly beaten last year also (in Eugene, just a spit away from you), but in past years, they really have done well. Don't give up on them. Most of mine survived, they just took some time to look decent again.
I see you have Tetrapanex 'Steroidal Giant'. Isn't it great!
Would love to see your garden in person some day.
Cindee
Beautiful, all of it. I love going back to see how things looked when the weather was hot. Well, hot here, not there.
Now that song will be stuck in my head again :)
I love the Phormium and hopefully it'll accept your ring and make it through the winter.
Thanks for sharing such beautiful pictures from your yard, I always enlarge them and look at all you have going on in them. I just bought a galvanized bucket to use as a planter, I haven't had the heart to put holes in it yet.
I've added Silene to my growing wish list, it looks like a great bloomer!
Hi Grace, it makes me sad ;)... years ago we lost our P Sundowner, then two years ago I started another, much smaller, and unfortunately it did not survive last years cold winter. That is a sign... no more for me. Well, maybe.
The brilliance of that maple is so stunning! has to stop you in your tracks.
I thought your title very humorous, Grace, but didn't know it was Beyonce's song. I thought it was an old time saying, and it may be that as well, HA How sad for your Phormium, I hope you are able to protect it, or its replacement. We always hope they will be hardy here, but they can never make it through the whole winter outside, right up until February and then it finally melts as that is some of our coldest weather. The maple and lichen covered wood are stunning! The begonia too. :-)
Frances
Grace,
That is my favorite hollyhock! The fence is cool but that moss is bad news, it does make a well composed photo. We has a small bit of fungus growing on top the arm rest on Meg's pink chair in the garden...
William Baffin is gorgeous, a real stunner!
I LOVE the hollyhock!! The fence is perfect just the way it is. I love the lichen it adds so much interest.
That red/pink foliage is amazing!!!!!! The hollyhock is pretty darn nice too (just bought some seeds of hollyhock by pure accident, hope they work in pots!)
Don't know your Sun'downer', good name for your post...Love the red foliage, tyring everything I know to get a hollyhock to bloom....I still love, love, love looking at your gardens...my blog? Yes, that is me in the header from this past July....
Dear Grace, I hope you do put a ring or something on that beauty! I am in zone 7b and had a Phormium one summer and the foliage died back over the winter. Once spring arrived it came back (only to be eaten by the rabbits- or as I call them...damn rabbits)
I am in love with your Japanese Maple too. What a blaze of color.
Like your signature... :-)
Your garden is a lush jewel Grace! You could not have it that way without lots of rings around it in all the love and care you must bestow. I love your fence with the lichen and moss... so poetic and dangling begonia is lovely. I wish your 'Sundowner' ... love that name... a safe winters sleep. Sigh ... last night we had a heavy coat of frost... Well it is December 2. A joy to see these summer blooms. Carol
Hi Grace,
Such a pleasure to see your garden in bloom! I hope that after your loving and tender care, it all survives a winter of "hell".
Thanks for sharing all this beauty...you are a remarkable and talented gardener.
Rosey
Grace I love your Phormium and its pink and burgundy variegation's.It looks so pretty in your pink garden. And oh, the Acer is gorgeous. What a striking red display it makes.
Beautiful Phormium, Grace. Love, love, love it!! Last summer I inquired at just about every nursery in Vermont - no one has any Phormium here. Next spring I am going to New York to get some, dang it!! :)
Your lichen fence is lovely, too!
Silene grows as a wildflower around here, but it's white (wouldn't do for you)...love the shape of the flowers.
We had to negotiate with our neighbor, who is a neat freak, to keep some of the fence posts that have aged and gathered moss. I love them that way, but he is hell-bent on replacing them with new, pressure-treated posts. You can imagine how this attitude affects the occasional border dispute.
Yikes. This morning when I saw that it was 30 degrees outside I realized I had broken a promise I made to myself last winter. The one about having suitable protection on hand BEFORE December 1 for all my flax and others that were trampled last winter. The winter denial runs deep....
Hahahhaha! I love musical references in garden writing like this: totally unexpected and funny. Not say that phormium isn't funny and all....and yours? Your phormium is super gorgeous. That pink color!
Wow! I love that red fall foliage! This was a fun post.
Hey, I just got back from the Oregon shore. You live in such a lovely place... What fun to be in a zone where everything grows!
Yes, the fence is definitely cool with all the moss and lichens. And your deep red hollyhock is so luscious! I will be interested to see if I lose any plants from our mid-October drop down to 16 degrees. I forgot to protect my newish 'hardy' agapanthus and roses. Hmmm. Not so good. But I'm crossing my fingers for them.
Oh, I put in my first phormium this summer, wouldn't you know it's Sundowner! Right on the retaining wall, facing all those harsh western winter winds... poor thing, it will probably be short-lived. So, where do you get such a tall bucket? :) Funny title, you crack me up. I have that maple or one much like it, two in fact, also inherited. Didn't get such pretty photos as yours, though!
have I mentioned that you always make me literally laugh out loud?!
Grace, Your garden is delightful~I know I say something similar when ever I've visited...but it is! I have been trying to get hollyhock established here for years. It was my mother's favorite plant and seriously, the only one she could id! What is the secret? Sharp drainage, and full sun are hard to find here! gail
My daughter and I LOVE that song! Great post title. Your garden is gorgeous. I can't imagine leaving a phormium outside! You're so lucky. Mine is downstairs in the basement for the winter ~ I hope it doesn't mind its stay there. and NO, don't makeover the fence ~ it's beautiful just the way it is ~ covered in lichens.
I agree with you, look after your babies or they won't make it through the winter.
What a absolutely beautiful garden. My dream garden has some of your elements..... sigh.
Jen
Hello Grace,
I just love your title - it is so true that nothing matters when you are gardening.
The fall foliage is just stunning with it's bright colors. Unfortunately, we do not have a lot of plants with autumn foliage, so I enjoy seeing photos posted by others.
Thank you very much for faving my blog on Blotanical and for leaving a comment. I look forward to following your blog.
Noelle
I didn't realize until too late that our phormiums wouldn't reliably survive such a winter. I lost one, kept one. This year, I'm wiser. This year I know better. Also, this year I have not done a damn thing to protect my plants and here we are with forecasts in the 20s. Damn. I had the best of intentions. I just can't stand to cover up their lovely foliage while it's warm, and then once it's cold, I'm not in the mood to go out there some dark night after work. Why can't these cold days give me a week's notice?
I have not seen your garden before, and that is MY kind of garden! Looks a lot like mine, galvanized buckets and all.
I have coveted phormium for years. I even ordered two plants one year, at a very dear price, but they didn't manage well in our summer. I finally gave up on them, but I do envy yours. I love the form, the colors- I just think it is such a cool plant.
Great post, Grace.
LOL, Grace, I didn't even know that was a Beyonce song. I don't know if I've heard any of her songs.
I enjoyed your post and photos. That hollyhock turned out to be a beauty! I don't think you show your garden from that spot often. I love your place!
I usually forget to protect my less hardy plants. I've read where you're supposed to wait until the ground is frozen to mulch, and by then, it's too cold for me to want to be outside.
Ahhh... that hollycock is so pretty and red... my fave. Actually I just love views of your garden anytime and any view. I can see why you love the Acer palmatum var. disectum... oh, maybe that's because it is in the red color family. Yes, love the fence just like it is.
Meems
aloha grace, beautiful phormiums, strangely they don't sell enought varieties in hawaii...i do love your acer also another thing we can't grow, i'll have to show you something we have that is similar in leaf structure and is variegated...very nice post
noel
I always make sure my semi-tender wears protection...
Hi Grace! I love, love, love your gardens!! Just beautiful. How long has it taken to get to this stage? (I understand they're always evolving...) ;-) Love that acer palmatum... I looked it up. It looks as though it's mostly a zone 6 - 9 plant. We'll have to wait for a little more "global warming." ;-)
Hope you're enjoying a great weekend!
Sundowner is my favorite Phormium! Your's has especially fabulous color! i should would protect that beauty. Please don't replace that fence...it is just too lovely.
The hollyhock is dazzling indeed! So is the color! Amazing!! Lucky that you confiscated it then. Hih hiiii ...
BTW, thanks for your ever kind words in my blog. I appreciate them.
As usual I have enjoyed your garden views Grace. I have only just been converted to phormiums and 'Sundowner' looks a gem. Hope that this winter is more considerate:)
Phormium is quite new to me. I have never seen this begonia before but it is sooo cute. i am delighted to see single holly hock as it is liked by many butterflies here still nurseries and gardeners are drifting towards the double ones.
Now if it were me, I would be crowing about how the phormium survived all odds. And check out how gorgeous it is! I'm currently torturing mine (Maori Sunrise I think) - they're in the dark down cellar. Somebody famous said they'd survive that but I have to say they're not looking great... But I'll be sure to crow if they make it. (Thanks for faving me on Blotanical!)
Hi Grace, I enjoyed this post. Glad the phormium survived. We are having lots of rain at the moment. I am telling my plants not to get too comfortable and accustomed to water. Also loved your lichen fence. And your hollyhock baby although I am shocked that you seem so nice but in reality are a ruthless kidnapper! cheers, catmint
Grace, how well you speak of the officialdom we all know: I have had people in nurseries insist I cannot grow what is thriving in my garden - and also I've had them insist something works in zone 8 which regularly croaks. Thanks for your tips on tender care. Love the acer palmatum cultivar, that is splendid, and I envy you your whole garden composition.
Prue, you can definitely grow hollyhocks in pots, I have done it many times. They do need a nice deep pot with plenty of water.
Happily, I don't have that song stuck in my head (not a Beyonce fan) but I DO love phormiums. I've brought mine into my office for the winter, where it can rest and wait for spring to come.
Grace, thank you for your supportive words on my blog. Isn't lavender the bestest plant? I love everything about it.
Your begonia looks like a Begonia fuchsiodes. I got one last spring at the RSBG plant sale. I love it.
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