Gardening
Home Trips Soaring Gardening Big Pond Koi Pond Champ Flying

                                                                                                                                               

 

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It all started when Karen fell through the little deck (luckily only 10" high) outside the living room sliding doors.  We knew we wanted to replace the deck, but with what?  Our buddy Barb, the landscape architect, suggested that anything elevated made the narrow yard look even smaller, and we might want to get to "ground level".  Because our house is passive solar and turned to catch the sun, it means we look directly into the neighbors back yard, so some privacy was also desired.

When we moved in, Karen was thinking of growing Orchids in the greenhouse (like Dad used to do).  Unfortunately, the greenhouse is the solar collector, and it's not shaded or heated,  so the temperature extremes are too much for plants.  In the winter, it gets over 100 degrees during the day, and goes well below freezing at night. So, another way had to be found to get plants into our lives.  Karen has always wanted a perennial bed, and her favorite flower is the gigantic blooms of the tree peony.  One foot at a time, a plan was formulated to include all the requirements, and a few more that "grew" as the project progressed.

No sooner than water was put in the goldfish pond, (before the plants and the goldfish) a big ol' leopard frog set up residence, and has been with us ever since.  His name is "Prince", and Todd worries that he will catch Karen kissing him...

After a large Beech tree died in the middle of the yard, the area was open - so it became the site of the Big Pond, and now, the Ultimate Koi Pond.  The diggings from the Big Pond became the raised beds for the rose garden, and surrounding shrub beds.  With the ponds, we decided to go completely organic on the entire property!  Some photos accurately show the donation we make to the insects to keep the organic balance...  

  

 

The Perennial Bed (in front of greenhouse):

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Greenhouse - the height of summer.  The bed has a different color scheme for each season.  Yellow and purple for spring, bright pink, red, yellow and blue for summer, and yellow and orange for the fall.
The bed in full bloom in the middle of the summer,
3 colors of Phlox, summer
Crocosmia Lucifer - my back to greenhouse, looking out into pines

 
Blue Aquilegia (Columbine) - the state flower of Colorado, spring
Painted Daisies, late summer
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Asclepia (ornamental milkweed), early fall.
Campanula and Chrysanthemum, summer
Delphinium, one of MANY, summer
Another Delphinium variety
Alcea (Hollyhock), new plant for '98, we'll see if it establishes itself
June Foxglove (digitalis)
Johnson's Blue Geranium
Pink Phlox
Yellow columbine
100's of 1 inch yellow flowers on this Chrysogonum virginianum 'Pierre'
The Bells of Campanula 'Telham Beauty' bloom for most of the summer, although the foliage is 3' tall and very fine - sometimes mistaken for a week in early spring.  It also has a habit of moving around the bed!
Only 6" high, the Lamium 'Pink Pewter' is a prolific bloomer in early spring.  Lamium 'White Nancy' blooms all summer in the front bed!
           
     
Species Iris growing in the middle of the GreenHouse bed.  The white/yellow flower on the right is the last of the Trollius which are one of the first plants to bloom.
Nice View from the right side of the GreenHouse showing the large stand of Anemone which will bloom in the fall.  Their foliage texture is a special feature of the summer bed.
 
 
 
 

        

 

 

The Iris Bed (on the east side of the yard):

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My favorite iris picture, I love the view back to the greenhouse!
The New Iris bed, an expansion of the old one, with herbacious peonies at the back and sides.  Dug in 1999, This picture was taken when they were first planted.
Here they are in bloom!  At one point, there were over 500 flowers at one time!
My second favorite Iris - with lots of moss roses cascading over the stone wall border of the new bed
'Edith Wolford'
'Snow Mound'
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'Silverado'
'On Edge'
The color selection was designed to be pleasing during the entire bloom period.
'Lace Artistry'
'Something For Everyone'
"Champagne Elegance"
"Celebration Song"
"Cascade Springs"
"Best Bet"
"Art Form"
"Feature Attraction" & "Edith Wolford"
"Skyblaze"
"Victoria Falls"
"Eagles Flight"
"Lavender Ruffles"
"Change of Pace"
"Mary Francis
"Feature Attraction"
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"Regal Affair"
"Scented Bubbles"
"Pink Rhapsody"
Some of the over 300 Iris - Quite a show when in bloom
Short (24") iris 'Batik' - each one is different, huge flowers
"Beverly Sills'
"Dragon's Lair"
"Jesse's Song"
"Butter and Cream"
"Dandy Surprise"
"Plicata Rose"
"Black Tie"

 

 

The 'New' Corner Triangular Bed:

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My favorite new bed picture, taken from the middle of the bed in Spring!
Fall. Front edge is annual begonia.   Taken from iris; impatiens in foreground between double stone walls
Filipendula rubra. 5 ft. tall, flowering in mid-summer Very graceful!
2 colors of aster, fall
I just think the shot is artistic! Great aster
Forget Me Not
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Terrific stand of pink lilies!  So far, the woodchucks haven't found them...
These flower after all the pick lilies, and the bed goes into it's fall color scheme
Species lily
ENORMOUS!  These stand over 5 ft. tall!  The flowers are 7" across, and there are lots!
2 varieties of sedum.  'Autumn Joy' is the pink in the front; late fall, looking towards garage
 Moss Rose "Candy Stripe"
       
Summer.
 
 
 
 
 
 

        

 

 

 

The Pond Garden (center of yard):

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My favorite pond picture!  This shows the small pond before the large pond was built in 1999.
The view from the east end in '98.  Most of the pond is in total shade from an old beech tree to the left of this frame
View of the back of the pond in '98.  The shade planting includes 5 varieties of pink Astilbe,  painted lady ferns, and Ajuga.
Astilbe 'Serenade' and the painted lady fern Anthyrium nipponicum 'Pictum'
A great sedge next to the water, looking onto the waterfall.  The edges of the waterfall are surrounded by evergreen creeping shrubs.
The sunny margin of the pond supports several varieties of 6" dianthus, flowering in the spring.
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Imperial Taro. Unfortunately, an annual here in CT. This is early fall; it is 3 ft. tall, and each leaf is nearly 10" long!
Water Hyacinth, a floating annual, flowering out from under an aquatic  perennial white Pickerel Plant
Not enough sun in the pond, so this annual tropical water lily flowers non-stop in a tub in the patio corner in '98
The annual water lily for '99
Cute Dianthus
Hemerocalis (Daylily) 'Stella D'oro'
The entire back of the bed is covered in these free flowering Ajuga all spring
Karen's favorite daffodil
2 of the pond residents
Great camouflage, isn't it?
A "permanent" turtle keeps an eye on the goldfish
A blooming Floating Heart (Nymphoides peltata)
Pots of Annuals surround the pond.  Impatiens and Caladium are wonderful in the shade
Ligularia stenocephala 'The Rocket' on the edge of the pond
During the new pond construction, the froggies found new hiding places - here's Mr. Frog in the small water pot with the annual Lily!
A good view of some of the goldfish - 4 of them are 8 years old from the original batch of 16, and are 8" long. Foreground plant is Purple Taro.
The waterfall.  This was removed and exchanged for a bamboo tube coming out of a pile of rocks with the construction of the new pond in 99.
Note the change from the previous picture of the waterfall, to the simple bamboo tube delivering return water from the bio-filter.  This picture was taken in Spring 2001.
 
Can you just make out the ladder in upper right hand corner?  This picture was taken during the Ultimate Koi Pond construction in Summer, 2001.
Lariope Blooming in the small pond bed.  This plant does so well here, we used it extensively in the design of the Front Entryway bed.
Pond ripples.
Tiny white and yellow flowers, along with beautiful heart shaped leaves.
 
 

         

 

 

Herbaceous Peonies (in front of garage):

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The peony bed.  The trellis and then greenhouse are to the left.  Behind the peonies are 2 Espalier Pears, and some gorgeous pink, early blooming rhododendron.
A rare shrimp hued gem.  It nearly glows!  All peonies are from Khlem nurseries, mail-order.
My favorite - Festiva Maxima.  I love the red tips, random stripes, and fringed petals.  The most fragrant variety, great for cutting
'Cheddar Surprise'   Imagine an entire bush of these beauties!
The guardian ant makes sure no pests eat this prize bud!
'Pink Surprise'
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Huge pink 'bomb' type, just opening
Each of these blooms is over 8" across, and fragrant!  Almost too heavy to cut!
The perfect 'bomb', the color is a rich rose
Armloads of fragrant blooms!
This is just one branch!  No fertilizer, just tons of compost in the spring.
This one is over 10" across!
Classic Peony double form.
This rich double red is a great accent.
This one has carnation form.
Bright Pink classic peony.
The pinks of the peonies are the perfect accompaniment to the blues and purples of the Iris.
Rose-form light pink.  The fragrance is exquisite!

           

 

 

The Tree Peonies!:

There are a total of about 20 shrubs that started out planted under the trees on the west side of the lawn, where they got at least 1/2 shade.  Most of these plants were purchased as 3-year-old twigs, and they do not flower until they're 7 years old!  They are now more than 10 years old, and about 24-30" tall.  They should mature over 3 ft. and get more beautiful for the next 100 years, thus their nickname 'estate' peonies!  A little hard to establish, they require lots of feeding and very careful watering.  Not an easy project for an organic yard, the rewards are worth everything!  I lost several shrubs the 2nd year, when an animal gnawed through one of the soaker hoses, and flooded the central part of the bed.  One plant, about 28" tall, supported 14 blooms over 10" across, all at the same time!  Each petal is a work of art, with a multitude of harmonious tone, and gradual shading - some with dark flares near the center.  After they flowered in 2001, the entire bed was carefully moved to make room for the Ultimate Koi Pond.  They are now in a somewhat better position at the back of the Rose Bed along the path to the front lawn.  While they will take another 3 years to reestablish (Tree Peonies HATE to be moved), we only lost 2 very young plants because of the summer/fall draught.  The transplanting went extremely well, and all of the plants have set buds over the winter and should have good strong foliage in 2002.  Hopefully, the peonies will live for several generations in their new home!

'Banquet', Saunders, flowers 14th.
'Chromatella', Lemoine, flowers 15th.
 Bud of 'Hana Kisoi'
'Hana Kisoi', Japanese Mouton,  flowers 13th.
Higurashi', Japanese Mouton, flowers 7th.
'Hinode Seki', Japanese Mouton, flowers 6th.
'Kamada Nishiki', Japanese Mouton, flowers 2nd.  
'Leda', Nassos Daphnis, flowers 10th. 
Bud of 'Murad of Hershey Bar'.
'Murad of Hershey Bar', Gratwick Mouton, flowers 1st. 
'Nike', Nassos Daphnis, flowers 4th. 
'Renown', Saunders, flowers 11th. 
'Seidai', Japanese Mouton, flowers 5th.
'Shinome Cho Juraka', bud opening
'Shinome Cho Juraka', Japanese Mouton, flowers 8th.
'Shintenchi', Japanese Mouton, flowers 3rd.
'Shintenchi' - Karen's absolute favorite!  The largest bush with enormous flowers.
'Souvenir De Maxime Cornu', 1st French Paeonia Lutea Hybrid - Henry, flowers 16th.
'Summer Night', Saunders, flowers 17th.
'Terpsichore', Nassos Daphnis, flowers 12th.
'Zephrus', Nassos Daphnis, flowers 9th.
These pictures are frequently used as greeting cards!
Bouquet of peonies.  There are vases and vases every spring!  Worth waiting through the CT winter for!

Most of these are from Khlem nurseries too, with a few from White Flower Farms.   Look for more pictures in coming years!

 

 

The Rock Garden:

Putting in the 'path' also gave us the opportunity to design a real rock garden that would be placed at the head of the pathway, against the back of the Iris bed.  The Iris bed slopes up towards the back, and the rock garden meets that top and slopes back down. The Iris and Rock gardens form a near circle, with a raised, dividing center line.  The Rock Garden  is also elevated above the path.  Most of the bed gets full sun, but about a third has 1/2 shade, so the planting spans various conditions.  The bed is kept hot and dry with a stone mulch.   6 weeks after it was planted, the plants were more than double in size.  Actually - they all did TOO well, and a serious weeding/reorganization is planned for the spring of 2002!

Directly behind the Iris is the new Rock Garden.  It is mulched with pea gravel, and in full sun.  It's dimensions are about 18 ft. x 10 ft.  There is an alpine beauty in flower from March until October!
This little cactus is thriving!  It has quadrupled in size in 18 months, and flowers like crazy in the spring!  Hard to believe a cactus can survive CT winters!
This Delosperma can be an annual in CT - but it has survived 2 winters, and is just beautiful!
Every time we pick-axe a rock, I'm afraid this will happen...
One of many varieties of primrose on the property.  This one is alongside the rock garden at the beginning of the path to the front yard.
A great little flowering succulent.  Flowers last nearly a month and are only 3" high!

Look for lots more pictures of the rock garden when we can focus our attention on something other than the Koi pond!

 

 

The 'Path' from the back yard to the front yard:

When the Ornamental Pond was dug in '99, we had a whole LOT of extra rock, and even some red clay (you wouldn't exactly call it dirt).  It's very expensive to have it hauled away, so we decided that we could devise some beautiful raised beds alongside the wild area that separates the front lawn from the entryway gardens.  This area is on the South side, so we created winding beds that provide a pathway to the front.  Good soil was hauled in to make a home for the shrubs and trees.

We start our tour from the bottom of the driveway, looking south.  The front lawn contains 2 large drift- beds.  This is the first (or North) front bed.  It has a miniature Lace Leaf Maple, a Shadblow Hickory, and a Pink Florida Dogwood.  The shrubs are Itea and Clethra.  This picture is taken in the spring, and the tulips and daffodils are glorious!
One group of 100 pink tulips.
The second drift (to the south).  It has a Stewartia, a swamp Magnolia, a double- pink flowering crab, a Cercis 'Forest Pansy' (redbud), a Chionanthus (tree-form Fringe Tree) and a tree-form purple Wisteria.
A stand of 100 yellow-centered white daffodils.
100 Yellow tulips.
100 Daffodils
At the back of the drift - looking up the path.
Immediately behind the south drift, are another set of trees on the left side.  There is a Chionanthus (shrub-form Fringe Bush), Fothergilla (Bottle Bush), a weeping blue Cedar (center),  a Japanese Styrax (Snowbell), a Corylus 'Contorta' (Harry Lauder's Walking Stick), A miniature Peach, a Kwanzan Cherry, and a Cornus Kousa 'Rosabella' (rare pink-flowering Kousa Dogwood) .
The Fothergilla in bloom.
To the left of the path are a miniature red-leaved flowering Peach.  This little tree should always stay smaller than 6'.  It flowers before the leaves come out, and the entire neighborhood is scented with it's sweet smell and it's copious blooms!
The Japanese Styrax.  One of the great landscaping shrubs, but very underused in New England.
Close-up of the Styrax - also known as Japanese Snowbells.  You can see one branch with  hundreds of pendulous white bells.  Delicate and stunning!
Continuing along the path, you can see the Rose Garden to the left.

Weeping Pink Cherry at the start of the path.  Tremendous spring color!
Early in the season, you can see the forms of the shrubs and trees to the left of the path.  The foreground shrub is in the Tree-Peony/Rose bed on the right of the path.
Chionanthus.
The Rose Garden is on the right, and the Hibiscus (flowering in red) is in front of a Weeping Cherry on the left side.  The Cherry is surrounded by 6 Heathers - 3 white and 3 purple.  The Heathers  continued blooming throughout the unusually mild 2001/2002 winter!
This tiny Hibiscus shrub (under 30") had at least 4 of these huge flowers at once, and bloomed for 2 months!
The Rose Garden in full bloom.  Along the back side of the rose garden, next to the tree line of the wild area are the Tree Peonies.  The Tree Peonies form an arc the entire length of the bed, and are just spectacular when in bloom!
Here, near the top of the path, you can see the Weeping Cherry on the left, and the Rock Garden just ahead.  On the back side of the Rock Garden are the Iris.  To the left of the Rock Garden are some wild Blueberry and Raspberry bushes that are favorites of the local birds (and the local husbie!).
Now, a different view....
Alongside of the Rock Garden, you can see the Primula and the Pulmonaria to the left of the path.
The head of the path - with the double stone wall on the left, and the Greenhouse just ahead.  Off the picture to the right is the garage bed, and a path leading around the side of the house - cloaked in Viburnum and Keria.
A view from the roof.  You can see the edge of the garage patio that is lined in annual pots along the bottom.  The Iris bed is in the middle of the picture, with the path to the left.  If you look closely, you can see the path winding to the right near the neighbors driveway, heading down to the front lawn.
The Rose Garden - looking from the head of the path down to the front lawn.
Karen often feels like the Jack of all Trades, and she does mess with chemicals for the fish pond...  Hope she doesn't turn into a frog - or anything else!

The Rose Garden:  Most are old English Shrub type roses - all are extremely fragrant.  Karen likes pink!  These bloom from June until October!

 
           
           

 

 

 

 

Pots of Annuals (around the bluestone patios):

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An entire pot of Cosmos 'Bright Lights' - blooms from mid-summer until frost, with lots of perfect flowers for cutting!
Rigor Begonias, this pot comes into the house for the winter, and is enjoyed year 'round
Rigor Begonia
Rigor Begonia
A pot of Double Impatiens with beautiful variegated foliage.  There are 4 plants in this pot, 2 of light pink, and two of purple.
Along the side of the patio in front of the garage door.  Directly behind the pots is the
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