Native groundcovers

The Virginia native ground covers are starting to fill in under the mountain laurels.

From TTH20100531

The big round leaves are wild ginger, Asarum canadense. The mounds of pointy leaved plants (word of the day: acuminate = pointy leaved) are Virginia snakeroot, Aristolochia serpentaria. It is the larval host plant for the Pipevine swallowtail butterfly. I have only been found by Pipevine swallowtails once, two years ago. My little neighbor girls discovered the caterpillars and were thrilled. I sent one of them off to school with the cat in a jar and the butterfly book to show her class. She told me the caterpillar spun a cocoon while in her care. I never heard its ultimate fate.

Sweet Bay Magnolia

This is Magnolia virginiana, the Sweet Bay Magnolia. I think it's a lovely thing. I do admire the big Southern Magnolia but my neighbors have them and they have maintenance issues. For starters, they get huge and I don't have room for another huge tree. Sweet Bay grows to about dogwood size with a shrubby, multi-stemmed habit. Southern Magnolia leaves are very tough, leathery things that do not break down well. They and the big seed heads have to be raked and won't even compost well. I like the color of the Sweet Bay leaves, light green on top and silver below. The flowers have a light, almost lemony scent and a nice waxy substance.

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Edibles

The asparagus bed got off to a rocky start this year. Winter 2009 set in early and hard before I got it weeded, fertilized or mulched. Weather stayed cold and wet in the spring until it started sending up spears. I did finally get it cleaned up and it got down to business producing. I love having lots of asparagus to eat and to share. I even got my neighbors, self-described picky eaters to try it. Bob brings me bags of cucumbers and tomatoes all summer so I was glad to reciprocate.

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The herb bed became infested with wire grass. I spent a day digging it out along with a large dead rosemary bush. That gave me a clear space for the basil and other annuals in a good sunny spot.

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Moving the basil gave me a little more room for greens. I always say I'm not going to bother with vegetables and then always decide to plant a few. This year it is the Mystery Vegetable at the back. It's a surprise for a friend who remembers it as a childhood treat. It will be harvested in the fall and then I can tell you what it is.

In front of that is some chard, then parsley. Buttercrunch lettuce is to the right. It has been struggling in a heat wave. I hope some will head up before it bolts.

In the fall I will plant some weird kale called variously Lacinato, Tuscan or Dinosaur kale. It has very dark leathery leaves, not curly edged like most kale. It makes a wonderful tangy salad. The kale is stemmed, sliced very finely, dressed with olive oil and lemon juice and then tossed with mix-ins. This week that is radishes, young local garlic and scallions. I could eat a bucket.

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Rose genetics

Autumn Sunset

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is a naturally occurring 'sport' of

Westerland

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I love them both!

Hedge Roses

Darlow's Enigma with a few wild Virginia roses (pink) peeking out. DE was a 'found rose'. No one knows exactly what it is but the fragrance can carry clear across the yard.

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Wild pink roses. Not the dreaded multiflora, a terrible invasive around here, but native Virginia and Carolina roses.

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Hagen's Woods 2010

March 21

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April 10

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May 29

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Carolina Allspice in weedy mess

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Ripening serviceberries

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Scarlet elder, a favorite early ripening berry for birds. I whacked the bushes back pretty hard in the fall but they're growing fast.

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New Community Project - Harrisonburg

I picked up a flyer at Saturday's Farmers' Market. It's for the New Community Project - Harrisonburg, who describe themselves as a "faith-based nonprofit organization with the modest goal of changing the world". I like the looks of their projects and hope this may be an entry point for me to get more involved in community initiatives. I'm always glad to find new playmates!

http://ncpharrisonburg.wordpress.com/
http://www.newcommunityproject.org/grounds_keepers.shtml
http://www.newcommunityproject.org/

Wildflower meadow 2010

Here is what it looks like at the end of winter:

From TTH20100531

From TTH20100531

Ideally you burn off the old vegetation but I live in a town where the neighbors and Fire Department would look askance, nay have a conniption fit, if I set fire to the backyard.

I tried an ordinary gas powered string trimmer and it could not cope. It didn't even make a dent in the tough stalks.

This is what I need:
DR String Trimmer
But alas, I lack the $500 to $700 for it and couldn't justify the cost anyway. I used to have one but lost custody in the divorce.

This is what I have:

De-thatching rake

It got the job done but it was a brutal job. I dragged at the stalks with the rake and periodically hacked with a machete, loaded it all onto a tarp and dragged it to the curb.


April 10

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May 29

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Mostly Penstemon in bloom

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Bumblebees love Penstemon. I watched them burrow deep into a flower, back out and bumble on the the next.

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