Gardening

[liquidfeet]

NH Hostas is a good place to buy. Go there, and buy the plants in the pots that are large. They are reliable growers, with integrity. I trust that their stock does not have Hosta Virus X (HIV for hostas).

Yes, buying hostas adds up. Dividing what you've got is the best way to build a big garden. Sharpen your shovel, as if it were a knife, and JUST DO IT! They don't scream when you spit them. A mature hosta split produces many mature hostas. Don't buy small ones, if you want fast results.

Where I worked last summer had BIG hostas for $30-35 dollars. They were HVX-free. Best buy I've ever seen. (Yes, I got a discount, but still $35.00 was a great buy for massive hostas.) Wolf Hill Garden Center on US-1 in Ipswich. Check them out.

I'm not sure I'll work this summer there. Self-isolationg, and all.............

 

[liquidfeet]

DIY, I am willing to give away green hostas, but not variegated ones. Interested? Where do you live?

 

[diymom]

I am interested. I have more than enough of the common variegated ones (CL freebies that I split. They were kind of rough looking when I put them in, their previous home was full sun along a concrete walkway and they were not happy.)

I've been trying to focus on different shades of green, different shapes, etc. to fill in most of the space under some large shady maples, leaving just a meandering pathway. On my visit to NH Hostas last year I have to admit to buying the way I often buy wine- by the name. So I'm waiting to see how my curly fries come up this year. But my hosta garden is just in its infancy, nothing at all like yours. Yours is what I am trying for. I'm down in Quincy.

 

[liquidfeet]

My garden is 16 years old. Hostas do their thing, reliably, but somewhat slowly. They enlarge quicker if divided each year or so. I never fertilize, but I do water. If planted under maples they will require more water as maples are known for being greedy for water.

PM me. Once this virus thing is calmed down, come see me and I can give you some stuff. I'm isolating at home right now, hiding out from the coronavirus.

I lived in Waltham a long time ago, and visited Quincy frequently. There was a big thrift shop in the middle of downtown that I liked.

 

[SkiBam]

Enjoying all this talk of gardening. Still have quite a lot of snow on the ground here so it will be a while. It's usually May before much gardening becomes possible. This year - given that skiing isn't happening - I'm eager for spring/summer to arrive.

I'll be the first to admit I am NOT much of a gardener. But I'm keen to plant a butterfly garden and to encourage pollinator gardens in our municipality. Last year Morin-Heights (where I live) was named a monarch-friendly community and I've offered to help the woman who spearheaded this. There's LOTS more to be done in terms of getting more buy-in from the municipality, educating people (many don't even know what milkweed looks like), and creating more of this type of garden. Attracting bees and butterflies is crucial so I hope to be able to help. I've been looking for a new community involvement and maybe this is it.

 

[vickie]

Last summer was my first full growing season at this house. I had moved scraggly plants from the front yard to the back, basically thrive or die. One in particular shot up to 3 feet tall ... strong, but not particularly pretty. I took a piece to a garden center to get it identified, hoping it was a weed. The woman told me it is Helenium, followed by "the pollinators LOVE that in the late summer when other flowers are finished." She was right. The plant became alive with bees.

I divided it and put both plants at the back of the bed where their height will be useful.

 

[liquidfeet]

@Jenny, I finally found the image that shows how big the Sieboldiana Elegans leaves are.

 

[Jenny]

@Jenny, I finally found the image that shows how big the Sieboldiana Elegans leaves are.
View attachment 12506

This looks promising for mine.

 

[Salomon]

Wow . Hostas
We have ours in pots as they get ravaged by slugs . They come up early ( already out ) and then it’s a battle to get them some shade before they get scorched to death ...they are under an Acer tree .
We get very hot here , very quickly ( 40 celcius , 100F + is normal in summer ) so our plant life is very varied .
We adore our gardens . And the good thing about the lockdown means we have no excuses

 

[liquidfeet]

I use slug killing pellets to keep the slugs away from my hostas (Sluggo, Bug-Getta). I buy tow bags each season since I have about 400 hostas. I sprinkle them right down into the middle of the crowns once the first flush of leaves starts to open up. When I start to see holes in the leaves mid-season, I do it again, but just in the areas where the holes have appeared. There are several brands of pellets out there. They all have worked for me.

I also have some hostas in pots. I sprinkle the pellets in the pots and that does the trick. When I've kept the pots on dirt, instead of on a deck, I've put them up on rocks so they don't have solid contact with the soil.

@Salomon, where do you live? You are doing great if you can grow hostas in high heat. Got pictures of your hostas and/or your gardens???

 

[liquidfeet]

Before and after images.

Yesterday I finished raking the ostrich ferns. Here's what that hillside looks like. The small dark protrusions in the middle are ferns. Soon the fiddleheads will be unfurling from those dark knobs. Some springs I miss the opportunity to rake these before they unfurl. Then I have to walk and stand among them to rake, breaking them off with each step. Not good. The larger lumps in the foreground are hostas and astilbes. Note the ubiquitous oak leaves. I raked those away! Where'd these come from?


Here's a close-up. These ferns grow chest-high here in the New England shade.


Here's what they look like, in context, once everything is up and green. Astilbes are the blooming plants in front of the ferns, and most of the rest are hostas. Oh, and yellow Japanese Forest Grass. I love that plant. This little garden area is a favorite of mine. I'm always trying to get the grass to grow. There is very little sun reaching that grass. It resists my efforts at cultivation. The border at the very front is English Ginger. If you ever want to buy some but hesitate because of the price, know that these little plants reproduce fast, if you don't rake away the seeds. Mine are right now getting ready to flower. The flowers are tiny, and lie down on the ground under the old leaves left over from last year. It's easy to not know they are there, and to rake them away before they have a chance to drop their seeds. I've learned the hard way to hand-rake the old ginger in early spring, which I did yesterday, to avoid destroying the almost invisible blossoms.

 

[Jenny]

The yellow of the grass and in the hostas just glows.

 

[Mistletoes]

Before and after images.

Yesterday I finished raking the ostrich ferns. Here's what that hillside looks like. The small dark protrusions in the middle are ferns. Soon the fiddleheads will be unfurling from those dark knobs. Some springs I miss the opportunity to rake these before they unfurl. Then I have to walk and stand among them to rake, breaking them off with each step. Not good. The larger lumps in the foreground are hostas and astilbes. Note the ubiquitous oak leaves. I raked those away! Where'd these come from?
View attachment 12539

Here's a close-up. These ferns grow chest-high here in the New England shade.
View attachment 12541

Here's what they look like, in context, once everything is up and green. Astilbes are the blooming plants in front of the ferns, and most of the rest are hostas. Oh, and yellow Japanese Forest Grass. I love that plant. This little garden area is a favorite of mine. I'm always trying to get the grass to grow. There is very little sun reaching that grass. It resists my efforts at cultivation. The border at the very front is English Ginger. If you ever want to buy some but hesitate because of the price, know that these little plants reproduce fast, if you don't rake away the seeds. Mine are right now getting ready to flower. The flowers are tiny, and lie down on the ground under the old leaves left over from last year. It's easy to not know they are there, and to rake them away before they have a chance to drop their seeds. I've learned the hard way to hand-rake the old ginger in early spring, which I did yesterday, to avoid destroying the almost invisible blossoms.
View attachment 12540

Beautiful pictures. Are you an L3 gardener

 

[marzNC]

Azaleas are starting to bloom in central NC. These are in front of my house.

 

[liquidfeet]

@marzNC, oh my goodness, such beautiful azaleas. Do you prune them, or let them do their thing unhindered?

I lived in Fayetteville, Winston-Salem, Chapel Hill, Durham, and Carrboro. NC is my husband's family home. We have lots of relatives in Hillsboro and Greensboro and Durham. My youngest daughter and a very close friend lived in Raleigh, and now that friend lives in New Bern. Where do you live in NC?

 

[marzNC]

@marzNC, oh my goodness, such beautiful azaleas. Do you prune them, or let them do their thing unhindered?

I lived in Fayetteville, Winston-Salem, Chapel Hill, Durham, and Carrboro. NC is my husband's family home. We have lots of relatives in Hillsboro and Greensboro and Durham. My youngest daughter and a very close friend lived in Raleigh, and now that friend lives in New Bern. Where do you live in NC?

I'm in the center of the Triangle, pretty close to the RDU airport. Can drive to most places in Chapel Hill, Durham, or Raleigh in 25-30 minutes.

I prune the azaleas that are next to the house. We also have azaleas in the woods that I don't do much for in terms of pruning. The pink azaleas are in big pots. I've had good results doing that for smaller plants. Especially when we had an outdoor cat.

The local Garden club has an annual azalea sale in the spring. They have a selection that includes rarer varieties. So I have early, mid, and late bloomers.

 

[SkiBam]

Oh my, reading about and seeing pictures of gardens already in bloom makes me drool. We're so far from that stage here! Still much snow (now solid ice) on the ground. (If skiing is finished, surely it's time for gardening?)

I am a very mediocre gardener but as mentioned earlier, I want to grow a pollinator garden this year. Recommendations (for my very cold zone - I was looking for my zone but I think US and Canadian ones might differ) - are welcome.

Hostas have been mentioned. I was very successful at growing them until two years ago the deer discovered them. That happened for two years in a row (hostas were totally destroyed) but last summer I tried a concoction that a friend recommended which I guess worked as the deer stayed away. We'll see if I'm lucky enough this year.

Happy gardening.

 

[marzNC]

Hostas have been mentioned. I was very successful at growing them until two years ago the deer discovered them. That happened for two years in a row (hostas were totally destroyed) but last summer I tried a concoction that a friend recommended which I guess worked as the deer stayed away. We'll see if I'm lucky enough this year.

What kept the deer away? They not only eat my hostas, they also eat selected types of day lilies.

 

[liquidfeet]

....I was very successful at growing them until two years ago the deer discovered them. That happened for two years in a row (hostas were totally destroyed) but last summer I tried a concoction that a friend recommended which I guess worked as the deer stayed away. We'll see if I'm lucky enough this year.

Liquid Fence works for me. I spray it after every rain. Deer are a big problem. I've been able to keep them at bay by being vigilant.

 

[Salomon]

I use slug killing pellets to keep the slugs away from my hostas (Sluggo, Bug-Getta). I buy tow bags each season since I have about 400 hostas. I sprinkle them right down into the middle of the crowns once the first flush of leaves starts to open up. When I start to see holes in the leaves mid-season, I do it again, but just in the areas where the holes have appeared. There are several brands of pellets out there. They all have worked for me.

I also have some hostas in pots. I sprinkle the pellets in the pots and that does the trick. When I've kept the pots on dirt, instead of on a deck, I've put them up on rocks so they don't have solid contact with the soil.

@Salomon, where do you live? You are doing great if you can grow hostas in high heat. Got pictures of your hostas and/or your gardens???

We are in Southern France and Andorra. Our gardens are in France ( in Andorra , we have a very civilised terrace ). We have over 7 acres of park and garden. A very large vegetable garden with polytunnels. A big old fruit orchard. And a load of other stuff besides !
Still. We are on lockdown. We came straight to France when it was clear what was coming cos the gardens dont look after themselves. The weather is fine so there is no excuse. Our backs and legs ache. Weeding is not the same as skiing . We redid the whole pool/ spa area last year but didnt quite finish the job. When we came back the pergola was on its back with its legs in the air.......so we have a lot of work to do !!!!
I will post some photos when I find some good ones and when I work out how