variadm – Page 119 – variegatagal

A visit to Gunters

I made a stop at Gunter’s greenhouse on my way to work today. I had wanted to see if they had anything unusual to add to my patio garden, but as usual, the orchids are the biggest draw. I stepped into the prehistoric jungle and wended my way among the spectacular blooms. Orchids rock! I recommend the place highly if you are looking for something different in plant life.

I potted up a couple of dark red dianthus with my calla lily/jasmine. I also have 3 planter troughs now, sitting on my patio, waiting for paint to dry. I imagine it won’t take much for me to find something to plant in them. Methinks I’ll be needing another bag of garden soil now. I intend to put a mix of garden and potting soil in each of the troughs, to gently remind them that they will find a home in a real garden some day.

Around the apartment complex where I live, the indian hawthorn are bursting with flowers, and the pink and white salvias are starting to show their colors. I plan on stealing a couple of sprigs of white salvia so that I can grow them on my own.

Now where are my cosmos seeds???

Bulbs on the Patio

Calla lily bulbs are in! Though I’m somewhat disappointed with the size of the Flame bulbs…scrawny compared to Red Sox. I’m wondering if I should have purchased more Flames. The asahi zuru is leafing out nicely…though I’m seeing more variegation in the leaves that get more sunlight. Must get to a nursery to buy potting soil!

Another glimpse of the early spring patio

I snapped the next set of pictures of my slowly-expanding patio garden this morning before work. The asahi zuru is slowly unfurling its leaves, like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. Both salvias are sporting brilliant red blooms. The new rosemary shrub is perfuming the patio. And last night’s addition, a Salsa asian jasmine, sits merrily in its store-bought pot, waiting for a new home. You can see the new planter trough which I have painted in hammered bronze.

Meanwhile, I’ve added another round of plants to my shopping cart. I ordered two varieties of lavender, Coconut Ice and White Provence, from Blossom Farm in Ohio.

Coconut Ice Lavender Plant	2	4.90	9.80
White Provence Lavender Plant	2	4.90	9.80

Seeds and bulbs on order

I couldn’t resist, I placed my first plant order of 2009 today.

From Pacific Callas I ordered two cultivars of calla lilies:

Calla Lily Flame	3	3.75	11.25
Calla Lily Red Sox	3	8.50	25.50

From Park Seeds, I picked up two packets of my favorite Cosmos.

Cosmos sulphureus Cosmic Red	1	1.80
Cosmos sulphureus Cosmic Yellow	1	1.80

I can’t wait to put in my orders for the heuchera…

Early spring on the patio

A pleasant discovery: there is a sprinkler head position in front of my patio. So it seems my salvia and maple are getting watered without any intervention from me. I’m not certain that the maple is getting its requirement, but since the weather has been cool, I’m not increasing the amount it is currently getting.

I visited Puckett’s Nursery in Allen and picked up a rosemary bush. I’ve decided to expand my aromatic herb selection and am currently shopping for a lavender bush to add to the patio garden. I’m considering a white-flowering cultivar, compact but preferably with a strong perfume. Ellagance Ice is one cultivar I currently have my eye on.

Meanwhile, I have decided to shelve the caladium idea and try my hand at heuchera and heucherella. They possess the fiery color which I believe will pair well with calla lilies. I also hope to finally get my mitts on a couple of Salsa Asian Jasmine. I just need to paint the new planter trough I purchased and start sating my spring gardening cravings.