HQ Fauna

Since we've put in Lake Larson, filling spaces with plants, and using more earth friendly gardening practices, I have noticed a big influx in wildlife in the yard. We have a ton of nesting bird this year...cardinals, blue jays, sparrows, and robins. These little guys are in the blue spruce we planted behind Lake Larson and I think they will be out of the nest by next week. I feel like a slum lord with them all crammed into that little nest like that.


This dude is an import...Eric's friend of a friend owns a pet store and they dropped Mr. Bullfrog off here. He was living in a 10 gallon tank at the shop and he was outgrowing his living quarters. I haven't seen him much since last week...I hope he chooses to stick around. We did have a green frog who hung out last year and sang all summer long, I'm hoping he comes back too.



One feathered guest I am glad not to have seen thus far is the heron. I think since I'm still upstairs in the kitchen as my office, there's too much movement inside the house for the heron's liking. Soon, I'll move the office to Deckzilla then Lars and I can do some serious heron patrol. I can report the foxes are back this spring much to Lars' chagrin. I have been seeing them primarily at dusk and in the morning around 8 - 9 am. I wonder if they are hunkered down with a litter of kits someplace close.

How does your garden grow - reprised for spring 2010

I had a visit with a client who has been with me for several years a couple of weeks ago. The gardens featured above were designed and planted...oh, I want to say about 7 or so years ago. We have also planned other areas of her yard since then and we have created a wonderful friendship as well as some great gardens. Her gardens are a riot of bold colors in the summer from both perennials and annuals. We went chose this color scheme because her husband is legally blind but can see the boldness and not to mention it works well with the color of the house.

I come over here regularly because Rosemary takes care of the gardens herself for the most part. She is great about asking questions or for help if she needs it. She's a really fun client and I'll show you something really cool about her gardens that you don't notice unless you're up close and personal.


Rosemary is a retired art teacher and is still actively sculpting. It's always a treat to see what's new in her garden or what has been brought back from the gallery she showcases her sculptures. A lot of her pieces have significant meaning and I love to hear her explain why she made something.


How cool are all of these guys!




I think the armadillo has been in the garden the longest...



Hee....a toad abode!

Free is for me!!!

Compost is something that all gardens can benefit from as I'm sure you've heard about. I compost but I often burn through the amounts my little bin makes in a bed or two. That's kind of a let down especially if you've been tending to your pile all season long. But, luckily...I have another source at my disposal.

The City of Warwick composts all of the yard waste they collect from their residents and offers it back to them...for free. You need to be a resident (and have proof) and be able to haul it away. Landscapers can't come and take it away in their business vehicles. However, if they were in an unmarked truck and was using it for their own gardens, that's okay. I've told many a Warwick client about the compost program but they have their reservations about the quality of it. A lot of people are worried if it is broken down enough or if they would find things in it. This is the second time we've gotten a truck full and both times I've been happy with the compost.


If you click on the photo, it should give you a larger version. You should be able to see the consistency of it then.

What the city produces in their compost piles is very similar to what I haul out of my bin. So, if you're from Warwick and you're reading this, don't fear the municipal compost. If you aren't a Warwick resident, check with your city or town and see if they have a composting program. If they do, they just may save you a lot of compost turning.

Good bye and good riddence evil yellow flag irises..

There's a funny (well, funny now) story about these plants I bid a gleeful farewell to. I had gotten them from someone who worked at Chaves years ago. I had thought they were kind of cool because they were supposed to have yellow flowers and had variegated leaves. They never did well...they just kind of languished in my soil at both the Coast Guard house and now this house. Last year, it dawned on my what they were - Yellow Flag Iris which are a water plant. Cool, right? I figured I'll put them in pots and throw them into Lake Larson. Since they were in a pot, they can't spread....right??

Well, let me tell you, they were very happy in Lake Larson. They grew to almost 5' tall. 5' tall plants in little 12" diameter pots fall over...a lot. I spent most of last summer righting these stupid things where they sitting on the pond liner. We had some near the large flat rock we stand on to feed the fish and they were in the view path of Deckzilla. I never, ever expected to grow like they were on steroids and boy, did they look dumb there.

After two years of having them annoy me with their brazen growth and they started to break the pots, I felt it was time to go on to a better place (like my compost bin, for example.) Eric was a sweet guy and started to remove them from the pond when he was doing a spring clean up. All of them he removed on his own until he got to the ones by the feeding rock and this is what he had to battle -


**gasp**

It took the both of us to get that out of the pond...the roots had grabbed a hold of every rock it could reach. Within that mess is one 12" pot and a little 4" pot...those two pots produced Frankeniris. Now, I see very clearly why CT and MA both have this plant on their invasive plant lists. They did this in my pond in pots, could you imagine what this could do to a natural pond or lake. You would have nothing by iris in a very short matter of time.

How does your garden grow and your walkways go??

This spring I have been slowly overhauling the entire website myself. (That's why you see some pages in my new, cool earthy style and some in the older sage green style.) I also do a pre-season survey of my current clients to see if there's anything they need from me during the upcoming spring. I've been asking them to share photos of their projects so I can update photos or add sections of past projects or works in progress. These photos below are from a job that we wrapped up in Fairhaven, MA in 2007 and was started to be installed later that same year.

The client had some random square cut stones laid in the turf as their pathway from the driveway to the large stairs. They really, really hated how that looked. They are right across the street from the ocean and they really wanted to have a new walkway that reflected the coastal landscape that surrounded them. Below is what I came up with...and I think this is hands down the coolest walkway I have come up with to date.


Here's the detail of the pebbles and the cobblestone skirt. OMG, I am totally in love with how awesome this turned out. They love it just as much because this was something that completely fit their architecture and existing stonework and their coastal surroundings.

I think this photo below was taken when the stones where wet so you can see the contrast of the different pebbles. So cool if I say so myself.


They have also built a stone wall across the street on the lot they own that goes down to the water. They wanted something once again that would fit the stonework on their house and the coastal feel. The clients really wanted to have some separation from the street so people would realize that someone actually owned that piece of land. They were having an issue with trespassers on that lot and since the wall has been built, the problem did decrease. For the meantime, the clients are holding off on the plantings for the front of the house and surrounding the wall across the street. As much as I love the hardscape on this property, I cannot wait to see it accented with the plants we chose.

LOVE IT!!!!

How not to prune trees...

WOW....I didn't realize over a month has passed since I last made a blog posting. I'm really sorry about that...spring has sprung and I have been busy showing the Boy Wonder. So, the blog has been neglected. :( But now we have flowers popping up and large amounts of growth (thanks to the monumental rains), I'll have plenty of things to write about and take photos of. Speaking of those rains...Garden Consultant HQ got flooded out and now my office is in my kitchen which is a bummer. FEMA just left here this morning and hopefully, they will deem us worthy of assistance and we can put the office back together quickly.
Anyway, on to today's post and lesson of how not to prune trees. Just when I think I've seen it all when it comes to bad pruning...I see something that surpasses it. I'll go from bad to worse in this post on things I see around town...most of these photos are the work of professionals **shakes head** and one is a residential property in my neighborhood.

Here's a nice naturally shaped flowering pear in Middletown, RI.

Here's another flowering pear in Middletown that someone decided to prune and I honestly can't figure out why they would. There are no wires nearby, there are no limbs that could damage cars, and the canopy is high enough people can walk underneath them. This tree looked like it is trimmed regularly into this shape....WHY??? I'll give this person an C - for effort because they did attempt to make it a pyramid so they could maximize leaf surface area for the sun.


Now, both of these next photos I shall also give a wag of my finger (a la Stephen Colbert) for both horrific pruning practices and equally horrific design practices. Below is a Cryptomeria...beautiful tree when allowed to grow to it's natural size of 50 -60' tall and 25 - 30' wide. If you would like to see what one should look like check out this link - http://www.cnr.vt.edu/Dendro/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=458 Why someone decided to plant one here baffles me....it's going to be WAY too large for this spot!!! So to take care of this "problem" the landscaper decides they must top it. Nice.....

This photo was taken at the same gas station. This poor suffering soul is a Cypress. Really?? You really had to plant a tree that is going to be 10+' right next to the stop sign? What's wrong with you?? What was the landscaper thinking when they cut it like this?? They should just put the poor plant out of it's misery and just remove it. Sheesh.

Oh...and this place. I totally could tear into the topiaries but am choosing not to. You can see the lovely Japanese Maple to the left of the front door. It's never been touched from what I can see. Look right in front of that pole one in from the right....see the stumps? That was another Japanese Maple the same size as it's mate....they decided for some insane reason to reduce it to 5' stumps. I thought they were going to remove it...oh no, I think that was their way of "pruning" it. Then there are the three little mushroom trees near the street and the driveway. Two of them are Japanese Maples...not the type that are the cut leaf weeping forms...but the same type as the big one. Hmmmmmm. Then the mushroom closest to the garage is a dogwood...tree. Good lord...I can't wrap my head around this at all. My brain hurts just trying to think of a remote reason for why this would be good horticultural practices.

So kids, that is today's lesson of how not to prune trees.

Gardens - the gift that keep on giving.

I know I have posted links to a client of mine's blog before. She's an artist and she and her husband hired me last year to help them plan the landscape for their new house. They had the typical icky landscaping contractors throw in to sell the house. Well, we changed all of that and created a never ending supply of art subjects for her.

Sunrise Garden by Roxanne Steed

Hepa filter? You don't need no stinkin' hepa filter! Plants that clean air.

A friend of mine sent me this link and it just reinforces now neat plants are.

Kamal Meattle on how to grow fresh air | Video on TED.com

I have a "Money plant" here at the house...but I know it as a Pothos and I think that's how you would find them marketed out in retail land. All of these plants they mention are very easy to find and grow. I have some allergies myself and maybe I'll grab a few more for around the house. Hmmmmmm

Thanks Scott for the link! :)

Aerogarden lettuce - WIN!!!

I've been slacking on writing this week's blog post but not without a good reason. The common cold from hell came and whomped me good. I'm still getting over it and am glad this came this week instead of next week which is flower show week! If you find yourself in the Providence area next week, come on over and visit the show. I'm in booth 313 in the marketplace for the 5th year in a row. I didn't design the RINLA exhibit this season because my other roles in the organization was going to take up way more time and energy. But, after doing it for 4 years, it was time for someone else to take the job. ;)

I've been taking weekly pics of the aerogarden lettuce crop and I will admit I am shocked at how well it grows lettuce. I had to finally add some fertilizer tabs early this past week and the rate of growth is insane after I dropped them in. I know I have only grown lettuce for just under three weeks, but I would definitely recommend this little gadget for anyone who wants to grow veggies in the winter or if they have limited or no space outside. I'm almost dying to get another one and try something else in it. Maybe after the flower show I'll indulge myself with a three pod aerogarden.

Below are the photos I took last week and you can see the growth is really good from the photos I posted on here last time. I am using just tap water for this crop to see what happens and the quality of the foliage. I found this wonderful place - Areogarden Growers Community and a lot of them recommend distilled water for other crops like tomatoes and peppers. According to them, some municipalities have decent water and one could get away with using your tap water. I think I may use distilled water for some other crops because I don't want to take a chance with crappy results.





These are the pics I took a couple of days ago after adding the fertilizer tabs. Look at that difference!! I even lifted the lights up one notch because of the height of the plants. They said in the literature you can harvest lettuce three weeks into the growing process. I will admit, I was skeptical about that premonition. But now, I can see it is completely feasible. I think you almost have to harvest at three weeks just so the plants can be maintained.








My name is Cris, and I am now officially an Aerogarden junkie.

Tit for Tat

Eric couldn't let me be the only one with stuff in print! LOL So he had to out do me and get himself in an herbicide ad campaign in a national magazine!!! I'm married to a model!!! This product is an herbicide for ground ivy and Eric had given them a raving review for it's effectiveness. So they decided to have him be the spokesperson! This ad is from Lawn and Landscape Magazine. I guess it's supposed to be in others and he has another company talking to him and trying out their products.

"Buy this product or I'll knock your lights out" (ROFL!!!) Apparently the photographer told him to look serious. This is the "I mean business" look he mastered in the Coast Guard dealing with people breaking the law.

Cool Stuff for Mr. Larson...before I know it, he's going to have "people" and a posse. LOL Anyway...on to plants.

I acutally had germination a couple of days after we set everything up. I'm glad I started with lettuce because they germinate fast and so far have been easy. The above photos was as of the beginning of this week. The greenery is just cotyledons or the very first set of baby leaves.



I took these below photos just yesterday and now the real leaves are starting to emerge. Some are just green and some are speckled with red spots which I know is a variety of lettuce because I've grown something like this outside before. I've only had to add just a little bit of water since it's been running...I totally could have left it alone and for a while. But I'm like a mother hen with this crop because it's my first. I'm really using great self control on not buying a 3 pod Aerogarden off of eBay for just flowers on my marker desk next to my drafting table. I would like to get one...I don't think my self control will last much longer.

New Garden Gadets and Lake Larson is famous

I'll start with the cool news that just happened today. A year or two ago, Laura Rice (the author of Practical Horticulture - a college horticulture textbook) contacted me and wanted to use some photos of Lake Larson, a tigerlily of mine, and another garden I had designed. I said okay and then didn't hear anything about it again...until today. So, the Fedex truck shows up and dropped something off at the door...I thought Eric had ordered something because I wasn't expecting anything. This was in the package -


My tiger lily photo!! (I'm not particularly fond of them...but I guess they will have to stay now)


Lake Larson back during the first season we had the wet pets -


Lake Larson as the focal point as you start the book....freakin' cool!!!


I didn't see the other photo she had asked for which is a bummer for the client...I had told them about it when she first contacted me. I wonder since all of the pics are in black and white, it didn't have the pop that it has in color. :(

But, on to the rest of my post! I have been toying with the idea of getting an aerogarden after talking with a client of mine who had one. I looked and read the reviews online from people who had them and that sealed my decision. The only thing that kept me from getting it was the price...for a good sized one, they are around $150 - $200. Um, yeah...I couldn't really justify that. So, I started looking on Craigslist for one and got it for half of the price. That I can justify especially if it can take some $$ off of weekly groceries, I'm all for that. I decided to start out with the lettuce greens pack. I have been researching and learned that you can resuse the pods for your own seeds which I plan on doing once the lettuce goes by. Yesterday, the pods came and after a little technical difficulties with the water pump - we're up and running!!! I have it down in the basement because the thing is bright and I can also keep an eye on it since the office is down there too.



The close up of the pods....


My anti-cat device...high-tech isn't it. But, knowing how evil my cat is, I can see him ruining this in 10 seconds flat.

Birds of a feather feed together!

Happy New Year everyone!! I decided to take a little breather from posting over the holidays...not to mention, there wasn't a whole lot going on gardening wise either. It's been frigid here and I haven't been spending much time outside at all. I think throwing a ball around for Lars has been just about it for outside activities. I do have a new gardening toy I grabbed off of Craigslist I'll debut next week when I have it all set up.

Bird central has been very busy these past several weeks. I really have been enjoying the feathered visitors who come and have dinner with us. I added some suet cages for the Carolina Wren and the Woodpeckers. I snapped a couple of photos of the woodpecker a week or two ago (the last time we've had snow)....



I had a goldfinch who was coming regularly to the thistle feeder for a couple of days but I haven't seen him much this past week. The guests to Bird Central have been primarily the juncos, my pair of cardinals, house finches, and the chickadees. I have sparrows thrown in the mix there but they are not as plentiful. I haven't seen much in the way of nuthatches and titmice which I kind of find suprising.








The other night, we had a visitor of the furry persuasion. I was up late playing Wii **blushes** and heard this banging around outside on the deck. After I figured out it probably wasn't the wind, I peeked outside and saw this -


I'm fairly certain Lars could smell him...because he was all fired up that there was something outside. Lars (and Sam) have discovered opossums before and I can only imagine what they think of them...probably something along the lines of "ugly kitties". I grabbed my camera and popped it out the door so Lars couldn't go busting out there to investigate. Ugly kitty, indeed.