Saturday, March 8, 2014

Lycoris

Lycoris
A genus of bulbs that are part of the larger Amaryllis family. The funnel-shaped flowers appear late summer after the foliage dies down.
Plant the bulbs no more than 6 inches deep and 1 foot apart.
Most species are hardy from zones 7 to 9

* photos taken on Aug 2011 in Columbia, MD

Lycoris aurea ( Golden Spider Lily )
Reaches up to 2 x 2 feet and is a native to China and Japan.
The golden-yellow flowers are up to 4 ( rarely over 3 ) inches across.
Hardy zones 7 to 10

Lycoris Hill Beyond Hill
Flower scapes, up to 2 feet in height, bear spidery flowers that are yellow fading to creamy-white.
Hardy zones 7 to 10 ( possibly 6 )

Lycoris Oosumi

* photos taken on March 28 2010 @ U.S. National Arboretum, D.C.

Lycoris radiata ( Red Spider Lily )
Native to the Orient, it reaches up to 3.3 feet.
The leaves are up to 18 inches in length.
The orange-red, spidery flowers are up to 2 inches across.
Hardy zones 3 to 8 ( mulch heavily during winter in colder regions ).

Lycoris sanguinea
Reaches up to 2 feet in height, with red flowers, up to 2.4 inches across.
Hardy zones 6 to 9

Lycoris squamigera
Reaches up to 3 x 2 feet and can spread rapidly.
The leaves are up to 12 x 2 inches.
The pink flowers, up to 4 inches across, are borne on large inflorescences.
Hardy north to zone 4 if summers are hot.

* photos taken on Aug 3 2011 in Columbia, MD

Friday, March 7, 2014

My Turn to the Dark Side

How an Annual Snob became an Annual Obsessive

I’ll admit it: I was an annual snob. I really wanted a T-shirt that said, “Friends don’t let friends plant annuals.” For me, annuals meant overused bedding plants: red begonias plopped in front of the Wendy’s sign; straggly petunias past their prime in a hanging basket; or squatty little orange marigolds that never blended with anything else. Plus, annuals are simply impractical. Why spend money on an annual you’d have to throw away in the fall when you could plant a perennial?

Plus, there was something just downright tacky to me about annuals. They are loud, over-the-top, and always stick out in a crowd—kind of like that redneck cousin who drinks too much at family reunions. Perennials, on the other hand, were more refined. I spent the better part of a decade mentoring under the late perennial genius Wolfgang Oehme. I understood the medium. Perennials are a thinking man’s plant. I loved the cerebral challenge of arranging perennials. They constantly change. Arranging a border requires the mental acumen of a chess master. Leave the annuals to the fast-food chains and gas stations; perennials were my game.

But something’s happening to me now. No, I have not stopped adoring perennials, but I am increasingly captivated by annuals, tropicals, and bulbs. It first started when I was tasked with designing a raised median in downtown D.C. The client wanted a seven-foot wide median to be a beacon of color. It had to be beautiful in every season; stand out among the busy downtown environment; and never have a down moment. Gulp. I quickly sped through my shortlist of long-lived perennials. Nope. Long blooming shrubs? Nope. It would have to be annuals.

Median with boughs and stems in winter

We ultimately decided to combine annuals and bulbs with sculptural shrubs such as columnar hollies and cloud-like hedges of boxwoods. Designing four seasons of spectacle—including the dead of winter—proved to be a one of my toughest horticultural challenges. At first, I was reluctant to use bedding annuals at all. We specified an elaborate mix of rare tropicals, designer annuals, and shrubs with colored foliage. I was rather pleased with the cutting-edge selections I made until I found out that the contractor could not find most of the plants. Not to cover a median that stretched three blocks. Last second substitutions meant dealing with what local annual nurseries had available: lots of pansies, lots of mums, lots of vinca. I remember being horrified with the first season rotation was almost nothing but yellow pansies and blue mums.

But the bedding annuals looked good, particularly at 45 miles per hour. From then on, we figured out how to use a base of bedding annuals and interplant more interesting combinations of tropicals, bulbs, and even shrubs used as annuals. The bedding plants provided the impact, and the accents provided the designer look.

Janet Drapers fabulous Ripley Garden

Of course, through my horticultural journeys, several great plantsmen have tempted me with the dark and seductive world of annuals. Janet Draper’s Ripley garden at the Smithsonian Institute always featured fabulous exotic selections like the purple-spiked silvery leaves of Solanum quitoense or the inspired combination of Golden Shrimp Plant (Pachystachys lutea), the deadly Firestick Plant (Euphorbia tirucalli), and Yucca ‘Hinvargas’. And there is Dan Benarcik’s mind-blowing combinations of tropicals and annuals at Chanticleer. And of course, Nancy Ondra’s blog was another inspiration. Every time I see one of her combinations of annuals and perennials, I immediately go out and drop $20 on some mail order seed catalogue. Finally, there’s the Long Border at Great Dixter. I’m obsessed by what Fergus Garrett is able to do in that strip. So much horticultural expertise goes into such a concentrated space. Is it over the top and gaudy? Perhaps, yes. A hot blooming mess? Definitely. But it is one of the most brilliant stretches of planting anywhere on the planet, and I am forever haunted by what they are able to do.

My final turning point to the dark path of annual obsession was my own experiment doing a perennial border. After smothering a large area of lawn for six months, I was so tired of looking at mulch and cardboard that my wife and I filled the area with a bunch of aggressive “filler” perennials. That did the trick. It was an instant garden, but the border immediately became one big hazy blob of green. And that’s what I call it now. It’s not the border, but the big-hazy-blob-of-green (BHBOG). Last year, I tried to cut the garden with some “structural” perennials—perennials with more distinctive silhouettes—but they had a hard time establishing in the BHBOG. The BHBOG is hungry and it eats everything you plant in it.

So I’ve had it. Next spring, I’m ruthlessly hacking into the BHBOG. No more mild-mannered perennials. I want over-the-top, shocking color. Ridiculous color. Burn your retinas color. I don’t care what it takes, but I’m throwing every cheap trick for color and foliage I know. Bulbs? Yes! Bazillions of them. Tropicals? Yes! If the leaf is less than six feet long, I won’t consider it. Self-seeding annuals? Yes! I’m buying seeds by the pound, not the packet. Spiky plants? Yes! Agaves,yuccas, acorus . . . it’s all going in. More is more. Yes is more. Everything will be considered as long as it’s effective. If it doesn’t scream color or texture, it’s gone.

And that’s how it happened. An annual snob turned into a foaming-at-the-mouth annual obsessive. “Horticultural exuberance is the new civil disobedience,” I heard Dan Benarcik say recently. Yes. Yes, it is. Now I want a T-shirt with THAT on it.

small front yard landscaping

small front yard landscaping

Creating a modest front yard isnt any defense because of not placing just about any imagined as well as energy in to imaginative landscaping ideas that might established your own home together with entrance charm nicely higher than the others who live nearby. Putting a couple of bushes in each side from the door and also getting in touch with this each day is a typical blunder property owners help to make.

Allow me to share Your five fast and simple front yard landscaping ideas pertaining to modest entrance metres that will not hurt you wallet which enable it to always be carried out in any weekend break.

A single. Build a box backyard in either sides in the the front methods or perhaps patio. Including cooking pots inside the exact same colour will prove to add any specific search. Change the size and style and also peak regarding aesthetic attention. Utilizing the same hues and also hues within the bloom colour pallette look extremely innovative and trendy.

Only two. Will include a kidney-shaped berm on the particular front yard in the landscaping program. Place straightforward routine maintenance evergreens and several modest blooming timber pertaining to gentleness and also coloration. This will likely produce a number of privateness in the road with out though not audience the home an excessive amount of and can enable sunlight in to the home.

Several. Give a six-foot circular large rock paver terrace. Produce a place in front entry to the home as well as on the medial side from the footpath near the doorway. Spot a tiny outside desk and also seat looking for a pair of inside the centre, give a plants in pots seed plus youve got made a pleasing area no matter whether your friends and relatives tend to be on its way or even heading. Spot little timber or perhaps traditional vegetation across the outdoor patio, and finished rid of it which has a Four inches coating involving compost.

Four. Draw in seeing stars along with ease the tough sides from the drive way as well together with modest storage compartments regarding spouses favorite flowers grown together with bouquets in which draw in seeing stars. Vibrant bouquets just like zinnia, homosexual feather, cosmos, and also lantana make the nice nectar your seeing stars adore, will prove to add colour and also awareness for a front yard. Will include a modest hen shower stuffed with freshwater as well as a good ole for your seeing stars to be able to suns rays about.

A few. Renew the inspiration plants. Take outdated as well as poor plant life out of your landscaping, along with trim as well as reduce precisely what is quit. Fill out the brand new blank areas together with low herbage as well as indigenous vegetation. With your vegetation sustains normal water, and definately will supply the front yard a great up-to-date modern day appear and feel. Give a tiny water fountain at the entry way. Trickling normal water could be enticing and also comforting as well as the movements provides vitality. Including landscape lighting throughout the fresh back garden could glow the evening to demonstrate leading back garden along with emphasize your house characteristics.

small front yard landscaping ideas

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Late Summer and Fall Blooming Perennials

As the weather starts to change so does the garden. There are a number of perennials that can add beauty and interest to the late summer-Fall landscape. When designing I always take into consideration what the garden will look like throughout all the seasons so I plan accordingly. Late summer to Fall blooming perennials can add color, texture and movement to your outdoor space and extend your gardens prime time. Through experience these are a few of the favorites that have proven to be hardy and dependable in my zone 7 Long Island garden.

(Black Eyed Susan)

Rudbeckia Goldstrum

Rudbeckia or "Black Eyed Susan" blooms July-September on 24-32 " high stalks. They are characterized by the distinctive brown "eye " at the center surrounded by vibrant orange-yellow flowers. This perennial prefers full sun but will also thrive in partial shade in a moist but well-drained soil in zones 4-9. Rudbeckia is an aggressive grower and will spread so alot sufficient space. Rudbeckia looks lovely in informal perennial borders, mass plantings and cottage gardens.

Coneflower

Echinacea Purpurea Kims Knee High

Echinacea displays lovely rosy pink flowers from June-September on 18-24 " high stalks. Echinacea prefers to be grown in full sun and is hardy in zones 4-9. There are many varieties and colors to choose from and butterflies are attracted to them. Echinacea (Coneflower) serves nicely in perennial borders, cottage gardens and mass plantings along with Rudbeckia and grasses.

Balloon Flower

Platycodon

Platycodon (also known as Balloon flower) blooms July-September on 24-36" high stalks. Flowers are vibrant blue and balloon-shaped and create a quite the conversation piece in the garden. Pinch stalks back in early July to create a fuller more compact plant. Balloon flower serves nicely as a single piece and brings much interest to the late summer-Fall garden in zones 3-8.

Liriope

Liriope muscari Variegata

Liriope produces purple spiked flowers on 10-12 " high variegated foliage followed by berries in Fall. This perennial blooms in late summer (August-October) and can be grown in a range of conditions from full sun to full shade. It is hardy in zones 4-10 and prefers a rich but well-drained acidic soil. Liriope provides interest all season long as a lovely addition of texture to the garden and the late summer blooms just add an extra punch!

Montauk Daisy

Nipponanthemum

Nipponanthemum (Montauk Daisy) displays full white flowers with yellow centers on 2-5 stalks. It blooms in late summer through Fall (September-November) in zones 5-9. Montauk Daisy prefers to be grown in full sun in a well-drained soil. These perennials serve nicely in perennial borders, mass plantings or in a cottage or seaside garden. Pinch back stalks before budding in mid-late summer to produce a fuller plant.

Aster

Aster Professor Kippenberg

There are many varieties of Aster to choose from ranging in color and size. This particular cultivar produces Blue-lavender flowers on 12-15" stalks that bloom September-October. Asters prefer to be grown in full sun and are hardy in zones 3-9.They serve nicely in a perennial border and can also add late summer color to any formal or informal garden.

Dwarf Fountain Grass

Pennisetum alopecuroides Hameln

Ornamental grasses can add much interest to the late summer-Fall garden as well as throughout the entire season. On this variety, delicate plumes emerge on 2-3 blades in late summer through Fall (August-November). Fountain grasses prefer to be grown in full sun in a well-drained soil and are hardy in USDA zones 4-9. There are a number of sizes and selections of ornamental grasses available and they can add interesting texture and movement to any garden.

Sedum

Sedum Brilliant

Sedum produces rose colored blooms on 18" high stalks in late August-September and adds some nice color to the Fall garden. It prefers to be grown in full sun and in a well-drained soil and is hardy in zones 3-9. Sedum serves nicely as an accent in either a formal or informal garden and when grown next to grasses complements them beautifully. There are a number of varieties of sedum ranging in size from a ground cover to 24 inches in height.

If you are looking to add late season interest to your landscape then be sure to add one or more of these lovely perennials to your gardening list and enjoy the Fall benefits!

As Always...Happy Gardening!

Thursday, March 6, 2014

Winter Park Fire Pit Video

Here is the we video promised of the smaller of the two fire pits we installed in Winter Park Ski Resort. We are in the process of creating a video of the larger of the two, so stay tuned!

Visit us online or call today! 1-877-556-5255

Landscape Design By Michelle Derviss

Landscape Design by Michelle Derviss

Garden Design images

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

City Lounge St Gallen

City Lounge is an outdoor living space in the centre of St. Gallen, Switzerland, created by artist, Pipilotti Rist and architect Carlos Martinez. Originally intended as a temporary installation to celebrate the pedestrianisation of the citys business district, it was so popular, it became a permanent feature.

I first spotted it in Llorenc Bonecs excellent, Urban Landscape Architecture, which is full of interesting schemes to brighten up your coffee table or reception area!

Ive managed to scrounge together a few images from across the interweb (see below), but if you like the look of it, Id recommend you visit the website of photographer, Thomas Mayer.

http://thomasmayerarchive.de/categories.php?cat_id=1025&l=english

Black and White Interior

Black and White Interior Design

Black and White Interior Design

Black and white are always in for interiors decoration and they never go out of style. The use of white and black in interior design can create a dazzling and spectacular interior decoration. The use of black and white in decorating gives a fresh, clean, and unquestionably urbane and elegant look to any room.

Black and White

Interior Design
I must say that Im not normally a big fan of black and white interior. In fact, I have never claimed that a customer will decorate with, until this meeting. Sometimes I find that black and white art is very boring.

Black and White

Interior Design
One of my favorite sources of black and white interior design has become antique shops. I found the most beautiful pieces of black and white art at various antique shops lately.Knowing exactly that you can decorate with black and white interior design is not often enough. Realize that you have a good impression of the specific type of design that you hope must be found. I found that there are many varieties of black and white interior design to choose from. Some pieces are vintage look, and its definitely a lot of modern pieces of black and white art to choose from.

Black and White Interior Design
Get online and search for black and white interior. Youll be surprised how much comes. This is my favorite to encourage customers to the process of narrowing their style and preferences to begin. You can often have a pretty good idea of what you want, when you see them first. So take your time and see as many samples of black and white interior design as you can. The better the idea you have what you want, the better chance you will find to have it.I love to decorate anything more than helping people to their homes and offices with style and creativity. The world of black and white interior design has recently been opened up to me, and I was back in love with its possibilities.

PAYAN PARK

Dinorah and I chose to visit Payan Park early... see what its like on a Saturday morning. Spoke to some of the people from the neighborhood that hang in the park. Well, truthfully,.. they chose to speak to Dinorah instead of me... shes much cuter, and my Spanish is limited to reading menus and advertisements. Please look carefully at the second photo...the feet on right of frame.. notice the attention to detail as the nail polish perfectly matches the sandal color!!

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

small front yard landscaping ideas

small front yard landscaping ideas

Creating a tiny front yard isnt justification because of not placing just about any considered or even work in to inventive landscaping ideas that might arranged your house together with charm of the entrance nicely over the neighborhood friends. Putting a couple of bushes in either sides with the entry way as well as getting in touch with the idea each day is a widespread blunder house owners create.

Allow me to share Your five easy and quick front yard landscaping ideas with regard to tiny the front back yards that will not hurt your wallet which enable it to end up being carried out a new saturday and sunday.

A single. Develop a pot backyard upon each side from the top actions as well as deck. Incorporating cooking pots within the exact same coloration will prove to add a new one seem. Differ the size and style along with peak pertaining to visible attention. With similar colours and also colors inside the floral colour scheme looks extremely innovative and chic.

A couple of. Incorporate a kidney-shaped berm on the particular front yard with your landscaping strategy. Seed straightforward servicing evergreens and several little its heyday shrubbery regarding real softness and also shade. This will likely generate a number of privateness in the road with no though not group the home an excessive amount of and can permit the sun to the home.

Three or more. Put in a six-foot rounded large rock paver deck. Build a area in the front entry to the residence or even off and away to the inside in the tarmac towards the doorway. Location a tiny backyard kitchen table and also seat looking for a couple of inside the middle, put in a plants in pots grow plus youve got designed a enticing area regardless of whether your friends and relatives are generally on its way as well as planning. Spot little timber or perhaps evergreen crops throughout the deck, and finished them back having a Four in . covering involving thick mulch.

Four. Appeal to seeing stars along with ease hard perimeters from the garage concurrently using modest pouches associated with spouses favorite flowers grown along with blossoms which entice seeing stars. Colourful blossoms such as zinnia, gay and lesbian feather, cosmos, and also lantana make the nice nectar your seeing stars enjoy, will prove to add colour along with attention in your front yard. Will include a modest hen bathtub filled up with river along with a good ole to the seeing stars in order to suns rays upon.

Your five. Clean up the building blocks plants. Draw outdated along with poor plant life out of your landscaping, and also trim as well as cut precisely what is still left. Complete the brand new uncovered locations using low herbage along with ancient vegetation. With such vegetation sustains normal water, and definately will supply the front yard the up to date modern day appear and feel. Give a little water fall nearby the entry way. Trickling normal water may be inviting as well as comforting along with the motion contributes electricity. Including exterior lights throughout the brand new yard could illuminate the night time to demonstrate leading yard along with accentuate your home function

small front yard landscaping ideas pictures

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small front yard landscaping ideas with pictures