Counting down to summer

The countdown to summer is on and I for one can't wait. This "spring" - if that's what we call it - has been rough on my garden fervour. With all the rain and cool weather things have been feeling quite neglected. The weeds are a little larger than normal, the grass seems to get a little longer, and I have been curled up inside by the fireplace with blankets. But I feel as though I owe everyone an apology.  You see, I bought a solar lantern the other day which I'm sure is the reason why we have seen so little sun.  Maybe we all need to do some umbrella shopping? That is sure to bring out the sun!

Just one more week until calendar summer!! We are almost there! If we can figure out how to get the weather to cooperate we will be set.

How many palms?

Sometimes I forget... that is, sometimes I forget just how many palms I have planted.  I often refer to the yard as "palm garden" and with the most recent addition of the young trachycarpus wagnerianus I reached an all time high, 14.

To me, the real prize of the garden is this butia capitata or pindo palm.  While they have survived for years at a time in mild areas of the PNW, they really don't like our cool wet winters.  I provide this palm with some protection on arctic outbreaks.  It has seen some really cold temperatures but I'm not willing to risk anything.  Luckily, it only takes me about 5 mins to protect in the event of severe cold.  Some old school christmas lights, burlap and a tarp if the wind is blowing... 

But, for anyone in coastal PNW, trachycarpus fortunei is the palm to grow!

You can see how I lost track...

This is my largest palm! The top of the fronds must be over 12 feet now.

This little guy came from the famous English Bay palms.  There are literally thousands of little palm seedlings along the base of the palms in english bay.  I did some "weeding" for them.

Last but not least the mediterranean fan palm.  Most mediterranean fan palms in the valley and even coastal Van were damaged or killed a few years ago.  This one gets some old school christmas lights around the central growing spear and a tarp when temps go below 20F.

I realize I push the limits with some of my palms.  But they are actually incredibly low maintenance. With Windmill palms, plant them, water them while they are getting established and then do nothing! Just watch them grow and enjoy the exotic ambience they provide.  All that is to say, plant a palm!

april showers bring ... agave updates?

I was recently so inspired by Danger Garden's April Agave Update that I thought I would bring you one from my neck of the woods.  So far April has been much kinder to me than March.  With significantly less rain and the promise of summer just around the corner I really can't complain - much.  It's kind of crazy to think that last summer I planted my first agaves!  Truth be told, it has become a wonderfully bad habit of mine.  I can only hope to have a collection like that of danger garden.

Here are some of my rather drenched agaves ( I can't wait for summertime and evening agave shadows!!!)

Agave parryi var. parryi

Agave Ovatifolia

Agave Ovatifolia "frosty blue" - not looking all that blue in the rain. This agave overwintered really great for me.  I had to do some minor agave surgery and remove an arm.

Agave Parryi Huachucensis - most recent addition!

Another Agave Ovatifolia "frost blue" planted last fall.  This one still needs agave arm amputation.  Otherwise it seems to have made it through winter just fine.

This is the first agave I ever planted and I don't have a definite ID.  There was speculation at Parryi or Ovatifolia. It has a much deeper green than my other agaves and overwintered without any blemish.

 This agave Cornelius came into the house during are cold spells but has spent most of the year outside. It has exploded with growth in the last weeks.

And for good measure ... palms, agaves and yuccas!!!!

What agaves should I plant this year?  That is the million dollar question so to speak.  

Happy agave growing everyone!

the good, the bad, and the ugly

Well I said it, there were good, bad and just plain ugly surprises after some of the worst cold weather that I have ever experienced!  The cold of January 2012 will definitely go down in the records for me.  But whats more, it has definitely taught me much about the limits of my garden, the microclimate, and also reinforced my dislike for old man winter.  I can't help, however, but start with some of the positives... ALL the palms look great!! they are by far the biggest investments in my garden and I am happy to report, there will be no palm graveyards in my future!  Here are some pictures of my palm trees after the cold...

This is my first ever palm tree and it is also one of my favourite for the form of its fronds..

This canary island date palm surprised me the most! It was moved into an unheated shed and would have seen temps into the low 20's maybe even the upper teens! I was shocked to find it alive and healthy!

This unprotected seedling palm even sailed through the cold temperatures.  It was collected from seeds of the famous English Bay palm trees in Vancouver.

This chamaerops humilis (mediterranean fan palm) was protected fairly heavily... I was not willing to risk anything with it.  It had christmas lights, burlap around the central spear and a tarp to keep it all snug.

The same went for the butia capitata (pindo palm) in the lower right of this photo.

As for the agaves?! well here's one of my agave ovatifolia.  Albeit a fair bit dirty, it actually looks really good! there is one really sad leaf (if thats what you call it on an agave?) to the bottom left.  Should I cut it off? I don't know.

All of the rosemary plants are looking good as well.  This one has by far the best flavour!!!

As should be excpected yucca gloriosa recurvifolia "bright star" looks flawless

and the same goes for the yucca gloriosa variegata.

So there was the good.... the bad is a much smaller category. Thankfully, these plants don't quite fit the category of ugly.  So I will qualify bad to mean gnarly looking but alive.  First off, dicksonia antarctica (tasmanian tree fern).  This actually makes me quite sad. quite as in a whole lot of sad.  I learned some happy lessons however. Lesson #1, why didn't I get one of these a long time ago!?!?! with simple protection of some burlap and a portable fabric plant cover, this fern made it through the worst of winter weather in the pnw!

As you can see, it looks like a sight for sore eyes at this point... BUT ALIVE! check this out right near the centre of the plant!

Only one more ugly, my bay laurel.  This one is really not that bad. There is a little bit of burn on some of the leaves, but come springtime, I'm sure it will have all grown out.

Warning: this next bit... tragic!!!!

I should preface the tragedy by saying that I have a futile love affair with cordylines.  I dream of growing large majestic cordylines like you used to see around the pnw.  I really should know better.  But here is what remains of my once epic cordyline australis red sensation.

Sadly the foliage actually looks quite healthy all things considered. I actually think this plant could stage a recovery, but it would look really sad. I'd have to chop it down below the rot and hope for it to sprout out.  But, I'm pretty sure it will be dug up and replaced considering its prominent position in the garden.  I have several ones of comparable size that did survive in a makeshift greenhouse (some christmas lights and heavy plastic up against a fence) that could replace it, but I could just find something that will actually stand a chance.  Any ideas?  I have always loved the purple foliage next to the green trachycarpus fortunei to the left and a butia capitata on the right. maybe a large yucca? or euphorbia?

So I can't end things with ugly. There was actually an incredible glimmer of hope in my day... SUNSHINE!!!!! I kinda forgot what it looked like.  I found myself asking what the big glowing object in the sky actually was.  What was it? The sign of spring and of happiness!!  Actually, there's a whole lot of spring going on.

hostas anyone?

variegated iris

ahhh, blue skies, warm "ish" temperature... its amazing how you kinda feel alive again! its invigorating. I wanted to whip out the shovel, head to a garden centre, make lemonade, and basque in the sunshine!! There is hope for spring!!!!

Happy palmy wednesday!

Enjoy the sunshine!

September 18 palm update

So I promised to post some updated palm photos from the garden and was lucky to get a bit of sunlight this morning to take some pics.  This last year was really hard on the garden.  The record cold in November followed by what can only be described as the worst spring ever resulted in things looking a little shabby.  Thankfully August was kind to us and most plants sprung back from their funk.

This beautiful butia capitata has been in the ground for several years now

 The cordyline australis red sensation is a replacement of the one that used to be there.  It was knocked way back from the november cold (despite being wrapped up in mexican blankets!) The original plant did send out off shoots from near the base of the trunk but it was moved to a re-habilitation spot.

 This palm tree below was my first palm tree!! It was just a little seedling... I don't even know how many years ago that was

Phoenix Canariensis... I had serious plant lust when I saw this bad boy at the nursery!!  So I took it home with me! sadly they are not quite hardy enough in the PNW and I didn't want another winter protection project. Ill probably just pull it into the garage during arctic outflow events.

this mediterranean fan palm is in the warmest spot of the garden and clearly likes its digs

My largest palm tree!!! about 10-12 feet tall.