Gardening weather report

Still

Ginkgo biloba--Fall Colour

[Interlude while waiting for snow to melt]

What do we know about the Ginkgo...the species is as ancient as the dinosaurs; it's one of the few conifers that drops its foliage in the winter (larch is another); its "leaves" are actually fused "needles" (you can see the fine ridges on the surfaces below); it's very durable and tolerant of different conditions; it's yellow as a yellow rose at leaf fall...

First Snow

No worries, gardeners-who-haven't-finished-your-bulbs-yet...It should melt by Monday...

This very fat little squirrel was out for a morning mooch. If squirrels are this fat, we may be in for a long winter. I myself have had an early start on the Egg Nog.

Everything is beautiful after the first snow. Then it's just wet and soggy.

Surveyor Trashes Magnolia...

Why, you might ask, is this surveyor's stake nailed (ah-hem: "staked") to the fence?

Here's the evidence:

Exhibit A: Kicked-in bottom gate.

Exhibit B: Trashed Magnolia grandiflora (valuable tree) with new surveyor's stake (with orange flagging tape) in background.

Exhibit C: Surveyor's stake, with sight-line shearing off magnolia:

What would you do?

I am so tired of people "just doing their job" and trashing gardens, as if plants we've trained for years--and our efforts--are completely irrelevant. The owner wasn't home, no permission was granted...we'll see if this was a sneaky developer/vandal/just a totally inexcusable execution of a job.

(I'm branching out into Mr. Bean-style home security)

Alvaro's Velo-Mobile!

How cool is this?!

That's me, in Alvaro Britos' home-made covered electric tricycle...

This is the sort of thing you randomly run across whilst cycling through Commercial Drive on a fine Sunday. Alvaro and his buddy were out road-testing his invention and could I just ride by? No.

This tricycle-pod skims along silently at 50 km/hr (my average scooter-speed) and features a super lightweight removable cover. I've seen similar pedal-pods, but always with fixed covers that look like fibre-glass. So keep an eye out on Dragon's Den (that sponsor-a-new-business show). Maybe Alvaro will be on it, after he adds some racing stripes. His email is alvaro3641@gmail.com. Imagine what our streets will look like in another ten years...

"Replace a Shady Lawn" Garden--in Autumn

If this was still a lawn, I'd have to rake away all these glorious red leaves...
But since we converted it into a shade garden, I sweep the pathways, and use the leaves to mulch the garden beds. Voila:


The plantings are mainly low-growing perennials and groundcovers, to keep the wide-open feel of a lawn, and the main focus on the maple tree.

Here's a pseudo-comprehensive list of the plants:

Carex 'Ice Dance'--the dominant swath of variegated grass, also pictured below:
(My apologies--my current fascination with Vortex Photography is somewhat sabotaging the otherwise scientific ID photos on this blog.)



Brunnera macrophylla 'Jack Frost'--the white-leafed/blue-flower-in-spring perennial also pictured below:


My favourite non-native fern, Polystichum polyblepharum/Japanese Tassel Fern, because it's evergreen, smaller than the native Sword Fern, with a glossier, darker green leaf...

(Okay, this one is unrecognizable. Anyways, art and science do meet somewhere in the garden.)

I also used Dryopteris erythosora/Autumn Fern, the one with the unexpected and lovely coppery-orange new growth (no Vortex close-up available at this time).

Here's a somewhat fuzzy shot of the Fuchsia magellanica 'Ricartonii' with a white Hydrangea and Sarcacocca ruscifolia/the tall-growing Himalayan Sweetbox in the background.



I also used various blue and variegated Hostas, Pachysandra, Galium/Sweet woodruff, Hellebores, Astrantia/Masterwort, Campanula poscharskyana, Euphorbia robbiae. Just in case someone's looking for shady-garden ideas.


Oh--I've just found a photo from earlier this fall...you can see the plants better sans the blanket of red leaves. Remember, this is a very shady garden--the only direct sun falls on the hydrangea and fuchsias in the upper left corner.

Little Blue Pill Bug

Has anyone ever see a blue pill bug before?? First time for me. Bev kept finding them around her big ash street-tree today. I took one picture on her garden table before my battery died.

Autumn lights

A week of fabulous fall colour, and I've been remiss recording it with my camera! These last few evenings, the dying light (around 6:00) has filled the sky with a luminous glow that pops the autumn colours like a technicolour scene from The Wizard of Oz. And I've been too busy scrabbling the last few bulbs into the soil like a frenzied squirrel to run for the camera. So here's a couple trippy spinning shots on the way home--in the dark.

Proof.

Do you believe? Love it.

Even on Halloween, I'm working...

This bush kept running away and jumping at people. A very odd species: difficult to control. I generally choose plants that are more...rooted. If you are new or prospective client, seeking assurance of my reliability and professionalism, I really have no idea who that white-haired lady is.

Crown Imperial...

I've never planted Crown Imperials/Fritillaria imperialis before: tall and decadent (apparently) and a common sight if you were hanging around the imperial court of Austria around the 18th Century (I think I made that up, but it might be true). So there will be a toast of Crown Royale on the pool deck at Roswitha's when the Crown Imperials bloom next...late spring (it says on the package).
Note: I did plant these sideways (bulbs always find their way up, even if they are upside down) because they are strangely bowl-like, and I wonder if a soggy Vancouver winter of rain would rot them out. So, I figure tipping them sideways is a safeguard.

Pink Pagoda...

Nice tree--took these pics about a month ago at Van Dusen Gardens. Have been trying to track a Pink Pagoda down for Daphne's woodland garden, to no avail. Possibly available in the spring. Except for the large construction crane (small detail) the bottom photo is almost idyllic. Love Mountain Ash in general--so do birds--but the pinks are not in common use. Wonder why. Nice tree.