Starbucks for My Acid Loving Plants

I've never done this before but I picked up some coffee grounds from Starbucks to amend my alkaline clay soil to try to make it more acidic for my acid loving plants (rhododendron and Japanese andromeda). Now, I know you are probably supposed to compost it first, or at least mix it into the soil, but instead I just spread it around the top everywhere... What could go wrong?

It was actually a neat texture and was still slightly warm when I opened the bag. I'm not sure why my hand smelled like cigar paper the whole rest of the day, like burt pulp. 

It was one of those free "Grounds for your Garden" bags at Starbucks

Rhododendron 'Ramapo' with coffee around the base

Pieris japonica 'Passion' with coffee grounds

I am a little concerned the coffee will be too acidic for the stem, and in hindsight I should have made a donut around the base. Then again, I SHOULD have worked it into the soil, but the ground is already pretty frozen and it's old out, so why bother, haha! I do think I'll work it in a few inches below the surface before I add new mulch in the Spring.

So far nothing major seems to be happening. All the plants still have their leaves, which is a good sign for December!

Fall '16 Garden Highlights

Fall is a weird time in the garden. A bunch of stuff turns gross and yellow (I'm looking at you hostas!) and other stuff actually looks better than before - or at least stands out more than it did before. Take this inconspicuous scotch moss for example. It was minding its own business under the hydrangea and now BAM it's stealing the show!

Scotch moss in fall

Next, take this Little Henry sweetspire - known for it's fall color - I can see why! Also, my Japanese Andromeda is doing something. Are those red buds, or is it trying to flower? These things are supposed to be evergreen, but we'll see if it makes it through the winter. I don't think it likes my clay soil one bit.

Next up, a combination of blue tones with this dianthus next to my dwarf lavender. The lavender was a hit last winter and kept an interesting ghost blue color all year. I'm wondering if dianthus will do the same or if it will die back.

Dianthus Lavender Lace next to dwarf lavender (appropriate)

First Day of Spring Update: Patriot and Japanese Forest Grass

It's the first day of Spring, and we're in the middle of a 2 day cold snap with lows down to 27°F, no thanks! Anyway, here is an update on a few things I'm obsessively watching in my yard:

Hosta 'Patriot' is waking up already, about 15 days earlier than last year! I'm calling these the Eyes of March, get it? (Beware the Ides of March).

Below, I've never been more excited to see 3 teeny tiny sprouts of Japanese Forest Grass. It's alive! After being transplanted twice and eaten by rabbits down to the ground, it came back! On a side note, my forest grass (left) is about the same progress, albeit smaller, than my parents' in Dayton (right).

Below, here is a good sign, I've got new growth on my Pieris 'Passion' - my Japanese Andromeda shrub. I hope it grows 5 feet tall, it will look great next to my Japanese forest grass if they both live and reach full size. My side yards are looking particularly Asian with these and my Japanese painted fern and bamboo on the other side.

Pieris japonica 'Passion' new growth on Japanese Andromeda shrub

Here's hoping that the cold mornings don't kill off all this great progress. I think it will be fine since the hostas haven't opened up yet and especially my hydrangea haven't leafed out since those are the ones that experienced some frost damage last year. Who knows, still plenty of time for a cold front or even some April snow wouldn't be out of the question.

First day of Spring 2016

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - March 2016

It's finally (almost) Spring here in central Indiana! I'm pleased to report that I do have blooms on Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day for March 2016. The 15th of every month, bloggers gather at May Dreams Gardens to celebrate and exchange links to what's blooming or interesting in their gardens.

This month, I'm bursting with purple crocus blooms...

Gorgeous purple crocus sprinkled with water droplets

March 2016 purple crocus blooming

I also have flowers on my new addition, a Japanese Andromeda (Pieris japonica 'Passion') - I'm always hesitant to post store-bought blooms on Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day because these were probably forced to bloom early to look nicer in the garden center. Who knows if they would actually be blooming right now. I guess I'll find out next year.

Pieris japonica 'Passion'

Finally, I'll mention my new addition just because I happened to put them in on the 15th and I haven't blogged about them yet. I got some resurrection lily aka surprise lily aka magic lily aka naked lady (Lycoris squamigera) from my grandpa's yard. You're not supposed to transplant them while they are growing like this, but I'll take what I can get, especially for free.

I heard they don't like to be moved, so who knows if they will even bloom this year, but I spread them around to different parts of the yard to see if they like a certain area over another. I did a mass planting in the side yard, a couple on the other side, and two clumps in the full sun back yard bed along the back. On second thought, I don't think I planted them deep enough. We'll see!

Free bucket of Lycoris squamigera - we'll see if any come up this year, I hear they are a bit picky about being disturbed

Mass planting of magic lily (Lycoris squamigera) on my side bed but toward the edge to get more sun

New Shade Additions: Scotch Moss, Rhododendron, and Pieris

It's technically winter, but I was an early bird at Lowe's this weekend snatching up some early arrival plants with sort of an impromptu purchase. I was picking up bags of mulch and dirt to raise the wet side shade bed, and I saw some shade plants I wanted to add. Usually I research the plants I get and put them on my wish list, but this time I just read the tag and went with it. I've been looking for plants that add more year-round form to the bed so it doesn't completely die back to bare ground in winter. I've also been looking for something to hide the air conditioner view from the street (before I just had hostas in front of it).

So without further ado, I present my new wet shade side additions:

Emerald Green Arborvitae - Thuja occidentalis 'Emerald Green' - Okay this one isn't that special, it didn't make the blog post headline, but it was a new purchase. Only $20, about the same size as the one in my backyard. I'm giving it plenty of room to grow in to its new location blocking the AC unit, and raised up a few inches out of the soggy clay soil. I added manure and topsoil to backfill the hole a few inches to plant it high. I'm hoping it gets enough sun to stay alive and slowly grow into a nice 12 foot tall tree - these guys usually prefer full sun. There's plenty of ambient light and 2 hours of direct sun a day here, so not exactly the deep shade.

Scotch Moss - Sagina subulata 'Aurea' - Saw this for less than $3 per pot and grabbed it for the shade side. I've been wanting a moss, or moss looking plant, ever since I moved in. I've tried growing a moss rock, and I've tried slow growing Arenaria 'Wallowa Mountains'. I'm hoping this neon green Scotch Moss adds some bright interest and hopefully grows enough for divisions - then I can plan more dramatic and larger ground cover areas for it.

Rhododendron 'Ramapo' - This dwarf, small leaf, and supposedly less fussy rhododendron will make a nice (possibly evergreen) addition to the wet side yard. It likes moist soil, but not completely wet. I think a raised bed on the damp side is a nice compromise. The only setback is that this guy likes acid soil, so I'll have to further amend the alkaline clay soil. I added topsoil and manure, but I think I'll sprinkle some peat moss around the base to add some acid.

Rhododendron 'Ramapo' gets to be about 2 feet wide and tall

Japanese Andromeda - Pieris japonica 'Passion' - Lily-of-the-Valley - this plant goes by many names, and let's face it, I bought it because it had the word Andromeda in it. It's also a nice blooming shrub that tolerates shade, so that's a win. It will also add some structure to my side yard in winter so everything doesn't die down completely to the ground. Similar to the rhododendron, it likes acid soil so I'll have to sprinkle in some peat moss. I planted it up high and dry on a raised bed in a wet side yard, so it should get the best of both - access to moisture when it wants it, but without wet feet.

These plants, especially the acid lovers, are going to require some TLC this spring and summer, but hopefully will up my shade garden game to a whole new level!