31 May
Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra
Ah, so many neat plants, so little time. I’ve been saving up a few of my current favorites to share with you, starting with the two above: variegated sweet iris (Iris pallida ‘Variegata’; also sold as ‘Aureovariegata’) on the left and ‘Axminster Gold’ comfrey (Symphytum x uplandicum) on the right. (Yes, yes, I know the rules say that you shouldn’t plant variegated plants right next to each other, but I do think these two work.) Continue reading »
5 May
I’ve been trying to think of a topic that would give me a good reason to talk about some of my favorite plants from time to time. A few plants that have recently caught my eye don’t have much in common, however, besides being perennials and having interesting foliage. “Three Neat Plants” is the best theme I can come up with, for the moment anyway. Fortunately, the plants are far more exciting than the title. Continue reading »
29 Apr
After spending seven years living with a tiny town garden, moving to a property measured in acres rather than square feet was an unmissable opportunity, and I certainly have no regrets. I do have to chuckle, though, when I get the comment “Oh, you’re so lucky to have all that space for gardening. You can plant whatever you want!” Both statements are true, but it’s not all fluffy clouds and rainbows, you know. Having ample space for gardening creates ample opportunities for making really big mistakes. Continue reading »
31 Mar
Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra
In the days BB (Before Blogging), I dreaded dreary days. Now, I am very grateful that it has been gloomy and drizzly today, because I’m finally able to finish up my series of posts on some favorite golden foliage, with a sampling of some chartreuse-leaved perennial-ish plants. To start with, here’s one that’s technically a shrub (or sub-shrub) but usually sold as a perennial (hence perennial-ish): Caryopteris.
12 Feb
Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra
I promise this is the last post on burgundy and gold – for a while, anyway. (You can find the previous posts in Part 1 and Part 2.) For this one, I’ve pulled a few perennial-based combos. Above is a late-summer view of one of my favorite pairings in what passes for shade in my tree-less garden: golden Hakone grass (Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’) with the near-black foliage of ‘Ravenswing’ cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris). It’s pretty high-contrast for most of the growing season, but as fall approaches, the grass starts taking on pinkish tinges that softens the effect a bit.
