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Comment by Zephonith Serpent Woman on April 16, 2012 at 8:36am

excuse the typos :))

Comment by Zephonith Serpent Woman on April 16, 2012 at 8:35am

If it does frost which is expected this year, I will cover all of my tender plants with frost blanket overnight. It's in the clear morning air after a cold front that the damage is done by the sun hitting the leaves which have frozen cells. The cells defrost too quickly, and literally explode, leaving dried up and black foliage.

When ther eis a black frost, I bring all of my pot plants indoors or under shelter, and puit an extra layer of heavy shadeneting over the forsat blanket.

When i do go and get the Brugsmansias I will  make sure ther is no chance of frost u ntil the next season before I plant them ouit, in a sheltered, warm area. It amazes me how many microclimates there are in a garden and it pays to plant the right plant in the right place at the right time.

I'm  going to get a couple of Fuchsias which also need covering in the middle of winter.

Comment by Zephonith Serpent Woman on April 16, 2012 at 6:46am

Thanks, I just got a bit carried away and decided to write down all my wandering thoughts on the garden I am looking forward to construct , here amongst my green friends ~ Yes, Wizard Garber, well, I chose plants that would do well and not suffer too much when the temp. drops below freezing, which it thankfully hardly ever does here in Swaziland.

I also find that any design actually grows in the mind and after a while, one can actually get down to the final part of the design process ~ the fun part ~ building the pond and planting out everything. Good luck!

It's amazing that you mention Morning glory, Shen-Shen , as I was considering the large spiral and what to plant to grow up onto the trellis, I was thinking of Morning glory, the white one ~ it looks incredible in the full moonlight. But then again, it only lasts for such a short time, and would dominate any other creeper if they were to be planted out together. I was also thinking of a miniature silver Ivy as another choice for that situation. The creeper can't be too heavy or out of control so I came down to the Star jasmine at the end of the day.

Now that you mention honeysuckle ~  I love that slow-growing golden variety with the sweet blooms. 

Happy gardening, all :)

Comment by Debbie on April 15, 2012 at 2:31pm

yes it is spring time when the butteries are free ;},,, it did flood last week though,,,,, enjoy your day everyone ;}

Comment by Zephonith Serpent Woman on April 14, 2012 at 4:07am

Hi everyone :)

Im designing a Moon garden and I was wondering if anyone may have some ideas along these lines ~ it's a smallish garden with a natural rock pool as a main feature, which I will construct using a heavy-duty plastic liner , in black.

Then I will use large smooth boulders and pebbles, all in deep grey, almost purplish shades to place around the edges of the circular pond.

Once filled , the pond , having been dug to a depth of about a meter and a half (5ft) has a submersible pump which will service the filter and split to a bell fountain head. I will use a soft blue uplight just under the fountain head to create a spectacular understated effect, to mirror the Moon and bring the moonlight into the garden even if it is overcast.

There are levels in the pond as I have suggested a couple of Waterlilies (Nymphaea spp.) and a very intersting reed, the variegated Scirpus zebrinus, and a Cyperus alternifolia or Umbrella reed and a miniature Cyperus Papyrus which is so cute ` it only grows to around knee height and has fluffy flower heads just like the Papyrus which are so common along the Nile river.

On the margins I am planting a Crinum lily, and  a grouping of black Mondo grass, Ophiopogon nigra as a basic ground cover and inbetween, tufts of Silver variegated Liriope grass.To complete the feature, I am using a grouping of three  variegated Zebra grasses Miscanthus sinensis "Variegata".

The entire area is enclosed by a 6 and a half ft wall which I am cladding in sparking granite ~ it used to be a plain brick wall ~ rather depressing.

As it a square area measuring 40 ft by 40 ft and I wish to work along circular, free-flowing lines, I will be planting out all four corners and creating a circle which will have the pond, filled with silver Koi carp right in the middle.

Large oval and round river pebbles/boulders will separate the pond surrounds from the rest of the garden.

The surface of the soil has been levelled, a perforated plastic sheet placed over the surface and a thick layer of coarse river sand has been compacted over the circular area bordering the pond. Then, another layer of medium grade white silica quartz is laid on top of the sand and also compacted ~ a roller will do fine ~ and the whole circle is topped off with small round white pebbles.

In the four corners, I will plant Brugsmansia , or Moonflowers  with some Silver Mondo grass Ophiopogion variegata and some large smooth light grey boulders and pebbles which will separate the bedding area from the gravel and white pebbles. One corner bedding area will have a Cereus peruviana, or Queen of the Night, with large black pebbles at the base, the third will have a Variegated Yucca with Silver Carex grass and again some largish pebbles and small boulders to separate the planted area from the pebble surface ~ maybe a black and white specked colour.

The fourth corner, I will have a groundcover of dark grey smooth pebbles and bouklders with a large statue of the Goddess looking North.

All four corner planted areas will have soft whit uplighting which will highlight and accentuate the form and beauty of the various plants and the statuary.

I will extend the four different corner ground covers to join each other as the circle is outlined and given definition by the different yet harmonious colours.

All around, i will install samll floor uplights which will softly glow under the pebbles and further define the circle.

The cladded wall facing the entrance to the garden will have wall-mounted trellis made of rusted iron in the shape of a large spiral, and planted with a Variegated Star Jasmine Trachelospermum jasminoides which will be trained to grow along the spiral.The spiral will be in line with the pond and be large enough to "frame" it.

Just sharing some ideas ~

Have a nice weekend

 

Comment by Zephonith Serpent Woman on March 13, 2012 at 2:01am

I am watching the Liquidamber trees near my place and watching the colours ripen - it is like liquid amber - so I take the warmth with me into our winter which here in the Southern hemisphere is mild although it does get to below freezing sometimes.

Here's a better pic of the Mermaid rose I love so much:) BB

Comment by Debbie on March 12, 2012 at 10:31am

@ Leila,, Hi,,   I'm going to wait for summer to take clearer pictures,, that way you will be able to tell me ;} besides I can't seem to load pictures again.  have a great day Leila and everyone else,, many blessings ;}

Comment by Zephonith Serpent Woman on March 10, 2012 at 1:32am

mmm...that sounds wonderful, Leila - and I love the way you have trained the Goji berry bush , it's going to be spectacular once it's grown a little more. Raspberries and Blackberries are also easy to grow from canes and it's better to train them from the start , otherwise they will end up as an impenetrable bush - unless you have the space and can allow them to just do their own thing of course. With the price of berries nowadays, it's a real advantage to be able to grow your own!

A favourite tree of mine is the Eugenia mytifolia or Syzigium paniculata, the Australian rose cherry . It bears fruit prolifically twice or even three times over a growing season, is quite hardy and evergreen. The fruits are borne in clusters, and resemble glossy dark pink "mini apples" - they are really delicious to eat, a little tart in taste, but thirst -quenching and delicious to eat on a hot day. Birds also love them- actually, to attract plenty of birds to any garden, plant as many berry trees and bushes as you can. Apart from providing natural food, the trees and bushes also give the wild creatures a safe place to forage and to breed undisturbed. Birds are the best "natural pesticides" around lol.

The Syzigium tree/shrub-did I mention that they are ideal to shape and trim into "Lollipop" and other topiary shapes?

Comment by Leila Raven on March 9, 2012 at 12:17pm

Beautiful pics! Thanks for sharing. :)

Debbie it looks like it might be Salal

Salal in fruit

Salal in flower

Xena, we had gooseberries when I was growing up & I'd like some of them too in the garden, I'm a berry nut. Planted goji berries a couple of summers ago & they're doing fantastic, we're training them along the back fence. I still have frozen ones I eat with my yogurt.

Here's the goji berry bush from a while back, they've grown a fair bit since.

Comment by Zephonith Serpent Woman on March 2, 2012 at 5:44am

I meant the Rosa Mermaid, sorry! lol :) I have a rose grower friend who has a large briar running alongside the nursery, which he uses to improve the strength and hardiness of the new varieties by grafting them on to the root stock of the briar rose. It doesn't always work on every new variety and hybrid and the root stock must be trimmed back every now and again to prevent a complete take-over by the very strong wild rose part.

Every rose comes from the original Briar rose originally , just as every Koi comes from the Japanese wild Carp :)

 

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