Garden Bloggers Bloom Day January 2012

The weather has been pretty mild so far but we are now feeling the cold as the temperature plummets to a chilly 27 degrees.   My zone 7 Long Island garden is in winter mode and just the bare bones are present.  One of the nice elements of winter is that the season supplies some down time to walk around the garden and take inventory.   I am already getting ideas for next season and the imagination is running wild.  Its only January and this gardener is already looking forward to next season with great enthusiasm.  As many a gardener may agree... gardening can go on all year....plan all winter and embellish all spring, summer and fall!

Winter is  a very good time to plan  the "foundation" of the landscape.  While gazing out my window on a cold winters day a few years ago I came up with the idea for this crab orchard walkway.  It replaced an old cement pathway leading up to the front doorway that had lost its charm and did not have as many curves as the new updated version.  The new walkway gives a little element of surprise as it winds around the garden bends on the way to the front door.

Our stone walkway is surrounded by evergreen shrubs and sedges along with clusters of yellow, purple and pink perennials that bloom in the spring.  On the right there is a Weeping White Birch and down a way is a Weeping White Pine along with more evergreen shrubs.                             

Montgomery Globe Spruce

One aspect that I really do enjoy about gardening is incorporating many colorful evergreens. They are especially appreciated in the winter months when other shrubs and perennials become dormant. Here is one of my favorites...a Montgomery Globe Spruce.  


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Montgomery Globe Spruce is a dwarf conifer that grows only to two to three feet in diameter and keeps its vibrant silvery-blue color all year round.  There are so many beautiful evergreens that are not at all green that can be brought into the garden. 

Some of the other evergreens that I enjoy are Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar, Weeping White Pine, Gold Spot Euonymus and Boxwood Wintergem (pictured here).  I also have a special affection for my Picea orientalis Skyland Yellow Oriental Spruce  (first photograph above front left) and Golden Hinoki Cypress (first photograph above front right).  Their golden hue is even more prominent in winter.


The berry producing plants such as holly, viburnum and this Nandina domestica (heavenly bamboo) are interesting at this time of year and the foliage stays evergreen as well.  I have had this Nandina domestica Gulf Stream for many years now and it just keeps getting more interesting year after year.

Here in the backyard along my patio is a Weeping Pussy Willow along with Gold Mop Cypress, Blue Star Juniper, Repandens  Spreading Yew and Barberry.   The crab orchard stone path leads from the patio to the back lawn.  In the summertime I like to sit out on my patio and gaze at this particular part of the garden.  For now Ill just dream about the peony, daylilies and purple salvia that will emerge in spring but at least there are my evergreens.

                                        




It wouldnt be the same if garden gal wasnt in the picture so here she is enjoying her mondo grass planter.

I found Garden gal in the local nursery years ago and she has been my whimsey in the garden ever since.  When I was about five I wore a hat just like hers and probably carried the basket of flowers to match.  She reminds me of myself...always a gardener at heart.


                                       

Pictured here is our pool covered up for winter and surrounding gardens. Again just the "bare bones" but the evergreens give something to look at through the back window.  I have  a feeling that it wont be long now until this poolscape is covered in snow since the temperatures are dropping. 


The back perennial garden sleeps.  When April arrives there will be various blooming bulbs including crocus, tulips and hyancinths.  Perennials such as coral bells, daylilies and balloon flower along with ornamental grasses and  evergreens will emerge later on.

Here the Star Magnolia is forming its soft white flower buds for spring...

and the graceful Weeping Japanese Maple is showing its artistic framework...

As the sun lowers towards the horizon another day has passed, and the garden rests.

Much thanks to our hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens for another Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. I hope you have enjoyed my January garden. Please be sure to stop by and visit our hostess for more January blooms around the world.   As always...Happy Gardening!


One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it provides. ~W.E. Johns

Author:Lee@ A Guide To Northeastern Gardening Copyright 2012. All Rights Reserved

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Garden Bloggers Bloom Day Foliage Follow Up January 2014 A Closer Look

January Garden Bitter Freeze

At this time of year when there is a stillness in the air and temperatures colder than I care to encounter, it is time to gaze into the garden for a closer focus on the details that may normally be overlooked.   The winter is a time to concentrate on the inner beauty of the landscape...the part of the garden that is sometimes hidden from view.  

Snow Covered Barberry

With my increasing growing interest in garden writing and photography, I strive to capture a view that is a little different from the ordinary.  Over time I have found a new appreciation for the simplest aspects of nature, such as the snow covered barberry in the photo above...

Blue Atlas Cedar (Cedrus Atlantica)

or the branches of a Blue Atlas Cedar against the backdrop of a blue sky...

Acer palmatum Sangu Kaku (Coral Bark Maple) and Golden Oriental Spruce Skyland

or the exposed coral red branches of a Japanese Maple against the yellow-green needles of a Golden Oriental Spruce.  I am trying to look at nature in a different light as some may say.

Acer palmatum Sangu Kaku (Coral Bark Maple) Branches up Close

It was good timing to have camera in hand in order to capture the branches of the Coral Bark Maple. The frigid temperatures have dramatically brought out the colors and they are more vivid than I have remembered for some time.

Backyard Side Garden (Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar, Gold Mop Cypress, Royal Burgundy Barberry, Euonymus Gold Spot, Arborvitae, Dwarf Butterfly Bush, Knock Out Roses and Heuchera Caramel)

Here is one wide shot view to show a little perspective in the garden.  This is the backyard perimeter garden in winter mode.  I wait in anticipation for the emergence of burgundy and medium green foliage, fragrant purple blooms, pink roses and caramel colored perennials once spring arrives. 

Hydrangea Tardivia Winter

In an effort to get a little more creative with the lens I aimed upward into the sky when trying to capture this Tardivia Hydrangea faded bloom.  While still working on the perfect focal distance, I was fortunate enough to have just the right amount of back lighting to provide some contrast. 

Weeping Japanese Trunk Maple Winter

Weeping Japanese Maple is a tree I really have grown to appreciate all year round.  It has reached a mature age of somewhere between twenty and thirty years and each winter the trunk becomes just a little more twisted and contorted in character.

Magnolia Royal Star

Here the new buds of the Magnolia are growing larger and larger each month.  Spring is on the way slowly but surely.

Moss Covered Rock and Sweet Flag

Why am I taking a photograph of moss?  There was something about snow next to this moss covered rock with the yellow-green of the sedge that caught my eye.  Nature really does have a lot to offer and I try not to let it go unnoticed.

Nandina domestica (False or Heavenly Bamboo)

Here is my Nandina domestica.  I have had it for years and have grown to love its vibrant red berries in winter.  Sadly this is the last photograph I was able to take of it before it was moved today to work on the oil tank.  It will likely not make it through the winter so I will have to get a new one in the spring for both myself and the birds. That means I will have to work in the garden...its a tough job but someone has to do it!

Nandina domestica (False or Heavenly Bamboo)

A piece of branch fell into the snow and gave me the idea for this photograph. I really do like this plant.

Rosemary in Herb Garden

Normally my Rosemary in the herb garden does not make it through the winter but I have actually had this particular one for three years now! It was planted during a year with a mild winter so it was able to harden off and develop into a miniature shrub.  This has been an exceptionally brutal winter so I am hoping it continues to thrive.

Garden Friends

Structure is so important is a garden and besides many evergreens in the garden I also like a little whimsy.  This garden statue is one of my favorites!

Juniperus Pro Nana and Heuchera Caramel

It is difficult finding blooms in the garden at this time of year so I rely on foliage and these Heuchera Caramel never cease to amaze me with their striking foliage that lasts throughout most of the winter.   

 

That ends our walk around the January garden for now. The first month of 2014 came in like a lion with winter storm Hercules on January 2nd bringing a foot of snow and 16°F temperatures, followed by a warming trend with torrential rains and daily temperatures back into the 40s for now.  The garden is still changing in each month and I enjoy looking to find its inner beauty. 

 

Drop a note to let me know youve been here and I will be sure to visit you as well. Also please visit our hostesses Carol at May Dreams Gardens for January Garden Bloggers Bloom Day and Pam at Digging for Foliage Follow Up. 

 

(This monthly garden diary can also be viewed on the new My Gardens page.)

 

 

As Always...Happy Gardening!

 

 

Author: Lee@A Guide To Northeastern Gardening, Copyright 2014. All rights reserved. 

  
 

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