Bright Reds and Maroons
THIS YEAR THEY'RE WORKING WITH BRIGHT REDS AND MAROONS. Initially there
was some concern about these colors but it is working out beautifully.
They change colors each year, for example, past themes have included
blues and yellows. When they change the color theme they also address
hardscape elements, like obelisks and pillars. Some of their pillars
are made of PVC. This year they've painted the pillars red and have
trailing plants on the top. For a home gardener, changing or
emphasizing different color themes is a good idea. It narrows the
focus. If one is all over the map with color it can be confusing but by
emphasizing certain colors, it narrows the focus. Many people are
fearful of hot colors, like reds and yellows but here they're trying to
show that the gamut of bright colors can be utilized throughout an
annual or perennial garden with great effect.
Click here for more info
English Cottage Garden
JOE AND MARK NEXT VISIT THE ENGLISH GARDEN. Joe wants to know some of
the design elements one would find in a typical English garden. One of
those elements is the wall, in this case a brick wall surrounds the
garden. In English cottage gardens the intent was to emphasize the
separation of usage or space. So, the walls were meant to separate the
property from, say, a roadway or adjacent use like a livestock field or
some other agricultural use. There is no rhyme nor reason to the
specific plants that would go in an English Cottage Garden because this
type of garden is subjective and personal.
Click here for more info
Fern and Moss Garden Designed in the Japanese Style
THE GUYS NEXT VISIT THE NEWEST SPACE, IT IS THEIR FERN AND MOSS GARDEN
and is designed in the Japanese style. If anyone came into this area
and were tense this would be the place to unwind. Here they have the
sound of running water, they have shade, Moss and the Ferns. This
garden is designed to be contemplative. The primary color is green, but
they've tried to punctuate that with yellows and a lot of textures from
the ferns. The garden space lends itself to just observing and
relaxing.
Click here for more info
Reception Garden
JOE AND MARK NEXT VISIT THE RECEPTION GARDEN. This garden is formal in
nature, all corners are symmetrical and are defined by a raised stone
wall. The setting of the garden is meant to have echoing colors and
textures throughout the garden. But the primary features include some
hardscaping elements that have a long history in Janesville
Click here for more info
Demonstration Garden
THIS IS THE DEMONSTRATION GARDEN and it has been in existence for 6
years. The flavor this year is 155 varieties of Salvia. In past years
they've focused on other specific seasonal plants. They've planted
Salocia, Snapdragons, Amaranth, Cannas, etc. They try to display the
full gamut of plants while also showing what seasonal plants will offer
for the home gardener.
Click here for more info
LINKS:
Rotary Botanical Gardens
Mansion Hill Inn
Garden Smart Plant List
Complete transcript of the show.
In this show Garden Smart visits Rotary Gardens in Janesville,
Wisconsin. Each of their different garden rooms have different
international themes. Rotary Gardens is a true find and worthy of
showing off to the whole world.
Ed Lyon is the Executive Director and welcomes the Garden Smart
audience to what he calls their "hidden gem." It is comprised of 20
acres and was created from what originally was a sand and gravel pit.
It began 20 years ago as a Rotary Club project, thus the name although
the Rotary Club is no longer involved. Today it is a non profit
organization. The gardens have many themes which originated from the
international peace and friendship theme of Rotary International. For
example, they have a Japanese Garden, even a Scottish Garden, which is
unusual, and many other gardens. They also have trial and demonstration
gardens and Rotary Gardens is pleased to offer this educational
component to both the public and industry. The trial and demonstration
gardens feature all kinds of plants that can be utilized in home
gardens. As well, they are an All American Selections and Floral Select
Display Garden and are pleased to have recently become a display garden
for Ball Nursery and their line of roses.
Mark Dwyer is the Director of Horticulture and our guest host for this
show. Mark went to the University of Illinois with the intent of
obtaining a degree in civil engineering but after several days of
calculus and physics decided instead on landscape architecture and
received degrees in that as well as urban forestry. Mark's father was a
forester and he took Mark and his brothers out to forest preserves and
arboretums when young. The kids went kicking and screaming but it must
have rubbed off. His first job out of college was in residential
landscape design at a garden center which he did for about 2 years.
Mark felt a little limited with the choice of plant material so moved
on to Fernwood Botanical Garden in Niles, Michigan as a grounds
horticulturist. It was then he realized he had found a career. Rotary
Gardens is special because it is a tremendous community resource and
the volunteers and staff make it special because of their appreciation
of gardening. Here Mark has a lot of freedom in terms of experimenting
with new plants and trials. And, he has a blast doing this.
Joe and Mark start at the front. The color scheme catches one's
attention right away. THIS YEAR THEY'RE WORKING WITH BRIGHT REDS AND
MAROONS. Initially there was some concern about these colors but it is
working out beautifully. They change colors each year, for example,
past themes have included blues and yellows. When they change the color
theme they also address hardscape elements, like obelisks and pillars.
Some of their pillars are made of PVC. This year they've painted the
pillars red and have trailing plants on the top. For a home gardener,
changing or emphasizing different color themes is a good idea. It
narrows the focus. If one is all over the map with color it can be
confusing but by emphasizing certain colors, it narrows the focus. Many
people are fearful of hot colors, like reds and yellows but here
they're trying to show that the gamut of bright colors can be utilized
throughout an annual or perennial garden with great effect. When
putting a design like this together Mark focuses on arrangements.
Foliage is important and can provide both color or texture. It's true,
plants have texture. Mark feels a term often overlooked is flower
architecture. Flower architecture refers to the actual shape of the
flowers. There is so much effort put into timing the blooms and their
colors but one should remember different flowers have different shapes
and that's an ornamental attribute. For example, flowers might have a
trumpet shape or they might have a narrow spire, they could be a flat
Daisy or even a little button. The shapes become important particularly
when one has a scheme consisting of a primary color, like red. The
combination of the flower shapes adds more visual interest.
With the red scheme they've focused on flowers and textures but as well
have focused on foliage. They've added subtropical plants specifically
for foliage interest. For example, Continue coggygria 'Smoke Bush'
Euphorbia was planted specifically for its maroon leaf. It is not to be
confused with Woody Smoke Bush which will send out plumes of blooms.
This plant is included because of its foliage. Mark has included
Tropical Hibiscus, this is a new variety called Hibiscus acetosella
'Haight Ashbury' which is a maroon leaf Hibiscus with hints of and
streaks of pink throughout the leaves. They're not concerned about
blooms, which are very rare, but instead wanted the subtle pink
coloration on a nice sturdy 4 to 5 foot tall tropical. Homeowners could
compost them after frost or bring them indoors. Both are options.
Joe wonders about the fertilization program here because everything
looks so lush. Mark reports they use Miracle Gro every 3 weeks from
June through August with an occasional application of Milorganite which
is a granular fertilizer.
Top
JOE AND MARK NEXT VISIT THE ENGLISH GARDEN. Joe wants to know some of
the design elements one would find in a typical English garden. One of
those elements is the wall, in this case a brick wall surrounds the
garden. In English cottage gardens the intent was to emphasize the
separation of usage or space. So, the walls were meant to separate the
property from, say, a roadway or adjacent use like a livestock field or
some other agricultural use. There is no rhyme nor reason to the
specific plants that would go in an English Cottage Garden because this
type of garden is subjective and personal. A lot of the plants were
hand-me-downs or plants that might have been passed along by friends or
family. They could include a hodgepodge of perennials and old fashioned
garden annuals. When referring to old fashioned garden annuals in the
context of an English cottage garden Alcea 'Hollyhock' has a long
history in the garden, in gardening and cultivation. The singles were
more common centuries ago, simply because Hollyhock doubles are a
modern invention. The singles are a real classic and are beautiful.
Fragrance is a nice component in the English cottage garden and Lilies
are great for this. The Lilies here are hybrids and are called Lilium
'Conca D' Or' Orienper Lilies. They're a combination of Oriental and
Trumpet Lilies and are reminiscent of a plant that would have been
introduced for color and scent in the summer portion of an English
cottage garden. Another plant common in an English garden is
Physostegia virginana 'False Dragonhead' Obedient Plant. It has a long
history but can be rambunctious. The white blooming plant is a variety
called Miss Manners and it tends to stay in a clump, which is a nice
asset. They have a nice, large container in this garden. It's a tribute
to the Wisconsin dairy industry. It's an old copper cheese vat. In it
they've included wonderful tropicals including Colocasia 'Elepaio'
Elephant Ear and the common Caladium but the plant along the edge is
interesting. It's a new tropical called Brazilian Fireworks. It has
wonderful foliage and tropical looking blooms. It will be used
side-by-side with Impatiens and Begonias for many years to come. The
purple blooms echo the purple Oxalis in a nearby container. Here Mark
has a wonderful Oxalis called Charmed Wine which is a fancy Shamrock
but the beautiful foliage is augmented by the color of the pot which is
another design consideration. Joe likes the design of this English
cottage garden, it has a random look with the various flowers but it is
balanced off with symmetry, like that in the entrance/exit. There they
have an obelisk and containers planted with Carex (Sedge) which is not
overly distracting yet is still an interesting plant. They've used a
Dead Sedge, so called, because they look dead because of their brown
coloration. This variety Carex flagellifora 'Toffee Twist' is a
wonderful drooping Sedge that will cascade over a pot and offer
wonderful texture all the way till frost. These elements (containers
and plants) add a transition to a formal space but before we get there
it creates the feeling of an oasis within an oasis. This garden looks
and feels good.
Top
THE GUYS NEXT VISIT THE NEWEST SPACE, IT IS THEIR FERN AND MOSS GARDEN
and is designed in the Japanese style. If anyone came into this area
and were tense this would be the place to unwind. Here they have the
sound of running water, they have shade, Moss and the Ferns. This
garden is designed to be contemplative. The primary color is green, but
they've tried to punctuate that with yellows and a lot of textures from
the ferns. The garden space lends itself to just observing and
relaxing. It's a nice contrast to the rest of the garden where they
have bright, hot colors which are beautiful but this is beautiful with
just 1 color palette. The color palette of Ferns can run the gamut of
different colorations. This collection contains 250 varieties from
around the world because the area is also utilized for trialing. They
have the ferns grouped by region of origin. They have Asiatic Ferns,
North American as well as European derivatives. The North American
Ferns are lush. Many Ferns are sent to them. Since they're part of a
trialing program they're constantly trialing ferns for this climate.
For example, they're involved with the Hardy Fern Foundation which is
based out of Washington state and they're constantly trialing ferns for
them and, again, trying to see what sort of new ferns on the market
will thrive in this climate. Mark likes ferns in general but
particularly thinks that developments in the Athyrium niponicum
'Pictum' (Japanese painted Ferns) are exciting. A lot of them look
alike but there's an exciting new variety called Athyrium niponicum
var. pictum 'Apple Court' and it's the first crested Japanese Painted
Fern. The ends of the penuals crest out but you also get the great
silver sheen with the burgundy stems. It's just gorgeous. Joe also
notices plenty of Moss. Many people write us wanting to get rid of
their moss. Here they've done a great job of incorporating Moss into
the garden and it looks great. This is a collection of native Wisconsin
Mosses and they're attempting to show people that Moss is a functional
ground cover. It has a long history in gardening, particularly in
Japan. Once it's established, it's functional, it's effective, it's
very aesthetic. Instead of focusing on removal, encourage Moss. There
is a lot of symbolism in a Japanese garden, there's an emphasis on
representing nature on a symbolic or smaller scale. There are lot of
elements in this garden - rock work, lanterns, bridges, water features,
etc., but it is meant as a contemplative garden with a lot of features
on which to contemplate. With a Japanese garden green is the primary
color, but there is a focus in spring and fall on color. Typically
around April and May there is a lot of color, then again in October
there is fall color. Form is also important. They do a lot of sheering,
shaping, layering of plant material. It's all meticulously maintained.
This Japanese garden is designed to represent the hand of man. There is
a lot of stonework and there is gravel which has furrows or waves that
they constantly rake. This is intended to represent an ocean punctuated
by rocks which become islands. It's a symbolic representation and it
all works beautifully together.
Top
JOE AND MARK NEXT VISIT THE RECEPTION GARDEN. This garden is formal in
nature, all corners are symmetrical and are defined by a raised stone
wall. The setting of the garden is meant to have echoing colors and
textures throughout the garden. But the primary features include some
hardscaping elements that have a long history in Janesville. For
example, the archway is from the old Parker Pen World headquarters but
now leads down to the Sunken Garden. As well there is a Druid sculpture
which was on the old House of Mercy which has become Mercy Hospital in
Janesville. It's a 100 year old statue that has a long history in this
community. Joe thinks it's really nice to recycle important art pieces,
very meaningful. The stone wall itself is meant to be all accessible -
whether volunteers, visitors or wheelchair bound they can actually get
close to the edge. The taller walls or living walls that define the
garden are referred to as their "living fence." These include Juniperus
chinensis 'Fairview' (Chinese Junipers) as well as Thuja occidentalis
(Arborvitae). They shear these 2 times a year to create the fence. And
they are very effective in terms of separating the space, keeping this
area secluded and quiet. One wouldn't immediately know that on the
other side is the parking lot, we could be in the back of the garden.
Mark has done a great job throughout the garden with color themes and
this one has its own theme which lends itself to a feeling of coolness.
And, that was by design. The Reception Garden has historically had a
white, silver and blue theme which help create a feel of coolness.
Whites and blues are a great color combination but are particularly
visual at dusk. The intent here was to create interest as the sun
starts to set. It works well here and the feel of coolness is
especially needed because the hard surface, asphalt, has a lot of
reflective heat. Mark says asphalt may not be the best ground paving
for a garden space, it has created a sort of heat island and urban
effect. The silvers can tolerate a lot of heat and the plants selected
will take the heat while offering that feeling of coolness. One of
Joe's favorite plants is Cynara cardunculus L. (Caredoon). It is a
relative of the Artichoke and has distinctive structure and texture. It
grows from a small plant when planted in the spring to 4 feet tall and
4 feet wide and has beautiful, rugged looking silver leaves. If allowed
to go to flower it has a neon purple bloom on top of a tall spike. It's
very interesting and has great architectural appeal. Mark has
underplanted with with Petunia x hybrida and Dichondra argentea
Dichondra Silver Falls which has beautiful silver foliage. It is not
necessarily new, it's been out several years but very effective as a
trailer. Whether in hanging baskets, ground cover or even softening a
wall it works great. We often talk about softness and texture, but when
doing so we're normally referring to visual texture. But there is also
tactile or touching texture. For example, Salvia funereal (Woolly Sage)
has beautiful, very soft silvery leaves that are reminiscent of Lamb's
Ear. The kids love to touch it.
Top
The guys move on to another area. Joe thinks it looks like they're
standing in a sea of Salvia di vinorum. THIS IS THE DEMONSTRATION
GARDEN and it has been in existence for 6 years. The flavor this year
is 155 varieties of Salvia. In past years they've focused on other
specific seasonal plants. They've planted Salocia, Snapdragons,
Amaranth, Cannas, etc. They try to display the full gamut of plants
while also showing what seasonal plants will offer for the home
gardener. The Demonstration Gardens exist number one because they're
beautiful for the public to enjoy and perhaps decide on several they
might want to grow the next year. The second reason is for professional
or academic audiences, those folks that might want to see some of the
horticultural differences in the plants. The third reason is
self-serving for Rotary Gardens, Mark and his team want to see the best
of the best and incorporate those into future schemes. There are
hundreds of varieties available. In the winter they order every
available variety they can because this is an extensive collection. To
establish a collection like this they must order from over 40 different
seed vendors both domestically and overseas.
Joe and Mark visit another Demonstration Garden and it too has a lot of
color. This is the All American Selections Demonstration Garden. This
is 1 of 175 display gardens in the country for All American Selections
and the intent was to display award winning seasonal plants. All
American selections has been around since the 1930's promoting both
seasonals as well as vegetables. The intent with this display was to
take some of the guesswork out and show people some award winning
seasonals that can be grown successfully at home. All American
Selections are and have been trialed from coast to coast north and
south. Pretty much where ever you live you can be assured the All
American Selections plants in your area will do well in your garden.
These plants are available in the market place and there are more
things coming up.
The message Mark would like to leave us with is that we should know the
plant before it goes into the ground. So many of us are plant-plunkers.
We put the plants in the ground and don't know what they need. We have
expectations of the plants but they have expectations of us. There is
always a push to put out new plant material. What's new out there? New
is good in some respects but always remember that a new plant isn't
always good and a good plant isn't always new. That's important to
know. By knowing your plant you can take a lot of gardening problems
away. And, providing proper care is paramount.
Joe thinks that is great advice and thanks Mark for his time today.
This is a beautiful garden and Mark has been a wonderful guide.
Top
LINKS:
Rotary Botanical Gardens
Mansion Hill Inn
Garden Smart Plant List
