Garden Vignette

What an amazing transformation. By the end of summer, the bare earth, newly released from its cover of winter snow in April, is unrecognizable. The mature garden is verdant and lush. Here’s a snapshot of one section of the September riot, a triumph of prolific summer growth.

To the right is the fountain grass ‘Redhead’ (Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Redhead’). It may be my favorite grass. Its fuzzy seedheads have a pretty blush color, and when backlit by the sun, they’re absolutely breath-taking.

Behind ‘Redhead’ is a hyacinth bean vine. This is the first year I have tried this annual. It has yet to flower, but the vine itself is impressive. It is clambering up a ladder, but the vine is so rampant, the ladder is no longer visible through the leaves!

The tall yellow flowers near the center belong to rudbeckia nitida ‘Herbstsonne’, or Autumn Sun rudbeckia. Autumn Sun is an apt name for this tall, brilliant yellow flower.

These airy seedhead sprays belong to the switchgrass Panicum virgatum ‘Thundercloud’. Thundercloud is the tallest of several switchgrass varieties in the garden, but at 6 feet it is dwarfed by the Giant Silver Grass (Miscanthus giganteus) growing behind it, which will reach 11 feet.

Playing supporting roles to their taller neighbours are an assortment of phlox, coreopsis, and a tumbledown hollyhock that seeded itself here. Pictured below is agastache ‘Blue Fortune’.

Tomorrow, we will be leaving the garden to its own devices for a couple of weeks as RailGuy and I head out on vacation. To celebrate RailGuy’s retirement, we are taking the train from Toronto to Vancouver and spending a few days on the west coast. I’ll have pictures to share when we return!

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Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day: September 2012

As we move into fall, the garden begins to take on an overripe, languid feel, an aging beauty going to seed, in this case, quite literally. However, it is still a beautiful place to stroll and take in the sights.

Lemon Queen sunflower (Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’) dominates the central island. I didn’t get around to staking the Queen earlier in the season, and now she is so well-attended by bumblebees, I am content to let her tumble out over her lesser neighbours.

The ornamental grasses are taking on a starring role in the border as their seedheads mature.

My favorite is probably Redhead Fountaingrass (Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Redhead’), which has already been magnificent for weeks.

Its little cousin Piglet (Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Piglet’) has a softer look, with gently arching stems.

In addition to airy seedheads, the blades of switchgrass add colour interest. Here is Shenandoah (Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’) touched with scarlet.

The various ligularia species have been brightening shady corners since midsummer. Here is Desdemona (Ligularia dentata ‘Desdemona’).

Of course, fall is the season for asters. Here is Pink Bouquet (Aster dumosus ‘Pink Bouquet’) backed by Silver Brocade artemisia (Artemisia stelleriana ‘Silver Brocade’).

By autumn, the annuals have matured and are adding touches of brillant colour. The caryopteris, or bluebeard, is adding a pretty blue and the deep wine-cerise of Angelica is outstanding with phlox and sedum. Here is a selection of other garden highlights.

To visit other September gardens, please drop by May Dream’s Garden Bloggers’ Day roundup, linked here.

Cleome

Caryopteris x clandonensis ‘Longwood Blue’

Angelica gigas

Rainbow Knockout Rosa ‘Radcor’

Calamintha nepeta ‘Blue Cloud’

Echinacea ‘Green Jewel’

Black Adder Agastache and Hosta Krossa Regal

Anemone hupehensis ‘Pink Saucer’

Joe Crow

Woodland Walk

Tamarack Walk

Shade Walk

Japanese Painted ferns and hostas underplanting Amur Maple with Tiger Eye Sumac in background.

Royal Standard Hostas

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Tucked into Bed

I thoroughly enjoyed the ornamental grasses in my garden this fall. So much so that when I came across a selection of grasses that had been marked down for ‘end-of-season’ sale, I took advantage of the great prices and picked up another six varieties. Because the gardening season is nearly finished here, I just tucked them into an open space near the house. It should be a nice, protected spot for them to overwinter and then next spring I will relocate them to a permanent home.

Miscanthus gigantus

Grasses don’t look like much when they’re just potted-up youngsters, a few wispy blades. You’d never guess that the Giant Maiden Grass (Miscanthus gigantus), above, has the potential to grow into a big, sturdy clump standing up to 12 feet tall!

Miscanthus sinensis 'Zebrinus'

Here is another miscanthus, Zebra Grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Zebrinus’), which has interesting striped foliage. It gets to be 5 or 6 feet tall and makes an interesting accent.

Pennisetum Alopecuroides 'Moudry'

I also purchased three fountain grass varieties. These are more compact plants than the two miscanthus varieties above. Black-flowering Fountain Grass (Pennisetum Alopecuroides ‘Moudry’) forms a compact clump 2 to 3 feet tall and produces interesting dark seedheads. The latin name, pennisetum, translates as “feather bristle”, referring to the bristly structures surrounding the flowers on the inflorescence.

Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Redhead'

The bristles referred to in the name show up well in the above photograph of Redhead Fountain Grass (Pennisetum Alopecuroides ‘Redhead’).

Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Piglet'

The third fountain grass I picked up is Piglet (Pennisetum Alopecuroides ‘Piglet‘). It forms a neat little clump that grows to about 18 inches tall. What’s not to love about a grass called Piglet?

The grasses I currently have in my garden are native to North America, while these new additions are imports. I did get one more native grass to add to my collection, however, Northern Sea Oats (Chasmanthium latifolium). Its seedheads are very different from the plumes of miscanthus or stems of pennisetum. The geometrical-shaped seed pods hang on gracefully arching stems. I look forward to seeing all the grasses next spring. Sleep tight!

Chasmanthium latifolium

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