It’s Friday so that means we’re joining our friends, Rosy and her brothers from LLB in Our Backyard for this another edition of Nature Friday Blog Hop. This week the ‘editors’ decided at our staff meeting to share a touch of the woods despite them being miles away and the minor detail of the Ranch hands living in an urban landscape. Sam in particular likes this first exhibit, it smells heavenly to both him and his ‘huMom.’
As the early spring bulbs begin to wind down, we’re beginning to notice a transition to other spring bloomers. Golden Alyssum, sometimes called basket-of-gold plants (Aurinia saxtilis) is starting to pop up along our neighborhood walks. This easy to grow perennial signals that spring is moving full speed ahead toward the full blooming gardening season. Hardy from Zone 3 through 7, this taxicab-yellow addition likes a sunny garden location with well-drained soil and will tend to die back once the weather takes on hot summer temps. It doesn’t particularly like overly rich soil, wet or humid conditions which tends to make it well-suited for Denver’s high mountain desert conditions. Once the blossoms drop, a quick shear of the top third of the plant will freshen its look and prevent it from going to seed. You can divide the plants in the Autumn.
Planted at the base of a tree with south-west exposure, Golden Alyssum provides a nice wooded area look to my neighbor’s garden. Frequently planted as a ground cover with bulbs, it keeps the garden looking less bedraggled once all the daffodils, tulips and other spring bulbs have finished blooming before summer perennials take center stage.
Another woodland looking plant that is beginning to show up is Creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata). Suitable for planting in nearly any soil conditions, it likes sunny exposures though it will tolerate partial shade. Soil should be well-drained. Cutting back spent blooms may provide subsequent blooming. the plants are about four inches tall and can spread up to two feet providing a blanket of blooms in bright shades of pink, lavender, red, white or bluish-purple. This low-maintenance evergreen plant works well on slopes or other areas, can spread between rocks or tumble over a wall and makes it perfect for creating a woodland look in the landscape garden. Creeping phlox is drought-tolerant hardy in USDA Zones 3B through 10 and requires supplemental water only during warm, dry weather.
So as you think of Mother Nature this weekend, don’t forget to look toward woodland looks to making the transition from early spring bulbs toward warm weather plants. Hope your weekend is full of beauty and peace.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
The introduction of these trees underscores the fact that too often there are unintended consequences requiring contemplation before moving ahead. Remember, it’s not nice to fool Mother Nature.
While we made the rounds visiting with a new hospice doctor, all the nurses and a few visitors, we ended up spending a lot of time with a fairly young-looking woman and her daughter at hospice. It was almost an afterthought visit, as we’d seen so many people, Sam was petty tired and their room was full of family members paying their respects. In those circumstances, I don’t generally intrude, especially when the end is so close (according to the nurse), but when “Kate” came out into the hallway and said how much she could really benefit from a visit, how could we refuse? “Of course,” I replied, “we’d be more than happy to spend some time with you.” She indicated the patient was her husband, which totally surprised me since I erroneously thought the man in the bed was her father. A daughter came out and we all convened in the middle of the hallway. Sam seemed refreshed and eager to check them out and when the woman knelt down in front of him, he patiently gazed as deeply into her eyes as I’ve ever seen. She teared up and said how much she needed him that moment. I just smiled not knowing if there’s something I should say, or even what to say.
