Tips – Seed Inventory

Seed Inventory at the end of the growing season is a super activity for a rainy or on a chilly day in the fall. If you’ve saved the seed packets from this year after planting, and you should, now is the time to plan for next years spring growing season. 

Your last years packets are a way for you to find the same seeds again next year. The nurseries start stocking seeds pretty early in the year because you can actually sow seeds indoors about six to eight weeks before planting. If you are at the nursery for fall shopping, check in with the owners or Managers of your favorite garden center for an ETA of their next spring arrivals. Everybody does this, so don’t think it strange that you are asking in Oct or November. Staff are used to these anticipatory questions. The reason is that in many smaller garden centers, early seed arrivals can come and in a couple weeks time they are all SOLD OUT. Of course they will restock in time for actually planting seeds outdoors, but if you are one of those gardeners who loves to “sow” indoors you will want to know when their first arrivals will be available, so it’s not at all a strange question. 

Now is a great time to make a list of what you will want for next spring, and seed packets are available online and by mail order catalog. Three of the largest seed companies are:

 Ferry Morse, Burpee and Botanical interests

You can use many homegrown ideas for containers for your seed sowing projects, but we have found a small and affordable one from Amazon.

We have given thought about conducting a “seed sowing clinic” next spring. Do let us know if this is something you would be interested in doing. Gardeners love to gather and share, and we all have “tips and trick’s” that we have gleaned over the years for successful seed planting. Sharing is part of the fun. 

Do stay tuned for additional posts on this blog about  “selection and seed sowing.”

“Contessa” says ….. it’s all good!

•••••••••••

NOTE:  Believe it…. This year we dropped a whole seed packet on a grate and they all fell through…..but ONE.  So we planted it anyway.  All by its lonesome. This is a photo from this week. That one (1) seed produced a vine. And on Wed this week we counted eight blooms climbing in our trellis.  Amazing that one seed the size of a mustard seed produced these lovely little Morning Glory flowers.

WOW ….nature is so amazing. 

THE GARDEN MUSEUM…..UK

An Evening of Gardens and Architecture Journalist Evan Davis will chair this event which explores the relationship between architects and landscape designers. How does an architect meet the right garden designer? Can a landscape architect influence the city of the future? Is there ever such a thing as a truly landscape-led project in the modern world? We’ll be exploring what each profession can give the other in a set of four short presentations celebrating successful partnerships, and then Evan will explore how to get the chemistry right in a partnership, and what architects and landscape designers can learn from each other. Presentations will be given by: Cooke Fawcett Architects and garden designer Dan Bristow Landscape designer Kim Wilkie and architect Ben Pentreath on their collaboration on a new sustainable “landscape-led” town in Faversham Landscape Architect Jo Gibbons of J & L Gibbons Garden designer Charlotte Harris of Harris Bugg Tues 4 October, 7pm £15 Standard, £10 Friends, £5 Young Fronds / Students £5 Livestream Book now A London house and garden by Cooke Fawcett Architects and Dan Bristow Speaking at our upcoming talk on gardens and architecture, collaborators Cooke Fawcett Architects and garden designer Dan Bristow will present their transformation of a Victorian terraced house in Tufnell Park (pictured above). At the heart of the project a new double height space is oriented to the garden. Tall rear windows framing a dramatic portrait view of lush greenery, terracing, and trees, inviting the garden into the house and making a strong visual connection through the building. Planting close to the façade of the building creates animation of light, shadow, and texture, making the garden feel like a true extension of the living space. Deciduous creepers take on an important environmental role providing shading to an outdoor seating area and to the west facing glazing. Book now Squash & Pumpkin Festival Celebrate squash and pumpkin season this autumn with the Garden Museum Learning team in collaboration with Incredible Edible Lambeth, Border Crossings and Rootz into Food Growing. There will be opportunities to watch cooking demos, tasting, seed sowing, a film screening and discussion. And take part in a pumpkin competition to win prizes! Sat 15 October, 1pm – 4pm Free entry, pre-booking required Book now New Talk! Lucian Freud’s Plant Portraits What is a plant portrait? How does it differ from a picture of a plant? About Two Plants (above), Freud said: “They are lots of little portraits of leaves, lots and lots of them, starting with them rather robust in the middle—greeny-blue and cream—and getting more yellow and broken”. Drawing from the research for his book Lucian Freud Herbarium (2019, Prestel) and inspired by the exhibition Lucian Freud: Plant Portraits which he guest curated, in this talk Giovanni Aloi will explore Freud’s ability to tease out the individual character of the plants he painted. Tues 18 October, 7pm 20 Standard, £15 Friends, £10 Students / Young Fronds £10 Livestream Book now Join our Garden Visits Committee Our Garden Visits Committee is seeking two new members – could it be you? The Garden Visits Committee is a group of energetic and passionate volunteers who organise the popular and successful series of garden visits which have been part of the Garden Museum’s events programme since 2011. Recent garden visits have been to the homes of designers such as Dan Pearson and Tom Stuart-Smith, and some of the finest country houses and gardens in the UK. Being a committee member is a fantastic way to support the Museum and contribute to fundraising to ensure its future. It is an excellent opportunity to develop a network of contacts within garden design and horticulture as well as meeting the owners and makers of some very interesting and beautiful gardens. Find out more Plant of the Week: Atlas poppy (Papaver rupifragumvar. atlanticum) By Matt Collins, Head Gardener A ‘rare colour’ — a ‘soft orange’, is how Beth Chatto described this brilliant southern poppy, which could have been ‘plant of the week’ many times over throughout spring and late summer. Back in May it flourished among the pink cranesbills and campanula (as in the below image); now in the approach of autumn its luminous orange brings warmth to the cooling days. This semi-double, sometimes single flowering perennial came to us a couple of years ago from London garden designer Jane Brockbank, who gifted an envelope of collected seed suggesting it might do well at the museum. Quite right: it has thrived. Thomas Rutter, then our horticultural trainee, had great success in raising a large number in 9cm pots; once brimming with glaucous green, hairy leaves, these found homes in and around the dry garden, forming robust clumps that have since withstood a summer of heatwaves and meagre rainfall with next to no sign of stress. Found wild in the harsh climate of southern Spain and Morocco, it is a plant that can prosper from the smallest crack in a wall or paving stone gap. I am a big fan of orange plants, all the better those feral spirited species like Pilosella aurantiaca (‘fox and cubs’), California poppy and Chinese globeflower (Trollius chinensis). It is a colour far too often dismissed, but one that, as an accent, ‘pops’ like no other, particularly when placed among silver leaf Mediterranean subshrubs like lavender, artemisia, teucrium. Permitted to self seed within this structural evergreen context, Papaver rupifragum var. atlanticum (‘atlanticum’ relating to its homeland range in the Atlas Mountains of North Africa) offers a fantastic ephemeral layer, repeat-flowering in three or four stints across the growing season — even more if diligently deadheaded. Its tissue paper petals are lifted surprisingly high on slender architectural stems, the many resulting seed heads easily gathered and resown, or siphoned into an envelope to be shared once again. Explore our gardens Object of the Week: ‘Rare Plants at the International Horticultural Exhibition, South Kensington’ This press clipping from Illustrated London News dated 9 June 1866 depicts a group of “rare plants” (the likes of which you might see at our upcoming Houseplant Festival!) which were displayed at the International Horticultural Exhibition that year, including: Anthurium magnificum, Cycas revoluta, Pandanus Veitchii, Phormium Tenax, Lilium auratum, Saracenia flava picta and Lily of the Valley. Book Houseplant Festival tickets Images: Victorian terrace in Tufnell Park images courtesy of Cooke Fawcett Architects; J & L Gibbons with Carmody Gorake © Sarah Blee, J & L Gibbons, High Weald rewilding; Two Plants, 1977-80 (oil on canvas) Freud, Lucian, Tate Modern © The Lucian Freud Archive, All Rights Reserved 2022 / Bridgeman Images; Garden Visit at Helmingham Hall © Beckie Egan Photography; Atlas poppy © Matt Collins Garden Museum 5 Lambeth Palace Road, London SE1 7LB gardenmuseum.org.uk

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Garden Bed Revamp on Wellington (REVISION #2) Tues – 9/27- 6:02 pm

BEFORE

It may not look like it needs work. But we are transforming a bed, to bare bones, for planting an assortment of new flowering perennials. Our homeowner has asked us to make the selections. Along with all her flowering planters it’s going to look fresher and very much like a true flowers garden. Minus all the Creeping Ivy and Vinca Vines. And we are resetting all the brick borders and laying newspaper on the bank, covering it with topsoil to prevent more weed from returning. And we will mulch well.

And the bed with the large bark chips we are taking them out, because she wants to make it a Pansy bed. So we need some new garden soil and an assortment of Pansies and finally a topper of fresh shredded hardwood bark mulch. This  bed is a tribute to her Mom who loved Pansies.and directly behind them us the yellow rose bush we planted during the summer, also for her Mom

And we are also going to help reset newly purchased stair and border lighting upon completion.

It’s probably about a 6 to 8 hour project. We’ll see. Stay tuned for a final completion video.

Todays we took a photo collection of areas needing our magic. 

(REVISED) – Fri – 9/23 – 6:15 pm

Today we finished clearing the bed of Ivy and Vinca vines. We dug up the three spider grasses. We transplanted the largest to the other bed where there were five in a row. We had a gap at the end of the row, so we planted it there to fill this gap. The other two were pretty straggly so we tossed.

Early in the summer we dug up four Day Lily’s and have transplanted them in a row….as the new bed border between our bed and the back side of the property.

We have leveled the bed, started creating a deep outer  edge along the side, and next we will reset a few of the uneven bricks on the side near the gravel/stone slab path. We have gone to the nursery and purchased 7 bags of top soil to amend the beds as they are mostly VA clay. Not great for planting. And we will add some organic gardening soil as well. We also purchased eight (8) bags of mulch with the assistance of  our student helper. And while there….we both took all the large chip mulch out of the sloped bed. It’s rough, too large and hard to plant in, so it was best to dispose of it. Now, we can plant the Pansy bed that our homeowner so wants.

The wind at 25 mph today with a shady yard was a bit of a challenge. All in all it was a super beautiful day. And we feel like when we return next Tuesday we will be able to accomplish quite a lot.

So far, we have six (6) hours in this project. It’s still a work in progress, but it’s definitely coming along.

“Contessa”’ says…..,it’s all good.

(REVISION #2) – Tues – 9/27 – 6:02 pm 

The following photos and Video are part of todays Revision  #2. We cut bank the Vinca Vine up at the top of the sloped bed. We then placed thick newspaper down on the slope and covered them with seven (7) bags of Top Soil. We then added four (4) bags of Bumper Crop Garden Soil to the lower bed where the Pansies are going to be planted. We purchase ten (10) – one (1) quart containers of Pansies, our clients Mom’s favorite. And we arranged new Perennial plants in the large “cleared” bed awaiting our clients approval. We made the pick and she loves what we selected.  She has asked us to purchase two more of the Shasta Daisy plants.

Thursday we will plant all the new plants and finally we have purchased six (6), three (3) cu ft bags of hardwood shredded bark mulch and will lay it all to complete the look.

The new  perennial plants are:

1 – Echinacea Wicked (burgundy)

1 – Guara, Rose Jane

1 – Laucenthemium,  White Lion

1 – Perovskila, Denim n Lace

in addition our client has four planters that we made for her mid-summer. We will plant the White Mum in the new bed. The other plants are annuals and our first frost will take them, but they have done well and her urge to have flowers this summer was fulfilled.  So nice switching to perennials to give her plants that last and plants that will show themselves again next spring. It’s fun and she can even add a couple more things in the spring.  We think there will be room.

IN PROCESS

Please do stay tuned for our final completion video.

Oh “Morning Glory”

My Morning Glory climber was one (1) seed. I had a packet but dropped them and only could retrieve one. It’s climbed my trellis in spit of my snafu.

I  Just kept winding it around the stems on the trellis. So cute and every morning it’s the first thing I look at. To see how many blooms I have. Today it’s about seven (7). Next year I’ll be more careful with these tiny seeds. It’s sweet, cheerful and forgiving. I Love it. This   Morning  Glory makes my day.  Lovely……

UK, The Garden Museum….sharing

THE GARDEN MUSEUM New Talk! Darryl Moore: Gardening in a Changing World Faced with the challenges of the climate crisis and increasing biodiversity loss, we are at a crucial crossroads in our engagement with the rest of the natural world. In an event to mark the launch of Darryl Moore’s new book Gardening in a Changing World, he will be part of a conversation with Nigel Dunnett and Arit Anderson, discussing our past and present relationships with plants, and how we need to rethink our attitudes to them. This challenging and important conversation will be essential for anyone interested in making plants and gardens part of the solution to the current and future challenges we face, in a rapidly changing world. Tues 11 October, 7pm £15 Standard, £10 Friends, £5 Young Fronds / Students £5 Livestream Book now Gravetye Manor: A Week in the Wild Garden By Caroline Cathcart, Horticultural Trainee As part of her Horticultural Traineeship at the Garden Museum, Caroline has the opportunity to work with experienced gardeners across the UK. This traineeship has been generously funded by The National Gardens Scheme and the Museum’s Friends Group in Leicestershire and Rutland. Her first placement recently took her to Gravetye Manor in Sussex, the former home of William Robinson: “The reputation of the place precedes itself, but nothing could have prepared me for the beauty that assaulted my senses when I stepped out of Gravetye Manor into the garden. I found myself flanked on all sides by flowers, spilling out of the mixed borders onto the paths in a voluptuous swell, their vigour unchecked by the lingering drought.Burgeoning with more flowers than I could count, the borders give a stunning impact, but their most precious treasures were not discoverable at first glance. It was only upon close inspection, while I waited nervously to meet Tom Coward, the head gardener, that they offered themselves up to me. First, the dahlias; the most beautiful was Dahlia merckii, a delicate little thing with tiny lilac flowers held on tall, wiry stems. This diminutive species found its opposite in the giant ‘Emory Paul’, with its ruffled deep pink flowers as big as my head. I was lucky to arrive just as it had unfurled to its most perfect bloom – the following day it had begun to wither…” Keep reading

A Discourse on Spaces Inspired by our Sowing Roots project which explored the gardening cultures brought to the UK by Londoners of Caribbean heritage, we have invited horticulturist, writer and artist Edward Adonteng to curate this series of talks, A Discourse on Spaces. What is the importance of space to humanity? How do the spaces that we inhabit define us? What happens to these spaces when different worlds collide? In London, intersections and cultural exchange place the city in an ever-evolving state of hybridity. No two streets are quite the same. This reflective series, influenced by the contributions of the Sowing Roots exhibition, will explore gentrification, immortality, conflict, heritage, sustainability and the movement amongst peoples through a plethora of stories, conversations and perspectives. Explore the programme How to Grow the Flowers: Seed Sowing Ahead of their book launch on 27 September, organic flower growers Wolves Lane Flower Company share an exclusive extract from How to Grow the Flowers: A sustainable approach to enjoying flowers through the seasons. Here are Marianne and Camila’s seed sowing tips to set yourself up for growing successful cut flowers: “A brown speck burgeoning into a fully fledged plant in one short season is miraculous, and the rush of success addictive. Once you’ve mastered a few easy varieties and been able to cut armfuls of sweet peas or calendula, it’s easy to be totally seduced by the seed catalogues and order everything like a kid let loose in a sweet shop. Growing from seed is a thrifty way of filling your plot but not if you buy more seeds than you have room for or time to nurture. Be selective and remember, there will be future seasons to try new, alluring varieties…” Keep reading Plant of the Week: Viola hederacea By Matt Collins, Head Gardener A key feature of the planting within the museum courtyard is the creation of pocket plant communities: three or more species that in partnership form distinct zones within the overall scheme. It’s a rather brilliant ploy by designer Dan Pearson, establishing zoning within such a contained little garden, so that you walk a series of overlapping yet contrasting spaces when circling the central planting. In one area, a loose grouping of poet’s laurel (Danne racemosa), velvety Persicaria virginianaand dark Asarum europaeum; towards the gardener’s shed, canna lily, Geranium ‘White Ness’ and the autumn fern, Dryopteris erythrosora. Invariably, the underplants (here, asarum and geranium) are abundant and spreading by habit, and are encouraged to drift freely below the taller species, knitting plants together. But of all the courtyard underplants, probably my favourite is the Australian violet, Viola hederacea. It’s the plant I get asked most often to identify (until our giant dahlia flowers in December), and the one I’m frequently, politely, asked to lift a little section of, “just quickly, while nobody’s looking?”. Planted in swathes, to commune with the thornless bramble shrubs (Rubus lineatus), perennial actaea and disporum, and spilling out over the walkways, its near perpetual flowers are a subtle, welcome presence until capped by the cold: tiny scented blooms like purple ink on a sugar cube. Explore our gardens Benton Iris ‘Strathmore’ This peachy iris variety bred by Cedric Morris at Benton End was named after The Queen Mother’s home Strathmore. Images: Dry garden by Olivier Filippi, image (c) Olivier Filippi; Gravetye Manor photo by Caroline Cathcart; Wolves Lane Flower Company seed sowing (c) Aloha Bonser-Shaw; Viola Hederacea (c) Matt Collins, Iris ‘Strathmore (c) Claire Dawson

Garden Museum 5 Lambeth Palace Road, London SE1 7LB gardenmuseum.org.uk

Planting Bulbs…..for Spring Growth

It occurred to us today that we have not mentioned planting bulbs for next spring blooms. They are available now at the nurseries. Frankly, because our winters are more mild than years gone by, we think it’s safe to plant as late as Nov 15. But….. selections dwindle as fall moves along, so we recommend you buy early.

We are going on a buying trip to Merrifield Garden Center  on Oct 4th, so if you need any do let us know now. We are taking orders.  Please give us a cal. We are happy to pick them out for you

Planting:  Dig your holes deep enough and make sure you add some fresh soil to the dig. And be sure to water. We highly recommend you sprinkle the mound with “blood meal.”  It’s a miracle worker that keeps the squirrels from digging them up. It’s lway worth purchasing.

Note:  As you are planting your bulbs, pause and look up to the sky and the heavens. Our Savior God is watching over you, our earth and your bulbs. Think about the promise of new growth. Growth in you…and in the beautiful flowers that will emerge come April/May. It’s a miracle to be sure. And it encourages us to know that the process of “new growth”  and “blessings”  continue to grow in our earth and in us every day. How wonderful and encouraging.

Blessings from “Contessa

Fall Bookings…Available For October

Happy Saturday…….

Today we wanted to give a shout out to everyone that this is an excellent time to book your “fall” Contessa Signature Bed  Clean Up. We are taking bookings now. Please give us a call. We want to make sure you all are on our calendar.  

If you are a current client and someone you know can use our service….. we will appreciate all referrals of business. Thank you. And if you refer a booking to us, we will give you a $25 credit on your next ”Contessa Service.”

Once the weather breaks, leaves will start to fall and we believe we are on the cusp, it starts to happen quickly. The garden centers start rolling things out for fall (Pansies, Mums and especially bulbs) and if you haven’t completed your garden prep work you can miss out on some “first of fall” plants.  Do think about booking NOW. We don’t want anyone to have to wait a couple weeks until we can serve you. Thus us a very busy season for us. We are currently booked through the end of September.

We have two of our ongoing clients completed already and we have them ready for fall planting. Then in November we will visit them again and do a final sweep and mulch all their beds.  Bravo! 

Have a wonderful…..weekend!

”CONTESSA”

My Saturday Morning Prayer (REVISED) Wed – 9/21 – 8:22 am

Yesterday I spied one little Caladium leaf in the dirt nuzzled up almost inside a Hosta. All by its lonesome. I gently pulled after making a small dig in the dirt. It gave way….root in tact. I took it home and believe me…. you will see I will make a plant out of it. 

REVISED – Wed – 9/21 – 8:22

Ah…ha’  I knew it  My one little Caladium leaf was doing  its own “thing,” growing under the dirt  Here it comes. Once I get two or three leaf sprouts I’ll move it to a planter. It never ceases to amaze me, at what one leaf can do. It’s so thrilling  I’m saving another plant.  COOL

••••••••••••••

I did this recently with a fern that was down to one (1) frond. It’s now in a planter with six (16) fronds and two new on the way. In October I will plant it in the ground outdoors. It has enough stability now that I think it will make it through the winter and come back in the spring. A small miracle.

I’ve told my gardening clients…. I’ve never killed a plant  The good news is…. nature will inspire you if you will let it rebound and thrive.  Care for it and give it a little bit of time.

So why would I bother with one alive leaf.  It’s my God given talent. HE breathed life into me and gave me this talent. We all have them. So think about your talents and take action that your Lord and Savior God will surely bless you with His Grace.

You and I have gifts to give to Him and to others. Share to make our world better. These are the little things that matter. And most importantly…pause right now, bow your head and give thanks to Him. Jesus….is waiting to hear your thanksgiving.

I wish you all a beautiful Saturday morning

Prayer

…. my dear Jesus  I call you now. Thank you for my talents. I wish to use my talents in the best way. You alone will guide me and give me new inspiration. May I honor you today as I now serve my patrons in their gardens.  Gardens where more than plants are growing.  I’m planting seeds you have given me.   Your seeds of hope and everlasting joy.  Thank you Father…..AMEN

“Contessa” says….it’s all good.

A CONTESSA “Signature Service” Mt Eagle Place ……early fall….bed clean up (REVISED, Wed – 9/14 – 7:21 pm)

Yesterday we completed an assignment in our community. A repeat client. In fact she subscribes to what we call our “Contessa Signature Service.”

Our work for this fantastic client began on Tuesday and we carried over to Wednesday.  We worked a total off 7.5 hours. Our client usually has us four times per year.  So what exactly does a Contessa Signature Service include?

• Weeding all beds
• Trimming/ pruning all bushes
• Deadheading all blooming plants
• Amending soil as needed
• Transplanting/relocations as requested
• Deep Edging all bed borders
• Cutting back all dead growth
• Mulching beds upon request
• Raking all lawns, removing dead grass and rejuvenating new growth
• Complete Watering
• Final “Tidy”to the sidewalks

Our clients pretty much know the drill now and they completely rely on us to come, execute and “do our thing,” They trust us  They leave us to our work and usually they communicate by txt from indoors if they have requests or suggestions.

It’s our pleasure and we are pretty certain “their JOY.”

We love what we are doing and they know that  we treat their work as if we were working in our own yard.  A  personal but professional approach.

So if you will….please take a few moments to read a summary of our contributions at this lovely double unit in our historic Condominium Community.

Please do contact us if you have questions or would like to book with us, for a 30-minute “free gardening consultation.”

• ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •

BEFORE

Our client has been on vacation twice this summer so her being away has meant it was definitely time for a tidy. She loves her garden and we think she calls on us more often than any client we have. Certainly glad to be her gardener. She loves her spot and we love it too. And with several seasons working for her now we have  her beds in such great shape. Very few weeds at all today. We have planted almost everything she has. This time of year things are dying back,  but so far only the Peony suffered a set back. It developed Powdery Mildew. We’ve treated it, but the best thing to do is to cut it back eventually, because the silvery/white blight just continues to spread. It doesn’t kill the plant but it weakens growth and so today we took it to the ground. We are hopeful for next years new growth.

We tilled all the soil today cleaned all the beds of damp leaves. It’s looking fresh again. And we raked the yard. Doing this….although a little extra work, removes all the dead grass from summers mowing and the dampish leaves. We also did some gentle trimming of everything. Uniformity is the goal. Plants will grow in strange ways sometimes and we always tell our clients that they should decide how they want the plant to grow. Remember….don’t let the plant decide. If you do this, you may end up with a very crazy looking plant

We think our clients yard is looking very fresh again.

iN PROCESS

Tomorrow we are back to take care of the side yard and transplant an established Hydrangea that is poorly located; moving it to a better spot on the the side of the property.

And in October we will visit the nursery together shopping to select and plant six (6) new Skip Cherry Laurel bushes as a border to the back yard, between our client and the neighboring property.

Skip Cherry Laurel t(bush/hedge)

In late Oct, early November we will complete our final fall/winter bed prep and mulch all the beds. And so……another gardening season completes itself for our wonderful four (4) year client. It is indeed our pleasure

“Contessa” says…. It’s all good!

••••••••

AFTER/FINAL

REVISED – Wed – 7:21 pm – 915

Yesterday we completed the front yard beds. Today we completed the side yard, and transplanted a smallish  Hydrangea from the back yard. It’s in a great spot now. More sun and an empty bed with room to grow. It can be nice. We’ll anxiously wait to see it’s progress next spring.  The bed was full of Vinca Vine, now all removed. We cleaned up the Iris bed but neatly left the leaves laying on the bed. These fronds are  next years vitamins/nourishment. And we totally cut down the Day Lily patch. It was spindly, sparse and weak looking. Hopefully it will fill in a little better next year. Finally we just went by to apply a liquid fertilizer treatment with a pump spray attached to the hose. One hour if nourishment can do wonders.
We are very pleased with this project. Tge good news is there were very few weeds this year which will make our a November final visit so much easier. Mostly leaf removal, till the soil and apply a final mulch treatment.

This yard has come a long way. We are very pleased. A great example of what a “Contessa” signature “Fall Bed Clean Uo”looks like.

“Contessa” says……. It’s all good!

Mt Eagle Place ……early fall….bed clean up (REVISED, Wed – 9/14 – 7:21 pm)

BEFORE

Our client has been on vacation twice this summer so her being away has meant it was definitely time for a tidy. She loves her garden and we think she calls on us more often than any client we have. Certainly glad to be her gardener. She loves her spot and we love it too. And with several seasons working for her now we have  her beds in such great shape. Very few weeds at all today. We have planted almost everything she has. This time of year things are dying back,  but so far only the Peony suffered a set back. It developed Powdery Mildew. We’ve treated it, but the best thing to do is to cut it back eventually, because the silvery/white blight just continues to spread. It doesn’t kill the plant but it weakens growth and so today we took it to the ground. We are hopeful for next years new growth.

We tilled all the soil today cleaned all the beds of damp leaves. It’s looking fresh again. And we raked the yard. Doing this….although a little extra work, removes all the dead grass from summers mowing and the dampish leaves. We also did some gentle trimming of everything. Uniformity is the goal. Plants will grow in strange ways sometimes and we always tell our clients that they should decide how they want the plant to grow. Remember….don’t let the plant decide. If you do this, you may end up with a very crazy looking plant

We think our clients yard is looking very fresh again.

iN PROCESS

Tomorrow we are back to take care of the side yard and transplant an established Hydrangea that is poorly located; moving it to a better spot on the the side of the property.

And in October we will visit the nursery together shopping to select and plant six (6) new Skip Cherry Laurel bushes as a border to the back yard, between our client and the neighboring property.

Skip Cherry Laurel t(bush/hedge)

In late Oct, early November we will complete our final fall/winter bed prep and mulch all the beds. And so……another gardening season completes itself for our wonderful four (4) year client. It is indeed our pleasure

“Contessa” says…. It’s all good!

••••••••

AFTER/FINAL

REVISED – Wed – 7:21 pm – 915

Yesterday we completed the front yard beds. Today we completed the side yard, and transplanted a smallish  Hydrangea from the back yard. It’s in a great spot now. More sun and an empty bed with room to grow. It can be nice. We’ll anxiously wait to see it’s progress next spring.  The bed was full of Vinca Vine, now all removed. We cleaned up the Iris bed but neatly left the leaves laying on the bed. These fronds are  next years vitamins/nourishment. And we totally cut down the Day Lily patch. It was spindly, sparse and weak looking. Hopefully it will fill in a little better next year. Finally we just went by to apply a liquid fertilizer treatment with a pump spray attached to the hose. One hour if nourishment can do wonders.
We are very pleased with this project. Tge good news is there were very few weeds this year which will make our a November final visit so much easier. Mostly leaf removal, till the soil and apply a final mulch treatment.

This yard has come a long way. We are very pleased. A great example of what a “Contessa” signature “Fall Bed Clean Uo”looks lije. Our pleasure…. and our clients joy.