Thursday, October 29, 2020

'Tis the season: container change-up

As I mentioned in Monday's post, the time came to pull the trio of succulent dish planters indoors.

Rather than just have empty metal posts sticking out of the ground all winter I planted up a new trio of dishes with winter hardy plants.
 
Each dish has a nice big chunk of black mondo grass combined with a small pot of light green Scotch moss and a selection of carnivorous plants that were previously living in dish planters plunged into/above the stock tank pond.
 
Nothing terribly earth shattering, but it will be interesting to see how the carnivorous plants do in these dishes over the winter. 

In other container changes, since the shade pavilion is now enclosed as a green house for the winter, I moved the fern bowl over to this corner. It's hard to see, but there on one of the paver squares...
I do love this planting, it's one of my very favorite things in the garden.
The Dryopteris sieboldii are stunning.

Better than anywhere else in the garden.
The Pyrrosia sheareri are knock-outs as well.

There's the "greenhouse"—ready to keep its contents cozy over the winter months.

It seems like there's more room this year, but I'm sure that's just an illusion which will vanish once it gets really cold—and more things are moved in.

Shout-out to this Agave sisalana ‘Variegata’ pup my brother sent me in July, I pulled it from it's spot in one of the drive way stock tanks to pot it up and protect it in the greenhouse, of course I stopped to admire it's good looks.
 
The view of the patio is sadly empty...cause all the containers have moved elsewhere.

Here's the greenhouse view from the patio...
Since it's the season for such things, I also removed the ceramic hanging containers from the front of the garage and replaced them with the metal clamp-on "light shade" hanging containers. These have great drainage with the bonus of not breaking when there's a freeze. Thin ceramic containers don't do so well over the winter months.
These are going into (I think) their fourth winter. 
I also threw together this grouping by the back door. The bougainvillea had been in that tall container but was past it's prime, so I planted Erica arborea 'Estrella Gold' instead.
The two small black containers are filled with Calluna vulgaris 'Firefly'. I added a couple of pumpkins for my autumn-loving husband.
 
That Erica arborea is just so gorgeous!
Also in the group is a Fascicularia pitcairnifolia, I am wondering why some of the leaves are starting to color-up, that usually only happens when the plant is going to bloom, yet there's no sign of a bloom. Curious.
Black mondo and pumpkins seem like a natural pairing, don't you think?
Finally, I brought home a few of these large cones when I visited Secret Garden Growers in September, I thought they made a great combination with the leaves from my Quercus dentata 'Pinnatifida’ (Cutleaf Emperor Oak).



All material © 2009-2020 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

9 comments:

  1. I appreciate how much work goes into this annual migration, Loree, but you do the whole thing with incredible style. Your "greenhouse" looks like a place anyone would enjoy strolling through and your winter substitutions in the outdoor garden are perfect. I love that new-to-me variegated Agave sisalana too.

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    1. Thank you Kris! If only the greenhouse were big enough (or empty enough) to stroll through...

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  2. Three years ago I moved up to Northern California - not realizing the cold/snow would kill a number of plants I had been growing for a very long time here in Silicon Valley. Fortunately (for a number of reasons) I've moved back here and SOOOOO appreciate the temperate weather - and the humidity. My surviving plants are all flourishing once again.

    My point is that I have a better understanding of what severe cold and snow can do to sensitive plants. You have so many lovely and cherished ones I TOTALLY get the work you put in every year to ensure their survival.

    Many Sarracenia are pelted with snow and freezing temps in their natural habitats, so your "carnies" should overwinter just fine. Your BEAUTIFUL Darlingtonia hails from Mt. Shasta so should do well, too. (But I'm sure you already know all this...)

    ;>

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    1. What a horrible shock that must have been! Yes, it’s not the temperatures I’m worried about for the carnivorous plants (I have many others that do great outside all winter), it’s that there is drainage in the dish planters and so the soil can dry out. I’ll need to to keep an eye on it if we have a dry-stretch of weather.

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  3. Ooh, looking great, even in the "clean up for winter" stage. Your greenhouse is something of a work of art, so beautiful. And satisfying to have, I imagine...that is creatively using the space you have. So your Dryopteris sieboldii...any tips on growing conditions - wet, dry, compost, gravel, no drainage, drainage? I'd love to get mine growing like this. Its leaves are nothing like your gorgeous specimens.

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    1. I have no clue! The others I have in the garden aren’t looking this good. Perhaps things stay a little wetter in the bowl? (even though there were a few times over the summer I forgot to water it).

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  4. Things are looking good, Loree. I always admire how the shade pavilion so handily becomes a greenhouse every fall. The whole 'migration' must take you days (if not weeks)!

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    1. Days indeed. A couple days here, a couple days there. But it’s a labor of love...

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  5. Somehow, I missed Thursday's post... (rolling my eyes with bewilderment).
    For a moment, I mistook Agave sisalana ‘Variegata’ for a Sansevieria and started drooling. Your Erica arborea is stunning! I have some Calluna vulgaris 'Firefly' which a smaller, and has the most amazing fiery colors all winter.

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