Bogturtle's Garden- May 21-31 2024

At the front of the house, the old Rhododendron chionoides, (if I spelled that right), is huge. A few blooms of an Iron Clad Red can also be seen. 

On the pole at one end of the pool deck, the climbing Rose 'Winner's Circle' competes with the Honeysuckle, Lonicera tellmanianna. One cluster of that is shown below. 

This may be the Clematis 'Duchess of Edinborough'. I don't recall buying it or planting it, and, on rare occasions, plants have come with other orders, probably without the seller even knowing they were immature specimens just accidentally in with the desired order.

Pratia fluviatilis, Laurentia fluviatilis. Two names, I think, for the 'Blue Star Creeper'. Have not seen it, this year, in local places that would sell it. Often among plants of the brand 'Stepable', and I suppose it is. 

A little too much of a good thing, as Sensative Ferns, the Honeysuckle sold to me as 'Mandarin' and the red clone of the Honeysuckle Lonicera sempervirens 'Major Wheeler' begin to hid the swing bench.  I never get time to sit on it, anyway.

In the plant trade, more than one clone is being sold as 'Mandarin'. Another, sold by some other company, was given that name. It is climbing the old cedar tree by where we park the vehicles. Smaller flowers and not quite in bloom, yet. Which is the real 'Mandarin'? The same thing happens often. The Rose of Sharon, Hibiscus syriacus, named and sold as 'Blue Satin' is in confusion also. Differing clones are in the market under that name. A beautiful shrub, but because it seeds around so successfully, I got rid of mine. I think there is a white clone called 'Diana' that does not.

Planted here when I was young, and true to what is said, it is still blooming. A Japanese style Peone planted our first year here. Buried too deep, now, as often will come with time. 

Quite a nice clump of the Siberian type Iris named 'Lights of Paris' but there is only one bloom, this year. Pleased, nevertheless, as last Summer and Fall a lot of rescue weeding was done. I look, now, and while the main perennial bed is crowded, most are wanted cultivars. Not weeds.

The view from the room in which we spend most of our time. Interesting that spraying the Roses, to stop the Deer from browsing, is working. New, reddish growth, some with flower buds, is on the far side of the bushes, here. 

So when I finally caught one of the Southern Gray Tree Frogs that have been singing by the above ground pool for at least a month, I had to find a way to photograph. The animal can jump 25 times its length and escape amazingly. So I set it in the middle of a Knockout Rose, and it stayed long enough to get a photo. Other attempts did not come out clear or were not as good. 

Thought Lysmachia nummelaria, the Moneywort, a rare exotic, the first time I saw it hiking in the NJ Great Swamp National Wildlife refuge. Me, not the plant. How wrong to think I had found something rare.  Unless a specific purpose exists, it should never be allowed out of a pot. 

This photo illustrates what is to be expected with any perennial vine. It might well grow to the top of the nearest support and finally decide to bloom up there. The Holly is easily 30 feet tall.     One branch was diverted, early on, to the fence around the pool deck. So I did get close up of the bloom. The Kentucky Wisteria, W. macrostachya  'Blue Moon'.

Not favoring pink or purple flowers, the only Foxglove I grow is this white. There is a perennial yellow, but only tried that once, without success.  The plant shown, being a biennial, makes a fine, evergreen, ground hugging rosette for the Winter. 

Lonicera sempervirens 'Magnificum' again. Thought it would make a nice photo with the dark background. Used the zoom feature of my little camera, as I did to take the photo of the native Wisteria at the top of the Holly Tree.

Tradescantia virginica, 'Spiderwort' would take over the main perennial bed, but I constantly break the whole clump off at the ground, and then return to get after the weak regrowth. Usually enough. Some blooms, here, are sort of double. The deep Blue-Purple color fails to carry.

The Peach Leaved Bellflower. An evergreen plant. Campanula perscifolia 'Telham Beauty'. A white sort might be blooming soon.

Just another of the species of Lonicera, or Honeysuckle. L. tragophylla.

Among the many Tradescantia clumps are some with doubled flowers. Not among the original I ordered, I am sure, and interesting.

And another Honeysuckle, L. periclymenum.

Two plants of the Genus Lysmachia. The left, L. nummelaria and on the right L. minutissima, I believe. The smallest plant cultivated here. And where to put it without it being over-run by neighbors? How does it survive in the Japan, which I believe it is native to? I will put a small piece by the little pool, as that seems a good spot. Have had the plant for about 10 years, and it was by that pool, only to fail to meet the competition there. 

This gray-green perennial is a very old 'Cottage Garden' addition, but I grow the less often seen white-flowered sort. Actually, the species name reflects the royal purple of the normal flower. I grow it for the silvery winter rosettes as much as the flowers. Lychnis coronaria 'Alba'.

Michella repens, the partridge berry, is common in the woods here. Somehow managing to emerge from the leaves that bury it, each Autumn. Twin white flowers will give a red, conjoined double berry, that is edible. The plant covers huge areas here.