Nothing lulls me into feeling like life is cruising along at speed normal quite like getting lost working in the garden. Thankfully the weather has been cooperating and us Portlander's have been enjoying a lengthy stretch of sunny dry weather (okay, some of us have been enjoying, others seem to think it's torture). Wouldn't you know it, the garden is completely willing to soak up all the time I give it. Never does it say "I think your work here is done, why don't you go binge watch something on Netflix or put together a sourdough starter like everyone else is doing."
First up, the latest version of these three succulent dish planters.
Here's a photo is from last September. They were looking tired as summer wore on...
But even more so after winter spent hunkered down in the basement. For example the yellowing leaves that needed to be removed, and several elongated stems.
I pulled each dish apart, deciding what was worth keeping and what I would replace.
Mangave 'Man of Steel' looked so good that it remained the centerpiece of this dish.
The two agave pups at the back are Agave lophantha 'Splendida' and a reused echeveria (I think?) from one of the other dishes balanced things out.
A new Haworthia tessellata got pride of place at the front of the planting
The long suffering Agave angustifolia 'Marginata' at the back of this planting needs to be rewarded with a larger root run, ditto for the particularly spiny Opuntia erinacea 'Browse Cherry', which went in the ground.
A nice big (new) blue echeveria now anchors this dish, maybe Echeveria imbricata?
I should have gone in the house and grabbed a real camera, the iPhone photos aren't giving the "befores" any love are they?...
Anyway, the agave shown above (a pup of unremembered origin) was still looking fabulous so it stayed as the lead in this dish...
Joined by a trio of dark aeonium...
And Haworthia pentagona.
The difference between the tired and the refreshed is significant, at least in person.
And while I'm not typically a fan of mixed container plantings I do like them here. They're elevated versions of regular in ground plantings, with the advantage of being easy to pull and overwinter, since most of what I used here is not hardy in my winter-wet, Zone 8 garden, over winter.
The Brachyglottis greyi does a great job of leaning in and surrounding the three planters, helping your eye read them as a cohesive unit.
At least that's how I see it.
What else have I been up to? Well Sammy (our oldest/largest Yucca rostrata) got a trim. The old, browning, leaves were removed to reveal a slightly taller trunk.
He and the Trachycarpus wagneriensis are oddly similar in size at the moment. The palm started out a great deal smaller and I imagine will continue growing and in next year's class photo probably be taller than Sammy.
For the next update we flash back to March 16th and our late, wet, snow. This Yucca aliofolia suffered under the weight of the snow and bent over awkwardly.
It had never been placed particularly well (photo from August 2019), right at the corner of this planting bed.
Another photo from last August...
So now, it's gone!
A pair of Eryngium proteiflorum have taken its place.
Everything feels so much more open now.
And the yucca is enjoying it's new home in the front garden. Staked until it has a chance to get some roots established.
I think it fits in much better out here...
Weather Diary, Apr 20: Hi 70, Low 43/ Precip 0
All material © 2009-2020 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.
First up, the latest version of these three succulent dish planters.
Here's a photo is from last September. They were looking tired as summer wore on...
But even more so after winter spent hunkered down in the basement. For example the yellowing leaves that needed to be removed, and several elongated stems.
I pulled each dish apart, deciding what was worth keeping and what I would replace.
Mangave 'Man of Steel' looked so good that it remained the centerpiece of this dish.
The two agave pups at the back are Agave lophantha 'Splendida' and a reused echeveria (I think?) from one of the other dishes balanced things out.
A new Haworthia tessellata got pride of place at the front of the planting
The long suffering Agave angustifolia 'Marginata' at the back of this planting needs to be rewarded with a larger root run, ditto for the particularly spiny Opuntia erinacea 'Browse Cherry', which went in the ground.
A nice big (new) blue echeveria now anchors this dish, maybe Echeveria imbricata?
I should have gone in the house and grabbed a real camera, the iPhone photos aren't giving the "befores" any love are they?...
Anyway, the agave shown above (a pup of unremembered origin) was still looking fabulous so it stayed as the lead in this dish...
Joined by a trio of dark aeonium...
And Haworthia pentagona.
The difference between the tired and the refreshed is significant, at least in person.
And while I'm not typically a fan of mixed container plantings I do like them here. They're elevated versions of regular in ground plantings, with the advantage of being easy to pull and overwinter, since most of what I used here is not hardy in my winter-wet, Zone 8 garden, over winter.
The Brachyglottis greyi does a great job of leaning in and surrounding the three planters, helping your eye read them as a cohesive unit.
At least that's how I see it.
What else have I been up to? Well Sammy (our oldest/largest Yucca rostrata) got a trim. The old, browning, leaves were removed to reveal a slightly taller trunk.
He and the Trachycarpus wagneriensis are oddly similar in size at the moment. The palm started out a great deal smaller and I imagine will continue growing and in next year's class photo probably be taller than Sammy.
For the next update we flash back to March 16th and our late, wet, snow. This Yucca aliofolia suffered under the weight of the snow and bent over awkwardly.
It had never been placed particularly well (photo from August 2019), right at the corner of this planting bed.
Another photo from last August...
So now, it's gone!
A pair of Eryngium proteiflorum have taken its place.
Everything feels so much more open now.
And the yucca is enjoying it's new home in the front garden. Staked until it has a chance to get some roots established.
I think it fits in much better out here...
Weather Diary, Apr 20: Hi 70, Low 43/ Precip 0
All material © 2009-2020 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.