Hosta and Heuchera

 
In my dream world where I can have the plants I want and they actually agree to grow, I have lovely shade garden of hosta and heuchera. That's plantain lily and coral bells in common names, although most everyone I know uses the name hosta. Anyway, both are grown more for the lovely leaves than the blossoms.

Here are some healthy hosta at Dow Gardens



All along a sweeping driveway.

This is a really intriguing color of heuchera which would be wonderful with a dark green hosta. This is called 'Caramel.'



And here's another one that was just getting established in a new bed, called 'Solar Power.'



Now for the reality of what I have. OK, I do have a nice bed of Francee hosta. This is one of the oldest and most reliable of the hostas. The deer eat it down and it comes right back. The big one in front of it may be 'Seiboldi.'



Then, here's a fairly healthy patch of a blue one I bought. That gives me two choices, and it doesn't really look like either one, but I think it has to be 'Blue Dimples.' The leaves should get more of a seersucker look, but they are the wrong shape for my other choice.



I actually have a few other little puddles of hosta, but the light isn't good right now to get their pictures. Maybe another day.

I will just point out that except for 'Blue Dimples,' I think every single hosta I've paid money for is now dead. I was trying to buy one hosta and one heuchera a year, but that sure didn't work out.

And the heuchera? I have one left. It is one I bought, so I'd like it to survive, I'd like it to get big and lovely. I showed it to you last year, and it's still almost exactly the same size. This is 'Cathedral Windows.'



Well, for right this minute, the one garden looks tolerable, and I'm watering it. Yeah, me.

In other news: I worked most of the day at Shagway (and there was good customer traffic), got a fair amount of formatting done on Bigg Boss, I made new flyers for the Dubois Files books, I got some groceries (and a very bad take-out dinner that was SO very bad I'm going to complain about it), and now I have to pack for the Lakeshore Art Fair in Muskegon. I'll be there selling books Friday and Saturday.

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Saints and Sinners- Marshall Fredericks

 
My visit to Dow Gardens a couple of weeks ago was not only about plants. Often, botanical gardens incorporate sculpture or other types of art to enhance the experience.

Marshall Fredericks (1908-1998) is one of the best known and beloved sculptors in Michigan. Among his most famous works are the Spirit of Detroit, and the giant crucifix at Indian River.

At Dow Gardens, just outside a back door of the auditorium is a series of seven rather strange statues. By taking a reflection picture, I managed to get six of them, with myself, to show the approximate size and grouping.



Now, you may ask, as I did, what are they? As best I can decipher, they are copies of the original pieces, by Fredericks, which are installed at a fountain at Oakland University. Collectively they are called Saints and Sinners.

Because of the elongated shapes, I've done some photoshopping to make the pictures a better size to view on a blog.

These three are "Mother and Child," "Angel of the Lord," and "Evil Influence."

These are "Warrior Saint," and "Temptation."

Then we have "Knowledge of Good and Evil," and "Saint of the Church."

What do you think of these? One of the things I like most about art is when it really makes me think. This set of figures has certainly done that! Of course, someone told me that the set was entitled "The Seven Temptations." So, until I discovered the correct name today, I was definitely contemplating ways in which some of these were temptations!

In other news: I got The Bigg Boss edited once all the way through with suggestions from three readers. I started one of the illustrations. I made yogurt. I trimmed brush away from my trail and gathered enough mulberries for another batch of juice.

P.S. The annual boom and startle celebrations have begun. Someone is shooting off some big things nearby.

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Dow Gardens - Patterns

 
Plants will just surprise you over and over. There are so many variations! These are all leaves, or the coniferous variation called needles. I love how you can just study the patterns and designs.

This one was completely new to me. It's Korean fir, Abies koreana, variety 'Horstman's Silberlocke.' The needles recurve so you can see the white underside. It was stunning. I looked it up and read that it also has large blue-purple erect cones in season. I don't know how you can go wrong if you want an ornamental conifer.



Next up is a Caladium of some variety. That's often called Elephant Ear. This was in the conservatory. It may be the variety 'Black Magic.'



I gravitate toward dark plants. This is another version of coleus. I think the varieties are endless. They had a whole bed of this one with a white flowering plant around the edges.



Finally, here's a spotted angel wing Begonia, Begonia carollina, possibly the variety 'Cecile.' My mother used to have one of these that got huge!


In other news: I did laundry, wrote a chapter, took a walk and tried roasted cauliflower. Let me just say that it was good, but I won't feel the need to do it again. An oily bowl, followed by an oily oven pan, and a lot of chopping. I'm happy enough to just eat the cauliflower raw.

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Dow Gardens - Texture

 
You know I love textures! Here are four from the Dow Gardens. First is an ornamental, columnar white cedar (also called arborvitae). They are all Thuja occidentalis, but there are a number of varieties. I think this one with the "dancing" sprays of needles may be 'Hetz Wintergreen.'



This is a Japanese Forest Grass, Hakonechloa macra, variety 'All Gold.' I'll bet in a slight breeze this just flows like water.



Begonias always catch my eye. There are SO many varieties and colors and leaf shapes. I have no idea what this one is. It was in their small conservatory. Almost nothing in there was labeled. It was more like just a storage space for plants that aren't hardy. But the texture of this one is fantastic.



Finally, this is not anything rare at all, except it was in bloom. It's a foxtail asparagus fern, Asparagus densiflorus 'Myersii'. These began showing up in city planters a few years ago, and they are definitely a worthy addition to streetscapes.



I'm beginning to find some other things I might want to put in the blog, but there is still so much good stuff from Dow Gardens. I guess you'll have to come back to see what I pick next.

In other news: I spent the morning editing The Bigg Boss (15 chapters done), and then went out to distribute flyers and posters for our author event in the afternoon. Not my favorite activity by a long shot, but I got it done.

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Dow Gardens - Color

 
There are so many beautiful individual plants I could show you! Dow Gardens is like a big flower show... the good stuff just keeps coming.

But I can't move away from it just yet. Today I'll show you some of my favorite pictures that exemplify COLOR. It's no surprise that several of them are coleus (now broken into two genera, so I didn't capitalize it). We probably all know coleus... it's that great planter specimen that features beautifully variegated leaves. They are a relative of mint, but without the minty smell. They are great for showy gardens because if you pinch off the blossoms, the gorgeous leaves just keep their beauty all season long.

Here are two varieties side by side in a planter. Everything from bright and splotchy to dark and geometric



How about the 'stripe-me-pink' oyster plant? This is a variety of my Moses-in-a-boat with colored leaves. Technically Rhoeo discolor or Tradescantia discolor (names are changing faster than one can keep up).



Back to coleus for an interesting salmon color variety.



I debated whether to show you this one under "color" or hold it for "design," but you get it today. This is some variety of Clematis.



Finally, we're back to another display of coleus. This one is in the colors I was trying to pair in my own flower garden, maroon and yellow. So I particularly like this.



In other news: My writing workshop ended today. Great stuff! I'll be doing a post about it on the other blog.

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Dow Gardens- Naturalistic Landscapes

 
One of the things that amazed me most at Dow Gardens is the emphasis on trees. Designing with trees means being able to see at least 50 years into the future and imagine what those shapes and textures and tones are going to look like. I suppose there is software now that would allow you to do this. But when Dow Gardens was created, the designer had to see it in his mind. Maybe he would sketch his vision.

Today, I want to show you some naturalistic landscapes. I'm not calling them natural because they are all planted and manipulated. I'm not even sure the waterways are natural. Certainly the smaller ones on the property were created artificially.



Some, like the one above include manicured lawns. Others, like the one below just beckon you to come find a trail through the woods.



Hard to believe this is all designed and created for the effect, isn't it?



Here's another that looks completely "wild."



The textures alone make this one yummy!



I'm working hard and having a blast at the writer workshop. Tomorrow is the last day.

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Dow Gardens - Architecture

 
There are still a couple of days of my seminar, and time for blogging is limited. I'll give you another quick look at Dow Gardens today. Herbert Dow is the man who founded Dow Chemical Company. His home is in the center of the Gardens. It's basically a Craftsman bungalow style, but huge. Tours are possible, but not the day I was there.



One of his sons, Alden, grew up and became an architect. He also liked to experiment with creating new materials. Apparently he invented the tiles that form the siding for his house, near one of the edges of the Garden. Yes, the water is right up there practically level with the patio. Or do you call it a dock in this case? At any rate, the lines of the roof are interesting.



Here's another view of Alden's home.



Now I have to scoot and do my writing assignment for tomorrow.

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Dow Gardens- Branches

 
One of the interesting aspects of Dow Gardens that sets it apart from some others is that it was planned with heavy emphasis on trees. This leads to a couple of unusual features. The one I'm sharing today is interesting branches.

There's not much rhyme or reason to my choice of pictures. They are simply views I liked where the picture turned out reasonably well.



There were lots and lots of these trees that grow in a widely spreading clump/cluster. I never did find a label for what they are (lots of exotic species in here), and I suspect they may have been pruned when young to emphasize the growth pattern. But they create peek-a-boo views from one section to another that are appealing. You can't quite tell in the photo what is beyond, but it is a waterfall.



Next up is a bronze beech. These have all the loveliness of a regular beech, but the leaves stay dark purple-bronze all summer.


I liked this hint of the rocks at pond edge and the bridge through the abstract shape formed by the branches in this one.



And this branch hanging over a grassy space seems impossibly long



Finally, although you could argue that this picture is more about the rocks, I like the contract between the roundness of those rocks and the lines of the branches.



In other news: I'm spending the day with some trail friends and will be heading to Interlochen Fine Arts Camp tomorrow. Stay tuned.

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