Rock Garden Report 4

I am here to tell you that this much of the rock garden has not been weeded since 2009. I made brief attempts to recover it in 2014 and 2020, but neither time did I get very far.

There are now about 55 of about 80 numbered spaces weeded. I have put in stakes to keep track of the numbers. It looks tacky, but some of the rocks have gotten covered with dirt (I'm lifting them as I figure out where they are), and it's not as easy to look at my map and find the places. Also, the plants that defined the spaces have died or moved, so this is really helping me locate the spaces and make a new plant list. I'm taking these long shot pictures from the same angle each time, so you can more easily judge the progress. There are other angles from the deck and farther away that are also nice. I'll share those another time.

The western edge is not yet weeded- and there are spaces there that never got numbered. Totally new territory except I had rocks in place. The western 2/3 of the top set of spaces is still overrun by the Bloody Cranesbill. But, there are great open niches in which to put plants.

Here are a few of the new additions:

This is one I bought. It's Sedum takesimense 'Atlantis.' There are a lot of new hybrids and cultivars that are hardy. I stumbled over this one, which is quite unusual because of its light-color "flashy" leaves. I like it a lot.

And what's in front of it? That's what Dave did for me yesterday. Right at the bottom of the garden I had three chunks of mulberry tree that made a sort of retaining wall. Two of those were rotted out to the point that they were totally useless. Another friend gave me a couple of chunks of oak that had funky knots, making them less desirable to split for firewood. But they have nice interest for this location. Maybe I'll even plant something in the knots. So Dave dug out the old rotten logs and put these in their place. I have a little dirt work to do in front, but that's no big deal.

Here is a sedum that Betsy gave me. Sedum hybrid, 'Thundercloud.' It's very similar to one called 'Mongolian Stardust,' but that one trails instead of standing up straight, so this may be the first one. This clump had good roots, so it went directly in the garden. Another clump is in a pot having a chance to improve its root system. This one gets about 8-10" tall. Except for some plants at the very top, that's about as big as I want anything, but I like it in front of that rock.

Here's another I bought. I'm learning that the Sunsparkler series- a proprietary line of Sedum hybrids- has an awful lot of gorgeous choices that are hardy. This one is called 'Dazzleberry,' and in late summer it has raspberry-red blossoms. I'm not sure it will bloom this year, but let's hope it survives. These all should. The wimpiest one is supposedly hardy to -10 degrees, but it's one from Betsy and she's had it for years, so it should be fine here.

I'm here to tell you that you can order some of these more interesting plants, but a tiny puddle like this is all you get. And... I thought I was ordering two varieties from the same seller to save postage, but I guess not. This better end up being one of my favorites since it cost more than I usually spend.

This space is mixed bag. I bought a pot of these huge maroon Sempervivum at Meijer for half price becuase some of the leaves were damaged. Now, this is how I like to get plants. The pot was stuffed. Two of these huge rosettes and a bunch of babies. I've spread those around the garden.

And the yellow-green sprigs in the crack behind it is Sedum sarmentosum. I got the original plants from Marie... some of the earliest in the rock garden, and one of the most successful. But it was almost all gone when I weeded this year. It really likes to be out in the sun, so I'm wondering if all the years of tall grass just shaded it out. Anyway, Betsy gave me some more. I can move some of what's here later, and I also have more in a pot to get new roots. It looks great when it gets established, filling in cracks everywhere, so I'm glad to have some more.

Here's another one Betsy gave me. This one trails all over the place, but the flower stalks are tall, so I put it against the retaining wall. I also have another clump in a pot. This is Sedum rupestre 'Angelina.'

Finally, here's one of the hardiest of the survivors. This is everywhere! It's Sedum reflexum 'Blue Spruce' because the leaf stalks look like tiny blue spruce branches. Some of them are even blooming this year. The flower stalks snake all over the place and then have a flat cluster of yellow flowers.

Betsy gave me about eight different kinds of plants, so I haven't shown you all of them yet, but this is surely enough for one day. All this goes to show how a garden this size just swallows plants. Now that I've committed to this, I hope I'll continue to work hard to keep it weeded so the plants can begin to fill in again.

BONUS SECTION: Mowing

Remember the strange phenomenon of some critter eating the gas can?

After I got most of the upper yard mowed on June 17, nothing else had been done until today. I disovered that something chewed holes in the nozzle of the newer can. Yes, it can be replaced for $10 for another plastic one just like it to fit the plastic can that something with itching teeth also chews on. Well, there hasn't been enough rain for the lawn to grow or the parts that didn't get mowed to get any worse. So, I rummaged around this week and found our old metal can. It even has a metal spout. Perfect. I checked it over and the inside was clean and the seams were sound. Why did I ever stop using this can? No clue.

Today I mowed the rest of the upper yard and threw away yet another plastic gas "can." No more of those for me.

See Rock Garden Report 3