From Frost To 84

The past several days have featured overnight frosts.  NOAA provides our weather forecasts and most of the time we cover frost sensitive plants.  Last evening their overnight low temperature was 37 degrees.  With our self imposed cushion of 4 degrees, I felt that frost was unlikely.  Wrong again.  When I wake up I can see some of our lawn from the bed.  The grass between the apple trees was bright green and frost free.  However, frost drains downhill from the bedrock ridge following low ground to the final drop to the river flat.  Once out of bed, it was apparent that frost had once again poured across our gardens.  A trip to get water was made.  My footprints across frozen grass will turn black once the sunlight hits them.

This Golden stargazer clump is about all that remains of our period of major efforts to grow Oriental lilies in climate zone 4.  These plants are close to the south facing wall of the house but did have frost on them when I gave them a cold shower.  Our belief is that the change of state from frost to liquid gives off heat that burns the surface of plant leaves.  This cold shower simply washed the frost away.  Yes these lilies need to be both weeded and divided.  Here I will play the getting old card and hope for a little understanding.

Today's heat sent us on an afternoon drive across the valley to a dirt road that cuts across a forested slope.  This natural group of a moss covered tree trunk with two Trilliums and Miterwort growing between its roots is close to the road.  No trespassing was needed to snap this picture.  This is the look we are trying to create in our shade garden but rather young Sumac trees growing on river bottom flat land will never look this great. 

It seems that Toothwort is a mild mannered companion plant.  Its clusters of three toothed leaves are both attractive to the eye and open for neighboring plants.  If one can still approach ground level, the scent of these white flowers is delicious.  We have managed to keep some of this plant alive in our gardens but huge sweeps are the look we are trying for.  We have neither the slope nor the stones to create a copy of this scene.

 

Here three Trillium plants, two in flower, are surrounded by many Toothwort plants.  All seem to be thriving together.  Our weather this year has been harsh and dry.  These two flowers will likely set seed but the plants are only about half of their normal height.  The missing third flower could be a weather causality. 

These speckled Violets are a rather recent purchase at the Fernery.  Their beauty is subtle and they need to be growing under a wire cage.  Our deer herd frequently visit here and they find Violet leaves tasty.  Both the leaves and the flowers are safe for humans to place in natural salads.  Harvesting would be easier if the growth was not this close to the ground.  Plans are forming to place several of our special Violets under a cage.

Finally Warmer Weather

Our recent weather featured three consecutive days of overnight frost.  Some plants were damaged while others look just fine.  These two Goldenseal plants were transplanted about four years ago.  Native plants sometimes do not take that well but these are now sending up new plants.  We may have the option of relocating the young ones.

Trilliums are a plant remembered from my childhood.  Our woods featured a large dense group of these plants.  Many authors describe a seven year wait for plants going from seed to maturity.  Each year we transplant more but few survive.  These are doing fine with first flowers open.  The white flowers in the background are Wood anemones and they have increased in numbers creating a more natural looking carpet.  We hope to live long enough to see the Trilliums more densely packed.  The newly applied leaf mulch was run through the mower last Fall.  Somehow it lacks a natural appearance now but will build a rich black natural looking soil.

The cage protecting these two Twinleaf plants is necessary as our resident deer have destroyed them in the past.  Each plant produced two flower buds but one was broken in the wind.  The flowers lasted less than two full days.  We  will be watching for seeds but the frosts may have ended that.  At least the plants look good.

Trout lilies present a genuine puzzle.  The last glacier left behind soil filled with many stones.  We find a large number of plants with only a single leaf since their struggle to move their corm deeper and flower is blocked by stones.  This garden placement featured soil that was sifted and is stone free to a depth of eight inches.  Here these plants moved from our woods grow like weeds.  We have never seen a dense mass of flowers like this in a natural setting.

Later that day a deer was seen feeding here.  Inspection revealed that these blossoms are tasty since all are now gone and they were bitten off.  No seeds will form this year but more plants are clearly not needed in this location.

Our Bloodroot continue to struggle.  Three plants from seed are trying to grow here.  The oldest plant next to the dead stick flowered first but never opened its leaf.  It appears to be dead.  Close by to its left is another plant trying to spread its leaf and open its flower.  In the center of the picture is a plant in flower but no leaf can be seen.  We have been trying to establish a natural looking group for many years.  Clearly something is missing here.

 

Nearby a more successful introduction of a native plant appears to be off to a great start.  Our transplanted Yellow Ladies-slipper initially had only two or three  stems.  We knew of a wild plant that was growing right next to a rotting tree stump.  We planted a dead stump here and it continues to break down.  Perhaps the stump contributes something to the soil that this plant needs.  This new growth promises an impressive mature flowering plant this year.