White Foxglove

White Foxglove

Digitalis purpurea 'Camelot White'

(dig-ee-TAH-liss) (pur-PUR-ee-uh)

A slightly different twist on a garden classic. The white flowers on this cultivar are nice and I have found they mix well with the standard pink/purple types. Although it is recovered from a separate species of Digitalis I would like to thank them for helping to keep healthy as my daily dose of Digoxin helps control my heart rate.

Currently we are building up a big patch of Foxglove at work. It isn’t the white flowered type but has been steadily (with our help) seeding into a larger area. Transplanting the seedlings has proved tricky but we haven’t given up on it yet.

Since it is Sunday here is another plant that has been steadily increasing its space in the garden but not in an annoying way. It has taken over what I call "hard luck ground” and is happy despite the conditions. I am not sure what species of Allium this is but it is really a nice plant.

Allium

(AL-ee-um)

Lavender Globe Lily

Lavender Globe Lily
Allium tanguticum
(AL-ee-um) (tan-GOO-tik-um)
Synonyms: Nodding Onion


This is a great flower for rock gardens. It has shown remarkable tenacity in growing in the pile of rocks known as the Iris bed. It has seeded in well (but not excessively) and built quite a colony. I have been dispersing the seeds when I see them. It is a nice showy color and the geometry of the flowers is pleasant too.

This two pics represent a little field experiment with depth of field. The first photo was shot at f/10 and the second at f/3.3. You can see the difference in sharpness and the background.

Tonight is the big show :lol: We will be appearing at Molten Java's new location in Bethel, Connecticut. 213 Greenwood Avenue from 8pm to about 10. This will be the band's first show and I just hope everything goes okay.

Autumn Sage

Autumn Sage
Salvia greggii ‘Puebla Light Orange’
(SAL-vee-uh) (GREG-ee-eye)
Synonyms: Cherry Sage, Texas Sage

Salvia ‘Puebla Light Orange’ has been growing in the containers this year despite all the rain and cloudy days. My local nursery must have got some of the ‘Painted Dunes Collection’ since there are 4 of selections in the garden. It is funny because I just picked the flower because I liked the color not knowing what was behind getting to my garden.

Here is an excerpt fromEcke.com about this plant and the rest of the ‘Painted Dunes’ collection:
“Ecke Flower Fields is offering a collection of very popular large container and landscaping plants which have worldwide acceptance. In response to requests for genus and varieties, which provide versatile plant material that are heat resistant with good drought tolerance, self-cleaning, bloom spring to fall and have the ability to be grown cool for energy efficiency and lower production costs, Ecke Ranch reviewed its deep resource for genetics and is providing a solution.

The “Painted Dunes™ Collection”, is being introduced in an off-catalogue offering with clean stock status comprised of nine varieties. Agastache, Lavender and Salvia are the genus in the “Painted Dunes™ Collection.” In addition to filling the requirements on what is often called low maintenance vacation landscape plants, this collection is extremely fragrant and nature-friendly as they attract and provide nutrition for hummingbirds, butterflies and honeybees.”
©2008 Paul Ecke Ranch

It is a very nice selection of Salvia and I am glad to read that it is a bit more ‘green’ than most annuals. It has been a pretty good magnet for hummingbirds as they can’t seem to resist this or the Salvia ‘Black and Blue’ planted nearby.

These are two pictures from Central Park. I forgot he camera was set to monochrome and shot the afternoon in Black and White.

The first shot is a Crabapple allee near the formal garden and the second was a group of Alliums that were reblooming. It is nice type of Allium and I want to figure out which one it is.

Star of Persia

Star of Persia
Allium christophii
(AL-ee-um) (kris-TOF-ee-eye)
Synonym: Allium albopilosum

Yesterday was the Garden Conservancy’s Fairfield County Open Day. I wished I had known about it earlier. It was also Westchester and Litchfield County Open Days. We did get to one garden and it was quite beautiful. It was collector’s garden, which is just perfect for me. There were no restrictions on photography and there was a gorgeous collection of plants. I hadn’t seen this Allium in quite a while and remembered how nice it is.

Alliums are becoming more and more popular. They are a good plant to have around and there are numerous types for the garden. We planted 48 Gladiator Allium last year and, as usual, had a perfect success rate. I will have to order some Allium christophii next fall.

Star of Persia gets to be about 24 inches tall. The flower heads are amethyst pink and often over 8 inches wide. This particular one had a flower head that was 10 to 12 inches wide. There was only one plant/bulb and it really effective poking out from underneath a Weeping Kousa Dogwood. Normally solitary flowers aren’t as attractive as a group but this flower is interesting and big enough to pull it off.

Two other attributes to plant are the ability to grow in poor soil and their deer resistance. They also make long lasting cut flowers.

Since the garden had a lot of beautiful flowers and plants here is an extra picture. This Rhododendron was pretty amazing. Since it was quite windy the taller trees were making changing shadows over the peachy/white flowers. They were glowing when the sun hit them. I noticed it from across the yard.