2023: The Yr in Consider
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Proper right here we’re, embarking on 2024 stuffed with hope and promise. The yard does that, affords one hope and promise whatever the grim data we see on our screens. I’m going to take a yard any day over a cellphone or laptop computer, nevertheless nonetheless, it’s a time of yr after I do choose to take stock of how we and the gardens have fared this earlier yr. I phrase any initiatives, observations, complaints and develop an complete sense of what the themes of the yr had been. I am thus reminded as I look once more by means of a yr’s value of photos that 2023 was fairly stunning as far as the yard and local weather had been concerned and we, principally FM, took on various decent-sized initiatives. Ready? Proper right here we go, it’s a prolonged one:JANUARYBuddha faces east greeting the winter photo voltaic beneath Arctostaphylos ‘Austin Griffiths’ amongst a sea of Ceanothus gloriosus. January begins off quiet with muted colors and a great deal of wild birds. I would say our ongoing efforts to create a year-round yard stuffed with evergreens and winter curiosity have yielded first price outcomes.Cupressus arizonica ‘Blue Ice’ shines on even the dullest of days.Carex conica ‘Snowline’ is on a regular basis sparkly and pretty. Throughout the shade yard the place it does exceptionally properly, it brings a lightness to this darkish house perpetually lined by Douglas firs.Though so many shade yard crops are dormant in January, the mossy path brings me pleasure.Arctostaphylos ‘Saint Helena’ and her muscular trunk.A windswept image of Ozothamnus ‘Sussex Silver’ fronted by Phlomis russelliana pom poms. I spotted that although Ozothamnus are sometimes forgiving of dry conditions, two of three (O. ‘Silver Jubilee’) died almost to the underside this yr, though it might not have been drought induced. Perhaps just too moist of a spring. I decrease out the lifeless branches they usually’re every resprouting from the underside and can doubtless be efficient, though smaller. FEBRUARYMy official Rooster Tender (as he jokingly calls himself) chatting with one in all many speckled Sussex hens we launched residence in autumn 2022. We moreover added 5 very pretty golden laced Wyandottes to the flock this yr. Sadly we misplaced three hens in 2023 – it happens. We presently have 19 hens and one very fat turkey.Purple branches of Acer palmatum ‘Sango Kaku’ in opposition to vibrant inexperienced Hebe ‘Karo Golden Esk’ make me fully happy. Any shade this time of the yr is most welcome.Clematis cirrhosa ‘Wisley Cream’ bloomed correctly in January, though had a troublesome summer season. It acquired an ideal prune this autumn (to clean it up, it was considerably uncontrolled) and now seems to be like stunning as quickly as additional.MARCHThis is the month our 2500-gallon cistern arrived. FM put in it by attaching it to our downspout. It was completely crammed inside three weeks of arrange and that’s merely from runoff from the portion of roof seen on this {{photograph}}. We used the water for various months in summer season downhill from the cistern, for at this stage gravity is the one method it actually works. We’re considering together with a pump to have the flexibility to ship water to totally different elements of the yard nevertheless for now it does the job, albeit slowly. That’s Annie guarding our water present.Rhamnus alaternus ‘Variegata’ saved doing this after snow events. Whereas this doesn’t kill the plant it truly is just not good. I opted to prune its excessive branches, giving it additional width than prime and thus far it has labored.The sting of the “meadow” was a haven for birds and I take into consideration small critters all autumn, winter and early spring. It should get within the discount of considerably later in spring.One different of FM’s small initiatives, a step was created from bricks on this weird little slope by my yard shed. It now feels robust and is safer than a slippery gravel slope.Dramatic lighting all through the panorama. Off throughout the distance is Washington state – the Columbia river is in there someplace, though you probably cannot see the water from our property.Oemleria cerasiformis, osoberry, is probably going one of many first crops to bloom and the hummingbirds are very fully happy about it. This multi-stemmed shrub/small tree is repeated all by our hedgerows to produce for wildlife. Its vibrant foliage is a welcome shade so early throughout the yr.One different early bloomer is Edgeworthia chrysantha, a shrub that varieties buds in late autumn.On a snowy March morning I watched this Cooper’s hawk from our lounge window.APRILApril was the beginning of FM’s large initiatives. Oscar the agave was not fully happy proper right here, he had straightened out and was getting too moist inflicting some leaf rot. Proper right here FM jostles Oscar into place to be moved to a drier web site.That’s the location of his new residence sooner than the declining Ceanothus gloriosus was eradicated.Ceanothus gone on this super sunny south-facing house.Oscar in place and the first layer of gravel utilized. We’ll revisit this newly renovated house in September’s photos.FM constructed raised beds for our raspberries; very worthwhile this yr.Ribes had been blooming far and broad in April – proper right here is Ribes odoratum, clove currant that has, as one would rely on, clove-scented flowers.Ribes x gordonianum is a cross between Ribes odoratum and R. sanguineum. The flowers truly study additional coral orange than this closeup {photograph} would level out.For the clear white look, Ribes sanguineum ‘White Icicle’ is a ravishing addition to the yard.Ribes sanguineum in my experience has pretty numerous shades of pink in its flowers. These native multi-stemmed shrubs are adaptable and pretty and an early pollen/nectar provide for bugs and hummingbirds.Moreover in April we had a gaggle plant sale in N. Portland, furthermore I donated crops to the House of Wishes spring plant sale. I plan on doing every as soon as extra in 2024 so preserve tuned!MAYFM went into overdrive with initiatives in May with loads of grass eradicating and extension of yard areas. Proper right here is the “sooner than” shot of a extremely sloped grassy house that was powerful to mow and usually riddled with mole hills.After the torturous sod remover was used to take up a giant house, quarter-10 gravel was utilized pretty thickly. I’ve since planted a few hebes and wildflower seeds on this house.One different large house of sod that was eradicated was on this southern fringe of our property. We wanted to tie all of these disparate crops collectively proper right into a additional cohesive feeling of perform. After sod was eradicated and arborist’s wood chips utilized.May may be when flowers get coming into into earnest. Proper right here Penstemon davidsonii, a small evergreen native penstemon, turns into the focus on of the yard when company come.Speaking of vacation makers, 2023 stands out as a yr after we had a wide range of folks wanting to see the yard. We moreover had {a photograph} shoot in July for an upcoming e-book on low-impact gardening and various different yard groups come by means of. There was a wide range of juggling between initiatives, company and caring for the yard as an entire, so many chores had been delay until this autumn. Hopefully 2024 could be the yr of additional steadiness and better time administration for us every. We’re nonetheless learning!Fremontodendron californicum grew by leaps and bounds in 2023. Initially purchased in 2015 to plant in what was to change into this, our new yard, it struggled for various years. Lastly the mole train that caused it to fall over a number of events settled down and its roots took keep. I consider it grew 4 ft in a single season.An exchange on one different yard enterprise, this house that was planted in autumn of 2022 that we focus on with as a result of the crow yard. Vegetation are settling in and I proceed to mow spherical them until they fill in. Vegetation embrace Eriophyllum lanatum (the yellow flowers), Dorycnium hirsutum, Teucrium chamaedrys and Madia elegans. JUNEWhile June is definitely in all probability essentially the most floriferous month of the yr proper right here, I did not take many images on account of we had been just so damned busy. Nevertheless I do keep in mind pondering to myself “If I don’t take a picture of the Diplacus aurantiacus ‘Jeff’s Tangerine’ I’m going to regret it.”A path off of the driveway leading to our once more porch seems to be like significantly good when the Callistemon viridiflorus is in full bloom.One different favorite amongst yard company was this Dianthus deltoides ‘Flashing Delicate’, a mat forming carnation with very tiny flowers. That’s such a implausible little entrance of the border plant for full photo voltaic and good drainage.Kniphofia thomsonii is my favorite of the genus. Proper right here it is backed by Sidalcea campestris throughout the meadow yard.Philadelphus lewisii, mock orange, is in its prime this time of the yr, perfuming the air alongside our carport. This multi-stemmed deciduous shrub does have an unpleasant time of the yr when its leaves can look pretty spotty, however it on a regular basis grows out of it the following yr. I uncover if I prune out some branches from the underside of the plant to open it up for air circulation it helps.Stipa barbata with its silky flowers are nearly at their prettiest this time of the yr. In entrance of them is Muhlenbergia rigens sooner than it sends up it spiky, prolonged flowers.Contrasting foliage colors on the sting of the labyrinth yard is solely as thrilling to me as flowers.We grew potatoes for the first time with rather a lot success. They’d been satisfying and pretty easy, we’ll do it as soon as extra this yr.JULYThis was the yr that calendula flowers took over the veggie yard. Oh my gosh that they had been and are everywhere! All from one packet of Calendula ‘Radio’ seeds and one packet of Calendula ‘Strawberry Blonde’ seeds a few years previously. We have pretty a wide range of colors from these two varieties.Whereas I do know there are large populations of bugs, birds, invertebrates and vertebrates that go to our yard, this month I was impressed by my pal Amy Campion to take a listing of what I would uncover. It was a wide range of satisfying and realized I’ve a wide range of native pollinators throughout the yard. Here is a hyperlink to a publish I wrote about my findings.A female leaf-cutter bee visiting Cephalanthus occidentalis.Pacific tree frog in a planter by our entrance door. We have lots of these creatures throughout the yard year-round and are very fully happy to host them.In a small raised mattress subsequent to the greenhouse I develop flowers for small bouquets and a pop of shade. I grew many dahlias from seed which surprisingly variety pretty good-sized tubers inside one rising season. I moreover develop sweet peas, dill, snapdragons and cosmos on this little subject of satisfying.Sweet Pea ‘Earlier Spice’ given to me by a pal has in all probability essentially the most delicious fragrance and was extraordinarily floriferous. I saved seed and hope to develop it as soon as extra in 2024.Nevertheless not each half was sweetly scented and easy. My Lobelia tupa as quickly as occupied all the things of the soil house seen on this {{photograph}} – it died once more to this small clump that moreover finally died off. To fill the opening immediately, FM constructed a small totem from tree segments for a brief lived restore. The Lobelia type of traveled to the lower left and may hopefully come once more subsequent yr. I’ve since eradicated the wood and planted a small shrub.That’s about as beautiful as Stipa barbata will get and is luminous and implausible like this for a few week. Fully value it.FM with our boy Hobbes who turned 18 in July. He’s being carried spherical, which he loves, when his legs tire out.AUGUSTAugust is usually the most well-liked month for us. Whereas we did have on the very least one heat wave it was nowhere as harmful as in years earlier. Proper right here is Agapanthus inepterus ssp. pendulus ‘Nigrescens’ amongst a white flowering Oenothera lindheimeri (syn. Gaura linderheimeri) and Echinacea ‘White Swan’ throughout the berm yard, one factor I look ahead to every August.The sting of the meadow yard with a few tall Digitalis ferruginea sprinkled in. Whereas many flowers have accomplished blooming by this stage, asters as an example, are merely beginning and penstemons keep the current going, too.The shade yard fared properly in 2023 and I didn’t ought to spend an entire bunch of hours watering. My newest autumnal updates of eradicating thirsty hydrangeas and altering them with additional summer-dry tolerant crops will hopefully make it far more low repairs throughout the years to return. There was an excellent amount of vole and critter damage, nevertheless I hope my newest plantings in these areas will on the very least cowl damage even when the voles proceed on of their efforts to plow up a wonderful freeway by means of our yard.One different foliage forward image with grasses, hebes, maples, ceanothus and additional throughout the gravel yard on a reasonably scorching summer season evening.A view wanting east all through dormant grass with FM’s newest yard mattress on the becoming.Further foliage on the sting of the labyrinth with Cotinus ‘Pink Champagne’, Miscanthus ‘Cabaret’, Olearia ‘Dartonii, Hylotelephium spectabile ‘Stardust’ along with hylotelephium seedlings.Moreover in August we pickled about 1,000,000 jars of beets.SEPTEMBERSeptember was, by all accounts, fairly uneventful throughout the local weather division. That’s wanting north by means of the labyrinth yard with a Salix eleagnos var. angustifolia throughout the coronary heart. I see all of my images proper right here for September are of the broader panorama, possibly telling that as perennials mature for the season and start to “go over” and type seed heads and textures, that the panorama is kind of knitted collectively. In several phrases, explicit particular person crops might not be as attention-grabbing as the whole greater picture.The meadow yard reveals indicators of aster shade along with a few Eschscholzia californica and Epilobium ‘Solidarity Pink’ sprinkled in. Grasses are moreover in full bloom giving a frothy wild look.Grasses throughout the labyrinth yard catch afternoon gentle.April’s enterprise of eradicating a Ceanothus gloriosus and altering it with Agave parryi var. truncata (Oscar the agave) was worthwhile. Further gravel was added and a few volunteer Verbena bonariensis add some shade. I planted Cosmos ‘Rubenza’ and Agastache ‘Kudos Purple’ along with some Delosperma cooperi. Normal, I am rather a lot happier with this example vs. a ratty plant on the sting of dying. It was laborious work and a dedication to take motion, nevertheless gratefully with FM’s muscle mass we obtained it achieved.The very unused fireplace pit house.The sting of the labyrinth yard with hazy September gentle.The Acer palmatum ‘Sango Kaku’ is beginning to level out indicators of a shift in shade.Whereas September is often a extremely busy time of the yr proper right here with harvesting and processing of meals from the veggie yard and orchard, we had been busy getting ready for our England journey and so such chores wanted to attend.Nevertheless these birdhouse gourds grown in summer season 2022, as seen throughout the yard in March 2023, wished to be was this sooner than we left:Some 50 gourds that spent the yr drying had been hand-sanded, holes drilled for chickadees and nuthatches, cleaned out, holes drilled throughout the bottom for drainage and air, wired for hanging and coated with two coats of bird-friendly waterproof stain. Proper right here they’re hanging in our storage drying after the second coat of stain was utilized. The deadline was to get these to the House of Wishes cat shelter for his or her trip bazaar to elevate money for this implausible non-profit shelter. Whew, mission achieved and most of these went to the bazaar, all of which supplied. Because of all of you who purchased them, by the best way during which, the kitties thanks!OCTOBERThe end of September and beginning of October had been spent in some pretty world-class British gardens. Proper right here, FM strolls by means of the Oxford Botanic Gardens. You’ll study additional about our go to proper right here.And my favorite of all of them, Good Dixter. You’ll study our go to in two posts proper right here and proper right here.After we returned, we did so to among the many best autumnal foliage current in current occasions and a wide range of rain. Nevertheless we had been refreshed and invigorated and in a position to sort out delayed yard initiatives. NOVEMBERMost of what I photographed is from the beginning of November. The current continued on properly into early December. The meadow yard and the various Amsonia hubrichtii had been significantly golden. The east end of the berm yard nonetheless regarded current in November.The center of the berm yard did, too. The crimson foliage is Itea ‘Henry’s Garnet’ and the plant spilling over the sting is Juniperus conferta ‘Blue Pacific’.Technically FM rented the sod cutter and took up grass in October, nevertheless the model new mattress pictured proper right here was accomplished in November. I had been saving crops significantly for this house along with Rhamnus californica ssp. tomentella, Eriodictyon californicum, Ericameria nauseosa and additional. It extends the mattress that FM had eradicated sod from in May so now it runs all the best way during which to our gate. As crops develop they might create additional of a show display on this, the southern fringe of our property, thereby enclosing our yard considerably bit additional.Pops of shade on a cool November day.The veg yard had been put to mattress, however it is satisfying to see the fading corn stalks we depart standing for a while. The little platform is the place we sprinkle sunflower seeds for the crows and whomever else wants some, usually white topped sparrows who reside throughout the shut by labyrinth yard in winter. We thus identify the model new extension throughout the foreground the crow yard.Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’ sometimes has pretty good autumn shade.{A photograph} taken from inside on what turned out to be a ravishing November day. We had many such days and obtained a wide range of chores achieved comparable to 2 gigantic batches of applesauce which had been canned along with sauerkraut.DECEMBERDecember was pretty moist with an entire of just about 9″. Nonetheless we had been exterior sometimes dealing with leaves, chickens, mulching and additional. Pictured about throughout the coronary heart is Grevillea ‘Neil Bell’ whose prune job earlier throughout the yr proved to attain success. An enormous portion of the downward facet of this shrub had broken away nevertheless was nonetheless linked to the first plant. I left it in place and it did actually heal, though it was lopsided. I pruned the down facet by a few ft and the plant righted itself, you’d not at all understand it had been damaged. We had an excellent persimmon crop which was fabulous, significantly since we had almost none in 2022.Grevillea ‘Neil Bell’ flower, positive, in December.Muhlenbergia rigens, Clematis c. ‘Wisley Cream’ and deck lights make for a moist nevertheless pretty December scene.Moody fog.Miscanthus ‘Malepartus’ is so upright! I like this grass. Even now in early January it is standing straight up like a soldier.FM’s mattress mulched with arborist’s wood chips and a sculpture in there by our expensive departed pal Michi Kosuge.I shut this publish out with an image of a newly expanded mattress on the southern fringe of the labyrinth yard. FM eradicated additional sod, added bunches of gravel and now I’ve tons additional sq. footage for sun-loving, drought-adapted crops. It is thrilling to consider what this house will look like in spring and in years to return. It is a new yr, however, time would not come to me in beginnings and endings if endings recommend a stop, a break, a pause. It’s a cyclical issue. It doesn’t pause. Working instance, we’re planting in January. Engaged on cleaning up the veg yard in January, too – repairing partitions, weeding considerably, mulching. Whereas it’s good and neat to wrap points up as yr’s end in December, the actual fact is that I have no idea when the highest is. And that is, I take into consideration, by design. The yard affords us rhythms that we for the time being are acquainted with and luxuriate in. I can solely hope we proceed to hunt out pleasure in our “work” for years to return, that it’s one very prolonged and implausible experiment. This yr has been a wide range of work nevertheless the local weather cooperated and we look ahead to seeing the fruits of our labors come to fruition throughout the coming months. Anticipation is half the satisfying in gardening, in any case.Whereas there could also be rather a lot additional I may need added to this publish (there are thousands and thousands of photos of attractive flowers and birds from which to resolve on), one ought to keep it inside bounds. Nevertheless preserve tuned for 2024 as we proceed on our journey proper right here at Chickadee Gardens.That may be a wrap for this week at Chickadee Gardens. Thanks rather a lot for learning and commenting and for sticking with us this earlier yr. It has been a pleasure. From all of us – FM, myself, Annie, Hobbes, Sweet Pea the Turkey, all 19 hens and the entire squirrels, birds, reptiles and bugs, Glad Gardening and Glad New Yr, everytime you’ve enjoyable!
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Proper right here we’re, embarking on 2024 stuffed with hope and promise. The yard does that, affords one hope and promise whatever the grim data we see on our screens. I’m going to take a yard any day over a cellphone or laptop computer, nevertheless nonetheless, it’s a time of…