FAB THANKSGIVING ARRANGEMENTS (First Published 2012)
As I write, greens and flowers are being cut and expertly pulled together into stunning arrangements. Alas, this Thanksgiving I was not able to get my act together to photograph those arrangements. Instead, I’m reposting the first blog I did on Thanksgiving arrangements, in hopes of inspiring you to have some fun with greens and flowers this week.
For those of you who have more garden chores to do to put your gardens to bed for the winter, please see the TO-DO list in my blog post “FALL GARDEN CHORES‘. Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Some talented Richmond women got creative as they decorated for Thanksgiving. They gathered the bounty of their Fall gardens, pulled out a variety of vessels, and went to work transforming the beauty of Nature into gorgeous works of art.
Deborah Valentine’s mantel. Arrangement created by Deborah and Floral Designer Bocky Talbott
Deborah Valentine, owner of V for the Home, and Floral Designer Bocky Talbott chose a container made from tree bark. The container picks up the grays in the gorgeous framed mirror. Those muted hues are a great foil for the Bittersweet. Hydrangeas from Deborah’s yard and exotic greens and flowers that Bocky found in a local flower shop complete the arrangement.
By Deborah Valentine and Bocky Talbott
This arrangement, sitting on a chest in Deborah’s dining room, contains dried Hydrangea, bright red Japanese Maple branches, Poet’s Laurel, Nandina berries, Pomegranates and seed pods.
Arranged by Deborah Valentine and Bocky Talbott
Deborah and Bocky refreshed an arrangement Deborah had done weeks ago, by adding Bittersweet and what appears to be a deciduous fern (just a guess — I have no idea what it is!) to the dried Hydrangea. The faded green of the Hydrangea picks up the green in the pitcher, and has a calming effect on the bold colors that were added.
By Artist Margy Brown and her mom, Peggy Valentine
Margy’s mom, Peggy, brought Margy some of the last Roses from her beautiful Rose garden. Margy, a talented painter, has a great eye for color and composition. She took full advantage of the stunning Japanese Maple outside the study window, by framing the final Roses of the season with the brilliant red foliage.
By Margaret Valentine, of McVey-Valentine Interior Design
Margaret Valentine got jiggy with her linked bud vases (available at Paper Plus), taking advantage of the wealth of plants in her yard to create a lively, colorful tableau. She used Lamb’s Ear, Rosemary, Salvia, Arum, Parsley, Fern, Knockout Roses and Black-eyed Susan, throwing in some florist Tulips that sport complementary Fall colors. Then she sprinkled the table with Pomegranates and Maple leaves for a refreshingly different centerpiece.
By Landscape Designer Susan Robertson
Susan Robertson used the same vessels to create an arrangement with an entirely different look. She chose elegant simplicity, in both color palette and plant choice. The pink and white of the single Camellia Sasanqua (and the solitary Snowball Viburnum) are a nice respite from the usual Fall colors.
By Landscape Designer Susan Robertson
Taking inspiration from the paintings in the background, Susan gathered Japanese Maple branches (from both yellow and red cultivars) and combined them with Hydrangea that have turned a fiery red, then ratcheted up the volume by arranging them in the fabulous fish container (you can take the girl out of the Beach, but you can’t take the Beach out of the girl).
By Janie Molster, of Janie Molster Designs
Interior Designer Janie Molster composed an edible work of art for her table. I love the bounty of the harvest contained in a severe modern geometry, set on a rustic table. Pomegranates, Clementines (with stems and leaves intact) and Brussels Sprouts still on their stalks support a hurricane with a candle nestled in dried cranberries.
By Floral Designer Jennifer Sisk
Jennifer Sisk’s centerpiece is a masterpiece. She had a wooden box built about six feet long by 6 inches wide, then placed it on a a linen runner, overlayed with burlap. She stuffed the box with Oasis, then filled it with a mix of flowers and greens from her garden and the flower shop. The plants include Sunflower, Seeded Euonymus, Hydrangea, Lilies, Mums and Bittersweet. She then tucked in two candles.
By Jennifer Sisk
Jennifer tells me that the three stalks are from the protea family. Check out its jagged blue-gray foliage. Jennifer’s choice of Cat’s Tail, Variegated Aucuba and Seeded Euonymus tie the arrangement together, as does her repetition of the foliage in the water. The grasses blend perfectly with the patina of the mirror.
By Jennifer Sisk
So simple, but so spectacular. The use of only Japanese Maple and Oakleaf Hydrangea foliage (from Jennifer’s garden) make the vase and painting come alive.
Everything that slows us down and forces patience, everything that sets us back into the slow circles of nature, is a help. Gardening is an instrument of Grace. May Sarton
I give Thanks for the generosity of my friends who shared their talents with us today.
Happy Thanksgiving!
MY (ROUGHLY) TEN FAVORITE DROUGHT TOLERANT PLANTS
It’s been a tough summer and fall for thirsty plants. As a gardener with no irrigation, I’m acutely aware of rainfall accumulation. My rain gauge has been a lonely instrument this year. Richmond is more than 8 inches below its normal annual rainfall.
One of the few benefits of no irrigation is that I observe over a long period of time how different plants react to drought. Over the last several years, I’ve developed a list of plants that I personally consider extremely drought tolerant. These are plants in my yard that pretty much never get hit by the sprinkler.
Before I roll out my list, I must stress one very important caveat: EVERY PLANT needs water to get established. The first year is the most crucial, but the second is also important. Observation is the key. When you are responsible for dragging a hose around your yard in periods without much rain, you get to know your plants really well. Take note in the years after planting to see when the “drought tolerant” plants begin to hold their own in dry periods. Then you will know that they’ve earned their drought tolerant status.
So here they are: the slightly more than 10 most draught-tolerant plants in my garden :
Japanese Anemone (Anemone japonica ‘Honorine Jobert’)
Limelight Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight). H. paniculata ‘Tardiva’ is also draught tolerant. These are exceptions to the genus Hydrangea, which otherwise requires significant hydration (thus the name).
Catmint (Nepeta ‘Walkers Low’)
Hosta (here ‘Frances Williams) and Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum odoratum variegatum)
Camellia — both Sasanqua (fall/winter blooming) and Japanese (late winter/spring blooming). Spring blooming Camellia needs some shade to stay drought tolerant.
Lenten Rose (Helleborus orientalis) and Boxwood (Buxus, generally)
Peony (Paeonia).
Poet’s Laurel (Danae racemosa)
Pieris (Pieris japonica ‘Purity’). Takes awhile to get established, then completely self-sufficient.
Southern Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora)
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LATE SPRING GARDEN CHORES
Winter took quite a toll on our gardens this year. On the plus side, we got a decent amount of rain/snow and the sustained low temperatures made for a delayed onset of mosquitos. But with the good comes the bad, and our Gardenias and Hydrangeas, among other plants, took it on the chin.
Well, that’s nature. Keeps us on our toes! Winter finally gave way to spring, and summer is almost upon us, so it’s time to:
Prune spring-flowering shrubs, if needed. Most shrubs and trees that flower in spring (like the Vanhouteii Spirea above) begin to set their flower buds for next spring within 4 to 6 weeks of blooming. Thus, if you wait to prune the plant after that 4 to 6 week window, you will be cutting off next year’s blooms.
Only prune your shrubs if they need it to control size or to shape the plant or to remove dead or diseased branches. Use hand pruners, and be sure to take a branch all the way back to a lateral branch (vs. shearing all of the top growth). Camellias (above) need very little pruning, as they have a graceful growing habit. Mock Orange (Philadelphus coronarius, below) is a straggly grower, and can use more help. Mock Oranges are best planted toward the back of a mixed border where they recede after blooming.
Cut back dying foliage of spring-blooming bulbs, including Daffodils, Tulips and Hyacinth. Capital Trees members Mary Anne Burke and Noni Baruch, above, deadhead the Daffodils planted along Dock Stree in Shockoe Bottom. Spanish Bluebells (beautifully photographed below by Helen Horseley) multiply over the years.
Cut out all rogue branches on your Lady Banks Rose. You can tell a rogue branch -or sucker – because it is thicker, straighter, and produces no lateral branches.
Continue to train other climbing roses. Don’t be shy about removing many older canes to allow for a lighter, more elegant climber, like the one in Charleston, above.
Continue to deadhead repeat-blooming shrub roses. Some of the heritage roses at Hollywood Cemetery, including the Doswell Rose, above, are still blooming. I did a blog post recently about the incredible treasure these roses are at the historic cemetery.
Remove spent flower stalks from perennials, such as Bearded Iris (Iris germanica), above, and Peonies (Paeonia), below. Some Bearded Iris will bloom again in late summer or early fall (wish Peonies did the same, alas).
Keep Vinca minor (pictured above) and other aggressive ground covers, pruned for a neat appearance.
Most Gardenias did not fare well this winter. The Radicans Gardenia, (above, in my garden in better days) was pretty much nothing but bare branches at the start of spring this year. I shook out all the dead leaves, and waited. And waited. And now, it is producing new growth. It will be a long journey back, but it IS coming back. If your Gardenia suffered a similar fate, you may have already ripped out the compromised plant. If you kept it — whether due to hope and devotion, or due to benign neglect, it will hopefully reward you with rejuvenation.
Hydrangeas also suffered from this winter’s harsh temperatures. Most Macrophyllas (your classic Mopheads, Lacecaps and newfangled repeat bloomers) died back to the base, or produced very little growth from existing branches. If you have not yet done so, go ahead and cut back to the ground the bare or sparsely producing branches and allow the plant to create new branches. You may get very little bloom this year, but the plants will rebound over time. Look at it as a forced reduction in size, something most Hydrangeas can use every few years.
Prune Climbing Hydrangea (Hydrangea petiolaris) after it finishes blooming. Climbing Hydrangea is not just for walls — it’s fun to let it scamper across a bed or a low stone wall, above.
Most Helleborus blooms are beginning to brown. Cut the flower stalk off at the base. Also cut back any old leaves beginning to die off. Both Lenten Rose (Helleborus orientalis, above) and Stinking Hellebore (Helleborus foetidus, below) will generously self seed if not heavily mulched.
Prune multi-branch trees, such as Sweetbay Magnolias (Magnolia virginiana, above), Vitex (Vitex agnus-castus), Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum) and Serviceberry (Amelanchier, spp.) to open up the plant and assist in developing a beautiful shape, by cutting out any volunteer sports and straggly branches.
Prune Wisteria before it sets next year’s flower buds.
Consider planting Morning Glory seeds for old-fashioned late summer blooms. The vine twines through Japanese Anemone, above.
Plant fall-blooming bulbs, such as Colchicum autumnale, above, in areas where spring blooming plants such as Virginia Bluebells or Bleeding Heart go dormant. Plant the bulbs this fall. Foliage appears in spring, then bulbs go dormant, and blooms emerge in early fall.
If you have a water garden, consider planting a Lotus (the native Nelumbo lutea). I’d given mine up for dead and yanked the empty pot (empty except for mud) this spring. As usual, my procrastination saved a life. I went to toss the pot last week and, lo and behold, new Lotus leaves were emerging. Can’t wait to see it bloom like it did last summer, above.
And finally. fill your containers with summer annuals, which will reward you until a hard frost. Be sure to regularly fertilize, as frequent watering depletes the nutrients from the soil. Fill “the can” with Iris, as was done at Long Vue in New Orleans, above — naturally fertilized! — or plant a window box with Begonia and Fern, as was done on Meeting Street in Charleston, below, Now, get out there and tame that garden!
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HISTORIC GARDEN WEEK 2014: THE ARRANGEMENTS
Historic Garden Week, “America’s Largest Open House” hosted annually by the Garden Club of Virginia, has raised millions of dollars to restore some of Virginia’s most treasured landmarks and gardens. The monsoon-like conditions last week did not put a damper on the festivities. In this blog, I celebrate the creativity and hard work of the women of the James River Garden Club as they gathered flowers and greens from their gardens and pulled together some pretty spectacular arrangements.
Delphinium, Tulips, Poet’s Laurel (Danae racemosa) and Sea Holly (Eryngium planum) radiate from a silver cup in the lovely home of Kristen and Barton Harris. Betsy Trow took many of the pictures (the best ones!) in the Harris home.
Service with a smile: Sarah Wiley works on the dining room arrangements.
Tulips, Variegated Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum odoratum ‘Variegatum’), Deutzia (Deutzia gracilis), Azaleas and Lilacs (Syringa vulgaris) are loosely arranged in individual goblets.
Deutzia, Variegated Solomon’s Seal, Snowball Viburnum (Viburnum macrocephalum) and Snowmound Spirea (Spiraea nipponica ‘Snowmound’) grace the front hall.
Talk about over-achieving — these tiny glass bud vases pack a big pink and green punch with pink peonies, tulips and azaleas. Wood Spurge (Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae), Hosta and Lenten Rose (Helleborus orientalis) provide the preppy green counter punch.
Margaret Reynolds and Inge Sen (above) put the finishing touches on an arrangement (below) containing Pink Dogwood (Cornus florida), Tulips, Lilac, Variegated Solomon’s Seal , Wood Spurge and greens.
This arrangement is like a walk in a Virginia spring garden. Foliage, including Blue Hosta, Autumn Fern (Dryopteris erythrosora), Ghost Fern (Athyrium ‘Ghost’), Coral Bell leaves (Heuchera, spp.), Barrenwort (Epimedium grandiflorum), Japanese Holly Fern (Cyrtomium falcatum) and Lenten Rose (I’m sure I’m missing some!), do the heavy lifting for the blue flowers of the Amsonia (Amsonia tabernaemontana) and Bearded Iris (Iris germanica). The iris in this spectacular arrangement makes me think of Swan Lake!
The monochromatic kitchen sparkles with the silver julep cups and the Coral Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens). Snowball Viburnum (the OTHER Snowball Viburnum — Viburnum opulus roseum) and Lenten Rose provide a subtle contrast.
Susan Robertson and Mary Bacon identify the plants used in the arrangements.
At Westover (I blogged about Westover Plantation last week), Muschi Fisher and her daughter Andrea Erda gathered Azaleas and Snowmound Spirea, above, and below, another variety of Azalea (‘George Tabor?’), with the Spirea and — I love this — a lone apricot Tulip.
The entrance to Caroline and Gordon Wallace’s beautiful Byrd Park home was framed by twin arrangements of Tulips, Slender Deutzia, Variegated Solomon’s Seal and Willow branches. Caroline is the owner of the Caroline Travels the World. She is well known for customizing exotic and adventurous trips throughout the world for her clients.
Masses of Ranunculus form a stunnning line and complement the art work in Caroline’s dining room.
A bunch of Lenten Rose and Deutzia grace a hall table.
Two Snowball Viburnum are used in this arrangement: Viburnum macrocephalum (the large, white Snowball) and Viburnum opulus ‘Roseum’ (the smaller Snowball). Wisteria drapes below.
A mass of Peony (possibly ‘Festiva Maxima’?) fills this rustic container at the bar.
Nothing prettier than a bunch of Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis).
White Lilac and Lenten Rose brighten up the kitchen. Rosemary and Mint stand ready for use. Lamb for dinner?
Mary Anne Burke and Betsy Trow worked non-stop to ensure a successful Garden Week tour.
Jenny Andrews’s talent as an interior designer was on display in her fresh, beautiful home. Jenny, who owns Andrews Designs, specializes in residential and resort design. In the kitchen arrangement above, Frances Williams Hosta frame Snowball Viburnum, Tulips and the tender new growth of Poet’s Laurel.
Jenny and Louise Kirby work with the Hosta and Lenten Rose cut from a neighbor’s backyard garden.
Azaleas, Snowball Viburnum, Lenten Rose and False Indigo complement the pale blue palette of the room.
My Oak Lane buddies, Margaret Valentine, Jennie Gumenick and Margy Brown, work together like a well-oiled machine.
The picture doesn’t do this gorgeous arrangement justice. Deutzia, False Indigo, Allium still in bud, Lenten Rose and Variegated Solomon’s Seal cascade out of the classical cast stone urn.
Pink tulips frame a beautiful painting by talented artist Tenley Beazley.
Less is more in this arrangement of apricot Tulips and Spanish Bluebells (Hyacinthoides hispanicus).
These sweet little bouquets, containing Azaleas, Bleeding Heart, Spanish Bluebells, Deutzia, Variegated Weigelia leaves and Coral Honeysuckle, spice up the bathroom windowsill.
Having raided the neighbors’ yards for plant material and filled Jenny’s home with the fruits of their labor, the girls from the Hood call it a day. Pictured, from left, Margaret Valentine, Margy Brown, Ida Farinholt, Louise Kirby and Jennie Gumenick.
HISTORIC GARDEN WEEK 2014: WESTOVER PLANTATION
Welcome to Historic Garden Week 2014, the Garden Club of Virginia’s spectacular week-long celebration of Virginia’s finest homes and gardens. Before immersing yourself in Richmond’s tours Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, treat yourself to a beautiful drive east on historic Route 5 and tour Westover Plantation Tuesday. Westover’s gardens are open daily, but the interior of the grand home is open rarely. This is your chance to see Westover’s gardens and interior.
Route 5 is home to several 18th Century plantations, none more spectacular than Westover. At the terminus of an allee of towering Hackberries (Celtis occidentals), perfectly sited along the north bank of the James River, is one of the most noteworthy examples of Georgian architecture in the United States.
Although William Byrd II (founder of Richmond) has long been believed to have built Westover, recent (dendrochonologic) testing of the attic beams’ tree rings produced evidence that the house may have been built circa 1750, which would make William Byrd III the home’s builder. Westover most likely was named for the West brothers, who were brothers of Lord Delaware, the first colonial governor of Virginia, and leaders of the first English settlements upstream along the James River.
The grounds include three spectacular pairs of 18th Century English wrought iron gates.
Native Dogwoods (Cornus florida) flank the north iron clairvoyee. An iron clairvoyee (claire – voie), in case you were wondering, is an ironwork gate or grille through which a vista can be enjoyed.
A series of carved stone finials atop the iron clairvoyee’s piers represents the icons of virtue: the acorn, pictured above, for perseverance (from small acorns grow great oaks), the pineapple for hospitality, the Greek key for wisdom, the urn of flowers for beauty, the cornucopia for abundance and the bee hive for industry.
Westover is still a working farm, producing winter wheat, soybeans and corn. Beyond the Dogwood is a field of winter wheat. Although the fields are not irrigated, Westover provides some of the best yields in the Commonwealth.
Pictured above are three of the hardest workers on the grounds: Henry, Cornelia and Wills Erda, leaning against one of Westover’s famed Tulip Poplars (Liriodendron tulipifera). On a recent visit, the three were hard at work in the garden.
Westover was sold out of the Byrd family after the death of William Byrd III’s widow in 1814. The plantation was brought back into the family by Byrd descendant Clarise Sears Ramsey, in 1899. Mrs. Ramsey modernized the house and established the formal garden’s 8 squares. In 1921, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Crane, the great grandparents of Andrea Erda (pictured above, with her kids Wills, Henry and Cornelia), bought the property.
Andrea grew up at Westover with her parents, Muschi and Frederick Fisher, and she and her husband Rob are happily raising their family here as well. Muschi and Andrea are both members of James River Garden Club. In the picture above, Andrea shows off their awesome new double-wide chicken coop.
The old one was built on a Ford Model T chassis!
Cornelia and her brothers love tending to the chickens and gathering the eggs.
Poet’s Laurel (Danae racemosa) spills over the crushed stone walk in the formal garden. In the distance, beyond the Boxwood, the river beckons.
Willaim Byrd II’s tombstone lies on the central axis of the 8 square grid.
The garden beds are filled with Poet’s Laurel, Azaleas, Dogwoods, Spirea and swaths of the native Virginia Bluebell (Mertensia virginica), above, and the native Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), below.
I have to confess that I have not been bitten by the Fairy Garden craze, not really understanding the concept of buying tiny objects to furnish the tiny gardens However, the Erda kids enlightened me on the nature of a true Fairy Garden. Using the ancient Tulip Poplars as their structure, the kids scavenge the plantation’s grounds in search of furnishings. In the picture above, Cornelia brilliantly used a Columbine flower as the fairy garden’s lantern.
Henry devised a contraption allowing the fairies to climb a ladder up the trunk then parachute to the ground.
Back in the garden, Tree Peonies (Paeonia suffruticosa) are in full bloom for garden week.
One word of advice to those new to growing Tree Peonies: unlike herbaceous Peonies, do not cut Tree Peonies back to the ground in the fall. They bloom on the old wood, so leave those stalks alone for glorious blooms the following spring.
This rustic arbor and seat are draped in Wisteria and throw off some pretty spectacular shadows.
The Wisteria was just beginning to pop when I was at Westover last week. It was preparing to be in full bloom for Garden Week.
Lenten Rose (Helleborus orientalis), if not heavily mulched, will drop their heads in mid to late spring and scatter their seeds, producing lots of baby Lenten Rose. When I was visiting Westover last week, Andrea and the kids were putting down mulch made from composted leaves: a PERFECT medium in which those plants will thrive!!!
A shrub the Erdas call Jet Berry (not sure of the botanical name) flanks one of the walkways leading to William Byrd II’s tombstone.
A butterfly hangs out in a stand of Woodland Phlox (Phlox divaricata) and Primroses. The Fishers call these Primroses, an old fashioned variety, “Cow Slips.”
Wills helps prepare the vegetable garden for planting.
Buttercups and a few remaining tulips cover the ground east of the 8 squares in the formal garden.
A peak from the formal garden through the Boxwood reveals the James River.
Thaddeus, who helps the Erdas take care of the property, cuts the buttercups growing along the bank of the river.
In keeping with one of the six virtues set in stone on the iron clairvoyee, Jones Tyler takes care of five bee hives. One of the hives produces 5 gallons a year — very industrious!
I cannot leave you without a peak at The Necessary House, the cadillac of outhouses with 5 holes and a fireplace. It’s been written up in Privy Magazine!
Virginia is fortunate to have the Erdas, and the Fischers before them, as hard working stewards of one of this country’s most significant homes, architecturally and historically. Moreover, they are leaders in efforts to preserve the James, our founding river. As is evident from watching Wills, Cornelia and Henry work hard and play hard on these grounds steeped in historical and ecological lessons, they will pass along their love for this place to the next generation, thus ensuring the preservation of these vital assets for generations to come.
Please take the opportunity to visit Westover this Tuesday, as part of your Garden Week pilgrimage.