Garden Design | Deborah Silver & Co.

Telly’s

If you should be a card carrying gardener in my area, no doubt you have been to Telly’s. If you have not, it is located on John R north of Big Beaver. I have been shopping there for over 20 years. I have never known anyone who had a better working knowledge of an incredible range of plants. I have known few whose enthusiasm for plants matches his. Wildflowers-he is a source. Great roses, unusual hostas, specimen hostas, great grasses, the largest population of dianthus and other rock garden plants, the tried and true, and the cutting edge on perennials of all descriptions, great annuals-great tropicals. His place is the physical incarnation of a first rate horticultural encyclopedia. Plan to spend some time. It will be time well spent, no matter what time of year you go.

I called George today-I have 3 large marble planters in a very contemporary conservatory to get planted. My calls to George with a need for unusual plants, or plants in big numbers have invariably been answered. The time and effort he has spent sourcing plant material over the past umpteen years-He deserves a seat with a brass plaque at the Library of Congress, department of plants. I would vote for this. I have great respect for George-as well I should. We send people to him all the time. Detroit Garden Works features plants of size, plants I take a fancy to, some of this and a little more of that. Telly’s is a plant nation. Of course George says-I just got back from Florida with some very cool plants-when can you get here?

My holiday and winter work is over, as are the holidays. My buying trip to Atlanta-over. Coming down with a cold-a given. I have time now to have a stinking cold, so why not. A visit to Tellys today helped reduce my irritation level.. The idea of standing in a working greenhouse full of very interesting plants sounded good. Steve and I got on the road first thing this morning. I am sure you can tell from these pictures that George likes succulents. We are not talking hens and chicks. We are talking echeverias. OK, the sum total of my knowledge is out there, once I say the e word. Want more info-go see George. Though I have no name for this plant, I so like how it looks. I like even better how these 15 e’s look in the case.

Tray after tray of gorgeous succulents-I snapped this wavy edged turquoise rosette succulent flat up in a second. George immediately rolled his eyes-do you need all of them? Mais Oui, George-I need them all. He gets over it quickly-he can reorder. But I understand his reaction. Gorgeous plants are so tough to let go of. We gardeners are just ordinary people after all-but we have a true passion for plants and growing that can take us over the line. Over the line-I am happy to be a member of that group.

Drocera, commonly known as sundew, is the largest genus of carviverous plants on the planet-there are at least 194 species. Plants that attract bugs, dissolve them, and ingest nutrients from them-creepy. But George has them, should you be interested. They are fascinating looking. They also look like trouble, but I did not mind this case of trouble plants one bit. January 24 I am happy to have a greenhouse to visit. How a greenhouse smells in the winter, delicious. The air is heavy with water, and the smell of soil comforts me. This winter promises to be a long one. I will be back, regularly.

Tropical plants are not my forte. I am better when I am outside. But I have no problem spending time in a warm spot, with strangers. We have had overnight lows recently of 2 degrees, and 8 degrees. My choices for gardening company-not so great. Whatever gardening company I might find-fine. Telly’s is looking really good right now.

I bought box after box of tropical plants for my conservatory installation tomorrow. Black, grey, and white leaved plants of a number of sizes and shapes. Different than these green and red plants whose name I do not know. No matter. I know the growing conditions for my client. I know how it is heated. I know how it is cared for. This makes it possible for me to design and plant plants whose names do not know. Margaret Dixon, who may have been the best gardener it has ever been my privilege to know, knew no names. But she could grow anything and everything, beautifully. Though she has been gone 15 years, I can still hear her saying. Ask the name last. Ask about what makes it happy first. Should you be a new gardener, skip the name, and move on to the ideal conditions. Should you be more that 100 feet away from good conditions, consider another plant.

Phalaenopsis orchids mostly require what I cannot provide. Though the flowers are lovely beyond belief, I do not attempt to grow them. I like looking at them at Telly’s, and at orchid shows, and at my local botanical garden greenhouse. Shouild I ever decide to turn over my entire gardening life to the cultivation of orchids, I might consider them. But in general, I welcome plants into my gardening life that like my gardening life to start with.

OK, I might make an exception for this amaryllis. Only as I might possibly provide the conditions they require to flourish. And successfully summer them over for flowers next year. This one flower alone was worth the trip today-yes, we had daytime ultra cold and snow. I am sure there is a greenhouse near you. My advice? Get out your gardening passport, and go somewhere.

Posted on: January 24, 2011 1 Comment

Filed Under: Garden Stories, Garden Design, Detroit Garden Works Tagged With: Telly's, Telly's Greenhouse

Looking To Spring

I will be meeting with my grower January 20 about what he will grow for our 2011 season. He grows lots of plants specifically for my work, but we carry them in the shop as well. Detroit Garden Works is by no means an full service independent garden center. We feature unusual and specimen plants. Plants to loose your head over. Plants with stature. Plants I fancy. As in a robust shrub of a 2 gallon size rosemary. Plants that I find are worth all the work it takes to grow them. Or plants that I cannot take my eyes off-as in this orange canna. I did not design and plant this container-I only furnished the pots. But this canna with a bloom that reminds me much of a clivia-I am so hoping we will have it available this coming season.

I have a lot of opportunities to test plants, as I plant lots of them. I plant them for committed gardeners, and the not so committed. I am sure you could guess this collection of containers has a gardener at the helm. We have wintered her red spikes for years. She did not skip a beat when I planted a tibouchina, with the promise the leaves would be great until the flowers came late. Her fuchsia standards are always healthy. She can grow white begonias like a pro.

This pot I planted for a brand new gardener. I coached, she handled it all with aplomb. No tibouchina for her-not yet. Petunias, trailing verbena, and bicolor angelonia are pretty easy to grow. Providing you deadhead the verbena, and water when you need to, an annual container like this can provide lots of pleasure the summer long. I like for new gardeners to be successful. This means they will come back for more. They will be encouraged to try new things, expand. I do believe gardening is good for people. It is good for me to think that people I have coached will garden after me. This makes me willing to test and try new plants. A fabulous pot gets to be really fabulous when it is home to something beautifully grown.

This tapered acid washed steel pot is of my design and manufacture. So much work came before the moment that I photographed this planting. I like that none of that shows. A great pot holds a generous volume of soil, and provides an elegant forum for a visual discussion.

This past season I bought 3 flats of double white petunias at market. That whim of a decision rewarded me all season long. Double white petunias are leggy and ungainly. Planted in concert with euphorbia Diamond Frost-as I have done here-a lucky move. This euphorbia is by no means the star of any show-I learned that. But it does a great job as best supporting annual plant. In this case, those petunia legs are covered in a frothy white petticoat. My advice-always plant it with a friend. It will soften, energize, and provide airy company for a friend.

Potunias-have you heard of them? Petunias that thrive in pots-potunias. I tested lots of them this past season. I like what I see. They are vigorous, easy to grow, and delightful. Should you have small pots, consider potunias. Lots of plants simply grow too big for smaller pots. This plant was happy in a small container all season long. The trailing geranium-an old standby that blooms prolifically and reliably from start to finish.

This client has no land, but does have a second story terrace. This giant steel box was home to a mix of flowers, including a morning glory, as well as a pair of cherry tomatoes, and some basil. A steel trellis on the wall supported all of the vining plants. The box is 4 feet long, and 18 inches deep-big enough to grow lots of plants.

The Lanai trailing verbena series is a favorite of mine. This Lavender Star is a healthy grower and great performer. This is another small container that did well all season. The chartreuse marjoram is one of my favorite green plants. It is a compact grower, the color of which enlivens almost any other color combination.

The first plants I ever grew from seeds were zinnias and beans. The seeds are big enough to handle easily, and they germinate so fast in warm soil. My Mom’s scheme to turn me into a successful gardener-big seeds. As the mature zinnias can easily fall prey to mildew, I plant them in large pots so they can spread out. And I keep the pots as dry as possible. When watering, I put the hose on top of the soil-I never get water on the plants themselves. When the summer is relatively rain-free, good culture can help stave off mildew until late in the season.

Yes indeed I miss my flowers. My grow meeting on the 20th, the first step towards spring.

Posted on: January 11, 2011 5 Comments

Filed Under: Garden Design Tagged With: container gardening, growing annuals

Sunday Opinion: The Greens

The topic of today’s opinion is vegetables, and not vegetable gardening. Let me explain. I have no opinion about what varieties to grow, or how to nurture them through the harvest. I know nothing of companion planting, spacing, sowing vegetable seed, designing or installing a vegetable garden. I cannot hold forth on which tomatoes are a must grow for my zone. Should you want to talk peonies, I might have something to say and the experience to back it up. Should you shriek the word beets at me, I would raise both hands and say yes. Beets, and their greens-a favorite. Not to grow-to eat. Though I am a better than decent horticulturist, I eat greens of which I have little or no knowledge. Buck buys Shanghais most every week-I love these greens. What is a Shanghai? Should you know, please write. I grow cardoons for the beauty of the plant-I would not dream of devoting space, time or thought to cultivating artichokes. Were I stranded on a desert island, I would only wish to be stranded with good bread and butter-and artichokes. zOK, I would probably learn to feed myself if I had to. I could pass a wand over my vague body of knowledge of indeterminate growing, cross pollination of corn, successive lettuce plantings, brassica pests, the cultivation of grains, raised vegetable beds and the efficacy of worm castings; an uniformed person might be convinced I knew something about growing food. Not so. I am so lucky that other people grow great vegetables that are available for me to eat.

The greens-I don’t grow them. More than likely, I would do a poor job of it. Eating them is a different story. My first and best love-beet greens. Next up, a close second-chard. Bok Choy, turnip greens, rapini, Tuscan kale, any green leafy thing gets my attention. Buck has no use for lettuce-what is wrong with him? Escarole, endive, romaine, Boston bibb, leaf lettuce-even iceberg. I could chow down a half head of iceberg splashed with Girard’s Champagne dressing-a feast. I could go on to say I could eat any lettuce plain, and be happy. Cole slaw-bring it on. I like my cabbage dressed with balsamic vinegar-no sweet slaw for me.

Lima beans-my favorite bean, though I have never been faced with a bean I did not like. Peas and their pods-delicious. Field peas-a new addition ala Buck. Broccoli has such an undesevedly bad rap-it really tastes great. Brussel sprouts taste even better, but my favorite green thing is the artichoke. I have been known to eat a pair of them at one sitting. I grew up with a minimum of 3 vegetables on the dinner table every night-this in addition to the salad. I am talking about the 1950’s here. Some were cooked, but lots were raw. On the regular raw list: lettuce, radishes, celery, lettuce, kohlrabi, tomatoes, onions, cabbage, carrots, spinach. Broccoli and potatoes-I like them just fine in their raw state. I prefer raw kohlrabi or the heel of a head of celery to an apple. Buck likes his vegetables cooked, but over the years, he has scaled back the cooking time. There was a time when my penchant for raw vegetables and his love of vegetables cooked for days in slabs of bacon was a topic of much discussion. If I can’t have a vegetable raw, I like it hot and almost raw. One of the few things I remember about being a freshman in college was how many others had never eaten any vegetables beyond tomatoes, peas, carrots and corn. Not that I don’t like these, but there is so much else out there.

I shop the farmer’s market and my favorite grocery stores for my vegetables-on and off. In the late summer, I go to market at 6am-I call Buck that I am dropping off the greens. He meets me in the driveway. Buck and I shopped two grocery stores today together-January 2. He ordinarily does all the grocery shopping; he walks through the door with a list, scoops up what he needs, and heads home. As I rarely go, it was a shopping trip for me. It was amazing the variety of food that was available under one roof. I had to look at everything. The Nino’s in Rochester of course specializes in fruits and vegetables. I saw plenty of vegetables I had never seen before-what a treat. The bulk of our purchases-vegetables, fresh pasta, and cheese. And enough greens to have them every day of the week.

There are plenty of other vegetables I would not want to do without besides the greens. The yellow, white, red, yellow, green and bulb onions, the Cippolinis, the chives, the Vidalias, the leeks. Just yesterday I persuaded Buck to buy an eggplant-we’ll see what he does with it. Peppers, mushrooms-they are all good to eat. This focus on food is a phase unique to my winter. Soups and stews are not just good to eat-they warm the soul. Good eating is a winter event. I can barely remember what I had to eat in May. When I am gardening full tilt, I eat with the express purpose of keeping my energy level where it needs to be. In the winter, I am much more likely to eat for fun.

Growing vegetables is not my idea of fun. Thank heavens that so many people like to, so I don’t have to. I might go so far as to pot up rosemary, or tomato pots ringed with basil and chives. I do plant lettuce and parsley in my spring pots. I read seed catalogues all winter long. But this is as far as my vegetable gardening gets. Eating vegetables-this I am good at.

Posted on: January 3, 2011 Leave a Comment

Filed Under: Garden Design, Strictly Opinion