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The Spring Garden Fair

Our very first spring garden fair, in celebration of the 15th anniversary of Detroit Garden Works, is this weekend.  I do feel a little sheepish, making such a fuss about having become a teenager.  But the optimism that comes naturally to a gardener is a pretty big umbrella.  As much as I expect that the brown bulbs I planted last fall will eventually produce plants with gorgeous flowers, I expect to keep on providing the gardening community with a place that respects their interest. I am pleased with our teenage history.  We hung lime green dancing stars in the lindens today-recycled from a fundraiser we did for the Children’s Center in Detroit some years ago.  The mission of the Children’s Center is to help educate kids, and encourage them to work hard and do well.  Their efforts are aimed at helping kids to be properly equipped to have productive lives that make a contribution to their community.  This optimism I like.     I spent the day attending to all the last minute details.  Of course we have a few cut flower arrangements.  After all, this is a party. 

Most of my pots of bulbs planted last fall are still green; the spring has been very slow in coming.  But outside, there are signs of life.  My crocus patches at home are beautiful right now.  The weekend promises warm weather-the first we have had in many months. No gardener will fault me for my green foliaged bulb pots-they understand that nature is a big fluid situation. They will come back for the show-that date is yet to be announced.  

I will admit that many of the spring containers I planted up for this event have been in a greenhouse for some time.  Spring in Michigan can be so variable.  Last year, the spring was early, and moderate.  It might have been the most beautiful spring that has ever been my pleasure to witness.  This spring-where is it?  I think it might be arriving tomorrow. We have a great weather forecast for the weekend. 

I have planted lots of containers at the shop, and all of the window boxes- just for spring.  Though our spring has the potential to last only days, I prefer to focus on the potential part.  The only days part-I refuse to be bullied.   


I am not willing to give up planting pansies and violas over a worry about how many days they might last.  I am optimistic that everyone will benefit from a big dose of spring-I know I do.  What nature delivers to its winter weary population is welcome at my place.

Lettuce in flats-the promise of the good that is to come. Should you read this blog regularly, you know I plant lettuce in pots as it is beautiful.  I am not much of a vegetable gardener.  But I do eat lettuce most every day.  On those days when Buck is too tired to make a salad, he’ll fix me a mess of greens, and dress them. Like most gardeners,  I need the greens.   


Vernissage is a French word referring most usually to the opening of an art exhibit.  It was the title of my first blog post April 1 of 2009.  Spring-it is the opening of an art exhibit that will go on and enchant for the next 7 months.  I hope to see you at the opening.  Should you live far away-we still have a community.  I will keep you posted.  I hope to hear from you.  Gardeners everywhere are about to celebrate spring.  Come round, should you have the chance.

Posted on: April 8, 2011 4 Comments
Filed Under: Detroit Garden Works, Spring, Garden Stories Tagged With: ,

At A Glance: Ready, Or Not?

Posted on: April 3, 2011 Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Picture This, Garden Design, Spring Tagged With: , ,

Back To The Future

Our weather is being momumentally reluctant to shift into spring.  Yes, I still have snow and ice in my yard.  But  there are a few signs of spring afoot.  Bogie Lake Greenhouse transported me back to the future; the pansy house is bursting with spring color.  They are plenty big enough to go outside, pending some warmer night temperatures.  I do so associate pansies and violas with spring.  I do not mind violets in the lawn.  I like Johnny Jump Ups almost anywhere.  Plants that self sow can be a nuisance, but these plants are charming.  I know of no other flower which is commonly referred to as having a face. This refers to the prominent dark blotch on the petals of some varieties. This house is the closest thing I have to spring right now.  

The clear sky series of pansies have no face, but I treasure them nonetheless.  They also are particularly hardy in my zone.  The tolerate a fall planting over tulips or other spring bulbs, and come back fairly reliably.  This faceless pansy does have a name-primrose.  Perfect. 

Clear sky yellow pansies are plainly visible from a long ways away.  This intense yellow makes it a perfect companion to other colors.  Yellow and primrose and dark purple make for a lively mix.  I like mixes for home plantings-they seem so much more personal.  In contemporary gardens, I like one idea, expressing confidently in a beautiful shape or sweep.  For a mix that reads evenly, use at least 3 colors.

This pansy is a member of a mix; the seed produces a range of colors that are related.  My knowledge of plant breeding is nothing to speak of, but I do understand the concept of selection.  Breeding for a specific characteristic means selecting those plants that most closely resemble the ideal, and breeding on.  I may select certain colors from a mix to further refine an idea or a look.   

Mark kindly allocated some bench space to some spring pots of mine.  The selection of the plant material proved daunting, as nothing was in bloom.  I have firmly resolved to take notes on varieties and combintions I like when the plants are in bloom.  But a good deal of the fun of the planting-besides getting one’s hands in the dirt-is arranging for beautiful color.  However, planting containers with green plants has advantages.  A focus on the contrast of texture, mass and shape can make for spring containers all the more beautiful. 

All of the contrast here is about color.  The plants are all pansies that have the same habit of growth, the same leaves, and the same flower shape. 


There are plenty of plants that tolerate our cool spring.  One of my favorites is phlox intensia-annual phlox.  Pictured here is the white, and the pink bicolor.  There is a lovely lavender variety as well.  It has a lax habit of growth that can be supported by the stiff growth of parsley, angelina, or pansies.  It will still be growing strong later in the summer.  I am thinking I will start planting out this next Monday, April 4.  Bring on the lettuce, the parsley, the fennel, the pansies, violas and osteos-the list is long enough to keep me really busy.  Hopefully there will be every opportunity to do something new, break all the rules, and go out on a limb.  There usually is.

Posted on: March 31, 2011 Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Good Design, Garden Design, Spring

Bare Branches


March in Michigan is as much about bare branches as November in Michigan.  This makes me sympathetic to any local gardener who thinks that bare branches are a synonym for dead branches.  No wonder people in my zone so value evergreens.  I am really tired of looking at them; this is March 25th for pete’s sake.  Every day, it is still winter.  This is part of why I am so interested in espaliers as landscape plants-they look great in that leafless stage.  The past few rainy days have been accompanied by temperatures near freezing.  Every branch is glazed with ice. 

This morning it was very sunny and cold; the bare branches were glittering.  Rain drops froze before they dripped off the branches-what I would not give for this look at the holidays.  Weather has a way to drawing attention to the color, structure and overall shape of those bare branches. In addition to their leaves, flowers and possibly fruit, woody plants have beautiful bones. Actually, most woody plants in their leafless stage are still beautiful.   

I do not grow forsythia in my garden.  I have only planted it on very large properties with room to spare.  The only truly beautiful planting of forsythia I have ever seen is the Forsythia Dell at Dunbarton Oaks.  Should you be there at the right time, it is spectacular.  But the forsythia across the street from me were very good looking today.  You can tell they are about to burst into bloom; the cinnamon color of the stems is glowing.  Covered in ice, it looked good enough to eat. 


Lindens have a robust overall shape, but the branches are weepy, drapy, and languid. Interesting this, for a tree that has a round overall shape. The bare branches have a jewel like appearance today. Not that I wouldn’t prefer to be smelling the flowers right now, but this is all I have available.  

Crabapple branches are hunky and gnarly; the color is a bright red brown. The sun and ice brought all of that to life.  It is incredible to think that in a few short weeks this branch will be floating in a pale pink tutu.   


I moved all of the potted bulbs inside yesterday-the frosting of ice and all.  It was 19 degrees last night-17 is forecast for tonight.  24 hours these pots have been in the garage-they are still icy. How is your spring coming along?

Posted on: March 24, 2011 2 Comments
Filed Under: Spring, Holiday Tagged With: