Kniphofia caulescens or Red Hot Poker

I’ve never thought much of Red Hot Pokers . . . . . Until I discovered Kniphofia caulescens!

Caulcescens is a species that has evergreen grey / green strap-like leaves . In fact, I quite like it just for its leaves. It has stout greyish flower stems that look a bit like they are made from tubular steel and the flowers . . . . . Well the flowers are a bit OTT but the way they are held high above the foliage gives them a sort of majesty. I grow this plant in full sun in quite a dry soil and I do find it needs some watering to get the best flowers.

The following 2 photographs were taken yesterday evening (29/6/10):

Pondlife

This evening, I want to talk about the joys of having a pond.

I dug my pond about 10 years ago and added a water lily. Since then I have battled with this beast in an effort to control its desire to completely take-over the pond and probably the whole garden. On Sunday just gone, I undertook another round in the battle. You see, my pond is not exactly big but it is big enough to prevent me from reaching the depths at its centre where the beast of the water lily has its main headquarters. To overcome this problem I used a ladder (on full extension) and dropped this across the pond. Having laid a plank across its rungs I then crawled out to the centre of the pond and from there plucked out the excess growth of lily pads. Success! Although I will have to perform this task several more times this summer.

The photo below shows the pond this evening with clear water visible and lily flowers. (I must apologise here to all the readers of this blog who have lost their tree ferns due to the cold winter – as, in the shot you can see a rather healthy tree fern!)

You might be asking why I didn’t just wade into the pond to attack the water lily? Well, the answer is simple – Wattle!

Wattle is a large goldfish that lives in the pond along with a breeding herd of minnows (one is called Kylie), lots of newts and various frogs. Wattle is the last survivor of a pair of goldfish given to me by my late father. Wattle’s partner – Daub – died a few years ago. I would not wish to upset Wattle by wadding in his pond. Below is a photo of Wattle taken a few days ago:

The photo above (taken underwater) probably shows the best side of Wattle. A couple of weeks ago he had a nasty brush with a Heron, at least, I think he did. I saw the Heron early one morning standing in the pond and a few days later I noticed that Wattle had bruising to his hind quarters and (dare I say it) a bit of mould! I have feared that Wattle might not be long for this pond but he seems more chirpy lately and I hope he is recovering. It is probably true to say that Wattle is my only true friend! He is a bit slow these days but he is old for a goldfish. I need to drop his food pellets close to his mouth because he is a bit adverse to swimming far. Mrs Musa things I fuss over Wattle too much! I think she is just jealous! An example of this occurred the other week in the pet shop:

I said to the Pet Shop man:

“A bag of your finest pond-fish food please”

“Certainly Sir. This is the best pond-fish food. . . . Koi Carp? He said

“Well . . . Carp” I said

Mrs Musa said to pet shop man: “It’s only a goldfish and he’s only got one!”

How embarrassing! She never misses a chance to ‘have a go’ at Wattle.

Such is my fondness for Wattle that last week, when I feared that he might die, I investigated the possibility of getting him stuffed. Do you know that specialist fish taxidermists charge £25 an inch to stuff a fish! I reckon that Wattle must be at least 10 inches long so that would mean at least £250! I wonder if anyone has ever had a goldfish stuffed before?

 

Managing a pond requires a certain amount of dedication. In the summer I have to net-off the fine threads of pondweed and/or use a stick to wind the weed onto. This is an almost daily task. Last year, I noticed that a dollop of this weed that I had accidentally dropped onto the paving stones had dried into an almost paper-like green substance. This gave me an idea and I invented ‘Pondlife Products TM’. As a prototype I gathered a good amount of pondweed, washed it, drained it, and not having the patience to wait for the sun to dry it, ironed it with the electric iron (don’t tell Mrs Musa). The result was almost cardboard-like not unlike beer mat material. So, using a sharp knife and template, I fashioned the stuff into a beer mat or coaster. I even produced a brochure to which I attached my prototype. The brochure extolled the eco-friendly, green credentials of ‘Pondlife Products TM’ and suggested that it could be used to fashion cardboard and paper products, brake linings etc. etc. I shall make some more samples and perhaps post a photo of them!

Ponds are always fascinating! Mine attracts frogs, newts, bathing birds, kingfishers, herons, dragonflies and all sorts of bugs.

Summertime Blues

Looks like summer has finally arrived! Even went to the pub tonight without the need for a coat or jacket! Of course, my trip to the pub was purely for a small glass of medicinal beer.

At last we have lost the cold northerly winds that have afflicted this part of the coast for what seems like months. Actually, most of my traditional garden plants have done well this Spring / Summer, it has been the more exotic plants that have been slow to get going, the bananas, Colocasia etc.

Why the summertime blues you may ask? Because, I am engaged in a massive scheme of decorating following the installation of new kitchen and bathroom stuff. So, rather than a leisurely weekend of pottering in the garden, I've had to be a contortionist up a ladder trying to get paint into the most hard to reach nooks and crannies of the kitchen etc. I don't like it!!

I have interesting (?) news of Beshornaria yuccoides, various bananas and hops to give to my avid readers and as soon as I can get rid of the paint brush, I will add some new posts. Life seems too busy at the moment and next weekend we are off to see Bob Dylan play - I don't know when I will get the chance to just spend some time in the Musa garden.

Otherwise . . . . things are good!

Rudbeckia occidentalis ‘Green Wizard’

This really is a plant for grown-ups! Its common name is Coneflower but the ‘Green Wizard’ variety is very understated.

Rudbeckia occidentalis ‘Green Wizard’ flowers just have green bracts around a black cone. It does have a small circle of tiny yellow flower petals around the cone but these are not exactly striking. The leaves are bright green and, I’m afraid, very attractive to slugs. The flower stems grow to about 3ft but I have never needed to stake my plants. I grow my plants in semi-shade and full sun and they seem to do best if the soil is not allowed to dry out. I’ve grown these plants for the past 12 years and have never done anything special to protect them over winter.

The plants are flowering now (June 22nd). I grow one clump by the side of a path just so I can admire their beauty and feel grown-up!

The following photos were taken on June 20th 2010: 

Campanula persicifolia

Campanula persicifolia has seeded itself all round my garden and can be a little 'weed-like'. The flowers are amazing though and I get all shades between the standard blue / violet to pure white. This is certainly the best time of year for this plant. A useful tip from this non-expert gardener: most people advise you to cut down the flowering stem after the blooms have faded as would be the case with many plants of this type. But unusually, if you 'pinch-off' each faded flower from just behind the flower head then a fresh flower bud will appear on the flower stem.

I start of each summer on a mission to pinch-out each faded bloom but I soon get fed-up and after a while just pull the whole plant and its faded blooms out of the ground! The other slight problem to the pinching-out regime is that the sap of all Campanulas is a sticky, milky-white stuff - a bit like UPVA adhesive - and you find your fingers start sticking together. They grow about 3ft tall and are apt to fall over unless staked. I'm too lazy to stake them and in the weather we have had recently, many are laying down.

On the whole, a useful plant that requires little attention . The added bonus is that they will self-seed.

Photo above taken 20/6/2010

Parahebe and Tetrapanax papyrifera

19th June – The Parahebe (left of picture) is doing well (as ever) whilst the Tetrapanax papyrifera is making slow progress.

I’m pretty sure that the Parahebe is Parahebe catarractae. I must admit that it is a largely neglected plant in my garden, it just grows! It grows in a very dry position and I do need to water it from time to time, it is evergreen and has a rather straggly habit which is not particularly endearing. However, at this time of year it is covered in small blue flowers and looks really good and will keep on flowering for several weeks yet. It is true to say that after about ten years that this plant is now growing on me!

Tetrapanax papyrifera or Rice Paper Plant (right of picture) . . . . . . .  I suppose I’m lucky that this plant survived the harsh winter. In fact the top third of its trunk was killed by the frost but it has made new growth from the undamaged part. It really needs some warmer weather now to produce its massive leaves to full effect. I really need some warmer weather now!!

I’m pleased to say that also in the picture is an action shot of one of the famous gardening shoes! Using a wide-angle lens has had the effect of making the famous gardening shoe look smaller than it really is.

Sempervivum arachnoideum

Or The Cobweb Houseleek

I used to have a vast collection of Sempervivums and grew them in shallow eathernware bowls. Trouble is that the resident Blackbird population of this garden used to take great delight in plucking each rosette of sempervivum out of its planter in search of a tasty morsel of worm or beetle. In frustration, I gave-up semperivivuming and now only grow a few varieties planted out in the ground. One such is Sempervivum arachnoideum or the Cobweb Houseleek which has tiny rossettes each one covered in fine hairs like a cobweb. It starts to flower at this time of year and I can never quite decide if the flowers add to the overall effect of a clump or detract from it. Depending on my mood, sometimes I remove the flowering rossettes (which will die anyway) and sometimes I leave the flower spike.

Campanula garganica 'Dickson's Gold'

Despite the horrible cold northerly gale that has inflicted this part of the North Kent Coast for the past two weeks, some plants flourish. Campanula garganica 'Dickson's Gold' has started flowering (19 June 2010), the pale blue flowers against the yellowy leaves are truly exquisite! This is a plant which everyone should have!

It is good to see this plant in flower but I am still depressed by this cold, biting North Wind!

Idiot Wind

I am tired of the cold easterly and northeasterly winds that have afflicted this part of the coast for what seems like most of the year so far (the post title is a reference to a Bob Dylan track). True there have been some good days but they seem to be not too many. Stuff like Hostas, Ligularias and many garden perennials are growing well. But Bananas, Colocasias and the other more tropical plants really need some warmer weather and importantly some warmer night-time temperatures. In fact, I need warmer weather! I'm now longing for the Musa family holiday to Adrasan, for warm days and warm nights sitting outside drinking cold beer.
A trip to a local nursery brought some success on Sunday, I managed to buy some Ricinus communis plants and a couple of bananas - Musa 'Zebrina'. I've not tried 'Zebrina' before and am interested to see how they grow, they were only £3.50 each so I can't go far wrong.
 I must get some houseplants from Homebase or B&Q, I have a shady low wall bed where I use them as bedding plants for the summer. I think I've said in a previous post that houseplants make interesting and unusual bedding plants for anywhere in the shade and they are quite cheap.
Tonight the wind is blowing hard from the northeast and it feels freezing outside. There is nothing for it but to go to the pub for a couple of snifters and forget about this crap weather.

Overplants

I have a set of photographs on Flickr called ‘Underplants’ – they are of plants and flowers taken from below. (I usually end-up with wet knees)

I’ve decided to create a matching set of photographs of plants and flowers taken from above and, of course, I’m calling them ‘Overplants’!

Below is an example showing a batch of mixed leaves including Ferns, Rodgersia, Hostas; Ligularia 'Rocket' and some other things. (taken on 5th June 2010)

Tree Fern Clinic

This blog seems to have become a refuge for owners of sickly Tree Ferns . . . not that I mind at all. I can't claim to be any sort of expert in the care of Tree Ferns so I welcome any input from anyone who has some knowledge or just wants to share their experience. I hope to persuade Wendy to become a 'guest blogger' on this site to share her experiences and her witty observations.
Meantime I apologise for posting news and views of my healthy Tree Ferns and for posting articles about non-tree fern stuff.
I hope the people who have posted comments to this site continue to update us on the progress of their Tree Ferns but perhaps also share with us their news on other plants.
I started this blog as a kind of experiment and I need to learn more about running a good blog. But I am really excited that it does seem to be generating an interchange of views and ideas from some very interesting people. Thank you to everyone who has read this blog and particularly to those who have posted comments.

Tree Fern - June 2010

I know a lot of people have lost their tree ferns due to the harsh winter and I really don’t want to seem to be crowing or disrespectful. But, my tree ferns survived and survived better than the winter before last. The photograph below is of my small tree fern taken on Saturday (5th June), it even has a few of last year’s fronds still looking green.

It is over-shadowed by a large bamboo (Phyllostachys nigra) which being evergreen perhaps gives the tree fern some protection from the frost. Of course, my tree ferns live in Southeast England (as do I) where perhaps it is warmer. We also live close to the sea so do not get the really low night-time temperatures although a north-easterly or easterly wind straight off the sea is enough to freeze a stoat (stoat?).

Here’s the picture:

‘Keep the Aspidistra Flying’ . . Aspidistra elatior or Cast Iron Plant

For many, many years we have had a moth-eaten Aspidistra as a houseplant. It lived in a too-small plastic pot but had grown to quite a large size. Eventually it was decided that it had out-stayed its welcome and was banished to outside the back door. This was about 5 years ago and since then it has literally rolled around the garden. The small pot was too small to balance its superstructure and hence the slightest zephyr of breeze was enough to make it fall over. It has spent much of the past 5 years lying on its side and indeed spent all last winter ‘lying down’.

Despite all this neglect, it has survived remarkably well and has come through the past two ‘difficult’ winters unscathed; it certainly has earned its common name of ‘Cast Iron Plant’. Last weekend I decided to reward its tenacity and give it a luxurious new home. It now looks rather grand in a large, blue ceramic pot placed on a low wall in the lee of a north-facing fence. I am a little concerned that in high summer the leaves will get a little more sunshine than it should really have but hey it has been in worse places.

The photo below shows the Aspidistra in its new home:

In the book ‘Keep the Aspidistra Flying’ by George Orwell (pub 1936) the Aspidistra is referred to as a symbol of middle-class respectability. I must say that I feel a lot more respectable now that my Aspidistra is so well displayed. Of course, it really should be indoors, in the ‘front room’ or the hall.

The Aspidistra is also famous as the subject of a popular song of the 1940’s ‘The Biggest Aspidistra in the World’ sung by Gracie Fields . . . . and it goes like this:

For years we had an aspidistra in a flower pot
On the whatnot, near the 'atstand in the 'all
It didn't seem to grow 'til one day our brother Joe
Had a notion that he'd make it strong and tall
So he's crossed it with an acorn from an oak tree
And he's planted it against the garden wall
It shot up like a rocket, 'til it's nearly reached the sky
It's the biggest aspidistra in the world
We couldn't see the top of it, it got so bloomin' high
It's the biggest aspidistra in the world
When father's had a snoot full at his pub, 'The Bunch of Grapes'
He doesn't go all fighting mad and getting into scrapes
No, you'll find him in his bear-skin playing Tarzan of the apes
Off the biggest aspidistra in the world
We have to get it watered by the local fire brigade
So they put the water rates up half a crown
The roots stuff up the drains, grow along the country lanes
And they came up half a mile outside the town
Once we hired an auditorium for a hot house
But a jealous rival went and burnt it down
The tom cats and their sweethearts love to spend their evenings out
Up the biggest aspidistra in the world
They all begin meowing when the buds begin to sprout
From the biggest aspidistra in the world
The dogs all come around for miles, a lovely sight to see
They sniff around for hours and hours and wag their tails with glee
So I've had to put a notice up to say it's not a tree
It's the biggest aspidistra in the world

June Gardening

I’ve been a bit lazy in putting up new posts over the last 2 weeks. There are 2 reasons for this (apart from work).

One is that there is major work taking place in the Musa house which includes a new kitchen and bathroom. This work has been going on for over a week now, there is no way to have a bath or shower, nothing to cook on, no water supply in the old kitchen, no washing machine etc. Every room has kitchen stuff stored or boxes of new units / shower trays etc and everything is covered in a thick layer of dust! I have had to shower in the garden and I am thankful that the weather has been warm (at last). Meals are take-aways or restaurants which is OK. The computer mouse is affected by the dust and it doesn’t as much slide across the desk but grinds through the ever-present dust. Ah well! It will be over soon – I hope!

The other reason for not posting much is that I’ve been busy in the garden!

Alocasia macrorrhizos – I’ve now planted out in quite a sunny site. I’ve taken note of everything I’ve read and planted it in well drained soil although I know it will need a lot of watering.

Ligularia dentata ‘Britt-Marie Crawford’ – a new acquisition, I’ve planted on the far side, shady side of the pond. I hope its red metallic leaves will go well with the Hostas, bamboo, Rodgersia and ferns.

Colocasia esculenta – The bog-standard Colocasia has survived the winter well without any protection and is now appearing in various places in the garden. It is almost weed-like in its ability to survive and spread. I’ve got 4 new varieties, two to replace lost plants and two new to me. I’ve planted out 2 so far and have yet to decide on where to plant the others.

Bananas – Musa -A bad year again! I thought I had lost my Musa Sikkimensis but there is now one shoot coming through. I’ve bought and planted out a Musa sikkimensis ‘Red Stripe’ which looks much like its name describes. . . . . . . . . .  Ensete ventricosum – I didn’t manage to overwinter any of the plants I dug-up from the garden so I’ve bought 4 new ones from Amulreee Exotics. I’ve planted one each of the green form and ‘Maurelii’ in the ground and one each in large pots. The ones in pots will be easier to over-winter and hopefully make enormous plants next year.

I’ve also done a lot of general garden work including clearing weeds from some of those places that I seldom venture. Anyway, on with the blog!