WILD SOMEPLACE ELSE

Gardners are the worst kind of people. Self righteous, opinionated, eccentric, and worst of all woefully ignorant..... Okay maybe not all gardners.... okay maybe its just a small minority of gard-e... myself. I'm talking about myself.

I suppose I should elaborate a bit.

For the record this ignorant gardener actually does do his homework. I have a zero fuss policy and refuse to plant anything that won't do well in the sad excuse for soil I have to work with. Recently, after doing a thorough vetting, it was definitively decided that my garden was in desperate need of some Sanguisorba canadensis. As with most of my "natives" I have an idealistic vision of the plant growing abundantly in some pristine habitat with a bubbling brook, maybe a grassy bank or 2, but mainly far far away from any vestige of civilization or, to put it another way, far, far away from me. In my own defense I think most people think that way. "Wild" is where people aren't, right?

So after shoveling out some 50 odd bucks to a reputable native nursery I happily planted my S. canadensis and they, of course, performed exactly as I predicted, growing vigorously in their new home. Around the time they were flowering this year (August-October for the uninitiated) I was driving along the road to the property where I do the majority of my gardening and was just about there when I noticed something out of the corner of my eye growing in an old field (again this was maybe a minute down the road, in a spot that I have passed by probably hundreds of times before). The spot was the opposite of pristine, there was no bubbling brook, no grassy banks, and very much not far away from any vestige of civilzation. Yet, despite this there was a very content looking little colony (see above) of the very plant I had just shoveled out over half a century in bills for.

This drove home a few things for me.
1. Even when we think we're in tune with our surroundings there's still a lot were blind to, even when these "invisible" things all but smack us up the side of the head.
2. Evolving as a gardner means evolving how you perceive your surroundings, but more importantly finding beauty in the common and under appreciated.
3. "Wild" is a not an other, or pristine, it exists where ever things are able to grow. A back alley in Boston is no more wild than a mountaintop in the Appalachians. And just beacause a plant might not grow in the most virgin far away reaches of the globe does not make it any less worthy of our admiration, protection, or respect.

And so, to make ammends for my past sins, I thought I'd focus in on a few of these species in my own backyard that I've either underappreciated, overlooked, or both. And to do proper pennance for either intentionally removing or accidentally trampling these guys in the not so distant past, if you live in the northeast and would like a seedling (or 2 or 3 or 4) of any of the starred(*) species below just let me know. I've already collected seed from most, and will have a flat or 2 come spring of at least a few of the plants I've highlighted (I already have a few spots picked out for the majority, so they'll have a home regardless of whether or not I get any requests :)



*Amelanchier canadensis - Canada Serviceberry
Zones 4-8
Purchase from: Accents for Home and Garden, Cold Stream Farm, Greenwood Nursery, New England Wetland PLants, Prairie Moon Nursery, Shooting Star Nursery



*Carex pennsylvanica - Pennsylvania Sedge, Oak Sedge
Zone: 4-7, although I've seen plenty of 3-8
After covering over, mowing, pulling up, and overall ignoring the little stand of pennsylvania sedge in my garden, it has refused to give up. It's a little surprising actually, given that the soils are clayey which is the opposite of what pennsylvania sedge prefers. This little population may have some unique genetics that allow it to grow in heavier soils.
Purchase from: Classy Groundcovers, Everwilde Farms, Greenwood Nursery, Morning Sky Greenery, Prairie Nursery, Prairie Moon Nursery, Santa Rosa Gardens, Shooting Star Nursery, Yellow Springs Farm



*Cornus alternifolia - Pagoda Dogwood
Zones 3-8
Purchase from: American Beauties, A Nearly Native Nursery, Cold Stream Farm, Forestfarm, Lazy S'S Farm & Nursery, New England Wetland Plants, Prairie Moon Nursery, Tree Seeds, White Oak Nursery



*Doellingeria umbellata (syn. Aster umbellatus) - Flat-topped White Aster
Zones 3-8
I accidentally collected the seed of this species while attempting to collect both Symphyotrichum laeve and Symphyotrichum prenanthoides. Deer resistant. The fluffy white seed heads look good right up to the first heavy snow.
Purchase from: American Meadows, Everwilde Farms, Morning Sky Greenery, Prairie Moon



Geranium maculatum - Wild Geranium
Zones 3-8
One of our toughest wildflowers. Sun or shade, wet(ish) or dry, I've seen this guy growing in almost every situation you could think of.
Purchase from: Amanda's Garden, American Meadows, Everwilde Farms, Morning Sky Greenery, New Moon Nursery, Outback Nursery, Prairie Moon, Van Berkum Nursery



Hypoxis hirsuta - Yellow Star Grass
Zones 3-9
One of the cutest, longest blooming, and perhaps happiest wildflowers we have.
Purchase from: Earth Tone Natives, Garden Delights, Everwilde Farms, Izel Native Plants, Lazys Farm, Morning Sky Greenery, Mulberry Woods Nursery, Prairie Moon, Sunshine Farms and Gardens



*Rosa carolina - Pasture Rose
Zones 4-9
Purchase from: American Beauties, Carolina Native Nursery, Catskill Native Nursery, Dropseed Native Nursery Everwilde Farms, Forest Keeling, Ion Exchange, Izel Native Plants, Long Island Natives, Outback Nursery, Pleasant Run Nursery, Possibility Place Nursery, Prairie Moon, Prairie Nursery, Wasco Nursery, Wild Ridge Plants



*Sanguisorba canadensis - Canadian Burnet
Zones 3-7
Purchase from: Earth Tone Natives, Klehm's Song Sparrow, Prairie Moon, Project Native, Sunnyborder, Van Berkum Nursery



*Solidago nemoralis - Gray Goldenrod
Zones 3-9
Purchase from: Dropseed Native Nursery, Everwilde Farms, Forrest Keeling Nursery, Hidden Savanna Nursery, Pinelands Nursery, Missouri Wildflowers Nursery, Morning Sky Greenery, New Moon Nursery, Prairie Moon, Spence Nursery



*Solidago speciosa - Showy Goldenrod
Zones 3-9
This plant is perhaps my biggest regret. Granted this picture above doesn't show the buckthorn that was taking over, or the steadily advancing colony of poison ivy, I should have made more of an effort to integrate the existing colony into the garden. I'll be growing a flat or 2 up from seed I collected this season so if your on the market for some S. speciosa just give me a holler.
Purchase from: Almost Eden Plants, Everwilde Farms, Morning Sky Greenery, Niche Gardens, Prairie Moon, Prairie Nursery



*Teucrium canadense - American Germander
Zones Zones 3-9 (also seen 4-8)
Agressively rhizomatous in wet soils and fulls sun, not the showiest of plants, but a good filler for rain gardens among taller, more robust species that it won't overwhelm. Its cotton candy colored flowers aren't too showy, but in mass it makes an impact. Good native alternative to Gooseneck Loosestrife (Lysimachia clethroides).
Purchase from: Dropseed Native Plant Nursery, Earthtone Natives, Everwilde Farms, Ion Exchange, Morning Sky Greenery, Prairie Moon, Sand Mountain Herbs, Toadshade Wildflower Farm



Vaccinium corymbosum - Highbush Blueberry
Zones 3-8
One of our most adaptable and hardy native shrubs and one of the few (or only) ericaceous plants that seems to thrive in heavy clay. I always wondered why anyone ever felt the need to plant Euonymus when we had this native. Beautiful fall foliage, often holding on to its leaves long after most trees and shrubs have dropped theirs.
Purchase from: American Beauties, Burnt Ridge Nursery, Clear Ridge Nursery Fall Creek, Long Island Natives, New England Wetland Plants, Pinelands Nursery, Rare Exotic Seeds, Rare Find Nursery


IMAGE SOURCE FOR TEUCRIUM CANADENSE: LEFT, RIGHT

WELCOME TO MY (FUTURE) GARDEN

Baptisia x 'Purple Smoke'and just gathered salt marsh hay :)

DISCLAIMER: This has been a VERY VERY STRESSFUL spring for me so please forgive the colorful language that may be not so liberally sprinkled throughout this post.

Before I get started I'd like to wish a MASSIVE, GIANT, FLYING, F#@K YOU!!!!! to spring. All I wanted was just a month, just one little month of cool moderate temperatures and consistent rainfall. You know, kinda like the typical weather we get almost every spring... but apparently not this one. I was even a really good boy and got most of my seeding done before mid April. And just when I got most of my flats hardened off and ready to go we went from March temperatures in the 30s and 40s to July temps in 70s and 80s (apparently April and May got together and collectively decided they really needed a break this season). Oh, and not one spot of rain for almost 2 months (okay maybe there were a few spots, but not much more than that). Anywho, F@#$@@@#@@@@K YOU SPRING. F @ # $ @ @ @ # @ @ @ @ K!!! Y O U!!!.

Ok, now that that's out of the way, back to business. For the 2 people and my mom who actually read this blog, you may have noticed that for someone who is totally obsessed with plants, there is an alarming lack of my own garden pics sprinkled around here. Aside from being extremely insecure, this is mostly 'cause the last few years have been a bit of transition for me. Letting go of the place I gardened growing up (mainly cause there is simply nothing left to save at this point) and embracing my newly, officially adopted (as of now) garden home. In addition to developing a larger master plan for the property (which is currently mostly still all in my head) the last few years have consisted of dealing with the aftermath of a grant my family and I were lucky/"lucky" enough to receive from the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge that our property abuts. In all seriousness though... very happy we got it... I think.

This past weekend (of many, many weekends) spent weeding, planting, and watering was the first I can remember in a long time when my excitement about the future wasn't completely crushed by the life sucking vortex of anxiety born from being completely and utterly overwhelmed by the shear number of things to do. So it seemed like a good time to start sharing... at least before the vortex started swirling again. Also, if I'm being completely honest... I'm feeling just too damn lazy this week to search for inspiration and figured I'd go with what was right in front of me.

Just a little bit of background, part of my strategy for turning this property from a messy mosaic of mostly invasives and a few sporadic natives to a (at least partially) cultivated and at least mostly self-sustaining "native" landscape is identifying as many of the native trees and wildflowers that are already on site and not only encouraging and propagating these species, but using them as a means of understanding the properties past and getting a sense of where its headed. Considering there's about 6 acres to work with (+ adjacent conservation land) the list is pretty substantial. Here are some of the highlights as well as a few species I might be able to integrate into the various niches I'm both creating and attempting to enhance.




Cornus alternifolia - Pagoda Dogwood
Zones 3-8
Purchase from: American Beauties, A Nearly Native Nursery, Cold Stream Farm, Forestfarm, Lazy S'S Farm & Nursery, New England Wetland Plants, Prairie Moon Nursery, Tree Seeds, White Oak Nursery

This is perhaps the most distinctive species on the property, and you can spot it from a mile a way (okay maybe a few hundred feet, but still quite an impact). The distinctive, symmetrical, tiered branching is unlike any other tree found in our region. Aside from the most recent incident of my dad accidentally burning a 15 foot specimen (yes Dad, I noticed....and you will be lectured thoroughly...), I plan to use the seedlings sprouting up around existing established trees throughout the property as much as I can. A truly magnificent small tree.




Sabal minor 'McCurtain' - McCurtain Dwarf Palmetto
Zones 5b-10 (possibly solid zone 5 once established)
Purchase from: Brian's Botanicals, Plant Delights Nursery, Alligator Alley

After seeing images of this palm throughout swamps in the south, coupled with the availability of a seed strain from the northern most known population I couldn't resist. Maybe I'll have myself my own little population of Dwarf Palmetto in a few years... or not. We'll see.





Amelanchier canadensis - Canada Serviceberry
Zones 4-8
Purchase from: Accents for Home and Garden, Cold Stream Farm, Greenwood Nursery, New England Wetland PLants, Prairie Moon Nursery, Shooting Star Nursery

This guy has been a bit ubiquitous in landscape trade as of late (although its mostly A. arborea and its hybrids, A. x grandiflora). I "discovered" aka finally stopped overlooking a large specimen on the property a couple of years ago that had been pretty much slapping me in the face every time I got out of the car. Only after researching how to make cuttings of this species did I find a massive treasure trove of seedlings littering the understory (along with a few other older specimens sprinkled around the edges of the property). These little guys will never make it in the midst of established trees, so I'm gonna relocate a few to sunnier areas where they can prosper. Clay/shade tolerant, and unlike most of the cultivars you'll find at your local nursery, this local genotype seems to be almost entirely cedar rust resistant. I actually bought A. x grandiflora 'Robin Hill' several years back only to have it be completely decimated by cedar rust.





Maianthemum canadense - Canada Mayflower
Zones 3-8
Purchase from: Nasami Farms, Sunshine Farms and Gardens

I still feel REALLY shitty about where my family ended up having to put our leach field, which was basically smack-dab in the middle of an existing grove of established red maples, and a lush monolithic carpet of Cinnamon Fern (Osmunda cinnamomea) and Canada Mayflower (Maianthemum canadense). The later is a diminutive and and unassuming wildflower that goes largely unnoticed, but is deserving of much wider use in the industry. In addition to doing my best to encourage and replace that which was lost, I thought I'd pay homage to this under-appreciated staple of the northeast woodland.





Penstemon hirsutus - Hairy Beardtongue
Zones 3-9
Purchase from: Diane's Flower Seeds, Everwilde Farms, Prairie Moon Nursery, Shooting Star Nursery, Sunlight Gardens

This plant definitely falls under the category of "happy accidents" and you gotta celebrate those when they happen. 99.99999% of my accidents are almost always unhappy. Anyway, I grew this penstemon species from seed on a whim planning on planting it out on a nearby exposed rocky hillside. Me, being who I am, ran out of time, and threw them in to some random corner of our meadow/garden because I refuse to let any plant die under my care. They were sad scrappy little seedlings that (I thought) had zero chance of making it. Especially when you consider that they were planted in heavy, like really heavy clay (everything I read about them said they preferred a lean, well-drained soil). Low and behold, not only did they survive, but they seem pretty damn content!! I'm officially done taking the word of gardening books and nurseries at face value. I find more and more often that my own experience directly contradicts most of what's out there in the literature.




Iris versicolor - Northern Blue Flag
Zones 4-9
Purchase from: Amanda's Garden, American Meadows, Companion Plants, Everwilde Farms, High Country Gardens, Morning Sky Greenery, New England Wetland Plants, Niche Gardens, Northcreek Nursery, Prairie Moon Nursery, Shooting Star Nursery, Sunlight Gardens, Toadshade Wildflower Farm, Yellow Springs Farm

By no means rare, I was excited to find one lonely individual growing on the edge of stand of phragmites, where the shade cast by a large red maple suppressed the growth of the phragmities just enough, while at the same time letting in just enough light for this one iris to hang on. I have since divided it and moved a few bits to a slightly sunnier area where it thanks me in late spring with a few flowers. I know of an existing colony a few towns over where I'll be collecting seeds this summer to try to give this lonely survivor a few friends. I imagine this lone individual is the last hold out of a pre-existing colony that was pushed out by what I not so affectionaely call "the devil's reed" (aka Phragmities australis). Since I can't really do justice to the cultural and ecological complexity/weight that comes along with this speices I thought I'd let this VERY local guy do it for me... and yes, he is awesome.