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The
Plays |
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Spring
- Summer -
Autumn/Winter |
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The
Autumn/Winter Garden |
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Lifeless
and serene, the Winter Garden sleeps...but does it dream? |
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| Autumn
in the garden finds me taking a step backward, relaxing control,
and allowing the plants, which have earned the right, to grow as
they will. My time in the garden beginning in September
appreciably diminishes. I do enjoy weekend mornings
deadheading spent blooms and removing fallen leaves, all the while listening to the
UW Marching Band
warming up in the stadium. This is the time when the
shrub roses send out huge 12 foot canes, sometimes with a single
bloom at the tip. There is a feeling of needing shelter
and warmth for them and for me. My last act in
preparation for winter is to bury the rose crowns with mounds of
dirt and then cover the entire mixed border with marsh
hay. |
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A
Cactus Dahlia reaches for the Autumn sun.
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One might expect Winter
in the garden to be a time of inactivity, and so it is.
But, for me, Winter is the season of planning, of searching the
plant and seed catalogues for new varieties. Nothing beats
the cabin fever of a relentless Wisconsin Winter more than
cozying up on the couch and poring over the latest arrivals
from White Flower Farm or Wayside Gardens. There
are a few other companies that I would like to suggest.
Roots & Rhizomes is a Wisconsin based company with an
excellent selection of daylilies. Select Seeds specializes
in heirloom seeds and older plant varieties. And, High
Country Gardens in New Mexico has a wide array of perennials not
found from other retailers. All would make good reading on
a cold winter night!
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Pink
Angel Trumpets and Castor Bean Plants |
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Late
Summer, 2009 |
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