Gaura is finally happy in the garden

And that makes me happy.   

Gaura lindheimeri/Oenothera lindheimeri is a fantastic plant for my pollinator friendly garden. This Texas and Louisiana native is a beauty with lovely cultivars like 'Whirling Butterfly' and 'Siskiyou Pink'. I chose a pink variety for Clay and Limestone.

Bees of all sizes love Gaura

 The secret to success is: full sun, great drainage and a few neighbors to lean upon! That spot is at the bottom of the sloping Susans border, where it makes a big, colorful flowery presence.

Prior to trying out the slope, Gaura happily bloomed in a large container planting

Its supporting neighbors are also beauties.

Amsonia hubrichtii is sited just above it on the slope. It flowers lightly for me, but the fall foliage is a delightful golden color and as it ages/dries the leaves curl. (Post: Amsonia after the fall)

 Agastache 'Blue Fortune' is next to the Bluestar. I love Agastache, but, it's not a perennial in my garden. Every spring I trek all over the city/county to find Agastache plants! Trust me they're so worth it and the blue flowers are lovely, just ask the bees.

A true annual in my garden, Cleome 'Senorita Rosalita' is planted in a container between the two Gauras. She's never happy in the ground here, but, thrives in containers. Btw, when you see containers in my garden beds, they're probably sited above a hunk of limestone bedrock that this gardener cannot dig up!

Allium tuberosum is the third beauty in this planting. It has seeded itself on the bottom of the slope and no amount of editing has been able to rid the garden of all of it, so I decided to go with it. The white flowers echo the white on Gaura and the hint of white on the Cleome.

Yes, the Garlic Chives are thuggish, but, it really does look great and the pollinators love it. Just remember to cut the seed heads off when the flower dries up or they will spread every where. I do mean every where!

I am really happy with the trio.

Fingers crossed that there's enough drainage to keep the Gauras alive this winter.

xoxogail

Please note that Gaura has a new Genus name~Oenothera! Now they shall be known as the ex-Gauras!

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

It's National Wildflower Week~Get Your Wildflower On

Bluestar~Amsonia tabernaemontana is a late Spring bloomer in my garden*  and a wonderful flower to share for  the National Wildflower Week!

There was a time when the pale blue flowers seemed underwhelming; that all changed, when I noticed their marvelous fall color. (Amsonia, After the Fall) Needing more fall color in the garden,  I bought all the different species/cultivars that were available locally, planting at least three of them together for a great fall color effect.

The following spring I saw the blue flowers in a new light.

I am no longer underwhelmed! In fact,  the garden could use a few more stars!

xoxogail

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

Blooms and Foliage December 2014

Today, there's not a bloom to be found at Clay and Limestone, the way too early Arctic cold front flash froze everything except two stalwart plants, Hamamelis virginiana and Symphyotrichum praealtum. They put on quite a nice show until just last week, so I felt fine sharing them for my Bloom Day post!

Willowleaf aster

What's left to make a gardener smile on a winter's day?

Ostrya virginica

 Trees that hold their leaves all winter!

Foliage that twists and curls.

 Grasses that accent evergreens.

 Ex-aster's seed heads.

 Amsonia hubrichtii beginning to curl

Fluffy Goldenrod ready to spread its progeny out into the world!

Copper tubing, cobalt containers and golden panicums!

Hypericum frondosum

Hyper-colored Hypericum frondosum!

I hope your garden is making you smile!

xoxogail

Now make this garden blogger smile and pop over to May Dreams Gardens, where our delightful hostess, Carol, has set up the Mr Linky magic carpet ride to take you to more Bloom Day posts than you can imagine and to Pam's Foliage Follow-up on Digging....because blooms aren't alone in making a garden beautiful.

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

The leaves are stunning in the garden!

In my part of the gardening world we have a smattering of burgundies and reds, but a whole lot of gorgeous gold and, my friends,  I love it!

Here's a peek at what's been happening this fall~I hope you love it, too.

The sunny Susans Border has seed heads and Physocarpus opulifolius ' Little Devil' hiding in the shadow. The still green Amsonia tabernaemontana will be changing colors, soon, but, the Cotinis 'Grace' is a lovely burgundy and Cercis candensis' yellow leaves are almost hiden among the golden yellow of Carya ovata

Amsonia hubrichtii has taken on its beautiful fall golden hues.

Lindera benzoin lights up the shade garden and just for a few hours the morning sun lights it up too. Also shining are a Japanese Maple and a Hamamelis, both nice understory trees.

Hope you fall is colorful and filling your heart with gladness.
xoxogail

PS I am taking the rest of the week off to recuperate from a minor medical procedure, but, will be back posting next week!

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

Wish you were here to celebrate the sun with me

It was a lovely weekend and I wish you had been here to see the golden color that is the hallmark of our autumn.

I love this time of year when the colors are bold and glowing, the air is cooler and sun shines every day.

For the first time in months the garden is brightly lit from above and from within.

 Once upon a time this woodland shade garden was sunnier, of course, it was never a full sun garden, but more light was able to reach the understory and daffodils and tulips would bloom in the spring. I love the spring ephemerals, the woodland wildflowers and the understory shrubs and trees, but, I long for the sun when the trees leaf out in late spring. 

Hamamelis 'Diane, Ex-Asters, Cotinus 'Grace' and various Amsonias

I used to dread the falling leaves because it meant hours of back breaking raking and mulching and the inevitable arrival of our grey winter, but, now I appreciate the open canopy that lets the sun reach into my garden again.

Spicebush/Lindera benzoin, Hydrangea arborescens 'Ryan Gainey' and a Japanese Maple

Just on schedule the leaves are falling, the canopy is opening and the sun is spot lighting plants with its brilliance.

Rhus aromatica 'Gro Low'

My favorite (you do know that they are all my favorites, right?) perennials, shrubs and small trees take center stage in the fall sunlight.

 Porteranthus stipulata has a small footprint, but what it lacks in size is more than made up for in its brilliant golden fall color.

The lantern was a gift from Frances of Fairegarden

One of my favorite groupings~Panicum virgatum, Aronia arbutifolia, Physocarpus opulifolius 'Little Devil', Itea 'Henry's Garnet', Juniperus virginica 'Grey Owl',  and Salvia leucantha 'Midnight'.

Cornus florida is a mixture of gold, orange and red~It's covered with buds~I love this promise of spring as we move towards winter.

 Did you know that Phlox paniculata had this marvelous fall coloring?

Ostrya virginiana the Dancing Tree

Or that a tree could dance in the breeze?

Last, but not least, is Amsonia hubrechtii, not new to the garden, but new to this spot. They're planted beneath Viburnum rufidulum along with Clethra Sugartina Crystalina™,  Penstemon 'Husker Red' and for leaf texture and color, Hosta 'Gaucamole'.  If you want to see what Amsonias can do after they lose their color see my post Amsonias, After The Fall.

Lucky for me and the visiting critters the very best Ex-aster just begun to bloom! I can continue to enjoy and celebrate the sun, the flowers and the critters until we have a serious frost and even then there still might be color in my garden.

xoxogail

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

Amsonia After The Fall

It's the end of October and the Amsonias are winding down.

 Amsonia hubrichtii

Gone are the wispy clouds of gold

A'Seaford Skies' (A. hubrectii x A. tabernaemontana)

Gone are the amber leaves with hints of burgundy.

 A. tabernaemontana cross

Gone are the rich autumn colors.

In their place are beige curls. Wonderful beige curls that are too easily over looked in a garden filled with ex-asters, the last 'Lovely Fairy' rose and trees still holding onto their golden leaves.

Do yourself a favor, head out into your garden and take a close look at the fading Amsonias, you might be surprised to find~

Golden curls.

Ribbons curls.

Curlicues.

Camouflage curls.

More curls than you can possibly imagine!

They make this gardener smile and I'm pretty sure they'll make you smile, too.

xxoogail


Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.