Silver Spring Landscaping Archives - Garden Makeover Company

Spring Flowers in Silver Spring, MD

conniebowers — Wed, 01 May 2013 00:39:34 +0000

This Carol Mackie Daphne (Daphne burkwoodii ‘Carol Mackie’) graces the front entry way and provides breathtaking fragrance to passersby. It is in full bloom several weeks later this year than is customary, and as always it is a welcome treat. This shrub began blooming several weeks ago, appearing covered with white cotton balls, which have begun turning pink; and now the spectacular blooms are augmented by cream colored variegation on the nice green foliage that appears painted on. The artistic foliage provides a colorful interest through the year. While Daphnes are said to be finicky, with good sun, good drainage, and good mulch, this shrub can live a long happy life. This shrub is surrounded by an array of pink blooms, from a baby Forest Pansy Redbud that is a star among spring sprouting foliage plants at its base, and the Kwanzan Cherry tree that is always the show-stopper.

Forest Pansy Redbud

Kwanzan Cherry

Note that the Heath (Erica x darleyensis), which began blooming in late fall, is still displaying nice flower color, and the Mediterranean Pink variety matches well with the nearbyPJM Rhododendron, which is also blooming nicely this April. The dwarf Fothergilla is now full of white blossums. (We highlighted this shrub previously when it sported leaves on fire in the fall.) While the pink and mauve displays are enhanced with a variety of similarly hued tulips and Chinodoxas, this little pocket of brilliant red tulips with black and yellow markings, seemed to appear out of the blue.

Mauve tulips

Fothergilla gardenii (Dward Fothergilla)

PJM Rhododendron

Tulips

Erica x darleyensis (Heath)

The post Spring Flowers in Silver Spring, MD appeared first on Garden Makeover Company.

Spring Gardening in the Snow in Silver Spring, Maryland

conniebowers — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 13:23:57 +0000

March 25th, 2013, 8 a.m., 4 inches of snow in Silver Spring, and it keeps falling. Those plants that need the cold dormancy period, are certainly getting it this year, and insect problems will begin occurring later than last year. Key gardening chore for today: sweep heavy snow off of evergreen branches if it does not melt soon. Hope we can start playing in the dirt later this week.

The snow is pretty though

Not a typical sight in spring

Glad I enjoyed spring flowers just yesterday. One of the nicest, but small delicate, Katherine Hodgkin dwarf iris may
not make it through the heavy snow fall.

Iris reticulata ‘Katherine Hodgkin’

The post Spring Gardening in the Snow in Silver Spring, Maryland appeared first on Garden Makeover Company.

Winter Flowers: Montgomery County, MD Landscaping

conniebowers — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 03:42:58 +0000

As the winter cold seems to be relentless here in upper Montgomery County, Maryland, it is exciting to go out into the garden each morning to see some new flowers coming into bloom. This adds some nice color to the chilly gray days that we are experiencing. Colorful flowers can be found on each plane of the landscape – from small trees/shrubs, to perennials, to emerging bulbs. Here is a sampling.

‘Jelena’ Witchhazel in February

Witchhazel hybrids. Hamemelis x intermedia. One of the more vivid cultivars – ‘Jelena’, for some reason, has come in more red than copper in hue this year, but this allows it to really pop in the dull winter landscape. This close-up photo highlights the interesting form of the bloom, which is reminiscent of crepe-paper or a spider. This large shrub or small tree has outstanding four-season interest in the landscape, including vivid fall leaf color, and warm-hued flowers in yellow, copper, or red hues to add some fire to the dull winter landscape.

Helleborus orientalis (Lenten Rose). This wonderful evergreen perennial, which tolerates shade and is reliably deer-resistant, is blooming a bit late this winter. This perennial spreads over time to fill in nicely through the landscape. Shown here (below left) is a close-up photo to show how lovely a single inflorescence looks in the winter landscape (though there are many flowers ready on pop on the same plant).

Helleborus orientalis (Lenten Rose) flowers in February

‘Katherine Hodgkin’ dwarf Iris blooming March 1st

Dwarf Iris. Sure, there are many early winter bulbs around the landscape, including several daffodil varieties, and snowdrops. More unusual specimens truly make the landscape pop. Here is the first dwarf iris starting to emerge. This one is Iris reticulata ‘Katherine Hodgkin’, sporting unique powder blue and yellow petals with interesting ink-colored markings. Each flower is a work of art. These short flowering bulbs are nicely placed near the front entrance to be seen close-up as you walk by.

Erica (Heath) blooms for many months beginning in early winter

Erica blooms in shades of purple/pink and white

Erica x darleyensis (Heath) is one of my favorite mounding evergreen ‘subshrubs’ for a sunny spot. Most think it is ‘heather’, which is not as heat tolerant in this area. Erica is a great evergreen groundcover – a small rounded shrub that holds its own through the year – sporting nice short dark green needle-like foliage that is covered with bell-shaped pendulous flowers in mauve or white from early winter (sometimes as early as October) through May. While I love the display of color during snow in winter (photo on the right). The photo on the left shows a close-up of the very-summery hued blossoms gracing the landscape in February.

Crocuses – their appearance is a tease that spring is sure to arrive – someday, relatively soon. This group of crocuses has been in bud for some time, and is just waiting for a tad more warm-up to burst forth in bloom.

Crocus: a signal that spring cannot be far off

Photos by Connie J. Bowers

The post Winter Flowers: Montgomery County, MD Landscaping appeared first on Garden Makeover Company.

Silver Spring Landscaping

conniebowers — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 23:30:50 +0000

Typically, we wait until the very end of winter to cut back ornamental grasses in Silver Spring. But for some reason, this year they’ve been looking more tattered than usual, despite the absence of heavy snowstorms that generally decimate them. We have, however, been blessed with one or two days each week when the temperatures have climbed to 50 degrees or more, and this allows us to tackle some seasonal gardening chores, such as dealing with these ornamental grasses.

See the before, during, and after photos of a grouping of ornamental grasses that we decided to cut back in early February this year. The result made the nice stand of ornamental evergreen trees behind the grasses (3 or 4 varieties) really stand out for the rest of winter. As shown, a power hedger makes cutting back such mature grass stands easy, though it is quite time-consuming to package all those cutting for disposal. (You can also tie the grass bunch together before cutting, with rope or duct tape, to keep the cuttings together). Doing it now, leisurely, allows more time during the very busy early spring for the multitude of other chores.

Grasses Before

Grasses During Trimming

Grasses After Trimming

There are various other landscape tasks that can be done at this time. Many deciduous trees and shrubs are best pruned now while they are dormant and their structure is easily visible. Jump start garden bed clean up now, again to free up some time in the spring for many other things. Hopefully, you’ve left many plants, with drying seed heads, in addition to the ornamental grasses, standing through the winter to provide interest and feeding opportunity for birds. These too are likely beginning to topple and can be cut back.

You can also begin to remove old leaves and other plant debris sitting on the ground around plants. It is, in fact, important to protect plants with compost or mulch, and often, fallen leaves contribute to this. Also fallen plant matter decomposes and feeds the soil. However, this debris, unfortunately, can harbor insects and diseases that overwinter in it and the soil beneath. If left untouched, this debris becomes a prime suspect to attack your ornamental plants in the spring. Ditto for clusters of fallen tree leaves that piled up after the fall leaf cleaning. Breezes may have blown leaves up against shrubs and trees, and the large mats of leaves can also harbor pests and prevent needed moisture from reaching the base of plants.

You can start removing this material now, but do not leave bare ground around plants – they do need some protection from the cold. Once temperatures moderate, you can finish the cleanup proceedings by applying compost or mulch around your plantings. You may not need to pick up old debris under all plants. Focus on those that are most susceptible to insects and diseases – roses for example, and other plants that have shown evidence of pest problems. Keep in mind that pests will also overwinter in weeds that are around – such as winter annuals — and this is yet another reason to remove them promptly.

Winter is the “off-season” for gardening. So, take advantage of those warmer days to tackle tasks such as these. Your spring gardening chores will be easier.

The post Silver Spring Landscaping appeared first on Garden Makeover Company.