Have a Seat

Seating does more than provide a place to sit.

Chairs and benches are an easy way to

punch up the personality and 

encourage friendship in your garden. 

Remember when houses had front porches and

neighbors visited naturally?

Recapture that friendly feeling by

adding seating in your front yard.

This bench may look like it's 

tucked into a private corner - 

it's actually just off the front corner of a house,

providing a pleasant point of interest 

and a place to meet.  

"Come into my garden,
Relax in a chair;
Don't let your heart harden,
Let wind touch your hair."
-Come Sit in My Garden

 

Photo taken at Hershey Gardens

A myriad of
shapes, sizes and
styles make for
abundant possibilities.

 

Sometimes seating isn't the point -

in this case, looks are everything.

 

A stylish bench adds

a sense of place and

a welcoming touch at an entrance.

"Life is a child playing around your feet,

a tool you hold firmly in your grip,
a bench you sit down upon in the evening,

in your garden."

- Jean Anouilh 

Maples Under Attack

Maples (Acer species) are popular trees.  The Acer genus includes many choices which offer a wide variety in size, form, foliage texture and color, bark texture, not to mention glorious fall color.  
Japanese Maples are a personal favorite, as I wrote here. 

Large Maples do have drawbacks - the shallow roots can damage nearby paving; those roots combined with their deep shade, makes growing grass under them a challenge.  
But there's a more serious reason to reconsider before planting more Maples.

Maples are under attack in several areas of the US.  
They are the preferred host of the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB).  
Asian longhorned beetles lay their eggs under tree bark.  The emergant larva burrows deep into the tree and feeds on the woody tissue, which weakens the tree, and continues to live within the tree until its adult stage.  Adult female ALB often lay eggs on the same tree until it dies. 

Asian longhorned beetle (ALB)
photo from BeetleBusters.info

The ALB was first found in 1996 in Brooklyn, NY.  It has since been found in Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.  While extensive efforts have been undertaken and quarantine zones have been established to restrict the spread of this pest, everyone should be aware of the danger and the signs to look for (read about it here).



Additional information can be found at: 

Beetle Busters.info
US Forest Service
Asian Longhorned Beetle Look-Alikes


Diversity is not only important in investments. 
It's also an important tool in the fight against devastating pest damage.  Diversified plantings, especially on a large scale, minimize the overall loss when trees of a particular genus are destroyed.  It is argued by the authors of Street Tree Diversity that Maples have been overplanted, and that the ALB has the potential to destroy large portions of urban tree populations.  A list of recommended trees for the ALB quarantine zone and surrounding areas, compiled by the New Jersey Forest Service, is included.

Although Maples are the preferred host of ALB, other trees which are in danger include:
Ash (Fraxinus), Birch (Betula), Elm (Ulmus), European Mountain Ash (Sorbus), Hackberry (Celtis), Horsechestnut (Aesculus), London Planetree (Platanus), Mimosa (Albizia), Poplar (Populus), Willow (Salix) and Katsura (Cercidiphyllum). 

You may wonder if any trees are safe from ALB.  Some of the unaffected large scale trees are:
Littleleaf Linden (Tilia cordata), Japanese Zelkova (Zelkova serrata), American sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua - 'Rotundiloba' is a fruitless variety), and Honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos - f. inermis 'Skyline' is fruitless).

What can you do? 
Diversify your plantings.  As wise a strategy in gardening as in investing.  
Educate yourself about the signs of ALB
and report any evidence (find out where here)

©Copyright 2011 Garden Sense. All rights reserved. Content created by Chris for Garden Sense.

Winter Blooms

If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant;

if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.

-Anne Bradstreet

There is little more cheering than the first blooms of the season.  
Late winter bloomers, rising out of the cold, gray earth,
are some of the most endearing. 
Since their flowers are generally modest, it's a good idea to
plant them where they will be viewed from close proximity. 

 

These crocuses, which came with our home, are located along the rear fence of our yard.  While it's certainly worth the trip to enjoy their beauty, the reality is that I'll make that trek once or perhaps twice.  Better to site them along a well used path where they'll brighten your every coming and going.

Many front gardens near our home in Slovakia had Snowdrops (Galanthus).  The first sight of dainty white "Snezienky" on daily walks to school never failed to add a spring to my step - a sure sign that winter was losing its grip. 

It's easy to find close up pictures of the unique and photogenic "crepe papery" Witch Hazel (Hamamelis) flowers.  I've always been curious about the overall appearance of the shrub in bloom, but had never been at the right place at the right time.  This year, I went looking.   

Although Hershey Gardens is closed for the season, these specimens are conveniently placed just inside the fence along the road (see also top photo).  Their bright color was readily visible as I drove by in spite of the delicate scale of the flowers, set off by the evergreen background.  The persistent leaves contribute to a somewhat gangly appearance, but what welcome blooms in the midst of winter!

Bright yellow Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) makes a nice show beneath a tree.

Hellebore (Helleborus) is another popular winter bloomer, with the benefit of evergreen foliage - see Evergreen Groundcovers.  While I don't have a photo of Helleborus blooms, Deb's Garden does and Carolyn's Shade Gardens has a wealth of information on them.

Every spring is the only spring - a perpetual astonishment. 

~Ellis Peters

Ready For Birds

We're ready for spring. 

Oh, the garden still awaits my attention,

but we have our new birdhouse up. 

I found this Nest View Birdhouse doing research for my Birdhouse post.  The plexiglass allows you to observe the innerworkings of the nest through your window.  It sounded like so much fun, I couldn't resist trying it.  Even my twenty-something son seems excited about the possibilties.

It mounts to your window with suction cups. 

I'm hoping that they'll be strong enough to hold it in place with a nest and birds in residence. 

In mounting, my placement was a bit off; when I tried to remove it for repositioning, the grip felt quite strong, so I'm hoping for the best.

View from our kitchen window.

The theory sounds great, but will it deliver? 

Reviews on Amazon are varied.  Some people seem to have had good results even on a kitchen window, but others say that activity in the house scares the birds away.  Perhaps I should move it higher up on the window, or to a bedroom window with blinds.  If you have experience with this type of birdhouse, I've love to hear how it went.  I'll keep you posted on any activity.

Update:
The Nestview Birdhouse has been silent and empty.
Although I moved it to a bedroom window where I've kept the blinds drawn,
no birds have ventured to take up residence.
It looks like the nice theory isn't much in practice. 

However, soon after I got this birdhouse, a friend showed up with a gift of
a homemade bluebird house. 
We've had more action there - read about it here.