SEASONAL SUCCESS
We had a rainy growing season in much of the northeast this past spring and summer and I have heard a lot of garden horror stories about blighted tomatoes, drowned roses and the epidemic of fungal diseases. I’ve told a lot of those stories myself and my fellow gardeners are almost always sympathetic. In fact, at a recent party, I broke the ice with a garden horror story and before long, the people around me were unveiling their own tales of nature’s perversity and chatting like long lost relatives. Misery truly loves company.
But even now, as the cold autumn rain comes down in buckets, I can also recall the successes of the past season. Gardening, after all, is a positive, progressive activity and you can only have so much gloom and doom. Reflecting on the triumphs also keeps me from thinking about all those spring-flowering bulbs that have yet to be planted.
The following are my personal triumphs over the forces of horticultural adversity:
Peegee Hydrangeas: The water loving Hydrangea paniculata grandiflora or “peegee” hydrangeas bloom late–late enough to avoid the water-soaked, brown-stained fate of some of the earlier blooming hydrangeas. The flowerheads were huge, turning slowly from cream to pink and bending the slender branches. I dried big bunches of them by hanging them upside down in my garage and cut even more for fresh arrangements in the house. Many of my neighbors also have peegees, which are often grown in standard or tree form. Theirs looked equally splendid, depriving me of exclusive bragging rights but improving the appearance of the neighborhood.
Japanese Painted Fern: Athyrium niponicum var. pictum, otherwise known as Japanese painted fern, is a gorgeous, low-growing fern with swirling, silvery-purple fronds. I have one that has languished for years by the side of our unfortunate ornamental wishing well. Though the fern refused to die, it also refused to flourish and I had visions of transplanting it last spring. Like many visions, that one did not turn into reality, which proved to be a blessing for the fern. Invigorated by all the rain, it quadrupled in size and put on a great display for the entire season. It still looks good. I may transplant it next spring, but now I at least have reason to believe it will survive the transition.
Japanese Anemone: This is another late bloomer that benefited from all the rain. Japanese anemones are members of the buttercup family. They are wonderful fall flowers, especially the white variety, ‘Honorine Jobert’. Rising to three or four feet tall, the plants feature five-petaled flowers with clusters of golden stamens in the centers. They are relatively long-lived in a vase and have dissected, deep green leaves that enhance rather than detract from the plant’s charms. A happy Japanese anemone will increase over the years with no help at all. If the flowers happen to get drenched in heavy rainstorms they do not turn into a sodden mess, a trait that has come in very handy this year.
Rosa Mutabilis: While the many-petaled rose varieties tend to ball up in rainy weather, single-petaled types like Rosa mutabilis shrug off the drops. Mutabilis means “changeable” and the name refers to the fact that the blooms are cream in bud, pink when they first open and age to a rose color before they drop from the plant. Because of its color-changing nature, a mature Rosa mutabilis looks as if it is covered with multi-colored blossoms. The plant blooms almost continuously from May until frost and requires no fussing. Rosa mutabilis is large for some gardens–mine is five feet tall and at least four feet wide–but is worth the investment of space. This year the mutabilis seemed not to notice the absence of sun and lapped up the abundant water. It is still growing and blooming even though the nights are growing colder and the days shorter. It has been an unqualified success this year.
In general, anything that rambles–vines, roses, ajuga plants–has prospered in a big way. Rhododendrons, azaleas and other water hogs have been in heaven and this will pay off next season. My privet hedge was rambunctious as ever. The successful plants, in fact, have been so inspiring, that I may just forget about the ones that didn’t perform well last summer. The Mediterranean species, succulents and lavender will probably do better next year. Until then I will think of my Japanese painted fern and smile.