Plant Profile - 'Diablo' Ninebark

I've decided to start a new series on the blog called "Plant Profiles".  There are so many plants that I love and want to share with you.  So this seemed to be the best way to do that.  I hope you discover a new plant that you had never heard of before to try in your garden.

Today's Plant Profile will focus on the Ninebark shrub, specifically 'Diablo'. Physocarpus opulifolius is a fast growing shrub that usually grows to 8'-10' feet tall and wide.  It grows upright with the branches gracefully bending downward from the top.

This shrub is grown and is hardy in zones 3-7.  It grows in nearly any kind of soil, but prefers a well drained soil.  I have mine in clay soil and it seems to be doing pretty good after 6+ years.  It will tolerate some shade, but the color of the leaves will be the most brilliant in full sun.

This shrub is gorgeous all year round in my opinion.  The glossy purple/black leaves are a wonderful contrast to all the green that is in the garden.  The white flowers show up brilliantly in early summer and then when they are finished blooming, these little red seed heads take the blooms place.  The birds love sitting in the shrub and it has really neat exfoliating bark that shows itself off in winter.


This shrub really does have it all.  Here's a photo of the flower buds.  They are even pretty, don't you think.

This flower cluster above is a little bit past it's prime, but still pretty.  And below is the seed head.

Below is an overall picture of the shrub when it was about three years old.

If you would like to do a guest post and profile your own favorite plant, contact me through my profile here or e-mail me on the About Us page on the website.  If you have a blog, I will link to your blog or website in your post.

Rock the Garden Part 2

Now for more pictures from the Rochester Garden Show. I took this picture, not because of the hosta but because of the plant tag. How cute to glue a piece of slate to a metal stake and then glue stained glass and rocks to it for decoration. It seems the words are painted on.  I love looking for new uses for things I already have around the house.  If you didn't have slate, maybe you could use field stones and just lay it in front of the plant.

These fountains are always a wonder to see.  They are so gorgeous and they must weight a ton, literally.  They have all sizes for every budget.  That is if your budget is in the thousands.

Here's another fountain with tons of color.  The rhododendrons were really lovely this year. All in perfect full bloom and in a wide range of colors.

This is a great color combination.  The tulips in the back are a bright yellow with a reddish orange stripe down the petals and the orange tulips in the front have a trace of yellow.  I love yellow in the garden.  Especially in the spring when everything is so new and bright green.

Rock the Garden in Rochester

This year's theme for the 2011 Rochester Flower Show was "Rock the Garden".  And as usual, it did not disappoint.  I guess that is what's expected when you are the "Flower City". Sometime in the mid 1800's the nickname of the city was changed from "Flour City" to "Flower City".  At that time farming had been expanded out into the West and flour milling had declined in Rochester, but there were several seed companies that were thriving, so "Flower City" it became.

The theme of this year's show could be interpreted in a number of ways.  The most prevalent, of course, were lots of rocks and stones in the landscaped displays.  Another popular interpretation was "Rock 'n Roll". This was evident as you entered the show when you saw this colorful piano they were auctioning off for charity.

Someone turned this drum kit into a water fountain.  I thought that was a pretty neat idea.  Imagine how cool this would look all rusty against the white of the drums.  I love rusty things.

This owl was carved out of wood and the colors were so rich from the stain they used.  It had the perfect amount of shading, which really accented the wonderful carving.  Whoever made this is very talented.

This was a nice combination, of course I don't think the plants they used would be in their prime at the same time, but a nice combo non the less.  I'm always amazed at how well their bulbs hold up at the show after blooming and being in pots for nearly a week.

Well, that's it for now, I'll have some more photos tomorrow.

Hope everyone enjoys their first day of spring!

Totem Teaser

I am so happy to tell you that I've been working on nine new totems for our Etsy shop.  They are all glued up but will need a few weeks to cure, as I use Lexel, which is by far much clearer than silicone and lasts much better in the weather than silicone.  The only drawback is the long cure time.  But I think it's well worth it.

I'm really pleased with how they turned out.  I was lucky enough to find just the right pieces that fit together well.  If I can find a few more odd pieces this weekend, I should be able to put a few more together.

As you may or may not be able to tell, I use a lot of lamp parts and sconces along with candle holders, vases, toothpick holders, bowls and plates.  Bells and ring holders make great toppers.  Some of these will come with painted pvc pipe, but the majority will not.  They have smaller openings for rebar or copper pipe and I just thought that it would be easier and cheaper to ship them without any pipe.  Most of my totems are on 4' or 5' long pipe in my garden, and that size pipe is impossible to ship.  I would be happy to help anyone find appropriate pipe if they'd like to buy their own length.  Just e-mail me thru this blog or at www.gardensandcrafts.com.

Just one last reminder that the next D&G Gardens and Crafts Newsletter will be going out to your mailboxes on Saturday morning, so if you haven't signed up yet, you can do so at the link on this sidebar or go directly here.  Go here to see a list of past issues to get an idea of what you'll get 6-8 times a year.

CNY Blooms 2011

I went to the CNY Blooms Flower & Garden Show today in Syracuse and I hate to say it, but I was very disappointed this year.  I can't understand why Syracuse can't sustain a good garden show.

This was the 5th year and it's gotten smaller every year.  I fear it won't be around next year.  With the economy the way it is, I'm sure it's too expensive for garden centers to set up space there.  Especially, since the majority of our garden centers close in the winter.

The show spans over a 4-day period and goes very late in the day, 8pm or 9pm, depending on the day.  Later than any other show I've ever been too and maybe that is a deterrent for most vendors, I don't know.  It would be a deterrent for me, if I were a vendor.  Many of the unique vendors are small businesses with only a couple of employees, so I'm sure it's very hard for them.

If it weren't for the three seminars I attended I could have been in and out of that show in 10 minutes flat.  That is very disappointing.  I think there were really only two or three display gardens this year and nothing too exciting to look at.  The photos I have to show you are still nice to see when there is still a foot of snow on the ground.

These first three photos are from the Ballantyne Gardens display.  How they can continue to put on a great display is beyond me?  Their nursery is pretty small, but I believe they have a landscaping business as well, so that probably helps to sustain them.  I don't understand why Chuck Hafner's doesn't set up at the show.  They just built this gigantic new garden center with greenhouses and I would think they could certainly afford to do a show like this.

They had some adorable looking fairy houses in their display.  I'd like to make something like this for my garden some day, but you know how that goes; never enough time.

The one thing that bugs me about this show is that there was no clear theme for the show.  That is clearly evident when you see this off the wall display garden.

Yes...it's a space ship.  Kinda cool, but who is going to have that in their garden?  I mean really.  That's even a little wacky for me.  If there was some sort of theme for the show, maybe this would make a little sense.  But instead, it just seems weird. The smoke was a nice touch though.

I can't wait for the Rochester Flower Show in two weeks.  That is probably the best show in this area.  I just wish we didn't have to drive 1-1/2 hours to get there.  Some day I'd love to go to Canada Blooms or the Big Show in Philadelphia.

My New Garden Buddy

I read a lot of Mother Earth News and have been thinking about how it might be nice to have a couple of chickens or ducks in the garden, so when I saw this at the flea market I just had to have it.

I don't know if I want to leave it "as is" and let it get nice and rusty, or paint it a bright color so it will stand out even more in the garden. What would you do?

As for the chickens or ducks, I'm not sure I have enough time to devote to them since we both work full-time, but it sure would be nice to have a couple of slug eaters in the yard full-time and not just when the mallards pass through from time to time during the summer months.  And the fresh eggs would be a nice perk. not to mention the companionship in the garden.  Since my kitty stays indoors 24/7, I sometimes wish I had a pet that could hang out with me in the yard.  I can usually count on the catbird to sit on a branch and sing to me, but there is something to be said for critters scurrying around your feet, you know?

Does anyone out there have any chickens or ducks?  What's been your experience?