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CottageGarden
nominate your own title
Iowa, USA
23 Jun '06 8:26 am
Thank you Christopher! The front of the house really needed something to add some interest. But the front yard is too small to add a porch, so I decided on the fence. I'm pretty pleased with how it came out and thinking about adding corner pickets at the lot lines as well... just love the whole idea of a picket fence! 
I'm glad you like the daisies! The one from the last post is just a "baby" compared to the big one.... Theres a photo below. I transplanted the big one from my dad's garden 3 years ago. I thought it was going to die the first year; the second year it still didn't look good... very small and lnoy a few blooms. but this year.... well, I think its decided that it likes living here afterall... its nearly 4' tall this year. Don't know hwat happened to make it so large, just glad its happy!
DSC03344.jpg
The really big daisy... nearly 4' tall
82.65 KB / Viewed 127 Time(s)
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Dixie
garden enthusiast
Waikato-New Zealand
Daisies23 Jun '06 9:14 am
I love the natural look of your daisies CG ,they look nice in the natural setting of stones.
Are those buds of the gorgeous scarlet lily all on the same stem ? I have a couple of lilies ,but they only ever have one or two flowers on the stem (3 years old) Any secrets ?Do you lift and replant them ?
Dixie.
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CottageGarden
nominate your own title
Iowa, USA
23 Jun '06 2:22 pm
No secret to the lilies... they like rcih, well drained soil so I have them in the raised rock bed. They get top dressed with compost spring and fall. Other than that, no fertilizers anywhere in the garden. I don't lift them in the fall. I just leave them alone as much as possible, which they prefer. I do clip off the stem to the next set of leaves as the flowers begin to fade... but leave the main part of the plant standing so they can store energy for the following year's blooms.
I have several colors of lilies... but I don't know the varieties of any of them. They were all transplants from my dad's gardens. Here are a couple more colors...
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Dixie
garden enthusiast
Waikato-New Zealand
Lilies23 Jun '06 4:07 pm
They are really beautiful ,CG ,,I am doing everything right ,but do have terrible hassles with snails which chew new growth . Mine is the same as your second photo -a soft orangey pinky peachy corally colour ,which I love .
Dixie.
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GardenGnome
Happily Toiling Away
Regina, Saskatchewan
Rocks in the garden.23 Jun '06 5:21 pm
Say, I really like the rocky gravel around your plants. Do you put black plastic down first to keep the weeds out? I think I saw on one of your other posts that you use old news papers as a weed barrier. If you use black plastic, do you perforate it so water drains through?
Really nice lilys. So special to have come from your dad's garden. We have a small few plants from mom's garden at her old house.
That is one fine big Daisy plant! I would love to have one half that size. Last year I planted over 50 Shasta Daisy plants, I was all set for a big showing, then mom tore out over half of them and gave me some lame excuse as to why. Older people do strange things some times. I rescued some of the plants she tossed in the garbage and I am happy to say that they are starting to come back from there ordeal.
One of our Lilium Lilies broke off in the wind storm the other day. I found what you said to dixie about caring for your lilies to be very interesting as well.
Christopher the Gnome
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CottageGarden
nominate your own title
Iowa, USA
23 Jun '06 11:36 pm
The rock is what we call river rock, each rock being just under 2". I used professional grade ladscape fabric (not plastic) under the rock to keep it from sinking into the ground. Newspaper won't work under rock because it eventually breaks down and the rock would sink.
The rock does present its own set of chllenges, too. Its very hard to move the rocks to plant so you need to be sure you plan carefully the first time and use the proper plants in the proper places; it doesn't add any nutrients to the soil, and its a real pain if yu ever want to remove it. I still get a few weeds in the beds but they grow on top of the fabric and are easily pulled.
We chose rock for the beds on either side of the deck a very specific reason.... cats won't use it as a litter box. Unfortunately, we have alot of strays and I knew if I used wood mulch I'd have them using the beds as giant ltter boxes.... who wants to smell that during dinner? 
You brought up plastic... In my opinion one should never, never, never, not for any reason use plasic in the garden. It blocks the moisture from freely entering and evaporating from the ground... even with holes poked in it... which can lead to either too little water reaching the roots or too much being trapped under it. It also prevent air from circulating freely in the soil which can lead to the plnats roots being very shallow and unhealty. It adds nothing to the soil... except petroleum and other toxins which plastics are made from. And it takes hundreds of years to break down...Use newspaper and mulch instead. Your garden will thank you for it.
I'm glad you like the daisy. I have absolutely no idea why its so big. It should be reach about 30" tall at maximum height. I guess its just happy.
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CottageGarden
nominate your own title
Iowa, USA
25 Jun '06 1:54 am
Jacqueline - In reality, my garden knowledge is limited to the mistakes I have made over the years!  We all learn as we go and by talking to other gardeners about thier experiences.
I was debating leaving the fence unpainted... but I really wanted it to look like a traditional picket fence and wanted it to tie into the color of the house.
I am surprized at how quickly the plants have grown. I noticed that many of the new foundation plantings had gotten very leggy so I went out a couple of days ago and trimmed them all back. I'm hoping that this will prevent them from blooming this year and make them consentrate their efforts on developing good root systems instead. Our winters are so harsh that with many perennials this is necessary the first year or they won't usrvive the cold winter ahead.
Pimkin - I love the lilies so much that I have added to the original collection. I found a variety called Monte Negro early this spring that I have planted in a couple of different areas and am holding my breath to see the blooms. I find lilies just enchanting. I think they have a certain romantic mystery to them.
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) I'm torn between choosing 'natural wood' or 'painted'. White picket fence matches well with your home and garage, yet natural wood with its main posts matches your tree trunks, adding colour to your frontal view and I love that too! However, I'm convinced that you've made a wise choice in painting it white because it'll stand out impressively against the vibrant colours of your forthcoming blooms! 
