Wordless Wednesday 5.25.2011

Viburnum opulus, aka snowball bush

Garden Designers Roundtable: Stone

Undulating walls of Colorado flagstone create a unique signature for this landscape.  Design: Ivy Street Design, Denver

Want an outdoor environment that embodies a spirit of place - genius loci?

Think stone. 

No other hardscape component provides the same sense of grounded permanence, color, and texture to the landscape. In the Rocky Mountain region we're all about stone: granite, sandstone, rhyolite, and more. 

But what about other regions of the US or the UK? Go here and follow the links to learn more about stone in the landscape. Enjoy!

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day 5.15.2011

pigsqueek, Bergenia cordifolia

Yesterday, between the rains, I managed to snap a few photos of this month's featured flowers. A number of plants have just finished flowering and many more are just gearing up to bloom.  Here are a few that are prime for May's GBBD...

bronze-leaf ajuga, Ajuga reptans 'Atropurpurea' (a bit of Chrysnathemum and Geranium foliage mixed in as well!)

candytuft, Iberis sempervirens (with dragon's blood sedum in the foreground)

last of the tulips, Tulipa sp.

first of the native spiderwort, Tradescantia occidentalis

creeping Oregon grape holly, Mahonia repens

Turkish speedwell, Veronica liwanensis

woolly creeping speedwell, Veronica pectinata

basket-of-gold alyssum, Aurinia saxatilis

Please be sure to visit Carol at May Dreams' Gardens to link to gardeners worldwide that are also participating in Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.

Wordless Wednesday 5.11.2011

Photo Friday 5.06.2011

Pulsatilla vulgaris, European pasque flower

One of my favorite spring bloomers to photograph! Shown here at Denver Botanic Gardens

Wordless Wednesday 5.4.2011

the subtle blooms of Forestiera neomexicana, New Mexico privet

Warm vs Cool

Warm season grasses versus cool season grasses, that is.

left: buffalo grass, Bucheloe dactyloides -  right: Kentucky bluegrass, Poa pratensis

In this photo from my yard you can see the distinct difference that characterizes the growth cycle of these two categories of grass.  At the end of April the cool season bluegrasses and fescues typically used for residential lawns in our region are actively growing and bright green.  The warm season native prairie grasses such as buffalo and gramma are still mostly dormant.