After one and a half year...

12 years ago

Happy new year everyone!

After 1,5 year working in my garden I believe I've completed planting my main bed of (mostly) dwarf - mini conifers, under my Cedrus libani. Outside this bed there some places still to be filled but this looks to be set. If only I could fit one more - Picea omorika 'Pimoko'... :)

Here is a list of the plants included:

1.Picea

sitchensis 'Papoose'

glauca 'Conica' - 'Sander's Blue' - 'Pixie' - 'Liliput'

orientalis 'Tom Thumb Gold'

pungens 'Waldbrunn' - 'Glauca Globosa'

abies 'Lorely' - 'Gold Drift' - 'Inversa'

2.Abies

lasiocarpa var arizonica 'Compacta'

koreana 'Kohout's Icebreaker' - 'Alpine Star'

3.Pinus

mugo 'Wintergold' - 'Mini Mops' - 'Hesse' - Benjamin' - 'Varella' - 'Carsten's'

heldreichii (leucodermis) 'Smidtii'

4.Cedrus

libani (species) - 'Taurus' - 'Sapphire Nymph'

deodara 'Feelin Blue'

5.Chamaecyparis

obtusa 'Nana Gracilis' x2

pisifera 'Curly Tops' - 'White Pygmy' - 'Golden Pin Cushion'

6.Juniperus

squamata 'Blue Star'

horizontalis 'Lime Glow'

7.Thuja

occidentalis 'Rheingold' - 'Golden Smaragd' (illegitimate)

8.Taxus

baccata 'David'

9.Cryptomeria

japonica 'Vilmoriniana'

35 conifers

non coniferous

Nadina domestica 'Fire Power'

Carex albula 'Frosted Curls'

2x Berberis thunbergii 'Atropurpurea'

Berberis thunbergii 'Maria'

Acer palmatum 'Deshojo'

Acer plamatum 'Atropurpureum'

Spiraea japonica 'Goldflame'

8 non-conifers

Hope I didn't forget anything!

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Comments (23)

fotisr
Original Author
12 years ago
some images (no processing or color enhancing was done on this images. These are as they came out of the camera)

early morning frost-1
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bed view 1
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bed view 2
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bed view 3
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fotisr
Original Author
12 years ago
(almost) total view
{{gwi:629709}}

Pinus mugo 'Carsten's' in full winter color
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Cryptomeria jap. 'Vilmoriniana' with frost
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Abies numidica with frost
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top
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finally, me checking out Pinus mugo 'Wintergold'!
{{gwi:629719}}

Best regards to all,
Fotis
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fotisr
Original Author
12 years ago
yeap.... forgot Ginkgo biloba 'Mariken' somewhere in the middle there... so 36 conifers or perhaps 35 conifers and 9 non coniferpus plants in this bed.

Fotis
dcsteg
12 years ago
Fotis,

Your selections for your main bed are very impressive.

Your boulders and different elevations bring this off as a natural setting. Very presentable.

Happy New Year.

Dave
sprucebud
12 years ago
I like your selections and the way you have put them together in your planting scheme. It will be interesting to see them develop.
I also like the effect of the slope in your garden setting.
Richard
greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
Excellent work and wonderful display....
Nicely done.

Josh
coniferjoy
12 years ago
Hi Fotis, you created a very nice new plants bed!
Some of these new additions seems to be familiar to me, I don't know why ;0)
It's very good to see that they will grow happy for ever overthere...

Some name changes you've to make:
Pinus mugo 'Carsten's'
Must bin written as 'Carstens'

Cedrus deodara 'Feelin Blue'
Must bin written as 'Feelin' Blue'

Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Golden Pin Cushion'
Must bin written as 'Golden Pincushion'

It's also good to see you this time in person :0)
jinxz5
12 years ago
Fotis, Very nice selection of color and texture. Also great looking plants. Mountains in the background was a nice touch. Jay
firefightergardener
12 years ago
Always jealous of your setting, as I am sure we all are. Wonderful presentation with the rocks and the spacing is superb.

Apart from being rough on some of the more delicate species in Summer I think you have the best overall climate for growing conifers on earth. Warm/hot summers with tons of daylight, not too much water, good winter colors from the cold. It's outstanding.
severnside
12 years ago
Been waiting for this! Great update.
Cher
12 years ago
Your gardens are stunning after so short a time period. Everything looks beautiful and the choices look fantastic together. Can't wait to see another year's growth also.
Cher
tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱
12 years ago
Beautiful job, Fotis and in a beautiful setting. Thanks for the update.

tj
wisconsitom
12 years ago
Where is this setting? Like I usually do when viewing a thread full of mini cultivars, it's the background that I notice the most.

+oM
ladylotus
12 years ago
Fotisr, what a beautiful setting you are creating. I love it. I do like all the natural rocks and the various elevations you have. You have a wonderful collection of plants and in a few years it will really be striking. I do agree the backdrop with the mountains is spectacular.

Thank you for sharing your photos.
greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
Tom,
I seem to be thinking that this garden is located in the mountains of Greece.
I could very well be wrong on that, however.

Josh
gardener365
12 years ago
Amazing dude! To the East, West, North, South and your sneakers. Those are fly.

Dax
botann
12 years ago
Yes, Greece.
I had a different image of you, fotisr. I imagined you as an older, heavier set, gentleman.
Nice collection!....and you're planting it in rocks!

Keep up the good work.
Mike
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
12 years ago
whats that all about mike??? ... lol... how in the world did you dream up heavy set???? ...lol

absolutely supreme ... congrats ... its the rocks and the rolling hills.. that make the site special for me ....

i will never fully accept that i moved to farm country.. and cant find a rock for 50 miles ... and i am not paying for rock ... lol .. darn glacier just dumped mineral sand [of which my only complaint is the lack of design rock]

anyway ... keep up the great work

ken

ps: i pictured him as a big busted 50 year old female operatic singer [with big fuzzy ears] consistent with a Wagner opera .... kill the wabbit ... kill the wabbit ...

Here is a link that might be useful: simply sublime insanity.. hope it translates to greek ...
fotisr
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you very much for your kind words everyone! Just learning and applying stuff I read from the 'proffesionals' in here!
Dave, it means a lot coming from you. You've got a perfect eye for this!
Richard, thank you. There is a natural slope there. I couldn't change that even if I wanted to (though I don't).
Thank you Josh!
Edwin all the mistakes are noted! I have a great number of plants that came from you (and outside that bed) and they are perfect! My most rare and one of the most beautiful conifers I own is Picea engelmannii ssp mexicana 'Pervana' from you! perfect!
{{gwi:629721}}

Thank you Jay! I was lucky to own this property by the mountain so I could plan such garden. (and lucky I managed to finish the house before the crisis because things are somewhat tight right now...)
Will, 1,5 year is not adequate to make safe statements about the climate but up to now it looks like your description is quite accurate. I had only two losses due to summer heat-drought. Abies procera 'Blaue Hexe' and Abies koreana 'Bonsai Blue'. everything else survived, some with some help... Funny is that I envy your setting underneath the mature Pseudotsuga. I just have no shade places for japanese maples... Thank you!
Thank you Severnside, Cher and Tj!
+oM, The setting is in southern, mainland Greece, at elevation of 2400 ft aproximately. Just below mountain Mainalo (with the biggest pure Abies cephalonica forest) as Josh noted.
Thank you Dax! always enjoy your funny touch in your postings as well as the knowledge you offer!
Thank you Mike! It's interesting to compare the true form of someone's with the imaginative form you get from the posts in here! That's why I uploaded this! Hope I'll be around in 30 years to gaze my garden as you do yours now! Kinda hope it looks like yours too...
Thank you very much Ken! I actually have a rock-garden... The real deal! Funny, the other a day I was making a hole to plant Abies pinsapo 'Aurea' and as usualy I hit a rock (I've plant 90 conifers and I think only two times I dug without hitting rock underneath!) and then I made this comment, that I wish I could dig like they do in the U.S., with just a shovel, having in mind YOUR post of transplanting a conifer...
hilarious! (about the female operatic singer!)

Best regards,
Fotis
sprucebud
12 years ago
Fotis, having just read your recent comments, I would just like to remark on your excellent use of English (speaking in my capacity as a freelance translator). Just felt appropriate to mention this.
Of course, the same does apply to all other non-native English speakers on the Forum here! This aspect can sometimes get overlooked.
Regards,
Richard
whaas_5a
12 years ago
I knew you where working on something spectacular. The rocks are going to do tremendous things for your design as things continue to progress.

Look forward to seeing pics as the garden matures!
sluice
12 years ago
Great color combinations! And they all go very well with that red rock!
fotisr
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you Richard! priceless compliment!

Will, thank you very much! Looking forward your April garden images as well!

Thank you sluice, without knowin you've all helped in my choices!

Best regards,
Fotis

After one and a half year...

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