Guess who won "The Best Decorated Balcony Contest" at my apt. complex?
Esther-B, Zone 7a
3 years ago
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djacob Z6a SE WI
3 years agonicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
3 years agoRelated Discussions
Fast blue conifers for complex garden plan
Comments (9)dear all thanks so much for the suggestions. I guess I should have clarified a couple of things. 1. North is up 2. Juglans, silver maple, scotch pine were planted long before I got the house. They are quite massive specimens and I won't get rid of them. The juglans is a pain in the neck but is a gorgeous tree, in summer and winter (less so in spring and fall). 3. Distances. I don't share a passion for savannah-like landscapes. I understand where you come from, but my perspective is a 10-20 year perspective of somebody who likes woods and meadows much more than savannahs. The punges are 5 meters apart. Plenty of space in my view. 4. The property is an acreage, no neighbours but I have a noisy road to the west which is going tpo be screened by windbreak and a beech grove (the street is 60 meters west of the diagram I attached). On the other hand, the only view I'd like to keep open is the one to the east. In the other directions I'll want to be walled in. 5. There is so significant slope. It is Iowa, after all :-) 6. I don't care about the lawn - this specific area will have lawn, but most of the rest of the property will be reverted to prairie or whatever it is that it becomes when the beech grove has formed a canopy. 7. Beside Juglans, acer and scotch pine, all other trees will be planted in the next 1-3 years. So, you can expect that they will be starting from the same size. (I am aware of the risks of doing everything from the beginning but I have made my decision on that) 8. I have a quite extensive dripline system that will take care of all plantings. I have plenty of dying poplars on the north and south side which will provide mulch (I already have more mulch than I can use) 9. This area should be a beautiful area with some landscape interest (this is why you see the variety of colors and the opening between the KCT and the fagus creating a minimeadow framed by cornus controversa and acer esk sunset). This is the area where we will spend most of the time in the summer. 10. Right now I am at an airport, I have no access to the pictures of my property. I will send them on Monday. I will also send a higher resolution picture of the whole property (Ken - that will be a lot for you to have fun with) 11. I plan to plant all plants as seedlings or from seed, due to cost issues. I already have planted a variety of caryas (pignut, mockernut, laciniosa, ovata) from seed on the north edge of the property (outside the view of the diagram). They haven't come up yet (planted last fall). My main challenges are 1. visualization of how it is going to look especially since many of these plants I have never seen in person. I have made extensive research on each of them over the past 18 months but still nothing substitutes the impression that a live tree can make. 2. Account for shading. I have very little intuition about what amount of shade certain trees will look full under. For example, I am not a fan of sparse conifers (with the exception of picea orientalis and hemlocks), especially the kind of look that firs get when they are shaded. 3. Account for hardiness, storm resistance, ice resistance. I read a lot about that but I still don't know how much damage to expect from serious storms. So far we have gotten up to 80mph and the damage was minimal, with the exception of the willows and poplars I inherited. I am overwhelmed with the response to this post. I just love trees. My hope is that my garden could have some of the characteristics of that of botann, which is in fact my favourite, I love its density, texture, lushness, natural feel. But then again, I have seen such amazing gardens on this forum that I am still trying to cope. Only two months ago, I almost had no conifers in my plan (I actually hated conifers with a passion, with the exception of cedars) and then I saw the pictures of Dave's Dan's Ken's gardens and the amazing garden in Toledo... and that changed my mind! That is all for now. Have to hop to portland. Thanks so much. You all are such an inspiration!...See MoreMNF September 'Won't You Be My Neighbor'
Comments (81)Good morning! Today is the deadline. Linda had to drop out and I received Camen's information so I only need box names for two participants. I sent them a reminder email. If I don't hear from them by 7:00pm EST, they will have to skip the guessing name and will be placed last and 2nd to last in the picking order based on when they joined the swap, so I hope they remember in time. It's more fun when everyone plays! A short time after 7:00 pm I will post a guessing game and everyone will have until 1:00 pm tomorrow to post their answer. You can guess anytime between those times. I will explain when I post the game how the winner(s) will be determined. Anyone who does not guess will be placed at the end based on the order they signed up for the swap in. If you have any questions, shoot me an email. I am at home today and will check back often. Have a good one! ALana Vina/flowergirl34 Shirley/sjc48 Rose/rosemctier Dan/dan_the_mailman Margo/smitties Shirley/brittneysgran Robin/Robin1962-2008 Wendy/Sassybutterfly_2008 Faye/nottougly need box name Beth/beth_b_kodiak Carmen/gardencraze Heidi/hdiperna Shelly/sred98 need box name Kelly/kellyk49 Alana/poisondartfrog...See Morecul-de-sac island plantings for condominium complex
Comments (10)Before planting a tree it would be good to add some topsoil to slightly crown the island in order to give it a fuller looking appearance. If it's pure flat it will tend to look sunken. Personally, I wouldn't make "quick growing" a factor. Most any tree will grow quickly enough to please the neighborhood. The tree's longevity, beauty and overall good habits will be much more important not far down the road. Among the others, consider a male clone Ginkgo biloba if you can find it, as it has many good qualities, not the least of which is that when the fall color show is over, the leaves drop suddenly which helps the clean-up not to drag on ... good for a street tree. A good groundcover for an area like this would be able to repair itself when damaged and, more or less, wouldn't be prone to damage. Anything that is shrub like -- forms twigs and stems -- is going to be breakable. I would consider something durable like Virginia creeper. It makes an excellent low care groundcover but is often overlooked because, like any vine, it can be rambunctious, and therefore feared in someone's private, manicured setting. Here, that quality is its asset. It would only need to be trimmed at the edge (which is a quick and easy chore) and clipped from climbing the tree once per year (probably during the winter so it's leaves will have already fallen off.) One does not even need to remove the clipped vine as it will fall off on its own accord. In the winter only an undamagable network of vines remain, hugging the ground. There is room for all the snow one wishes to pile on them. V.C takes sun or shade so would have no trouble adapting to the changing light conditions that occur as a large tree grows. It could be found for free since it's pretty much everywhere and would be easy to start by anyone who has knowledge of plant propagation....See MoreAm I The Only One Who Second Guesses Decisions?
Comments (87)Since it was resurrected I might as well give an update! We bought that lot I mentioned a few posts up and built a house during covid ... fun times and higher costs!! Have been in the house for just over a year and 99% happy with all the choices I made. No designer used and I prefer it that way. Jan thought it was a positive that a designer would limit the choices to show a customer, but I consider that a huge negative. Why should I let a stranger select three colors I should pick from, when the colors I really would have loved might have been color 5 or 6. Some Designers also pick based on their personal likes/dislikes or they try new/odd things they would never do in their own homes! I had the time to do the research and make my own selections. I also trust my taste and ability to match colors and patterns....See Morepopmama (Colorado, USDA z5)
3 years agoold_dirt 6a
3 years agolindalana 5b Chicago
3 years agocyn427 (z. 7, N. VA)
3 years agoEsther-B, Zone 7a
3 years agopudgeder
3 years agosandyslopes z6 n. UT
3 years agonewhostalady Z6 ON, Canada
3 years ago
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Esther-B, Zone 7aOriginal Author