Evergreen street tree in Chinatown PDX
iochroma
7 months ago
last modified: 7 months ago
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morz8 - Washington Coast
7 months agoiochroma
7 months agoRelated Discussions
Parking strip makeover
Comments (11)Hi, I have about 200' of parking strips which I have put all into flowers. The parking strips are so visible that you should try for year round interest. I have something blooming in mine from December until frost. I use a large selection of spring bulbs that bloom from Dec-May. I have perennial flowers blooming from May until frost. I use a combination of evergreen and deciduous perennials. I plant the early spring bulbs around all the deciduous perennials so they bloom and grow while the perennial is dormant. Some of the bulbs I grow are cyclamen hederifolium, cyclamen coum, winter aconite, snowdrops, iris reticulata, crocus, scillia, glory of the snow, hyacinth, muscari, anemones, species tulips, appledorn tulips, bluebells, and allium moly. This is the order that they bloom for me also. The spring bulbs are easy care and drought tolerant, as they go dormant soon after they bloom. They multiply quickly and really are beautiful. I pick easy care drought tolerant perennials that bloom at different times. I use some evergreens and some deciduous. Some of the evergreen perennials that I use are Pacific coast iris, bergenia, creeping phlox, candytuft, euphorbias, hellebores, lamb's ears, New Zealand flax, dianthus, campanula, sedums and sempirvions. Some of the deciduous perennials that have done well for me are daylilys, lady's mantle, coreopsis, rudbeckia, asters, salvia, golden margarite, red plantain, ornamental grasses and hardy annuals like hens and chicks. I do have 7 plum trees planted in the strip as well. I do have clematis vines growing up each one and they have done very well also. I use different varieties with different bloom times so I have clematis blooming from April until frost. Your trees are very small still, so you should wait a few years before planting a clematis vine on them. Make sure you plant one that won't overwhelm your tree. It is true what gardengal said about the negative aspects of growing flowers in a parking strip. I wouldn't let it discourage you though. I have had so many people tell me how much they enjoy the flowers over the years. Neighbors plan their daily walks along my sidewalk, cars have stopped in the middle of the street to tell me how much they love the flowers, people are always asking me what this and that is. You'll get much more postive feedback than negative. Good luck with your garden. Karen...See MoreGrowing Crape Myrtle?
Comments (23)Well, I don't have much info to offer so far, but within a few years I should have lots of data. Background: I live in Vancouver, WA, have south facing yard and a whole bunch of pavement around which I can plant things that will get pretty hot. Results so far: Purple Magics I got at Al's Garden Center last year have flower buds developing. I started to see the first ones probably around late July. I thought wow I will get flowers soon but it appears they take a long time to develop. It is mid August now. I feel optimistic that at least some of these will bloom before the cold season sets in. These were so cheap I scattered 9 of them throughout the yard and I figure that the ones that developed flower buds sooner are probably the better locations. (I am convinced HOT is the key. However, you do have to be careful with the leaves of ones you planted this season wilting, even if you water them well. My Cherry Dazzle appears to not be blooming, even though it is in the hottest spot in my yard. However, it lost most of its leaves last summer so it may be concentrating on building up its strength this summer rather than flowering. My Catawbas and Tuscaroras are not showing a lot of leaf growth and no flower buds. But I think they may be just strengthening themselves and may do much better next season. I bought a TON of dwarf CMs from Evergreenplantnursery. They are only about $6-12 each , although a few dollars more when you factor shipping in. I got about 5 each of Midnight Magic, Moonlight Magic, Purple Magic, and Cherry Dazzle. Also got a couple Tontos (one from Evergreen, one from Al's, and a couple of Pink Velours at Al's.) These are shorter varieties and I live in a place where the people above me have nice views so it is uncool to plant tall trees. My strategy on these is: I planted these in large containers. I will put them in the garage in the dormant season where hopefully they won't see temperatures below 25F or so. Then I will take them outside during the growing season. After about 3 years hopefully they will have trunks and branches that are big enough to withstand the winter cold waves (down to around 10F in this area) without too much dieback. The Midnight Magics from Soonerplantfarm I planted died all the way to the ground, but they have generated lots of growth this summer. My dilemma now is whether to transplant them into pots to put in the garage in the winter, or see how they do if I keep them outside. They might just die back every winter and regrow each summer, which would make them perennials. But they have only grown leaves, not flower buds, so if I want them to flower I may need to grow them inside for a few winters to get them bigger before planting them outside for good. Not much data yet but I have about 25 crape myrtles in pots and about 20 in the yard so I should get a lot of data within 2-3 years, which I will report. The good thing is even if they dont' flower much, they still have the attractive trunks and fall foliage....See Morequartz or granite countertop & best color for cherry cabinets w/b
Comments (24)NervousNancy... Our pendants and DR chandelier are Murray Feiss and I purchased them at EXPO Design Center (owned by HD). There are 2 finishes...ours are in Antique Pewter. There's also a Grecian Bronze (similar to ORB, I think). The DR chandelier isn't very big b/c our DR is small. They do have larger chandeliers, if you're interested in those as well. P1095AP - 1-Light Morningside F2050/5AP - 5-Light Morningside Our faucet is the Kohler Vinnata® Kitchen Sink Faucet (K-690) in Vibrant Brushed Nickel with the handle on the right. The handle location is adjustable: it can be on the left, right, or middle...it's up to you. The nice thing about being adjustable is that if you don't have enough room behind the faucet for the handle to work properly, you just mount it in the front. We bought it at FaucetDirect.com. There are 8 finishes and it comes in 2 sizes (main sink, the one we have, and prep version (K-691), which is a couple of inches smaller). We love our location as well! Actually, we're on a 3-acre lot w/a street on the other side of the berm in the back then a horse farm/farm under agricultural preservation. We do have neighbors...across the street from the front yard and on either side of us...you just can't see them from our back windows! Plus, we planted a double row of evergreens on one side to block the NW wind that also blocks our view of that house (to the right). Our neighbors on the other side planted a row of pear trees so we didn't feel we could plant evergreens there. But, they're farther away so it's not a big deal...plus we have nice neighbors! Looking at the pictures again, I just realized that those are the pics taken before I cleaned the granite! So, it still has the granite dust on them from the work they did when installing the sink side. (The other side is not done yet, the granite is just placed on the counters, not aligned or secured. We're waiting for a replacement for the cabinet they damaged when they began the install on that wall.) Good luck on your choices & welcome!...See MorePacific NW travel
Comments (52)I just heard an interview with Maya Lin, the artist behind the Vietnam War Memorial in DC, talking about her latest project. I am linking it here - it is pretty amazing and with the Lewis and Clark connection, thought you (and/or your kids) might find it worth looking at for possibilities. The webpage is very complex about what she/they are doing, but fascinating to read. I'll link to the interview, too, in case anyone is interested, but will have to add it later, as it's not available online yet. Edited to add link to Maya Lin interview...it's good! new-maya-lin-art-installments-track-route-lewis-and-clark Confluence project...See Moreiochroma
7 months agoiochroma
7 months agoiochroma
6 months agoDave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A
6 months agoiochroma
6 months agolast modified: 6 months ago
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Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A