2009-2010 gardens ... set 2

As I  take advantage of my spare moments and sift through my thousands of garden photos from the past couple years, trying to make space on my computer by ridding myself of those I don't deem worthy of a place on my hard drive, I come across some which I find to be at least a good effort. These I  will share in my winter posts (hopefully with a minimum of repetition)... soon enough a fresh season of flowers and photography will once again begin... until then, I hope you will find some pleasure in 'what has bloomed in past seasons'  here at Oak Lawn Cheese Factory.

The President clematis after a summer shower

The joy of being surprised... one of many seedling daylilies

a study in textures

Old hosta plants are often referred to as "mother" plants...
this is a Blue Angel, approaching thirty years in the same spot

Looking skyward through a tapestry of 'Daybreak'

Malus Flame is named for its red buds which turn to white blooms

One of the non-precocious magnolias, Yellow Bird blooms
 after much of its foliage has developed

A perfect foil... the summer blooming phlox 'Laura' and Pinus flexilis 'Vanderwolf's Pyramid' 

Anemones, magnolias, and azaleas... surrounded by the fresh greens of spring

Warm colors and cool lemonade... a perfect summer afternoon

Among the antique off whites of June are Aruncus and Rodgersia

A purveyor of shade for a bed of Sweet William is a Tanyosho Pine

There is a certain hour of the daylily before its bloom fully unfurls

This is a time of great promise... a few open blooms and a myriad of fleshy buds

A trail of early sunshine lights the way past aged redwood and a waterfall of petunias

The eastern sun as a brooch among conifers and hydrangea

How do you define yellow...

A wreathe of foxglove and hosta

A single bloom of Taiyo meaning "the sun" floats on a sea of blue purple

Fog blends together many textures and variations of blues and greens

A red aesculus adorned with torches of red presides over lesser subjects in size only

Like feathers of an exotic fowl, pink tree peonies display their plumage

"The road goes ever on..."

I am reminded of J.R.R. Tolien's "The Road goes ever on" as I study this perspective, particularly the sod line, in this last photo...

The Road goes ever on and on
    Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
    And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
    Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
    And whither then? I cannot say.

 J R R Tolkien
... gardening has been and is a road of adventure for me that originated with a few annual bush balsam and three clematis nearly forty years ago. I am amazed at how far this path has progressed and I truly enjoy pursuing all the new developments that are a part of the ornamental garden culture...  as remaining years grow slim, I find myself eagerly devoting myself to the collecting and cultivation of more and more interesting cultivars if for no other reasons than self expression and the desire to share this beneficence that has been allowed me, with others. Above all, gardening for me is a means of connecting with others... while some may see gardening as a solitary pursuit, I can't imagine it without it's touching the hearts and lives of others...

And 'whither then'?  ... nor can I say.... while this is but one road that I travel, it is for now among the good things for this time and this place in my life... take care, Larry

Read More

2010... the year in bloom

This is my last post for 2010 so I thought I would share some of my favorite photos from this past year. While by no means all inclusive of the thousands of cultivars that grow and bloom at Oak Lawn Cheese Factory, these photos are representative of the beauty that has surrounded us during 2010.

The first is of our beloved Cricket posed behind a hellebore... she is close to her seventeenth year. There are problems and I know at some point a dreaded decision must be made. The other night she walked off the edge of a wooden stairway and rolled all the way to the bottom in the dark where I found her... amazingly, she wasn't hurt. She now sleeps about twenty-two hours a day and behaves like a puppy for part of the remaining couple hours. 

Cricket enjoyed a yellow hellebore

Spring and new life sprung forth in the conifer gardens

The promise of spring was  encompassed in the odd blooms of Arnold's Promise witchhazel

The rock garden in its first year was full of surprises...

... with the season of primulas and epimediums

Then came the daffodils

... and they came in waves

When we were hit with an unexpected April snow storm

But soon the magnolias were magically transformed

And we knew spring had definitely arrived

And the air was filled with the scent of flowering trees now in their glory

Tulips expended all the energy they had held underground for the past year

And absorbed the warmth that was the spring sunshine

The treasure of northern gardens came into full bloom

and lilac fragrances invaded the air

In early June the most royal inhabitants of the gardens displayed their finery

... as it was the time of the tree peonies

Soon other  perennials bloomed with abandon... irises

And dictamnus

And poppies were but a few of those marching in this grand parade

As rhododendrons departed from their anonymity...

And English Roseum took its place of honor 

Wisteria twined around all that would provide support

Before long siberians joined the iris chorus...

... in harmony with the spurias and many others...

Soon the queen of vines entered into the seasonal procession

And the delphiniums played as courtiers

The Wm baffin roses bloomed their final show before falling at the claws of a backhoe

As is so often the case, the gardens were shared with others... this time for a barbershop concert

The arbor plantings grew fuller with each passing day

Throughout the gardens hostas anchored the shade

The feathery plumes of astilbe created a foil to the craggy harshness of stone on stone

Almost before we knew what had happened, the asiatic lilies were here and gone

The orienpet lilies once again became the watershed moment of the gardening season

If only time could stand still... these would be the days that should last forever

How we love daylily season... for me it symbolizes a rich and full life 

Oh tiny ant... what a prodigious creature you are

With August came colors warm and rich 

But somehow we knew this would not last much longer

We stored up in our sensibilities for what was to come

And soon enough it was the autumn and a time for consideration of all that was past

But somehow we knew...

As sure as the hand of God was on our lives...

This season was but a chapter of these very lives

... there would be more...

... but for now we could rest, and plan, and hope... and we experience a sense of security for... if not this garden, another  that will someday cause this one to seem very insignificant. This has been in the plan since the beginning, but for now we have once again enjoyed this year of experiencing the wonders of creation... 

I hope you all were able to experience many joys in 2010 and grow from the trials that sometimes invade our lives... may we all be strengthened by them... and may our paths cross again in the new year... as always, Larry at Oak Lawn Cheese Factory

Read More