It's a Blooming Winter!

"It seems to me that there is never a time when some living thing is not pushing up from the ground, and that at the beginning of the year there is a more vital stirring."

- Elizabeth Lawrence, Gardens in Winter

There are many wonderful winter blooms in Miss Lawrence's Garden right now. A few that she loved have become ones I, too, most cherish.  I thought I'd better capture their images today - before the rain and colder temperatures set in tomorrow.

Amur Adonis (Adonis amurensis 'Fuku Jukai')  Rare, nearly impossible to establish, this is not a plant for the faint of heart. The blooms remain perfect for weeks on end, come rain, snow, or below freezing temps. Every year that it begins to bloom tells me I haven't killed it, yet. Pshew!

Snowdrops (Galanthus sp.)  These easily-cultivated woodland charmers are a pristine delight no matter the weather, and, as with many little bulbs, are best planted en masse.  I can't talk enough about how awesome these are!

Roman Hyacinths (Hyacinthus orientalis)  These are not your run-of-the-mill hyacinths; these are the true original white hyacinths still blooming early every year in old southern gardens.  They come close to blooming on New Year's Day.  And the fragrance... oh, such sweet aroma!  They are the first hyacinths to bloom in Miss Lawrence's Garden.

Chinese Witchhazel (Hamamelis mollis 'Wisley Supreme')  A feast to the nose and the eye, this witchhazel greets me near the front door of Miss Lawrence's house with the cheeriest yellow blooms, and a delicate clean scent.  It's a great way to start the work day.  This was one of Elizabeth Lawrence's favorite winter blooming plants.

Come by soon to see what else is blooming; contrary to popular opinion, winter is a fantastic time to see flowers in Miss Lawrence's Garden.  (It's so great, she even wrote a whole book about Gardens in Winter.  It's my favorite of her manuscripts.  Grab a copy if you find one; it's out of print.)

Yours in Dirt,

Andrea

A Month in Pictures

In more ways than one, it is so much easier to be in Elizabeth Lawrence's garden than it is to be on the computer.  When I'm on the computer, my ADD kicks into high gear.  I head into "Wonderland" with one focus: search for sources of different new (and old) plant material to test in the garden.  Before I know it, I've perused no fewer than 10 blogs, 15 nursery websites, 4 public garden databases, 6 flickr image galleries, 8 gardening forums ... and the list goes on.  At the end of it all, I've spent two hours inside, nearly feeling as if I've wasted time but all the while reminding myself this is part of researching plant material.

Don't get me wrong: I have found some GREAT plants this way.  Lots of great plants, actually.  And I have learned a ton of great information... about most of which I remain somewhat skeptical because it is, after all, the internet.  I also gain a lot of inspiration, which is a wonderful thing that keeps me engaged on so many levels.  But at the end of it, I am a bit exhausted.  A bit spent.  A bit in need of serenity.

When I'm in the garden, time seems to stand still.  Nothing else matters except that visceral connection I feel to Elizabeth and her world.  I take time to really study the garden.  I get down on the ground to appreciate a new perspective.  I hold a bruised leaf to my nose to see if I can discern any fragrance.  I weed an area - always carefully - searching for freshly uncovered bulbs emerging from dormancy.  I have found SO much in this garden.  Countless discoveries have come above the ground, but equally as many beneath the soil... partially rusted plant tags still boasting Elizabeth's handwritten identification, gnarled plant stakes, stone edging long covered over with layers of soil, mulch and leaf litter.  Even bulbs that hadn't seen the light of day in years.  There's always cool stuff to see here.  And the best way to see it, if you're not sitting on my shoulder while I'm digging around in the garden, is through a camera lens.

I take a LOT of pictures.  Since November 2010, I have taken 3,307 in this garden.  All of those pictures do no one but myself any good if I don't share.  But don't expect the garden to look the same when you come to visit.  Elizabeth was fond of saying, "You have not seen my garden.  You have only seen it TODAY."

So here is a month in pictures in the Elizabeth Lawrence Garden.  Enjoy.

Yours in Dirt,
Andrea Sprott

The original door knocker, adorned with holiday greenery, welcomes me to work every day.

December 3
This Camellia sasanqua has been blooming since September.

The feathery texture of the foliage of Spiraea x arguta (garland spirea) still original to Miss Lawrence

I wish you could smell this Chimonanthus praecox - winter sweet.  Intoxicatingly wonderful fragrance!

Illicium anisatum - Japanese anise
This one blooms more than 6 months of the year!

A camellia seedling I want to register with the American Camellia Society as Camellia 'Lindie Wilson',
in honor of the woman who saved this garden and loved it for 23 years.

Helleborus torquatus (species Hellebore) generously donated to the garden by Pine Knot Farms. 

A fun plant combination: Acorus gramineus 'Ogon', Lychnis coronaria, and Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum'

My very favorite species camellia, Camellia saluenensis, still original to Miss Lawrence.

The path is bordered by Camellia saluenensis blooms. This camellia blooms from late October through March.

Physostegia virginiana 'Vivid' (obedient plant) still strutting her stuff in December.

Gentiana andrewsii (bottle gentian)

December 31A recently transplanted clump of Adonis amurensis 'Fuku Jukai' is preparing to say "Hello Winter!"

Helleborus niger 'HGC' (Christmas Rose)

It's snowdrops season!

I've been working to beef up this mass of Galanthus elwesii, and it's paying off.

Groups of cyclamen and the "Lindie Wilson" camellia to the left, snowdrops to the right

A fun discovery: a reverse-variegated Alstroemeria psittacina (peruvian lily)

A bloom of Camellia japonica 'White Empress' that escaped the frost.