Stuff Around My House

Things are looking pretty nice around here. Here are a couple pictures of the Golden Full Moon Maple (Acer shirishiwana 'Aureum') I got from Gee Farms a few years ago. It was fairly expensive - probably around $80 at the time - but it has done very well here under the shade of our hickories.

Here are three viburnums which are starting to swallow up the shed. When I put them in several years ago it was hard to imagine they would get this big so fast. They were all quite small when I put them in. All three came from Lowe's or Home Depot so they couldn't have been very large when I got them. I've been gardening long enough to know better - maybe I can move the shed.

The one on the right is a Viburnum plicatum tomentosum but I forget if it is 'Shasta' or some other cultivar. The one in the middle is Viburnum lantana 'Mohican' and the little one on the left is Viburnum plicatum tomentosum 'Newport'. The ones on the left and right are both "double file" viburnums but only the 'Shasta' actually has flowers in double file rows on the branches. 'Newport' has white ball like flowers but they are still green right now.

These are European ginger plants I bought at Project Grow's plant sale in 1999 or so and brought to the new house in 2000. I really love this stuff. It thrives in shade and I think the glossy round leaves make a great counterpoint to hostas. Native plant snobs will be stuck with the North American counterpart which I don't find nearly as nice.

This is a picture of a Shooting Star - Dodecatheon meadia - growing in front of some Virginia bluebells. Both of these plants go dormant shortly after flowering but the surrounding hostas cover them up so I never even notice.