It’s well known that beautiful fragrances can be derived from plants and their flowers. Roses, lilacs jasmine are a few beautiful scents that come to mind.

As with most things, there is also an opposite, and this time of year the opposites of the beautiful fragrances become evident.  Summer and fall seem to be a time when the smelliest, stinkiest and most noxious odors are released by plants into the air to be inhaled and processed by our olfactory nerves.

Many plant nerds, myself included, find the smells, well, interesting. Mother nature has given these plants an unusual smell for a purpose and that sort of thing always intrigues me; but if you are put off by bad odors, here are a few plants to avoid.

Ginkgo Trees

Ginkgos are very popular urban street trees for several reasons, but boy do they stink!  Their smell is unmistakable and should be taken into consideration when planting. Think rotten eggs or according to some…vomit.  Eww.

Viburnum

There are several nice varieties of viburnum and most are great plants and small trees. The species “suspensum” is used commonly for a hedge plant. It takes to shaping well and is pretty resistant to insects and low water areas. This makes it a perfect candidate for foundation plantings and plants used to hide the concrete foundations of homes and office buildings. Unfortunately, there is a three-week period at the end of summer where a distinct stink comes from this one. I think the positive aspects outweigh the smelly period though.

Amorphophallus

A.K.A. smelly corpse plant or sometimes called corpse flower…….need I say more?  ……Yes, the plant nerd in me thinks this is a really cool plant. And if you have a chance to check it out, you should. Botanical gardens are probably the only place most of you will encounter it.

Rafflesia

Another one that smells like rotting flesh. If you have ever smelled it you will always remember it, and if you ever have a chance to see it, consider yourself lucky. This is an incredible flower, 4-5ft wide and a deep red with speckles.

Tulbaghia

This is a low-growing herbaceous plant with a beautiful pink flower the sits on multiple stocks about the strap like foliage. It’s the foliage that smells. The odor is not as distinct as some of the others mentioned, but when crushed, a pseudo garlic smell permeates the air. (This is one of my favorite plants) I love to plant it near the sliding doors of clients’ homes so that they catch a whiff of it now and then, drawing their attention to the garden.

There are many more smelly plants, but these are a few of the stinkiest plants and trees. I guess, like beauty, the attraction to smell is in the eye of the “besmeller”.  I, for one, like flowers and plants from the wrong side of the tracks!

If you can think of any other stinky, smelly plants leave me a comment below and I’ll add it to the list.

Happy Gardening,

Rees

Seeing the recent photos on the Internet of Lombard Street being transformed into a Candyland replica really brought back memories. Most of my early career in horticulture-related activities took place in Northern California. The City was just across the water and weekend trips to explore San Francisco were always fun. The city is so expansive and has so many different neighborhoods, there was always something new to find.

On one trip we decided to walk down Lombard Street rather than join the train of cars that descend the one-way street. What a different perspective you get when you walk rather than drive. I believe that the city parks crews do the planting and maintenance and they really do a wonderful job. The boxwood hedges (Buxus japonica) looked like they were plastic, they were clipped so perfectly. The English Ivy (Hedera helix) was allowed just enough room to look natural and was trimmed so that the edges showed no bare stems. The only way to achieve this effect is to hand-trim each branch with a pair of hand clippers. Power sheers or even hand held sheers leave an edge where all the undergrowth and clipped stems show until the new foliage covers the ends. Hand clipping is beautiful but very labor intensive.

The planners of the Lombard garden do a great job of staggering flower blooming cycles so that there is always something colorful to see. The Azaleas are spectacular and the prolific blooms of the Hydrangeas are fabulous. Annual color is rotated seasonally and the Impatiens in Spring are breathtaking.

If you are there in the fall, one of the coolest things you will see on Lombard Street is the pollarded Sycamore Trees (Platanus racemosa). I’m normally hate hard pruning, and when I see done I figure the gardener is a control freak, but not in this case. The statement and elegance of a correctly pollard bosk of Sycamores if really pretty cool. Don’t get me wrong, a full grown, properly pruned Sycamore is awesome, but here the trees line both sides of the street and frame the garden perfectly.

What most tourists who drive down Lombard Street (Candyland) may not realize is that the buildings along the sides are actually people’s homes. How cool would that be, to actually live on Lombard Street, AKA Candyland?

One note of advice: If you decide to walk Lombard Street I suggest you start at the bottom and walk up. The return trip will be more enjoyable.

Look Familiar??????

Excerpt from my eBook GROWING GREAT LAWNS. Available here at Rainforth Home and Garden.

What follows is a basic guide to growing and maintaining a successful grassy lawn in shady areas.  I’m going to be blunt in telling you that shade and grassy lawns do not sit well together.  The combination of deep shade and new sod just do not combine well.  However, I’m happy to provide some options those who choose to attempt to combine shade and a beautiful, grassy lawn.  Some will say that the combination is hopeless, and it is often true that the two do not flourish together but for those of you who choose to pursue, feel free to take a look at what I’ve provided solution-wise.

First on my list of suggestions is to take a close look at your overhanging trees and decide how much trimming and pruning is feasible.  Penetration of light is your main goal.  As heavy as possible on the pruning is preferred, but please be careful not to compromise the shape or health of the tree.  For large trees, I strongly suggest hiring a Certified Arborist (give me a shout if you need suggestions on who to hire) so as not to cause unanticipated damage to the tree.  It is well worth the added expense, as you will be able to explain your goals and see end results that are contenting to you and your tree.  Please keep in mind that pruning will now become an annual maintenance, as once your tree is trimmed and pruned it will need to be kept in that condition.  This will help to avoid lack of proper light reaching your new sod and potentially killing your newly planted lawn. Low light equals no grass!

Secondly, you’ll need to remove any existing lawn or vegetation. I know, you’re likely groaning at the thought of clearing your property out but yes, it must be done! This can be accomplished manually with a shovel, rake or chemicals. You may decide for yourself which you are comfortable with. Personally, I prefer to limit the usage of chemicals unless absolutely necessary (see post on “Killing Poison Ivy”).  If you are going the chemical route you will still need to remove dead materials before beginning to spray.  I’ll advise you to spray the chemical mixture before digging, to kill vegetation.  Spray the area, grub/dig up the materials and wait to see what vegetation continues to sprout.  At this point, re-spray and continue this cycle until all weeds have diminished.  Note that a healthy lawn that grows vigorously will prevent the re-growth of the weeds. A common and safe chemical that can be used is Round-up, available at your local garden store.  For those against the usage of chemicals altogether, a method I happened upon is the purchase and laying of black plastic sheeting.  After testing, I’ve learned that this is just as successful a method for you to use. Completely cover the weeds with the plastic, let it remain in place for two weeks, water the area and watch for re-growth over the next few weeks.  Repeat this process until no new weed growth is noticeable and your soil appears sterile. The idea is for the plastic to starve and bake the weeds, killing them off completely.

Thirdly, you must be certain that your drainage system is working correctly.  I often come across lawns with issues in shaded areas that have excess moisture present.  A properly-functioning irrigation system with good drainage is a must for a shaded, lush lawn.  As with the arborist, I’m happy to offer further advice related to irrigation and drainage upon your request.

The next step in your project is to lay sod.  Seeding is a long process, and particularly frustrating to attempt in shaded areas.  Starting a lawn from seed is an option in some cases but with shade in large amounts it is wiser to begin with sod.  Trust me on this!

Sod selection depends on your location in the country.  A friend of mine, (whose question prompted this post) is located in Florida so I suggested that she use Empire Zoysia or Celebration Bermuda grass.  I strongly discourage the usage of Floratam and Seville in shaded areas, as both of these St. Augustine sod types do poorly in low-light.  Alternative St. Augustine breeds are usable (though not highly recommended) as long as they receive four or more hours of direct sunlight daily. For those living further north, a strain of creeping red fescue is advisable rather than Kentucky Bluegrass.  Remember, the more direct light, the better!

Here are just a few more tips for the maintaining of your lawn in shady spots:

• When cutting your lawn, keep the areas in shade higher than you would traditionally. When more leaf surface is left, more sunlight can be absorbed.

• Irrigate less than in direct-sun areas, as less water will be evaporated in the shaded areas. As well, you’ll need to use less fertilizer because the lawn will grow more slowly than in your direct-sun areas.

• Be certain to remove fallen leaves and debris quickly, as any vegetation of this sort will block penetrating sunlight. I also recommend an annual over-seeding with your sod type.

Growing a lawn on shaded acreage is not a simple task.  However, once the decision is made to pursue this project, if a wholehearted attempt is given it can be accomplished.  More sunlight is the key to a healthy lawn with shade trees present.  As well, note that there are several attractive and usable groundcovers out there that will do quite well in heavy shade.  Hope you enjoyed, again please do not hesitate to ask questions or provide responses with personal experiences!

I truly hope this helps, Cheri.

You can find more details on growing lawns in my eBook GROWING GREAT LAWNS available at Rainforth Home and Garden

-Rees Cowden

Part 1

When planning for a new landscape for your home, choosing a landscape contractor can be the most important decision. It’s a decision that will affect the appearance of your garden, our pocketbook and definitely can affect your peace of mind.

First let me distinguish between a gardener or maintenance contractor and a landscape instillation contractor.

The Landscape Contractor is someone you hire to create or to build your garden. A gardener, or landscape maintenance contractor, is someone you hire to care for your garden after it is built. The two operations take completely different skills and actually two different types of personalities. I acknowledge that there are many companies that offer both services and do them each quite well. I actually like the idea of using one company to create a landscape and the same company to provide the maintenance service if they are qualified for both operations. I mention it solely to make you aware that there are really two distinct services. The people involved in building and constructing landscapes are the type of people who like to build things. They enjoy the process of starting with a blank canvas and following a design to the point where the initial project is completed. The gardener or maintenance contractor is more the nurturing type of personality who enjoys the reward of seeing something shaggy and untidy change into something neat and crisp, much like a hair dresser or barber does. They may also be more knowledgeable about horticultural related practices such as how to control diseases and insects whereas the instillation contractor will have a better understanding of things like drainage, building retaining walls and planting of large trees.

For the purpose of this post I will discuss the Landscape Instillation Contractor.

• License
  • In most states a Landscape Contractor is required to pass a test measuring his or her competency as well as purchase a bond or surety to help protect the public from unscrupulous contractors. The level of testing varies widely from state to state.
• Training
  • Along with the contractors’ license, most states require a period of on-the-job training, working for a licensed contractor. This relatively brief period of training, I consider the minimum. The more time spent working in the field the better as far as I’m concerned.
• Knowledge
  • The level of knowledge is where you find a wide disparity amongst landscape contractors. Contractors’ knowledge of horticulture ranges from no formal education to a two year associate degree to a four year bachelor’s degree and from a beginner to someone with twenty or more years experience. Their level of knowledge should be considered in relation to the complexity of your project and expect to pay more for knowledge.

The bid process

In almost every case I suggest getting at least two competitive bids, three is even better. In order to solicit bids that you’re able to analyze, it is important to use the old apples-to-apples analogy. Having contractors bid on differing things is a waste of your time and a waste of the contractor’s time. That is why it is critical to begin with a detailed plan for each contractor to use to develop his pricing. Even though many contractors consider themselves “design/build” contractors I strongly suggest you pay separately for the design. I have written a previous post on the advantages of hiring a designer.

Once you have several copies of the plan have each bidder prepare their best estimate for the work. Require the bidders to submit their bid in a broken down fashion so that they are easier to compare. If possible you should provide the items you feel would best be broken out separately. For a simple residential project I wouldn’t use more than five or six segments. For a project that includes several construction elements the list will be longer.

Mobilization (including permits), irrigation system, retaining walls, concrete, trees shrubs, mulch, cleanup are examples of some of the possible items to include. Use a breakdown that makes sense for your project. I have a list with over fifty items on it if you ever need more direction for your job.

In Part II I will discuss how to solicit contractors and how to analyze your bids.

Rees Cowden

http://www.greensideupblog.com/

No Brown Thumbs

How can I build a water garden cheap? I’ve been asked this question on several occasions, usually when I’ve presented a price for what a customer had asked me to build. Clients are usually surprised how expensive it can be to construct a well built, long lasting water feature. Water gardens can be problematic and on a large scale I won’t cut any corners which can mean expensive. For the do-it yourselfer there are definitely some tricks to building one.  I suggest one starts with a small, inexpensive water garden to test the water (pun intended, no boos please.). It can be a fun weekend project.

For beginners, and to keep it on the less expensive side, I suggest starting a water garden in a tub or pot rather than an in-ground pond. Half wine barrels make excellent containers and you can find them online pretty inexpensively. A collection of containers always makes a nice look too. If you are set on doing an in-ground water garden then my number one rule is do not skimp on the liner. NEVER try to get by using 3 ml black plastic from the hardware store. It will not work and your pond will leak, I promise. For free form shapes use flexible pond liner material over the bedding material it comes with and take your time to install it correctly.

The same material should be used to build container water gardens and is available at Home Depot or online.

You will also need a pump to circulate the water and increase the oxygen level in the water. The pumps you find at Home Depot, little giant or equal brand, work fine. My suggestion here is to read the pump literature to determine which pump fits your needs and then purchase the next size up. You can always dampen the water flow but you can not increase it and pumps get tired over time so I suggest you begin with a little larger one than you need.

You will need to create shelves or put stones or bricks in the planter so that your plants sit at the correct height for the particular plant. Plants vary on the level of submersion they require. I suggest you consult a good water gardening book for this information but don’t guess or your plants could suffer.

As for plants, there are several ways to start out. There are several online sources with good quality plants you can purchase. Most local garden centers won’t have a great selection that’s why I say to shop online. There are some garden centers that have a knowledgeable person with a good assortment of plants but it is they are the exception. Another good source for water plants is other water gardeners. In many cases they will be happy to offer you starter plants at no charge. Water plants are continually growing and need to be divided or they will over grow the garden so people are happy to give them away, especially to beginners. Try putting an ad on craigslist in your area and I bet you will be pleasantly surprised. I hope this helps.

Have fun with your project.

Rees Cowden

www.greensideupblog.com

Some Like it HOT!!!!

If April showers bring May flowers what do the May showers bring? Summer flowers of course. April May and June are the most well known months for prolific blooms but if you select the right plants the summer heat  can bring lots of color too. Here are few summer bloomers that really prefer it hot. Plant them now for a great splash of brightness until the temperature begins to cool.

The colors of the Verbena species are almost neon. They grow great in zones 3-11. Colors range from pale lavender to burgundy lilac, coral to pink. They like it hot and dry, making them a good choice for pots.

Lantana is another one that likes it hot and dry and comes in a multitude of bright colors.

The whole sage family does great in the heat and provides lots of color, in bright red, pink, lavander and blue. The hotter it is the happier sage is.

If you have the summer heat and the high humidity there are several other options to try.

Firecracker flower is a prolific summer bloomer and is also a good one for attracting hummingbirds and is deer resistant! It’s fine texture makes it useful for developing contrast in the garden, something I believe is crucial to a beautiful garden.

Mexican Butterfly bush (Buddlea davidii) is heat resistant, drought tolerant and a prolific bloomer as well as a great butterfly attractant. This one comes in white, blue and lavander.

You can see that there are several good summer blooming plants for hot locations. Make sure you plant them so that you can see them from inside, where it’s airconditioned.

Rees Cowden

No Brown Thumbs

(Garden photographers please read to end)

When you’re trying to decide what plants to use in your new landscape there are so many considerations to keep in mind. Soil conditions, sunlight exposure and eventual plant size are some easy factors to find solutions for. Your local garden center is one good source to help you through those decisions. I call those decisions functional as opposed to aesthetic decisions.

One important aesthetic factor I always consider is the visual effect of contrasting foliage patterns. Using contrast in the garden can totally change the look of a garden from boring to exciting. By contrasting, I mean the interest that is created by mixing bold and fine textured plants. Bold being plants those with large leaves and by fine texture I mean soft, small, or feathery foliage. The contrast between the two forms makes the plants really pop-out. I have seen so many gardens where there is little contrast and, to my eye, they could be improved greatly with the addition of a few bold leaved plants. It’s easier for me to show you what I mean rather than try to explain.

All you Garden Bloggers/ Photographers out there I need your help. If you have photos depicting contrasting leaf patterns please give me a link or send me a photo to add to this post. Thanks

Rees Cowden

My friend Trey over at the Golden Gecko Garden Center in Northern California always post some thoughtful articles. In his recent one he comments on the result of the economy on garden centers. http://www.thegoldengecko.com/blog/

I enjoyed his post and want to add one additional reason for people to shop at their local garden center right now…..saving money. The slow economy has caused many garden centers to drop their margins in order to pull people in, this means cost savings for the consumers. Over the last six months I have seen ads touting 50% off selected items, buy one get one free,  group pricing extended to a wider variety of plants, as well as offers of free delivery and installs. From a buyers stand point, if saving money is a priority now is a great time to be watching for those deals.
Rees Cowden

The approaching Spring brings with it one of my favorite flowers, Daylilies.

There has been so much hybridizing and cross breeding since the original Stella D’oro (yellow) that I can’t decide which ones I like best. Centerton Nurseries has introduced a new mustard-yellow one called ‘Mean Mister Mustard’ with a giant a six inch flower. I couldn’t find a photo on their site but here are a few others that I have seen and I like. The good thing about daylilies is that they are profuse bloomers and relatively low maintenance, only requiring cutting back once or twice each year. The flower performance is definitely worth the effort. FYI while I was on the Criterton site, I notice a very nice plant search form to help you select plants for particular locations. I put a link to the form under my RESOURCES tab at the top of this page.

Rees Cowden

Remember when your mother told you the importance of making a good first impression? Well, the best realtors understand the importance too. The first thing a potential buyer sees is the presentation of the home from the street and a big part of that is the landscaping. A well planned and maintained garden will go a long way in enhancing this initial impression. Here are a few easy tips that won’t cost you an arm and a leg.

• Fertilize the lawn. Use a fertilizer high in nitrogen for a quick green up.
• Prune and fertilize all the shrubs and trees.
• Rip out any half dead plants. Less is more.
• Add some simple urns or pots full of flowers on each side of the front door
• Create a small flower bed near the street if you don’t already have one
• Mow the lawn.
• Window boxes with colorful flowers are always a nice touch
• Add a mulch layer to all beds.

These simple steps should be relatively inexpensive if you don’t mind performing the labor yourself.

One other thought: some landscapers may be willing to do the work for you with the understanding that they will get paid when you sell the home. It can’t hurt to ask.

Rees Cowden