GardenArtist Posted September 2015
Gardening as therapy.
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Yes CWillie, landscapers use red twig because it grows fast and is readily available.
If you want a container planting, get a large container on wheels, and wheel it into a storage area for the winter. However, you would need space, and there's also the issue of the plant not getting water or fresh air.
The Victorians had the right idea - conservatories. But unfortunately, most of us don't have the funds or space to add a conservatory to our house. A greenhouse might work, but that's also dependent on funds and adequate space.
Another option is to grow it in a container, accepting that it will be a sacrificial but donor plant. Take cuttings in the fall and plant them in a protected area, then transplant them to the desired site. When the plant becomes too large, use it as a mother plant again.
But that's really not a great solution, unless you're really dedicated to have a red twig dogwood. I've considered it for making wreaths, although I don't know how supple the branches would be for that purpose.
A third option is to bonsai it. My aunt and uncle had an alpine nursery; she handled the alpines, he handled the bonsai evergreens. I wish I'd spent more time with them learning how to bonsai, as I want to try it with some maple seeds I have.
I've seen structures such as those old watering troughs used for bonsai; there might be something more practical though, such as a large planter box. I haven't done any bonsai-ing yet, so I don't have any good insight into the technique at all.
Is there any other place you could plant them, say as a windbreak? Given their rapid growth, they could provide cover for overwintering birds. Donation to a nature preserved might be another option. They could grow freely and shelter birds during inclement weather.
But the posts here reminded me of those years, when I was a Brownie, then a Girl Scout. I even saved my badge sash - it's packed away somewhere with precious mementos of childhood, hopefully along with my ballet and tap shoes which I could never wear now but instantly bring back memories of the studio where I took lessons for a while, until we moved away and transportation became an issue.
Does anyone who was a Girl Scout remember the Girl Scout Songs? I still have my GS songbook, as well as my GS knife (wouldn't be w/o it!) Handbook, and somewhere my compass.
After reading the Campfire posts last night, I couldn't help wandering down Girl Scout Lane and humming "High up, high on a mountain, we've founded our chalet." I could also envision beautiful Swiss mountains with pastoral sections, even a rural goat herd or two, massive peaks in the distance, and of course beautiful, contemplative weather which prompts one to just sit down on the grass and appreciate the beauty of nature.
Of course I had to research the song, of which I remembered only the first verse. But I was struck by the appropriateness, especially in these turbulent political times, of the last words.
"We'll go to Our Chalet
And this its dedication
Shall never fail nor be undone
Each race, each creed, each nation
Beneath its roof are one."
If only human integration as well as acceptance and tolerance for other cultures could be so easy and peaceful.
Send, Sharyn, and anyone else who might have commented, thanks for this trip down Memory Lane. It's a trip I plan to take more often now.
Your very poetic post is quite articulate and very clever in describing your unwanted invasion. Gave me some chuckles even as I was envisioning a scene from one of those programs on what happens after human made structures are abandoned and foliage takes over.
It might even be the basis for a sci-fi movie - there have been creeping blobs and other fantasies about unwanted and threatening invasions. Why not "Invasion of the Wisterias"?
On a more serious note, I'm wondering how the wisteria got through the bricks (?) or other material siding the house. I know that invasive vines can cling to brick, but I'm not sure about actually breaking through it. I suppose if the house and bricks were old, they would be more vulnerable.
If you want to make some money from it, I suppose you could take clippings and sell them at a farmer's market. And although I've never tried this, if you could clip it back to the entry point and terminate its existence there, that might help as well. Stripping the bark might help discourage it's adventurous growth and exploration, although bark is I think more vulnerable outdoors since it compromises sun protection.
I've used vinegar spray on outdoor weeds; it was mildly effective, but capped in a plastic bag might make it more so. Maybe your wisteria will find the environment unsuitable and not to its liking and go elsewhere.
Cwillie, we are zone 6-7 with some snow.
It might be a good idea to drive around your area with your eye on everyone's foundation plantings, you can get a better idea of what works for others and appeals to you. Local parks and shopping areas are also good places to get ideas on what is both practical and pretty since plantings there need to be almost indestructible.
Do not remember much at all, or how long the blue uniform was worn, so cannot comment on Campfire. Something sounds a bit familiar, can you explain it?
Knowing my mother, she worked, so the actual "commitment" to keep her daughters in Bluebirds may have been too much for her, did not meet her babysitting needs, or it was just a passing fancy. We did not have choices back then.
It looks slightly less glorious in my hall, which it has invaded and is making its purposeful way from behind the radiator there back towards the dining room window on one side and the drawing room window on the other. The landlord's agent is annoyed partly because she paid someone quite a lot of money to remove it the year before last (I'm sure they did their best) and partly because her own wisteria at her house, thoughtfully sited and lovingly tended, ailed and died. I've taken some cuttings of my unique indoor version for her while we wait for the next handyman to have a go at persuading it that it belongs outdoors and must stop burrowing in through the wall. We can't do anything very mean to it in case we hurt the parent plant which is a key feature of the courtyard in front, so I predict that I'll just have to learn to enjoy greeting it every morning as I come downstairs.
Gardeners' World, which you can probably get on BBC iPlayer, features the incomparable Monty Don as presenter; but Gardeners' Question Time on Radio 4 (Fridays/Sundays) is even older, just had its 70th birthday. Sadly it's nothing like as serious as it used to be but that's probably just me getting middle-aged and grumpy.
As taught to me in summer Bluebirds, as a child, instead of Brownies.
We sat outside to have our activities, planted a few seeds in a tiny red-clay pot.
Made potholders too.
That's exactly the kind of program I would LOVE.
I really miss Erica Glasener and another woman who used to host garden programs decades ago. Can't remember her name right now.
Thanks for the tip; I'll search and see if I can find some old episodes to watch.
There's even a hint of fall in the air in SoCal today with mild temps all week - I love it !
Okay, no more talk of Fall until CWillie's though with Summer! But you know, we gardeners can enjoy 2 seasons at a time - it's permissible! And one of our local supermarkets has fresh cider all year round now. What a treat!
And BTW, I found a beautiful new magazine, English Gardens. $6.99 at a local grocery store. It's stunning, ab-so-lute-ly stunning, and filled with photos of those magnificent English masterpiece gardens, beautiful roses tumbling over lovely trellises, parterres filled with massive plantings in delicate pastels, old redesigned castles and estates, and enough to exceed my sigh quotient for months.
I've seen half a dozen trees already competing to be the first and most colorful trees to display their autumn foliage. They're typically brilliant orange or red with blends of gold and fading green, and stand like an advance guard leading what is one of the most beautiful times of the year.
My thoughts have already turned to cider (well, and of course donuts!), and harvesting grapevines to make a fresh supply of wreaths. This year I'll decorate them with clippings from the arborvitae, juniper, and some of the volunteer maples if the foliage is golden or reddish.
A trip to the local park to check for pinecones is always a favorite and relaxing activity as well. This year I plan to plant some to see if they'll grow. I know that some need to be heat activated, but I really don't want to bake them; I've done that before to ensure that insects didn't snuggle in and set up housekeeping, but the odor of warming pine cones is not very pleasant.
And that reminds me; I have a collection of about 8 oz. of seeds from a beautiful red/burgundy maple that I have yet to plant. I might try to bonsai them, as I really don't want them to grow to full height - just not enough room in my narrow yard.
Has anyone ever bonsai'ed a tree? Any suggestions?
Another favorite activity as fall creeps in is going to Jo-Ann Fabrics and lazily perusing the special fall collection of costumes and home decorating. I haven't done this in a decade; maybe it's time for another fabric treat, if I can get in and out with just admiring, sighing and daydreaming but w/o buying more fabric.
I have more costume patterns than I could use unless I were to become a costumer for a theatre or operatic production, but I enjoy thumbing through the pages just to see what's available from new designs. One thing I do plan to do is make some medical scrub outfits - no buttons, no zippers, just wash and wear. They're great for gardening.
So, what are your fall plans? Mums to be planted? Crops still to be harvested, or a fall garden to be planted? Halloween plans? Big pumpkins and corn stalks (if Glad still has any!) to be tied to lampposts?
O what a beautiful morning!
A cheap way if the corn plot isn't really large is to poke branches, sticks or stakes in the ground, creating a corral around the corn, and secure a tarp around the stakes. If the barrier is higher than the stalks, most of the wind should generally blow the tarp around, but the stalks would have some protection.
That's not to say though that the wind won't just blow the entire barrier down. Winds have minds of their own and can get downright nasty!
I would be leery about trying to stand the corn upright, in my experience that often causes even more damage to the bent/broken spot. If it isn't too bad the corn may still manage to produce a crop anyway?
Fingers crossed that your corn is still viable and untouched by four legged creatures.