“Marilee Flowering Crabapple”
Heatherwood Crabapple Grove
We have had exceptional warm temperatures during the last couple of weeks. Our flowering trees are rapidly coming into full bloom, one right after another.
Last summer we created a small crabapple grove, planting seven different crabapple species. This is one of the first bloomers. All our trees are small, it is time to visit the Yakima Arboretum to see its premier grove of mature trees.
Pruned Roses
Heatherwood Spring
As the old saying goes, “When the forsythia blooms, it’s time to prune the roses.” Before I learned this bit of advice, I tended to wait too long to prune our roses. Now, I have an automatic alarm clock right next to our rose garden to remind me. The timing has been perfect.
Throughout the year, this is one of my favorite scenes. In the spring, the freshly pruned roses compliment the flowering star magnolia and our forsythia tree. In the summer, I overlook the colorful roses with the birch trees as a background. In the fall, the changing color of the birches and our neighbor’s apple trees add to the remaining roses. In the winter, I enjoy the contrast of the stark rose canes with the bare white limbs of the birches. And all year along, our neighbor’s white fence and pasture provide background interest.
“Hana Matoi Corner”
Heatherwood Spring
Spring planting is underway! We have set an ambitious project for this spring. However, it is much, much smaller than our projects over the last two years. The major hardscape projects have been completed. This year’s project is to fill in around the design that we have currently have in place. We will be adding about 40 trees, 150 shrubs, and a lot of perennials and ground covers. Gradually we will be filling in the understory of the garden. We hope to finish the bulk of the project by mid May instead of having it extend through the summer like we have for the past two years. We hope to spend much more time enjoying the garden as opposed to working every day developing it.
For the section shown in this image, we will be adding shrubs and ground covers to fill in the open barked areas.
Neighbor’s Pasture
Heatherwood Spring
The clouds make this infrared image of our neighbor’s pasture. We “borrow” this scene for our lower Heatherwood garden. We are surrounded on three sides (N,E, and W) by hills and look over a valley to the south. In the design of Heatherwood, we have opened up and framed vistas of the surrounding countryside. There is always something interesting to explore with our eyes and imagination.
“Perrotia Persica”
Heatherwood Spring
I take a stroll in our Heatherwood garden almost every day. As I walk around I casually enjoy the garden surroundings. I am always looking for something new emerging. I have had my eye on this Perrotia persica for about three weekends waiting for its tiny flower buds to form and bloom. We planted this tree last summer after it had bloomed. Seeing these tiny one-half inch flowers is a real treat. They are very short lived, my daily “inspections” paid off!
In our previous garden in Pennsylvania, we had a Perrotia for over ten years. I never saw the full bloom. Thank you Heatherwood!
“Cornelian Cherry Dogwood”
Heatherwood Spring
Early morning sunshine backlit this emerging Cornelian Cherry dogwood blossom. The bright yellow color burst immediately caught my eye as I was taking an early morning stroll with my camera. It started my day with a flash!
The Cornelian Cherry dogwood is the first tree to bloom in our Heatherwood garden. Soon our flowering pear, cherries, and crabapples will be blooming along with other dogwoods and redbuds. This will be the first year that several of our new trees will be in bloom. I will try to keep a record of the sequence that each species bloom.
“First Crocus and Chief Joseph”
Heatherwood Spring
Last autumn we planted around 3,000 bulbs. I gave my gardening partner the assignment to go plant bulbs scattered around the garden. She took me for my word and now we are seeing little surprises popping up all over. This is one of the first blooms of the season.
Our Chief Joseph Lodgepole Pine in its winter color gracefully watches over the baby crocus. It is like a guardian watching over its flock.
“Looking North Through Japanese Garden”
Heatherwood Winter
Work is about to start on our 2021 spring project at Heatherwood. Our garden will continuously change over time. Additions and modifications are designed to highlight key plants, frame views, and hide distractions. From the perspective of the above image, we want to focus the attention to the plants in the Japanese garden then draw the view to the 1890’s irrigation flume in the background. This year we plan to add medium sized Japanese holly evergreens to hide the road leading up the hill and mid-sized conifers to hide the bare hillside at the right of the image. These additions will provide a background layer for the Japanese garden as well as frame the irrigation flume in the distant background.
As we walk through our garden, we are content enjoying the current state of our existing plants. Concurrently we visualize how the plants will mature as well as look for new opportunities to enhance the garden. Change is an ever-present part of Heatherwood.
“Neighbor’s Cherry Tree”
Heatherwood Winter
On a crisp winter’s morning, I gaze out over the Heatherwood landscape. I look over our immediate landscape to the hills surrounding our grounds. My eyes stop and become fixated on our neighbor’s beautiful cherry tree. It is the last standing memory of a bygone cherry orchard of the past.
We frequently walk by the tree on the way to pick up the mail. We stop and admire the tree throughout the year. Zelda, our neighbor’s Black Labrador, frequently greets us yearning for a pet.
Witch Hazels
Longwood Gardens, Pennsylvania
When I was admiring our little witch hazels, my memory reflected back to the beautiful witch hazel grove in Longwood Gardens. The grove is comprised of mature yellow, orange, and witch hazels. It is a star attraction in mid-winter, especially when there is snow on the ground.
Longwood Gardens is a real treasure and a must see when in the Philadelphia area.