Gardening is one continuous ring of hope.
By Lorraine Kiefer
As I look out the window this morning it is sunny and the old triple oak tree still has some rust colored leaves despite the winds a couple days back. Although most of the annuals are frosted there are a few that were in protected spots that are still blooming. I guess the frost we had was not that hard and the temperatures have not gone very far below freezing. It is only a short time until winter is officially here and then the hours of daylight gradually increase each day. It is the long dark days more than cold that I dislike this time of the year.
I looked up several Polish honey cookies recipes on Google to make for bee and honey class that my son Joe did for our open house. It was fun to try different ones, some easy and one quite detailed. Making Pierniczki honey spice cookies is an old tradition that is much loved in Poland.
The Polish city of Torun, has been famous for its special cookies and cakes piernik since the Middle Ages. I enjoyed making them and the wonderful warm smell on a chilly night was so welcoming in our kitchen.
The wreath shed is full of greens and the little wood stove is glowing. Another favorite fragrance is that of the greens! It is so wonderful to know that since childhood some things never change. I have loved wreath time since I was a kid. I first taught others to make wreaths as a 4-H member and bet I have taught more than a 1,000 people how to make a wreath since then.
It is important to me to have many different kinds of beautiful evergreens in our gardens to both color the yard in winter as well as to provide materials for the wreaths. A quick walk around the gardens today was so enjoyable. Beautiful Camellia are in bloom and on warm afternoons there may be bees on them. There are still roses blooming and some witch hazel are blooming too. The evergreens glisten in the sun and add so much energy to a landscape. I cut some shiny leaves of the nandina and southern magnolia to add sparkle to arrangements and wreaths. I cut a bit of spruce, some fir, and some dark green beautiful hinoki cypress or Chamaecyparis obtusa. Love to mix these evergreens together.
Helleborus blooms Helleborus is really early flowering perennial that usually blooms in late December through January for starters. There are several different kinds. But the first to bloom is the Hellebores niger or Christmas rose. The one that blooms a month or so later is Helleborus orientalis, often called the Lenten rose. For variety try the green foetidus. Often times the plants will cross-pollinate in your garden and in the spring you will have a new and unusual variety. Many times several different shades might be found on one plant.
This plant is as far from a rose as one can get. It is a low growing evergreen perennial that likes a shady, somewhat woodsy environment. Not an outrageously showy plant, this dependable evergreen is a delightful winter blooming plant for a shady, perennial border. It is a good companion for all the spring bulbs and the early perennials Virginia bluebells and wild flowers. Later on hosta and astilbe, which are much later to come up and bloom, look handsome near the hellebores. Thus, all account for color at very different times. These do well in my garden and look really good most of the year. Each fall I try to add a few more to shady areas.
The dark green, shiny evergreen leaves of Helleborus give the garden a finished look all winter. Helleborus spreads moderately once they become established. Since dividing them usually sets them back for more than a year, it is best to allow them to reseed and then dig the small plants once they are at least two years old. Always move them early in the spring as they are best transplanted before they are in active growth. They grow better in the ground than in pots, so we try to wait until the plants look sturdy and healthy, but aren't too established before we dig any of them up to pot.
A two-year-old plant will usually bloom the next year after being transplanted. A time-release fertilizer applied early in the spring will ensure a nice healthy plant. Since they don't like a real damp soil, avoid heavy mulch if the soil is already on the wet side. Light mulch however is good to keep a sandy loam cool and woodsy. Compost and composted leaves work wonders for these plants. Too much sun will cause the leaves to brown, so choose a spot with morning sun or mostly shade.
You can plant some now along with a few new wildflowers that will pop up early in spring. You can still plant most plants until the ground freezes. They hardly know they are moved and will have new root growth all winter.
Do you have bulbs that you forgot to plant. Do it now! Better late than never. They will dry and shrivel if you wait till spring.
I hope to plant the leftover garlic left in the shop. Luckily garlic only had to go in a small trench a few inches deep.
My vegetable garden was invaded by critters that got the last radishes, beets and whatever else was still there. The last beets are always so good and the radishes always so crisp when it is cool out. In March we will be planting them again. Gardening is one continuous ring of hope.
Want to make a wreath. Wreath classes, four people an hour, Dec. 2-5. Call 856-694-4272 to register.
Lorraine Kiefer is the owner and operator of Triple Oaks Nursery in Franklinville. She can also be reached by e-mail at Lorraine@tripleoaks.