Summer Love
The fleeting power of high-summer infatuation: Bedrock's Garish Garden
EARLY ONE MORNING LAST WEEK, my husband and I were ambling along the sunny and flamboyant Garish Garden, when a blaze of movement caused us to freeze. There, dancing around a golden smoke tree (Cotinus coggygria 'Golden Spirit'), were five rambunctious hummingbirds, the antics of which ground us to a halt.
We are no strangers to these sprites, but this lot was unlike any we’d seen. Twittering incessantly, they chased each other around the shrub and zipped to and fro the surrounding violet-hued delphinium (Delphinium exaltatum) and fire-y red crocosmia
We are no strangers to these sprites, but this lot was unlike any we’d seen. Twittering incessantly, they chased each other around the shrub and zipped to and fro the surrounding violet-hued delphinium (Delphinium exaltatum) and fire-y red crocosmia
"Find me if you can," said the hummingbird. (Crocosmia x crocosmiflora 'Lucifer'). Every few minutes, one would zoom out like a fighter jet over the Grass Acre, the others in hot pursuit, only to all return to start the hijinks again. (Have I mentioned this place is magical?) We stood, enthralled, for a good 20 minutes before the birds had had enough and moved on. Despite our efforts to catch the speedy buggers on camera, the photos all came out like a game of hide-and-seek.
So full of color and life, Bedrock’s Garish Garden with its trademark crocosmia is one of Jill Nooney’s favorite areas of Bedrock, especially in summer. (Here is more about this stunning perennial.)
So full of color and life, Bedrock’s Garish Garden with its trademark crocosmia is one of Jill Nooney’s favorite areas of Bedrock, especially in summer. (Here is more about this stunning perennial.)
Pollinators abound in the Garish Garden We could see why, for while we stood there gawking, all manner of pollinators buzzed on the flora around us. Its location is also ideal: perfectly situated to offer a panorama of the greater landscape surrounding it. It’s a burst of color and glory in the center of what’s to come.
As we discovered with our hummingbird encounter, Garish is “full of surprises and variety,” says Kerri Ridolfi, who despite being a longtime “Hands in the Dirt” volunteer at Bedrock, always finds whimsy and the unexpected here. But that’s only part of the reason it works for Jill. It also has constancy: “There are vignettes that I’m very fond of, that work all the time,” explains Jill.
As we discovered with our hummingbird encounter, Garish is “full of surprises and variety,” says Kerri Ridolfi, who despite being a longtime “Hands in the Dirt” volunteer at Bedrock, always finds whimsy and the unexpected here. But that’s only part of the reason it works for Jill. It also has constancy: “There are vignettes that I’m very fond of, that work all the time,” explains Jill.
One such grouping toward the middle of Garish Garden offers both: You’ll find the unusual and oddly interesting shrub, False hemp (Datisca cannabina), along with tried-and-true perennial standards. Datisca’s “long-stemmed branches arch and trickle down these inflorescences that remind me of the beaded curtains we used in college,” says Jill.
She’s not alone in this thinking. Plant Delights Nursery describes the shrub this way: “This native from Crete to Pakistan…[is] topped with long, contorted pendent spikes of tiny yellow flowers...think Janis Joplin's hair after a week-long inebriated binge. While Datisca cannabina is only 2 feet wide at the base, the arching stems, clothed with marijuana-like leaves, open to 6 feet wide at the top...insanely cool and it will drive the cops crazy!”
She’s not alone in this thinking. Plant Delights Nursery describes the shrub this way: “This native from Crete to Pakistan…[is] topped with long, contorted pendent spikes of tiny yellow flowers...think Janis Joplin's hair after a week-long inebriated binge. While Datisca cannabina is only 2 feet wide at the base, the arching stems, clothed with marijuana-like leaves, open to 6 feet wide at the top...insanely cool and it will drive the cops crazy!”
In Jill’s palette, the far-out fringe inflorescences reach down to touch the native purple (‘purpurea'), white (‘alba’) and yellow (‘paradoxa’) echinacea; butter-yellow daylilies (Hemerocallis 'Mary Todd'); and cheery daisies, which together project a very groovy, flower-power image.
Another Steady Eddie in the Garish repertoire is located at the end that's opposite the Swaleway. Here, Jill plays with contrasting but complementary textures, as well as shades of purple and green. You’ll find the tall, billowy bronze fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) anchored by solemn purple ninebark diablo (Physocarpus opulifolius 'Diablo'), purple and white echinacea, golden bupleurum (Bupleurum rotundifolium ‘Green Gold’), burgundy clematis (Clematis viticella 'Walenburg'), and frilly ‘Winterbor’ purplish-green kale. The collection offers steadfastness and harmony, and is a wonderful bookend to the livelier combinations further in.
Another Steady Eddie in the Garish repertoire is located at the end that's opposite the Swaleway. Here, Jill plays with contrasting but complementary textures, as well as shades of purple and green. You’ll find the tall, billowy bronze fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) anchored by solemn purple ninebark diablo (Physocarpus opulifolius 'Diablo'), purple and white echinacea, golden bupleurum (Bupleurum rotundifolium ‘Green Gold’), burgundy clematis (Clematis viticella 'Walenburg'), and frilly ‘Winterbor’ purplish-green kale. The collection offers steadfastness and harmony, and is a wonderful bookend to the livelier combinations further in.
The breadth and scope of Bedrock--from its acreage and diversity of plant life, to its vast collection of art that gets both hidden and revealed through the seasons--makes it difficult to choose one area that is a favorite. All morph to take on different characteristics throughout the seasons.
Jill shared her summer love with us; stay tuned for Bob’s take on the subject next. We'd love to hear from you, too, in the comment section below: What are your favorite areas and seasons at Bedrock?
Jill shared her summer love with us; stay tuned for Bob’s take on the subject next. We'd love to hear from you, too, in the comment section below: What are your favorite areas and seasons at Bedrock?
I'm Lisa Peters O'Brien, a.k.a., the Bedrock blogger. I hope you'll stop in to "Digging Deeper" often, or subscribe here, for behind-the-scenes looks of what makes Bedrock Gardens rock and grow. Is there something you'd like to know? Ideas, comments, and questions are welcome. If you like what you read, please comment and share!
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