Stump

 

We're still Abnormally Dry here, though that might finally change on next week's drought map.  Yesterday, an amazing sight in the garden:  a puddle.

Current project is the Pittosporum 'Ivory Sheen' removal.  Down to the stump.  Getting all the branches and twigs into the green waste bins took several days. 

It's surprising how removing the Pitto opened up the area again, making it seem vastly more spacious.  One new thing to do is get the Stephanotis vine growing properly up over the pergola.  There was no room to access the Stephanotis when the Pitto was there. 

More to see from the chairs under the Pergola again. 
On the other hand, another stump to get out.  At least the area is pretty flat, and the soil is very soft.  

A few months ago I'd chopped the sad 'Marjorie Channon' hedge on the north side of the pergola down to shortened bare trunks in preparation for removal during the warm, dry winter that had been forecast.  That forecast proved wrong.   The Marjories responded by pushing out a gobsmacking amount of new growth. 

Rain is magic: 

So, they get a reprieve.  Long term, I doubt their ability to be healthy, but they deserve to live to enjoy the rain they got this winter. 

Next to the Marjories,  Salvia 'Amistad' is waking up.  This photo displays the many beauties of 'Amistad':  the rich green, textured foliage, the shiny black bracts that encase the rich purple flowers:

Elsewhere in the garden, the Iris are become this moment's show.

The first TB Iris of the year, 'Cobra's Eye'...or is that 'Merlot Magic'?  

More buds and blooms appearing from the Dutch Iris:


This one seems to be giving the camera a quizzical look:
A surprise rose--'Golden Celebration'.   A bit battered by the end of winter, but sunshine on a cloudy day:

And a Hellebore float--it was raining too much to collect flowers for a bloom day photo:
More rain forecast for this week.  Besides the rain, what's up here is stump. 


Comments

  1. Wouldn't it be great to be completely out of drought conditions? We have a lot of snow right now so I am hoping it will be the same for us this year. With softer soil I imagine moving and removing things will be somewhat easier. Lots of great things happening in your garden.

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    1. It would be so great to have a few years straight of good rain. Wouldn't it be lovely? :)

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  2. We've removed a few shrub stumps and they are never easy. Don't envy you. We've left some tree stumps as pedestals for ceramic pots and just let them slowly die down. An easy solution. Love those Hellebore flowers. Mine are just starting to push up.

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    1. I had a couple tree stumps in out of the way places--they were gone in a decade. I'd leave that one but it's in a place I want to re-plant.

      Hellebores are wonderful!

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  3. It would be great if we could get completely out of the drought on the west coast, but with El Niño in effect, looks like we are in for more dry dry dry. Sigh. Working on digging post holes through tree roots here, so I sympathize with the stump removal chore. It still feels good when it is done though.

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    1. For now I'm just happy to be grateful we had a wonderful wet winter.

      Post holes through tree roots sounds brutal. Worse than a stump, maybe--because it can be a lot of posts. You'll be an expert at it when you are done. Though you may never want to do that again!

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  4. Busy, busy. And a puddle: yay! I love 'Amistad.' Many people around here grow it as an annual.

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    1. I went and got the camera to take a picture of the puddle, but by the time I got back, it was gone.

      'Amistad' is somewhat of a thuggish spreader here, but soooo gorgeous. And hummingbirds--making it mandatory.

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  5. Based on your sunny photos, I'm guessing you took advantage of the sunny Saturday we had :) I cut one Pittosporum 'Silver Magic' back last year in the hope it'd regenerate but I guess the rain came too late to prompt a comeback from that one - I expect it doesn't help that the ivy that relentlessly creeps up from the neighbor's side of the property line is choking it. I hope the rain helps, not hinders, your stump removal.

    I spotted the first blue tip on one of my Dutch Iris this weekend! The Pacific Coast Iris have already gotten started. I'm not holding my breath about the bearded Iris but I did make a point of fertilizing them this year.

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    1. Sorry to hear your 'Silver Magic' did not prove successful. Such a beautiful shrub.

      Those Iris are fast, aren't they? One day no bud, next day, the bud is there. I hope you get some TBI flowers--seems like even one application of fertilizer plus all that rain should do it.

      Yes Saturday was really sunny, and too warm, actually. I did a bit more digging on the stump but yesterday was showery/drizzly and we're at .23" rain since midnight--total now 20.06"(!) Dew point 55F/temperature 55F so moisture is simply falling out of the air.

      No stump work for a while now. Thursday, maybe.

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  6. An emerging bud of a TB Iris has mesmerizing colors... I'm always staring at it with fascination.
    When Salvia 'Amistad' shows up in the neighborhood nursery it gets snapped up immediately even though it isn't cold hardy around Seattle. I sometimes wonder if I should give in to its charms, fleeting as they may be.
    Chavli

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    1. I wonder 'Amistad' grown in a big pot and stored in a garage or basement over the winter might come back the following spring? Or grown in the ground, heavily mulched? It puts down a heck of a root system with woody tubers. 'Black and Blue' vanishes for the winter and comes back strong in the spring. That's even more of a thug--can't get rid of it.

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  7. You have the benefit of warmer temps in conjunction with the rain. That makes a big difference!

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