Mish Mashy Breakthroughs

Still recovering from so much fun during the holiday weekend, it seems a perfect time to jump into the milieu of Monica the Garden Faerie’s meme of Mish Mash Monday. Assorted non connected blooming is happening at the moment in the Fairegarden and what better way to present it than in this M-heavy forum. Let us begin with this little seed started zinnia. Foolish impatience and a general hyperactive personality led to the starting of seeds with the new heat mat and light set up in the greenhouse last winter that should have been sown directly outside after the soil warmed. Like so many others, the zinnias popped right up out of the seed starting mix heated from the mat below. They grew on happily under the grow lights until they became too large too quickly, like the rest of the seedlings. The only problem with this early success was running out of space in the sunroom/greenhouse while there were still frosts happening just on the other side of the windows. A cold frame was set up to try and transition the little plants. There were many many losses, sad to say, but a few hardy souls survived. The above peachy colored fellow, a favorite color here, has tiny blooms but is blooming and still growing. The strange thing is the color of the inner florets. Never before in the decades of zinnia growing have there been peachy tones to these true flowers. A breeding breakthrough? With the vast quantities of wealth spent on sunflower seed to feed our feathered friends during the cold months here it would be reckoned that many baby sunflowers would appear from spilled seeds. Research has added to the stockpile of facts gathered and held for future use in the soon to be non-cinnaberry cerebrum concerning the lack of sunflower seedlings rising hither and yon. It seems there is a seed germination inhibitor contained in the seeds to prevent world domination. A couple overcame this chemical and are blooming in the gravel paths. Another breeding breakthrough? On a shrub ordered years ago from the still Hinkley owned Heronswood that has been moved several times to find its happy place, (breath), can be seen the large black berries not prized for eating. With a name like chokeberry, it is not surprising that no creatures have dared taste the succulent fruit of Aronia melanocarpa ‘Viking’. Outrageously vivid fall foliage and a desire for outrageously vivid berries during the same season prompted this purchase. This may be the year to see the plan come to fruition. Yes, dear readers, another breeding breakthrough. Last year saw the frenzied collecting of the genus Crocosmia. Success with C. Lucifer spurred the searching for more cultivars of this wonderful plant. Good friend and fellow blogger Christopher of Outside Clyde generously added to the group with this unnamed beauty. Thanks again, Christopher! A breeding breakthrough for sure. Coleus ‘Inky Fingers’ in a purple pot with a resident Green Man lives in the protection from sun and some rain under the wooden ramp to the garage deck. The butterflies are taking their sweet time showing up at the Fairegarden this year. After the initial burst of Great Spangled Fritillary activity when the Asclepias first opened, the flying flowers have been sparse. Seeing the little jet winged skipper on the store bought Zinnia ‘Magellen Coral’ plants the seed of hope for more to come soon. With the daylilies winding down and the fall stars not yet ready for prime time, color is appreciated wherever it can be found. The gravel path near the garage deck, home to the magnificent row of deciduous azaleas that light up the spring garden, is a hodge podge, or should we say mish mash of plantings. Mexican Hat, Ratabidia columnifera is still trying on chapeaus, or should it be chapeaux? Jacob Cline monarda sports a double decker doozy of a bloom and the Asclepias is forming new buds for a rebloom. This combination is a real nightmare to those with particular and tasteful ideas of color usage in a garden setting. Tall Phlox Paniculata from neighbors Mae and Mickey, summer blooming Azalea, Rhododendron ‘Summer Lyric’ and came with the property orange tiger lilies front the Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Gold Mops’ hedge that runs parallel to the property line might win the prize for most garish sight, but…. … in an uncropped shot of the above described bed looking very much like a sea of green, all color is welcome. Even a mishy mashy non artistic rendition of non tasteful color combinations.
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Monday is laundry day at the Fairegarden household. There is little deviation from this assignment and it is relished as a new week begins without fail every seven days. Clean clothes, sheets and towels are welcome with such regularity. Can Mish Mash Monday join this agenda as a regular feature? Only time will tell, but finding a common theme of recent garden photos where there is none is cause for happiness and contented smiling while folding fresh sweet smelling fabrics.
Frances