A SIMPLE BENCH UNDER A SINGULAR TREE

Sometimes a tree will oblige your garden with an amazing surprise. It's up to you to recognize such a gift and honor the tree's efforts. 

At the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, NC such a gift was presented by an aging Hinoki Cypress. Hedera colchica  (Persian Ivy) was planted under that tree by JC Raulston himself around thirty years ago.

Lower branches were removed as the tree's suckers expanded beyond the original trunk and a path was cut through the Ivy and mulched. 

Adding a simple wooden bench was all that was needed to complete this garden in a woodland of a single species. 

LATE SUMMER'S LEAF DAMAGE

LATE SUMMER'S LEAF DAMAGE

I'm afraid I won't be much help in identifying what exactly is munching on many of the leaves in the garden this time of year, but I find it curious as the light is slightly waning and the Tulip Poplar trees are characteristically shedding their leaves that many woodland plants, ornamental introductions and natives, look to be partially eaten.  Here are some images to ponder. 

Above native Violet leaves on the left and hybrid Heuchera 'Autumn Bride' on the right. Both are somebody's lunch or dinner! 

 

Phlox paniculata on the left should have been cut back weeks ago so it is showing mildew and leaf holes. The Variegated Solomon's Seal on the right began looking poorly when we had a couple of weeks of high heat and no rain. Plants that are stressed are targets for predators. 

A medley of natives with holes and munch marks around the edges. Clockwise from top left:  Jewelweed, Heart's a Bustin' and Wood Aster. 

A deciduous Holly with what looks like leaf minor damage. 

Invasive Poison Ivy was tasty to a brave creature. I say, "Have at it!"

Native Persimmon on the left and Cornus Mas on the right are also an inviting treat to something. 

I saw a wooly Aphid on the back of the sickly looking Fatsia japonica leaf (above left).  On the same plant sitting above it in the main growing stalk is a perfect shiny dark green leaf as it should look. The damaged leaf is older and it may be that it's time to be sacrificed to one of Nature's insects. 

Fungus spots show up this time of year also. Here on a Dwarf Red Twig Dogwood, Cornus kelseyi, with too much sun and not enough moisture as well as being in acidic sandy soil tolerates its misplacement. It spreads slowly and its beautiful thin stems shimmer red in the winter. You don't see this for sale much in retail nurseries because of the fungus. But, it is a beautiful 2' tall  suckering ground cover shrub without fungus damage when it has ample shade and water in the landscape. 

When native Itea virginica suffers nutrient deficiencies (here a yellow leaf with green veins crying out for some chelated iron in my acid soil) it is unfairly attacked. 

Corelopsis spicata's leaves are browning and curling. This is not insect damage. I suspect heat and water issues. 

And finally, the 'Darling' ornamental of any garden in woodlands are the huge selection of Hosta cultivars. They are  specific in their needs but always will attract the evil night stalker, THE SLUG. I went out at 4am to see if I could pick some off and found this little friend waiting for, I can only hope, a breakfast of baby slugs. This frog has to wait until the creature eats a hole and pokes through the leaf before it can have it's early morning repast.

So, I'll continue raking the falling Tulip Poplar leaves off the paths in August and not worry too, too much while nature has its way with the declining leaves of late summer. 

BUDS BERRIES AND A FEW WIERD SEED CAPSULES ARE SHOWING OFF

Tulip poplar leaves are beginning to shed their leaves right in step with the migration of Monarch butterflies. The leaves flutter down in the wind alongside the butterflies of August making their way to cover the dry (at this time if year) soil in an effort to protect the tree's roots. And now as we are rewarded with a few cooler mornings to amble along garden paths in the woodland I am observing some decorative and some not so decorative plants that are showing next Spring's leaf and flower buds.  

An unusual evergreen Rhododendron with narrow blue rippled foliage has crumpled chartreuse buds. R. linearifoiium is called Spider Azalea because the bright lipstick pink flowers have many narrow petals. 

Rhododendron australis leaves will fall off for the winter but the buds you see here are still expanding and will decorate the tree for the cold months of winter. 

Rhododendron maximum below will sometimes hold flower parts through the summer looking for all the world like a big green spider taking a tour of it's territory. 

Rhododendrons always reward us with sentinel buds nestled into a whirl of leaves that remain on the plant through frosty temperatures.  Many of you may know that R. Maximum is a great visual weather gauge. The leaves droop down when the temperature drops below freezing. Below is another plant whose leaves do the same. My mother planted Viburnum rhytidophyllum outside the kitchen sink window as a quick reminder of weather conditions in the morning so she would know to tell us how to dress for our mile long walk to school. I like the unusual furry brain shaped buds siting in a cluster of future leaf buds. 

Below, buds along the zig zag stems of Corylopsis stand out especially when the leaves have all fallen away for the winter

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Most of us associate the summer into fall season with a fine berry crop or the odd seed capsule on those plants we plan to cut and bring in for the coming holidays: Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

Shown below are some of the not yet ripe fruiting bodies of shrubs and trees that are thriving in my gardens in the forest. 

 Above, the berries of Viburnum dilitatum 'Asian Beauty' will turn a bright red. Watch out for random seedlings of this plant throughout your garden if you add it  into your woodland. Native plant aficionados have given fair warning about it's sometimes pernicious self seeding. 

Sitting behind a Paw Paw tree sucker the berries of Lindera aggregata or L. strichnifoila (Japanese Evergreen Spicebush) will become a lustrous blue/black. You may find the healthful properties of this plant as fascinating as I have.... Give it a Google. Woodlanders Nursery in Aiken, SC USA is a good mail order source for this beautiful plant. 

Another great evergreen shrub in a Genus with many cultivars to choose from for leaf form, texture and variegation is Aucuba. Above see the cluster of olive sized green berries on this female plant. They will grace your garden through the winter with a touch of bright red as the berries mature. 

Fun Fall purple berries which these green balls along the stems will become are on the shrub American Beautyberry, Callicarpa americana.  Coming upon them when ripe always stimulates conversation. Birds love this treat and if discovered before you when ripe by a feathered friend the fruit will be stripped in a matter of days. 

Ripening sculptural seed structures add interest this time of year. Below are olive green seed capsules of Stewartia monodelpha floating above a stand of 'Snowflake' Oakleaf Hydrangea. 

Knobby velvety clusters alternating on Arnold's Promise Witch hazel' horizontal branches really are seed capsules!

And of course it's impossible to miss the beautiful 'Faberge' egg like seed head of our Southern Magnolias. These are smallish compared to ones on full sized cultivars available on Little Gem Magnolia. 

Time to get out and discover the fruits of natures bounty in your gardens in woodlands. Above, on the same shrub, Pieris 'Valley Valentine' displays the drooping brown remains of past spring flowers and at the top of the plant cascading buds to grace this loveliest of plants through winter. 

 

LITTLE BITS OF COLOR OTHER THAN AUGUST'S 100'S OF GREENS

Annabelle Hydrangea flowers take a mid summer turn to pale green from purest spring white. 

August greens press in as we Southern gardeners endure the last month of summer.  The odd pops of color or stand alone white flower stalks and leaf shapes here and there along the garden paths really make a difference in the woodland garden experience.  Above,  the last of a pink flowering phlox droops over Holly Fern, Oxalis, Sedum and Tricyrtis. All these plants seeded here on their own making a lovely natural grouping near the house foundation. 

Spring hydrangea flowers don't drop off their growing tips but dry on the shrubs. They turn different colors on different species. Above, Hydrangea serrata 'Presiosa' turns a luscious dusty rose. Below, the dripping panicles of an  Oak leaf Hydrangea cultivar, H.  quercifolia 'Snowflake' turn a beautiful buff brown from the stem up. 

Two other summer blooming Hydrangeas are H. paniculata 'Tardiva' (above) standing 10' tall in a side garden in a mixed planting of conifers and ground covers. And below, see a close up of the panicles H.'Limelight'. The species (2nd)  name of these hydrangeas is paniculata and directly translates to describe the shape and type of the blooming structure. The mostly upright flowering panicles stand out against the crisp blue green foliage of these two cultivars. 

Below, tiny tubular flower clusters on the ends of Abelia chinensis appear just in time to provide nectar to Black  Swallowtail and Monarch butterflies. 

(Above) It's impossible to miss the lavender tinted white trumpets of bloom on 'Honey Pie' Hosta, shown on the left, at this time of year and the 4" long pure white fringed flowers of Hosta 'Guacomole' on the right.  I have them both elevated to be able to better enjoy the display. If the leaves aren't enough to satisfy then the exploding flower stalks surely will please the most disinterested visitor passing by. 

This year I planted green edged White  Caladium in two places that I pass everyday. The huge leaves are a beacon in the garden on moonlit nights. 

On the other end of the size spectrum, 

dripping out of a chair planter is a delicate snow dusting of Euphorbia 'Diamond Frost' that gets 1/2 sun with ambient reflected light from a concrete driveway. 

Two Begonias, one hardy and the other a annual provide pink spots floating above their foliage. The hardy begonia with the large leaf on the right is fertile and will multiply by seed. 

Pink is also picked up in Coleus foliage. I let some of the flower spikes stay on for the Hummingbirds. 

Deep purple leaves of Oxalis triangularis regnellii and an almost black Heuchera (below) create a visual depth when placed next to brighter leaves with interesting textures. 

A singular stem of a variegated Canna pushes out the first of many orange glazed flowers.  I can watch them expand from my kitchen window. 

When all seems only green there are other ways to brighten up the garden scene.  Above, a metal sculptural flower and below, a patterned platter brighten up dull shady areas. 

However, the most interesting piece of color in my garden is set in a screen behind a destination swing. It is one of 8 identical triangles that made up part of a stained glass conservatory roof. 

Get creative and get some color in your August Gardens in Woodlands.