Author Archives: Ashland Garden Club

June Garden Tour

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A Gathering of Gardeners Passionate About Growing Things in Ashland, Oregon

On Monday club members toured six member’s gardens and discovered the creativity, passion and diversity in each member’s landscaping style!  The tour included two small gardens tastefully landscaped with flowering plants & art, a medium-sized garden revamped and transformed into an tranquil garden, a splendid pollinator & waterwise garden full of color and pollinators, a lovely Ashland hills landscape surrounded by trees with lots of rockery and cool private sitting areas, and a colorful English-style garden nestled along a  babbling creek.

It was a beautiful fun day.

Garden of the Month: June 2019

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265 Ohio Street

There are several nice garden surprises at the unpaved end of Ohio Street, northwest of Laurel.  One is the fabulous garden and fence at 265 Ohio Street.  This garden, designed and maintained by Gene Leyden, is the Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the Month for June.  This is a naturally wet parcel (note the giant pond next door) where dampness- and shade-loving plants thrive and carefully placed sun-loving plants also flourish.  Gene planted the willow tree, now enormous (14 feet in circumference!), when she moved in with her family in 1987, transporting it to the site from the nursery in the back of the Volkswagon bus.  Garden observers can walk or drive down the alley to the right of the house to get more views.

In addition to the prospering plant life, there are remarkably beautiful constructions by Gene’s friend, the artist and carpenter Nathan Sharples.  Look carefully at the gorgeous fence, installed only three years ago.  Note the unusual wooden screen door.  Now catch a glimpse of the fabulous gazebo in what appears to be the back yard but is actually the front of the house which was moved to this location shortly before Gene moved in.   Sharples built the gazebo of many species of wood, rarely using straight planks, but fitting curved pieces together with exquisite workmanship.  Multicolor glass in clerestory windows adds light to the interior.

Also salted throughout the garden are sculptures by Gene’s friend Cheryl Garcia, as well as other items of interest.

Gene has the advantage of access to Helman ditch water.  She has had to amend the soil over the years because the site was ill-used before she (and the house) arrived.  She refers to it as a “wild garden” that reseeds itself each year and “does its own thing.”.  She insists that she doesn’t spend as much time working on it as its beauty suggests, and she does have help now with weeding and mowing.  Gene says she has a special fondness for fragrance in the garden and chooses many plants on that basis, including roses, jasmine and nicotiana.

Among the many highlights in the garden are a selection of huge hostas loving their location under the willow, Lady Banks and Cecile Brunner roses climbing through the vegetation, and a smoke tree and smoke bush lending their rich dark foliage as contrast to the riot of greens plus colorful blossoms.  There’s a little bit of everything here. This is clearly the work of people of great imagination, especially the primary gardener.

Article by: Ruth Sloan

Attracting Pollinators: Part 3

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Food:  A pollinator garden, with carefully chosen plants, will provide pollen and nectar for pollinators, but you can also supplement with special feeders for birds, hummingbirds, and even butterflies with Butterfly Feeders.

Water:  Birds, bees, butterflies, all living creatures need water!

 Make a Butterflies mud puddle!
For butterflies:  Butterflies are attracted to water along the edge of rivers and creeks, which provides them with salt and nutrients. You can create a “mud puddle” watering station for them. Use a shallow dish such as a plastic or terracotta plant saucer in a sunny area of your garden that is protected from the wind. Fill the bottom of the pan with sand, gravel, and a few small stones, add water to the dampen sand.

Bees: Bees drink water, but they also gather up to a gallon of water a day in hot weather to create “air conditioning” to cool the hive. Bees can drown while gathering water, so it’s important to provide them an escape; this can be done by adding pebbles, rocks, wood, or other types of “bee rafts” into a dish of water, birdbath or bucket of water. Bee rafts can be anything that floats like wine corks, small pieces of wood even packing peanuts.

Birds: provide a bird bath, a dish of water, install a water garden or a fountain.

Submitted by: Carlotta Lucas

Attracting Pollinators: Part 2

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 Grow Organically

Pesticides, even organic ones, can be toxic to bees, beneficial insects, birds, animals and other organisms.  If you must use pesticides then take the organic approach, it’s a safer method.   You can also work with nature to control pests and diseases by using plant ecology and soil management, such as planting disease-resistant plants, practice companion planting, rotating your plants in the vegetable garden, and applying organic fertilizers and mulch. These methods create a healthier garden thereby creating strong plants and creating unfavorable conditions for pests.

Shelters

All pollinators need shelter to hide from predators, get out of the elements and rear their young.

Ways to create shelters:

  1. Leaving a dead tree standing for butterflies, native bees and birds to make homes.
  2. In the fall don’t rake your leaves out of your flowerbeds. Many beneficial insects use leaves for winter protection. You can shred your leaves then put them back into your flowerbeds as mulch, this benefit plants, worms and insects.
  3. Also in the fall, leave dead flowers standing. Many beneficial insects hibernate or lay eggs on flower stems and leaves. Birds also feed on the seeds, so wait until spring to clean out your flowerbeds.
  4. Provide undisturbed spaces for pollinators to overwinter. Leave a log, or a pile of pruned branches lying on the ground in a sunny location, even a pile of leaves can create a winter shelter.
  5. Providing a natural habitat is best, but creating artificial nesting boxes are can be helpful to pollinators, especially in the case of Mason bees, bats and some birds.
    • Mason bees will use a wooden block for nesting if it has the

      Insect house in Parkend, the Forest of Dean, UK (photo from Wikipedia)

      proper-sized holes drilled into it, or you can build a fancier Mason Bee House.

    • For mosquito control buy or build a Bat House.
    • Click here for Birdhouse Plans
    • Butterfly houses can be built or purchased but they are less successful than creating natural habitats.

Attracting Pollinators: Part 1

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Any size garden can attract pollinators by carefully selecting flowering plants that provide a succession of blooms throughout the growing season but, before you buy plants, research which pollinators are native to your region, and then choose a selection of plants to support a variety of pollinators.

Some examples of host plants for butterflies:

  1. American Lady Butterfly: Pearly Everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea) also provides nectar for Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) and a variety of other butterflies.
  2. Anise Swallowtails: Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), Dill, Parsley, Carrot tops
  3. Chalcedon Checkerspot Butterfly: Snowberry (Symphoricarpos), Pacific Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), Ocean Spray (Holodiscus)  and Wild Lilac (Ceanothus) -all these plants are used by birds & wildlife, too.
  4. Common Checkered-Skipper: Hollyhocks and Mallows: Malvas, Hibiscus, Lavatera trimestris   
  5. Gray Hairstreak: Lupines (Lupinus)
  6. Monarch (Danaus plexippus): Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), Showy milkweed (Asclepias speciosa), Heart-leaf Milkweed (Asclepias purpurascens)
  7. Painted Lady Butterfly: Globe Thistle, Hollyhock, Sunflower
  8. West Coast Lady: High Mallow ( Malva sylvestris) and Marshmallow (Althaea officinali)
  9. Western Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly: Willow trees (Salix scouleriana) Also used by Mourning Cloak & Lorquin’s Admiral butterflies.

Resources:     Southwestern-Oregon-butterfly-garden-guide.pdf

Oregon.gov/ODF/CreatingAButterflyGarden.pdf

Submitted by: Carlotta Lucas

Deer – Resistant Salvias

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Attract Hummingbirds, Butterflies, Moths and Bees. Waterwise easy care plants. Flowers colors vary:  white, red, pink , orange , purple, blue, cream  and a mixture of these  colors. Exposure: Full Sun,/Part Sun.

Salvia Microphylla

 Salvia Microphylla:  aka Baby sage.  Outstanding plants with stunning flowers.  Prolific bloomer from spring until fall.   Low water needs.  Height 24-36, depends on variety. USDA Hardiness Zone: 7-11.   Varieties to look for:  ‘Hot Lips’, ‘Red Velvet’, ‘Kew Red’,   ‘Killer Cranberry’, ‘Mesa Azure’

Salvia nemorosa:  aka- Woodland Sage or Balkan Clary. Easy to grow, drought tolerant,  but plant blooms better with average moisture.  Blooms spring, summer, and fall depending on variety.  Height 16-36 inches. USDA Hardiness Zone 3-8. Varieties to look for:  ‘Pink Profusion’, ‘Violet Profusion’, ’White Profusion’ , ‘Pink Dawn’, ‘Caradonna’ (purple) , ‘Blue by You’.  

Salvia elegans Scarlet

Salvia elegans: Pineapple Sage – Bright red exotic flowers attract hummingbirds! Leaves can be used as a culinary herb and have a slight pineapple or citrus taste.   USDA Hardiness Zones 8-10.

Fall Blooming Tall Varieties: Pineapple scented leaves. USD Hardiness Zones 9-10. Variety favorites:  ’Scarlet Pineapple’ 36”Tall,    and  ‘Rockin’® Golden Delicious’  (yellow leaves),  48” tall.

Spring Blooming/Shorter Varieties:  ‘Honey Melon’, 24” tall, blooms late spring, small leaves have a wonderful fruity scent similar to honeydew melon. USDA Hardiness Zones 9-10

’Tangerine Pineapple Sage’ 18” tall, small citrus-scent leaves, blooms mid-spring through fall.  USDA Hardiness Zones 8-10

Salvia greggii:  aka Autumn Sage.  Native to the SW Texas. Good for hot sunny locations and low water gardens, prolific bloomers.  Blooms summer through fall.  USDA Zone: 6-10.  (Hardiness varies by variety.) Best known variety Furman’s Red Texas Hardy to 150F.   Other varieties: Cold hardy Texas Pink, Wild Thing, Mirage™ Deep Purple.

Salvia officinalis – Common culinary sages – Evergreen Perennial Herb – Grayish leaves with blue to purplish flowers.

Salvia officinalis Berggarten

Popular Salvia officinalis Varieties:

‘Berggarten’ 16″ tall x 24″ wide. Robust plant with large silver and gray variegated leaves.  Purple spike flowers appear in early summer. USDA Hardiness Zones 5-11.

Golden Sage – 16″ tall x 24″ wide- Dark green leaves with chartreuse-yellow edges, a small compact plant. Good ornamental plan. Whorls of lavender-blue flowers spikes appear in late spring. USDA Hardiness Zones 6-10.

Purple Sage –16” tall x 12 wide- Gray-green leaves suffused with steely-gray purple producing a unique pungent flavor and aroma.  Showy violet-blue spikes.  Good ornamental and culinary plant. USDA Hardiness Zones 6-9.  Does not like wet roots!

Tricolor Sage – 18″ tall x 24″ wide – Ornamental herb with colorful grayish green leaves marbled with white, pink and purple. Lavender blue flower spikes appear in summer. Leaves produce strong aromatic scent. USDA Hardiness Zones 6-10.

Article and Photos by:  Carlotta Lucas, AGC Board Member