Rhododendron

The main purpose of this blog is to keep a record of the plants in my garden. I wanted to publish a post whenever something was in flower. But that has not been easy to do. Life keeps getting in the way. I didn't show you my Rhododendron when it was in bloom. So here it is now.

Rhododendron means 'rose' (rhodos) and 'tree' (dendron). It belongs to the family Ericeae. Azaleas are part of this family too. There are over 1000 species.

I have no idea which one I have. I planted it many, many years ago and never expected it to survive in our cold climate. It is evergreen, but very cold winters can turn the leaves yellowish-brown.

Each year it seems to have less blooms on it. I wonder if it is happy where I have planted it. No....I know it is not happy! The Sweet Cicely is crowding in on it. And the goose neck loosestrife is taking over this entire bed. (but more about them later) I am going to have to do some serious weeding in order to save my little Rhodie. But I know it will be worth the hard work!

Many rhododendrons are poisonous. For grazing animals and especially horses, this shrub can be fatal.

Family: Ericeae. Genus: Rhododendron.

Wisteria

I realize that I have more plants than I can handle at the moment. Lots of things are coming into bloom right now. I will show you my Wisteria. For years and years I wanted a Wisteria, but could not figure out how or where to grow it. I was afraid that our climate would not allow me to grow this gorgeous plant. But boy! Was I wrong!

About 4 or 5 years ago I bought a small wisteria plant. I planted it near the fence, thinking that it could climb up that. A few days later I found that my plant had been dug up and was lying in a wilted heap on top of the soil. It was a mystery. I never found out exactly what happened to it. I replanted it, but unfortunately it never did well after that. I bought another plant the following year and watched it carefully. It started to grow and grow and grow! That sucker grew at least five feet that first summer. The following year I had a single drooping grape-like bloom! I was ecstatic! My neighbout was not! He kept cutting every new shoot that came over the fence into his yard. He had had a wisteria in his yard a few years prior to this. It was a present to his wife from their daughter for Mother's Day. It had many wonderful blooms on it the second summer they had it, but he cut it down because "it was growing too fast". That silly man does not like plants!

I bought a trellis for my wisteria, but it soon became too small. The plant has intertwined in it and I guess I will have to leave it there, but next year I am going to have my husband build an arbor for it to properly grow on. I love this plant and think it will look so amazing with all the flower clusters hanging down. I can already imagine myself sitting under it! Wisteria is a woody herbaceous perennial vine. It grows by entwining itself either clockwise or counter clockwise on anything that is available.
Wisteria is considered to be a weed in many parts of the world. And it certainly can be invasive. Its vigorous growth can choke out other plants. But it can easily be pruned to keep it in check. I plan to give mine a place of honour in the garden!

There appear to be two kinds of Wisteria. One is a Japanese Wisteria. (W. floribunda) It grows in a clockwise direction. There is also one that is a Chinese Wisteria. (W. sinensis) It grows counter clockwise. Mine grows clockwise so it must be the Japanese variety.

The blooms are borne on racemes - long pendular clusters -around the middle of June. They are a light lilac colour. Very beautiful! The leaves are pinate. There are about 9 to 15 leaflets on each. The seed pods look very much like beans, but the seeds are poisonous! This plant can live for 50 years! It'll be around a lot longer than I will.

Family: Fabaceae. Genus: Wisteria. Species: W. floribunda.

Common Name: Wisteria

Back to Nature Part 4

I have a couple of other naturalized plants in my garden, but the photos are not very good. This is Jack in the Pulpit. There are about 5 or 6 of these plants now. I planted only one a few years ago. This patch that I have is totally covered in leaves - many leaves of a very large size. And they all seem to be facing the back of the garden. I don't know why this is, but it meant that I was not able to get a good shot of them. Jack in the Pulpit can be poisonous if ingested.

Family: Araceae. Genus: Amsaema. Species: A. triphyllum.

Common Name: Jack in the Pulpit

And here is my Lily of the Valley. I have thousands of these plants. But to get a photo, I had to drive my scooter into my neighbour's backyard. On my side there is a huge pile of gravel that is supposed to fill in the pool. Yes, sadly we are taking it out, or rather, filling it in.

Lily of the Valley is a fragrant, hardy, shade-loving perennial. It can be invasive as it reproduces by sending out uderground stems called rhizomes.

Family: Ruscaceae. Genus: Convallaria. Species: C. majalis

Common name: Lily of the Valley

I also have a lovely red trillium. I planted one many years ago and only one keeps coming up. I bought it at a garden centre, so no worries about taking it out of the wild. I think I will have to revisit this garden centre sometime in the future and purchase some more - maybe some white trilliums too. I love those.

Back to Nature Part 2

Another plant which I have introduced into my garden is called a May Apple. It is part of my mini woodland garden. The leaves of this plant are awesome! They are large and palm shaped. Each plant has two leaves growing up from a central stem.


They bear a single white flower in between the two leaves. The flower will eventually mature into a greenish fruit, which resembles an apple. These apples are edible when ripe, but only in small quantities. I will not be eating these! Large amounts are toxic!

This plant reproduces by root growth. The single plant I planted many years ago has grown into a nice grouping. The roots of this plant are highly toxic! I have always loved this plant since I was a young girl. It was one of the first plants I was introduced to when we first came to Canada. It grew wild all around and near our house!

Family: Berberidaceae. Genus: Podophylum. Species: P. peltatum.

Common name: May Apple

Euphorbia

My garden is full of interesting plants, but perhaps the most interesting is this beautiful yellow Euphorbia. I love the yellow/green colour of this herbaceous plant. It creates a bright spot in my garden at this time of the year. In our climate it is a hardy perennial, coming up early each spring. Euphorbia are one of the largest and most complex genera of flowering plants. There are over 2160 species! They include many that look more like succulents or cactus-like plants. The common indoor plant at Christmas time, Crown of Thorns, is also a Euphorbia. I have several indoor plants that are considered Euphorbia. Botanists have tried to subdivive this genera but have not been successful. These plants are so diverse that my DD took a botany course at university a few years ago, dealing solely with this genera.
The most interesting things about this plant are the flowers which are really bracts, or coloured leaves at the end of the stems. The centre of these coloured bracts contain the unisexual flower parts. This is similar to Poinsettias, which are also Euphorbia (E. pulcherrima) Euphorbia are sometimes called Spurge. The word 'Spurge' comes from the word 'to purge' due to the early use of this plant's sap as a purgative. Needless to say, the sap can be highly toxic. It can cause skin irritations and affect mucous membranes. It is important to handle this plant with care. But I have never experienced any problems with it. It is one of my favourites!

Family: Euphorbiacceae. Genus: Euphorbia. Species: E. epithymoides.

Common name: Spurge

Pasque Flower

Some of my favourite early spring plants are the Pasque Flowers. These perennials are one of the first plants to come up in the spring. Pasque refers to Passover and they are called this because they tend to flower at that time of the year. Although in my neck of the woods, it is usually still too cold then. In my garden they bloom during the month of May.

I have several varieties in my garden. A few years ago I bought a white flowering one, but I can't find it this year. I think I will go out and buy another one this year. This is a close up of a lovely fuchsia coloured one.

Family: Ranunculaceae. Genus: Pulsatilla.
Common name: Anemone, Prairie Crocus

This plant is highly toxic! It produces carcinogenic toxins. It can slow the human heart rate. It can lead to hypotension and coma. This plant has been widely used in folk medicines as a sedative and to induce abortions and childbirth. Needless to say, as pretty as this plant is, I won't be eating any part of it!