Lush Country Garden

This lush country garden features, Bonica Shrub Roses, Hydrangea, Vinca, Miscanthus 'Morning Light, Russian Sage, Lilac and Daylily to name but a few.  Keeping a garden with this lush, full look involves some weeding but more importantly the willingness to pull out and throw away perennials and ground covers that are growing into each other.  The unwillingness to throw away is the biggest mistake that gardeners make. 

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New and Improved Blaze Climbing Rose

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The new and improved climbing 'Blaze' Rose is one of the more reliable, prolific red climbing roses you can grow in your garden.
It has generous clusters of intense red blooms set against dark green, leathery foliage.  These semidouble flowers hold their color even on the hottest summer days.  They appear profusely on old and new wood well into the fall.
Climbing Roses throw long canes that can be trained up posts, arbors, and walls, providing a vertical design element or a beautiful backdrop for the mixed border.  The canes can be tied horizontally along fences.
The Improved Blaze Rose can grow 12'-14' and bloom very heavy in June then continue intermittently all summer with another heavy bloom in the early fall.  Hardy zones 4/5-10.
This landscape architecture project is located in Palisades, New York.

Myrtle in the Garden

A view of a terrific ground cover....Vinca minor.  It also is known as Myrtle or Periwinkle.  Vinca minor vines sprawl out over the ground.  They typically stand only 3" to 6" on height, but their trailing stems can reach 18" in length.  The stems of these jointed plants root at the nodes as they creep along the ground and spread rapidly to form an attractive ground cover.  Vinca minor requires good drainage and a rich organic topsoil is preferable.  Plant in shade, part shade as well as full sun if irrigation is available.  Vinca minor are relatively drought tolerant once they are established.  Many cultivars exist with varying sized foliage, variegated leaves and an assortment of flower colors primarily in the blues, lavender and white range .  The two photos shown here are the generic Vinca minor.  I use this ground cover in many of my planting designs.  I like the fact that it stays low, flowers in the spring and is evergreen.  I use it to visually simplify and tie my planting beds together.  These garden design projects are located in Warwick, New York
http://www.summersetgardens.com

  

Brunnera in the Garden

A spring view of a Brunnera grouping in full bloom.  This perennial also goes by the following names: Brunnera macrophylla, False Forget-Me-Not, Alkenet and Siberian Bugloss.  It is loaded with small flowers of the purest blue.  The flowers are very similar to that of the true Forget-Me-Nots.  The foliage comes up early in the spring and the foliage in and of itself is quite attractive adding some nice contrast and texture to a perennial bed. They begin blooming in May in our zone 6 and can sometime make it to early July.  This plant will tolerate drought and will grow in moist to wet soil but prefers a well drained, loamy soil.  Prefers a ph of neutral.  Part sun, part shade to full shade although the plants tend to be leggier with less blooms in full shade.  Many more cultivars exist.  A very hardy perennial.   I like to use it in large groups, generally as a secondary tiered grouping....one of my favorite perennials.  These garden design projects are located in Warwick, NY.
http://www.summersetgardens.com

Old Fashioned Bleeding Heart in a Shade Garden

A spring view of Dicentra spectabilis or Old Fashioned Bleeding Heart in full bloom.  The outstanding characteristic of Bleeding Hearts is no doubt the shape of the flowers.  As the plants common name suggests, Bleeding Hearts bear heart shaped flowers, from which a little "drop of blood" dangles at the bottom.  Old Fashioned Bleeding Hearts usually reach 2'-3' in height with a similar spread.  The flowers appear in April and May and sometimes into June.  Bleeding Hearts thrive in shade gardens and prefer moist, rich topsoil.  Their foliage tends to die back after they are done flowering and the hot weather sets in, leaving behind vacant spots in the planting bed.  For this reason I tend to interplant these groupings with a late growing perennial such as Anemone or Ferns which will fill the voids as the season progresses.  This shade garden is located in Warwick, New York.
http://www.summersetgardens.com

Creeping Phlox in the Garden

  

Phlox subulata also known as Creeping Phlox is a terrific ground cover/accent  perennial.  It is considered a "semi-evergreen" retaining some greenery during the winter months.  There are several varieties available with colors ranging from white to shades of pink, red, lavender & blue in addition to a blend of colors.  In the NY & NJ area Creeping Phlox tends to bloom in late April through May.  It can be grown in part shade to sun & prefers well drained soil.  It is a terrific plant to soften those awkward hardscape transitions in a landscape such as where a wall meets a walkway or boulder.  It is very easy to grow and should be divided every few years.  The variety shown here is "Emerald Blue"  These landscape design projects are located in Warwick, New York.
http://www.summersetgardens.com