Vignette Wednesday: Last Poppy Bloom

The last poppy bloomed in my front garden this week and a heat wave in the 100's is forecasted for the weekend.  I'm busy preparing for the garden for the heat.  Hoses are strewn throughout the garden and the soaker hoses are on high!  But, I wanted to take a moment to say farewell to my spring garden.  Poppies are simply luscious as they unfold in the morning.  I treasure them. And if you receive a poppy in a bouquet from me, just know that you are loved. 

Princess Victoria Louise Oriental Poppy

As a young girl, I looked forward to my Mom's orange poppies blooming.  And I loved the poppy seed heads that sounded like maracas once they dried.  I leave the seed heads to dry in my garden too.  And kids walking by, take them and listen to their newfound maracas.  It makes me happy.  I'll always have a clump of poppies in my garden.

My friend, Anna at Flutter & Hum, started the weekly Wednesday Vignette meme because she has an eye for color and design.  She's a garden designer, architect, color expert, and she has taught me to see my garden in new ways. Thanks, Anna!

Wednesday Vignette: Stumped

Last summer, when I toured Greg Shepherd's garden for the first time, I fell in love with the stumps in his back garden.  He uses the stumps to punctuate the end of the gravel paths.

At the time, I'd been holding onto stumps cut into squares and old freeway light fixtures that friends had generously given me.  Yay!  Inspired by Greg's stumps, I went home and flipped the freeway light fixture up onto the stump and voila a new garden container was born. 

My new containers.  photo taken October 2014

I borrowed my friend Anna's favorite purple to give them a much needed splash of color.  I love them.  They are unique and fun.  Plus, they are above a certain male Great Dane's pee level, so the plants are safe. Barnaby 'helped' me plant the containers, but hasn't shown them any other interest. 

This spring, I added two more to the garden.  So, now I have four of them punctuating our sitting spaces in the garden.  I'll share more shots of them in an upcoming post on our back garden.  Don't forget to visit our hostess, Anna at Flutter and Hum, to see more Wednesday Vignettes.  

A Xeric Paradise: Xera Plants

Last weekend, I attended Greg Shepherd's impromptu garden party. Greg Shepherd is the co-owner of Xera Plants, one of my favorite nurseries. He admits that his business inspired his xeric garden. He simply can't bear to water once he gets home from a day of watering four inch plants at the store and nursery. I don't blame him. And the resulting garden is fabulous!

New plant additions get water the first year in his garden to get established but after that, they are on their own. He doesn't fertilize plants or amend the soil.

Doesn't that sound like the perfect garden? 

Greg's texture filled garden is a photographer's dream. The garden has a  simple plant driven design that overflows with gray blue foliage, soft yellow flowers and punches of orange for emphasis.  I've visited other xeric gardens that made me feel like I was visiting an alien moon, but not Greg's.  Greg's garden invites you to explore and enjoy.

The hellstrip is full of interesting plants that shine in the evening light. A man walking his beagle came by a couple of times and I felt like he was keeping an eye on me to make sure that I wasn't hurting the garden.   

The stone pathway in his front yard invites you into the garden to explore.  

Fescues and Hebe ‘Karo Golden Esk’ run along the stone stream

A vignette in the side yard plays with form and texture.  

Here's a dreamy shot of his back garden.  

His back garden uses stumps to cap the gravel pathways studded with square cut bluestone. Simple and beautiful. Now let's take a closer look at some of the plants.

Eryngium giganteum

Every year some 'helpful' pedestrian weeds this gorgeous thistle out of my garden.   Maybe the third try is the charm?

Erica arborea 'Alberts Gold'

A dangerous groundcover 

Arctostaphylos spp.

Greg's xeric garden overflows with an exciting plant palette.  Wouldn't you like to include some of his ideas into your garden?  Go visit Xera Plants website or go visit their shop. Growing a xeric garden is a win-win for the gardener and the environment. Just imagine the time that you would save without having to water your garden. 

Greg and Christian, thank you for a lovely evening of wine, friends, and laughter in your gorgeous garden! 

To see their garden through the eyes of an artist visit Tamara's Chickadee Garden's post and for a garden designer's perspective see Anna's Flutter and Hum post.  

A Parasitic Wasp in the Answer Clinic

Yesterday, while I was volunteering in the mg answer clinic, I met an entomology graduate student who was showing off his find that was carefully wrapped in a petri dish.  Inside was a leaf with a parasitic wasp quietly protecting her eggs that were tucked inside 25 Brown Marmorated Stink Bug eggs.  I excitedly asked him if we could take some pictures of his discovery.  He agreed.  And as we were posing the heroic parasitic wasp in front of the camera he told me that she'll guard her eggs for a month or until they hatch.  

A parasitic wasp guarding her eggs that are inside BMSB eggs.

Parasitic wasps are a natural predator of Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs.  They lay their eggs inside the BMSBs eggs and the wasp larvae feed off the stink bug eggs.  WSU and OSU scientists are busy studying parasitic wasps from China to see if they can be released here as a biological control agent.  The concern is that parasitic wasps might decimate our beneficial native stink bug populations.  

The native stink bug, Banasa dimiata, in my garden.

I'm crossing my fingers that the scientists figure out a solution to the BMSB outbreak soon.  The bugs are taking an expensive bite out of our agriculture industry.  Now they are moving into Washington's wine regions.  Growers are finding some success spraying kaolin clay on fruit trees and grape vines. But, we're all eager for the scientists to make a break through on how to manage this foreign pest.

A Brown Marmorated Stink Bug 

Wednesday Vignette: Slimy Trails to You!

I was surprised to discover a slug munching on my horseradish clump.  Slugs normally prefer tender seedlings and lettuce.  Horseradish seemed like an odd choice.

Now, I HATE slugs.  I like to slice them in half with my scissors or sharp trowel tip.  But, I felt curious and reached for my camera instead.  I watched it climb over the leaves and took shots at different angles.  I'm not particularly attached to my thriving horseradish clumps, so I left the slug to continue munching and exploring.  Every now and then, I surprise myself.  

Here's Anna's new Wednesday Vignette over at Flutter and Hum.  I assure you that her post much prettier than mine!