Pulmonaria

One can always find Pulmonarias in Herb books. They've been grown for their medicinal properties for hundreds of years and are more commonly known as Lungwort. Most books state that the young leaves can be added to salads but I can't imagine trying them as they are hairy as can be...

Supposedly Pulmonarias clear congested lungs, I've also read that they are an ingredient in vermouth. Perhaps that's why another book states that they can cause liver damage? As always, I'll remind all of you that just because a plant is an herb, I do not recommend eating them without knowing more about the plant. This is one that would not pass my lips.

Most Pulmonarias have spotted leaves, in the summer some will also get powdery mildew but since they are already white, it doesn't bother me much.

Quite commonly Pulmonarias have pink flower buds that once opened, quickly change to blue or vice-versa. There are quite a few varieties on the market now, not only does the flower color vary but the amount of spotting on the foliage is another distinctive trait.

The most vigorous Pulmonaria in my garden by far is Pulmonaria angustifolia. Surprisingly, this one has no spotting at all on the leaves. The blooms are the most heavenly sky blue color imaginable.

Out front near the street in barren soil I've been growing Pulmonaria 'Dora Bielefeld' for at least 10 years. As you can see here, it has quite a clear pink bloom. I wish I'd had the forethought to move it to a better location and see what it could really do when grown in rich soil.

There are also pristine white Pulmonarias. The name on this one escapes me, I do know that I've divided out some pieces and shared them with gardening friends. While white is not my favorite color in the garden, it is a most welcome addition to the shade corners that Pulmonarias seem to tolerate.

My recommendations on growing these lovelies is to give them a spot with several hours of sunlight (preferably softer, morning light), rich soil that has been amended with compost and water during dry seasons. Other than that, stand back and watch them bloom!

Kim's Garden

The other day I met some gardening friends for a workshop at my friend Kim's home in Huntington Bay. The weather was perfect and of course, so was Kim's garden.

I was torn between working on making the hypertufa troughs (read more about it on my Old Country Garden blog) and taking photos of the most wonderful spring display of blooms.

Little vignette's were all over the place, this one was my favorite!



Kim's mother Joan has a garden on one side of the house. Joan was always such a talented gardener that it was no surprise to me to see how lovely her newest creation has taken off. Even with health issues Joan has done a great job here.


Looking down closely you can see how lovely the Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea' looks as it wends it's way around the stepping stones. This side garden is so stunning that it deserves it's own post in the future.


One last shot, a close up of the weeping Cherry tree. Isn't it breathtaking?

I thought I'd finish up today's post with some good news...I'm taking a hiatus from working retail, need to deal with some health issues but I will also be able to spend more time in the garden. So stay tuned, Melanie's Perennials will be open for business soon, maybe this coming Saturday, April 17th!

Can't wait to see all of you again,
Melanie

Hellebores - The Lenten Rose

One of my constant goals is to give the botanical name along with a nickname in parenthesis. While the nickname of this plant is Lenten Rose, I do believe that many gardeners also know the botanical name of Hellebore.

Lenten Rose though is a pretty apt description for this wonderful perennial as it most certainly does begin blooming during Lent (that is, it does so here on Long Island in my zone 6b garden).

Hellebores can be quite expensive so one has to have either much money or much patience before amassing a large collection of them. In my case, it's patience, I've added one or two a year for about 8 years now.

Gardening books will tell you that Hellebores are shade lovers and will grow in lean soil. While that may be true, I've found that they reward me well for giving them a half a day of sun (morning is best) and lots and lots of compost.

Most often, Hellebores don't have single cultivar names but are sold as seedling lots. This white double is one of my favorites. If you leave the seed heads on your Hellebores they will reward you with seedlings near-by. I keep checking the ground near this beauty, no babies yet but I always have hope.


One of the reasons I heard for the down-turned blooms on Hellebores is to protect the pollen and reproduction organs from severe late winter temperatures. It certainly sounds like a good reason to me so I'll stick with that thought.

Every now and then you do find an upturned bloom. Hellebore hybridizers are working hard to get more and more varieties that do turn their faces upright. I love the freckles on this lovely seedling.

This last shot is the least artistic but the most exciting one for me. Last September I posted about dividing a large Hellebore in my garden. This is one of the divisions I planted out, each and every one of them is just chock full of blooms and buds! So much for thinking that they might sulk after division.

If you want to read the post about dividing your hellebores you need to visit my other blog, Old Country Gardens. Once there, you can type in the word "Hellebore" in the search field at the top of the blog and it will bring you to the post.

I've also added a search field to this blog and a list of post labels down the side.

Happy Spring!
Melanie