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~ Enjoying life. In Ireland. With my family.

Mom in the Garden

Tag Archives: Hellebore

When things don’t go as planned…

29 Tuesday Jan 2019

Posted by Mominthegarden in Gardening

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Tags

Hellebore, Snowdrops

beds of garlic in the garden

Visual status update on our Vallelado Garlic (image from Jan 22nd)

Well hello there! I confess that I had not expected to take this long to write my next blog post. I don’t strictly follow a schedule, but I usually work as much as possible in the garden, in my free time during the week, and then I write about what I did.

gardening beds weeded and covered in compost

“Winterizing” the beds: completely weeding the bed and then working compost into the soil

But for the past number of weeks, I have not worked in the garden … at all. This is very unusual for me, as the garden is my happy place! Thankfully, though, I’ve recently started to get back into the swing of things, and I’ve managed to spend some time in the garden.

Most of the beds have been cleared, weeded, and had compost added (most but not all!)

What’s going on in the garden?  I’ve tidied up some beds (read: massive amounts of weeding done!) and covered them with compost. I’ve also started weeding one of my main flower beds so that the winter flowering plants have some breathing room (poppy plants are covering every square inch of free soil!).  And the biggest project is to clean up one corner of the yard for my new adventure which I will start this spring!

a "before" picture of a messy part of the garden

This is the official “before” picture of the corner which we are re-working!

O.K., so the big adventure is that we are going to get chickens! I’m planning to get them in April, but I want to make sure this area is ready for them. Look at that mess in the picture above! The stone path, as well as the two beds, are all covered in an invasive weed (which I have not been able to identify).  The only way to clean this up was to clear it all out.

garden beds covered in weeds with cleared path

Progress???

First to go were the weeds on the stones, and then the stones.  The stones in the back section of this corner will probably stay – I’m undecided on this point actually.  I’d like to get rid of them, but not sure where to put them! Oh, did I mention that my son and my husband have been helping, too?  Admittedly, this job is anything but fun. So we’ve been doing it in small sections.

garden beds of soil

definite progress!

Those invasive weeds really worried me.  But we are managing to clear them and their massive roots.  It still needs a lot of work, but we’re getting there!

Hellebore Winter Sunshine

Hellebore Winter Sunshine

What else is on the agenda for this week? Pruning my rose plants.  I’m following my father-in-law’s lead, as his roses are simply beautiful every year (and he pruned his plants last week).  He asked me about mine the other day, and when I started to panic that I hadn’t pruned them yet, he reassured me that I’d have at least another week or two to get it done! 🙂

helleborus orientalis double ellen red

Helleborus orientalis double ellen red

I would like to get a better handle on the weeding, too, or my entire yard is going to have about a million poppies.  I’m not even kidding!

Helleborus frilly Isabelle

Helleborus frilly Isabelle

I’m thankful for the pretty flowers that my hellebore plants are showing off now.  They are really looking lovely, and the 3 different varieties are quite different from one another!  I have made a note to get some more!

snow drops covered in rain water

Snowdrop flowers covered in rain water

I’m so very glad to be back in the garden, and back to blogging! I hope that you have managed to keep doing what you like to do, even if time is scarce!

In Peace,
Dana

 

Fabulous Flower Friday: Hellebores

24 Friday Feb 2017

Posted by Mominthegarden in Fabulous Flower Friday

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Christmas Roses, Hellebore, hellebore Frilly Isabelle, Lenten Roses, Winter Sunshine Hellebore

Hellebore

Hellebore

The star of this Fabulous Flower Friday: Hellebores!
Botanical name: Helleborus sps.

Hellebore

Hellebore

I’ve written about Hellebores before, but I thought it would be nice to have some detailed information about them. I even learned why mine aren’t flourishing …  😉

Hellebore

Hellebore

Hellebores are perennial plants which flower in late winter, being mostly frost resistant, and early spring.  They have been referred to as Christmas or Lenten Roses due to their flowering period.  Their appeal is not only for their lovely delicate flowers but their foliage as well.

hellebore deep purple

hellebore deep purple

Spring time is the ideal time to plant.  They like rich, well drained soil (bingo! that’s one of my issues …).  They are hardy plants and do especially well in shade.  My second problem is that they don’t like strong winds.

 

Hellebore Winter Sunshine

Hellebore Winter Sunshine (with most of the leaves cut away)

I usually add our organic compost to the plants in the fall.  I think I’ll be taking the advice of the Royal Horticultural Society though, and I’ll also add some general-purpose fertiliser this spring at 50-70g per square metre (1½-2 oz per square yard).

Hellebore

Hellebore: the flowers usually hang down

When to prune: late winter or early spring.  For me, it was obvious because my plants suffer from hellebore leaf spot.  For this fungus based disease, simply cut away the affected leaves and ensure that all diseased leaves are removed from around the plant. This is the best defence to keeping the plant healthy. Cutting away the leaves will also help to open up the plant and make the flowers more visible and also more available for insects.  This eases the pollination process, which is good for future seeds.

Hellebore

Hellebore (a deep purple)

The weather has been quite gray the past few weeks. I’d still go out into the garden, though, in search of something nice and it was delightful to see all of these beauties.

hellebore side view

hellebore Frilly Isabelle

Interesting fact from Wikipedia: The scientific name Helleborus derives from the Greek name for H. orientalis, ἑλλέβορος helléboros, from elein “to injure” and βορά borá “food”.[2] Many species are poisonous.

Hellebore Frilly Isabelle

Hellebore Frilly Isabelle

I bought the Frilly Isabelle last year while on a garden tour with my ‘gardening girlfriends’.   What a lovely day that was, and now I’m reminded of that day every time I see this beautiful flower!

Hellebore

Hellebore

There are so many varieties to choose from.  I have hellebores gracing 4 different flower beds, and I’m still collecting…

Susan's Hellebore

Hellebore from Susan’s garden

I hope you’ve learned something new about Hellebores today!  Maybe you’ll give them a try in your garden, too.

In peace,
Dana

Wordless Wednesday: ‘Winter Sunshine’ Hellebore

09 Wednesday Mar 2016

Posted by Mominthegarden in Pictures of Flowers, Wordless Wednesday

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Hellebore, Winter Sunshine Hellebore

'Winter Sunshine' Hellebore

‘Winter Sunshine’ Hellebore

Talk about “bang for your buck”!  I bought this hellebore just last year and this year it has been completely filled with blooms all.winter.long.  It is a keeper!

Happy Wordless Wednesday 🙂

In peace,
Dana

February brings Spring to Ireland … sorta

07 Sunday Feb 2016

Posted by Mominthegarden in Gardening, Pictures of Flowers

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Abies Koreana, Anemone, Hellebore, Helleborus, Weeping Cypress Nootka, Winter Sunshine

signs of spring

signs of spring

Hmmm, I am wondering how I somehow sneak back into blogland after not posting anything for three months?  Do I just jump back in and pretend I’ve been here all along???  Or maybe I list the five million reasons why I haven’t been able to blog??? No, I think I’ll start with:

I have REALLY missed taking pictures and blogging!!!

O.K., now to my list of excuses 🙂   Suffice it to say that working, coaching, parenting kids who swim and Irish dance, and traveling 700 miles a week has kept me out of the garden. But it has been during this time when I couldn’t be on my blog that I discovered how much I truly enjoy working on my blog, and I really miss it.  So once again, I will do my best to stay on top of my garden and reporting all things beautiful to you (while hopefully maintaining a level of sanity)!

Daffodil bulbs - more signs of spring

Daffodil bulbs – more signs of spring

What could be more beautiful than the greens from bulbs pushing their way out of the soil?  I see this as new signs of life and hope for all things beautiful to come!  I can even ignore all of the weeds and ONLY see the new greens from the bulbs … because why spoil something so exciting?

Tulips pushing through

Tulips pushing through in the Rose Garden

Look at the stones in my soil!  I clear them away all the time, and new ones appear.   Ha!  The same thing happens with the weeds!

Winter Sunshine Helleborus

Winter Sunshine Helleborus

I bought this lovely “Winter Sunshine” Hellebore last year.  The flowers are really pretty!

Helleborus Winter Sunshine

Helleborus Winter Sunshine – look at all of those flowers!

Have I mentioned our weather to you? I titled today’s blog “February brings spring to Ireland … sorta” because the weather we have been having is more  “winter storm-like” than spring-like. We haven’t gone more than a day without rain, and I mean a lot of rain. The bad weather has been relentless since November. November!  We’ve had major (rain & wind) storm after storm after storm.  The funny thing about Ireland is, though, that the sun will peek out for a short amount of time every now and then… just enough to keep us from going completely crazy. Good thing!

Helleborus Winter Sunshine

Helleborus Winter Sunshine

O.K.,  now I have a picture that could win a prize for “Worst Garden Ever” due to the bed being completely taken over by grass.  This is why you should never have a wild flower garden where you really want a proper flower bed.  Lesson learned!

Grass is everywhere!

Grass is everywhere!

I definitely know that anything can be achieved by starting small. Just look at any of my gardening projects and you’ll know I have patience and perseverance. But this bed has me running for any other job in the garden!   I’m hoping one of these days I’ll just dive in and dig up that grass (again)!!!

Weeping Cypress Nootka

Weeping Cypress Nootka

Elsewhere in the garden… My weeping Cypress Nootka is well settled in now. I simply love it.

Abies Koreana

Abies Koreana

Almost directly across from my Weeping Cypress Nootka is my newest tree, an Abies Koreana.  It shouldn’t grow too big, and has a lovely “Christmas tree” shape.  We grow our garden one tree/plant at a time!

Ditch Wall Garden

Ditch Wall Garden

The color in my ditch wall garden is really striking at the moment, don’t you think?

Favorite Winter Flower - Anemone

Favorite Winter Flower – Anemone

I probably have too many pictures of my anemone, but I love the color they provide in the winter and very early spring months!

It was so lovely sharing my garden with you.  I hope you enjoyed it, too!

I hope that no matter what the weather is where you are that you are able to enjoy it! … and I also hope that the rain in Ireland eases up a bit so we can enjoy more time in the garden!

Happy Winter/Spring! 🙂

In peace,
Dana

My showy Hellebores, an Obelisk, and a Chocolate Pudding Recipe.

06 Wednesday Mar 2013

Posted by Mominthegarden in Gardening, Pictures of Flowers, Recipes

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Chocolate Avocado Pudding, Clematis "Bagatella" (Dorothy Walton), Hellebore, obelisk

Hellebore in March.

Hellebore in March.

The saying goes “March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb” but the first few days of March were quite wonderful for us!  We’ve had mild days, with more sun than we’ve seen all of January & February combined.  The nights are still cold, but the evenings are ever brighter.  With the nicer weather, the Hellebore plants really started to come to life with lots of blooms.  The flower faces down to the ground, so I was happy to get the above picture, even if it meant that I was nearly on the ground myself!

Hellebore.

Hellebore.

They are a lovely flower to have in the garden since it blooms during that time when there really isn’t too much going on.  There are many different varieties, too.  I’m told that the flowers of the new varieties don’t face down, but face up!

Hellebore.

Hellebore.

I’m happy with my pink variety.  It seems happy with me, too, as it was big enough for me to divide last year, and now I have two plants.

Hellebore.

Hellebore on a sunny day.

There are some other signs of life in the garden, too.  My Clematis “Bagatella” Dorothy Walton  (photo taken in August 2012)

won’t bloom until August, but it has a bunch of new shoots.  I had been looking at getting something pretty for it to climb.  There were some lovely obelisk structures in one of my gardening magazines, but they were quite pricey.  So I was delighted to find something very similar in TK Maxx (TJ Maxx in the U.S.) at a very reasonable price!

My bargain obelisk.

My bargain obelisk.

Clematis 'Bagatella' (Dorothy Walton).

Clematis ‘Bagatella’ (Dorothy Walton).

Pleased as punch, so I was! I think it is just lovely, and fits the bill perfectly!  Now I can’t wait for the Clematis to bloom.  The Clematis has a story of its own.  It is one of the first plants that I bought when we moved into this house.  My neighbor from the States (that’s you Sally L.!) had the most beautiful Clematis in her yard.  So it was with thoughts of Sally’s plant that I made my purchase.  The problem was that I didn’t know where to put it, so I just stuck it by the fence.  My thinking was that it would climb the fence and be lovely.  Except it nearly died there.  It was terribly unhappy.  So I moved it and it limped along.  Although it did have one lovely flower last year, it  then seemed to have “wilt” from too much rain.  We dug it up, gave it lots of compost, aerated the soil, added some food and hoped for the best.  It seems the best is coming, as it really has taken off with lots of healthy shoots.  I am hopeful!

Now on to an unrelated topic.  I had to share this with you:  A chocolate pudding recipe that uses avocado!  I tried it just out of curiosity; that and the fact that I happened to have an avocado on hand when I came across the recipe.   It really tasted good!

Chocolate Avocado Pudding from Joyous Health.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding from Joyous Health.

You could definitely taste the avocado.  It is rather strange, and my kids were divided.  I liked it, and would consider this for a healthy snack.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding from Joyous Health.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding from Joyous Health.

What do you think??? Would you give it a try?

Happy & Healthy Gardening to you!

Dana

http://889yoga.com/blog/uncategorized/chocolate-avocado-pudding-recipe/

Chocolate Avocado Pudding recipe from Joyous Health

  • 1 ripe avocado, peel and seed removed
  • 1/3 cup raw cacao (Use the best quality you can find. I used Navitas — it has a beautiful rich aroma and taste)
  • 1/4 cup raw honey (I used local buckwheat Nude Bee honey)

Place all ingredients into a food processor or high power blend and blend until nice and smooth. If you want a thinner consistency, add 2-3 tbsp of almond milk. Sprinkle some raw cacao nibs on top! Blend and enjoy! Serves 2 generously. EnJOY!

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I wish my American family and friends a Happy Thanksgiving! ❤ These hesperanthus are from my garden, and fit perfectly in my turkey vase! 😂 It's the little things. . . . #mominthegarden #american #Thanksgiving #thankful #family #friends #food #flowers #hesperanthus #turkeyvase
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