Thistle Cottage Spring Gardens

 Gardening at Thistle Cottage has always been quite a challenge.  Most are in shaded areas under the oak and maple tree canopies; other areas only get dappled sunlight in the afternoon.

I usually try to have a mix of bulbs, along with trees or shrubs in each bed. The above photos are located on the east side, and get some dappled morning sun.

The large rhodendrons are facing north east, and get early morning sun; then are shaded the rest of the day

Each year, I do plant a variety of annuals for color.  This year I planted pansies; in oranges, yellows, whites and purples.

Lilly of the Valley grows on the west side, in the afternoon sunlight

The old Lillac Tree, is among my favorite flower in early spring.  I always look forward to cutting the large blooms and placing them throughout the house.

This large white shrub blooms every year; although I'm not sure what it is :)

Large two-toned Iris are from my Grandmother's garden in Upstate NY; given to me by my favorite Aunt Betsy.

Full of wisdom; our old tree watches over Thistle Cottage

Orange Asiatic Lillies and also Tiger Lillies are in abundance, and usually bloom through August

Snow On The Mountain, is a lovely ground cover, which has white lacey blooms (similar to Queen Annes Lace); however, it is also a very invasive species -- take care where you decide to plant these!

Hostas are usually the "standard" for shaded gardens; although I do mix the varieties for contrast; and also have a few ground covers as well

Spiderwort (above)  grows very well in shaded areas; it has long grassy leaves and delicate purple flowers.  It spreads and fills in nicely every spring.

Two Tone Purple and White varigated Pansies - one of the annuals that does well in partial shade

The ground cover above is very slow to spread, but has pretty purple blooms that last throughout the spring and into summer.  The neon green ground cover (below) is called Creeping Jenny.  It is slow to start, but once it takes off it really spreads and also give a vibrant contrast to the garden.

Knock-Out Roses do very well in full to part sun

Yellow Asiatic Lillies seem to bloom all at once, and last only about 2 weeks; but are well worth the display.

Red Asiatic Lillies are in bloom (for the second year)... They are a bit slow to grow, at appx. 8" tall

The small evergreens have found a temporary home, near the hosta; facing the west.  They seem to enjoy the sunsets; but alas, they will be moving this fall to their permanent home on the north side of Thistle Cottage!

Here are a few cute Gardening items from Joss & Main on my Pinterest Board:

http://pinterest.com/trailbugz/gardening/

How Cute is This :)

... I fell in love all over again... with this shabby chic red Asian Sink Basket ...

So many uses in the garden or Patio...

And Lastly....  A Cute Garden Recipe...  Enjoy!

Spring: A Time For Gardening

Have been gardening all weekend.  Am so anxious to see what will come up this year!  The front yard gets afternoon sun, and the back yard gets morning sun.  My gardens are quite shaded in most areas, with only a few short hours of dappled sun.  I've been trying to plant appropriate perennials, but seem to need to move them the following year (nothing ever seems to stay where I plant it!).  Hostas work well in the shaed areas and are very low maintenance.  I have a few of the lighter colors and multi colored (green/white) hosta varieties as well.  The blue hostas take a bit longer to come up each spring.  I like to plant annuals every year for a burst of color (pansies, coleus), so I always leave room around the borders of the gardens.  I have also found that ferns do well in zone 6, and have planted 9 dark green ferns; which are now coming up, as well as 4 burgudy ferns.

The walkway to the front door, is surrounded by large shade gardens.  Very hard to fill with long lasting shrubs.  Seven window boxes are an anual thing, and I have them filled with those "long lasting" blooms!

Iris in purples and yellows do well in almost any type of soil.  They prefer to have a shallow planting; but need at least 6 hours of sunlight in order to get good blooms.

Bleeding hearts and grasses prefer dappled shade.  I have them planted under a pink flowering dogwood tree.

Our Grape hyacinth is almost gone now... here's a photo of a small cluster in the back yard.

Along the side of the house, we have rhododendrons, peonies, more bleeding hearts and iris; along with a few un-named shrubs that bloom each spring.

Here's one of the projects that I have started in the backyard.

My Daughter gave me this birdhouse years ago. Birds still nest in it every spring.

Our cherry tree was in full bloom last week.

This is my back patio project.  Last year, we painted the patio trim and hung these windows all along the top half of the patio.  Screening keeps out the bugs; and we placed heavy clear-plastic on the lower portion (on the outside of the screen), to keep out the rain. Next is the fun decorating part... More to come...


It will be the perfect spot for a cup of coffee in the mornings, while looking at the colorful stained glass windows...