The Curse of the Chinese Lanterns
One of the many legacies left to me by the late Mrs. Styles is a bed full of chinese lanterns. For those of you unfamiliar with this particular plant, the flowers are kind of ho-hum, but the seed pods are spectacular, and as everlastings, they dry beautifully.
Now, I am pretty sure that she did not mean to leave a whole bed of them, but since the house sat empty for quite a while after she died and the previous owner had no interest in gardening, that is how they are now. Chinese Lanterns are perennial and to say they are invasive is putting it mildly: they propagate both by seed and by runners. (anybody who has ever tried to get rid of horseradish will know what I mean) I spent a good portion of Friday yanking them out as they were choking everything, and yesterday, with my trusty garden fork, I removed a good two buckets full of roots. I have reduced their numbers by at about two-thirds and I am not sure what I want to do with them. I don't want to do away with all of them, but on the other hand keeping them corralled could be a problem.
Also these days off, I sawed down some of the white lilac by the front door because it was looking scraggly. It wasn't blooming much so a good pruning was in order, I've been removing the larger branches by thirds, starting last year. I also have spirea - lots of spirea, which had to be trimmed back and let some light into the living room window. (Joyeuse, do you want some Bridal Wreath Spirea? Come in the spring and we can certainly spare a clump or two because the saplings are very prolific.)
I have a vision of the flowers and shrubs retaining sort of a "slightly overgrown" country cottage look, with lots of perennials by the time all is said and done.
Where, oh where, do the days off go? It is back to work today, and what I really want to do is stay at home and potter in the garden,
Now, I am pretty sure that she did not mean to leave a whole bed of them, but since the house sat empty for quite a while after she died and the previous owner had no interest in gardening, that is how they are now. Chinese Lanterns are perennial and to say they are invasive is putting it mildly: they propagate both by seed and by runners. (anybody who has ever tried to get rid of horseradish will know what I mean) I spent a good portion of Friday yanking them out as they were choking everything, and yesterday, with my trusty garden fork, I removed a good two buckets full of roots. I have reduced their numbers by at about two-thirds and I am not sure what I want to do with them. I don't want to do away with all of them, but on the other hand keeping them corralled could be a problem.
Also these days off, I sawed down some of the white lilac by the front door because it was looking scraggly. It wasn't blooming much so a good pruning was in order, I've been removing the larger branches by thirds, starting last year. I also have spirea - lots of spirea, which had to be trimmed back and let some light into the living room window. (Joyeuse, do you want some Bridal Wreath Spirea? Come in the spring and we can certainly spare a clump or two because the saplings are very prolific.)
I have a vision of the flowers and shrubs retaining sort of a "slightly overgrown" country cottage look, with lots of perennials by the time all is said and done.
Where, oh where, do the days off go? It is back to work today, and what I really want to do is stay at home and potter in the garden,