Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Viburnums, Coppertina, Maple, Compost, Anxiety







Monday morning I went to the dump and got 6 or so bins of compost--all that could fit in my hatchback. It sure is BLACK. Wow. God save the city of Lincoln and their free compost.

Then I moved 3 shrubs and planted 5: mostly planted some viburnum like winterthur, brandywine, and blue muffin (no botanical names for you). Also planted an ivory halo red twig dogwood. I do believe I need a pollinator yet for blue muffin. Winterthur and brandywine, both nudums, should work for each other if they bloom in sync--blue muffin looks like it'll bloom by May, much further ahead. I am so very sore today. I'm 31 for Pete Sampras' sake, but I did forget to stretch before planting, which I used to be religious about.

Then there's a pic of an October Glory maple thingy doing its thingy, and ninebark 'coppertina' has new coppery-yellow leaves. Angelina Jolie sedum looks good, too--that's what I call it now. I'm putting this post up today somewhat frantically in order to divert myself from general and specific anxieties--but you know, whenever it's windy outside (30-50mph today), I always feel more anxious anyway. Why is that? What does wind do, or mean, or say to me to create such a response? What resonance is this in me? Who or what is out of tune, or too in tune? Why can't it snow? I always feel calm when it snows.



12 comments:

Unknown said...

Angelina IS a great sedum (sorry, I just can't bring myself to tack Jolie onto the name); mine is still showing its winter colours really splendidly.
The wind blows here a LOT, and while I don't mind most of the time, there are days and nights where it drives me just about crazy. It's the noise, I think. But if it's snowing and blowing, does that agitate you?

Frances, said...

Hi Benjamin, the winterthur should also pollinate the blue muffin , according to Wayside's catalog, anyway. Your coppertina is lovely, I have summer wine, new last fall, and am anxious to see how it does. I agree about the wind making one uneasy too. I wonder why that is, but I feel it also.

Benjamin Vogt said...

Jodi--no, snowing and blowing isn't so bad, it's like rain then. But just wind against the siding and windows, then against my face and wild Yanni-like hair just isn't so nice.
Frances--Yes, it's true wintherthur will pollinate blue muffin, but my favorite / trusted local nursery said blue muffin blooms three weeks earlier. We will see. Already, muffin is budding out, the nudums just a small peep. I've been reading some viburnum threads on websites that are disheartening--it also depends on where your viburnum was raised, and so it might take years for it to adjust to blooming when it should naturally in your area, and by then you've bought others you thought were in sync, now they aren't... it seems messy, but I'm new at this.

Gardeness said...

I'm with Jodi, I'm not tacking on Jolie. But I also have some in a planter near my front door. Some has also made it's way into the crevices of our front steps. Hey, and your compost comes with scissors? Great site. Look forward to seeing/reading more!

Unknown said...

Man. I'm going to think of it as Angelina Jolie sedum from now on, whether I like it or not! lol.

I'm SO with you on the hair. A breeze? Mine tangles like brambles instantly. (A humid breeze? It curls and frizzes as it tangles then.)

Anonymous said...

I have Blue Muffin and it didn't need a man...but it does better the second year in the ground. Angelina is awesome. Coppertina is pretty too. Hey these are all PW names?? Blue Muffin especially.

I had never been exposed to a lot of wind until we moved to North Dakota and I kept telling people---boy it sure is windy today. Then I realized it was not going to stop for months. Every day was a bad hair day. I did not like it.

Anonymous said...

hey benjamin! It's always windy here at Hawk's Haven too, which is a blessing in summer, says our friend Ben with zero tolerance for heat and humidity. But when it cranks up to 30+ mph, I start worrying about my internet connection, power, and trees crashing down on the house, car, etc. Yikes!!!

Anonymous said...

I'm not a wind lover either! Bad hair is a constant curse! LOL at your pain. THIRTY ONE? I have shoes older than that! Sounds like a good pain though. After gardening pain is somewhat satisfying given the job done! Love your blooms and who is Angelina Jolie?

Benjamin Vogt said...

Gardeness--Yes, the city of Lincoln was running a special on compost: if you took 1 cubic yard you got a pair of scissors. 5 cubic yards got you a weed whacker. 10 a lawnmower. 20 a coal-powered generator. Eh. Thanks for stopping by!
Kim--Glad I could be of service. Every time I see the sedum I see large puffy nightcrawler lips coming at me anyway. Yuck.
Anna--I guess they all are PWs. Shoot, out here on the plains, it's windy as often as Florida is sunny. Price you pay for living in the rich land of corn.
OFB--Some of those trees surely shield you from the wind.... My parents have satellite tv and whenever it rains or gets windy, well, no more entertainment.
Layanee--I think 31 is old! C'mon. I still think I'm 22 or something and it drives me nuts. My 22 hair was also much less gray, it doesn't match my clothes. Though the other day I was wearing a green shirt in class, and one student said it brought out my green eyes. I love teaching.

WiseAcre said...

3 weeks after starting to garden and I'm still stiff and sore. I'm almost to the point where I'm aware of only two seasons. The first is Inactive and the other Aches.

I have a problem with wind too. It makes the same sound in my head as someone blowing down the neck of a beer bottle.

Mr. McGregor's Daughter said...

From observing my older sisters, I believe that being bothered by the wind is related to a fear of tornados (we had one damage our house when we were little). When it's windy, I tie up my hair or just shove it under a tight fitting hat. It keeps it out of my face, but the hat hair problem is nasty.

Benjamin Vogt said...

WA--Oh, 3 weeks? One would think you'd build up some resistance! Ah--beer....
MMD--I like tornados, actually. Not the potential death and destruction, but the exhiliration of the sirens and the weather alerts on the tv. This sounds disturbing now that I've written it. I remember seeing a small tornado as a child from a great distance. I hate feeling tossed around, unable to hear the frogs in the pond, the birds in the tree, unable to taste the chocolate in my mouth vs. the dirt and bugs and leaves flying in....