Quote of the Moment

The East Hampton Star (http://www.easthamptonstar.com/) quotes me as saying, "I think plants in a garden know they're in a garden. I think there's a communion. David Rains Wallace agrees with me. he says "Just because non-human life has no human consciousness doesn't mean it has no consciousness at all....Instead of inflating our human consciousness to fill trees, we must let trees into our minds


Read what else the East Hampton Star has to say by checking out the Press section of this blog..

Retraction

Experience has taught me that all of the florid opinions in my book Dirt were not necessarily right: I hereby officially retract my dictum about "never move a tree peony" and some drivel about partial sun. The two oldest bushes from my early shadier garden were torn out of the ground rather hastily and lustily at the last minute and not only survived the move, but have since flourished in the hottest,and sunniest spot on the divine new acre. One of the was gift from a tasteful friend, Kimi Sato, who sent it directly from Japan because it was touted as the breakthrough Blue Tree Peony and he knew I had to have it. Well of course, it is not blue but it is not incarnadine either -- it is the most boisterous shade of magenta you can image and it is huge.

Garden Tip of the Month

Choosing from the plethora of wonderful Allium is a task, but as they are now in bloom, I am further convinced that there are three outstanding ones and they do not look like the legions of snow-globey others which, in fact, all look alike. So, make it easy on yourself and choose only these from the bulbous world of flowering onions (which insures that animals do not go near them):

1) Small (but with great presence) and glaucous really blue leaves, the estimable Allium karavatiense. Only in off-white and very demure. (shown right)

2) Out of this world in every way, I don't even mind the fact that it exists only in pink. About 12 to 15" and very exciting Allium shubertii.

3) Elegant and tall enough (2' or so), each silver-violet shiny petal shoots out like a star - really - and the effect is airy and light and luscious - Allium christophii (Star of Persia - shown left)

Last Allium tip: Except for the sweet little blue leaved one mentioned first, always place them surrounded by other plants, or at least ground covers, because the aftermath of the bedraggled leaves are a mess. Much worse that daffodils. One more good word - karavatiense and christophii are really perennial - well at least for 3 or 4 years.

Garden Trick

As beautiful as they are, Iris can be hell on a garden and the gardener. The rhizomatous (or tuberous kind) constantly need to be cut back and divided and then they don't last very long - flower-wise. The trick is to prolong the season by planting several kinds and crowding them all in together. Start with the great Japanese roof iris, this one multiplies faster than any octo-anything you can imagine and blooms first. The next to bloom is the big show off bearded iris (get the Schreiner's Iris catalogue http://www.schreinersgardens.com/). Discipline yourself by choosing from the exceptional panoply of color of the flamboyant family of German iris (and don't forget the yellow and white combinations - so chic). Round out the season with the gorgeous Iris kaempferi or ensata, the beardless flat floating heavenly last-to-bloom. More about Iris another time, and don't forget that our English garden tie is fine enough to tie up those flopping bearded iris stalks after a hard rain...see it almost disappearing in the upper left of the photos. And you know I've discovered the best stakes are free - the old bamboo stalks relieved of branches and cut to size (easy to do with your Japanese clippers).

people Are Talking

Read what Kate Newlin (author of Shopportunity and Passion Brands) has to say about The Best @ Dianne B........



"The stuff I bought from your website went to my brother for his birthday. The last time he said "thanks" was when I got him a miniature rifle/pencil sharpener (!) for Christmas 1957. he was over-the-top impressed with everything -- and he is horrible finicky about his gardening equipment. He put the gloves on immediately. Loves the trowel, the yard bag, etc., etc. His comment was, "Who is this Dianne B? She is one smart person!"



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