Dark again at 7:00 AM. The misty morning felt like we were in the Cotswold, England. Once the light shone in the garden, a light fog covered the trees tops, and we felt like we were in Asheville, NC . But it was better than both combined; we were in The Joslin Garden! A City treasure that must be experienced.

It was a good day at The Joslin Garden. With expected storms to arrive in the mid-afternoon, we weren’t sure if we would get in a full day. We did. The weather cooperated with us. I’ll have to amend this post later to see what damage the storms may have caused.

In anticipation of Neal’s team NOT being free Friday (they may be too busy helping the City of Raleigh overall), we made sure we took all the biowaste was taken to the side of the street property— knowing it may need to wait a week.

P.S. The storms pass our area of Raleigh.

And on another bit of GREAT news, Nell and I are fully vaccinated, as is Volunteer Art; so we were totally mask-free. The City allows us to work mask-free in open park spaces and being sure to don a mast when visitors walk by. Because of the misty weather, we were able to put our faces into the mist. It felt good.

PRUNING

It seems like it is Chindo week for me. I pruned rows of them at Mordecai, Chindo viburnum, Viburnum awabuki 'Chindo' earlier during the week. These babies can really get out of hand, and yes, this one was planted too close to the path and house. They are really too big for most locations. But here we have one, so we will manage it.

In pruning Chindos, it’s best to NOT shear it. It’s best to identify “water sprouts”, those shoots that come right up from the bottom. We had to take a lot out, and there were some “holes” that are not desirable, but they will fill in. Chindos grow fast!

I’ve misplaced the before picture, but to give you an idea of how high the Chindos grew, I pruned out several stems that were 12 higher than the tallest stems!

PLUCKING

We are STILL plucking Bearclaw hellebores, Helleborus foetidus! Can you believe this? I can and so can Volunteer Art. I forgot to get a pic of Art, but trust me when I say he dragged two tarps full to the street. I’ve even lost count of the number of BAGs we have filled, let alone the actual number of plants. No doubt, they were in the thousands by now, and still not done!.

As the plucking continued, we have a couple of winter flowering Jasmine that are basically leaf catchers. Winter Jasmine, Jasminum nudiflorum, is a popular plant to fall over a retaining wall or slope, easy to grow, and sometimes flowers as early as November and often in December and January, and then right through March. This year, they are just beginning to bloom!

I took on an easy one to pluck out the leaves, because I wanted to save the larger one for Volunteer Ailene. She likes defined projects. This will keep her busy next Thursday. ;)

Winter flowering Jasmine can get a bit messy so that the stems are a tangle, as shown in the image below. To overcome its untidy habit, pruning will help to keep it in shape. This variety of Jasmine is always pruned in the spring immediately after flowering. But when there is a problem, there is no need to wait, or at least that has been my long-held view. We will not necessarily be pruning it, but plucking out years or even decades of growth where it has spread.

The real hunk was left for next week. Volunteer Ailene and I talked about this mess below last week. I think I have a plan to tackle it. I’m sure (I hope) she is still on board with taming the monster.

This winter form of Jasmine always flowers yellow, Latin name is Jasminum nudiflorum means naked flowers. The latin name is describing the flowers on bare branches ahead of the foliage.

Although commonly described as a climbing plant, it has no tendrils and is not very self supporting; it is more of shrubby scrambler than a climber. It has long arching branches which will arch upwards and over a fence or wall and can be trained  or tied to cover a structure.  Jasmine growing vertically up a wall or fence will need to be tied in to train the growth. 

PREENING

There are a lot more to Camellia japonicas than just a pretty face. We are in the spent-camellia-blossoms-mode. It’s important to rake up spent blooms from the ground. Did you know that?

CAMELLIAS: There are two types of camellias commonly used in eastern North Carolina. The Japanese camellia, C. japonica, is a large plant that gets 15 to 20 feet tall and six to ten feet wide. Japanese camellias have large leaves and flowers that are 4 to 8 inches in diameter. Blooms may open from early winter to spring.

Sasanqua camellias, C. sasanqua, have smaller leaves on a plant that is normally six to ten feet high and about three to five feet wide (there are some dwarf types too). Flowers are only two to three inches in diameter and open in the fall or early winter.

Both types come with flower colors of pink, red, and white, and form a broad, densely branched evergreen pyramid.

Camellias like acidic (pH 5 to 6.5), well-drained soils. It is best to plant them on the north side of a house or in semi-shade, and in The Joslin Garden, under the cover of hardwoods and pines.. Container plants can be planted at any time of the year. Spacing of camellias is important as it is with all plants. Based on their size, research has shown that sasanqua camellias should be planted at least 4 feet from a wall to allow access for maintenance and good air circulation.

If camellias are to be used in a hedge, plant them five to six feet on center. To keep sasanqua camellias individually, plant at least eight feet on center. Plant camellias six to eight feet from a wall, eight feet on center for a hedge, and at least 12 feet on center to keep plants individual.

Groom: Tidy camellia blooms. Spent camellia blooms, particularly with C. japonicas, are susceptible to petal blight. Remove fallen blooms — and those ready to fall — to prevent the spread of disease and insect problems.

If you suspect your faded flowers have blight, don’t put them in the compost pile. Instead, place them in a plastic bag and dispose of it in the trash.

Currently, many of The Joslin Garden camellias have tea scale. Nell has arranged for Leaf and Limb to treat those camellias. It is out hope that good housekeeping will also keep the scale at bay. But it may be wishful thinking. At least, I know we won’t get blight.

Pruning camellias should be done following flowering; prune each type of camellia accordingly, if at all. In The Joslin Garden, no pruning is needed.

IN THE MEANTIME…

After pruning, plucking, and preening, I weeded The Rose Garden again. I’ve been waiting to mulch The Rose Garden bed since I directed sowed bread poppies about three weeks ago. I was waiting form them to germinate. To today was my day to tidy up the bed. The bed was filled with harry bittercress. Yikes. I did my best.

Stay tuned for next week where Nell gets edgy and I get mucky!

I’m already looking forward to next week. I want to leave you with one last thought. Garden maintenance isn’t a chore. While working in the garden, be sure to stop and admire all that is around you. I took a rest cleaning up camellias, and before I started back, I found this image below. I stoped and gave wonder. The perfectly shaped heart told me Bill and Mary are looking down and are pleased with our efforts.

Until soon,

Helen Yoest

Horticultural Specialist

Environmental Scientist, M.S.