Mid-Atlantic Gardening: FIRST FLOWERS OF SUMMER 2015, 1 by Gitagal

Gitagal wrote:
Jeff--
This is the bed i call my "Kitchen Side bed". It faces East and gets really good AM sun
light until about 2-3PM. Then it is brightly shaded--as there is nothing big planted on that
side--just my neighbor. Olga's--house about 15' away.
To me--this is perfect lighting for almost any plants. In the past--i have had amazing Coleus
displays in this bed--and the 'stump bed" just a few feet away.

The "Stump Bed" SO CALLED b/c once a River Birch grew there, got to be about
21 years old and slowly died. Eventually, I had it cut down, but asked that the stump
be left up so i could put a big pot of flowers on it.

Fast forward several years-----the stump was losing structure as it was slowly disintegrating.
I kept it propped up by bricks ans stones with a nice, big, deco paver on top of it all.
This is where the "Big Pot" always sat on.

I think--about 4-5 years ago--I started digging up the rotten remnants of the roots
from the Birch tree. I still am digging them up as I dig into this bed. Like--2 weeks ago...

Then Paul Novacek decided to gift me the beautiful deciduous Azalea "Great balls of Fire"
which now occupies the center of the bed and is doing VERY well.

BUT---I will always call it mt "Stump bed"...

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The WS bed (Wintersweet Bed), at the end of my driveway, is so called because that
is where I had my "Wintersweet Srub"growing for about 15 years.
This bed is only about 5'-6' in diameter. I just got tired of this old shrub.

Paul was chomping at the bit to have it--so he came one day and the two of us dug it up
and he loaded it into his mother's old van and took it home. All in the same day.
This "EVENT" had some hilarious side stories---about this huge Shrub, and just the two of us
digging it up and trying to get it into the van. It all worked out--and now paul has the big
WS Shrub--and sally has one of the seedlings growing in her back bed.
She even wrote an article about it.....When it blooms (like February)--the scent is heavenly!

SO! As you can see--I have names for all my beds--and they all have some "history"
behind the "Why?"....

THE BIG DIG...... --APRIL, 2-13.

1-Massive root-ball--could have used a bigger tarp!

2--Trying to see just how to get it into the van. AHA! Make-shift ramp--some 2x4's.

3--OK!!!! Got the root-ball in the van--Paul climbed into it and pulled it in.
Big glitch! The rest of the shrub was not going to fit in there....Now what?????

4--Against my wishes--Paul just cut off the whole top of the shrub so he could shut the door.

5--Mission accomplished! Shrub gone! Gita happy! Paul has to now drive back to
his parents place and plant the shrub into a nice wooded setting. I hear it is doing great!

I still call it MY "WS BED"--and now you know why! Gita