the project ahead....

hi folks- I've been waiting in the wings trying to work out the whole camera and picture posting puzzle....not to mention the rock garden puzzle!! soooo here's the beginng- this is a whole rock slope on one side of our house- that used to be filled with sort of spilling wall sorts of plants- candy tuft, basket of gold, pinks, thymes, creeping phlox, sedums- some junipers etc. Reconstuction began last summer on the lower level near the pond..now I'm moving up!!! plants from Evermay nursery, and Beaver Creek are beginning to get into the second level....I have so many questions, I don't know where to begin asking...maybe you all could just come and help!! here's one of my current concerns, since I'm working with some of the basic soil prep. I feel I should add lime because NH generally has slighltly acid soil, so I sprinkle pelletized lime here and there, sort of like salt...I'm sure there is more science to this, and I wonder how much I really should add! the plants that I know really love lime get a few more sprinkles.... then there's rock placement! more to the left, the right, turned, burried more?? I'll work on my picture taking and post some more selected sections soon! (my first picture post, i'm so excited! is this going to work??) sarah

wow! it worked! ok here's a wee section of sempervivums- I have a weakness for them- they're so easy to grow, and so fascinating looking.

This message was edited May 22, 2005 11:48 AM
oopps i'll get this right yet! more pics when it stops raining-

This message was edited May 22, 2005 9:03 PM

Gorgeous! I really like that dark red w/white edge sempervivum.
Your hillside is so gorgeous. Sorry I can't help you with the expertise
you're looking for but I'll certainly enjoy seeing what advice you get.

Sarah, Sarah, Sarah--

Look what you've been doing: It's magnificent! The pictures are great and the rock garden is as good as, or better than, anything I've seen in gardening books and magazines. Wow, it's so full of great-looking plants! I personally think the rocks are placed perfectly and I wouldn't change a thing.

As for the lime, it sounds as if you're on the right track as far as the lime-lovers are concerned, but watch out for plants that hate lime. Some varieties of Gentiana will drop dead at the first whiff, for example, so make sure you don't "salt" any of those. There are other acid-loving and lime-hating rock garden plants: aquilegia, most of the primulas, epimedium, some of the fritillarias, ramonda, haberlea, thalictrum, some of the soldanellas, sanguinaria, some saxifrages, and many, many others. It's easy to find lists of those. They're usually categorized as peat garden plants on the alpine nursery sites, but they seem to end up in everyone's rock gardens too.

Wow! Now that's a rockery! Puts mine to shame.

tammy and zuzu!! thanks for such enthusiastic responses!! and zuzu that was helpful to think actually more specifically about the plants that abhor lime.. rather than the other way around..and in a way- I understand my task, to gradually grow familar with the little inhabitants of the rock garden in the way I'm familar with most of the garden perennials in my garden. Is almost as if after many years they are part of me.. or I'm part of them... For now building this garden is rather daunting! I'm putting these little guys in there wondering who the heck they are... 2 have died already!! yikes. but - I really appreciate the experience of folks in this forum- it's great reading the threads- I'm learning all the time.

tammy-you know, I can always toss a "chick" from that sempervivum in the mail if you'd like one! I'm glad to share. lmk.

Todd- listen, you just come here and plant it for me, ok!

So glad you emerged from the wings, Sarah. More pictures, please. We'll look at perennials too. Do you have plants in your pond?

hi, sarah---

I can't wait to follow your rock garden transformation along, so I am so glad you are learning to take pics and post along with all the alpinus info you are gathering!

Looks like you're off to a great start!

Let's see some more...thanks for posting. t.

Sarah,

Sorry - been off line for a while and missed your offer. Let me see if I can
figure out how to send you an email about getting one of those chicks :-)
Maybe we can figure out something I've got that you'd like?

Tam

tam-i'm sending you an email!

Sarah, Your rock garden is fascinating. Is this a natural hillside by your house? Also like the idea of the pond at the bottom...You are only a half zone away from us at zone 4b, so likely what you grow I could also grow. Have you been reading about miniature gardens here at DG? It's an idea that I am just starting to hatch for my own larger garden, but it would fit in with alpine and rock gardening very well, I think. I am going to start designing/dreaming/experimenting with mini hillsides, ponds, forests, etc. for my little garden gnome memory garden...Keep us posted with your photos!

What a beautiful rock planting! Looking forward to seeing more of your project.

thanks you two! still in a very "evolving" place with the rock slope beds- have moved things around..lots to do but its been really really hot here lately- for new england anyway..and i'm sure you know how life gets way too busy. but the pond is full of activity- the million baby toad tadpoles scooting around, the fish fat and happy, dragon-flies buzzing- and summer is afterall a joyous time!

responding to zuzu's reminder to keep the pictures coming!! can't resist- here are some of the fishies-but they won't keep still!

Thanks, Sarah. Gorgeous fishies. I only have theoretical fish this year. The winter was so mild that it didn't kill the water hyacinths, which have spread like ... well, like water hyacinths. I haven't seen my fish in months. I'm surprised you have fish and lilies in the same pond. My fish kept chewing on the water lilies, biting them off at the soil line, so I have the fish in separate ponds from the lilies now. Two ponds for fish, two ponds for water lilies.

Your fish are much more exotic than mine. I had a few koi in the beginning, but a heron was camping out on my roof for months and swooping down to get my fish and my bullfrogs, so now I only buy plain goldfish.

hi zuzu- i should be in bed-but oh well- ofcourse, you're still barely evening over there!...you know, all my fish come from 4 little 50c goldfish that i got at the pet store about 8 years ago..they were just babies, but each one was a bit different, anyway, they have made lots of babies! all kinds of colors- i keep giving them away- they have beautiful long tails. koi, i hear are particularly fond of eating plants, but plain old goldfish are not so interested. they sure eat the algae though! my pond just doesn't have any. and these guys are so tame, they will nibble your fingers to check you out..fun.

Oh, they look just like koi. They're so pretty. I get those little feeder fish for 15 cents apiece. I think they're called comets and you're supposed to feed them to larger animals or fish. They can get really big, depending on the size of the pond. That's good to know that they won't eat the water lilies. I guess the few pre-heron koi I had were the culprits. I appreciate the fact that the goldfish also eat snails.

they funny thing is that i have never seen such pretty ones at our pet store since- i think they are a type of shebunkin, maybe someone had donated to the store because they had too many (i can understand that) their tails are glorious! and some of the colors quite unusual-- if they were plants, i could send you some!!

Well, thanks for the thought. The tails really are pretty.