(First 'HelpMe' Installment)-"The Bluff"

Im about to start a blog for all my newest "Help Me" postings.
I'd love for people to leave comments and suggestions!
We are starting fresh on this property and I love to have my fellow DGers sharing ideas and what-not.

I have a nice huge rock bluff in the back yard (ill post pictures soon).
It is absolutely gorgeously drenched in green and yellow mosses. Yummy.
When it rains there a small natural waterfall just right to imagine lil fairies peeking out for a splash,hehe.
It has plenty of nooks and crannies to stick all sorts of lovelies. It overlooks our creek and I mussssst plant it with sedums and various beautiful natives.
Theres a huge fallen tree that lays in a hug crack in the bluff and across the ground. (thinking various Orchids here)

Im handing is over to ya'll, inspire me and tell me what I should plant.
It doesnt all have to be native, but id like most to be.




-Jocie!

Here's the new Blog. Yahoo sucks! LOL

http://www.myspace.com/crimsontsavo

This message was edited Apr 12, 2008 10:22 PM

I need lots of 'drapey' plants to hang off the overhangs too. :-)

Here's the Bluff!

That is beautiful Jocie, I am sure you are going to have a ball landscaping it.
Josephine.

Thanks so much!
Yea, it's something Ive never done before.
I'm originally from the "sand dunes" of Florida, so no rocks! LOL

At the base where you can see, I am going to make a great sitting area so we can have parties and just chill.

I am just dying to get it going.
There is a creek a lil off from the base of it, I want to landscape it with some nice natives too.
It doesnt flow all year, just when it rains well, so can't stock it. :-(
Here's a picture.

That is really pretty, how lucky you are.

Thanks!
Got any ideas on what to plant on/in/around the bluff?

If it were me I'd knock out most of the smaller trees on top of those rocks, try to do some small-scale controlled burns on that area of shallow soil on the rocks, and see what happens.

Patrick

Well, first I need to know what is native in TN, so I have to do a little looking.
Here is the plant list for TN, you might want to study it.
http://www.wildflower.org/plants/combo.php?distribution=TN&habit=&duration=
I will look through it tomorrow.
Josephine.

Yea were taking out a few trees, but not too many. I want to keep the woods as intact as possible.

Ill study the lists, thanks guys!!!

Ah, Tennessee already has too much forest. :-)

LOL!

Didn't know there are sedums that do well in what seems to be pretty much full shade.

Not much soil to work with either. Is Walking fern(Asplenium rhizophyllum) native to the area?

Actually I think we do have those growing at the creek! I'll make sure to add those to the planting as well.
Thanks for the suggestion!!

Sedum ternatum is a wild stonecrop that spreads and is native. It is extrememly easy to propagate from cuttings also. I have just put cuttings in the ground outside and they take off if well watered. Not sure if native to TN or not though offhand. Woodland phlox (phlox divaricata is a must for my shady plantings. It will spread nicely also. Trulliums! Of course. No native shade garden is complete without them!!! There are so many great woodland native choices, I could go on and on!!

Not sure how other trilliums will do in shallow soils, but Trillium nivale (Snow trillium) might work. In Minnesota they seem to like to grow on rock ledges(and thin soils) that jut out from the hill, but still in shade.

I'll make sure to look up these plants guys, thanks so much!