Exploring the Passion for Ornamental Grasses at MetroHort

The first meeting of the New York MetroHort professional group featured Bill Kolvek, nursery owner, member of the Perennial Plant Association, frequent lecturer and New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) and Bergen Community College, teacher about perennials and ornamental grasses. 

Kolvek offered a fast-paced presentation because it was clear he has a lot to say and share.  The audience warms to a speaker who had lots and lots of images to share, and Kolvek didn’t disappoint.  Full-color images of regal, fashionable, architectural, pretty grasses flowed like models on the runway.  And not so coincidently, elicited a few oohs and ahh’s along the way. Take that Victoria Secret!

Kolvek’s insight and knowledge of the grasses and grass-like plants was evident.  He made the lecture fun – with lots of anecdotes and background and real-life experience with growing and maintenance, that is all so important to the hort professionals in attendance.  After all, we have to live with more than the pretty catalog picture… Our clients’ gardens are living art that we manage over seasons.

The variety of ornamental grasses, sedges and rushes is astounding.  And the recent introductions make these plants a must-have addition in the garden and as part of any container garden composition.  Grasses provide a lucky extra in the garden: they offer four-season interest, color, winter beauty and food for pollinators.  Kolvek pointed out that many grasses now thrive in shade.  We also learned about many native grasses including the Carex pennsylvanica.  Nice flowering too. 

I liked the looks of ‘Goldband’ and while I couldn’t quite see it, Kolvek enthused about the plant’s olive green color.  That shade of green is a welcome addition to a garden designer’s palette. Overall, the plant was described as showing with lots of winter interest. The Carex elate 'Aurea' is a startlingly beautiful accessory to the blues and green grasses in the garden.

Love the Aurea with daisies

The Muhlenbergia capillaris grass was hands-down glamorous. Its showy pink plumes are pretty pink tutus that leave one swooning.  

There was mention of its inability to sustain our northeastern US zone 5, 6, 7 and thanks to global warming, 8.  I thought I heard mention this ballerina like grass is good to zone 5.  It’s a tender perennial…

However, I will tell you that I tried twice to include these beauties in Garden State gardens back in ’05 and ’06 and met with little success, even given a southwestern microclimate situation where the grasses were planted next to the house – giving added heat/warmth.   

I would so love to use this beauty (I still have the grower’s postcard in my home garden design office simply because it’s so pretty….

If anyone has other experiences or advice on this, please share.

Kolvek went on to say the Panicum virgatum ‘Dallas Blues’ are the “coolest grass” he’s worked with. 

I love them too and have used them in several clients’ garden designs. 

Especially one in Spring Lake (aka “the Irish Riviera”) in the Garden State. 

Six years ago, I chose to include this grass as an elongated “S” border on one side of the small yard because of its beauty, no doubt – the color complemented the blue house color – but also because of its size and structure and flowering charm.

Panicum amarum ‘Dewey Blue’ was a new one to me and I very much liked the look.  I will surely use these in future garden designs.

Some exciting new introductions that left the audience as breathless as international fashion buyers included the Panicums ‘Thundercloud’ and ‘Ruby Ribbons’  

along with the Pennisetums ‘Fireworks,’ ‘Sky Rocket’ and ‘Cherry Sparkler’  – all with incredible foliage.   

Not hardy in colder climates but I will use as spectacular tender perennials in garden design and container compositions.

There was a pointed inclusion about bamboo – it’s a true grass, after all.

I do feel bamboo is an overlooked design element because too many are afraid of its invasive qualities. However, if you or the garden designer chooses wisely, bamboo is an elegant, unmatched addition to a garden: in containers – if too invasive – or in the landscape. Homeowners too often don’t know the difference. There are those that are indeed invasive (oy are they! We are in a constant battle with one neighbor’s creeping bamboo) and those that are just elegant grasses. I have often frequented Little Acre Farm (www.littleacrefarm.com) to secure such grasses as Fargesia nitidia (grows to about six or seven feet).  

The variegated leaves of the Pleioblastus variegatus is like garden magic – the leaves turn beige in the winter and back to green in the summer.  Just be sure to keep this morphing maven in a contained space – it is one of the bamboos that will take over the garden.   

Tried and true wonders that Kolvek (and me) love include Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Hameln’ and ‘Little Bunny’ – good to zone 6 but could be ok in zone 5 due to our climate change… These stalwarts of the garden provide consistent texture, color and drama especially for smaller spaces.   Same is true for the variety of Miscanthus.  New to me was the ‘Gold Bar.”  Brilliant color for all-season interest.

Kolvek did warn about the self-sowing of the popular Moudry grasses

A cute highlight was when Kolvek showed how his puppy equally loves grasses and snuggled in this beauty, the clumping ‘Ice Dance’ along with his bone. 

As an adult dog, he still loves his bone-hiding grass! 

Light shade and moisture was suggested for the Carex (more light requires more moisture is a good rule of thumb.)

I loved the Rushes Kolvek previewed, including the Juncus ‘Twisted Arrows’ and ‘Unicorn!’  What fun for a zoo garden. 

I can see an evening solar light illuminating these twisting architectural specimens.

I use Liriope often and don’t feel they are overused when incorporated into a design appropriately and not just plopped all over.  They are hardy, require minimal maintenance and provide color and foliage options that give the garden a four-season interest. 

The new ‘Peedee Ingot’ is adorable.  And the color of preppy green and purple is exciting – I can’t wait to use this beauty.

The Lazula ‘Ruby Stilleto’ gave me a jolt of garden design inspiration just looking at the image! 

I used the Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Arabicus’ in a garden design back in ’01.  Because of the high cost of the Mondo Grass at that time, we used very few to line a walkway in front of dwarf  Nandina.  Over the years, we have divided the clumps with much success.  The black color fronting the winter red nandina and the light to dark green in spring and summer is outstanding.  There are very few black plants for us to use and I adore this one.   

I also use the Hakonechloa macra “Aureola’ and ‘All Gold’ frequently.  All season color and the texture are key. I love the way it feathers and fluffs in the breeze, too.  These grasses looked particularly stunning fronting dwarf Joe Pye Weed. The pink and glowing bright greens made a hit in the garden and with the client.

There was a short, lively Q&A following the exciting lecture with questions included “What kind of grass would you suggest for a 40^th floor rooftop garden in New York City?” Answer:  short ones!  

Kolvek provided the MetroHort attendees a full plant list.  My NYBG friend and all things Horticulture, Charles Yurgalevitch, Ph.D., Director School of Professional Horticulture The New York Botanical Garden, and MetroHort Secretary (and all things Italian) was a true gentleman and shared his plant list with me.  Thank you.

Readers can go directly to the Kolvek Perennial Plants website:

http://www.bkperennials.com/

The native plant list (found on the home page) is a godsend.  Be sure to use this helpful list.  You will be adding not just natural beauty and sustainability to the garden but you will be aiding our native pollinators by using natives and not invasive ornamentals. 

I couldn’t help but notice the lovely botanical art on the Kolvek Perennial home page is an Illustration by Anne Kolvek.  What a talented family!  Thank you for sharing your love of plants and celebrating the art of the Garden!

He likes Plants He Can Play With

Metro Hort First Meeting of the New Year Featured Plantsman, Michael Ruggiero

Plants and Gardens from the Sublime to the Lubricious

Metro Hort, “An association of Horticultural Professionals in the New York City and Tri-State Region” held its first general meeting of 2011 at the Arsenal, which is perched on the cusp of Central Park at 64^th St. Every time I approach the fanciful building nestled among the trees, the architecture conjures a fairy-tale where I half expect fairies and dragons to be peeking from a window.

This time of year it is glowing with holiday lights animating the sense that a Merlin will be swooshing to greet you. 

A 2007 New York Times article described the holiday lighting:

Beginning in 2005, the department began an unusual program of holiday lighting, designed by James Conti. Instead of the usual horizontal strings, Mr. Conti draped the building in roof-to-ground strands of closely spaced lights, generally blue and purple. Viewed through the screen of trees, it is a moody, evocative sight, like the bass line of a slow jazz tune.

Very sexy, no?

I researched the history of the Arsenal and found it not only housed 19^th Century ammunition, but at one time it was the American Museum of Natural History and a zoo.  Now it is the headquarters for New York City’s Parks and Recreation Department.

Holding the door open for me as I made my way up the steep stairs was not a Merlin or a gremlin, but a courteous Parks staffer.

Upstairs it was all horticulture humming as the audience was settling down. Greetings were underway by Metro Hort Secretary, Charles Yurgalevitch, who introduced the speaker, Mike Ruggiero.  Charles is also Director, School of Professional Horticulture, NYBG.

Mike is a stuffed-animal, cuddly walrus of a garden giant and an excellent horticulturist.  

He was one of my instructors at NYBG when I took classes for my Landscape Design certificate. 

The Metro Hort bio for Mike formally notes:

In his inimitable and engaging manner, Mike shares stories and comments about the many wonderful, unusual, or just plain strange plants and gardens he's come across over the course of the past fifty years in horticulture. 

Michael A. Ruggiero has had a stellar career in horticulture, most recently as horticulturist and all-around plant and garden expert at Matterhorn Nursery in Spring Valley, New York. He came to Matterhorn after nearly forty years as Senior Curator for Horticulture at The New York Botanical Garden where he was responsible for the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden and many of the other collections. A renowned expert in roses and all perennials, Mike continues to teach and lecture on a variety of horticulture topics. He also serves as an instructor at New York Botanical Garden's School of Horticulture.

Like a kid hitting the roll of toy gun caps, Mike presented a rapid-fire series of garden photos while sharing funny stories about the garden and plants. Gardeners like nothing better than to look at garden images… Truth be told, it’s almost as good as working in the garden. And this time of year?  Nothing is better. We could see all those stacked slide carousels and were as giddy as kids hearing it’s a snow day!

Mike says he likes plants he can play with and his mirthful, down to earth (can’t resist the pun) demeanor underscores his commitment.

There is the cedrus pendula he used at NYBG to keep the kids off the rocks.

The Himalayan Pine that looks like zebra grass. I have used these Suessical-like conifers in my clients’ gardens and we love them too.

There is the blue spruce used as a hanging fence wall.  

A guy who painted his glorious coral bark tree a sharper shade of red – and another one purple! 

Here is a Leaning Tower of Taxus he saw in the Pacific Northwest:    

He had everyone laughing too hard with his whimsically “favorite:” the “communicatos verizonis”  (It's a cellular telephone pole!)

Not all was goofy, though. He pointed out that Japanese Maples do best in rock gardens and shade – but notes that many people do put them in sun.   They will do well there but are best in low light.  

He loves cornus Kousa and had one that flowered in the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden right through August.  

He joked that there were two questions he was invariably asked when he was the curator there:  “Where is the restroom, “ and “WHAT is that flowering tree??”  (Never mind there were in one of the world’s premiere rose gardens!)

He’s not sure about glass in the garden. He swears this Chihuly glass creation is following him! 

He made us all laugh with the garden "bed." 

I got a gift not too long ago that was a framed card that reads, "Gardeners get to stay in their beds all day."  Cute. It has a nice spot in my garden room.

The Good Gardens segment started with his all-time favorite:  Lynden Miller’s.  

He showed a number of seasonal photos of the perennial bed. 

And why not?  It's heart-stoppingly beautiful.  "I love that bed," he sighed as he reluctantly changed the slide. 

He also remarked he loves her Perennial Gardens and design at NYBG.  Naturally.  Who doesn't it? 

He also loves Sissinghurst.  He showed a unique perspective – from on top of the roof. From this perch one can see and appreciate all the different garden “rooms.” Mike noted that just walking from garden room to garden room, you can’t a real sense of the design.  Good point. 

In turn, the White Garden at Sissinghurst was his inspiration for a Macy’s Flower Show design.   

Crayola-like primary colors had been the norm for the retail legend but with Matterhorn Nurseries, Mike does the garden work for the annual flower show, and together convinced Macys to try white.  Here is their white unicorn in a white garden display.  

He also likes tropicals.  For these tender perennials and true annuals, he recommends lots of fertilizer.  “Feed them like crazy,” he said.  He starts with Flowertone in May, then Osmocote (14-14-14) in June when that begins to work. Overall, he feeds the plants every two weeks.   He likes the beds and window boxes to look like they are on steroids! 

He likes topiaries and standards too, and showed a number of plants including New Guinea Impatiens 

He notes New Guinea impatiens was developed by Longwood Gardens! 

How could we ever have thought the plant was from the country of New Guinea.  Silly.

He loves unique planting vehicles: golf shoes seemed to star and he showed a few 

It was an amusing and fun night to learn about plants. 

Here is Mike with garden artist Lynn Torgerson.  Xx She is adorable – well so are you , Mike, but in a different way…  J

Lynn told me she is working on a new rooftop garden design. I can’t wait to write about it.  Last year, I wrote about her sexy garden on top of Gramercy Hotel.

Next Metro Hort meeting, February 16^th, will feature Stephen Morrell who will talk about Zen and the Japanese Garden Aesthetic.  He is the expert.  He is the director of the John P. Humes Japanese Stroll Garden in Mill Neck, New York.  It is a jewel of a garden.

For a complete listing of Metro Hort meetings:

http://metrohort.org/?/meetings/

You Won!

What are just about the two sweetest words in the English language? 

“You Won.”

The subject line on the email did indeed read, “You Won.”  As I know the sender, Irene Varig, I didn’t fret that the winning notice might’ve been some snarky come-on from a third-world mambo jambo nation offering bazzilions of dollars for a mere small $$ investment…Ha.

No, Irene is a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist, she is now the East Coast head of the Garden Writer’s Association, she is the gardening columnist for Newsday, she and her talented and wise husband, Harvey, teach journalism at Stony Brook and she produces her own excellent Garden Party blog (I am a Follower).  Whew – she’s busy – and successful!

All good. J

When I read she had extended the deadline for the photo contest, I quick grabbed my trusty Luminex (love this camera) and took some shots to submit…  The idea for the contest is fun and smart and sustainable.  Kudos, Irene – and thank you so much!

And special thanks, also, to Nancy Thomas, owner of “In the Garden,” Highlands, in the Garden State. (www.inthegardennj.com) 

As I mentioned previously, Nancy and her team keep track of my annual holiday decorating greens so when I place the order, we can readily discuss.  Some of the flowers and plants that I add to the items from my garden I like to repeat from year to year. 
At the same time, I like to make the plant ensemble sparkle with new fashions every season. 

This year it was the hypericum berries – in the lime green and red colors that sparked both the Gotham and Garden state floral designs. 

In the Garden just moved to a new locale in the Highlands and as much as I thought nothing could top their original space, (they had great side yards for the annuals and perennials, which is where I purchase a lot of plants for my garden design clients.)

But when I saw the new digs ^:^, I was immediately smitten.

I love it!  It’s bright and big and right across from the town park that hosts a variety of events, especially the Farmer’s Market.  Nancy is a graduate of The New York Botanical Garden’s School of Professional Horticulture (SOPH) www.nybg.org/edu/soph/

    

SOPH’s Director, Charles Yurgalevitch, Ph.D, is a friend (smooch from your Coco, Charles!)  

He has done an amazing job of not only raising the profile of the school and its mission to “educate motivated individuals to become horticulturists of the highest caliber” and to teach the students “about utilizing art and science to beautify our surroundings so that others may and enjoy and live a better life.”  Well said, Charles.  He also worked very hard in early in his tenure at NYBG to garner accreditation for the school – which is a boon for the students – and the school.

Back to Green Decorating
I picked up my green décor “wardrobe” on Friday the 18^th of December in order to complete the “look book” for this year’s holiday decorations in time for a family party that night.

All was in place when I read Irene’s blog about the Unplug contest. I emailed the images to her blog.

And then this week and for the second time this holiday season, it does indeed appear that I truly am

A WINNER! 

I know, I know. There are those who will recall I just wrote that I have two kinds of luck: NO and BAD and so now probably want to shout, “You Lie.”

But it’s true – outside of that atlas booty from the card party, there was nothing. Ever. Nada. 

Perhaps ushering in the new decade it might be a complete course change when it comes to my luck. 

(Just to make certain, I’m not stepping on any sidewalk cracks, nor walking under any ladders or…)

Here is the winner’s page from Irene’s blog announcing the winners of this year’s “Unplug the Holiday’s contest:

And the link to her terrific blog.  Sign on to become a Follower, too!)

http://tinyurl.com/yeb8wt7

Irene Virag's Garden Party

I'm Irene Virag -- a writer, a gardener, a cancer survivor. I think ideas are like plants. They need nurturing to grow. And gardeners share both. So welcome to my blog. It’s all about what’s happening in my garden and beyond.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 02, 2010

AND THE WINNERS ARE . . .

Thanks to everyone who entered my "Unplug the Holidays" contest this year. Here are my winners:

First Prize to Leeann Lavin of New Jersey,

who tweaked the holiday color scheme with lime green hypericum berries nestled among rich red roses and carnations.

 go to blog to see the images :)

Leeann also hung her stockings on the arms of silver plant cups filled with roses, carnations and seeded eucalyptus.

But she forgot to take pictures of the table designs she created with kumquats, Peruvian lilies and more hypericum berries surrounded with angel beeswax candles. I would have loved to have seen those.

And the outdoor displays Leeann designed from evergreens, birch branches and pine cones gathered from her yard were buried beneath the snow. You can't get any more natural than that.