GOLDEN OATS GRASS

Reaching for the stars,  
it is Stipa gigantea.

Golden Oats Grass

(Stipa gigantea)

The florets can be seen

in the upper foreground gifting seeds 

to those of us under the 8-ft stems.

Location: The Gatehouse garden©

this day of 5 August 2021

Botanical name: Stipa gigantea

Family: Poaceae

Native to: Spanish Pyrenees

Life cycle: Perennial

Hardiness zone: USDA 05-10

Foliage: 18" evergreen hummock with arching evergreen gray-green leaves.

Bloom time: May until early July. Seedheads soaring to ca. 8-feet, last until late summer or early autumn. These are useful in dried flower arrangements.

Tolerates: Drought after it has been established; also resistant to deer.

Sow: Spring.

Notes. This grass brings texture, form, and movement to the garden. It has a long period of interest. Popular for its soaring silver stems and golden drooping awns. The flowers make a great see-through "scrim" in gardens. It has a long period of interest.

Do not fertilize or it could cause the long stems to droop.

It can be tidied by raking through the clump to remove dead grass. and cut back in late winter or early spring for a cleaner look. If it is not a vigorous plant cutting it back can kill a weak or young plant, according to the Elizabeth Miller Library, Seattle. 

Stipa gigantea was awarded an A.G.M. distinction by the Royal Horticulture Society in 1993 and is on the Seattle's Elizabeth Miller Library noted "Great Plant Picks" list.

Seed capsules of 
Golden Oats grass
(Stipa gigantea)
Source: the Gatehouse garden
5 August 2021
Clay art by Jodie and Terri

Packets are now installed at the seed shed on Reefnet Bay Road, Shaw Island, Washington.

FLOWERING TOBACCO –– Head of the Class

FLOWERING TOBACCO
(Nicotiana sylvestris)

Nicotiana sylvestris 'Only the Lonely.’
Blooming in mid-July
at the Gatehouse garden,
Shaw Island, San Juan Archipelago, WA.
At this writing, at least 4' tall, fragrant,
and winning the trial for DEER RESISTANCE
in this fall season when faithful Foxgloves
 have finished with their bloom cycle.
Don't tell me white flowers are boring.
Second generation now blooming
at this garden on Reefnet Bay Road,
Shaw Island, San Juan Archipelago, WA.
Save the packet in the fridge for early
spring broadcasting.
Photo from the Gatehouse garden July 2019.

Botanical name: Nicotiana sylvestris 'Only the Lonely'

Life Cycle: Tender perennial.

Native Growing Region: Northwestern Argentina

Zone: Winter hardy USDA 7 to 10

Bloom Time: Depending on the weather, sometimes from June until frost.

Flower: Showy clusters of pendant white flowers that look like a burst of fireworks. Most fragrant in the evening.

Spread: 1-2'

Foliage: Dramatic. Huge chartreuse to green leaves. Larger in the shade.

Maintenance: Low. Easy, "throw and grow."

Description: Awarded the RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM.) The stems and root systems are strong enough that the plants can lean at severe angles without requiring a stake, some say, but this 5 footer has a slender stake to 
support her lifestyle.

Tolerates: Shaw Island deer! Rutgers Agricultural Station has rated this plant as RARELY touched by deer. There are hundreds of island deer who actually do leave this plant unmolested.

Degree of difficulty: EASY.

Garden uses: Good for fresh flower arrangements. Use in masses at the back of the annual or mixed border as a stunning backdrop for smaller plants, as a tall accent plant, or in a large mixed container. It is right at home in a cottage garden and is natural for a moon garden.

Notes: This species self-seeds readily but the seedlings are easy to identify and pull if unwanted. Volunteer plants are not a problem in cold climates. Thrives in all types of soils with moderate moisture but prefers rich soils.

The genus name honors Jean Nicot (1530-1600), the French ambassador to
Lisbon who introduced tobacco to France. The specific epithet means forest-loving.

Uses: Cultivated as an ornamental plant. All parts of Nicotiana sylvestris can cause discomfort or irritation if consumed, according to Wikipedia.

Sowing: It is easily grown from seed, either sown indoors 6-8 weeks before the last frost or sown directly in the garden after the last frost. Surface sow the seeds and barely cover, as they need light to germinate. Germination should take place between 1.5-3 weeks.

Quote:

"I could not live comfortably without flowering tobacco. The best flowering tobacco by far is Nicotiana sylvestris, the woodland tobacco from Argentina. A fine plant either for the mixed border or for pot culture on decks or patios, it rises in a pyramid as much as five feet above its enormous pale green lower leaves. Its pure white, long tubular blossoms are pyrotechnic, exploding in a circle in tiered whorls at the top of sturdy branching stems. Its delicious scent grows stronger at night when the somewhat drooping flowers lift upward to greet the moths that are their pollinators."

Allen Lacy, The Inviting Garden. New York, Henry Hold and Co. 1998.

FLOWERING TOBACCO

Nicotiana sylvestris
The minuscule seeds are harvested, sifted,
& packed in glassine paper for sale at 
Gatehouse Seeds, Reefnet Bay Road,
Shaw Island, San Juan Archipelago, Washington.

🌿 CLEMATIS seeds 🌿

CLEMATIS HELSINGBORG

Clematis "Helsingborg"

Life Cycle: Herbaceous Perennial Vine

Plant Height: 12' to 15' at maturity

Plant Width (Spread) 10'

Zone: USDA 5 to 9

Flower: Purple color.

Light Exposure: full sun to light shade.

Seasonal Interest: Spectacular spring show of rich purple flowers followed by fluffy seed heads in late summer.

Notes: Prefers rich, well-drained soil. Plant vines that are well-rooted & minimum 2 years old. Clematis are heavy feeders and appreciate fertilizer in Spring.
This Clematis blooms on old stems AND new growth, so best to prune lightly in late spring once the first flush of flowers is finished. Easy to grow and easy to control the small vine.

Well established, overgrown plants can be cut back to 12" tall in winter to remove tangles, allowing robust new stems to fill out the plant, but will not flower the next year.

These notes are from the Elizabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden where they list Clematis "Helsingborg" on the list of "Great Plant Picks" with cultural information, a great guide for PNW gardeners. The list contains the best plants for the maritime climate of the Puget Sound area. 

And here is what the great gardener/book author had to say regarding the soil this plant enjoys:

"The best kind of soil from every point of view is that which is rich in humus: decayed vegetable matter like leaf mould, peat, farmyard manure, garden compost, straw, spent hops, sewage sludge, road sweepings, ground bark as a forestry by-product, deep litter chicken manure based on sawdust or wood shavings. When I am asked what I recommend as a soil conditioner for Clematis, I think of all these things but which to recommend depends so much on the individual's locality. What she can acquire or make most conveniently at the lower cost." Lloyd, C. Clematis. Capability's Books. 1989.

🌿 Chilean Glory Flower 🌿 (Eccremocarpus scaber "Tresco Gold")

Chilean Glory Flower
Eccremocarpus scaber "Tresco Gold"
(on right.)
Loving the heat in a "wall pot" on Shaw Island, WA.
August 2015.

Common Names: Chilean Glory Flower; Chupa-Chupa; Lorita & Voqui.

Life Cycle: Perennial vine.

Native: Chile and Peru.

Flowers: July to October. Will flower the first year if sown early.

Vines: If supported, vines can reach 12'. They are NOT an aggressive thug.

Award: The prestigious RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM).

Sowing: Indoors in late winter to early spring or sow directly outdoors from May onward.

Soil: loves neutral to slightly acidic, rich soil in full sun.

Propagation: usually by seed.

Degree of difficulty: EASY.

Notes: An excellent greenhouse specimen; will grow happily in a container where they will last a long time. Wonderful weaving through roses, clematis, on fences, etc. Often grown as an annual.

🌿 HERITAGE NARCISSUS 'Van Sion' 🌿

"SPRING IS NATURE'S WAY OF SAYING
LET'S PARTY!"

The great Robin Williams,
an American comedian & actor.

Photograph looking north to
Orcas Island is courtesy of Eli,
a childhood resident of
the old Griswold home place,
12 March 2015.

The Skagit Valley growers are keen to host festivals to celebrate their acres of flowering spring bulbs; please join me in celebrating these special 'survivor' daffodils, now dancing in our offshore breeze. There will not be any Narcissus seeds available at the Gatehouse but the double Narcissus 'Van Sion' has been happy here from early settlement days, naturalizing on at least three former homesteads on Shaw Island. Their long history catches my attention.
      I may be accused of using the term 'heritage' rather loosely for some of the specimens listed in previous plant posts, but this bulb of unknown origin is recorded as first flowering in 1620 in London. Parkinson listed it in his Paradisus. The highly regarded daffodil expert, Englishman E. A. Bowles writes in his 1934 Handbook of Narcissus, that his bulbs were sent as a gift from a wild patch growing in northern Greece. 
      The Narcissus 'Van Sion' is well described in journals as heritage for her survival through the centuries, in varying climatic conditions without special nurturing; usually, it is this lush, double daffodil found at early abandoned homesteads, long after the residents have moved on. Often the flowers are tinged with green; there are other double daffodils, but this is the one with a pedigree.
      The three known places where 'Van Sion' is found naturalized in the thick, lush grass of Shaw Island were former working farms, recorded in federal documents as being settled in the 1880s. I sent photographs to a professional to verify my guess of the correct name.  
      When Jeremiah Griswold filed Shaw Island homestead papers with the federal government, he listed 1882 as his first personal settlement. We don't know if he planted these flowers, but the next two generations of Griswolds also operated the farm. Their first farmhouse burned to the ground in 1911, but the large extant hay barn and the daffodils were happy to stay on.
      For this historian, these are enough reasons to classify this flower growing on Shaw Island, as one of our true heritage plants.
      Here is a piece from the local Journal newspaper in 1974: 

"It might be called a town that never was; hardly any reason for it to be called anything. But there it is––on most maps––Griswold; on some maps, the only name on Shaw Island. Signs of a town are just missing." 

     And there it is, a blend of our horticulture and our history; it is a lovely 'pot of gold' the Griswold family left behind at Griswold.

Gift of cut Narcissus 'Van Sion'
grown on the site of
the old Griswold home, 
Shaw Island, WA.
Debbie Dean porcelain pots.
March 2015.

      

I mentioned a pedigree; she did earn an Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society (London.) 
     Shaw Island Women's Club, the gals that spearheaded the early fundraising for the construction of the Shaw Island Community Building, started out life as a Garden Club, with membership––I like this––in the Royal Horticultural Society, England. 
      

🌿 Gwen's Sweet Pea 🌿

Lathyrus latifolius
Hand-thrown porcelain pot by Louis Mideke
Shaw Island, Summer 2014

      From a photograph documenting the day, we know that in the late 1960s, Gwen Yansen, with a maiden name of Jones, traveled to the small island of Jones, San Juan county, with Babs and Coonie Cameron. Their mission was to gather wild-collected flower seeds for the woodland garden being planted for the new Shaw Island Library and Historical Society. 
      We all know that Gwen loved flowers, but with a healthy love of books, she also contributed as a trustee on the first board of directors to help round up supportive charter members.
      The native, Lathyrus latifolius vine enjoyed a prominent place in the Yansen garden overlooking Wasp Pass. Gwen grew her perennial Sweet Pea specimen for at least twenty years, on its own 7-ft iron tuteur.
       Mary Lou, another great island gardener used to give her annual Sweet Peas an early start by sowing them in the autumn season, in a warm southerly location next to her house. She remembers that wild Sweet Peas used to grow along Shaw Island ditches before our roads were so well maintained by the County Road crew. 

Lathyrus latifolius
Blooms of summer '14.

     This naturalized, roadside wildflower was introduced from Southern Europe into English gardens before 1635, and came with immigrants to North America. Now throughout the west, the plant is an example of the adage that "we can't have it all." The perennial vine, with healthy foliage all through the record hot, dry summer of 2021, is long-lived, salt-spray, and wind tolerant, it has a long bloom season with fine flowers for cutting, a gorgeous magenta rose color,  clump, and displays resistance to drought. It won the prestigious Royal Horticulture Society "Award of Garden Merit," but alas, it lacks fragrance.
     
      According to seed specialist, Renee Shepherd, this species can be trained as an attractive and reliable perennial hedge plant, much more drought tolerant than the annual sweet peas. Here is a link to her site.

      Cultivation:

Pre-soak seeds and sow in containers for placement in a cold frame in Sept/Oct or store seeds in the refrigerator for sowing in early spring. 
Prone to diseases if seedlings are overwatered.
Enjoys the sun.
Some good culture notes HERE.

*Favored reference for this Lathyrus study; 
Clark, Lewis J. Wild Flowers of the Pacific Northwest from Alaska to Northern California; Sidney, B.C., Gray Publishing Ltd. 1976.

Fresh sweet pea packets are  
on the rack at the Gatehouse,
 Reefnet Bay Road, Shaw Island.

🌿 MAGGIE'S CROCOSMIA "LUCIFER" 🌿

Crocosmia x "Lucifer"
Loving the heat of summer.
Shaw Island, 
San Juan Archipelago, WA.

Type: Herbaceous perennial.

Native Region: Garden origin (species is from South Africa)

Growing Region: USDA Zone 6-9

Preferred Climate: temperate

Description:
A stately hybrid developed by Alan Bloom, Bressingham, Eng. He thought 'Lucifer' was the hardiest, and most spectacular of the Crocosmias. One of the most popular perhaps because it is the hottest color of all.
Large clump-forming, with pleated green leaves and bright red flowers on wiry stems in midsummer. Height 3-4 feet. Grow at the edge of a shrub border or in an herbaceous border. Makes an excellent cut flower. It does not need staking. According to Christopher Lloyd “Lucifer” will grow true from seed.

Link for growing this cultivar from seed is here
But please don't store your freshly harvested seeds in a plastic bag. A paper bag is advised to ward off mould.

Cultivation:
It will grow well in shade, but will bloom better in sun.  
For maximum freshness, please keep the seed refrigerated in its original package until it is time to plant. Sow seed in containers in a cold frame as soon as ripe. Grow in moist but well-drained soil in sun or partial shade. Lift and divide clumps in spring, periodically, to maintain vigor. 

Notes: 
Only country folks call this lovely plant "Montbretia" because the rest of us have been to re-education camps where we have learned to use the name Crocosmia for these fiery South African plants.
For city courtyard gardens, informal cottage gardens, borders, beds. All 7 species come from S. Africa where they grow in moist grasslands.
      I have seen this plant reproduce with only 2 or 3 seedlings in the warm gravel under the raised bed where the original plant grows, but mainly it spreads gently by corm production. Angel's plant is never invasive; if it is out of control as sometimes written, it is easy to extract the young corms to grow on in the cutting garden or share with a friend.
Give it room to display the fine foliage so it doesn't have to be trussed up like a Christmas goose.

Deer: Often this plant is listed as deer resistant but in 2019 the island deer dined on the blossoms of this plant. 

“Lucifer” was introduced by the famous Blooms of Bressingham. 
It won the breeder an RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM.)

Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora
"Lucifer"
Sun-loving, tropical-like foliage, hot red
flowers let us know summer is here.
Seed packets of this easy, island-grown flower
are for sale at the Gatehouse,
Reefnet Bay Road, Shaw Island.
According to the original
nurseyman in England,
this plant will come true from seed.