Taking Time to Enjoy the Garden

So at long last, I am finally making the time to sit, chill with nature, and write another post. How amazingly busy (in a good way) it has been here in Elizabeth Lawrence’s garden! I have kept my schedule so filled with reorganizing garden areas, research, our incredible volunteer group (the Keepers of the Garden), and several fantastic workshops, I’ve left myself no time to fill you all in on the garden goings-on. And there has been a whole lot going on!

If you've visited the garden since August, you may have noticed a new face helping me out. We were lucky enough to have a co-op intern from the Horticulture program at Central Piedmont Community College, April Ryan. April has helped with many aspects of the garden in her 4 months here. Although her internship officially ended December 4th, she will continue to volunteer some of her time here. April has just been awarded an American Hemerocallis Society scholarship, and has been named President of the CPCC Horticulture Club for 2013. Congratulations, and job(s) well done, April!

April (far left) taught part of a propagation workshop in the garden.

Galanthus are coming up and blooming in the back woodland. I’ve spread out several congested clumps over a larger area in the hopes of creating more of a show in future years.

A vibrant patch of sweet tiny Crocus laevigatus Fontenayi’ in front of the house decided it was time to shine last week, even though their “normal" bloom time is February. (I'm always amazed at how plants never read their manuals!)

One of my all-time favorite plants is the Chimonanthus praecox (wintersweet), whose relatively small flowers permeate the entire garden with their intoxicating fragrance... especially when the late afternoon sun warms them. I routinely cut branches for Elizabeth’s desk to admire the delicate flowers and sweet perfume up close.

Last year, the Algerian iris, Iris unguicularis, made its fleeting debut on December 16th; I am sitting on tinter-hooks eagerly awaiting the first bloom's arrival this year. I have seen it in other gardens... Ann Armstrong’s was blooming in late October! Hopefully we will see a bloom here before too long. This is Elizabeth Lawrence’s original plant... still under the kitchen window where she planted it so long ago. I find this kind of perennial longevity absolutely amazing, and it’s part of the unseen depth of this garden.

Wing Haven is a magical place to visit any time of year, but especially in the winter. The Clarkson’s garden is filled with birds galore, and Elizabeth Lawrence’s garden is bejeweled with blooms... each more precious now than any in the spring. Come see us and take time to enjoy all of the gardens of Wing Haven!

Yours in Dirt,

Andrea Sprott