The Speed of Change

This is what my garden looked like just five days ago:

March snowstorm - check out the snow on the utility wires!

And this is what I saw on a stroll around the yard today:

New growth on sedum

 Quite a few perennials are showing signs of emerging spring foliage, including sedum, nepeta, geranium, iris, phlox, bergenia, and heuchera. I was actually able to do some work in the garden today and did a bit of an old foliage clean-up. Made my first delivery of the year to the compost pile! :-)

Helleborus orientalis - surviving winter foliage

Bergenia - surviving winter foliage

Now that the snow has melted I can see the surviving winter foliage of small evergreen perennials: hellebores, bergenias, and heuchera. They look tattered and worn, naturally, but it's still refreshing to look out the window and see something other than an endless white blanket! 









Something (slugs?) has been chewing on the hellebore foliage. I didn't think anyone ate hellebores - aren't they poisonous?

There is a lot of animal winter damage. Some local resident (presumably of the rodent clan) chewed my fothergilla and oakleaf hydrangea right down to the ground! Disappointing, but next year I will know to provide better winter protection against gnawing teeth.

Tulips emerging

Bulbs are popping up all about the garden: early tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, and even some allium. Oddly, what I thought would be the earliest bulbs to appear (chionodoxa, scilla, iris reticulata) have not made an appearance yet. I made the mistake of planting my earlier bulbs in frostier areas. This is my first spring in this new garden, so I made some bad guesses about which areas would warm up first. That's OK - I've been paying attention and now have the perfect spot scoped out for snowdrops next year!

I know there is not much to look at yet, but the signs of yearly transformation are visible. The speed of change is just dizzying. I have been waiting for spring to arrive for so long - I can't get used to the idea that it may actually be here!

Finnish Rhododendrons at the Arboretum

Rhododendron 'Helsinki University'

I have been admiring the ultra-hardy Finnish or "Marjatta" series of rhododendrons for quite a while now. By my reckoning, there is only room for ONE of these large specimens in my new garden, and now I'm faced with making the torturous decision as to which one that should be...

All of the Finnish rhododendrons are incredibly winter hardy - down to at least zone 4 and some even to zone 3. They are elepidotes, meaning they have very large leaves. (As compared to the small-leaved PJM type.) Large evergreen leaves and raging northern winters usually spell disaster, but these toughies are an exception. They offer an exciting opportunity for us northerners to add bold texture to the winter garden.

Here are the cultivars I've personally seen growing in Wisconsin, mostly at the University of Wisconsin Arboretum and Olbrich Botanical Gardens:

Helsinki University

Rhododendron 'Helsinki University'

I've seen a few mature specimens of this one, and all were very tall and upright. Magnificent is a word that comes to mind. The foliage was mostly in good condition, and I like the nice bright pink color of the flowers. It's hard to tell the scale of the plant from the picture, but these are about 7-8 feet tall at least. It perhaps has a tendency towards legginess, which would not necessarily be a problem for me as this will be a background plant in my shade garden.


Hellikki

Rhododendron 'Hellikki'

'Hellikki' has bright reddish pink flowers, a deeper color than 'Helsinki University'. I haven't seen as many plants of this one, but it appears to be slightly smaller growing. On the few that I saw, the foliage did not look terribly happy, although that could have been an accident.










Mikkeli (aka St. Michel)

Rhododendron 'Mikkeli'

Rhododendron 'Mikkeli' with Japanese painted fern

'Mikkeli' ('St. Michel') definitely has the nicest foliage of all that I have seen. The leaves are particularly large and seem to hold up extremely well against winter weather. This is supposed to be the hardiest of all the cultivars, down to zone 3. This one also grows tall - the mature specimens in the Arboretum are at least 7-8 feet. BUT, I find the color of the flowers uninspiring. They are a very pale grayish pink which fades to white. Foliage is my main reason for wanting to get an evergreen rhododendron, but I WAS hoping for a bright splash of spring color as well...









Haaga

Rhododendron 'Haaga'

'Haaga' has bright pink flowers of a medium hue. The foliage is smaller than 'Mikkeli' or 'Helsinki University', and the overall plant height is somewhat smaller too.

Elviira

Rhododendron 'Elviira'

The color on this one is awesome - bright coral red. (Apologies for the terrible glary photo - it's the only one a managed to get!) 'Elviira' blooms earlier than all the others I've seen - mid-May here, as opposed to late May to early June for the others. It won't suit my purposes because it's a low, flat-growing bush and I'm looking for a large, tall specimen. It reportedly grows to be only about 2 feet high - the one I saw was only about a foot high, although it may have been immature (I've only ever seen one of these).








 
Pohjola's Daughter

Rhododendron 'Pohjola's Daughter'

'Pohjola's Daughter' is another low, broad shaped rhododendron, although larger than 'Elviira'. The flowers are a very pale pink, which often fade to near-white. (Again sorry for the awful picture - I include it for completeness' sake.)

So.. I'm still not sure which one to get. What I want is a rhodo with the foliage and habit of 'Mikkeli', but the flowers of 'Hellikki' or 'Haaga'. That probably doesn't exist... sigh.

There are three more cultivars that I have not seen in person yet: 'Kullervo', 'Pekka', and 'P.M.A Tigerstedt' ('Peter Tigerstedt'). 'Pekka' looks particularly interesting, but I'd like to take a look at a mature live specimen before purchasing it. The Finnish Rhododendron Society has a helpful page with some info on all nine cultivars.

Sign of Life (Sleepless)

Look what I spied in the garden yesterday!

Daffodils emerging March 1

Naturally, you are thoroughly unimpressed with this view. I realize this shot is unlikely to take anyone's breath away, or cause gasps, swoons, or remarkable outbursts of admiration.

But you have to realize -

This is the first green, growing thing I have seen in five months!

For me, those little green nubs in the mud are as special as any flower could ever be.

And then there's the fact that this shouldn't be happening. Ordinarily, at this time of year, the ground would still be frozen hard, and the daffodil babies would be sleeping soundly under a deep blanket of snow. Will they be alright if winter suddenly remembers it's supposed to be his turn? I know daffs are tough cookies but I can't help worrying...

Many U.S. garden bloggers have noted the unusual pace of the seasons this year. Gardens to the south are well ahead of us (which is perfectly natural), but everyone seems to be ahead of themselves as well. Stacy of Microcosm reported that the sandhill cranes are heading north earlier than usual. Many have commented on earlier blooming crocuses and hellebores. Holley of Roses and Other Gardening Joys actually had a rose bloom in February! The Sage Butterfly writes about how she missed having a proper winter this year. I feel the same way.

But at the same time - my brain is cheering WHOO-HOO! Bring it on, Spring! I lay awake all night, fairly quivering with excitement at the impending growth and movement in the garden. This lack of a proper hibernation has made me feel like an excitable insomniac, greeting the new day with caffeine-induced jitters. How to get my sense of equanimity back?

P.S. - while I was writing this post this morning, a giant snowstorm hit us! Here's what that same spot looks like now (terrible shot taken through my window, because no way I'm going outside in this):

Bye bye spring

 Guess that's what I get for opening my big fat mouth! :-)