Studiology

Peonies, Iris and Artwork

The peonies in my garden are early flowering, peaking in bloom this week. I have cut 3 bouquets of Peony 'Coral Charm', maybe the best peony around for garden performance. This peony will even resprout after being dug up, apparently capable of making eyes on root pieces. I am surprised that it is not more available. This is a photograph of a bouquet of P. 'Coral Charm' with 'Scarlet O'Hara' (the darker pink on the left).  

I am also cutting bearded iris, which have not been dwarfed by the drought. As much as I love them, I also dislike them. Between iris borer, soft rot and leaf spot, it is definitely a love/hate relationship. The love is now, I have some gorgeous varieties. This is a white that came from a friend and might be named I. 'Angelic Wings'. The photograph is from the studio and gives you a good idea of how large the flowers and stalks are.

I am delivering new hand sewn cards and postcards to the Lorton Workhouse tomorrow. The postcards are machine sewn with a photograph and matching fabric, thread, etc.  I have been working on an owl series. 

Of course there are always the flowers...

The big show change is next Monday and I'm working on finishing some pieces to hang. Every month is a new show and each artist is allowed to put in 4 pieces. I am part of the hanging commitee, so I am able to help with putting up the new art work. It's very inspirational. You should visit.   

A Guinea Tale

This is a love story, a tale about a guinea hen named Moxie. Hatched from a batch of guinea eggs in an incubator, it was one of two batches that resulted in 14 guineas each. After years of owning guineafowl and watching their numbers decline (all manner of mammal and raptor hunt them and they nest on they ground for 28 days), we decided to go the incubator route. Moxie was one of two in the first batch to have sprattle leg. This crippling leg damage comes from slipping in their brooding pen while their leg bones are still developing. Learning from the first time, we changed the litter in the bottom of the pen and never had that problem again. If it's caught early, a band-aid can be used to keep their legs together, unfortunately we were too late to correct the stance, so two of the 14 were doomed to hop around on one leg.

baby guineas, 6 days old

After a month or two, the young guineas are moved to an outdoor pen where they imprint on the area, eventually free to roam the yard, eating seeds and bugs of which ticks are a favorite. One of the sprattle legged babies was killed, likely trampled and crushed, not agile enough to keep up or move out of the way. Moxie persisted and a special perch was added, low enough for her to hop onto. As youngsters they crowd onto perches or anything that gets them off the ground for sleeping. Once released the guineas fly up into trees to roost at night.

As the guineas were finally released into the yard, Moxie was put in a special pen. She was joined by newly acquired bantams, Pequeno Maxwell and his two ladies, Priscilla and Lucille. My husband hoped that Moxie might be a female and eventually raise her own young, staying in this safe place to nest. By day the pen door was opened and all had the freedom to come and go. Moxie stayed.

Pequeno Maxwell with Priscilla and Lucille

In the mean time, guineas were pairing up, they mate for life and are incredbly loyal. The females make a cry that sounds like "come back", which they repeat incessantly. The males have a very forward stance, like they're on their tip toes. A few small battles broke out between energetic roosters, we have an older rooster named Paul who had staked out the territory at our front door. With over 20 guineas running around, it was impossible to keep track of who was paired with whom or even if they were all here. A few are pearl colored and they are largly rejected by the darker ones, running in a flock of their own.

the gentle rooster

About three days ago a male (gentle as can be) started paying attention to Moxie. When her pen was open he would go inside. If I came near the pen, he would watch me, like he was guarding her. They went on a walk together but poor Moxies backwards leg kept catching on things and she had to be rescued. Last night he spent the night. Moxie has a husband! Okay, he might be the odd man out when it came to giving out wives, but really....isn't that just the greatest story?  I decorated the pen with beads, it's now the honeymoon suite. 

Moxie and her husband

 Hooray for Moxie!           

Drought in April

 

As of the middle of April, Virginia is abnormally dry with drought conditions persisting and no prolonged periods of rain predicted. Some areas of Maryland and the Eastern Shore are already in a severe drought. Where are our spring rains?

 

Working in the garden has been very frustrating. Weeds have enjoyed the mild winter so there are more than usual, plus it's so dry, they are hard to pull. New plants have to be watered every day and established plants are wilting. At this time we are 4 to 5 inches below our average rainfall amounts, and temperatures have been mild to even hot. So how does the gardener get excited about gardening?! Well, it's not the first time we have been faced with spring drought, in 2001 we had an abnormally dry April and May, eventually it did rain and the rest of the year was fine. We are no strangers to summer drought, a hardened gardener expects it. Plant choices make a big difference and I say it's time to highlight our better choices. In many cases a plant will display common characteristics that indicate drought tolerance. The sun gardener will find that an important sign is tomentose foliage or leaves that are covered in hair. Lavender is one such example, as well as achillea or yarrow and the many artemisias. Narrow leafed plants are also designed to loose less moisture, less water lost through evaporation. Coreopsis verticillata, baccharis or the groundsel shrub and the many ornamental grasses (which include many natives) have narrow leaves. I have been very successful with small leafed salvias which offer great choices in flower color and variable heights. The bulk of these salvias are indigenous to the southwest and Mexico where annual rainfall may only be 7 inches. Salvia greggii, S. coccinea and their many hybrids are just a drop in the bucket to this world of fabulous plants. Plus the hummingbirds find salvia flowers irresistible.

The shade gardener also has drought tolerant choices, one needs to simply look around and find native plants. Life in the company of tree roots and a leafy canopy (like an umbrella to rain), make it difficult, but native plants have evolved and adapted. A drive west on interstate 66 will reveal Christmas fern or Polystichum acrostichoides growing directly out of rock. A few short lived perennials offer drought tolerant answers as they produce abundant seed and disperse it around and near the parent plant. Aquilegia canadesis or our native columbine seeds in abundance. Phlox divaricata and Viola striata give a riotous show in spring. Look for the same narrowness of leaf, such as the many native carex grasses for woodland plantings. There are numerous ferns, native and not, that are drought tolerant. Epimedium, commonly known as barrenwort translates to a plant of barren places. Not a native, but certainly up to the challenge. Solomon's Seal or polygonatum is outstanding, the leaves rimmed in white variegation. Many relatives of polygonatum offer the same toughness, look for smilacina and disporum.

Epimedium or barrenwort with hosta

As much as I hate to talk about drought in April, there are choices, even a few to get excited about. 

 

Freezing Flowers

Six years ago I saw a photograph in a magazine that really caught my eye. The macro image showed flowers that were surrounded by bubbles and texture. Not quite sure how it was done, I finally realized that the flowers had been frozen in ice. I started to experiment and have really enjoyed the process, tweeking things as I figure out what works best. If you are interested in the technique, there are a few pointers I can share to make your experimenting a little more successful. It's also high season to go out into the garden and find perfect samples, I have used everything from dogwood blooms to garden vegetables like radishes and beets.

First off you need a container that will fit into your freezer, preferably one that is tall and narrow. Allow for extra room at the top for flower stems that will stick out.  Wire should be wrapped around the top of the container so that you can anchor stems as they hang upside down in the water. A simple piece of wire crosses the top, wrapped around each stem, holding the flowers in the middle of the container and loops back around the outside wire. The hardest part to composing the flowers is getting them in the middle and at slightly variable heights. As water is poured, you want to fill the container slowly. At this point the stems will swing over and touch the sides. I try and firm up the wires or use a kitchen utensil to counter balance the tilt (lay it on the wires as a weight). Sometimes a barbeque skewer is all that's needed. You want the flowers to hang in the middle if possible. Just make sure your utensil stays above the water so it doesn't freeze into your block of ice.

 

With utmost care, you carry the filled container to your freezer and wait. I find that 12 to 18 hours works best. This will depend on the size of the container and your freezer. If you wait too long, the block turns solid and becomes opaque. When it's just perfect, you have unfrozen water in the middle, the rest is frozen enough for you to handle. I flip the block upside down so that the flowers are upright. If you notice small air bubbles rising, the block is not frozen enough, refreeze. Rarely is the bottom of the ice block even, so I put it on a projector table (any table will do), with a towel underneath to help hold it steady. Trust me on this, many a block have I dropped and it's messy.

To photograph this I use either a 105 or a 200 mm macro. I add an off camera flash held behind a diffuser. Focus on the flowers inside of the block, particularly the edge of the petals. I set the camera to 10 second delay (it waits 10 seconds to take the picture) and take lots of photographs with the flash aimed at different angles. Be mindful of the glare from the ice (hence the diffuser). I generally find that the best angles for the flash are from above and through the sides. Also keep in mind that it's best if you have a little natural light. Do not freeze your flowers in the morning and have them be ready when the only light you will use is your off camera flash. I tend to set up the container in the evening so they are ready the next afternoon. I have even taken them outside to photograph, but at the very least I use a window with indirect light. 

Some flowers work better than others. Avoid daisies or flowers with petals that might reflex. Asters and sunflowers are two examples that have not worked well. My favorites have been tulips, calla lilies, ranunculus and poppies.  

A few years ago I started to experiment with the blocks of ice put out in snow, particularly while it's still snowing. A winning combination, even with old blocks of ice that have become solid with only a hint of the flowers showing.  Just lay them out on snow covered ground, sinking them flush with the snow.