Trial, Error, and LOTS of Lilies!

Hard work built this beautiful garden

Today we ’re visiting Doug and Elaine Downing ’s garden in Kennett Square , Pennsylvania .

We live in a historic home earlier built for the employee of Longwood Gardens . When we first number here , the plot had some large red elms(Ulmus rubra , Zones 3–9 ) on the street , an tremendous Norway maple(Acer platanoides , Zones 4–9 ) overshadowing the house , a few shin George Walker Bush , and a sandbox . With a lot of test and error , we ’ve establish a garden full of lily , daffodil , iris , roses , and bloom trees that has involvement every time of year of the year .

The pergola is flanked by row of ‘ Stella D’oro ’ daylilies(Hemerocalis‘Stella D’oro ’ , zone 4–11 ) and is wholly covered with trumpet vine(Campsis radicans‘Flava ’ , Zones 4–9 ) and Kiwi vines(Actinidia deliciosa‘Pasha ’ , zone 6–9 ) . The lily garden see behind the pergola has about 30 varieties of lilies , although ‘ Elusive ’ , ‘ Musassi ’ , and ‘ Corsini ’ are outstanding , and ‘ Yelloween ’ has turn out to be the most prolific . A statue of an apsara ( a celestial maid ) imitate from a South Indian temple looks on , smother by ‘ Happy Returns ’ daylilies(Hemerocalis‘Happy return ’ ) .

In the back of the planetary house , a brave bronze statue of the Indian god Ganesh is surrounded by a field of daffodils(Narcissus‘Chromacolor ’ and ‘ Flower Record ’ ) in the spring . The blossom cherries(Prunus serrulata‘Mt . Fuji’,Prunus‘Okame ’ , Zones 5–8 ) are just get down to bloom , surveil the neighbors ’ Yoshino cherry(Prunus × yedoensis , Zones 5–8 ) . The stone walkway was built from monotonous stones gathered from fields and former prey for miles around , or brought back from visits to the family unit summer home in New Hampshire .

The grounds in the early natural spring is shown through the beautiful ruby-red leaves of ‘ Bloodgood ’ Nipponese maples(Acer palmatum‘Bloodgood ’ , Zones 5–8 ) highlighted against the saturated lily-white barque of ‘ Jacquemontii ’ birches(Betula utilis‘Jacquemontii ’ , Zones 5–6 ) . The bench is made from two opus of marble from an old pump home we select down soon after we came . The shade garden visible in the foreground is report with summertime snowflakes(Leucojum aestivum , Zones 4–8 ) in the other spring and filled with a salmagundi of hostas later in the summer .

A quiet street corner insert between two buildings houses a Balinese statue of Tara , the Buddhistic goddess of pity , surrounded by a profusion of ‘ Hyperion ’ and ‘ Fairy Tale Pink ’ daylilies(Hemerocalis ) . Nepeta(Nepeta racemosa‘Walker ’s Low ’ , Zones 4–9 ) and vinca also flourish here . The treillage behind the statue holds a wisteria vine(Wisteria frutescans‘Blue Moon ’ , Zones 5–9 ) that satiate the garden with color earlier in the bound , and the trellises on the left are later breed with morning glories(Ipomoea purpurea , annual ) .

The view from the pergola highlights the lilies . The circular garden is almost all orienpets ( as most Oriental and trumpet could n’t take the heat ) , while the more shaded garden on the left is almost all Asiatics , with a rowing of unidentified burgundy Japanese maple , all of which were raised from seedlings divulge in the gardens . Red ‘ Knock Out ’ roses and hardy geraniums(Geranium‘Gerwat ’ Rozanne , Zones 5–8 ) allow a splash of color in the front of the pergola .

In the give , daffodils(Narcissus , unnamed , as they were purchased in bulk near the beginning of our horticulture vocation ) embroil around a large Norway spruce(Picea genus Abies , Zones 2–7 ) and along the side of the railyard . These are afterwards replaced by daylilies(Hemerocalis)in the long border garden .

A shady nook shows a ‘ Shaina ’ Nipponese maple(Acer palmatum‘Shaina ’ ) set off by the soft greens and yellows of hostas , let in ‘ Grand Tiara ’ , ‘ Afterglow ’ , ‘ Super Nova ’ , and ‘ Emerald Rough Cut ’ .

A bunch of promising convoluted gladiolus(Gladiolus communis‘Byzantinus ’ Zones 6–10 ) stomach in front of a construction at the side of the yard . Dicentra(Lamprocapnos spectabilis , Zones 3–9 ) bloom beneath them , and flame nettle on the right await planting . The latest strand of nameless burgundy Nipponese maple has reached about 5 inches in height . The bright color of ‘ The Rising Sun ’ redbud(Cercus canadensis‘The Rising Sun ’ , Zones 7–10 ) shine in the desktop .

Irises fill the interior of the rose garden(Iris hollandica‘Mystic Beauty’,Iris germanica‘Better Than Butter’,Iris germanica‘Silverado ’ ) . Dutch flag have naturalized around the outside , and the tall bearded irises , most of whose names have been forgotten , fill the inside closest to the rose pillar .

The Corsini lily(Lilium‘Corsini ’ ) is one of the most outstanding in the lily garden . The lily garden was greatly improve when we dug out the original soil down to about 18 inches and replaced it with compost and potting soil . The area is in full sun in the afternoon , and we ’ve found that the orienpets flourish here far advantageously than other lilies .

The ‘ Elusive ’ lily(Lilium‘Elusive ’ OT hybrid ) is another that flourishes in the lily garden . ‘ Yelloween’(Lilium‘Yelloween ’ , OT hybrid ) , rising up in back of the ‘ Elusive ’ , has prove to be the most prolific of all lilies in this area , and its legion materialization have been transplanted to other orbit of the garden .

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