Let's talk about Wildflower Hill today. You all may remember we purchased our property three and one half years ago. At that time we had to clear a lot of trees and scrub growth. After everything was cleared we wound up with predominately broomsedge grass on the Wildflower Hill portion of our property. While broomsedge is not bad for wildlife I wanted forbs in order to feed the pollinators and wildlife such as birds and deer.
My solution for adding forbs was to wintersow a good amount of native wildflower seed purchased from Roundstone Seed in Kentucky in February 2014. This was after speaking to the Tennessee biologists about the area of my land I needed help developing. I really wished for help doing a prescribed burn but help was not forthcoming so Mr. Fix-it and I went it on our own by wintersowing. All of my research told me it would take a few years for the wildflowers to even show up let alone spread and take hold after seeding. Enter summer 2016 and we are now seeing some results from our labors. The above gray headed coneflowers are definitely one of the seeded forbs I added to the area. This is the first year I have seen it and I am very excited!
Here is a long look at one part of the approximately two acre area of Wildflower Hill. It looks like a jumble of weeds--and some might consider it so but not me! It is pure beauty.
Coneflowers have been growing in the area for two summers now. They are beginning to seed about a bit. I am ever so happy to see happy wildflowers!
Goldenrod, mountain mint, and wild beebalm already had seeds laying dormant in the soil. While some of these wildflowers may be from my seeding the wildflower seed I think the majority of these seeds just needed to be exposed to the sun in order to sprout and grow. I say this because the goldenrod is a fairly common roadside weed that grows abundantely just about everywhere. The mountain mint and bee balm are thick as thieves in one particular spot of the Wildflower Hill and that is not a spot where I sowed my seeds. Those two wildflowers are spreading out and attract predominantly swallowtail butterflies. On any sunny day I can ride down the hill and marvel in the hundreds, if not thousands, of butterflies partaking of these plants. It is almost really surreal! Imagine everything in slow motion without hardly a sound around and you see black butterflies gently swaying back and forth between flowers. Amazing, simply amazing.
A close up of the mountain mint.
A close up of the goldenrod. This is a wonderful wildflower and I think it will help to sustain my bees over the winter. I never find any honeybees on these flowers but I can smell the distinctive smell of goldenrod nectar as they bring it to the hive. Hopefully they will make lots of honey to sustain them over the winter.
Queen Anne's lace is a non-native wildflower that has naturalized here in America. I like it even though it is not native. I always finds lots of bugs partaking of its goodness.
Tall coreopsis (Coreopsis tripteris) grows predominately at the bottom of Wildflower Hill. Two years ago it was a solid mass of flowers. Last year and this year it has not come back as strong and robust as that first year.
Greater tickseed is a pretty little ray of sunshine.
Queen Anne's lace.
I am not sure what type of wildflower this one is. It may be more Coreopsis major or a type of cup plant or something else. I need to do more research on this one.
Rose pink (Sabatia angularis) is a biennial that showed itself big time two years ago. This year it is back but not in such great numbers as it was two years ago. This is not an issue limited only to Wildflower Hill because I noticed that along the roadsides it has not shown up as much as two years ago either.
Also flowering but not pictured are: bee balm, verbascum, butterflyweed, asters, and ironweed....
in the garden....
Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden
Mr. Fix-it and I have been working on our land for over two years now and this particular hill is a main focal point of our efforts. When we purchased the land this 800 foot long and steep hill was mainly all tree saplings, blackberry vines, and weedy trees. It was a mess! My vision for it was to restore it to a native prairie/woodland type settings with native wildflowers (forbs) and native grasses growing on it.
To begin with we had lots and lots of broomsedge. I love the broomsedge as it is an easy care native grass that is very attractive in the winter, but I also wanted some forbs (wildflowers). Forbs are what gives the ecosystem some variety and the wide range of native forbs available ensures that pollinators will have a wide choice of plants to choose from on their journeys. Also, if you look at my native warm season grass post about wintertime habitats you will quickly see that broomsedge by itself can get pretty boring. Looking at the above picture you can see there is much more than grasses growing on this hill now. Some might see it as a weedy worthless pasture but I see it as nirvana--and success!
After Mr. Fix-it and I cleared the hill I purchased a bunch of native wildflower seeds and winter sowed them in the early spring of last year. The process for pretty simple. I purchased a seed mix from Roundstone Native Seed Company and spread them around the hill after I aerated the hill to provide some anchoring for the seeds. Of course, the first year of wildflower sowing you generally won't get many blooms, though we did have a few last year. Unfortunately, with the house build and the underground electricity ditch coming right up Wildflower Hill I did not have much time to really focus on the hill and most of the blooms were from dormant seeds on the hill. This year I ride up and down the hill each day and marvel at all the changes to the plants and all the pollinators those plants bring in. Right now the frittilaries are very busy with the wildflowers and are the dominant butterfly visible to me.
The coreopsis is beautiful and quite sunny.
To me this is one of the most beautiful gardens around-nature's garden! Not tidy and neat at all but so full of life, color, and beauty.
Even the very weedy horse nettle can be pretty growing in this mix of forbs and grasses. I so far don't have a major issue with horse nettle but since it does not provide benefit for the wildlife I think I'll be taking action to prevent this horse nettle from getting out out of hand.
This particular wildflower is problematic for me but not in this spot. Can you see the upright feathery like green plants in the middle of the above picture? It is lespedeza and is a big pain in the butt. While lespedeza can be beneficial as forage for cattle and other wildlife, it is quite a terrible weed in a cultivated garden such as what I have closer to the house. The stems are wiry and the roots go deep. It is almost impossible to pull out and digging it out disturbs adjacent plants. I am still going to fight the battle in the gardens though. In this spot the lespedeza is fine. I do hope it does not spread though.
Verbascum thapsis is an interesting and easy to identify wildflower. It is an introduced plant and is pollinated by bumblebees. On the hill it is scattered around but not in such numbers that it will take over the other wildflowers. I enjoy its tall stalks of bright yellow flowers.
Here is a good picture of a few of the many forbs found growing on the field that really pique my interest. Pictured are red Indian Pinks (Spigela marilandica), White milkweed (Asclepias variegata), and the yellow is what I believe to be Coreopsis major.
I believe this to be Coreopsis major.
Lanceleaf coreopsis.
Thistle, not sure which kind.
Oxeye daisies (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum)
Coreopsis major on the northern hill crest.
I am pretty excited to see what kind of wildflower this tall thick one turns out to be. It has not bloomed yet but is looking good.
Does anyone know what it could be?
This may be goldenrod. I don't know.
Unfortunately we still have some woodies growing on the hill. Bushhogging one time per year will keep them under control. We bushhog in the late winter.
Butterfly weed and rudbeckia have showed up.
This is a view from below the huge Wildflower Hill. It definitely looks weedy but paradise to me! The hill faces east and has some mature cherry, oak, hickory, maple, and gum trees dotted about. I am grateful the previous owner had the bulldozer leave a few trees when he cleared this hill. The trees add to the diversity, provide some shade, and look nice. They have so far not bothered the wildflowers growing here. We have sunny, part sunny, and even shade wildflowers growing on the hill.
White milkweed (Asclepias variegata) are a wildflower that is good for monarchs and can grow in shade-even full shade. This milkweed grows all over the property and Mr. Fix-it and I like it.
I am not sure what type of wildflower this yellow ray flower can be. I think perhaps Coreopsis major. Does anyone know? It is blooming everywhere in my part of Tennessee right now. I love its sunny disposition. There are so many yellow ray flowers that I have a hard time keeping up with them all.
This is some kind of skullcap. The folks at the Tennessee Native Plant Society think perhaps it is hairy skullcap. I think they are right after reading this link describing how it is difficult to identify skullcaps since so many are similar to each other.
I still have lots of cultivated gardens here too but they are unfortunately inundated with another wildflower called ragweed. By the time I weed one garden it is filled with more weeds. It is a struggle for me to get the gardens up to my standard. In spite of this that is not why I am focusing on wildflowers. I adore wildflowers and always wanted a wildflower area. The Wildflower Hill is but one of the many areas here. Soon Wildflower Hill will be covered in purple bee balm and other summer wildflowers. The very nature of change in a garden is something I love to watch so I am really liking the flower progression. I also have a small (900 square foot) field I planted and am cultivating for wildflowers. It is in full bloom and I hope to show it on here soon. Its location is right near my beehives so it is a great thing for them. I have been rather busy with family visiting and maintaining things day by day but am enjoying wildflowers....
in the garden....and hope you are too.
Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden
It has been more than one year since we purchased our land in Stewart County, so, with a new growing season I thought I'd update you all on the progress. First of all, progress in a garden is always an ongoing thing. Natural gardens and really all gardens change daily. This is so out at the land so these pictures are only a snapshot in time. They vary from vistas to wildflowers to cultivated flowers. The one thing they all have in common is that it is clear Mother Nature is in control because I simply cannot cultivate everything you see--nor do I wish too!
We start the tour with a beautiful vista down our back hill under a dogwood. This is a rather large hill and the vision is for it to be filled with wildflowers and grasses. This is where the majority of the wildflower seed was planted early this spring. An unexpected result of clearing this hill last spring has allowed a lot of already existing wildflowers to germinate and bloom. Some of them you will see in this post. On the day I took this shot Mr. Fix-it bushogged all of the broomsedge. This will allow even more sun to penetrate to the ground surface so that the wildflower seed that has germinated will get light and will grow.
One of the surprises in the area that was mowed last fall was all of the phlox found growing on the Wildflower Hill. The pinks and purples are delightful.
This is a native wildflower that I actually transplanted to the little pond area by our overhead shelter. It is of course Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum species). This is one perennial I can't get enough of due to its long period of interest and ease of care. Also, thus far the deer have not eaten it! I have several different cultivars of it and also the False Solomon's seal (Smilicina racemosa now apparently changed to Maianthemum racemosum). I have been busy trying to move every bit of it out to the land and I am actually making progress. This clump was moved last year and came back wonderfully.
Another shot of the little clump by the little pond.
These violets were nice bits of color on the Wildflower Hill. I am not sure what type of violets they are so if anyone can positively identify them let me know please. It is probably a woodland violet.
This is the view toward the overhead shelter I call the gazebo. If you will remember the canopy we had over the structure collapsed due to the weight of snow and ice within the last month or so. Mr. Fix-it did an outstanding job of replacing the roof with metal we had leftover from when our garage was built twelve years ago. Yes, I hold on to everything as you never know when you might need it. The metal is all different colors but it works to keep us dry and out of the sun. The gazebo is surrounded on the north and south by a prairie style garden. Behind the gazebo is a small pond and a woodland garden. This is also where the above Solomon's Seal grows. I'll post on the prairie garden later but for now suffice it to say it has growing in it: baptisias, asters, Tartarian asters, compass plant, helianthus, amsonia, salvias coneflowers, cannas, grasses, heucheras, catmint, sedum, veronica, liatris, and daylilies.
Here is an up close picture of the north side of the little gazebo. It looks like the plants are pretty far apart but remember these plants have been here only one year and will quickly fill in.The southern side has about 600 'Sun Disc' daffodils currently blooming in it but the whole area is pretty much natural. The electrical transformers and wiring is scheduled to go in the area so I have not done much with that side.
This is the view on the extreme north side of the prairie garden under the oaks. Here the divider between a cultivated area and the wild area are stepping stones. These heucheras 'Miracle' you see as the chartreuse foliage in the foreground are a truly a miracle. I planted them last spring and never watered them. They kept their foliage all winter long. As this new foliage came in the deer kindly came and ate all of the old foliage. I don't know how that happened but it did. I hope they leave the new foliage alone. These heucheras are a tough, large, and vigorous cultivar of heuchera. I highly recommend it. Also, these can take a lot of direct sun because they get the western sun each afternoon.
Spanish bluebells grow along side some pink Spanish bluebells behind the gazebo by the pond. They were moved while in bloom last spring and barely winked at the move. Firepinks have also joined the chorus in this area and the red of their flowers contrasts nicely with the blue and pinks of the Spanish bluebells.
I am not sure what this little yellow wildflower could be. It is growing sporadically in the field. It is a pretty yellow.
I had transplanted a lot of spiderworts out to the Driveway Garden. Imagine how surprised I was to find spiderworts growing wild on our Wildflower Hill. This type may be Tradescantia subaspera. It prefers moist, acidic soil and that is exactly what we have--even on the hill during certain periods of the year, like spring. This pretty little clump was mowed over by me while I cut the grass, but it seems to have not suffered any major damage. Big sigh of relief.
'Florida Flame' azaleas are blooming. I am loving the azaleas this year and so far the deer have not nibbled on them, tho they have sampled the rhododendrons. I can completely forget about hollies as they are all chewed down to nubs. Darn deer.
This last picture is of another wildflower area in our back corner of the field. The columbo grows here with wild abandon. Many of these American columbos are getting ready to bloom. I love this area as the columbo looks like hostas coming and so prolific are they that the sight is really something. Within another month or so all of these columbo will have gone completely dormant and the summer wildflowers such as butterfly weed, lespedeza, goldenrod, and asters will take over. Also growing on the land but no pictures of them are: ragweed (transplanted and wild), yellow rocket, waterleaf, and many, many more wildflowers yet to be identified....
in the garden....
We are finally breaking ground on the house so I am very busy working on that, but gardening is never far from my heart. I think that hopefully by the time the house is done most of my gardens will be moved. I've worked more than one year on this process but it is a very time consuming thing and I am not really where I need to be. As it is, it looks like I'll have another winter season to get everything moved before we put our house on the market. This is great news for me because as wonderful as it is having a new house to be, it is ever more so wonderful to have a new garden I create from scratch. I am so excited to have this opportunity! Thanks for following along....in the garden.
Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden
