The Heart Of Mayflower Greenhouse....Gone!

The heart and soul of Mayflower Greenhouse died on May 7. When Jan Wos moved to this area from Poland, he bought a very small greenhouse and, as stated on the website, he transformed it into a garden center that combines old world European charm with zestful creativity. He will be missed by family and friends from around the world.

Back in early April my friend, Debbie, and I took a "Fun With Succulents" class lead by Jan. In addition to being smart and creative, he had a great sense of humor and it was my pleasure to be part of the group that evening.

These photos are from that night. I don't usually include this many in a post, but am making an exception today.

An example of Jan's creativity.

Color everywhere at Mayflower. 

Plants and containers.

 

 

My very delightful friend, Debbie.

She knows more about gardening

than I can ever dream to know.

An important aspect of a garden center

is the accessibility of wagons. 

How else does a gardener transport all

of his/her plant loot to the car?  



Memories of Jan Wos will make people smile.

That's a good thing!

Slow To Grow

The growing season here in Zone 4 has gotten off to a slow start, but that doesn't mean I've lost hope. There are a few lovelies making pretty in the yard in spite of the weather.

These are a beautiful white crocus known as 'Jeanne d'Arc'. They are supposed to have a pencil-thin purple line running up from the base, but even with a magnifying glass I don't see it. I planted the bulbs (or are they corns?) last fall and I'm thrilled to see them bloom for the first time.

Glory-of-the-Snow is an early bloomer that appears not long after the Snowdrops. The blue flowers are star-shaped with glistening white centers. The plants are only about 6-8 inches tall and require very little attention. Deer and rodents do not find them to be tasty.



I've lost track of the name of these daffodils. Mount Hood, maybe? Or Ice Follies? Very pretty, no matter the name.

These yellow daffs I recognize, Dutch Master. They were planted in 2005. All of my spring bulbs would benefit from some fertilizing. Should they be fertilized after flowering or in the fall? I am careful about not cutting away the foliage until it's turned yellow.

One of the smallest daffodils grown is the Tete-A-Tete, the flower stems are only about 3 inches tall. Planted nearby but not in the photo is another hardy spring flower that's not yet blooming, Muscari armeniacum. They are a small grape hyacinth with a height of 6-8 inches. Would be really pretty if they bloomed together, but they don't and so I enjoy them one at a time.

The critters must have been hungry because they feasted on some of the Asiatic lilies, Cote d' Azur, that had just started to show new growth. Last summer these plants stood tall in the garden and had pretty pink flowers. I've not seen any rabbits this spring, but we do have a pair of Mallards hanging around, so maybe they are the culprits.

I know a lot about eating rhubarb, but not much about growing it. Our neighbor gave us a couple of transplants last year. It survived the winter, so that's a good thing.

This Mourning Dove was sitting on our deck railing wishing it would stop raining. Cool fact that I found at http://www.birds.cornell.edu. "Mourning Doves feed their nestlings crop milk or "pigeon milk" which is secreted by the crop lining. This is an extremely nutritious food with more protein and fat than is found in either cow or human milk. Crop milk, which is regurgitated by both adults, is the exclusive food of hatchlings for three days, after which it is gradually replaced by a diet of seeds."