Weeping willows are wide and tall with graceful curtains of drooping branches that sweep the ground.
I have several groves of weeping willow trees growing at my farm, one that includes more than 25 in a marshy area along one side of a hayfield. I decided to add more weeping willows in this location to create an allée leading to my pond. Unlike many other trees, weeping willows don't mind wet surroundings. In fact, they prefer "wet feet" - meaning they are wet-tolerant and can thrive in saturated soils. My outdoor grounds crew planted a group of weeping willows last week.
Enjoy these photos.
Anyone who drives by this hayfield at my farm can see these tall weeping willows along one edge. I planted most of them about 12 to 15 years ago.
Weeping willows are upright, fast-growing, deciduous trees that can grow up to 80-feet tall. Because of their massive root systems, they need a fair amount of room to grow. They also prefer wet feet and are often planted on the banks of streams and rivers to prevent erosion.
The water-loving trees have light, slender green, lance-shaped leaves. In the fall, the color ranges from light yellow-green to nearly blue depending on the variety.
I decided I wanted to create an allée in this same location. I purchased a group of willows to plant on the opposite side of a dirt road from the mature willows. These weeping willows will grow about three to four feet per year in optimal conditions and catch up to the size of the other trees in several years.
My head gardener, Ryan McCallister, and my outdoor grounds crew foreman, Chhiring Sherpa, measured the distance between two of the mature trees so they could duplicate the same distance between the newer ones. These are about 20-feet apart.
Using our trusted Kubota tractor, Chhiring transports one of the willows to its planting spot.
Each tree root ball is wrapped in burlap and a wire cage to keep it intact and easier to move.
Chhiring uses the backhoe to help dig holes for the willows. This area is still in the beginning stages of development, so the ground is still un-groomed.
Chhiring extends the tractor’s stabilizing feet in our maze to keep it well balanced and safe.
This backhoe has a maximum digging depth of about 14-feet. It saves so much labor and time during these projects.
When selecting a location for a tree, be sure to consider the size when the tree is mature. And place it far enough from any structures, so the branches do not touch anything. Alex finishes digging the hole. A crucial step in growing healthy trees is to plant them at the proper depth. A good rule of thumb is to dig the hole as deep as the root ball.
Alex then pours fertilizer in the hole, over the root ball, and the surrounding soil. Feeding plants and trees when they are newly transplanted helps transplant survival and increases water and nutrient absorption.
Using cutters, Alex removes the wire cage wrapped around the root ball.
Alex removes the burlap. Some leave the burlap on the root ball as it should disintegrate after time, but I prefer to remove it all, so the root ball is completely bare of any wrapping before it is planted.
Slowly the crew rotates the tree on its root ball until it is in the hole.
The backhoe drops an initial load of soil back into the hole to keep the tree in place while Alex holds it straight.
Alex and Phurba continue backfilling until the tree is secure in its new environment.
Alex also uses a hard rake to level and tidy the area.
This new allée of weeping willows will be groomed later, but the trees are healthy and should become well established in little time. Fortunately, all the trees were planted before the forecasted showers began.
Within the next few years, the younger weeping willows will stand out just as gracefully as these trees, creating a shaded allée leading to my refurbished pond.
One thing I love is the intoxicating scent of a garden rose, especially the newly released Martha Stewart hybrid tea rose.
My new rose has large pink blooms, dark green foliage, and a most wonderful and sweet fragrance. It was bred by Meilland, a six-generation family-owned rose-growing business, and was launched in North America through Star Roses and Plants. Last week, I received 40 of my roses from rosarian Danielle Dall’Armi Hahn, the owner of Rose Story Farm in Carpinteria, California - a good number of them in bloom. I decided to plant them all together along both sides of a footpath of a developing garden where they can grow and flourish.
Enjoy these photos.
Look at this gorgeous rose. When in peak bloom, it shows off more than 100 lush pink to apricot petals and a citrus-honeysuckle scent.
Many of rose bushes are blooming now and will continue to flower for weeks.
My roses arrived with a large grouping of climbing roses in a variety of colors.
I decided to plant all the roses in a fenced in garden previously used as my vegetable garden and then a flower cutting garden. The soil is excellent and the surrounding fence is perfect for all the climbers. My potted roses are lined up in straight rows flanking the center footpath.
The leaves of the rose are described as “pinnate” – meaning there is a central rib and then leaflets off to each side, with one terminal leaflet. Rose leaves can have anywhere from two to 13 leaflets.
And here the digging begins – 40 holes, 20 on each side.
When planting, make sure the hole is slightly wider but equal in depth to the rose’s root ball. This will generally be about 15 to 18 inches deep by 18 to 24 inches wide.
Phurba uses a long handled garden tool to ensure the holes are straight and according to the pre-measured distance from the footpath.
A sprinkling of Miracle-Gro Shake ‘n Feed is also added to each hole.
Phurba carefully removes a rose from its pot. Do this slowly, especially if the root ball is moist and crumbling.
And then he teases the roots to stimulate growth.
Here, Phurba places the rose into the designated hole and checks to see that it is at the same level as it was in the pot.
Phurba makes sure the top of the root ball is about an inch above the edge of the hole before he backfills. He also looks to see that the plant is straight and the best side faces the center.
Any surrounding soil is leveled and tidied.
I save all the pots so they can be reused and repurposed later. If you have the room to store them, save your pots – they always come in handy.
This day was wet and rainy, but all of my roses were planted. I am excited to see them continue to grow and bloom in this enclosed space.
Meanwhile, Matthew adds support to the climbing roses that were planted along the inside of the fence in this enclosure.
For this task he uses coir twine, which is stronger than jute twine. It is made from the inner husk of coconuts.
Matthew makes sure the canes are together and separated before he secures the twine. Doing this helps to avoid any crisscrossing as they grow.
Some of these climbing roses are also blooming nicely despite the rain.
This area will look so beautiful in the weeks ahead. I’ll be sure to share more photos as they grow.
My pinetum continues to evolve with the planting of more interesting specimens.
Recently, I purchased a few plantings from Conifer Kingdom, an Oregon-based company that sells more than 600 conifer varieties from sapling to large, mature trees. Conifer Kingdom is a longtime participating vendor at the Trade Secrets Garden Tours and Rare Plant & Garden Antiques Sale. I decided the plants would look great in my pinetum behind my Equipment Barn and underneath my weeping willows. The new additions include a European Larch, Variegated False Holly, Colorado spruce, and Korean fir.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
As a serious and passionate gardener, I am always looking for ways to add more beauty and texture to all my garden beds. One area that is constantly evolving is my pinetum – an arboretum of pine trees and other conifers.
This Picea pungens ‘Utica’ is a slow-growing bright blue evergreen conifer shrub. It is a spruce that was actually found as a seedling in upstate New York.
Matthew starts by digging the hole at least twice the size of the plant.
Then he sprinkles a generous amount of food into the hole and mixes it with the existing soil. Remember what I always say, “if you are eating and drinking today, so should your plants.”
I use Miracle-Gro Organic All Purpose Plant Food. It’s good for both outdoor container and in-ground plants and feeds for up to three-months.
Matthew carefully removes the plant from its pot so as to get as much of the root ball as possible.
Using his pruners, Matthew scarifies the root ball, meaning he makes intentional cuts along the side to stimulate growth. I do this with all new plants before they are placed in the ground.
He also teases the roots on the bottom. Scarifying the root ball also helps with nutrient absorption by loosening the roots and allowing them to expand into the new soil.
Matthew checks to be sure that it is planted at the right depth. It should be at the same level as it was in the pot.
Finally, Matthew backfills and tamps down lightly to create a good connection between the root ball and the existing soil.
Look at this interesting specimen – Abies koreana ‘Kohout’s Ice Breaker.’ This is a dwarf, evergreen conifer that develops into a small, broadly pyramidal tree. It has short, stubby branches with flat, curved silvery blue and white needles and an incredibly slow growth rate.
Matthew removes it carefully from its pot. This plant will only mature to two feet tall and three feet wide after 10-years.
And once again, Matthew scarifies the roots. If the root ball is soft, scarifying can be done with the hands.
Matthew backfills and levels the surrounding soil. This specimen’s spherical shape shows it is still young.
This is a variegated false holly, a tree-form version of the Goshiki Osmanthus. It is a well-loved specimen for its radiant, variegated, holly-like leaves of creamy white, yellow, and dark mint green.
Another interesting conifer is this European larch, Larix decidua ‘Krejci.’ This is a twisted dwarf conifer that is also a slow grower with an interesting shape and habit. It is native to the mountains of central Europe, in the Alps and Carpathian Mountains, and in lowland populations of northern Poland.
The twisted, turning branches bear clusters of bright green needles in spring, turning dark green in summer, and golden-yellow in fall.
I recently expanded the garden to underneath these tall weeping willow trees, which I also planted here years ago.
Mugo pines are planted at the edge. Together with all the other new plants, this garden features a great mix of varieties, colors, and textures.
Everything thrives here in part because of the excellent soil which I amend often with nutrient rich compost and organic fertilizer. I am very proud of how it is developing. The newest additions will fill out this pinetum garden wonderfully.
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