Hello Fellow Gardeners
We are so proud of how much we
accomplished throughout our closed period.
We searched the world for new plants we
haven't yet tried. We
redecorated the greenhouses and added one house to a total of 5 fully
packed greenhouses. Our goal
is to make this a more inviting
place for you to come, sit, relax, and enjoy what nature has to offer in the
way of plants. We are very enthusiastic
about 2006. We have twice the varieties
of roses than we had last year. We have
increased the number of annuals we carry and they will be featured in the house
we added. As usual, we have 100 tomato
varieties. With all of the early ground
work, we took a moment to pat ourselves on the back. Big mistake. First my
computer system malfunctions and I cannot update my web site. This is very embarrassing to me to have
outdated information in the public eye.
This is only a minor irritation compared to what happened next. We opened officially on April 1 but on March
31st, John was ordered into the hospital with what we thought was a bout with
pneumonia. It turned out that he had a
massive bacterial infection which filled his chest cavity with poison. He was confined to a bed, filled with
antibiotics, and ultimately had surgery to clean out his chest cavity. He was in the hospital for 1 1/2 weeks and
is now on light duty. At least I have a
good excuse for being so late with my newsletter. It has also made me realize how fortunate we are to work with
such wonderful people who can take up the slack for us when we are out of
commission. So, while once I thought I
was ahead of the season, now I am not.
But with so much to be grateful for, we cannot complain. We look forward to seeing you soon and
sharing another growing season with you.
John, Mary & the Crew
High Plains Arboretum
Many of you have heard us extol the
virtues of the Cheyenne Research Station as we recommended certain plants that
have proven to be hardy in the Rocky Mountain region. Last fall, on a trip sponsored by the Denver Botanic Gardens, we
were able to visit this station and walk the grounds and relive the station's
history. Our guide was Scott Skogerboe,
who trained under Gene Howard, former manager of the station. Scott still works in the green industry and
is committed to preserving the legacy of the station along with a group of
volunteers called ‘Friends of the High Plains Arboretum’. This field station and 2 others were
established by an act of congress in 1928 to test plants in dry land farming areas. In 1930 the mission was further refined to
work on fruit, vegetables, windbreaks and other plants for this region
(Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Nebraska and South Dakota). The area where the station is located is at
6,200’ and in an arid area of high winds and hailstorms. The soil is coarse alkaline and will not
easily retain water. The 1930’s saw
drought and dust bowl conditions which also stressed the importance of utilizing
windbreaks as well as a need for shade and even beauty around the homesteads. It was thought that if a plant could survive
here, it could survive anywhere in the region it served. In 1974, the mission was once again changed
and the station became the USDA High Plains Grasslands Research Station with
the emphasis now on soil research, water conservation, improving land use
strategies by livestock operations and mine land reclamation. All the things
the original station studied such as trees and windbreaks were now commonplace
in the region. The trees and shrubs
were left to their own devices and since 1975 have depended on natural
precipitation to survive. These were
trees and shrubs collected from all over the world and many were unique
specimens. Over 50 percent of them are
lost forever and many are on their way out.
The ones that survive do so as a result of an unfunded mandate calling
for basic maintenance. Regional
breeders and horticultural scientists show up on a regular basis to take
cuttings and harvest seeds. Several plants originating at the station are
currently being offered in the regional nursery trade, such as the Cheyenne
Privet, Cheyenne Mockorange, Highland Cottonwood, Oakleaf Mountain Ash, Forever
Gold and Prairie Snow Potentilla, and the Blue Velvet Honeysuckle. More are
being tested for possible release through other nurseries as well as through
the “Plant Select” program run by both Colorado State University and the Denver
Botanic Gardens. The remaining plants are part of our horticultural heritage
and we lose a few more each year. Each
plant has its own story to tell and its history is well documented. “Pink Lady” Euonymus is one of these plants
that was widely sold in earlier times.
Its origin was from a stone wall of a canal surrounding the Temple of
Heaven in Beijing, China. There are
only 2 places that still carry this plant and they are not in Colorado. Even the Ft. Laramie strawberry we carry was
developed at this station. There is a Cheyenne Lilac in existence but also not
available locally. One of Scott
Skogerboe’s favorite trees is the Hung Hai Tung Crabapple. This tree was brought back from China where
is was growing in a monastery know as the Temple of Transformational
Thoughts. Scott propagates 10 of these
each year. He offered up one on the
tour as a contribution for the group trying to preserve the site. I of course had to have it and outbid my
fellow tourers and it has survived the winter and is starting to bud. There is so much more still growing and worth
saving but now the area is being threatened by the City of Cheyenne itself as
the land that was once so far away now looks extremely desirable for
development. One of the main goals of
the “Friends of the High Plains Arboretum” is a proposal to preserve the site
and use it as a public center for education, recreation and further plant research. For more information and pictures, visit
www.botanic.org and click on Historic Arboretum.
LILACS It's not surprising that lilacs are
high on the list of most memorable flowers. Their scent evokes flashbacks
of summers gone by. For many, lilac
flowers remind them of a loving grandmother or the last few days before school
let out for summer vacation. A lilac bush in your yard can help create good
memories for today's youth and bring back a moment in time for the rest of us. Although the lilac is one of North America's
favorite flowers it is not a native. Most lilac plants originated in Asia.
Syringa vulgaris, our old fashion lilac bush, was first found in the mountains
of eastern Europe. Longevity is a
standard across the lilac plant spectrum. They are easily pruned and
maintained. There are early, midseason
and late cultivars. In Colorado, lilacs
arrived with pioneers. These
old-fashioned lavender lilacs still can be found on abandoned homesteads. Although not native to North America, all
have adapted to conditions in the West.This season I went wild with Lilacs and
have a collection that totals 33 in various colors and sizes.
Echinacea species usually grow on relatively
poor soil without fertilizer. Drought tolerant, sun lover. Very few disease
problems exist. Once it starts flowering in July, it continues until
frosted. One of the longest flowering
perennials in the west. A Colorado native. A butterfly magnet. Attractive to
bees and birds. Deer resistant. Great cut flower, will last a week or longer in
a vase. Plants in this genus were probably the most frequently used of N.
American Indian herbal remedies and continue to be used today. For nonstop
summer blooms that look as good in the vase as they do in the garden, you just
can't beat Coneflower! For years this native American plant was big and rangy,
with small bent-back purple petals and large brown cones. But now it's becoming
one of the showiest flowers in the garden -- with new colors, prettier forms,
and even a more compact size! Within the past few years, it has undergone
extraordinary improvements and changes. Always easy to grow and quite
long-blooming, now Echinacea is showier, stronger, and longer-lasting than
ever! From the double blooms of Razzmatazz to the new orange Sunset, Purple
Coneflower has taken on beautiful new features! It is exciting to me to see the interest the world has taken in
our native wildflower. Hybridizers the
world over have worked and continue to work on widening the color range, size,
scent, and shape while keeping the positive attributes that endeared us to the
plant in the first place. I love this
plant so much that I am growing every variety that I was able to collect this
year and now am searching for a true green variety that I have heard about. I am excited to have the Razzmatazz variety
this year for the first time. I have
tried for this plant for 3 years but Wayside Gardens Catalog has beenthe
exclusive holder of this plant until now.
I hope you will enjoythese plants as much as I do.
CLEMATIS
Looking for a vigorous climber that
has a long season of bloom and can adapt to just about any garden soil? Sound
too good to be true? Well, clematis pretty well lives up to the challenge.
There are numerous species and literally hundreds of cultivars of clematis and
it becomes more difficult each year to choose which to grow. Clematis is a
woody vine that generally prefers sunny locations with light, well-drained
soils having average moisture and cool temperatures. A location that offers
bright sunshine in the morning followed by light shade in the afternoon is
ideal. Applying a mulch around the root area of this plant will help keep the
soil temperatures cooler. One of the first questions people ask about the plant
is how to pronounce its name; is it clem-a-tis or clem-atis? The botanists
would likely argue that clem-a-tis is the correct pronunciation, but most
gardeners would understand either name.
PLANTING STATION
Purchase your container plants from
us and you may use our planting station.
Bring your empty pots or purchse a new one from us and we will provide
the soil mix and and fertilizer AT NO CHARGE for container sizes up to 5 gal.
Free Advice if needed (sometimes if not)If your vegetable gardening is limited
by insufficient space or an unsuitable area, consider the possibility of
raising fresh, nutritious, homegrown vegetables in containers. Almost any vegetable that will grow in a
typical backyard garden will also do well as a container-grown plant.
Vegetables which are ideally suited for growing in containers include tomatoes,
peppers, eggplant, green onions, beans,
lettuce, squash, radishes and parsley.