new plants 2017

2017 was a hot mess, wasn't it?  My focus wasn't really on my yard, other than trimming out some undergrowth to help the view of the pond. 

There are 3 new plants from this year that stick out in my mind

1) A new antique rose - Buff Beauty.  This is my second attempt at growing this rose.  I have some animal roaming around that thought the first one was pretty tasty.  I planted this rose in the spring, and by fall I had a couple good 4' canes - despite my lack of regular fertilizing.  I'm hoping it will continue to grow, and will bloom this year.

2) Three white Encore Azaelas by the pond.   This was definitely a discount find, and a pretty big risk.  Azaelas like sun - of which I have very little - and hate wet feet.  Planting them by the pond was not the smartest thing I've ever done, but I would love for them to grow, and be the first thing you see when you turn in my driveway.  I planted 3, and 1 survived and bloomed through fall.  I'm calling that enough of a win to consider building a retaining wall and trying again next year.

3) Magnolia cutting from my grandmother's house across the street.  In my quest to improve the view of the pond from my front porch, I'm also improving the view of my house from the road in the winter.  I like my privacy, so I'd like to add some more evergreens to this section of the woods.  Trees that I can 'limb up' over time and still see the pond, but will also provide screening from the road.  Well.  I looked at magnolias at our local nurseries, and let me just say they're crazy.  They have very nice trees, but there is no way that I'm paying $200 for a magnolia that won't even get very tall.  They grow wild here, so I took a rooted lower limb from one of my grandmother's trees, and put it into my holding bed.  If it survives the winter, I'll check its root situation, and see if it's ready move it into the woods. 

Here's to enjoying my yard more in 2018!