"As many vowelsas a New York cab driver"

is how Tony Advent of Plants Delights Nursery
described Callirhoe involucrata v. tenuissima
and that was only the beginning.

Tony was the headliner at this year's Plant-O-Rama.  His opening remarks set the tone for the day:

"I consider every plant hardy,
until I kill it myself, at least three times."
(I am going for four times myself)

Owners of nurseries have a different way of talking about plants.  It's not just the new introductions, but the knowledge about a particular species gained through growing, tissue culture or grafting. Tony discussed the weaknesses of many Eichinaceas on the market and showed us some of the ones he likes:   Eichinacea 'Fatal Attraction,'  Eichinacea 'Hot Papaya' and Eichinacea 'Fragrant Angel,' the only Ecihinacea with a strong scent. 

Here are some selections from Plants Delights Nursery that interested me:

Phlox 'Minnie Pearl'
is mildew free.

Baptisia australis var. minor 
 only 1-2 ft. tall

Allium 'Millenium'
 doesnt self-seed.

And the list goes on and on.  After 108 slides and 108 new plants, I was ready for a break.  Tony Advent had done his job:  he was a plants person's delight.


Adam R. Wheeler was less entertainer, more plant fanatic.  He is the Plant Development Manager at Broken Arrow Nursery.  Concentrating on unusual trees and shrubs for the urban environment, Adam went through a host of new introductions (at least to me). 

Koelreuteria paniculata 'Coral Sun'

Small Tree with coral pink spring leaves.

OR HOW ABOUT

Ginkgo biloba 'Markien'
  2-3 Ft. tall and still a Ginkgo

OR FOR THOSE OF US WITH
A PASSION FOR PURPLE IN THE GARDEN


Rhus Coppalina 'Lanhams Purple'
Purple leaves in the Spring
turn brillant red in the Fall.

Bob Hyland of Loomis Creek Nursery delivered his swan song both to MetroHort and his nursery.  After 8 years in the business, he is moving to Portland, Oregon and selling his nursery.  His talk should have been called, "You Want To Buy A Nursery... Are You Crazy!"  Bob took us through all the steps, looking for a property, buying the property, making it into a nursery, experimenting with plant stock, changing the mix from mostly perennials to perennials, grasses, annuals, tropicals, and pottery. 

FOR SALE

He asked the question:  Is there a shelf life for connoisseur nurseries? After naming several nurseries that have gone out of business, he started to identify the problems related to running a nursery (perhaps not the best way for a seller to go).  In the end, he gave us some advice, "keep your focus."  That's good counsel for all, especially for us plant lovers.

3 IS A CROWD PLEASER

Photos from top to bottomt: Conservatory Garden, Central Park designed by Lynden Miller, Emory Knoll Farm owned by Ed Snodgrass, Margaret Roach's hideway in Columbia County, New York.

1/26/2010

Plant-o-rama (Horticultural Trade Show & Symposium)

presented by Metro Hort and The Brooklyn Botanical Garden

Plant-o-rama, the annual meeting of the garden mafia of the Metropolitan area gathered together several Godfathers of the gardening world, their respective "families" and a few interlopers (of which, I consider myself one).  And like all families, rivalries, jealousies, and love co-exist.

For the event, an all-star line-up was assembled.

Lynden Miller was up first.  An irrepressible cheerleader for public parks, Lynden "threw out the first pitch."  She is a doer, not just a talker.  "Make something beautiful and they will come.  Make it interesting all year round and they will come back."  Miller believes in the power of gardens to transform the city.  And over the course of a long career, she has designed great public spaces, cajoled wealthy individuals to support public parks and maintained them in pristine order.  All of this stems from a conviction, that creating beauty in a public setting telegraphs a message to people:  you are worth it.  And for Miller, we are worth it!

Ed Snodgrass was up mext.  Ed is a doyen of the green roof world.  Growing up on a farm may not make you a straight-talking realist, but Ed certainly is.  He stayed away from all the cliches associated with green roofs.  The word sustainable was never mentioned.  Instead, Snodgrass focused his attention on an analysis of what plants worked where, and under what conditions.  What the pay back was for a functional green roof vs. a designed green roof.  The take away:  Be careful what you wish for, OR if you create a green roof, know what you want.

Margaret Roach, spoke last and possibly the best was saved for last.  Self-taught (and boy, has she done a good job), Margaret concentrated on the piece of property she has gardened on since leaving Martha Steward Living.

Roach was the leader of the plant pack.  My attention was drawn to the species peony, "Molly The Witch" (P.mlokosewitschii).  The minute I got home, I googled and found a nursery that sells "Molly The Witch", for a very princely sum.  Celandine poppy, (Stylophorum diphyllum) made Lynden Miller wince.  Margaret admitted it was a thug, but... a beautiful thug.  Blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides), Japanese Poppy (Hylomecon japonicum) and interestingly, Red Lungwort (Pulmonaria rubra), with its coral-red flowers in early Spring.  As Margaret pointed out, when do you see red in Spring?

Humility, with a touch of the evangelical, Roach's talk had an overarching message:  L O O K...

look at what's under your feet

look up at the sky

look out the window

just keep looking and observing the natural world.

A day spent with a "family" of gardeners is a day well spent.  It reinforces my belief that gardeners are most generous people in the world.