The warm weather we’ve been experiencing is promoting all kinds of growth in the form of leaves, flowers, bulbs, etc. A Viburnum carlesii cv. Compactum (Korean Spice Viburnum) is about to burst into full bloom and release its lovely fragrance; the Magnolia x ‘Butterflies’ (Hybrid Magnolia) next to the Waterwise Deck is full of large, pale yellow flowers (notice the unopened bud clusters of the Viburnum carlesii under the tree); and a Prunus x cistena ‘Purpurea’ (Purpleleaf Sand Cherry) in the Four Seasons Garden next to the parking lot has a myriad of very delicate white flowers beginning to open all along its branches. It is a lovely time at The Frelinghuysen Arboretum – make time for a visit soon!
A beautiful early spring day in the mid-70s. Many visitors were out enjoying the Arboretum’s grounds today, from painters to photographers to families enjoying the great lawn. Large sweeps of daffodils are spreading their cheery blossoms for all to enjoy, the cherry trees are beginning to bloom and all manner of buds are breaking their long winter rest.
A day that started out cloudy became sunny in the afternoon. A small PJM Rhododendron is beginning to bloom along the four seasons path next to the parking lot; farther down the path, a Pieris japonica has burst into bloom and on the road coming up from Hanover Avenue a lovely, sweetly fragrant Loebner Magnolia’s flowers were gently dancing in the breeze. Do plan a visit soon!
Spring is definitely on its way! Delicate white Dwarf Irises with pale lavender stripes (Iris cv. Painted Lady) have emerged around the pond in front of Matilda’s cottage; many bunches of cheerful purple Crocuses are blooming around the grounds and a Dawn Viburnum (Viburnum x bodnantense cv. Dawn) is beginning to bloom along the Four Seasons garden path next to the parking lot. Enjoy!
A flurry of snowflakes and a blustery breeze accompanied my walk around the Arboretum grounds today. The meadow, gazebo and Pieris japonica flowers were covered in varying amounts of snow creating the appearance of a light sugar coating.
The Plant Sale page (https://www.arboretumfriends.org/plant-sale-2024/) has two sections, several paragraphs of static text and banner at the top, followed by a dynamic area that automatically displays posts (like blog entries) that are tagged for the Plant Sale page. This manual page will focus on adding posts that will be displayed at the bottom of the Plant Sale page. Other manual pages provide additional information about the Block Editor, Images and the Media Library, and Images and Galleries in Posts. All the manual entries me be viewed here.
Dashboard
Plant Sale 1 – Dashboard
The first page displayed on logging in to the website is the administrative dashboard. Click the screenshot at right to enlarge it. Numbers correspond to the annotation on it.
#1 At the top right you will see your username. Hover your cursor over that to see the Logout link.
#2 Hover over “Friends…” for the link “Visit Site” to go to the website. While on the site, return to the dashboard the same way.
Plant Sale 2 – Posts dropdown
#3 Posts and # 4 Media open important menus for finding or adding posts or media (images, pdf’s, etc.). Hover over Posts, then click on Add New.
Add New Post
When you first enter the new post screen, WordPress sometimes shows a help screen for the block editor. Click through it or close it and proceed with entering a new post.
Plant Sale 4 – Add New – edit screen
The screenshot at right shows the layout of the post edit screen. Add your post’s title, then the text body. Press “Enter” at the end of each paragraph to start a new paragraph.
When done, expand the Tag section in the right sidebar and add the tag “PS-24” followed by Enter.
Plant Sale 5 – New post with tag
By now, your edit screen will look something like the next screenshot. You can make corrections or additions, add images and headings and otherwise customize your post.
When you are done, click the blue Publish button at the top of the right sidebar and press the second Publish button that appears to confirm the process.
Click the “View Post” link that appears under your post. If you want to go back to edit the post, click the “Edit Post” link in the black bar at the top of the screen.
Plant Sale 6 – Plant Sale 2023 with new post
Then, go to the Plant Sale 2024 page to confirm that your new post appears in the posts area of the page as illustrated in the image at right.
This week’s photos offer a wide variety of late winter images. The persistent, dry, paper thin leaves of an American Beech tree (Fagus grandifolia), fluttering in the breeze and soon to be pushed off by fresh new growth. The evergreen, yellowish, flat foliage sprays of a Sawara Cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera cv. Filifera Aurea) adding a bright spot in the landscape. The delicate, deep pink flowers of an espaliered Japanese Apricot (Prunus Mume cv. Kobai) blooming against the walls of the Carriage House. Spring is on its way!
Chilly, overcast and damp after yesterday’s snowfall. Lovely little vignettes were created around the grounds, from the snow covered foliage and male cones of a Cryptomeria japonica (Japanese Cedar), to bright red berries and snow on Ilex centrochinensis x. Aquifolium ‘Centennial Girl’ (Hybrid Holly), to the lemony yellow flowers of Jasminum nudiflorum (Winter Jasmine), holding their own even under a blanket of snow! Mother Nature at her loveliest!
