The sunny beds flanking the entrance to the Haggerty Education Center have been planted differently this year with a “hot” combination of tropical plants, including Aechmea blanchetiana ‘Hawaii” (Bromeliad), deep red Coleus spp, bright orange Marigolds (Tagetes) and delicate Tassel Flowers (Emilia spp). It makes for a striking arrangement, especially when planted in front of the dark green hedge behind. Visit and see for yourself!
Picture credits: Margery Ennist.
Achmea Blanchetiana Hawaii
Achmea Blanchetiana Hawaii
Achmea Blanchetiana Hawaii
This is the Friends of The Frelinghuysen Arboretum’s Photo Gallery. Click on the title of one of the albums below to open it where you may then browse the pictures. To receive photos regularly, sign up for our weekly email blast by clicking here.
We welcome pictures from all our friends and visitors — send any you would like to see here to webmaster@arboretumfriends.org.
The gardens are bursting with color, bright yellow two-toned Rudbeckias (Coneflowers) are in bloom in the entrance garden, bees are keeping busy on the Asclepias (Milkweed) flowers and another bee visits the Campsis radicans (Trumpet Vine) growing up a light post.
Summer has arrived and with it a whole array of lovely, fragrant colorful flowers to delight the senses.
Many thanks to Valerie Scarinci for the photo of the Trumpet Vine climbing the light post and to Judy Snow for all other photos this week.
One of the great things about gardening is the ability to create planters to place around your property to fill in an empty space in a flower bed, or to create a focal point. There’s no limit to your creativity since the planters can be placed wherever needed and the contents can be as exotic as you want.
Here are three that can be seen around the Haggerty Education Center: A large terracotta planter containing Billbergia cv. Hallelujah Queen’s Tears, orange Zinnias and a delicate white Bacopa. Another pot placed in the shade behind the handicap ramp contains Bacopa again, a couple of bright red flowers (perhaps a Begonia and Petunia) and a large leafy tropical all nicely backed up by an Oakleaf Hydrangea in full bloom. The third planter has a trellis for the pink Mandevilla to twine up plus a dark leaved vine to provide contrast between the pink and white flowers. I call this one Pretty in Pink!
There are more planters scattered around the property, so why not visit and try to find them all!
I had a chance to walk around the Arboretum grounds this week, even in the heat, I was able to find shady spots and cool plantings such as the crisp, green and white combination of Cornus kousa ‘Wolf Eyes’ leaves and Hydrangea macrophylla cv. Tokyo Delight lacecap flowers (Wolf Eyes Japanese Dogwood and Tokyo Delight Bigleaf Hydrangea) next to the first bay in the parking lot. A large planting of purple Stachys officinalis (Bishop’s Wort, Betony or Wood Betony) completely surrounded the shady base of a tree at the end of another parking bay. As I strolled along, I happened upon a lovely view of the driveway coming up from Hanover Avenue, beautifully framed by shady greenery.
Come for a visit and discover your own special shady places!
June is here, the traditional month for weddings and bridal bouquets. Even though all brides don’t choose all white flowers for their bouquets, some of the blossoms to be seen at the Arboretum would certainly make lovely ones. For example, Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Snowflake’ (Oakleaf Hydrangea) and the appropriately named, feather-like flowers of Astilbe ‘Bridal Veil’ (False Goatsbeard) would make a stunning combination; also the beautiful flowers of Stewartia pseudocamellia would provide an eye-catching focal point in any bouquet. For a totally different look, how about adding a deep red Calycanthus raulstonii ‘Hartlage Wine’ (Raulston’s Allspice or Sweetshrub) to the mix?
Make time for a visit soon, there is so much to see and enjoy!
Many thanks to Heather Emelander for this week’s photographs.
There is much to see and enjoy at the Arboretum, now that June is here: a dainty little bee enjoying the pale pink flowers on a Geranium x cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’ (Cranesbill Geranium) and the striking dark burgundy foliage of a Lagerstroemia indica cv. Delee (Crape Myrtle), just to name a few. When this Crape Myrtle cultivar blooms, the flowers will be hot pink, quite a contrast to the burgundy leaves – and it’s a rebloomer!
The photos this week are courtesy of Valerie Scarinci.
The red flowers of an Aesculus pavia tree (Red Buckeye), the delicate, white flowers of an Iris tectorum (Japanese Wall Iris) and the soft, fuzzy gray leaves of Stachys Byzantina cv. Big Ears (Lamb’s Ears). Big Ears rarely blooms, but bees appreciate the small, non-showy lavender flowers when it does!
Vibrant shades of pink can be found all over the gardens at the Arboretum, from a large, beautiful Rhododendron in full bloom (the common and generic names come from Ancient Greek, rhodon = rose and dendron = tree), a lovely pink and cream Peony (Paeonia lactiflora ‘Gay Paree’), a shocking pink Dianthus (Dianthus gratianopolitanus cv. Firewitch) and a Blood Red Geranium (Geranium sanguineum) all doing their very best to put on a show for visitors to enjoy.
Thanks to Valerie Scarinci for this week’s photos.
Many thanks again to everyone who participated in this year’s Plant Sale, either by volunteering, organizing, advertising, purchasing plants, etc. Thanks to everyone, we had a very successful sale this year which will allow us to continue supporting The Frelinghuysen Arboretum with planting grants, grants for summer interns, etc. Here are just a few shots of this year’s sale.
Many thanks to volunteer and Member, Ann Mauro, for her great photos!
In spite of the very changeable weather, going from rain to sun to wind, many plants continue to bloom at the Arboretum. A beautiful red and yellow Columbine is flowering in the Alpine Garden in front of a bunch of tiny yellow Daffodils. A large Geum is full of gorgeous orange flowers with delicate red venation in the petals and slender filaments topped by anthers covered in pollen. A lovely dark purple Tulip covered in raindrops is a sight to behold; thank you Judy Snow for this photo and Margery Ennist for the other two.
More and more plants are beginning to bloom now that we’ve entered the lovely month of May. A gorgeous, deep purple Dwarf Bearded Iris, Iris cv. Dark Vader, is flowering in the Progressive Garden next to the first parking bay. Close by, an Epimedium cv. Pink Champagne (Bishop’s Hat) is covering the ground with delicate, pale pink spurred flowers. Not to be outdone, a Cornus florida f. Rubra (Pink Flowering Dogwood) is in full, dramatic bloom at the end of a parking bay close to the Plant Sale tent.
Varieties of all of the above will be sold at the Plant Sale, so plan to shop early to make sure your choices are available!
Thanks again to Judy Snow for these lovely photos.
Thanks to Katherine Boyle for the photograph of a Ladybug approaching a group of aphids; Ladybugs are wonderful, natural pest controllers. The aphids suck all the juices out of plants, damaging and killing them; the ladybug, however, eats the aphids (as many as 50 a day) and does no damage at all to the plant. They’re great to have in your garden! You can see more of Katharine’s pictures in several recent photo galleries on our website.
Thanks also to Judy Snow for the pictures of a container collection (Pansies, Geum and maybe a dark leaf lettuce?) next to the sundial in the Rose Garden, a lovely lavender Pulsatilla halleri ssp.styriaca and a gorgeous Cercis chinensis cv. Don Egolf in full bloom.
These pictures sent by Steve Kanan after his Saturday visit show off spring blossoms — mostly tulips, but with a daffodil and flowering trees for good measure. Thanks, Steve, for the lovely pictures.
Katharine Boyle wrote on April 18th, “Today’s rainfall and this evening’s cloudy sky made for some good photo opportunities of some lovely subjects. Here are photo highlights from tonight’s visit. “
Spring brings change every day of the week. Thanks to Katharine for capturing another day at the Arboretum on its journey through the seasons.
White and pale orange captured my attention today as I strolled through the various gardens at the Arboretum. A huge, very fragrant flower on the Magnolia grandiflora cv. Edith Bogue (Southern Magnolia Cultivar), the large trumpet shaped flower on a Brugmansia (Angel’s Trumpet), the spidery white flower on the annual Cleome hassleriana (Spider Flower) and the light orange flower on the Campsis radicans (Trumpet Creeper Vine) climbing over the arbor leading into the Haggerty Education Center. Plan to visit soon!
A gorgeous warm, sunny day with clear blue skies and abundant white fluffy clouds floating overhead. The cottage next to the Haggerty Education Center is surrounded by many different plants and flowers. Some of the flowers blooming today: a lacy, light blue Nigella damascena (Love-in-a-Mist), an Oakleaf Hydrangea, a spike of Stachys cv. Summer Romance (Betony) being visited by a pollen covered bee, and a bright yellow Coneflower (Echinacea).
On hand for the day were members of the North American Butterfly Association, as well as Lorette Cheswick, horiculturist and beekeeper, Jim Walker, owner of the Wild Birds Unlimited store in Denville, Gail DiDomenico, a Master Gardener, popular local speaker and plant expert, and members of the Home Garden Club of Morristown. Helping out were Master Gardener volunteers, teen volunteers, and of course, members of the Friends of the Frelinghuysen Arboretum.
A new batch of closeups from contributor, Steve Kanan who says, “Relaxing with the macro early Friday evening after a long week. Thank you Frelinghuysen for being there.”
Cloudy and muggy with rain in the forecast. Nevertheless, lots in bloom in the gardens. A sea of Callirhoe involucrata (Purple Poppy Mallow) gently swaying in the breeze, a tall Verbascum thapsus (Common Mullein) blooming against a Blue Spruce in the background, the complex, scented flowers of Asclepias syriaca (Common Milkweed), the fluffy white flowers of Sambucus canadensis cv. Maxima (American Elderberry) and the tall, feathery, pale yellow flowers of Thalictrum flavum subspec. glaucum (Meadow Rue).
There used to be a set of stairs going up to the patio on the side of the Haggerty Education Center. Several years ago, the patio was renovated, the stairs were eliminated and new railings were installed; there is a handicapped accessible ramp to the patio, as well. The four lamp posts that were on the sides of the steps were left. The following spring, new plantings were installed where the stairs were; at first they really didn’t look like much, but as the plants became established, grew and spread, the area turned into an attractive garden visible as you come up the driveway at the Arboretum.
The plantings are a combination of Prunus laurocerasus cv. Schipkaensis, Oakleaf Hydrangeas, Epimedium x versicolor ‘Sulphureum’, Hosta sieboldiana cv. Elegans, a lovely purple variegated leaf Iris, a perennial Geranium (Wargrave Pink, perhaps?) and some Columbines. Enjoy the photos.
A bit muggy and cloudy at the Arboretum today, but we are expecting rain. As always, much to see and enjoy, such as the intricate, perfectly round seed head of an Allium flower, the beautiful, but toxic, flowers of a potato plant (Solanum tuberosum, in the Nightshade family) and a stalk of Phlomis tuberosa flowers (Jerusalem Sage, in the Mint family) working their way up the stem in groups of pretty lavender flowers.
