Post by Mairi on Oct 15, 2006 20:48:07 GMT -5
I thought you might enjoy this article that I discovered.
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My garden is spooky enough for Halloween.
The heat has taken a devilish toll on many long-flowering bloomers. And the recent dry spell has laid the red oaks' branches mostly bare, so they carve a gnarly silhouette against the moonlit sky.
But I decided the dreary landscape will make the perfect backdrop for the pagan celebration that is rooted in nature. Why not add a few dark characters and let the garden go a little goth, if only temporarily.
I found no black dahlias but several other Halloween-appropriate plants to fill cauldrons on the front steps. Carnivorous plants are especially suitable for this ghoulish theme. The odd predators capture insects, but fortunately only our imaginations.
Long a staple in the fashion world, black caught the fascination of gardeners when dark-foliage plants emerged about a decade ago. We ushered them into the garden as accents or foils for bright blooms.
With so many varieties now available, it's easy to concoct a dark-leaf brew in kettles alongside the bug eaters on the front porch. The ingredients in my pots: silvery-veined, heart-shaped 'Black Velvet' elephant ears; wispy bronze fennel; reddish-gray ornamental kale and cabbage; 'Ace of Spades' sweet potato vine; purplish cordyline and the dark-chocolate Pseuderanthemum kewense.
'Red Velvet' cockscomb, a bizarre bloom that resembles a brain, is a good choice for a scare. As are the swarms of tiny red and purple bat-face cuphea blooms that will greet trick-or-treaters.
But the small fuzzy orange and yellow tubes of the candy corn vine (Manettia lutecrubra) may tip them that they're in for sweets.
KATHY HUBER
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/life/homegarden/4258245.html
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If you also remember the wonderfully dark 'Gothic Gardening' site, you may thank the folks at 'This Garden Is Illegal' (http://www.thisgardenisillegal.com/2006/06/something-wicked-this-way-grows-gothic.html) for providing a link to the archive of the DG pages.
Wren's Nest
www.witchvox.com/wren/wn_detail.html?id=16353
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My garden is spooky enough for Halloween.
The heat has taken a devilish toll on many long-flowering bloomers. And the recent dry spell has laid the red oaks' branches mostly bare, so they carve a gnarly silhouette against the moonlit sky.
But I decided the dreary landscape will make the perfect backdrop for the pagan celebration that is rooted in nature. Why not add a few dark characters and let the garden go a little goth, if only temporarily.
I found no black dahlias but several other Halloween-appropriate plants to fill cauldrons on the front steps. Carnivorous plants are especially suitable for this ghoulish theme. The odd predators capture insects, but fortunately only our imaginations.
Long a staple in the fashion world, black caught the fascination of gardeners when dark-foliage plants emerged about a decade ago. We ushered them into the garden as accents or foils for bright blooms.
With so many varieties now available, it's easy to concoct a dark-leaf brew in kettles alongside the bug eaters on the front porch. The ingredients in my pots: silvery-veined, heart-shaped 'Black Velvet' elephant ears; wispy bronze fennel; reddish-gray ornamental kale and cabbage; 'Ace of Spades' sweet potato vine; purplish cordyline and the dark-chocolate Pseuderanthemum kewense.
'Red Velvet' cockscomb, a bizarre bloom that resembles a brain, is a good choice for a scare. As are the swarms of tiny red and purple bat-face cuphea blooms that will greet trick-or-treaters.
But the small fuzzy orange and yellow tubes of the candy corn vine (Manettia lutecrubra) may tip them that they're in for sweets.
KATHY HUBER
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/life/homegarden/4258245.html
------------------------------------------------
If you also remember the wonderfully dark 'Gothic Gardening' site, you may thank the folks at 'This Garden Is Illegal' (http://www.thisgardenisillegal.com/2006/06/something-wicked-this-way-grows-gothic.html) for providing a link to the archive of the DG pages.
Wren's Nest
www.witchvox.com/wren/wn_detail.html?id=16353