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| My husband and I recently bought a small cottage on the shore of Lake Ontario. We are converting it to a full time home (putting in a heat source, etc). I do have some cottage gardens I've started this year (and a Hosta garden), but, by chance, I found a rose that prompted me to try a theme garden. This past weekend, I found a Queen O The Lakes rose (subzero). Of course I bought it...but now I am thinking I'd like to create a small theme garden with all the plants having lake/beach/coastal theme names.
The garden gets afternoon sun, on the west side of the Cottage. It will be bordered by a Japanese Quince and a picket fence which will surround our veggie garden (with a chicken wire fence inside to keep the bunnies out). There are some poppies and lily of the valley there now, along with grass. I will probably leave the poppies since I know they don't like to be moved, obviously the grass would be scraped and I have enough lily of the valley-I'll rehome that. There is also a Wegelia (sp) that has been there for years that will stay. We don't really have deer or bunny problems. Our zone is techincally 5, but it is a bit odd because we're right on the lake, it stays cooler longer in the spring (I'm about a 1-2 weeks behind nearby areas for bloom times), and also warmer longer in the fall. Lavender grows well here (actually, pretty much everything does)! I am looking for suggestions for plants (if you know of a plant-perennial, annual, whatever that has a nautical name, that's what I'm looking for). I know some Daylilies would work, like Toy Boat and Lake Effect. I also thought about Sea Lavender and Sea Holly, although I'd like to stay with less "sea" or "ocean" and more "lake" or general nautical terms (boat, coast, beach, even cottage).
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Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by deanna_in_nh 5a/4b (My Page) on Thu, May 31, 12 at 16:33
| Seathrift. Does well in dry conditions, as well. I like it best when they are planted close together. Rosa Rugosa grows all along the Maine coast. I believe it tolerates salt well. I love the smell! Sometimes it's called beach rose or saltspray rose. Lastly, sea holly. |
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- Posted by eclecticcottage none (My Page) on Fri, Jun 1, 12 at 9:50
| Both Seathrift and the Rosa sound interesting! I will have to put together a list, then check zones and bloom times to create a a garden plan. So, so far I have: This is fun! |
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- Posted by calamity_j z7bc (My Page) on Fri, Jun 1, 12 at 13:09
| Sounds great!!! |
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- Posted by on_greenthumb (My Page) on Sat, Jun 2, 12 at 9:17
| There are tons of "Lakeside" Hostas.... But what about: I don't know how common some of them are, but it will probably be lots of fun trying to find them :) |
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- Posted by organic_kitten 7 (My Page) on Sat, Jun 2, 12 at 16:42
| Tall ships is another daylily. kay |
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- Posted by eclecticcottage none (My Page) on Mon, Jun 4, 12 at 16:50
| I decided to take out any "sea" plants and try for others without sea or ocean in the name, since we really aren't on the ocean. So my new updated list is: I also spoke to my hubby and we might eb moving the theme garden since we split some of our existing hostas over the weekend and ended up with so many splits we started a new hosta garden! Now it needs a companion bed to "even out" that part of the yard (aw, darn-lol) so this might move to a spot that would offer a greater variety of conditions, from full sun transitioning to open shade. Meaning I can add more hostas and other shade lovers! I am on the hunt for the Lake Ontario Hosta now, since I just found it in the registry. The registrar is semi-local, so I tried emailing him (he was/is? on the board of the local Hosta society). This is going to be a bit of a challenge to fill an entire bed without costing myself a fortune, lol. Gotta love plant swaps (got a rosa rugosa-beach rose-at one yesterday, as well as a dover beach iris), hopefully I can get a lot from seed too. |
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| So you must be near Niagara? Anyway, how about valerian or Jupiter's Beard? I once saw this seascape garden just filled with these plants and grasses. It was breathtaking. Ianna |
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