The patio on a sunny day

     These photos were taken recently of the patio on a sunny day.  Generally, I take photos on overcast days so I don't have such high contrast (from sunny to shady areas).  Cameras simply don't seem to have the capacity of the human eye to perceive details in shaded areas.  Anyhow, the sun provides such vividness in garden scenes, so on occasion I take some photos in sunlight.  Of course, the back lawn, in direct sun, was washed out when I exposed for the shaded areas.
     The patio has a lower area (shown) and an upper area (not shown), both surfaced with antique paving bricks that were used in Milwaukee streets in the early 1900s.  I collected thousands of these for free in 1973 when Forest Home Avenue on the south side of Milwaukee was rebuilt.  The bricks were laid on about four inches of sand. 

     I do two things differently than almost everyone else who uses such bricks.  First, I leave a gap of about a half inch between each brick.  This both looks better, I think, and provides more coverage.  Second, I have the sand recessed about a half inch below the surface.  This, too, I believe, improves the appearance because it adds a third dimension.  I can't take credit for this, as I saw this done in the late 1970s in Toronto.
     The planter in the left background is constructed of granite cobblestones.  These were used in city streets in the late 1800s.  I got about 300 of them in 1987 from someone who had them in his back yard.  When I asked how much he wanted for them, he said, "Oh, just give me a couple of cases of Pabst Blue Ribbon."  Deal!

The Associated Press likes moss.

     The Associated Press just published an article on moss gardening.  I was one of three moss enthusiasts interviewed for the article.  You can find it online on many newspaper websites by going to Google and typing: Mosses can be a versatile and beautiful addition to any garden.  It should be appearing in print versions soon, most likely in Sunday garden sections.  If you find it in your local papers, I'd appreciate it if you would clip it and send it to me at W231 S5977 Molla Drive, Waukesha, WI 53189.
     The following four photos of mine appeared in the article, two from my gardens and two from Japan that I took when I was touring gardens there in 2014.  J. Paul Moore also has two photos in the article taken of his moss lawn in Nashville, TN.

Exciting sporophytes

   These photos show the sporophyte phase of the moss Hygroamblystegium varium.  The red stalks, called setae, raise the spore capsules high above the moss, so when the capsules open to release the spores, the wind can catch them for wider dispersal.

   The photos were taken early in the morning, so the backlighting makes for stunning photos.  This moss likes wet conditions, so it formed a colony on the rocks that surround a small pool in my Japanese-style garden.  The photos were taken in April.

The mosses are ecstatic.

      Early this morning, after a heavy dew and a light fog, the mosses were fully hydrated.  With backlighting by the low-angled sun, they looked incredible.  If only I knew such beauty was possible before I began gardening with mosses eleven years ago.

The Hedgerow Garden

     On the south side of the driveway is the Hedgerow Garden.  That name stems from the hedgerow that was there when the lot was purchased in 1969.  It consisted of small trees that grew up amongst a rock pile that divided farm fields.  The drive slopes up to the house, rising perhaps five feet, creating a slight sunken garden on the upper (west) end of the HG.  Six steps made of railroad ties connect the driveway turnaround to the HG.  I recently added a railing along those steps.
     A main pathway connects the drive to the steps, and two branch pathways lead to small moss gardens.  I added a terrace next to the steps in 2015, which mirrors the curve in the drive, and built a small moss garden there with Thuidium moss, shown in photos 8-10 (before the railings were added).

It's mid-summer!!

     How can that be?  Since late March, I've been spending about 60 hours a week in my gardens, including maintenance plus several new projects.  With the biggest projects done, I'm down to a mere 30 hours a week in maintenance and tweaking things here and there.
     This is a photo of the front yard, including the township-property road ditch.  The lower course of stones is actually on township property.  I built this series of rock terraces in 2007.  The groundcovers are: at the top level, Vinca minor; the middle level Sedum floiferum "Weihenstephaner Gold"; and the lower level Lysimachia nummularia (Moneywort).  The dark green plant in the triangular area in the lower center is Muelenbeckia axilaris (Wire Vine).

 

Time to replace some RR ties

     In 1987, I built a shed into the side of a hill, then covered it with a foot of ground.  I used the shed to store nursery stock while I was waiting to plant it in my nursery, as it stayed cool and damp inside.
     In 1995, I put RR ties in the front of the shed, but after 21 years they were getting quite deteriorated.  So, I decided to replace 22 ties, including the steps leading up to the left.  As I seem to have more brains now than in 1995, when I did all the work alone, I hired two men for ten hours each to remove the old ties and put in the new ones.  The steps I did all alone.  Each tie weighs between 180 and 200 pounds.  However, if they last another 21 years, I dread doing this all over again when I am 94 years old!
     I cut the ties with either of two antique crosscut saws, four or five feet in length.  They give a smoother cut than a chainsaw.  And if I used a chainsaw, the creosote in the ties would dull the blade after only four cuts, as the saw gets so hot.
     The ties are higher-grade ties, more solid and better shaped than most.  I pay $15 for each.