Final New Troughs of the Year

I've had the last three new hypertufa troughs that I cast on November 2nd sealed in plastic, curing in the basement for a month.  I took them into the basement to keep the temperature steady, but I usually cure them under the deck.  The two rectangular footed troughs are part of an order of four that I'll deliver in early December.  The troughs behind are the rotating display of troughs, my little still life, in front of the garage, where I can see them from the kitchen and the second floor.  

This last trough, a footed round one, I cast for myself.  I made a few of this style earlier this year, but have sold all of them.  I wanted one for myself, so I used up the last of the Portland cement (it goes bad if it sits) to make one.

(Yes, that's a plastic bucket covering a new dwarf conifer in the trough in the background.  It's the first winter that I've had this one and I'm worried about snow load on its upright branches.)

I picked up an ilex verticillata 'Red Sprite' at an end-of-the-season sale at Terrain last month.  It's destined for a life in a container, at least for a few years.  I already grow the female 'Spriber' and the male 'Jim Dandy' in large hypertufa troughs in the driveway.  'Red Sprite' is also pollinated by 'Jim Dandy', so I'll keep her nearby.  Even though this shrub is a dwarf, this trough is probably too small to last a year.  At the very least, the hypertufa will help protect it during the coming winter.

It's too cold now to cast any more troughs in the garage.  I'm taking a break for the winter.

Out Front

Our front yard is a mix of small and medium-sized perennials. Since the erica got demolished last winter, not much is blooming in December.  Two things out front look great though.  The first is the tiny trough between the front door and the railing.  The mum's still in bloom, and the chamaecyparis obtusa 'Verdoni' always looks classy.  Blue spruce sedum spills at their feet.  If the squirrels didn't find the species tulip bulbs, the trough may have some spring interest too.

The second thing that looks great right now is miscanthus sinensis 'Gracimillus' going to seed.  I love how feathery and almost blurry it looks at this late stage.  It borders my neighbors' driveway and tends to drop over the driveway a bit.  I hope it's not driving them nuts.  I imagine them both going to work with grass seed stuck to their shoulders.

Autumn in a Trough

The trough plants as a whole are such spring bloomers that their fall colors always seem to surprise me.  This trough holds a dwarf chamaecyparis, a dwarf iris, a dianthus, a variegated sedum, geranium 'Ballerina', and a dracocephalum.  Yes, it sits directly on the drainage grate at the bottom of my driveway, right in front of the garage.  Why not put a trough on top, right?

That's sedum cauticola in the square planter behind the center trough.  It happily shares space with a large quince.  The trough on the right holds a lot of lewisias and is probably the leanest planting mixture that I've tried.  The plants seem to love it though.

Swan Song

Sedum sieboldii seems like the last one to bloom this year.  I love the combo of blue and pink against the grey of the trough.