Tag: solomon’s seal

THE FLOWERING ARCH OF SOLOMON’S SEAL – Marilyn Armstrong

The Arch of Solomon’s Seal – 05/28/19

Solomon’s Seal is not merely a wildflower that has been tamed for gardens. It’s one of the few flowers that will bloom in full shade. It is architectural too. The arches of the plants rise multiple feet into the air with perfectly tidy little bells of flowers hanging beneath them.

Arches of flowers
More arches

 

SOLOMON’S SEAL – WILD IN MY GARDEN – Marilyn Armstrong

Solomon’s Seal – FOTD – 05/20/19

Our Solomon’s Seal plants originally grew in our woods. I moved about half a dozen plants about half a dozen feet into the light. It now grows in huge batches along the driveway. It blooms early and is my official “sign of spring.”

It is a wildflower that has been cultivated so now, you can buy rhizomes for it at nurseries. If you have a garden that doesn’t have much sun, these are plants that will give you your first blooms when nothing else wants to flower, a shady garden requirement.

Very few plants will flower in deep shade, but Solomon’s Seal will. It will also blossom beautifully if you give it a little bit of sunlight.

It seems to appear overnight. One day there’s nothing. A couple of days later, there’s a huge patch of Solomon’s Seal.

It’s a tall plant, often growing a couple of feet high. Also, it is rather “architectural” with high, arching branches and small, white bell-shaped blossoms dangling below them. The foliage turns a golden yellow color in fall.

The green-leaved specimen is native to the New England and it used to be rather rare, but has been cultivated so if you don’t happen to have your own woods, you can buy them at a nursery.

You can find Solomon’s Seal growing in wooded areas of Hardiness Zones 3-7. We about half a dozen plants about six feet where they have thrived. They are much bigger than they grew in the woods and there are more of them. All of them have arches of flowers.

During a brighter spring, they sometimes take over that whole area … and they are still plentiful in the woods, along with three or four types of fern.

A DAFFODIL-FREE GARDEN – Marilyn Armstrong

I went out and I was absolutely SURE the daffodils would be blooming.

Nope.

The oak trees are thinking about blooming

Everyone else’s daffodils are blooming. Everywhere I look, I see azaleas and blooming trees. Apple and cherry and all that. But not here.

Bud on the Rhododendron

I went out and I took pictures. The trees are beginning to put out leaves and we have some violets and those little purple flowers and there are at least half a dozen buds on the Rhododendron. But nothing else.

I’m sure it will burst into some kind of frenzied blooming any minute now, but not yet. Definitely, not yet.

Solomon’s Seal

GARDEN IN EARLY MAY

It didn’t rain today. It wasn’t sunny, except for a couple of minutes. Here and there, a few moments of sunny. But given that they are predicting even more rain this weekend, I went and took some pictures. Cloudy today, but who knows? Cloud burst tomorrow?

I didn’t know the cardinal was there when I shot the picture and by the time I could take the next one, he was gone. He is a local resident. I’m sure he lives in nearby tree.
These little blue flowers grow all over the garden. I don’t think I planted them, so I’m guessing they are a wildflower. Anyone know what they are?
Violets and hosta
Macro violet
Solomon’s Seal
White Rhododendron
Pink Rhododendrons
Yellow tulip
Lilacs
Little purple flowers that grow everywhere — and I don’t know what they are, either.

There will be more flowers coming soon. May is the month of flowers in this region. In a week, maybe two, the day lilies and spider-wort will be blooming and soon, the roses.

If we are very lucky, we won’t also be crawling with caterpillars.

Flower of the Day – May 4, 2017 – Tulip

SOLOMON’S SEAL IN BLOOM

Suddenly, there are flowers. Everywhere. Trees are coming into leaf. Gardens are bright with spring flowers. I have been nurturing a patch of wild Solomon’s seal for more than ten years. This year, perhaps because of all the rain, they are in overdrive.

I took these pictures less than an hour after the rain … two weeks of rain … finally stopped. Hopefully, we will get a few days of sunshine before the next monsoon hits.

If you are interested in the medicinal properties of this plant (and there are many), this is a pretty good place to start.

Flower of the Day – Solomon’s Seal

ALL ABOUT SOLOMON’S SEAL

Most of the flowers in our garden are technically wildflowers. I planted a lot of “real” flowers in the beginning, but most of them haven’t survived the wicked winters.

solomon's seal

Rather than fight a losing battle, I’ve preferred to let the hardier species take over the space.

72-Solomon-Seal_027

One of my favorites is the Solomon’s Seal. It’s a native wildflower that lives all over the world. It was endangered for a while in this area but has made a nice comeback.

solomon's seal

Solomon’s Seal grows almost everywhere in the temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere. Twenty of the more than 60 species are native to China. It is edible and (so they say) tasty, though I’ve never eaten it. If the price of veggies keeps going up, I’ll give it a try!

solomon's seal

SOLOMON’S SEAL

Most of the flowers in our garden are technically wildflowers. I planted a lot of “real” flowers in the beginning, but most of them haven’t survived the wicked winters.

solomon's seal

Rather than fight a losing battle, I’ve preferred to let the hardier species take over the space.

One of my favorites is the Solomon’s Seal. It’s a native wildflower that lives all over the world. It was endangered for a while in this area but has made a nice comeback.

solomon's seal

Solomon’s Seal grows almost everywhere in the temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere. Twenty of the more than 60 species are native to China. It is edible and (so they say) tasty, though I’ve never eaten it. If the price of veggies keeps going up, I’ll give it a try!

solomon's seal