Transplant Poppies this week divide Hosta and Daylily.
Poppy – Poppy – Poppy – I love how that word feels rolling off of the tongue. Say it enough and you wonder…. someone really named a perennial in this regard? Oh, what fun!!
I am not a respecter of perennials, they are all beautiful in my eyes, and all add something to the garden no other could. Just as we each add our talents and essence to the space we fill every moment we are in this earth’s precious garden. Though, I must admit as we each usually find someone to fall deeply in love with, certain flowers have that pull and no matter how much you admire the others there is just something about that one. That one made you have a double take, which one made you smile until your cheeks hurt, that one simply lifts your heart. In my case that one is the Poppy, the bright orange oriental to be more specific. This poppy owns the space it is in, it is not offended by close neighbors nor does it back down from challenging spaces or entering places it may not really be welcome. It is bold and majestic and in the same token as delicate as art crafted with Chinese rice paper. It never seems to fail, the Poppy blooms the rains fall and the Poppies petals fade as if they had a moment ago been painted by the artists’ hand.
There are two sides of the Poppy, on one side they may spread as the oceans from the sand on the other they prefer a solitary existence in regards to freely seeding and are quite content being your one and only Poppy. My Poppy did not have a chance to bloom for the first three to four years that I had it taking residence in my garden. I also owned a very garden savvy Rottweiler whom had acquired the skill to dig the perfect hole in the garden wherever I required, I would point and say dig here, off he went. He also thought he was an expert at deadheading the perennials, well one perennial – my Poppy – forget the rain – the Poppy budded and the day it was to open he would run right over pluck the blossom tenderly with his lips and gobble it down as a child with their first gumdrop. How could one get in the way of such obvious pleasure? I give this Poppy credit; he did not deter it from trying to bloom again each spring. The day we all dread arrived for his spirit to move on and the Poppy bloomed the following spring. I transplanted his Poppy this time the following year as I turned the garden this perennial had previously occupied to lawn. His Poppy has bloomed every spring since and it has not caused one volunteer to sprout, always his one and only.
Sometimes garden mathematics does not register with ordinary common mathematics. In the instance above (1) Poppy + (0) Poppies = (1) as this particular Poppy has never propagated – this math makes sense.
When you bring a Daylily or Hosta into the equation we are starting to break all of the rules.
Example;
(1) Hosta + (0) Hosta may = (5) Hosta or even (10) Hosta.
(1) Daylily + (0) Daylily may = (2) or even (4) Daylilies
If we want to get really crazy we could take 2 Big Hosta and get 20 more.
Here is where the fun begins;
Take (2) Big Hosta and divide them, lets say you gat (10) from each of them, you now have (20) Hosta – Division – These (20) Hosta will indeed in a few years each self propagate up to (10) more creating (200) – Multiplication – You are up to your ears in Hosta and your neighbor loves your Hosta and would like to acquire a few from you –Gladly – Subtraction – the next visit to the nursery brings you full circle as you discover another perennial you must have – Addition –
And so the mathematics of the garden (2) + (2) does not necessarily = 4.
May your garden Divide easily – Multiply gracefully – Subtract when needed and ALWAYS ADD JOY TO YOUR HEART!!
