Clouds of Perfume

The Shooting Star, Dodecatheon meadia,  grows among the Phlox

While the Prairie Smoke makes the savanna, the Phlox rules in the Woodland in Laholm and turn it into a spectacular color satisfied place. There are two different species of Phlox in the woodland, Phlox divaricata, the Blue Woodland Phlox, also known as Wild Sweet William and Phlox stolonifera, Creeping Phlox, both native to rich woodlands in the Appalachian Mountains in Eastern USA.

Phlox divaricata grows with upright stems crowned by scented flowers in pale blue or white. Phlox stolonifera does not smell much, but it covers the ground well with creeping sterile shots. There are many named cultivars with different shades from bright pink, soft lilac, deep violet to pure white.

Shooting Star, Phlox stolonifera and Phlox divaricata in harmony

Planted in masses the scent from the blue Phlox divaricata is overwhelming

Fothergilla major flowers with its cute whitish wads

Osmunda cinnamomea is in my opinion maybe the most beautiful of all hardy ferns you can grow in your garden. It prefers a moist site in shade or dappled sunlight. Slightly acid to acid conditions and a soil with some organic matter is best.

If you can also find a sheltered place in the woodland with high humidity you have made the best situation for this green fellow. The sterile foliage makes a nice, open wreath and in the middle of it the erect fertile leaves emerges. In the autumn this fertile leaves turn into a striking cinnamon brown shade. Also the sterile leaves have reddish brown fall colors.

Osmunda cinnamomea is shoting in late spring and early summer

Traffic Islands

Dry and colorful traffic island spot with Nepeta and Origanum

Let's stay in Sävsjö for a while. Not far from the calcareous slope we can find some rather interesting traffic islands. They were all planted in 1998 and are still in very good shape although they do look a bit different today.

The sunny shore theme with Crambe, Artemisia and Geranium

A steppe style planting embrace the parking area

Along the head street in the small little city we planted several small plots and close to parking places also some bigger plantings. At the sunny side of the street all plantings were created as dry sites with high amount of gravels and pebbles mixed into the soil. At the shady part instead woodland style plantings with Hosta, ferns and other shade perennials were choosen.

Good contrast makers here are Stachys, Origanum and Nepeta.

 

Hosta and variegated Aegopodium in the shade