New Artworks

 

Wakulla Cypress, oils on panel, 18"h x 14"w.

The first week in June I had the great opportunity to take an oil-painting workshop with master artist Steven Walker in an unusual setting: Snow Fielding's mill in Millwood. I hadn't done much painting in oils since we moved to Front Royal, except for a couple of commissions, and felt my skills had become rather rusty.

 

Steven Walker's demo with students.

Steven's demos were awesome--he works with amazing speed and sureness of touch! The materials he uses were new to me too--mostly double-sided plastic panels and aluminum/copper panels made by Raymar. He sprinkles the painting surface with a solvent-free medium made by Gamblin, which helps to spread the paint on the panel, eliminating the need for linseed oil; this medium helps the paint to dry faster, becoming tacky in just a few hours.

I had not realized that Gamblin also made a solvent-free gel medium and bought the gel medium rather than the liquid, and discovered the gel medium didn't spread quite the same way as the liquid. I ended up using way too much medium on my first panel, and applied it to the smoother side, which made it very difficult to apply the paint--a mess, in fact.

 

First painting: Trillium Trail, 14"h x 18"w.

Fortunately, my messy painting dried overnight while in the back of my car (it gets very hot there at this time of the year), so that I could continue working on it the next day. I stumbled around trying to turn my painting into something with interest, and eventually managed to get an acceptable painting. The "Trillium Trail" was the best I could do, but I think the painting needs more drama. I'll probably try to paint this again sometime and see if I can do it better.

 

Bear Loop Trail, 16"h x 20"w.

My next workshop painting was a classic Virginia mountain landscape--the Allegheny ranges seen from the top of Warm Springs Mountain. One of the things I struggled with using the gel medium on the smooth surface of the panels was that skies would become streaky, and need another layer of paint to smooth them out. Everything in this painting took two layers of paint to achieve, and the colors/values are still not quite right. I guess it takes the right amount of paint/gel medium with just the right touch to spread the paint. It takes a lot of practice to get this right.

 

Hiker at Calmes Neck, 16"h x 20"w.

 

My third effort (above) started off a bit better--the lighting of the photo was easier to deal with, with strong light and shadows. I still didn't get the right val-hues (as my old teacher Lee Boynton would say) on the first layer of paint, but it became easier to adjust the values as I went on.

On our last day, one of the other students (we were all female, BTW) brought a lovely bouquet of hydrangeas from her garden, and Steven used it for his last demo. His painting has such a wonderful, looseness, just enough detail there to convey the sense of the flowers, the 3D modeling and colors--just perfect!

 

Steven Walker's last demo piece, 8" x 8"

I'd love to be able to paint that loosely and still communicate all the important details to convey the depth of dimension and lighting in my oil paintings, I'd be very happy.

 

Wakulla Cypress, first layer

 

With the inspiration of Steven's example, my last painting started out somewhat better than the others, thought the first layer (above) is still streaky, I was starting to hit the val-hues a bit closer to what was needed, and the brushwork was looser. I didn't get to finish this one at the workshop, and brought it home for the second and final coat. The result is what you saw at the head of this post. I think this one turned-out best of the four.

I'll probably submit the last two of these oil paintings for Art at the Mill's fall show to see if they find a buyer there--we'll see.

June 2024 Bloom Day

Texas Yucca flowering spike (Hesperaloe parviflora)

 

  Today is Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, but tomorrow, June the 16th, is the actual Bloomsday, celebrated in Ireland and many other places by lovers of James Joyce's novel "Ulysses." The events in this novel take place all on one day, June 16th, 1904, as narrated by its protagonist, Leopold Bloom. Upon the 50th anniversary of the publication of "Ulysses" a group of well-known authors decided to make a pilgrimage to all of the sites in Dublin mentioned in Joyce's book and re-enact its scenes, calling it "Bloom's Day". Since then, every year the celebration has become more elaborate--Dublin's 2024 Bloomsday is scheduled to last for an entire week!

  With that little bit of esoteric literary history out of the way, it's back to the garden for us today, thanks to Carol Michel's May Dreams garden blog. Disclosure: I'm scheduled to be at a family reunion this afternoon, thus some of my photos were taken a day or two before--close enough for rock n' roll.

 

Yuccas in bloom, with my new veggie garden enclosure in back.

Yucca flowers with Red-hot pokers beyond.

  We'll start with the Yuccas--this year my Texas Yucca (not actually a Yucca) put forth its first flowering spike, and I was thrilled! Then my 'Color Guard' Yucca, which is reverting to an ordinary leaf-color Yucca (Yucca filamentosa)  put forth two flowering spikes. I'd trimmed the side shoots which carry the flowers for the past two years, in an attempt to prevent their reversion, resulting in no flowers--but I'd rather have the flowers than the yellow-striped foliage, so last fall I left the side shoots alone.

  Yucca flowers are so lovely and they always bring to mind New Mexico: my first home in the U.S., and the site of my first artist residency. I painted my first Yucca flowers as a young teen for a school mural, and sold a watercolor of another Yucca in Santa Fe as artist in residence at the Mill Atelier. I may yet paint another this summer, if I have the time.

 

Clary sage flower buds with Centaurea 'Emperor William' in back.

 

  My Clary sage (Salvia sclarea), a biennial, bloomed last year, but there are more flowers this year--must be from some that re-seeded and overwintered--it's such a statuesque plant! 

  The Butterfly weed is in full bloom, and I finally have some 'Hello Yellow' blooms, though not many yet. The deer keep eating the yellow ones back though they don't touch the orange variety, go figure.

 

Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)

Prairie sagebrush (Artemisia frigida) with Butterfly weed behind.

 

  The deer have eaten all of my Asian lilies, and most of my daylilies, despite my efforts to keep them sprayed with repellent. They left only a few for me to enjoy like this delicate peach colored daylily.

Peach dalylily.

  I'm hoping to save a few of my Cone flowers this summer, last year the deer ate every last one of them! The goldfinches were most upset, they love the seeds.

Cone flowers (Echinacea purpurea) and garden Phlox.

  The west back bed is not very colorful right now--it's all white flowers--but the Anise Hyssop here should start to bloom soon, along with a few blooms of the Monarda 'Jacob Kline.'

Virginia mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum) and white Salvia

Red-hot pokers (Knifophia uvaria) and Catmint on west side of house

 

  The hydrangeas growing on the east side of the house are particularly susceptible to the depredations of the deer, so this year I've protected them with physical barriers. Its doesn't make for a very scenic garden look, but it's better than seeing the plants decimated.

 

Oak-leaf hydrangea 'Ruby Slippers' and 'Incrediball' beyond.

 

  Many flowers of the 'New Dawn' climbing rose are still hanging on; it's the only rose that has bloomed for me this year. All the other roses have been eaten by deer or had the foliage stripped by the saw-fly larvae.

Climbing rose 'New Dawn'

  The lavender is in full bloom in various parts of the garden, and the bees love it! I think my Buttonbush is going to flower this year finally--that is, if the deer don't eat the buds.

 

Lavender 'Hidcote' and Buttonbush 'Sugar Shack'

Lavender 'Munstead' and pink Monarda in front garden.

Lavender and pink Monarda in front yard.

   The front walk is now lined with my potted plants--the tropicals winter inside the house, and others I grow as annuals. The sedums growing beside the walk are all blooming.

Potted plants along the front walk.

  

  My porch baskets are starting to fill out a bit. I hope to have more success with these side-planters than in past years. Its seems that every year, at least a few side plants dry out and fail, and the baskets end up looking beat-up and skimpy. I'd like to see good coverage of the coconut fiber liners and fullness.

 

Hanging baskets on porch.

 

   Meanwhile, a few goodies in my indoor garden, in the orchid department. The beautiful white Phalaenopsis is blooming again, and a miniature Phal too. Another orchid in the master bath is also blooming.

White Phalaenopsis with miniature Phalaenopsis in bloom.

Mystery orchid in master bath.

       My next posting will be about my artistic pursuits and exciting events related to art. For today, Happy June Bloom Day to all!

June's Bounty of Flowers

 

Yucca 'Color Guard' in flower.

After several years of not flowering, this spring my "Color Guard' Yucca finally put out two flowering spikes. My plant seemed to be reverting to the original blue-green foliage of the ordinary Yucca filamentosa, so I cut back those shoots for several years, but of course since it's the new side shoots that produce the blossoms, I pruned away any chance of flowers.

 Last fall I decided I'd rather have the flowers than the pretty foliage, and let the side shoots grow out. Is it just my impression that these flowers droop a bit more than those of the ordinary Yucca filamentosa?

 

Yucca with red-hot pokers and lavender.

This part of the long island bed is very colorful at the moment. with red-hot pokers and a pink, or is it white lavender? I've forgotten. I have another red-hot poker variety with all-orange flowers on the west side of the house, but I think this one is prettier.

 

Red-hot pokers (Knifophia uvaria)

Red-hot pokers on the west side of the house.

The butterfly weed is is full bloom at the moment--the 'Hello Yellow' variety is finally offering some blooms but doesn't seem to be as floriferous as the ordinary wild species. The deer keep eating the  yellow flowers back, so perhaps it's not the plant's fault. Why one color would be preferred to the other in taste is a mystery to me.

Herb's bed with lavender and butterfly weed beyond.

Herb's bed with lavender, grasses and Hesperaloe flowers at rear.

Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)

Butterfly weed and lavender in Little Indians bed.

The deer ate most of my Asian lilies despite my efforts to keep them sprayed with repellent, but I did manage to save these few to enjoy briefly. The beasts came by and ate them last night; glad I took the photos just before.

 

Pink and orange Asian lilies.

Asian lilies

 

My hydrangea 'Incrediball' is lovely right now, but I don't know if my other two hydrangeas (H. arborecens and H. paniculata) will bloom this year--I don't see any buds thus far. The oak-leaf hydrangea is making progress, let's hope the deer don't eat it back this year. The Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana) also gets eaten back, but not as badly.

Hydrangea 'Incrediball'

Oak-leaf hydrangea 'Ruby Slippers' and Spiderwort

Peeking through 'Incrediball' to the back yard.

Lavender in the front garden

 

With so many photos of flowers today, I wonder what, if anything new, I'll have to show for June's Bloom Day on the 15th?

Memorial Day in My Garden

Foxglove Penstemon in Herb's bed.

 

I don't have any red-white-and-blue-display of flowers to commemorate Memorial Day, not even a flagpole to hang a flag on, but the cycle of flowers in my garden continues. The Foxglove Penstemons are making  lovely display in Herb's bed at the moment. The peonies have just about finished blooming, but many others plants are getting ready for their annual blooms.

 

Texas Yucca flower spike (Hesperaloe parviflora)

 

The Texas Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) put out its first flowering spike this year, and the individual flowers are starting to open. Their coral color is very pretty--they're supposed to provide nectar for hummingbirds, but I've only seen one hummer around here this year.

 

Close-up of the Texas Yucca flowers

 

My 'Color Guard' Yucca has put forth two flowering spikes, after not producing a single one in several years, but it will be a couple of weeks before those flowers develop. The plant seems to be losing its yellow markings and reverting to the original Yucca filamentosa foliage. I've seen this in other plants whose cultivars sport differently colored foliage, and have no idea what causes it, but apparently once the reversion starts to happen, the shoots are stronger and will eventually dominate--the only solution is to prune back the reversions. I did that and therfore the lack of flowers in the past few years, but I'd rather have the flowers than the yellow-edged foliage.

 

Yucca 'Color Guard' flowering spikes.

Usually, lots of roses and the 'Dawn and Dusk' climbing rose and clematis combo are at their peak at this time, but this year the saw-fly larvae decimated the leaves and my roses look awful! The flowers haven't been affected as much, but still, the plants don't look very attractive.

 

Red Double Knockout rose in front yard.

The Dawn and Dusk combo on the side of the porch is a bit skimpy this year too, after a severe pruning in early spring. I need to train the rose back up the railing and post, to get the clematis to climb again--it's too close to the ground to make much of a show this year.

 

'New Dawn' rose and Clematis 'Etoile Violette'

Evergreens and Viburnum 'Brandywine' on the east side of the house.

The evergreens on the east side of the house are looking good, but the Rhododendron 'Anna Rose Whitney' behind the Viburnum probably needs to be transplanted to a better location. It's growing nicely, but the flower buds get blighted every year from lack of moisture. I've yet to see even one bunch of flowers on it open--the soil drains too well on this steep bank.

The hydrangeas are getting ready to bloom too--with 'Incrediball' leading. This spring's showers have helped them recover. Hopefully, this year the deer won't eat all the flower buds before they develop.

Hydrangea 'Incrediball' on east side.

My dark-leaved Elderberry (Sambucus 'Black Lace') is blooming, but some of the branches are showing wilting, despite all the moisture they've been getting. It's possible a wilt fungus is attacking it, but if so there's little I can do at this point; it will survive or die. 

Sambucus 'Black Lace'

Another plant in bloom is the Tradescantia 'Sweet Kate,' lovely with its deep purple blooms and yellow-green leaves!

 

Tradescantia 'Sweet Kate'

Stay tuned for more flowers later on!