Dana, I was thinking there was a poem, too! I kept saying when hollyhocks last in the courtyard bloomed, of course that's not right, it was when lilacs last in the courtyard bloomed or something like that Walt Whitman on the death of Lincoln....well, here, let's not be so lazy:
"When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd" is a long poem in the form of an elegy written by American poet Walt Whitman (1819–1892) in 1865. ... It was written in the summer of 1865 during a period of profound national mourning in the aftermath of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865.
There's a poem by Robert Louis Stevenson about plants he learned from his nurse which ends "And the Lady Hollyhock," but that's the best one I can find. I like old things, like flowers and breeds of chickens.
Bellamarie, there's not much use to call the big box stores here ahead in the gardening, the staff don't know what they are, even in person, you have to go yourself and find one of the vendors coming in. Very nice people, though. However the Garden Centers are different and this morning there's a specialty garden center an hour away who are expecting them Thursday, the plants, and I'll be on the phone Friday morning to see IF in fact we can get some plants here too. Maybe I can actually drive through Panera's and get lunch! Such is the type of Big Day I have here lately.
nlhome, yes, my grandmother did, too, very old flower, and that's, I think, the reason I want some. I expect your mother did not want to plant them as the old varieties were prone to many diseases, rust, and attack from all kinds of weevils, etc. Apparently the newer ones are more immune, I hope so, it's disappointing to see a 6 foot tall and 4 foot wide extravaganza suddenly take ill: tomato, or flower. How interesting about your husband and the mushrooms, HE would have a FIT in our woods, I would kill self in a heartbeat, trying to eat one, never saw such odd mushrooms, and don't know one from another.
Frybabe, now THERE is a hollyhock which will not wither, what a strange name for a ship! I have two of your rectangular wooden boxes next to the greenhouse with storm/ screen doors over them, they are marvelous, VERY good about warding off deer from tender seedlings! I have forgotten what they are supposed to be called, they are part of a stage in planting? Something about frame? Cold frame? But they are MUCH more manageable, and I loved mine. I need to see if I can replace the bottom of the box...I (am on a mission to reconstruct a lot of things here long neglected).
Oh and may I say I admire your ability to construct a computer system from scratch!
Barbara, yes, they were once very popular. They are biennial, like snapdragons, you plant the seed now and it sort of makes a small plant and next year that plant will grow to its huge beauty, die, seed itself and the cycle starts over. You have to have that cycle in place, in other words if I can get plants now or plants from seeds now then next year when they bloom, I will need more seeds and beginning plants, for a 3 year cycle, and then I can let it take its course.... I THINK that the only ones which successfully seed selves are the single ones, which look like hibiscus or althea or Rose of Sharon, and I used, as a child, not to prefer them, but now I think they are very pretty, especially the bold pink ones. There's even one called Henry VIII. I still like best the big double ones, the ones which look like pompoms, but I don't think THEY reseed. We are about to find out. I hope today you are feeling a lot better!
On Edward VIII, no I did not see that, but would have liked to, but certainly on his funeral they were all in attendance,
that's the Queen Mother behind Prince Philip here with the widow. It really took something for the Queen Mother to do that, I think. I hope PBS will repeat that, I will check the programming, they repeat a lot of things. Thank you for mentioning it.
