The Garden Community for Garden Lovers

Spring is coming in Iceland..

gummib

By gummib

14 comments


Hi dear goy´s finally is spring coming, and first plants are taking on there green cloths. Evergreens are getting a new fresh, look also. Some plants in my cold greenhouse are ready for summer.
Some years ago I started a small collection of Acer plants, and by the years it became my passion.
My collection is still small, but it is growing ! I don´t know how many they are, it depends of last winter, and if we have a stable weather and no more frost days in may. Hope so..
I´m going to post some short garden posts, some Acer news from my garden. I´m interested to have contact with other Acer lovers to share experience tips and seeds.
I also have some fruit trees, some oaks and several bushes and others.
Yesterday I took some pics of Acer shirasawanum in my greenhouse. I´m curious in this plant and like to know more of this plant how seems happy in my garden both in greenhouse and out of it. So if you know it or some more informations or litterature so please let me know. I don´t have many books about Acers so if you can recommend some, I will be glad.

Happy gardening dear goy gardners,

Guðmundur

This is my Acer shirasawanum taken yesterday, im going to try to post more Acers on saturdays ;)

This is a farm in Öxnadalur, not long from Akureyri taken last weekend 11.may 2013.

In my frend´s garden pruning Aesculus hippocastanum, in april.

More blog posts by gummib

Previous post: Thanks

Next post: Here comes the rain again...



Comments

 

Nice looking Acer Gummib ,your garden season must be so short.

18 May, 2013

 

Hello Guðmundur
Interesting to read your blog, and good luck with your acers ...

You have a challenging climate ...
Nice warm knitted jumper for gardening !

18 May, 2013

 

thanks, its so nice to see fresh foliage in spring. Season is jun jul and august. sometime also half may and september. So every day is precious.

18 May, 2013

 

Hi Terratoone, thanks, yes climate is challenge but I have a small greenhouse and a sheltered garden. I also live in south but picture is taken in north, Iceland.
But a god jumper made of Icelantic wool is no 1 ...

18 May, 2013

 

Useful to have the greenhouse ... and a great advantage having a sheltered garden ...
Chilly in England today ... I'm wearing a woolly jumper too !

18 May, 2013

 

Same in Scotland infact heavy rain and very chilly I too have on a cosy sweater.

18 May, 2013

 

I don't envy you having such a short growing season! I too have an acer shirasawanum aureum. It's pretty big now, well over my head. I've removed the lower branches gradually to make it into a tree shape, as it would have been too big for my garden if I'd let it grow into a big shrub with leaves right down to the ground. I grew it in a pot for the first few years, but it's been in the ground now for around about 12 years I think.

I look forward to seeing more photographs of your acers.

18 May, 2013

 

Welcome to Goy ! We have members all over the world in all sorts of climates. Its always interesting.

18 May, 2013

 

Hi Guðmundur, acers are beautiful, aren't they! I have well established Acer rubrum (red maple) and Acer platanoides (Norway Maple), the former is fabulous in the autumn while the latter looks so pretty all summer especially when a breeze stirs its variegated leaves. I love the acer palmatums too but haven't had much success in growing them, they dry out quite quickly and don't like windy weather.
Your Acer shirasawanum looks very happy. Do you grow all your acers in pots? I imagine your winters are too cold to grow them in the garden. Acers are popular with bonsai growers, do you have any bonsais?

19 May, 2013

 

Hello, thanks to you all. I agree we have all sorts of climate but sheers the plant passion. Louisa, I saw your, A. shirasawanum aureum in your pictures, it is beautiful, and good idea to prune him to a tree. Xela, yes acers are beautiful, I can spend hrs just to watch them. I have, A. platanoides, green and red, and, A. palmatum too. A. platanoides is, usually hardy. I have 5 palmatums, two in greenhouse 3 outside, they seems to be damaged but alive I hope. That was their third winter outside and worst. Usually acers gets harder, by years but any 2 winters are same.
I have got several acers in pots, but most of them are in ground. they are pretty hardy most of them. And some are both. Last winter only, 4 acers was in greenhouse. But many was digged in garden in pots, for frost shelter.
Unfortunatly this winter seems to have injured many of them, but I don´t know that jet. I have some bonsais, but they are not acers.

Thanks again, hope to hear from you again, Guðmundur

19 May, 2013

 

Nice to meet you Gummib, Sunday here is a lovely English spring day here in the midlands, I have some acers in the ground
A. Drummondii
A. Crimson King
A. Brilliantissium
One I don't know the name for that is a random cream/green leaf
A. Negundo. (ash leaf acer)
Oh and some field maple Acer campestre
these are all hardy here, in my greenhouse I have a japanese Acer palmatum dissectum which is not hardy and very tempramental, losing its leaves at the least breath of cold.

You may gather I like trees.........

Its been a difficult few gardening years in Britain but very hard I would think in your country.

19 May, 2013

 

Surely it would be sensible to have fleece covers for these
Acers in extremely cold winters ?

The coldest part of the night is from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m.
so while we are all asleep, our plants are suffering.

19 May, 2013

 

Nice to meet you too Pam, and nice to think to England today. You have interesting plants there, Crimson king, Brilliantissium, and A. negundo. I have A. Royal red, but I really like the colour of A. Brilliantissium. But I have not seen them in Iceland. I have seen these, cream/green leaf acers in England, they are very beautiful. And I have A negundo. An American acer, very fast growing but winter take some inch every year. That acer don´t get very old 50 or 60 years only, and it is a female or male plant, like Salix. The, Acer palmatum dissectum is very beautiful, pity to hear he is not hardy.

Gardening depends so much on weather, and past 8 years have been better average summer heat than many before. I was checking my diary summer ´94 and there was 2 days over 12 degr C. But last years have been dryer also, specially April and May, and that is a serious problem.

Nice to hear from you, hope you post some pictures of your acers one day....

19 May, 2013

 

Hello Gummib nice to meet you and welcome from me as well, I have been looking through your blogs and noticed you have actually been on goy for quite a while, its going to be interesting hearing all about your garden and seeing what you can or cannot grow in your country...

25 May, 2013

Add a comment

Recent posts by gummib

Members who like this blog

  • Gardening with friends since
    22 Apr, 2008

  • Gardening with friends since
    14 Aug, 2008

  • Gardening with friends since
    19 Feb, 2013

  • Gardening with friends since
    10 Sep, 2010

  • Gardening with friends since
    1 Mar, 2008

  • Gardening with friends since
    17 Apr, 2011

  • Gardening with friends since
    9 Aug, 2009

  • Gardening with friends since
    2 Nov, 2009

  • Gardening with friends since
    22 Oct, 2008