My first year of college I debated entering Landscape Architecture rather than straight Architecture. As most of you are aware I ended up selecting architecture. As a result, I never had to deal with learning the names of thousands plants. Fast forward eight years, and I'm now undertaking this task.
Last week I researched perennials that are excellent in the Chicago's climate (most of which are native) and developed a list for the landscaping of the backyard. That list is as follows:
Short
Common Shooting Star - Dodecatheon meadia
Ozark Sundrops - Oenothera macrocarpa
Carpathian Harebell - Campanula carpatica
Yellow Corydalis - Corydalis lutea
Bloody Cranesbill - Geranium sanguineum
Blue Phlox - Phlox divaricata
Maiden Pinks - Dianthus deltoides
Medium Height
Canada Colombine - Aquilegia canadensis
Wild Geranium - Geranium maculatum
Hosta
Coral Bells - Heuchera sanguinea
Columbine - Anquilegia 'hensol harebell'
Lanceleaf Coreopsis - Coreopsis lanceolata
Dwarf False Goldenrod - Solidago spacelata
Sedum - Hylotelephium
Virginia Bluebells - Mertensia virginica
Tall
Blue Star - Amsonia tabernaemontana
Wild Sweet William - Phlox maculata
Obedient Plan - Physostegia virginiana
Black-Eyed Susan - Rudbeckia fulgida var. sullivantii
Butterfly Weed - Asclepias tuperosa
Rose Mallow - Hibiscus moscheutos
Golden Columbine - Aquilegia chrysantha
Purple Coneflower - Echinacea purpurea
This back yard project originally wasn't going to happen for a little while. However, yesterday I was at Home Depot getting supplies for laying our cork floor and noticed that perennials were on sale... Two hours later I had a cart that looked like this:
If you're knowledgable about flowers, you'll notice I wasn't exactly disciplined in my purchases. I just couldn't pass up the mums and that orange Asiatic Lily. Plus, Home Depot only had the following flowers:
A type of Corydalis
A type of Phlox, but not the Blue Phlox
Hostas
Coral Bells
Sedum
Black-Eyed Susans
Coneflowers
By today our backyard looked like this:
Additionally, a few bulbs found there way into the flower garden. I'm thinking seeds from the remaining plants might just get scattered around in certain areas, but this is yet to be determined.
You also might notice our new "tree" (steel pipe) sticking out of the ground. This will be the location of our future birch.
