Garden Bed #7 - page 2

Herb - Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)

My friend, Connie gave me a small start of her Lemon Balm plant. It smells so good! So Lemon-y! such a nice limey / green color in shade, more yellow in more sun. Mine grows in heavy shade & is a good ground cover. It does spread but is not really what I consider invasive. It spreads by seeds and original plants increase in size. It does not really spread by rhizomes. Just pull it if it pops up in a spot where is may be a nescience. Grows well in drier, clay soil too. Lemon Balm is also a fun filler in containers too. Any time a leaf of the plant is touched an invigorating clean smell of lemon is emitted. It's fun!

Hosta 'Captain Kirk'

'Captain Kirk' is yet another sport from 'Gold Standard' (which is a 'Hyacinthina' sport itself). It comes from Brill and is reputed to have better substance and hold the color longer than its progenitor. The margins are wider and darker green than 'Gold Standard'. It grows rapidly and makes a large clump as much as 3' wide x 18" high. The leaf has a pointed tip but is basically oval. Developing a good reputation."
Hosta Library

Hosta Hybridizers from my home state of Iowa occupy a soft spot in my 'Hosta Heart'.

Mark Zillis' 50 Best Iowa Hostas (pdf file)

During early stages of my personal 'Hosta Adventure' I visited Kirk Brill's shade garden in Des Moines only 50 miles from my home. Mr. Brill is an interesting sort of guy. He is uniquely - himself. His garden / yard was a perfect shade garden display of hosta-ism! My friends and I were duly impressed with all the shade plants including his perfect tri-colored beech tree. When we complimented him on it he directly pointed out tri-colored beech is not to be taken for granted & not for everyone's yard. He instructed the tree requires special growing conditions and treatment. Mr. Brill is a teacher (now retired). I suspect we were in his outdoor classroom and we did learn about plants.

Hosta 'Captain Kirk' was a standout specimen in the Brill garden. I fell in love with that hosta. Obviously, Mr. Brill is / was a 'Treky' - naming his discovered hosta 'Hyacinthina' sport both after himself and the Star Trek TV series. I was smitten with the whole hosta collecting thing; still thinking I could have them all. It was stage #1 - Hosta-holic-ism! And just maybe, hosta 'Captain Kirk' is the one that pushed me over the edge propelling me into full blown, irreversible addiction to hostas.

And perhaps, Kirk Bill's front garden / yard holds my vision of what every shade garden might be. The image of his Virginia blue belles so naturalized is with me still. If I close my eyes and gently inhale, I believe there is the essence of blue belle perfume ever so gently encapturing my being. Maybe it's my early childhood walks in the grove holding hands with my Grandma Vi that allows blue belles & purple violets to hold my heart prisoner.

About this same stage in my Hostaholic disease I became acquainted with my now best friend, Josh Spece via the internet. Computers and the internet were new to me then too. I was emailing Josh relating my love of hosta 'Captain Kirk' to him. He made arrangements to get some tc 'Captain Kirk' plants into his nursery that spring. Availability was limited and the plants were never delivered. So here's where a friendship bond is rooted - because Josh was unable to get a baby Captain Kirk plant for me - he shared 1/2 of his plant in his personal gardens with me. That's what the hosta world is all about! Yes! I say it again: Hosta is the Friendship Plant! And thus, hosta 'Captain Kirk' will always hold a very special spot in my heart and in my gardens. - MM