Lush is correct :-)

You're right, Woodyoak, green and foliage are so important and sometimes get forgotten in the search for sensational colours and flowers. We have had a really cold wet Spring here but the result is green positively bursting out of the parks and gardens.

This post was edited by flora_uk on Tue, May 21, 13 at 16:24

I know my preference for green and white is not what most people prefer (I do like color and the front garden is very colorful, but our intent for the shady backyard is a cool and serene space so green and white works well for that.) I really like this view of the south side of the backyard taken tonight from the living room window:
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The white flowering tree that you can just see a bit of on the left is a white form of redbud. I prefer the white form to the more common pink. There is a second one diagonally across the lawn on the north side of the garden too.

Woodyoak - I always enjoy the photos of your gardens. Thanks for posting.

I am wondering about the white redbuds and how cold they have been able to endure. Do you know if they are a named variety? I currently have a regular redbud which came from northern hardy seed stock, but would love a white one as well.

nhbabs - The white redbuds were hard to find here. There's only one nursery locally that carried them. The ones I have are listed just as Cercis canadensis Alba although I see that they now also list a 'Royal White' one which seems to be a bit taller - 20' vs. 15' for 'Alba'. They list both as zone 6 (I suspect they're using US zone ratings but I'm not sure....) Temperatures here regularly get down to the -15C (6F) range and have been as low as -20C (-4F). At our previous house not too far from this one we planted a regular pink redbud that killed to the ground frequently but always came back from the roots (we drove by not too long ago and were a bit surprised to see that it is now a decent-sized tree!) The white redbuds here have never suffered any damage in winter. On the USDA zone system we're 5b, or 6a at best. Does that help?

Thanks, Woodyoak. You're warmer than I am, so I'll have to do some more research to see whether either of them are likely to be hardy enough for me.

I love the green and white.. lush and restful. And Cole is adorable!

luv the pictures! Really nice!

Woodwork, beautiful as always. I always enjoy seeing pictures of your peaceful backyard. I really like the white redbuds as opposed to the pink. I had seen a fairly large one in SC one year and fell in love. Have never been able to find one though.

Can you please tell me again what colors you used on your shed? We have some new cedar furniture coming soon and I was thinking about your green colors for it as a possibility.

Cole is soooo cute.

thyme - the link below should take you to the details of the shed colors. The only one that changed from what is on that link is that the 'Aligator Alley' color for the door turned out to look muddy in some lights so we repainted the door in 2011 with the 'Bonsai' color so it is the same as the door and window trim. 'Bonsai' is a great color that blends in well with foliage. I have used it since to paint to air conditioner screen and for the new iron support posts needed for the Japanese wisteria tree after the original wooden one broke off! If you want something to blend in or disappear into the greenery, paint it 'Bonsai'.

Cole is a wonderful dog! 'Prince Charming' is one of his nicknames :-) We got him in November as a 16 month old 'failed' dog from Dog Guides - he didn't make it from the puppy foster program into the training program because he had 'resource guarding' issues (i.e. he didn't like giving up his toys when asked to and sometimes got a bit snappy about it....) The socialization program that the foster homes provide make for an amazingly unflappable and social dog. Nothing frightens or bothers him and he thinks everyone is his best friend! I was never keen on poodles until we started volunteering with Dog Guides. They use a lot of poodles for Hearing Ear and Special Services dogs and they stole our hearts. Fabulous dogs, every one of them!

Here is a link that might be useful: shed colors

and poodles are right up there with collies in the smart stakes!

Although I do know a couple of poodles and find this 'fact' somewhat astonishing since the ones I know seem to have brains about the size of a lentil.

Mind, I also have a collie (gaelic word for any useful dog) who is also a bit lacking in the brain department.

Lovely garden, by the way.

Rainwashed green out there this morning. I love this time of year - everything just sparkles!
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(Mind you, the tree peonies were just starting to open yesterday in the front garden.... always a recipe for rain to come and trash the flowers!)

Gorgeous. I prefer foliage over flowers any day.