{"id":138,"date":"2016-02-05T18:26:11","date_gmt":"2016-02-05T18:26:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whiteflower1.wpengine.com\/?p=138"},"modified":"2023-06-14T15:33:36","modified_gmt":"2023-06-14T15:33:36","slug":"a-method-to-my-madness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/","title":{"rendered":"A Method to My Madness"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Cheryl Whalen, Head Gardener<\/p>\n

Gardening season in Connecticut begins in February. Outside my window, the ice-crusted snow still blankets the sleeping garden beds. Maybe it\u2019s too early to garden in the earth, but at my desk, gardens are in full bloom.<\/p>\n

Creating a garden design is like putting together a puzzle. You need to figure out how separate pieces best fit together to develop a whole picture. A jigsaw puzzle has one right answer but a garden design can have many. I needed an easy way to visualize the possible solutions to my garden design puzzles. I got crafty and started collaging.<\/p>\n

\"list<\/a>
Whalen’s garden designs often begin as a list of flora candidates.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My garden designs often begin as a list of flora candidates. While some are new arrivals, most are plants we offer already, and I try to find new ways to showcase them. Next to each plant name on my list, I jot down words to describe its attributes including height, width, and bloom time. When I add a picture to my resource list, the plants begin to come to life. I can easily see the size, shape, and color pattern of a plant\u2019s leaf. I know if its bloom is a fiery red, a warm buttery yellow, or a cool-toned blue.<\/p>\n

This time of year sources for plant portraits are abundant. I sit at my desk surrounded by a dozen gardening catalogs, each vying for my attention and inviting me in with a kaleidoscopic cover. With a pair of scissors in my right hand, I get to work. Flipping through the pages, I clip out the pictures I need and make a check mark next to the name on my roster. I must confess that I have skeletonized many a garden catalog over the years with no remorse.<\/p>\n

\"garden<\/a>
With scissors and drafting tape, Whalen gets to work.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I make a grid of my pictures on a white sheet of paper. Drafting tape is my preferred method of adhesion. It\u2019s less sticky than other tapes, allowing me to neatly peel up a picture and restick it elsewhere. Peel and stick happens a lot as I move into the most creative and fun phase of my design.<\/p>\n

I begin with a picture of a plant that\u2019s an absolute must-have in the garden. This time I choose Dahlia \u2018Melody Allegro.\u2019 Dahlias are great garden plants. They begin blooming in June and carry on right until frost. \u2018Melody Allegro\u2019 reaches up just above my knees and adorns herself with 3\u201d blooms happily clad in peachy orange, rosy pink, and sunny yellow. She\u2019s pretty all by herself, but if I can pair her up with the proper partners, she can really shine.<\/p>\n

I scan my picture grid and my eye stops on the flowers of Cleome \u2018Senorita Rosalita.\u2019 The cluster of flower petals reminds me of a cloud of butterflies. Importantly, the shade of pink perfectly matches the color of the Dahlia\u2019s petal tips as she unfurls. I snatch the Cleome off the grid and place it slightly to the front of my Dahlia picture, overlapping the corners.<\/p>\n

Scanning the grid once again, Zinnia \u2018Profusion Orange\u2019 catches my attention. The shape of the solid orange bloom mimics that of the Dahlia, but it\u2019s half the size. The peachy tones of the Dahlia petals are set off by the steamy orange Zinnia. Without hesitation, I decide this is the plant to complete my tantalizing trio. And so it goes from there. Next I add the airy Helenium \u2018Dakota Gold\u2019 to the mix, placing it at the feet of the Zinnia. The color ties in nicely as it echoes the yellow rays of the Dahlia. I grab hold of the burgundy-hued, strappy-leaved Pennisetum setaceum \u2018Rubrum\u2019 to back up the whole presentation.<\/p>\n

\"finished<\/a>
The finished collage includes Zinnia \u2018Profusion Orange,\u2019 Dahlia \u2018Melody Allegro,\u2019 Cleome \u2018Senorita Rosalita,\u2019 Helenium \u2018Dakota Gold,\u2019 and Pennisetum setaceum \u2018Rubrum.\u2019 This new combo will be planted in the gardens this spring at White Flower Farm, and, come summer, we’ll post pictures of the finished product!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I step back to evaluate my paper garden, and I smile. I do believe I\u2019ve created quite a successful plant community. The plants all work together to bring out the best in each other.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Cheryl Whalen, Head Gardener Gardening season in Connecticut begins in February. Outside my window, the ice-crusted snow still blankets the sleeping garden beds. Maybe it\u2019s too early to garden in the earth, but at my desk, gardens are in full bloom. Creating a garden design is like putting together a puzzle. You need to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":140,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7],"tags":[],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"\nA Method to My Madness - White Flower Farm's blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Method to My Madness - White Flower Farm's blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Cheryl Whalen, Head Gardener Gardening season in Connecticut begins in February. Outside my window, the ice-crusted snow still blankets the sleeping garden beds. Maybe it\u2019s too early to garden in the earth, but at my desk, gardens are in full bloom. Creating a garden design is like putting together a puzzle. You need to […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"White Flower Farm's blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-02-05T18:26:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-06-14T15:33:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/1.-gardening-in-february_closeup-scissors-tape-catalogs_2016-1024x576.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"White Flower Farm\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"White Flower Farm\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"White Flower Farm\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/224786d02a43536e40e6826ca811ca58\"},\"headline\":\"A Method to My Madness\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-02-05T18:26:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-06-14T15:33:36+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/\"},\"wordCount\":740,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Garden Design\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/\",\"name\":\"A Method to My Madness - White Flower Farm's blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2016-02-05T18:26:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-06-14T15:33:36+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"A Method to My Madness\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"White Flower Farm's blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"White Flower Farm's blog\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WFF_logo-blk-02.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WFF_logo-blk-02.png\",\"width\":884,\"height\":193,\"caption\":\"White Flower Farm's blog\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/224786d02a43536e40e6826ca811ca58\",\"name\":\"White Flower Farm\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/325efe1ba1090359afc463b327b4fe2c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/325efe1ba1090359afc463b327b4fe2c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"White Flower Farm\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/author\/wp_admin_wff\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"A Method to My Madness - White Flower Farm's blog","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"A Method to My Madness - White Flower Farm's blog","og_description":"By Cheryl Whalen, Head Gardener Gardening season in Connecticut begins in February. Outside my window, the ice-crusted snow still blankets the sleeping garden beds. Maybe it\u2019s too early to garden in the earth, but at my desk, gardens are in full bloom. Creating a garden design is like putting together a puzzle. You need to […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/","og_site_name":"White Flower Farm's blog","article_published_time":"2016-02-05T18:26:11+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-06-14T15:33:36+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":576,"url":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/1.-gardening-in-february_closeup-scissors-tape-catalogs_2016-1024x576.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"White Flower Farm","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"White Flower Farm","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/"},"author":{"name":"White Flower Farm","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/224786d02a43536e40e6826ca811ca58"},"headline":"A Method to My Madness","datePublished":"2016-02-05T18:26:11+00:00","dateModified":"2023-06-14T15:33:36+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/"},"wordCount":740,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#organization"},"articleSection":["Garden Design"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/","url":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/","name":"A Method to My Madness - White Flower Farm's blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2016-02-05T18:26:11+00:00","dateModified":"2023-06-14T15:33:36+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/05\/a-method-to-my-madness\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"A Method to My Madness"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/","name":"White Flower Farm's blog","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"White Flower Farm's blog","url":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WFF_logo-blk-02.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WFF_logo-blk-02.png","width":884,"height":193,"caption":"White Flower Farm's blog"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/224786d02a43536e40e6826ca811ca58","name":"White Flower Farm","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/325efe1ba1090359afc463b327b4fe2c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/325efe1ba1090359afc463b327b4fe2c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"White Flower Farm"},"url":"https:\/\/www.whiteflowerfarm.com\/blog\/author\/wp_admin_wff\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4393,"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138\/revisions\/4393"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wffblog.mi9retail.com\/\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}