Zoning Out at the Mary Livingston Ripley Garden

Both before and after my trip to the 2017 Capital Region Garden Bloggers' Fling, friends asked me whether I'd get anything out of it given the significant difference in the climate of that area and mine in coastal Southern California.  To tell the truth, I had some concerns there too.  So when I discovered the Mary Livingston Ripley Garden on the National Mall in Washington DC on the first full day of the Fling, I was delighted to see many plants that are as at home in my USDA zone 10b garden as they were in this zone 7a garden.  Actually, many of the plants in the garden considered annuals or exotics there are perennials in my climate.

Other than the Franklinia, all the tagged plants here - Brassica oleracea 'Lancinato' (dinosaur kale), Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea', Ocimum basilicum 'Magical Michael' and Phygelius 'Yellow Submarine' - will grow in my climate, although some want more water than I'm generally willing to provide

The half-acre Ripley garden is situated between the Arts & Industries Building and the Hirschhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden on a site that was originally targeted for use as a parking lot.  Architect  Hugh Newell Jacobsen created a curvilinear design featuring raised planting beds that provide a sense of enclosure and a welcome respite from the crowds that fill the National Mall.  Mary Livingston Ripley was the instigating force behind the creation of the garden, constructed in 1978 and subsequently named after her in 1988.



I relied exclusively on my light-weight point-and-click camera on this trip so many of my photos aren't as sharp as I'd like but I hope they give you a feel for the space.  I followed a roughly counter-clockwise path through the twists and turns in this garden, although I jumped around a bit when something grabbed my eye so I can't claim that my photos flow in precisely the same fashion as the garden.

The Yucca desmetiana 'Blue Boy' front and center in this area clinched the fact that I was going to find a lot that was familiar in this garden.  I grow several Yucca, including this one, as well as Senecio mandraliscae and lavender.  I'm not growing Calibrachoa at the moment but it's a common short-lived perennial here.  I've given up growing Nepeta, but only because the neighborhood cats eat it to the ground.

The Yucca, Artemisia, Cotoneaster, and Salvia nemerosa shown here will all grow in my zone.  So will the pretty red Caladium, although I don't think it'd do well in a full sun position in my garden and its thirst might exceed the water available to it.

There's no chance I could grow the herbaceous peony shown here (no longer in bloom),  I haven't had much luck with Asiatic lilies either but, again, that's a water issue.  The other plants in this vignette - Bidens, Veronica, bronze fennel, and Nepeta - do fine in SoCal's climate.

I fell in love with the Crambe maritima on the left but was disappointed to read that it's not suited to my climate - it seems difficult to find large-leafed plants that are.  The hybrid Itoh peony in the center is theoretically possible to grow in SoCal and I know gardeners who've had success with them but that doesn't include me (although I've yet to wholly give up on the one plant I have).  The Yucca rostrata shown here on the right and in several other locations in the Ripley garden have me asking myself why I've never planted it.

Allium, Echinacea, Nepeta, Santolina rosmarinifolia, and Verbena bonariensis were repeated at intervals in this section.  Neither Alliums nor Echinacea do this well for me but they're common in SoCal.

I thought the coral Phygelius here nicely echoed the color of the flowers in the distance

The center of the Ripley garden is occupied by a large fountain and an even larger circular planter.

This was described as an antique Acanthus Fountain constructed of cast iron sometime between 1850 and 1900

Here's another Yucca rostrata!  The other interesting plant in this bed is Solanum quitoense, which I've been tempted to try growing in my own garden.  Its good-sized leaves have velvety purple hairs and purple thorns.  It fruits too, although summers in my area may be too hot to support production.

This is the same bed, photographed from the other side

Beyond the fountain, the path narrows and directs the visitor to the left along a curving path toward an exit in the back.

This bed and the planter contained silver and blue-toned succulents and Dichondra 'Silver Falls'.  I've noticed that many Texas bloggers use this Dichondra extensively in their gardens.  I've added more to my own but I think I'm missing out in failing to use it where in can spill down like water.

This vertical planter containing succulents has a good sized Furcraea foetida 'Mediopicta' in a pot at its base.  My own Furcraea looks sad by comparison but that's my fault because I've moved it around looking for the right spot for it, which I still haven't found.  If planted in the ground, the plant can get huge in SoCal.

This photo shows how the garden wends a winding path to another street on its far end

Much of the area at the back end of the garden was quite shady.  While I do grow a few hellebores, the ferns and hosta wouldn't be happy in my garden.  I admire the Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra) but its water requirements pose an impediment to planting it in my garden.

This meadow-like space with an ample planting of pink yarrow also included a bug hotel

This photo shows the middle of the garden as I approached it from the back section

I'm not sure what the pretty strappy-leaved plant in between the peony and Geranium was - Eucomis maybe?  If that's the case, it's worth growing for the foliage alone.  I was gratified that 2 of the 3 I planted years ago returned after our winter rains but it's not this robust.  I do grow Acanthus mollis (shown on the right) but it too wants more water than it's been getting in my garden.

Soft yellows and lavenders punctuated many of the planting vignettes in the Ripley garden

A subdued but effective plant combination for a shady location.  I'm not sure what that chartreuse shrub is but it provides just the right degree of contrast

Asarum splendens makes a great ground cover.  Regrettably, I've not a chance of growing that.

This combination with the hosta and hydrangea is beyond my reach as well.  I've tried planting Lonicera nitida, which I think is the plant hanging down over the planter's edge on the left, but it's remained puny in my garden.

The hybrid Cistus here, 'McGuire's Gold', reminds me of one I planted recently ('Second Honeymoon') and I love the Carex comans 'Frosted Curls', shown on the right and planted in other locations throughout the Ripley garden.  I'm determined to try that grass-substitute in my garden if I can find it.

This photo brings us back to the very front of the Ripley garden, where the dedication plaque is located.  There's more Yucca rostrata here, as well as Bidens, Portulaca and succulents.  I was drawn to the bright, orange-flowered plant on the far left, which is Jacobinia chrysosthephana, a tropical I find I could probably grow, provided I'm willing to spare it the water it needs.

I certainly can't grow everything I saw in this garden but there was a surprising amount of plant material that is or could be perfectly happy in my area of Southern California.  I loved the exuberant mix of plants I saw in the Ripley garden and it has me looking at my own plant combinations from new angles.  And isn't that exactly the purpose of a garden tour?

In closing, here are some close-ups of some especially pretty flowers, clockwise from the upper left: Lilium asiatica 'Soiree', Jacobinia chrysosthephana, Echinacea 'Leilani', and noID Aurelian lily

There are many more Garden Bloggers' Fling posts to come as I slowly wade through the 900 photos I took.  Stay tuned!


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