Yard Sale Success!

 We could not have conjured more perfect weather for Ned Wolf Park's first Community Yard Sale on Saturday, September 16, 2017.

The evening before, we swept the sophora and oak leaves off 27 vendor spaces marked with sidewalk chalk. Then, grateful for clear streets, we set out orange hazard cones to reserve the spaces for early morning unloading. And starting as early as 7 am, the Subarus and CRV's began to arrive with boxloads of items someone else needed to own.  Folding tables were unfolded, merchandise was merchandised, and neighbors stayed neighborly as we prepared for a fun day together.

Shoppers arrived in waves and seemed to enjoy both the sale and the shady gardens of this park known for its quiet beauty. Along with a cornucopia of used "stuff" of every vintage, an exquisite array of artisan baked goods were offered from a South Philadelphia wholesale baker called Machine Shop Boulangerie. Thriftiness met an urge to splurge at the corner of McCallum and W. Ellet Streets.

Community Yard Sale

As the summer winds down - and cools down, too - activity at Ned Wolf Park is heating up.

Next Saturday, Sept. 16th, 
we will be hosting our first
Community Yard Sale

8:30 am to 2 pm

Also,
although the changes are subtle, we have been 

upgrading some plantings in the gardens.

Most noticeable perhaps is the new rock garden at the corner of McCallum and W. Ellet Streets.

Initated by a neighbor to honor his late wife

(more on this when it is dedicated later)

we have taken a fresh look at this prominent corner to provide a more intimate collection of small scale plants along with bold schist boulders which tie to the stonework we have added to the park in recent years.
The project is only about 50% completed and lots more plants and gravel will be added this fall. Photos to follow.
We sincerely hope the frequent dog walkers will respect our efforts by keeping their pets from "watering" these plants which will surely be killed by a streaming parade of peeing pooches.

Surprising Summer

So far, the summer has brought us regular rain and few heat waves.  So the gardens at Ned Wolf Park are showing off, despite having few annuals to supply vivid all season bloom. Last year, in late summer we added two perennials to our sunny island planting bed. A purple coneflower variety called 'Pica Bella' (far right) and blue globe thistle (center). This season, we are seeing how well these plants have complimented all the other plantings. Those include a shrub rose 'Peach drift' and dwarf butterfly bush 'Blue Chip' (far left). The dusky pink backdrop is provided by a short Joe Pye Weed cultivar called 'Baby Joe.' 

These should provide color few more weeks in August so please drop by.

Potluck in the Park

It took far too long for the Friends of Ned Wolf Park to host its first potluck dinner party in the park.

Initially hatched in the aftermath of our May 6th Plant Sale, we wanted to take time to celebrate our successes in the handsome space we have been nuturing for ten years.

Sedgwick neighbor Marcia lent us a canopy, Weavers Way provided folding tables, park neighbors offered us electricity and water access. The park gave us flowers!

Most asked about plant?

Hands down, it's Allium Ambassador!

These late-spring blooming purple orbs demand attention and folks wonder aloud,

 "What are THOSE?"

Purchased from the Van Engelen bulb catalog in 2013, we planted just 10 and they have been multiplying without diminishing in size, nearly 7" in diameter and about 54" tall.

Memorial Maple

 We have just planted a specimen Japanese Maple

[Acer palmatum 'Pung kil']

which was funded in memory of

Sarah O'Doherty

who lived across McCallum street

before her passing in 2016.

The deep burgundy leaves and purple stems offer a dramatic contrast to the corrugated foliage of Hosta 'Deep Blue Sea.' And in the fall, the delicate Maple leaves should turn a vivid eye-catching red!

Bloom du jour

The hot pink flowers located at bottom right in this photo are Bletilla striata. It's an uncommon but locally hardy plant sometimes called Chinese Ground Orchid. Its most notable feature is the elegant little orchid flowers that bloom from May into June. This woodland edge plant (part sun/part shade) also has elegant wide foliage blades which are attractive through the growing season and take on a golden color in the fall.  Here, we have paired this plant with the large umbrella-like leaves of local native May Apple (Podophyllum peltatum).