Today, some collages of the alpine garden at The Fells in Newbury, New Hampshire, created by Clarence Hay and hired stonemasons starting in 1929 on the south-facing hillside toward the lake. Among lichen-specked rocks they planted hundreds of alpine plants — some sited along several narrow paths and some their own small islands; at the foot of the hillside is a brook, a lily pool, and a wee bog garden. A 2009 magazine article mentioned that the alpine garden contains 600 species and cultivars of rock garden and alpine plants. I don’t know most of them but I appreciate the colours, textures, long blooms, interesting foliage of these plants throughout the year, and the strategic and serendipitous combinations of the plants in relationship to each other. I realised writing this blog post that I need to a. visit the alpine garden more in March and April and b. observe the (often small or insignificant) alpine flowers more closely.

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The view looking downhill to the alpine garden and beyond to Lake Sunapee in the distance.

[Photos taken in June 2015 & 2019; July 2015, 2018, and 2019; and October 2017.]

A closer view of the bottom middle photo, mid-July 2015:

And a closer view of the bottom left photo, 21 Oct. 2017:

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The view looking upward from the alpine garden toward the house.

[Photos taken in Feb. 2015; May 2016; June 2016; July 2016, 2019; August 2015; November 2019.]

A closer view of the top middle photo, mid-Aug. 2015:

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Some larger areas within the alpine garden.

[Photos taken May 2016; June 2015; July 2016; Sept. 2019; Oct. 2017; Nov. 2016.]

A closer view of the top left and bottom right photos, both early June 2015:

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The pool, bog garden, and nearby.

Photos taken Feb. 2015; June 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018; July 2016; August 2014; Oct. 2017; Nov. 2015.

A closer view of the waterlily, 21 Oct. 2017:

And another view (not in the collage) of the bog and pitcher plants, June 2016:

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Alpine & rock garden plants: Spring (April to June):

Top row: Pasque flower (Pulsatilla); twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla); beauty bush (Kolkwitzia amabilis syn. Linnea amabilis); blue spruce.

Middle row: Japanese painted ferns (Athyrium niponicum) and geraniums; poppy (a variety of Papaver orientale I think); lady’s mantle (Alchemilla mollis) and catmint (nepeta x faasenii); ferns (don’t know which) and a purple-striped white geranium.

Bottom row: Rodgersia and below it amsonia with scilla; thyme, pink geranium,  sensitive fern; prickly pear cactus flower (Opuntia humifusa); pink drumstick primrose (Primula denticulata), I think; purple tradescantia and below it a kind of marsh marigold (Caltha sp.)

Another view of the (?) drumstick primrose and ferns, early June 2015:

And another view of the beauty bush (Kolkwitzia amabilis syn. Linnea amabilis), late June 2016:

 

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Alpine & rock garden plants: Summer (July-Sept):

Top half: blue spruce and Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra); white and purple iris; orange and yellow butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa).

Bottom half: orange-red butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa); an orange-red heath or heather above a purple hosta; red cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) above reddening Rodgersia leaves.

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Alpine & rock garden plants: Autumn (Oct & Nov.):

Clockwise: leaves of beauty bush (Kolkwitzia amabilis syn. Linnea amabilis); purple flowers of Gentiana scabra , probably ‘Zuki Rindo’ or possibly ‘Little Pinkie’; blue spruce in sunlight; leaves and berries of beauty bush (Kolkwitzia amabilis syn. Linnea amabilis); probably Allium thunbergii ‘Ozawa’; cardinal flower again (Lobelia cardinalis).

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Alpine & rock garden plants: Winter (Dec.-March):

Well, nothing’s blooming and everything’s under the snow in winter, so it’s slim pickings. But I do like that evergreen shrub.

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Animals in the alpine garden.

No garden is complete without them.

Clockwise: chipmunk, June 2015; tadpoles, June 2016; frog, May 2016; chipmunk with Japanese lantern, April 2018; deer near crabapples, Nov. 2015; mating damselflies, June 2016; and chipmunk again, June 2015.