Agave americana in full bloom

Today, July 16, 2010 I was visiting the Atlanta Botanical Garden and had the thrill of seeing Agave americana in bloom.  This is not your average plant and to see it towering up next to a conifer was exciting.  It is worth the trip.  I also enjoyed seeing Leucophyllum frutescens var. compactum in full bloom.  If you decide to grow it make sure you give it excellent drainage.  Not easy to find at nurseries, you may have luck with mail order-places like Yucca-Du.

Garden House with recycled materials

Creating outdoor rooms is something that Susanne knows about.  When I first visited her garden years ago, she had created an outdoor living room with salvaged windows from a church.  Years later it looks as if it has always been there.  Boxwoods and hydrangeas look lush on this June visit and visitors are lounging on the glider.  She also has an outdoor dining room complete with an electric chandelier that works.

outdoor garden room

In my own garden I have a small gravel area with chairs next to a water garden but I love the idea of a garden house.  Now if only I can find someone to build it.  Until then I will enjoy my summer blooms including daisies, ‘Casa Blanca’ lilies, coneflowers and later hydrangeas and big plants like Silphium perfoliatum , called the cup plant it grows to 6’ or taller.  Other favorites include Hemerocallis ‘Autumn Minaret’ which also grows to heights of 6’ and offers fragrant yellow flowers with a dark peach center. 

my garden in August 2009

It’s too hot to plant but there is plenty of weeding and mulching to keep me busy.

Well, maybe I’ll add some more annuals.  You can never have too many plants.

either link should work 

Pennisetum 'Fireworks,' Euphorbia 'Shorty,' and Coreopsis 'Route 66'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMInRh5e-QE

http://octoberskiespro.com/work/PPA/

Zephirine Drouhin, thornlesss and fragrant

As Kathy Jentz, publisher of Washington Gardener magazine (DC and surrounding areas) www.washingtongardener.com

stated recently “ thornless, blooms in shade, great fragrance, what’s not to love,” and I would also add that  it produces masses of cerise pink flowers.  A point worth noting is that last year many of  the flower buds on my ‘Zephirine Drouhin” were destroyed by a green caterpillar chewing into them.  This year I was ready.  Once the flower buds were swelling and showing color I  inspected the plant and sure enough the green worms were back.  Although I  avoid using pesticides in my garden (one dog and one 8 year old, need I say more) on occasion I resort to using organic pest controls like  Bacillus thuringiensis commonly known as Bt.  Bt is a naturally occurring bacterial disease of insects.  By spraying (mix it with water according to the directions) the leaves (both the tops and undersides) as well as the buds, it will kill the chewing caterpillars when they ingest it.  This insecticide is considered safe for people and wildlife and is also used on food crops. 

The bottom line is that it works as exhibited by all the flowers my rose has produced this year.  It also helps that we have had plenty of moisture and I am fertilizing with organic chicken poop.  Roses are heavy feeders but most years I don’t fertilize as often as I should.  I will try to do better this year.   

Rosa 'Perle d'Or' and Spiraea 'Ogon'

I select roses for my garden that are tough and for the most part undemanding. In talking with some of my fellow gardening friends we all agree that so far this has been a great year for roses. 

David McMullin of GardenHood says some of his favorites this year include R. ‘Climbing Pinkie,’ with gorgeous deep pink flowers, R. ‘Cecile Brunner,’ R. ‘Darlow’s Enigma,’ an upright tidy shrub with yellow buds opening white, R. ‘Altissima,’ a climber with single deep red flowers and R. chinensis mutabilis also known as the butterfly rose with single blooms in shades of yellow, pink and orange. 

Garden Designer Caroline Riggins says she is excited by roses but stresses that she is a  no spray gardener.  She too grows the roses I mentioned and also likes R. ‘Climbing Pinkie’ and  R. ‘Climbing Old Blush.’

Paula Refi who is also a garden designer says that she is not a big rose grower and that she currently has 7 or 8 bulletproof roses.  Her top five are

R. ‘Buttered Popcorn,’ a white polyantha, R. ‘Baby Love,’ a single yellow polyantha she grows with Clematis ‘Arabella,’ R. ‘Perle d’ Or,’ R. chinensis mutabilis and R. ‘Nearly Wild.’ 

Rosa 'WEOpop' or 'Gourmet Popcorn'

If you aren’t already growing roses, the ones listed here are satisfying and for the most part easy to grow provided they have plenty of sun (6-8 hours of direct sun is ideal), moisture and fertilizer.

Heuchera 'Caramel' and Penstemon 'Husker Red'

Just in time for Mother’s Day

May 8-Eagle Eye Bookstore, Decatur, GA 1-2:30pm Book Signing by Erica Glasener

Proven Plants Southern Gardens  

2076 N. Decatur Rd., Decatur, GA 30033

404-486-0307

www.eagleeyebooks.com

While they last I will have an assortment of plants to give away.  One plant for each copy of my new book that you purchase.  Free advice.  Come with your plant questions.

Viburnum macrocephalum, Chinese snowball

 He had his crew deliver and plant it with a tree spade.  However, due  to the drought it  struggled along until this spring when it exploded into bloom.  I guess it was just waiting for the rain we had last fall and winter.  Other  key players in April  include Heuchera ‘Caramel’ which  looks good with its companions Acer palmatum ‘Sangu Kaku,’ the coral bark maple, a smoke tree and a clump of fennel. (sounds like a menu selection at a restaurant)  Heuchera ‘Citronelle’ and Euphorbia wulfenii  add welcome brightness with their chartreuse foliage and flowers.  Another combination that pleases is Amsonia hubrichtii; also known as Arkansas bluestar, a plant that  always makes the cut if I am forced to name 10 perennials I can’t live without,  and Heuchera ‘Mocha.’ The large dark foliage of this coralbells provides the perfect contrast for the willowy leaves of Amsonia and its blue flowers which are just beginning to show color.  I only grow a few clematis, although I am always trying new selections, and the first to bloom this year  is Clematis ‘Miss Bateman,’ with rounded white flowers.  It is described as a large flowered early blooming type.  I purchased it at a big box store (I shop everywhere for plants)  while it was in bloom last year so I am especially happy to see that it overwintered and is thriving. 

Amsonia hubrichtii and Heuchera 'Mocha'

 I have ‘Miss Bateman’ planted at the base of Rosa ‘Zephirine Drouhin’ which I have trained to grow up a trellis.  This rose which is virtually thornless continues to be a favorite of mine with its cerise blooms and delicious scent.  It too is just beginning to show color.  Planted in front of it are two big clumps of Baptisia ‘Carolina Moonlight.’ A strong grower,  the asparagus looking buds will open soon to soft yellow spikes of flowers.   

Clematis 'Miss Bateman'

This is just a sampling of some of my favorites and is subject to change.  I am also trying a new fertilizer for my garden called GEO 4-2-3 Organic Fertilizer (visit their website to find out more http://think-geo.com ) which is derived from processed poultry litter.  I’ll keep you posted on my thoughts and observations regarding its benefits.

   Now is the perfect time to visit gardens with your pen, paper and camera.  Then head to your local garden center and bring home some color.  Below is a list of garden centers and nurseries with great offerings.

Ashe-Simpson Garden Center, 4961 Peachtree Industrial Blvd., Atlanta, GA 30341-770-458-3224

GardenHood,353 Boulevard SE, Atlanta, GA 30312-404-880-9848

Habersham Gardens, 2067 Manchester St. NE, Atlanta, GA 30324-404-873-2484

McMahan’s Nursery, 5727 Cleveland Hwy., Clermont, GA 30527-770-983-3666

Scottsdale Farms, 15639 Birminham Hwy, (Hwy 372), Appharetta, GA 30004-770-777-5875

call for hours of operation or visit their websites

Daffodils, Scilla and Puschkinia

Narcissus ‘Tete-a-Tete’ planted in combination with Puschkinia scilliodes var. libanotica and Scilla siberica.  These perennial bulbs are easy to grow and  a delight in early spring.  Great for the woodland or the edges of borders, they also naturalize easily.  In another area of the garden I was delighted to see the spring ephemeral cutleaf toothwort, Cardamine concatenata,  formerly known as Dentaria laciniata (a name I prefer).  This native wildflower not only attracts butterflies but I just read that it  is consumed by the white-footed mouse.   Last year George Sanko, Director of the Native Plant Botanical Garden at Georgia Perimeter College, the Decatur campus gave me a good definition for a spring ephemeral.   As George puts it,  these plants are “living in the fast lane.”   Because they need sun to grow, they come up in early spring and go through their sexual life cycle and then die back before the deciduous canopy puts out its new leaves.  Mission accomplished, they remain dormant until next spring.  In many cases it’s as if the plants have disappeared (no top growth is visible)  even though the roots are storing up sugars for a performance next year.  To keep track of where spring ephemerals are growing  in your garden, George recommends that you combine them with ferns.  The ferns act as a marker and then they provide a transition to summer.    Other spring ephemerals that I spotted included  Mayapples, Podophyllum peltatum  and   Bloodroot, Sanguinaria canadensis.  Patches of  the exotic  Primula veris ranged in color from the typical soft yellow to red and shades of pink. 

cutleaf toothwort in late March

Shrubs like Corylopsis species and the striking Stachyurus praecox   ‘Rubriflora’ were also in full bloom and added to this spring scene. 

In another garden in my neighborhood I discovered a big patch of trout lilies, Erythronium americanum.  According to some the leaves look like a trout but I find the flowers to be charming. 

These are just a few of the delights that let us know that spring is really here.

Each day brings more blooms and new discoveries.  If you have a woodland garden think about adding some of these plants and you will be rewarded next spring and for many years to come. 

Stachyurus praecox 'Rubriflora' in late March

Here are a few of my favorites with photos

For Sun I like Kalimeris pinnatifida  Zone 4 to 8

Kalimeris pinnatifida

 Baptisia ‘Purple Smoke’  Zone 5 to 8

Baptisia 'Purple Smoke' and peonies

For Shade

Heuchera ‘Citronelle’  Zone 4 to 8

Heuchera 'Citronelle'

red buckeye

During these cold days I have been thinking about some of my favorite spring flowering trees including Aesculus pavia, red buckeye, Chionanthus retusus, fringe tree, Cornus mas, cornelian cherry dogwood, Halesia tetraptera, carolina silverbell and Styrax obassia, fragrant styrax.   I was thrilled when I purchased my styrax from Piccadilly Farm in Bishop, Georgia last fall.  It’s only about waist high so I probably won’t get many blooms this spring but someday soon it will be a beautiful specimen.  It produces masses of fragrant white bell shaped flowers. 

Among the earliest bloomers Cornus mas (typically from mid-February to March) produces vivid yellow flowers on bare peeling  branches.  The selection ‘Golden Glory’ matures at about 25,’ making it perfect for small gardens.  For carpeting under this beauty I recommend Helleborus x hybridus and early blooming varieities of daffodils.  Blooming in April, the red buckeye  has handsome palmate  leaves and bright red to red-orange blooms.  (This native is poisonous if eaten so keep it away from animals and small children.)  While our native fringe tree, Chionanthus virginicus , also known as grancy grey beard is beautiful in its own right , it’s Asian counterpart Chionanthus retusus appeals to me for its glossy foliage, fleecy white blooms, handsome bark and sometimes dark blue fruits.  While it makes a fine specimen tree in the garden I have also seen it thriving as a street tree in Savannah, GA. 

Another April bloomer, carolina silverbell is covered with white pendulous blossoms which are beautiful to look up into.  In summer the attractive winged fruits add to its charm.  

In addition to my familiar favorites there are a host of spring flowering trees that are garden worthy.  I recently spoke with Luca Gianturco of Scottsdale Farms and Tiffany Fischer of McMahan’s (and GardenHood) about some of the trees they are excited about for this spring.  Here are a few of  their recommendations.  It’s worth noting that one tree showed up on both of their lists and neither knew what the other had said.  This makes me pay attention to Aesculus x carnea ‘Ft. McNair’ which has light pink flowers with a yellow throat and disease resistant foliage. 

Magnolia 'Butterflies'

Luca Gianturco, Scottsdale Farms

15639 Birmingham Hwy

Hwy 372

Alpharetta, GA 30004

770-777-5875

Amelanchier x grandiflora ‘Autumn Brilliance , autumn brilliance serviceberry –flowers are pink in bud and open to white

Cercis canadensis – many different selections of redbud

Magnolia ‘Butterflies’- with canary yellow flowers

Tiffanny Fischer

GardenHood

353 Boulevard SE

Atlanta, GA 30312

404-880-9848

Cercis canadensis ‘Appalachian Spring’- the flowers on this redbud are deep purple-red in bud and open to bright, bright pink

Magnolia ‘Jon Jon’- A Gresham hybrid, this late blooming selection has flowers that are deep reddish-purple at the base and lighter towards the tips. 

Magnolia liliflora ‘Nigra’- also late blooming with deep dark burgundy flowers (almost black)

Prunus campanulata- early blooming small cherry tree with single  pink flowers