How to Grow Iris

The most familiar member of this group is the bearded iris (Iris x germanica) that blooms in late spring. The large, handsome flowers are composed of three ruffled petals called standards, which stand upright, and three petals called falls, which hang down. The range of color is extraordinary every color except bright red; sometimes the falls and standards are colored differently. The gray green sword like leaves is easy to hide with other plants after the flowers have bloomed so they will not take up visual space. For this reason you need to use iris in the border, although other gardeners prefer to mass them by themselves, which creates a lovely effect. Heights range from to four feet. 

The two other types well worth exploring are Siberian Iris (I. sibirica) and Japanese iris (I. ensata, also called I. kaempferi). Siberian iris quickly forms large clumps of slender upright leaves. The flowers are more dainty than those of bearded iris; shades include blues, purples, rose and white, some with exquisitely veined markings. Japanese iris is same; however the flowers are much larger and bloom a bit later. 

Well, if you want to grow iris, then roots of bearded iris are fat rhizomes that are prone to rot and to infestation by root maggots. I fight both problems by dipping the roots in a ten to one chlorine solution whenever dig them up to divide them, but the best prevention for rot and maggots is to plant the roots so that the tops are visible. You can plant them on a soil mound if drainage is less than perfect. They like fairly rich, alkaline soil and are generally planted in later summer. 

The roots of Japanese and Siberian iris are long and stringy. The plants like moist, slightly acid soil that is rich in humus. Divide Japanese iris every few years. Siberian clumps can be left undisturbed, but for purposes of propagation, divide with a sharp spade or digging fork. The roots of old clumps become densely matted together but can be pried apart with two digging forks worked back to back. 

Pink Dianthus

These flowers are often pink, but are sometimes shades of red or white as well. Sometimes flowers are marked with several in colors. Some are shaped like small carnations to which pinks are related while the others have fewer petals, sometimes with ragged edges. Some have a pleasant clovelike scent. The foliage is often very pretty, usually in shades of grayish or bluish green. Moreover pinks are normally short and many grow close to the ground in matlike carpets. 

The tallest are rarely more than one and half feet high. They normally flowers in spring or early summer, but some continue to produce blooms all summer, especially if cut back. Maiden pink called Dianthus deltoides produce tiny single dark pink or white flowers on short stems in late spring, and self-sows. Gras pink (D. plumarius) is usually about a foot tall, with bliish foliage and multicolored flowers. Cheddar pink (D. gratianopolitanus also called D. caesius), is a low growing spreading pink flower with grayish leaves the variety "Tiny Rubies" is very low and abundant with bright pink flowers. D. x allwoodii hybrids such as "Doris" and "Ian" have larger flowers and are hardy only to but the low growing variety "Alpinus" is hardy. In warm climates you can grow carnations, also called clover pinks (D. caryophyllus). Sweet William (D. Barbatus) is a tender perennial best treated as a biennial or self-sowing annual. 

 

How to Grow Pinks Dianthus

All pinks need excellent drainage and prefer slightly alkaline soil. Do not mulch the crowns. Remove spent flowers to encourage rebloom, and cut back long stemmed varieties if they get dry and scraggly in midsummer. Mat forming varieties can be left alone unless they take up too much space, but clump forming ones such as carnations and the Dianthus x allwoodii hybrids may need to be divided every few years to keep them attractive and vigorous. They can also be increased by layering or taking cuttings. 

Chrysanthemum Flowering Plant Comes in Several Shapes

Chrysanthemums, or sometimes called “mums” or “chrysanths”, are flowering plants of the genus Chrysanthemum in the family Asteraceae. They are native to Asia and northeastern Europe, and most species originate from East Asia and the center of diversity is in China. So, they’re countless horticultural varieties and cultivars. The familiar garden “mum” comes in several shapes, from small pompons the size of a dime, to huge “Spiders”. Few are beautifully shaped just like daisies, some, even called “Spoons, are nests of little spoon-shaped petals. The most familiar are the large, round ones with several petals, which are classified as “Decorative” mums, and the easy to grow as well, “cushion mums”, which grow up to 15 inches tall. Moreover, colors include everything but blue and heights range from less than a foot tall to four feet. Several other Chrysanthemum species are also popular garden plants. Most start blooming in late summer and continue through fall. Hence, try-cold hardy types such as the Cheyenne series in cold climates.

Therefore, hybrids of many other Chrysanthemum species are popular garden flowers. Because the painted daisy (called Pyrethrum Roseum, C. coccineum or . roseum) has   flowers in shades of red, pink, lavender and white, grows one to three-foot tall and blooms from early summer to fall, making it a gorgeous garden plant. Although the plant is short-lived in some climates, it will self-sow. C. X rubellum ‘Clara Curtis’ has pink flowers on one to two foot stems in mid and late summer.

Moreover, to grow Chrysanthemum in cold climates "mums" are often treated as annuals. Though if you want to try wintering them over, dig them up in l and put them in a protected place such as a cold frame. Or try mulching them with evergreen boughs. Thus, divide them in spring or fall in warm climates discarding the centers of the clumps and replanting the side shoots. Therefore, pinch until early summer to get bushy plants and abundant fall flowers. Give   fertile soil and cut back spent flowers to encourage bloom. Fever few will tolerate light shade; the other species are sun-loving. Give all Chrysanthemum species moderately fertile, moist but well-drained soil.

 Source: Charismatic Planet

Crysanthemum Bonsai"

"Crysanthemum Bonsai"! -- Very simple and best for the first try. Chysanthemum Festival 2014 Nov at Himeji.
Hope you enjoy this bonsai.

Larkspur is Delicate and Excellent Long Lasting Cut Flower

If you love delphiniums but don’t have the patience it takes to grow them, these hardy annuals may cheer you up. Their flower spikes look like those of delphiniums, but are shorter and more delicate. Heights vary, but two feet is common. Colors are shades of blue, lavender, pink, purple, salmon and also white. Some are branched and some are upright. 12 inches dwarfs are also available. Plants have attractive fernlike foliage. The bloom period is not as long as it is for some annuals as flowers peter out before summer’s end; but larkspur makes an excellent long lasting cut flower. 

Moreover, if you want to grow Larkspur, then you need to sow seeds directly in the garden as early in spring as you can work the soil or in warm climates, in late summer to produce some growth on plants, which will bloom in early spring. In cold regions you an sow about the time of the first frost and let the seeds lie dormant in winter for early bloom. Seeds started indoors should be sown in peat pots and thinned to one plant for each pot to minimize difficulty of transplanting. Larkspur likes full sun but will take part shaded, and prefers part shade in hot zones. Plants in the garden should be at least a foot apart, in fertile, well drained soil. Keep roots cool with a light mulch, especially in hot climates. Tall plants may need staking. 

Lantana Heads are Clusters of Tiny Flowers in Shades of Red, Pink, Yellow and Orange, Sometimes all in One Cluster

Lantanas are perennials grown as half hardy annuals in most climates, or wintered over indoors. Lantana camera can grow as tall as 10 feet in very warm climates but is usually no more than three feet tall, and dwarf varieties no tall than 18 inches are very popular. Little round flower heads are clusters of tiny flowers in shades of red, pink, yellow and orange, sometimes all in one cluster. Alba is a white variety. Trailing lantana l. sellowiana is less hardy, with trailing stems and flowers that are usually combinations of lavender and yellow. 

Both are excellent container plants but are also grown in gardens, the trailing kind as a ground cover. Lantanas are warm weather plants. Sow seeds indoors in late winter because they take a long time to germinate. In warm climates sow outdoors in the garden, as several gardeners buy plants and then stem cuttings when they need new ones to bring indoors for winter display and for a source of new cuttings for the following season. Plants can also be dug up, cut back to five to six inches, and kept dormant in a frost free basement until early spring with just enough water to keep them alive but not enough to produce new growth. Source: Charismatic Planet