Sunday 4 October 2015
Saturday 8 August 2015
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
Sunday 12 July 2015
Snakeroot or Bugbane
This woodland plant, native to
the eastern United States, is not well known but really a delight to grow. Its
flowers tall fuzzy white spikes. The leaves are attractive and fernlike rather
like that of astilbe. Cimicifuga racemosa grows five to six feet tall,
sometimes even taller and flowers in mid to late summer and flowers in mid to
late summer sometimes earlier. C. simplex grows about three feet tall and
blooms in fall. Moreover both species like part shade and moist, woodsy soil,
but C. Simplex will do well in full sun. Division is not necessary but the
stems often need to be stake up to where the flower begins.
Shasta Daisy
Shasta daisy or Chrysanthemum x
superbum (C. Maximum) are always white, but can be tier single or double, tall
short. They generally bloom for a long time in summer, especially if the flower
stems are cut, and are a good white accent. “Alaska” and “Polaris” are among
the hardiest tall varieties both the single and “Marconi is a double variety.
Little Miss Muffet is a single that grows about a foot tall. Well, though to
provide rich moist, well-drained soil. IN hot climates provide light shade.
Pinching the stems in early summer will make the tall varieties bushier. Clumps
are sometimes short-lived; established ones respond well to division.
Shasta daisy or Chrysanthemum x superbum (C. Maximum) are always white, but can be tier single or double, tall short. |
Yarrow or Milfoil,
Several people are familiar with
the wild white yarrow with its flat clusters of flowers, but most garden
specimens are yellow, and some are pink or red. All have ferny leaves,
sometimes with a grayish cast. They are easy to grow and bloom for a long time
in summer. Most hybrids are varieties of Achillea millefolium or A. filipendulina,
“Moonshine” is a pale yellow with gray leaves and grows up to two feet.
“Coronation Gold” is bright yellow with greener leaves, and grows to three
feet. “Fire King” is two feet and pinkish red. “Gold Plate” is among the
tallest. A.tomentosa is a very pleasing low variety that forms a mat of whitish
leaves and has flowers less than a foot tall. It is nice in the rock garden or
at the front of the border. Yarrows are sun loving and drought resistant. Some
are rather spread and need to be divided frequently. All in fact benefit by
division every few years in fall or early spring.
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