Horticulture magazine offers this list of perennials to dress things up a bit during drab winter months with their interesting evergreen foliage:

Cyclamen hederifolium (Zones 4–8): leaves emerge in fall and disappear in spring. In between, they form a low mat of two-tone green leaves.

Little brown jug (Asarum arifolium; Zones 5–9): silver-marked dark green leaves can be 6 inches across. Prefers damp shade.

Broadleaf toothwort (Cardamine diphylla; Zones 4–8): 3-lobed leaves are dark green with white veins on top and purplish underneath. Appears in fall and goes dormant in spring.

Evergreen ferns: try Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides; Zones 4–9); marginal shield fern (Dryopteris marginalis; Zones 3–8); autumn fern (D. erythrosora; Zones 5–8); holly fern (Cyrtomium falcatum; Zones 6–10); variegated shield fern (Arachniodes simplicior; Zones 6–9).

Rue anenome (Anemonella thalictroides; Zones 4–8): forms a low cover of bright green, delicate-looking leaves in winter.

Blue spruce sedum (Sedum rupestre; Zones 5–9): groundcover for sun or shade, with succulent needle-like leaves.

I would add hellebores to this list. And my cinnamon fern seems to do well through the winter, though I have no idea why!

Posted by Susan Reimer at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Plant Wish List
        

If you are like me, you forgot to plant for August.

Sure, I still have blooms in my garden, but most are fading fast, having been at their peak weeks ago.

At this time of year, I always regret not having planned better. (I will have the same regrets in September and October - and even January, when I realize I haven't planted for "winter interest."

I am taking the opportunity of this month's Garden Bloggers Bloom Day - a regular photographic event on the 15th of every month -- to make a plant list.

And here are some of the blogs where I am looking...

Continue reading "Garden Bloggers Bloom Day" »

Posted by Susan Reimer at 12:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Plant Wish List
        

 Photo courtesy of White Flower Farm

Just in time for the fall planting season, this list of recommended purchases comes from Connecticut's White Flower Farm.

I always get so greedy this time of year. And I regret not taking my own advice and sticking a plastic fork in the ground in the bare spots that reveal themselves in the spring.

Now I have absolutely no idea where to put new bulbs. And I really, really want these alliums.

Lemme know what you think....

* Peony ‘Moonstone’ – Peonies are rugged perennials that produce huge flowers in May to June. Heirloom ‘Moonstone’ has been a garden favorite for years. Its delicate pink, fragrant double blooms have a translucent glow, and its sturdy stems hold them up well.

*Poppy ‘Curlilocks’ – Poppies can stop traffic with their colorful blooms. Bright orange-red ‘Curlilocks’ has deeply cut and ruffled flowers marked inside with black spots. Plant poppies in the fall for gorgeous, large blooms in late spring.

*Ornamental Onions – The bright round globes of Alliums look like starbursts and add interesting shapes to your garden. White Flower Farm’s ‘Garden Globes’ Allium collection includes three colors: white ‘Mount Everest’, lavender-blue ‘Gladiator’ and purple ‘Stratos.’

*Saffron Crocus – The thread-like stigmas inside the flowers of this fall-blooming crocus are the source of culinary saffron. Plant the small corms in early fall, enjoy the lavender-colored blossoms, and collect your own saffron for cooking.

*Daffodil ‘Best Seller’ – Daffodils flowers are deer resistant and voles leave the bulbs alone. Soft yellow ‘Best Seller’ combines well with everything in a spring garden. This new trumpet variety comes from award-winning parents and is very hardy.  

*Tulip ‘Monsella’ – Double tulips have large ruffled petals and this one is bright canary yellow with red flames. Bold and beautiful, ‘Monsella’ opens wide in the sun and closes in overcast weather. It’s lightly fragrant and impressive in any garden border

*Tall Bearded Iris – Gardeners love tall bearded iris (Iris germanica) for a rainbow of color in June. Reblooming varieties are increasingly popular, such as ‘Immortality’, ‘Best Best’, and ‘Jennifer Rebecca’. Unlike their siblings, rebloomers don’t go dormant in summer, so should be fertilized and kept watered.

Posted by Susan Reimer at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Plant Wish List
        

A number of readers of my column in The Sun on Steppables have called or e-mailed to ask where they can be purchased.

These small perennials, which can tolerate foot traffic, are on sale at Homestead Gardens in Davidsonville. Buy two, get one free.

 For a garden center near you, simply go to the Steppable Web site and find the drop-down menu, click on your state and a list of garden centers will appear.

Have fun stepping, everybody.

Photo credit: Melanie McCabe/Homestead Gardens

Posted by Susan Reimer at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
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In Thursday's gardening column in The Sun, I write about Steppables, a low-growing perennial that can handle foot traffic and is good between pavers, under fences or groundcover where grass refuses to grow.

But Steppables are also perfect for miniature dish gardens, too. Their are drought tolerant and can take a beating from the sun, so that makes them ideal for a spot on the deck.

Here's a look at some ideas for Steppables from Homestead Gardens and photographer Melanie McCabe.

Continue reading "Please step on the Steppables" »

Posted by Susan Reimer at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Plant Wish List
        

In today's gardening column in The Sun, I write about creating a container garden with succulents.

The appeal of these plants goes beyond their drought tolerance. The colors, the shapes and the textures rival anything in the garden.

If you are thinking about delving into gardening with succulents, let me recommend a book by Graham Charles, Cacti and Succulents: An illustrated guide to the plants and their cultivation.

With dozens of photos, as well as step-by-step instructions on cultivation, propagation and display, the book will help you decide which plants too pursue. And gardening centers such as Valley View Farms have dozens of varieties for sale as succulents get more attention in gardening magazines.

Posted by Susan Reimer at 7:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Plant Wish List
        

 Photo credit: Melanie McCabe, Homestead Gardens

Easter lilies aren't just for Easter.

If you receive one as a gift this weekend, you can plant it in your garden, where it will keep on giving.

Here is some advice on enjoying your lily indoors, and then moving it into the garden.

As the flowers mature, remove the yellow anthers before the pollen starts to shed. This helps the flower last longer and prevents the pollen from staining the flower.

In the house, Easter lilies prefer moderately cool temperatures, between 60 and 65 degrees during the day, with cooler temperatures at night. The lily will thrive near a window in bright, indirect natural daylight, but avoid glaring, direct sunlight.

Lilies prefer moderatley moist, well-drained soil. Water the plant thoroughly when the soil surface feels dry to a light touch, but avoid over-watering.

Once the lilies have finished flowering and the last bloom has withered, you can move the plant to a sunny location outdoors after the danger of frost has passed.

Prepared a well-drained garden bed with rich, organic matter and planting mix. Raise the bed with this material so the lily has plenty of drainage.

Plant bulbs at least 12 to 18 inches apart in a hole sufficiently deep so that the roots can spread out and down. Work the prepared soil in and around the roots, leaving no air pockets.

Water immediately and thoroughly.

After the plant dies back, cut the stems back to the soil surface. New growth will soon emerge.

Easter lilies are forced to bloom in spring for the holiday, but they bloom naturally in summer and you may get a second bloom. But you will probably have to wait until next June or July for the plant to bloom again.

Lilies like their roots in shade and their heads in sun. Mulching helps, but also consider planting a "living mulch," such as a low-growing, shallow rooted annual. Perhaps violas or primulas.

The bulbs are winter hardy, but be sure to provide a generous layer of mulch in the fall, removing it in spring so new shoots can emerge.

Information courtesy of Texas A&M University.

Posted by Susan Reimer at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Plant Wish List
        

I am pretty sure my job costs me more than I earn, especially when I write about gardening. And that was certainly true this week.

Seeing all the orchids for sale in grocery stores made me wonder if they were really as tough to grow as their hot-house reputation suggests. I did some reporting, and the results are in my garden column today in The Sun.

But when I visited the orchids in Tom McBride's and Gary Krause's Little Greenhouse on Harford Road in Parkville, I was finished. I couldn't leave without one. It was like that with the daylilies, too. But that's a whole 'nother story.

This is the orchid I purchased, Phalaenopsis Goldsmith. Tom suggested it because there are still buds waiting to open. It should bloom for me for months.

It cost $30 - more than the $15 to $20 I'd have paid at Whole Foods or Home Depot. But it is very well established and has two wonderful flower spikes and large, glossy, flawless leaves.

How am I going to keep it alive? Different orchids require different growing conditions and Tom and Gary helpfully provide an instruction sheet with each purchase.

Here's what I need to do for my new orchid.

1. Provide a bright window, preferably an east window, but not hot, direct sun.
2. This orchid likes temperatures above 60 at night and between 75 and 85 during the day.
3. Tom recommended a thorough watering once week, allowing the excess water to drain out of the pot. It should never sit in water and it should be allowed to get very dry between waterings.
4. To provide humidity, set the plant on a tray of pebbles partially filled with water. Mist the plants during dry weather.
5. Tom suggested that I fertilize, using something like Miracle-Gro at half-strength, every fourth or fifth watering. Don't overdue the feeding. These are fast-growing plants, so less is more.
6. When the last flower drops, cut the flower spike halfway down the stem. Continue caring for it and wait for a possible rebloom. This orchid flowers 12 months out of the year, but cooler temperatures and some nitrogen fertilizer should help kick-start new blooms.

Wish me luck. And check back for updates.

 Photo credit: Susan Reimer

Posted by Susan Reimer at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Plant Wish List
        

The Perennial Plant Association has named Hakonechloa macra "Aureola" the 2009 perennial plant of the year, and fellow garden blogger Margaret Roach of A Way to Garden  lists it as "a plant I’d order," which is high praise, considering gardeners desire many more plants than they actually purchase.

She has also posted this wonderful picture of the grass in among ferns and hostas, and it looks very dramatic.

This long-season ornamental grass looks kind of like an Asian style liriope, as well it should. It’s common name is golden variegated Japanese forest grass.

It can be used as a ground cover or a mass planting or along the front of a border. Hardy in zones 5 to 9, it likes partial shade in hot climates like ours. It also likes moist, humus-rich, well-drained soil, but then what plant doesn’t?

The Perennial Plant Association began the plant-of-the-year program in 1990, selecting a perennial that is suitable for a wide range of climates types, is low maintenance and has multi-season interest.

By the way, the PPA will holds its symposium and trade show in St. Louis July 19-24, with lots of lectures and seminars. E-mail ppa@perennialplant.org for details.

Tell us what’s on your list of "plants I’d order." Mine is really, really long.

Photo credit: A way to garden.

Posted by Susan Reimer at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Plant Wish List