Why
do some plants come into nurseries one year and then vanish?? It often is
NOT because they are not good plants, but more often because the producer
did not allow time for people to try them and discover they were good. A good
example is Bidens, a lower mounding plant with cut verbena like foliage and
small yellow daisy like flowers that cover it for months on end . This plant
was released several years ago and was in many nurseries that year. However
since it was new and unknown, and doesn't look very impressive in pots it
did not sell all that well and was dropped by the area growers. A mistake
as it is a wonderful plant for Sacramento, standing our full hot us, blooming
from April through November (if not year round) and being basically pest free.
It's two drawbacks are : it does require trimming back once or twice a year
to keep it in bounds and it is not hardy to hard freezes. Yet all in all it
is a great plant for long season color is the Sacramento area, or even as
an annual in colder areas. Another plant that behaves similarly but is VERY
cold hardy (below zero) is Sundrops or Calylophus serrulatus. This Midwestern
native sub-shrub is 6-8 inches tall and spreads to 24 inches or more across.
It has thin more needle like foliage and yellow blooms over a long period.
Sun and drought tolerant , my attention was caught by it in one of the plantings
in Hamilton Square in the Old City Cemetery. After watching it thrive and
bloom there I decided it was a plant I should propagate and offer for sale.
On a different note is Epicactus gigantea variety robustus - this Terrestrial
Orchid is rarely seen. It reaches 30 inches tall and has spikes of unusual
flowers of a hard to describe color that I would say is maroon with a greenish
overlay. While all references I read say shade for this one, when I had it
blooming last year in a pot it was in very sunny bed, although it probably
did get some shade from the plants and shrubs around it, so I'm going to recommend
at least a few hours of morning sun. Meanwhile I'm testing it in both shade
and sun locations to see for myself where it does best. I hope you'll try
one of these three and see what you think of it. One of the joys of gardening
is no matter how long you garden or how many plants you grow, there is always
something new to try!
top
Bed And Breakfast For Garden Lovers
Imagine
staying with an English couple in the countryside of Devon or Dorset. They
have a beautifully restored cottage with thatched roof old ceiling beams,
comfy sofas and chairs, a classic English breakfast, a cat or dog or both
and a wonderful garden set off by brick walls and intriguing varieties of
perennials and roses. Sound like your cuppa tea?All this and more can be yours
by choosing the right bed and breakfast on your next trip to England, Scotland
and a few other places, such as France. And to help you make that choice there
is a terrific brochure available listing bed and breakfast establishments
which cater to garden lovers. Send a self addressed #10 envelope, with three
international reply-paid coupons (available from any post office) to the following
address: BBCL, Handywater Farm, Sibford Cower, Banbury, 11 Oxfordshire OX15
5AE. I recently took a trip to southwestern England and used the brochure
as my guide for lodgings. Every B & B we choose from the listings, three
in all, were wonderful experiences. The rooms were beautifully decorated,
there was a choice at most , B&B's of en suite bathrooms, breakfasts were
generous and tasty, the owners were extremely knowledgeable about plants and
gardens to visit, and the prices were very reasonable. Perhaps the best part
of my experience, however, was meeting people who loved what they were doing.
Our hosts obviously enjoyed having guests, and were eager to share their knowledge
of the surrounding area and its gardens. I can't recommend this guide too
highly. On my next trip to England it will be my bible. Perhaps it will be
yours, too!
top
The
perennial floral extravaganza begins to fade after Memorial day, as increasingly
hot temperatures inhibit flower initiation in perennials originating from
temperate climates. To continue the color show into summer, one must turn
to the tender perennials of tropical origin. One of my favorites in this classification
is the canna. The bright orchid-like flowers, bold broad leaves and tall stature
of the plants, as well as their ease of culture have found them multiple places
in my garden. The last several years has seen a virtual explosion in improvements
in this familiar summer standby. Leaf color, once limited to solid green or
bronze, can now be seen as striped with cream, yellow or pink, or covered
by large patches of cream, yellow or bronze alternating with green. Pink leaves
and even leaves so dark as to appear black are available. Flowers, limited
once to red, yellow and orange, are found in delicate peach, and even creamy
white. Hybridization of the common C. indica with the less common C. iridiflora
has resulted in flower spikes that are more slender with smaller flowers,
the whole inflorescence resembling a shell ginger, which make lovely additions
to the flower vase. A few cultivars you might want to consider for your own
garden are: "Australia" which has leaves so dark purple and thick,
and a sheen so glossy, you'd swear this plant is created out of plastic vinyl.
The flowers are red, the plant a respectable five feet. I have it consorting
with red-leafed castor beans, where it looks right at home. "Stuttgart"
a rapid spreader and very tall, the remarkable leaves are splashed with large
cream patches, causing instant plant lust in variegated foliage lovers. The
ginger-like peach flowers are icing on the cake. this requires careful siting,
since the white patches will burn if exposed to hot afternoon sun. "Tropicana"
aka "Phaison" burst upon the plant world three years ago, and is
one of those plants you either love or hate, since it is incredibly gaudy.
A sport of "Wyoming" it has that cultivar's vigor and neon orange
flowers, but the real attention getter is the green foliage, striped heavily
with dark pink, fading to pale pink on the older leaves. This is not a plant
that can be ignored. I find it perfect in my burgundy and apricot flowered
bed, where it complements a purple Cotinus and the apricot rose "Just
Joey" to perfection. "Bengal Tiger" aka "Pretoria"is
the current darling of the plant connoisseurs, the yellow striped leaves and
orange flowers make it a perfect choice in yellow borders. Mine grow alongside
perennial sunflowers, behind Hakonechloa macro aureola and have Salvia "Indigo
Spires" weaving through the clump. For pictures (and sources) of the
above, and many more unusual cultivars, check out Plant Delights nursery's
web site PLANTDELIGHTS
or phone for a catalog (919) 772-4794
top
I first
encountered plants grown by Annie's Annuals while shopping at East Bay nurseries.
Sturdy plants in four inch pots caught my eye due to the unusualness of the
species and varieties offered. Annuals so rare that I had never seen them
outside of a Thomson and Morgan or Chilterns catalog were tantalizingly offered
for sale at reasonable prices. I bought lots and came back for more, after
seeing how lustily they grew once transplanted out. Not having a retail license,
I couldn't obtain plants directly from the company but I talked a nursery
owner into letting me see their ordering list, and was amazed at how many
different plants Annie's was offering for sale. Unfortunately the nurseries
were conservative in their plant selection, and many enticing things weren't
available. I rejoiced when I finally heard thru the grapevine, that Annie
(yes there really IS an Annie who runs the business) had relented due to the
pressure brought upon her by all the plant people in the area, and was allowing
retail sales on selected weekends at her growing site in Richmond. I showed
up, checkbook in hand, and splashed up and down soggy aisles in pursuit of
the rare and unusual. I, with great satisfaction, filled the trunk with goodies,
and life was good. Annie lost her lease at her original site last fall, and
has since found better accommodations for the business elsewhere in Richmond,
and has decided to stay open every weekend in May and June this year, from
ten to four. She has branched out from annuals and now offers good selection
of unusual hardy and tender perennials as well. About an hour from Davis,
I plan to spend quite a bit of time here over the next few free weekends!
Annie has a great website that has many pictures of her wonderful stock and
detailed directions to the nursery Annie's
Annuals Hint -she is the only local source I know of for that
amazing new Nicotiana mutabilis that has taken the Pacific Northwest by storm,
and I find it grows well here in the valley- be sure to get one when you go
picture
top
Praiseworthy Nursery- Desert to Jungle
I rarely travel south to the concrete jungle of Los Angeles, but if I find myself there with a car, I always try to stop at Desert to Jungle Nursery in Montebello. Owned by Gary Hammer and run by Del Pace, this nursery is renown for selling cutting edge, unusual plants. While a majority of the plants are of borderline hardiness in the Sacramento area, there are still lots of things to bring home to try (besides, since when has hardiness had much stopping power for a dedicated plant enthusiast!) Nursery stock includes bananas, gingers, brugmansias, caesalpias, cassias, colocasias, salvias, euphorbias, plumerias, etc. There are many South African, South and Central American and Australian species. Almost all the plants are one gallon size. One other good thing about this nursery is their prices are unbelievably cheap, I usually pack the trunk of my car full for less than a hundred dollars (my one gallon plumeria was eight dollars). The nursery is open Wednesday thru Sunday from 10 to 4. For an easy way to get there, take highway five over the grapevine, and take the highway 210 split off to Pasadena. Get off at the Rosemead exit in Pasadena and go south a couple of miles to Beverley. Turn right on Beverley and go a couple of miles, the nursery is at 3211 West Beverley, on the left side of the street. There is easy parking on the street in front of the nursery. The phone number is (323)890-2776. By the way, you’ll be passing fairly close to Huntington Gardens while in Pasadena, you might consider a stop there as well if you have the time, it's well worth visiting to see the succulent and cactus gardens.
Here's a picture of Del outside the nursery. She is a virtual encyclopedia
of information about the rarest of plants.
top
Treasures
of the winter garden
In this season on the
January side of the winter solstice, our gardens take on a different look.
The autumn colors are gone. The birds and squirrels have taken the pyracantha
and dogwood and hawthorn berries. Deciduous plants, with a few exceptions
like the pin oak, have bared their limbs to reveal the bones of their structure.
Those with red bark, like the ‘Sango Kaku’ Japanese maple and
the red twig dogwood add drama to the changed scene. The beauty of evergreens,
like mugo pine and holly and rhododendron, move closer to center stage. Some
citrus still display fruit like Christmas tree ornaments. Early blooming sasanqua
camellia and daphne and plants from the Southern Hemisphere are blooming.
Early crocuses are out of the ground and soon will be in color. Not lush as
spring or colorful as summer or full of the maturity as autumn, this in-between
season, nevertheless, has its own sparse beauty that reminds us of the riot
of growth and blossom around the corner with spring. Peggy Kennedy
top
