Summer Chores For Continued Blooms

The July 4th holiday here in the US is a date on my calendar to get summer chores started in the garden.  Now is the time to ensure blooms continue on perennials and shrubs.  To do this I get out the hedge trimmers and pruners. 
Here are some of the plants I give a summer haircut.  By cutting them back now, the plants do not produce seeds.  Setting seeds indicates to the plants that the season is over.  I want the season to continue well into the coming months. 

This catmint still had blooms and the bees were active.  It was getting straggly and covering up another aster. The catmint, as any plant in the mint family, can become aggressive and spread into the garden.  I have planted this in a gallon container with the bottom removed.  The roots still have garden soil to get nutrients, but the roots are more contained and cannot spread. 

Typical of any plant in the mint family, the stem is square.  Kinda cool!



I have asters in this bed. And I have said before, that I prefer asters to mums because they are more hardy and reliable.  Mums are considered to be ‘tender perennials’ in my Zone 6 garden.  The reason I cut back the asters  by at least a third at this time is to have the plant produce more tips and become more compact.  The more tips, the more buds will be produced for the fall bloom time. 
The Moonbeam coreopsis also shown here gets a haircut too.  Trimming the spent blooms tidies up the plant and, it too, will rebloom in a very short time. 


This stingy mass is a native plant called spiderwort,  Tradescantia. I have several varieties of spiderwort.  Some have gold foliage with deep blue blooms, (Sweet Kate), and some have a pale purple bloom, or a pure white bloom, or a true blue blossom.


At this mid-summer time however, spiderwort get really leggy and blooms are spent.  Cutting them back to 6” allows for the plant to produce fresh foliage will rebloom.


Some herbs that I should have cut back sooner like this lemon thyme and lemon balm have already bloomed and unfortunately have set seed.  That will ensure an invasion of new plants where I least expect them. 


These shrubs, the ninebark and forsythia will not rebloom this season, but they can be pruned at this time with little loss of blooms for next season.  Spring blooming shrubs should be pruned just after the blossoms fade to allow the shrub to grow new stems and set buds. 
The spirea also go a sever cutback. The spent blossoms are brown and the shrub is over grown. I do expect the spirea to rebloom later in the early fall.

As you can see, the overgrown spirea were hiding lungwort and hosta. 
Now with the garden all tidy, I can smile and know that my job as caretaker is under control. 
Enjoy your summer, and with just a few chores, the garden will continue to bloom.
What reblooming plants do you enjoy in your garden?

Plant a Native Shrub

This SATURDAY, Sept 8, 2012, is National Planting Day

                                                                   

Get Growing: National Planting Day! - Get Growing: A Keep America Beautiful Initiative

September, the days are shorter, the temperatures are lower, and the rains are (suppose to be) resuming. So now is a great time for planting something new in the landscape. Native shrubs seem to be a good choice.

Ninebark – Physocarpus opulifolius

Native shrubs offer many advantages in the landscape.  They have lovely leaves, blooms, are insect resistant, disease resistant, and, once established, they need little  supplemental water, or fertilizer.

This Ninebark, called Diablo, in indigenous to the eastern parts of North America. There are other varieties that are found in the western states. This red/burgundy leafed shrub has nice white blossoms in spring, and the seed heads are deep red.



The name ninebark supposedly comes from the lovely exfoliating bark in the winter - Year round beauty.
  Ninebarks reach to 10’ tall, and as wide.  They can be used as a specimen or as a hedge.  With the dark leaves, ninebark makes a great backdrop for yellow or chartreuse plant. They are hardy in Zone 3-7.

Another native shrub that has multi-season interest is the Red Chokeberry, Aronia arbutifolia.  Hardy in Zones 4-9, the red chokeberry gets about 10’ tall, and 3’ – 5’ wide.
 


Small white blossoms in spring develop this small red fruit. As pretty as the red berries are, birds do not like the very astringent taste, so the berries last well into winter. Red Chokeberries like soil that is more acid, and take well in either wet or dry locations.

The native black chokeberry shrub differs from its red cousin.  The black chokeberry, Aronia melanocarpe, is hardy in Zone 3-8, and only reaches a height of 3’- 6’.

Fall foliage is a pretty red, and the black berries, too, are not tasty for birds.

Ilex glabra, Inkberry, is in the holly family.  The ‘ink’ comes from black fruit.

This evergreen native shrub prefers moist, acidic locations, in part sun to part shade.  To insure pollination and formation of flowers, a male and female holly need to be in close proximity to each other,  Hardy to Zone 4 – 9, the Inkberry is native to Eastern United States.

  This native shrub is the common Snowberry, Symphoricarpos albus. Soil neutrality, shade, and moist or dry locations are favored by this plant.  It can grow to 3’ – 6’.  The Snowberry is the host plant for the Vashti sphinx moth. 
Vashti sphinx moth 
Birds and small mammals use this plant as cover, nesting and food. The berries are, however, poisonous for human consumption.

The American Highbush Viburnum is also called the American Cranberrybush Viburnum.  This native is a favorite in the landscape for multi-seasonal interest.    Hardy in Zones 2-7, this viburnum prefers moist, rich soil, and partial shade.


Urban pollution and wet conditions are tolerated by this native shrub.  Birds will eat these berries and jams can be made from these tart fruits for human foods as well.

Finally, there is an evergreen native shrub that can add to the landscape.  It is the Eastern Red cedar  Juniperus virginiana.
As a member of the juniper family, not a true cedar, the red cedar is a native conifer found in most of eastern  US.  Birds help distribute these trees by eating the bluish cones.

I like the color in winter as the red cedar turns to a brownish shade.

Fall planting is ideal for these native shrubs.  The extra moisture will settle the roots into the soil before the ground freezes.  And the plant will be ready to give us it all come spring. 


Planting can continue until the ground freezes, so pick a favorite, enhance your space, and enjoy. 

What natives do you like?  I certainly didn't list them all here.

Herbaceous and Woody Perennials

Perennials - Plants That Return Year After Year

Herbaceous perennial plants are classed as such by their soft, green stems.  Typically this plant group dies back to the ground in the winter but the roots go dormant.

Woody perennial plants have a shrub structure and the woody stems remain in form in winter.  Woody perennials go dormant in winter and grow from the woody stems again in spring.

Here are a few herbaceous perennials I have in my garden. 
  White Bleeding Heart, Dicentra spectabilis

 Pulmonaria, Lungwort

Hardy Geranium, Cranesbill (unknown variety)

 

(Geranium 
“Big Root”, variety is an evergreen ground cover in my garden. This mound is still considered a hardy, herbaceous perennial.




 Dicentra eximia, “ Luxuriant “- Dwarf Bleeding Heart
.
Columbine is an herbaceous perennial.  It produces many seeds that I let fall into the garden as it is a short-lived perennial lasting only about 2-3 years.


    Iris, is yet another  herbaceous perennial that grows from rhizomes, the fleshy root section that sits near the soil surface.
   
Heuchera, 'Dolce Peach Melba'. is a semi-evergreen herbaceous perennial plant native to the United States.

 Heuchera, “Dolce Key Lime Pie”
  Heuchera, “Green Spice” This one has deep red veining and stays fresh looking all year.
 
Clematis, an herbaceous perennial, that vines upward with tendrils that cling to itself or a support.  Here I’ve used trellises and bird netting for their support.

Hosta, Variety Unknown

 
Hosta, are herbaceous plants that die to the ground each autumn. Mid-to-late March in my zone 6 garden, they start sending up their pointed heads.

Hosta, 'Great Expectations'

Astrantia, also known as Masterwort (unknown variety) was unknown to me a few years ago. This herbaceous plant is a charmer and I've seen several varieties in the catalogs. May have to expand my collection!
Fern - herbaceous

These are a few of the woody perennials I have.

Honeysuckle vine never did go dormant this past winter due to the mild temperatures. The early blooms are gorgeous, but I have yet to see the hummingbirds visit it. It’s is a favorite of the hummers due to the trumpet shaped flower.

Hydrangea Buds, “Annabelle”. This is the hydrangea we transplanted last summer when we lost the pine tree. I’m thrilled to see that they didn't stress too much from the move, and again, the mild winter probably helped.

‘Diablo’ Ninebark plants are deciduous flowering shrubs native to North America.
Nine Bark is a woody plant that has burgundy leaves and white flowers. 

Wiegilia,' Wine and Roses'(R)

  Wiegelia is a woody shrub also has the darker leaves and bright pink blossoms. 

 

Knockout Rose, 'Sunny'(R)

”
Roses are a hardy, woody plant.



Climbing Hydrangea –  a woody perennial plant.  The bark exfoliates into these really delicate looking patterns.

Exfoliating bark of Climbing Hydrangea

Japanese Maple 

Japanese Maple –  just had to show the brilliant color this spring!  It’s really doing it’s ‘happy dance’!

I hope you can get out and enjoy your Spring.  c