Garden Gate No. 43

Transcription

Garden Gate No. 43

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A PUBLICATION OF AUGUST HOME PUBLISHING CO.
SPECIAL PROJECT: 4 Easy Steps to a Rustic Stone Wall Page 34
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February 2002 — Issue N o 43
www.GardenGateMagazine.com
GARDEN GATE TESTED:
2002’s
Best
New
Plants!
Page 8
PLUS:
• The Secrets to NO-FAIL BEGONIAS
• Southern Belles Move North:
MAGNOLIAS You Can
Grow ANYWHERE
• STEP-BY-STEP Raspberry Trellis
Page 22
Page 30
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Contents
February 2002
ISSUE No. 43
Features
MAVIS AUGUSTINE TORKE
PLANT PROFILE
Class of 2002 . . . . . . . .8
We tested dozens of new plants
and now present to you this
year’s best and brightest.
Begonias . . . . . . . . . . . .14
With a little care, their brilliant
blooms come back more magnificent each year.
Editor’s Note
Magnolias . . . . . . . . . .22
I
f you’ve been subscribing to Garden Gate for a while, you
may notice a few changes in the way it looks beginning with
this issue. Don’t worry — the information you’ve become
accustomed to is still here. We’re just making it easier to use.
Let me tell you about a couple of the changes:
First, we three-hole-punched the magazine. Many of you
told us that you wished there were an easy way to store
back issues. Well, that wish came true! Now you can tidy
up your stack of magazines and save every issue in a threering binder for reference.
Second, if you found yourself tipping the magazine back
and forth to minimize the glare, you’ll enjoy our new paper. Its
matte finish makes it easier for you to read the stories and see
the photographs and illustrations.
We’re always looking for ways to make Garden Gate
more useful to you. This is why we’re looking to establish a
Web advisory board comprised of 700 passionate Garden
Gate readers. Over the next year, we’ll contact you with questions concerning the magazine, story ideas and the garden
industry. If you’d like to have an impact on the future of
Garden Gate (and possibly win some nice prizes), please visit
www.GardenGateMagazine.com/advisors/, fill out the signup
form and we’ll add you to our list. The only stipulation is that
you have access to the internet and e-mail. Thanks in advance
for your help!
These classic beauties add fragrance and elegance to your garden whether you live in the
South or the North.
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2
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
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G A R D E N G AT E
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®
®
The Illustrated Guide to
Home Gardening and Design®
Editor
Steven M. Nordmeyer
Managing Editor
Kristin Beane Sullivan
22
Associate Editors
Jim Childs
Anne Nieland
Glen O. Seibert
Departments
PLANTS IN COMMON
Variegated Foliage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
Most plants have a variegated cousin — we’ll
introduce you to a few at this colorful reunion.
EDIBLE GARDEN
Raspberries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Want to know how to grow the best raspberries?
Here are a few tips to help you enjoy the “fruits”
of your labors.
Tips & Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
From the Test Garden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Senior Graphic Designers
Deborah Gruca
Monte Hammond
Illustrator
Carlie Hamilton
Staff Photographer
What’s New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
David C. McClure
Questions & Answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
Sherri Ribbey
Details: Creating garden microclimates
with walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
Editor’s Choice: ‘Annabel’ lilac . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43
Finishing Touches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44
Editorial Assistant
Corporate Gardener
Marcia Leeper
Prepress Image Specialist
Minniette Johnson
Contributing Illustrator
Tom Rosborough
BASICS
Garden Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
These beneficial creatures may not be pretty, but
they’re hard-working — meet some bugs only a
gardener could love.
DESIGN
Garden Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Walls do more than just keep people out — find
out how to use them in your garden. Then build
a dry-stacked wall of your own.
32
Cover photo: David C. McClure. Love & Peace hybrid tea rose is
an All-America Rose Selections 2002 Winner.
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26
Publisher
Donald B. Peschke
CORPORATE:
Corporate Vice Presidents: Mary R. Scheve, Douglas L.
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34
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G A R D E N G AT E
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Tips&Techniques
Share your tips
If you have a unique way of doing something in your garden, we’d like
to hear from you and consider publishing your tip in one or more of
our works. Just write down your tip and mail it to Garden Gate Tips,
2200 Grand Ave., Des Moines, IA 50312. Please include your name,
address and daytime phone number in case we have any questions. If
you’d like, fax us at 515-283-2003 or send us an e-mail message at
[email protected]. We’ll pay you $25 if we publish your tip.
Dust control
New Jersey’s Mary Kohn liked to use diatomaceous
earth along the foundation of her house to keep crickets and other bugs outside. However, she didn’t like the
way it either lumped together when it was moist or
blew into her face when it was dry. But she didn’t want
to buy one of those expensive electric applicators.
Then Mary remembered how her mother used to
sift flour and powdered sugar when she would bake.
So Mary got a large, fine-mesh sifter and marked it
“for gardening only.” Now she scoops a bit of
diatomaceous earth into the gadget and gently sifts
along the areas she wants insect-proofed.
The screen breaks up the lumps and gives her good
control of the dusty powder. She can lay down a line
against pests and not end up wearing most of the
irritating dust herself.
Diatomaceous earth is very abrasive and could cause
lung, eye and throat irritation. So even when using
Mary’s tip, be sure to wear a dust mask and eye protection when applying the product around your home. ®
Leaf puree
Balcony bird feeding
Sandhya Anie Job of Texas
was having problems with
her portable bird feeder: It
was on the balcony of her
third-floor apartment and
the birds were flinging corn
and millet everywhere. The
mess bothered the downstairs neighbors.
The answer was to catch
the seeds before they fell off
the patio. Sandhya bought a
26-inch utility pan from the
local discount store. A
round fountain basin would
work just as well.
She drilled a hole for the
feeder’s support pole in the
center of the pan. Then she
slipped the pole through the
hole and applied caulking to
make it water tight. The big
basin keeps the seed from
raining down on the neighbors or their gardens.
Sandhya fills the pan with
pots of colorful plants. When
she’s watering, the pan
catches the drainage, too. ®
Monitoring the garden
Betty Farsht of Maryland has come up with a great
way to bring the sounds of her garden indoors. She
uses a wireless, electronic baby monitor.
She puts the transmitter near a birdbath or some
other location where animals are sure to congregate.
The machine is camouflaged under an overturned
flower pot, which also protects it from the rain.
Betty takes her receiver from room to room as she
works and enjoys the sounds of nature all day long. ®
4
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
There are several large
maple trees on Malcolm
Stevenson’s Michigan property, and they produce a lot
of leaf litter. So Malcolm
lines a 32-gallon, metal trash
can with an extra-strength
trash bag and fills it with
dry leaves (but not
sticks or branches).
Then he uses his
string trimmer to
shred them.
He holds the
trimmer vertically,
with the cutting
head pointing
down and the
cutter strings
pointing in. He
keeps the plastic
string guard
pressed against the
inside of the can.
This prevents the
whirling string
from tearing the
garbage bag.
Malcolm says he stirs
the trimmer in the mass of
leaves just like he was
using one of those fancy
gourmet puree machines.
In just a minute the bulky
leaves are shredded into
small pieces that break
down easily and quickly in
the compost pile. ®
Always wear eye
protection, ear
plugs and gloves
Dry, crispy
leaves ready
for shredding
G A R D E N G AT E
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QUICK TIP
5/ -in. acorn nut
16
1/ -in. washer
2
5/ -in. stove bolt,
16
Tractor tool tote
Mike Phillips loves working
in his Oregon garden. He
even got a lawn tractor so he
could take care of the
acreage in style. But, unfortunately, with the bumps
and vibrations that came
from sitting on the tractor,
he found he dropped tools
out of his pockets when he
was driving. He was concerned they could fall under
the mower blades when he
was cutting the grass and
damage the blades or fly out
and hit someone.
His solution? Make tool
totes and attach them right to
the tractor.
Mike found a couple of
the big nylon baskets used to
wash silverware in industrial
dishwashers. He bought his
from the cafeteria where he
works. But you can also get
•
•
•
•
Fender
1 in. long
used ones from restaurants,
schools or hospitals. You’ll
find new ones at restaurant
supply houses. The big,
tough cups have holes in
them to let water drain
through, and the material is
practically indestructible.
He drilled a 3/8-inch hole
in the tops of the tractor’s
fenders and in the bottoms of
the nylon baskets. He threaded 5/16-inch stove bolt
through each fender and into
a basket. A ½-inch galvanized washer squeezed the
nylon basket onto the fender
and kept the assembly tight.
Mike used a round safety
“acorn nut” to cover the
sharp end of the bolt.
Now he can carry hand
trowels, weeders and pruning
shears without having them
drop out of his pockets. ®
GROW CYCLE
Alabama’s Joe Steinwinder gets double duty out
of his clothes dryer. Besides drying
clothes, it’s a source of bottom
heat to warm the soil in his seedstarting trays.
He puts a towel on the
machine to even out the heat
going to the soil. After a couple of loads, Joe puts a transparent
dome on the tray, creating a miniature greenhouse that traps the
soil’s heat until the next dryer load.
Joe uses this free bottom heat to germinate broccoli, peppers
and tomatoes. But he says to steer clear of warming the soil for
lettuce, peas and radishes. These cool-season vegetables start
better in cool soil. ®
For the gardener who has everything
Sharon Dell of California wanted to get a gardening
friend a birthday gift she’d use. But the friend seemed to
already have every garden tool and gadget there was.
Finally, Sharon hit upon something every garden
needs: a soil test. She’d never known her friend to
have had one done.
Sharon contacted her county extension office for the
name of a soil-testing lab in the area. She had the lab
send instructions for preparing soil samples for testing
and presented the whole “kit” to her friend. She even
helped with gathering the samples for mailing to the lab.
The friend loved the idea and wondered why she’d
put off getting a test for so long. ®
Simple mood lighting
Elizabeth Bain of New Jersey loves the light that
comes from candles in her garden. But after pricing
candleholders, she got to thinking: Why spend a lot of
money on something that’s only used at night, when
you can’t see it?
Now she gets the same soft, romantic glow by
putting votive candles in small, glass jars placed all
over her landscape.
Elizabeth puts a drop of melted wax in each jar to
hold the candle securely and another drop of wax on
the jar’s outside bottom. She simply presses the jar
onto a surface wherever she wants a light. One of her
favorite places is along the railing of the patio. The
flickering candles outline the shape of the space in a
soft glow and make it a little safer in the dark, too. ®
Copper
amaryllis
support
For years, Grant Carter of
Iowa used wooden dowels to
support his potted amaryllis.
Now he’s designed a brace
that keeps the plants upright
and looks great, too.
G A R D E N G AT E
Grant starts with ¼-inch
copper tubing — the kind
you hook up ice makers
with. Using a pipe cutter to
keep from crimping the
metal, he cuts 36 inches of
the tubing.
Next, he forms the soft
tubing into a circle just a bit
larger than the inside of the
pot. It makes a hoop that fits
tightly under the pot’s inner
rim and holds the support in
place. Then he coils the rest
of the tubing into a loose
spiral and attaches a decorative bead on the rough end.
Grant plants the amaryllis, installs the support and,
as the bloom stalks grow,
he gently adjusts them to
stay inside the spiral. When
his amaryllis blooms, the
copper coil has the stems
surrounded and the heavy
flowers supported. ®
5
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From the Test Garden
PEST PROFILE
Geranium bacterial
leaf spot
Xanthomonias pelargonii
Identification — Ever have
geraniums (Pelargonium spp.)
look great one day and brown
and wilted the next? If so,
they may have bacterial leaf
spot. This disease can stay
hidden in soil and in healthy
looking plants. Then, when
conditions are just right, it can
spread rapidly.
Three symptoms identify the
problem. The first is yellowhaloed lesions about 1/16 in. in
diameter with a brown liquid
in them. These lesions eventually turn hard and dry. Then
individual leaves wilt and die,
but can remain attached to the
stem for several weeks.
A second symptom is “V”shaped lesions between the
leaf veins. The leaf eventually
wilts and dies, but the leaf
stem remains firm and
attached to the plant.
Third is stem rot. Stems
become progressively black
and, when cut open, ooze a yellow fluid. Symptoms usually
develop only when the weather
is still, moist and warm.
Control — Prevention is the
best policy. Space plants to
improve air circulation, and
destroy all infected plants
immediately.
Don’t overhead water — the
infection can be splashed in
water drops. When taking cuttings, sterilize all your tools in
a 10-percent bleach solution. ®
6
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
Hypertufa
landscaping
stones
Two things keep most folks
from using stone in their
landscaping: The heavy
weight and the heavy price.
But there’s a way to have
the beauty of stones in your
garden with none of the
strain. Make some yourself
using a lightweight artificial
stone called hypertufa.
Here’s how.
Create the form — Decide
how tall and what diameter
the stone will be. Then,
wearing leather gloves, cut a
piece of hardware cloth three
times as long as its diameter
and twice as wide as the
stone’s height. (A rock 12
inches in diameter and 8
inches tall will take a piece of
screen about 36 inches long
and 16 inches wide.)
Start a small crimp in one
end and roll the hardware
cloth into a tube (see illustration 1). Secure it with a twist
of 20-gauge galvanized wire.
Roll
hardware
cloth
into a
tube
1
Then make a larger crimp
on one edge of the tube for
the bottom of the rock. See
illustration 2.
Shape
and fold
2
On the uncrimped edge of
the tube, use metal snips to
make four cuts. Each cut
should extend from the edge
to about halfway down the
side. Fold these cut sections
Cut four
3
flaps and
fold in
in like flaps as in illustration
3. This will make the top
surface of the stone.
Now shape the frame
until it resembles the random, uneven form of a
rough stone.
Next, line the form with
overlapping layers of packing
tape, as shown in illustration
4. This keeps the hypertufa
mix from falling through the
holes in the screen.
4
Line the
inside of
the form
with tape
Mix the hypertufa — Mix
equal parts by volume of
Portland cement, fine-milled
sphagnum peat moss and
perlite. (A 12-inch diameter
rock will take a 1-pound
coffee can full of each dry
ingredient.) Then slowly add
water until the mixture has
the consistency of brown
sugar — moist and sticky,
not soupy. A thin, watery
mixture will crumble and
fall off the frame when it
dries. If your mix ends up
too wet, add more Portland
cement, not more sphagnum
peat moss or perlite.
Make the stone —
Wearing rubber gloves, press
handfuls of the hypertufa
G A R D E N G AT E
mix onto all the outer surfaces of the frame as in illustration 5. Add layers until
the screen is completely covered with about 1/2 inch of
the hypertufa.
5
Apply hypertufa
to all outside
surfaces
Wrap the stone in plastic
sheeting and let it cure 24
hours. Then remove it and
start scratching horizontal
lines into the rock with a
steel-wire brush. These
grooves in its surface give
the rock a more realistic,
stonelike appearance. If you
remove too much, just press
a little more hypertufa over
the “bald spot,” let it harden
a bit and start the texturing
process again.
When the stone has the
right look, rewrap it in plastic, let it cure for a week and
it’s ready for the garden. ®
MATERIALS AND TOOLS
Materials:
¼-inch hardware cloth
20-gauge galvanized wire
Portland cement
Milled sphagnum peat moss
Perlite
Water
Fiberglass packing tape
Plastic sheeting
Tools:
Container to mix in, leather
gloves, rubber gloves,
metal snips, steel-wire brush
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What’s New
1
“The Ultimate Flower Arranging Book” This book is for anyone who
1
likes to bring a little bit of nature inside (even if you only look at the pictures).
There are a multitude of ideas for using both fresh and dried flowers in
arrangements to beautify your home. It starts with design principles, such as
color, shape and texture, then moves on to the tools you need and covers techniques to prepare your flowers for arranging. The rest of the book builds on
this foundation, showing you how to make arrangements using a wide variety
of plants and materials. And its photos will inspire you to create your own
designs. Check your local retail or online bookstore for “The Ultimate Flower
Arranging Book” by Judy Spours. It retails for $24.95. ®
2
2
A cleaner pond, naturally Using barley straw is a great
way to keep your water garden free of some types of algae
while ensuring the safety of fish, pets and aquatic plants.
The Barley Ball from Gardener’s Supply Co. makes using
this organic method easier than ever. It’s a vented plastic
ball filled with barley and a special float that’s seeded with
natural micro-organisms to inhibit algae bloom. The ball
keeps the barley floating just below the surface, where it’s
most effective. Use one ball if your pond holds 260 to 2,600 gallons. If it’s bigger, just add another. In the fall, remove it from your pond
and discard the used barley. Store the ball until spring, when you can put in a
refill and look forward to another year with a clean pond. The Barley Ball is
available from Gardener’s Supply Co. at www.gardeners.com or by calling 800-9553370. It retails for $29.95, and refills are $19.95. ®
3
3 Deck-O-Torch While most torches are relegated to the lawn or garden,
here’s one you can bring right onto the deck. The Deck-O-Torch is secured
with an adjustable clamp designed specifically for deck railings. Attach it to
your railing and enjoy the flickering light while you relax on your deck. It’s all
metal and has a protective finish that’s weather-resistant so it can stay outside
all year without rusting. For safety’s sake, remember to keep it clear of any
combustible materials. It’s easy to fill — just unscrew the top, pour the torch
fuel into the canister and replace the lid. Since it’s refillable, you’ll keep the
lights burning for years to come. Get the Deck-O-Torch for $24.95 from Duncraft
at www.duncraft.com or call 800-593-5656. Torch fuel is not included. ®
4 Greenhouse to go Owning a greenhouse is only
a dream for many gardeners because of cost or complicated setup. The dream can come true with the
GabelHaus, a portable greenhouse. It goes
together a lot like a tent, and two of us put
this one up in about an hour. The heavy-duty
fabric has reinforced corners and UV protection. At 6 feet wide, 10 feet long and 8 feet
tall at the center, you could start enough
seeds to fill a botanical garden. The
GabelHaus retails for $299 from ACF
Greenhouses. Go to www.littlegreenhouse. com
or call 888-888-9050 to order. Ask for the
4
Portable Gable Greenhouse. ®
What’s New items
If you have a new item for the garden, we’d like to hear from you! Mail your information to Garden Gate
What’s New, 2200 Grand Ave., Des Moines, IA 50312. Fax us at 515-283-2003 or send us an e-mail at
[email protected].
G A R D E N G AT E
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C O V E R S TO RY: P L A N T P RO F I L E
Love & Peace is a
trouble-free rose,
resisting blackspot
and insects well.
Class
of 2002
1
These new plants passed our tests with flying colors.
W
ell, another year is here,
and that means new plants!
But how do you know if a
new variety is right for your
garden? To help you, we tried out dozens
of these plants in our test garden last year.
After rigorous testing, some of them
moved to the head of the class. Meet the
best of the class of 2002:
Shrubs, perennials and vines
Love & PeaceTM rose — A hybrid tea
rose, Love & Peace (‘BAIpeace’) is good
for cutting because it has long stems and
a fruity scent. It’s also a 2002 All-America
Rose Selections winner.
It thrives in full sun and well-drained
soil. Feed it and keep it well-watered and
this rose will produce beautiful blooms,
like the one in photo 1, beginning in early
summer. In our test garden, Love & Peace
kept clean foliage until frost and resisted
blackspot well. It grows 4 feet tall and 3 feet
wide and is cold-hardy in USDA zones 4 to
9 and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 12 to 1.
You’ll find Love & Peace at local
garden centers. Introducer: Bailey Nurseries, Inc.
8
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
2
{ Sweet Diana miniature rose grows about 18 in.
tall and works well at the front of a garden border
or in a container.
Sweet DianaTM miniature rose — We’ve
been testing Sweet Diana (‘SAVadiana’) for
a few years now, and it’s been beautiful
and healthy through all sorts of conditions. The folks at the American Rose
Society must agree because they’re giving
this miniature rose their Award of Excellence for 2002.
Sweet Diana grows about 18 inches tall
and produces loads of little yellow blooms
from late spring to midfall. These blooms
G A R D E N G AT E
hold the yellow color in photo 2 well as
they age, and they make good cut or dried
flowers. This miniature rose might look
dainty, but it acts tough: Sweet Diana is
cold-hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9 and
heat-tolerant in AHS zones 12 to 1.
You can order Sweet Diana from
Nor’East Miniature Roses at 978-9487964 or www.noreast-miniroses.com. Introducer: Nor’East Miniature Roses.
‘Blue Waterfall’ Serbian bellflower —
What sets ‘Blue Waterfall’ apart from
other Serbian bellflowers? The plant
in photo 3 is still young, but as the
growing season progresses, stems full of
flowers cascade out from the foliage. It
tends to bloom more profusely and tolerates heat and drought better than its relatives, too.
‘Blue Waterfall’ grows about 10 inches
tall and 24 inches wide. This perennial
does best in full sun or part shade. It will
tolerate dry soil, but does better in moist,
well-drained soil. ‘Blue Waterfall’ is coldhardy in USDA zones 4 to 7 and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 7 to 1.
Look for ‘Blue Waterfall’ in your local
garden center. To find your nearest Blooms
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of Bressingham retailer, visit www.
bobna.com on the Web. Introducer:
Blooms of Bressingham North America.
‘Sea Foam’ foamflower — Look at
photo 4. You can barely see the foliage
of ‘Sea Foam’ because its flowers are
so full. But after the blooms fade in
a few weeks, its leaves, with dark
splashes along the midribs, are revealed.
These leaves often turn bronze in
the winter, too.
‘Sea Foam’ will grow about a foot
tall and wide. Like all foamflowers, it
blooms in spring and does best in shade
to part shade. It’s cold-hardy in USDA
zones 4 to 9 and heat-tolerant in AHS
zones 9 to 1.
Ask for ‘Sea Foam’ foamflower at your
local garden center. Introducer: Terra
Nova Nurseries.
‘Sweet Dreams’ pink tickseed —
Instead of the traditional yellow tickseed flowers, ‘Sweet Dreams’ has
large, white blooms changing to raspberry toward the center. You can see an
example in photo 5. Its foliage is fine-textured and its habit loose, like that of
threadleaf tickseed.
If you’d like ‘Sweet Dreams’ to
rebloom, shear its foliage back by about
half after each flush of blooms, beginning
in early summer. Plants grow 18 inches
tall and 24 inches wide. ‘Sweet Dreams’
thrives in full sun and is cold-hardy in
To grow a trumpet vine, Names to know
give it plenty of room and
Your guide to the
a sturdy structure. It can common and botanical
grow 40 feet tall and has names of plants on
roots that can spread these pages
aggressively, too.
Foamflower Tiarella spp.
Plant trumpet vine in Geranium
full sun — it’s not too picky Geranium sessiliflorum
about soil, accepting even Miniature rose Rosa spp.
tickseed
alkaline and dry spots. It’s Pink
Coreopsis rosea
cold-hardy in USDA zones Rose Rosa spp.
4 to 9 and heat-tolerant in Serbian bellflower
Campanula
AHS zones 9 to 1.
Look for Balboa Sunset poscharskyana
Threadleaf tickseed
at local garden centers. Coreopsis verticillata
Introducer: Monrovia.
Trumpet vine
‘Black Satin’ geranium Campsis radicans
— Need some rich contrast in your containers?
How about a good-looking ground cover
that won’t take over your rock garden?
Try ‘Black Satin’ perennial geranium. It
has dark-burgundy foliage and dainty,
pink flowers.
The foliage of ‘Black Satin’, which you
can see in photo 7, grows 10 inches tall
and 16 inches wide. In flower, the plant
is about 2 feet tall. It does best in sun to
part shade and well-drained soil. ‘Black
Satin’ is cold-hardy in USDA zones 7 to 9
and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
Look for ‘Black Satin’ geranium at
your local garden center. Introducer: Terra
Nova Nurseries.
3
{ ‘Blue Waterfall’ Serbian bellflower will
bloom in summer and again in fall.
USDA zones 4 to 9 and heat-tolerant in
AHS zones 12 to 1.
COURTESY TERRA NOVA
COURTESY MONROVIA
You may have seen this plant in one of
the few garden centers who carried it
last summer. In 2002 it’s more widely
available. You can also order it from
Plant Delights at 919-772-4792 or www.
plantdelights.com. Introducer: Blooms
of Bressingham North America.
Balboa SunsetTM trumpet vine — If
you like trumpet vine, now you can have
the deep-red flowers in photo 6 in addition to its usual orange. Balboa Sunset’s
(‘Monbal’) large blooms keep coming
from late spring through autumn.
5
6
COURTESY TERRA NOVA
{ ‘Sweet Dreams’ pink tickseed will rebloom if
you shear it back by half after each flush of flowers.
{ Balboa Sunset trumpet vine’s deep-red
flowers attract loads of hummingbirds.
7
< ‘Black Satin’
geranium has some
of the darkest
foliage you’ll
find among perennial geraniums.
4
{ ‘Sea Foam’ foamflower produces lots of
blooms. They make charming, long-lasting bouquets in spring.
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Annuals
The annuals on these pages should be
available as seeds or container plants at
your local garden center. I’ve also given
you a mail-order source, if there is one,
of seeds or plants with each profile.
Fireworks Series geranium — It’s difficult to describe this unique plant, but
each petal is angular, and the foliage is
puckered. You can see what I’m talking
about in photo 8.
In 2002, you’ll be able to buy Fireworks geraniums in three colors: Cherry
Bicolor, Pink Bicolor and Scarlet. We grew
all three last summer.
The care and culture requirements for
the Fireworks Series are similar to those
of most other geraniums. Grow them in
full sun, give them plenty of water and
deadhead from time to time. Fertilize every
couple of weeks with a balanced, watersoluble fertilizer. Fireworks is heat-tolerant in AHS zones 12 to 1.
The Fireworks Series is a geranium
grown from cuttings; you won’t be able to
buy seeds. But you should be able to find
cutting-grown plants at a local garden
center. Introducer: Oglevee.
‘Leilani’ flossflower — In recent years,
most of the flossflowers you’ll find at
the garden center are little mounds only
a few inches tall. ‘Leilani ’ hearkens back
to an earlier day. It’s supposed to grow 14
to 16 inches tall, but ours grew even
taller than that, approaching 20 inches.
Its true-blue flowers and butterflyattracting powers make it a great garden
plant. ‘Leilani’ is perfect for containers,
but be sure you choose a large one,
such as the 24-inch pot in photo 9.
Otherwise, you may not have enough
room for this plant.
One nice thing about flossflowers is
you don’t have to deadhead. Their
flowers fade gracefully and don’t detract
from the plant as they age. The flipside
is the seeds mature on the plant and tend
to drop off and sprout on the surrounding soil.
Grow ‘Leilani’ in full sun. If you’ve
had trouble with flossflowers fading in
the heat before, try ‘Leilani’ — it’s heattolerant in AHS zones 12 to 1.
Order ‘Leilani’ seeds from Park Seed
Co. at 800-845-3369 or www.parkseed.
com. Introducer: Goldsmith Seeds.
Nautica Series nolana — A trailing
blue flower can be difficult to find. But
Nautica fills that order beautifully. And
you can choose from ‘Nautica Dark Blue’
or ‘Nautica Light Blue’. With dark-green
foliage and blue flowers that look similar
to small petunias, Nautica looks terrific
trailing over the edge of a pot or left to
ramble on the ground. We used ours in
containers, as you can see in photo 10.
Although nolana does best in full sun,
Nautica did well for us whether we put
it in sun or light shade. It’ll perform best
in fertile soil, growing to about 2 feet
wide and 6 inches tall. Heat tolerance is
untested, but in the Deep South, Nautica
will bloom even in winter.
Look for Nautica nolanas at your
local garden center either as single
plants or in mixed containers. Introducer:
Ball FloraPlant.
‘Cherokee Sunset’ gloriosa daisy —
Looking for a beautiful mix of rich
autumn colors? Try ‘Cherokee Sunset’.
This hardy annual in photo 11 is a twist
on the traditional gloriosa daisy. The AllAmerica Selections-winning mix has red,
bronze, orange and gold flowers and both
double and semidouble blooms. Plants
grow 2 to 2½ feet tall and will bloom
from midsummer until frost. They’re prolific bloomers, so this makes them good
candidates for cut flowers. Harvest some
now and you’ll have plenty more later
because this annual reblooms well.
We had a high germination rate with
our seeds, and they transplanted easily.
Gloriosa daisies need full sun to bloom,
but they’re not picky about soil. In fact,
they generally prefer it on the lean side.
‘Cherokee Sunset’ is heat-tolerant in AHS
zones 7 to 1.
You can order ‘Cherokee Sunset’ seeds
from Thompson & Morgan at 800-2747333 or www.thompsonmorgan.com.
Introducer: Thompson & Morgan.
8
9
10
{ Fireworks geraniums flower prolifically. ‘Fireworks Pink Bicolor’
grew 18 to 24 in. tall at the back of this container.
{ ‘Leilani’ flossflower
grows taller than its cousins, so it makes a good
specimen in a container or in a garden border
{ Nautica nolanas
have a sprawling habit that works well as
a trailing plant.
10
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‘Black Magic Rose’ geranium —
Take a look at the foliage of ‘Black
Magic Rose’ in photo 12. Each leaf
on this AAS winner has a dark-burgundy center and is edged in green.
The leaves would be attractive even
if the plants’ rose-colored flowers
were missing. They work well as
bedding plants or in containers. In
spring and fall’s cool weather, the
variegation is most vivid. When it
heats up in the summer, the leaves { ‘Cherokee
turn mostly green with just a faint- Sunset’ gloriosa
black outline in the center.
daisy has seeds
‘Black Magic Rose’ grows about with a high germi11
2 feet tall and a little wider. Start nation rate.
seeds indoors 10 to 12 weeks before
the average last frost date. After your star, golden yellow, orange, rose, white
last frost, plant ‘Black Magic Rose’ in and yellow. Or you’ll find a mix of
full sun and fertilize and water regularly. all seven colors, which is what we grew
Geraniums are heat-tolerant in AHS at our test garden and you can see in
zones 12 to 1.
photo 13.
Order seeds from J.W. Jung Seed Co.
Grow gazanias in full sun and give
at 800-297-3123 or www.jungseed.com. them plenty of moisture, even though
Introducer: K. Sahin, Zaden B.V.
they like the heat. Kiss is cold-hardy in
Kiss Series gazanias — When the tem- USDA zones 8 to 11, so in some climates,
peratures rise in summer, the Kiss Series it will bloom all year. It’s heat-tolerant
takes off. Its flowers are 4 inches across in AHS zones 12 to 1.
and they open more reliably than other
Order Kiss seeds from J.W. Jung Seed
gazanias we’ve grown, even in cloudy Co. at 800-297-3123 or www.jungseed.
weather. Each plant grows about 6 inches com. Introducer: Goldsmith Seeds.
tall and has a uniform, mounded habit.
Sparkler Series spider flower — If you
You can buy Kiss gazanias in seven have a small garden, chances are you
colors: bronze, bronze with a center may not have had room for a 6-foot-tall
Names to know
Your guide to the
common and botanical
names of plants on
these pages
Flossflower
Ageratum houstonianum
Gazania
Gazania spp.
Geranium
Pelargonium xhortorum
Gloriosa daisy
Rudbeckia hirta
Nolana
Nolana spp.
Spider flower
Cleome hassleriana
spider flower. But at about 3 feet tall,
this one will work even in a large container like the deck planter in photo 14.
And because of its small stature, it doesn’t
need staking. ‘Sparkler Blush’ has pink
flowers and is a 2002 AAS winner.
‘Sparkler Lavender’, ‘Sparkler Rose’ and
‘Sparkler White’ are other colors.
To grow the Sparkler Series from
seed, start indoors four to six weeks
before the last frost. If you live in the
South, you can direct-sow it in full sun.
Spider flower is heat-tolerant in AHS
zones 12 to 1.
Buy Sparkler seeds from Park Seed Co.
at 800-845-3369 or www.parkseed.com.
Introducer: Goldsmith Seeds.
12
{ ‘Black Magic Rose’ geranium’s foliage turns darker as the weather cools.
14
13
{ ‘Kiss’ gazania has large flowers that bloom for months in summer and fall.
{ ‘Sparkler Blush’ spider flower is easy to fit into almost any garden
since it grows only 3 ft. tall.
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Vegetables
‘Sungella’ better? It has the same sweet
flavor, but each tomato is larger. This
means bigger bites!
‘Sungella’ is an indeterminate tomato,
so you’ll want to stake it or grow it
in a cage. The heavy clusters of brightorange tomatoes you see in photo 17
will weight down the plant if you don’t
support them.
Start tomato seeds indoors six to seven
weeks before the average last frost date
in your area. After the soil has warmed
to about 70 degrees, harden the seedlings
off and move them to the garden.
‘Sungella’ should be ready to harvest in
about 100 days.
Order ‘Sungella’ tomato from Thompson & Morgan by calling 800-274-7333
or at www.thompsonmorgan.com. Introducer: Thompson & Morgan.
‘Diva’ cucumber — ‘Diva’, in photo
18, is a cucumber you’ll want to try. Its
flavor is sweet and nonbitter and its skin
is tender. This AAS winner produces only
female flowers and it sets fruit without
being pollinated. What this means for
you is a heavy-producing plant without
many seeds. For the best texture and
flavor, harvest ‘Diva’ when the fruits are
about 4 inches long.
As soon as your soil has warmed to 70
degrees, sow cucumber seeds directly in the
garden. Plant about five seeds to a hill,
space them 2 to 4 inches apart and set
them ½ inch deep. When seedlings grow
their first set of true leaves, thin them to a
foot apart, or two or three to a hill.
Because ‘Diva’ vines can grow 6 feet
long, you’ll need to leave plenty of room.
Or, you can save some space and grow
them on a trellis, as we do at our test
garden. Ours is a 5-by-6-foot wood
frame covered with chicken wire. We
lean the trellis against a support, and the
cucumbers stay clean and hang on both
sides of the wire.
You should be able to find ‘Diva’ seeds
at your local garden center. Or order them
from Johnny’s Select Seeds at 207-4374301 or at www.johnnyseeds.com.
Introducer: Johnny’s Select Seeds.
‘Orange Smoothie’ pumpkin — Don’t
have much room for pumpkins? Try
‘Orange Smoothie’. The smooth, small
pumpkins in photo 19 are sized perfectly
for kids to paint on, carve and carry
around. And at only 5 to 8 pounds, it
makes a good candidate for autumn
arrangements, too. But ‘Orange
Smoothie’ isn’t just nice to look at. It
tastes good, too! That must be why it’s
an AAS winner this year.
Start seeds in the garden about 90 days
before you plan to harvest. ‘Orange
Smoothie’ is semi-determinate, meaning
its vines will only grow to a certain length.
So it doesn’t take up as much space in the
garden as many pumpkins do.
COURTESY THOMPSON & MORGAN
‘Eruption’ red lettuce — This dark-red
lettuce is as good to look at as it is to
eat. You can see its wonderful color in
photo 15.
It’s a bibb-romaine cross that forms 8inch-tall heads with sweet, crunchy hearts
and tasty leaves. We sowed a fall crop
and enjoyed a harvest 28 days later. For
full-sized leaves and heads, you’ll need to
allow 50 days.
You can order ‘Eruption’ from Johnny’s
Selected Seeds at 207-437-4301 or
www.johnnyseeds.com. Introducer:
Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
‘Claremont’ mini romaine lettuce —
We sowed the seeds of ‘Claremont’ alongside ‘Eruption’, and had a beautiful combination in our test garden. ‘Claremont’,
in photo 16, produced nice heads about
9 inches tall. If you haven’t left much
room for heads of romaine lettuce in your
garden in the past, try ‘Claremont’. You
can space the plants 6 to 8 inches apart.
Harvest the heads about 46 days after
sowing the seeds.
Order ‘Claremont’ from Johnny’s
Selected Seeds at 207-437-4301 or
www.johnnyseeds.com. Introducer:
Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
‘Sungella’ tomato — When I heard
about ‘Sungella’, I was pretty excited.
It’s billed as an improved version of
‘Sungold’, my all-time favorite. How is
16
17
{ ‘Claremont’ mini romaine lettuce has
a crispy texture and a sweet flavor.
{ ‘Sungella’ tomato has a low acid content, which gives it a mild, sweet flavor.
15
18
{ ‘Eruption’ lettuce is a bibb-romaine cross that can be ready for
harvest about 28 days after sowing.
{ ‘Diva’ cucumber’s thin skin and few seeds make it easy to eat. Harvest fruits when
they’re about 4 in. long for the best texture and flavor.
12
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
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EIGHT MORE NEW PLANTS TO TRY
PLANT NAME
COMMENTS
‘Appleblossom’ bergenia
Perennial; white flowers turn pink; 12 to 18 in. in flower;
Bergenia spp.
Cold: USDA zones 4 to 8; Heat: AHS zones 8 to 1
‘Golden Alexander’ lysimachia
Perennial; yellow-and-green variegated foliage; 24 in. tall;
Lysimachia punctata
‘Pink Adobe’ twinspur
Perennial; salmon flowers in late spring and summer;
Diascia integerrima
Garden Sun climbing rose
Shrub; golden yellow and orange blooms; 10 to 15 ft. tall;
Rosa ‘Meivalier’
‘Limon Ripple’ kousa dogwood
Shrub; chartreuse-and-green-variegated foliage; 12 ft. tall
Cornus kousa
and wide; Cold: USDA zones 5 to 8; Heat: AHS zones 8 to 1
‘Astronaut Mixed’ sweet pea
Annual; large flowers; no tendrils; sturdy stems;
Lathyrus odoratus
6 ft. tall; Heat: AHS zones 8 to 1
Salvia ‘Jeweled Towers’
Annual; mix of red, burgundy, lavender and purple flowers;
Salvia splendens
10-in. flower spikes; Heat: AHS zones 12 to 1
‘Park’s Lemon Ice Hybrid’ watermelon Fruit; 80 days til harvest; 15-lb., yellow, seedless fruit
Cucumis melo
with high sugar content; 6- to 8-ft. vines
TM
Order seeds from Nichols Garden
Nursery by calling 541-928-9280 or at
www.nicholsgardennursery.com. Introducer: Seminis, Inc.
‘Sorcerer’ pumpkin — Someone
once told me that bumpy skinned
pumpkins are good for eating. When I
tried ‘Sorcerer’, in photo 20, I knew
what he meant. This AAS winner is a
full-sized pumpkin that reaches 15 to
22 pounds when it’s ripe. ‘Sorcerer’ has
a round shape and sturdy stems that
make good handles.
INTRODUCER OR WHOLESALER/RETAIL SOURCE
PlantHaven for Robin White
Plant Delights Nursery (919-772-4794, www.plantdelights.com)
PlantHaven for David Tristram
Shady Oaks Nursery (800-504-8006, www.shadyoaks.com)
High Country Gardens
High Country Gardens (800-925-9387, www.highcountrygardens.com)
Conard-Pyle Co.
Local garden centers
Wayside Gardens Co.
Wayside Gardens Co. (800-845-1124, www.waysidegardens.com)
Thompson & Morgan
Thompson & Morgan (800-274-7333, www.thompsonmorgan.com)
Park Seed Co.
Park Seed Co. (800-845-3369, www.parkseed.com)
Park Seed Co.
Park Seed Co. (800-845-3369, www.parkseed.com)
It’s billed as a compact vine reaching
only 10 feet wide. But in our test garden,
it started growing rather quickly and was
closer to 20 feet by the time we harvested
the pumpkins. It was a healthy vine that
didn’t have disease troubles, though. And
it produced several pumpkins from one
hill — it must have been those gigantic
leaves that helped support such a heavyproducing plant.
We even got a rather late start with
our pumpkins this year — in July —
and we still had good luck. ‘Sorcerer’
is ready to harvest about 100 days after
you plant seeds.
Order ‘Sorcerer’ seeds from Stokes
Seeds, Inc. at 800-263-7233 or www.
stokeseeds.com. Introducer: Harris
Moran Seed Co.
For even more of the best new plants
of 2002, check out the table above for
descriptions and help in finding them.
Now that you’ve been introduced to the
class of 2002, give a few of these top performers a try! ®
— Kristin Beane Sullivan
19
20
{ Both ‘Orange Smoothie’ and ‘Sorcerer’, photos 19 and 20, take up less room in the garden than other pumpkins.
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PLANT PROFILE
M
Tuberous
Begonias
© MARILYNN McARA
An explosion of color
from summer through fall.
1
14
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
G A R D E N G AT E
y front porch used to be
just another place that
people would speed by in
their cars or ignore as they
continued on their morning walks. Then
last summer I hung tuberous begonias in
baskets on my porch and planted them
around my foundation. Now I’m
thinking I might need to put out a few
lawn chairs for passersby. That’s how
often folks have slowed down to enjoy
the begonias.
Take a look at the pendulous begonia
in photo 1 and you’ll see what I mean.
Wouldn’t this display make you take a
second look? Once tuberous begonias
start blooming, they can flower continuously for four months.
You’ve probably heard about begonias, and perhaps even planted a few.
Wax, or semperflorens (always blooming), begonias are sold as annuals. The
begonias I’ll talk about here are the
tuberous type. That means they grow
from a tuber, an enlarged stem that
stores food for the plant. It looks like a
bulb or a corm.
Once you decide to add tuberous
begonias to your garden, you’ll have lots
of options to choose from. First, there
are upright and pendulous forms. The
uprights usually grow 6 to 12 inches
tall, but some can reach 30 inches.
Pendulous forms are particularly wellsuited to hanging baskets and have
branches that can drape over a pot’s
edge by 18 inches or more.
Your choices don’t stop there. You
can find solid colors in clear white and
brilliant orange, red, pink and yellow.
With hybridizing, there are bicolors, or
flowers with two colors, and picotees,
with petals edged in contrasting colors.
One bold color combination is a cultivar in the Pin-Up Series. ‘Pin-Up Flame’,
a 1999 All-America Selections (AAS)
winner, is a yellow, single flower with a
wide, bold-orange picotee. The proportion
of colors on the blooms varies from plant
to plant. These large flowers can reach 4
inches across. Not all picotees are as dramatic: The ‘Show Angels Mix’ has flowers
edged in soft pastel.
Most tuberous begonias have 2- to 4inch-wide flowers. A few even have
blooms 6 or more inches across. In general, upright begonias have larger flowers
than pendulous types do.
< Pendulous begonias bring a sense of distinction
to a setting, like on this porch where they hang like
jewels on a chandelier. Plant four to six tubers in a
large pot for a dazzling summer display.
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Although there are more than 10
different classifications of flower forms,
these distinctions aren’t used much in
the United States except by gardeners
who grow them for flower shows.
The main characteristics you’ll see in
most garden centers and catalogs are
{ ‘Pin-Up Flame’ was a 1999 AAS winner and is
one of the easier-to-find named cultivars.
singles, doubles and ruffled, or fringed,
petals. Just look at the photo album
below for a few examples of the hundreds of characteristics.
In coming years, you might find more
fragrant tuberous begonias on the
market. Antonelli Brothers, a California
nursery that specializes in tuberous begonias, has a few of these available right
now. If you’d like to grow these specialty
begonias, plan to pay a little more for
them than the other types.
In addition to flower variations, there
are also different colors of foliage. For
example, the Ornament Series is an
upright group of begonias with several
different flower color options. But
its main claim to fame is that it has
bronze foliage. Frankly, even with
colored foliage, I think the blooms still
steal the show.
Pendulous
form
BEGONIA
TUBERHYBRIDA
Tuberous begonia
6 to 30 inches tall, 6 to 24 inches wide
Many forms and colors
Part shade
Well-drained soil
Cold-hardy in
USDA zones 10 to 11;
save tubers indoors
in other climates or
treat as an annual
Heat-tolerant in
AHS zones 6 to 1
{ Singles are still dramatic, with flowers ranging
from 2 to 6 in. across.
{ Color is one thing that begonias have plenty of,
especially in hot tones, such as red.
{ Picotees add a bit of depth to a garden — their
petals have colored edges. This flower is also ruffled.
{ Doubles have very full-looking flowers with
several rows of petals.
{ The Nonstop Series has double petals and
comes in nine different colors.
{ Ruffled begonias add frill and flounce to the
garden with wavy petals.
G A R D E N G AT E
Upright
form
With the myriad of begonia characteristics available, it’s nearly impossible
to name all the ones that you can buy.
When shopping at your garden center,
you may not even find named cultivars.
Rather, you’ll see a table full of begonias
all in full bloom. All you have to do is
choose one that you like and buy it (but
why limit yourself to just one?).
But when you’re buying tubers, unless
you can see a photo, you’ll have to go by
a description, such as “pendulous,
orange, double.” That’s where knowing
some of the terms I’ve shown you here
will come in handy. And the photos at
left show you what some of these characteristics look like.
Want something completely different?
Try the lesser-known hollyhock begonia.
It’s a tuberous type that can grow to 30
inches tall. The stems are erect and
resemble a hollyhock, especially with the
1-inch, single, rose-pink flowers that
grow in pairs from the leaf axils.
Hollyhock begonia is heat-tolerant in
AHS zones 12 to 1.
Just about anywhere you place a
tuberous begonia you’ll
have a show. With bright Names to know
colors and soft pastels —
Your guide to the
even white — these common and botanical
flowers are eye-catching. names of plants on
Turn the page for ways these pages
you can design with begoHollyhock begonia
nias, from your front
Begonia gracilis
porch to the shady flower
martiana
beds of your garden.
15
11/13/01
Names to know
Your guide to the
names of plants on
these pages
10:29 AM
Page 16
Design with begonias
Wherever you plant tuberous begonias, they’ll attract
attention. Their large
flowers are especially beautiful when surrounded by
Bacopa
supporting actors that can
Bacopa spp.
complement their color or
Geranium
form. Take a peek at the
Pelargonium spp.
window box in photo 2.
Sedum
Sedum spp.
The cascade of white
bacopa sets the stage for
the dazzling begonias.
If you plant tuberous begonias in your
garden, put them in a shady island bed or
at the edge of a woodland, where you can
take advantage of their bright colors. Place
them at the front of a border, where
they’re easy to care for. Or let their bright
colors and bold foliage stand out behind
shorter plants, as the red begonias are
doing in photo 3.
Even though the pendulous begonias
are especially well-suited for hanging baskets, the uprights work nicely, too. The
look is slightly different. But wherever
you grow them, hanging begonias will
give you color at any height. Try a basket
on your porch or on a plant stand, as in
photo 4.
Care and culture
2
{ Surround tuberous begonias with plants that can set them off, like these showers of white bacopa blooms.
moss sparingly until the tubers sprout,
then keep it slightly moist at all times.
The first growth you’ll see is small
roots all over the skin. Then pink sprouts
will grow on top of the tuber. Some
tubers start to grow right away; others
take weeks. Pinch off all but two or three
sprouts as they grow. If you don’t want
to toss the pinched sprouts, root them in
moist medium and you’ll get even more
begonia plants. When these sprouts reach
1 to 2 inches tall, like the ones in the
back of photo 5, it’s time to transplant.
Until plants are a few inches tall, pinch
off any flower buds that form so energy
isn’t taken from the young plant. When
the pendulous varieties have 2 inches of
growth, pinch out the primary growing tip.
This will ensure that you have lots of gracefully hanging branches.
© CHARLES MANN
Start tuberous begonias in winter from
dormant tubers or buy them in the spring
as plants. You can grow them from seed,
but unless you have a greenhouse, it’s
much easier to start with tubers.
Select firm tubers with brown skin
and a depression on the top side. Set
them, depression side up, on damp peat
moss eight to 10 weeks before the last
frost. They prefer a spot that’s about 70
degrees, with bright, filtered light — an
east window is good. Water the peat
© MARILYNN McARA
G4314_17.qxd
3
4
{ Brighten a dark background with begonia blooms, but choose a spot with light shade. Begonias
need some sun for peak performance, so don’t plant them in full shade.
{ Raise your garden to eye level with a hanging
basket of begonias.
16
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
G A R D E N G AT E
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TIPS FOR SUCCESS
Wherever you plant them,
begonias like light, well-drained
soil. A good rule of thumb is to
Male
keep two inches between the
tuber and the pot edge.
Begonias prefer morning or
Male
late-afternoon sun — direct, hot
sun can burn the foliage and
flowers. Too much shade can
Female
cause them to grow spindly.
In summer, begonias don’t
{ Pinching off smaller, single
{Propping up your begonia
{ Careful watering can help
perform well in gardens warmer
female flowers as soon as they stems can hold heavy flowers
your begonias stay healthy.
than AHS zone 6. They may surform will let your begonia
upright and keep the fragile
They like to be moist but not
vive but often go dormant and
direct energy toward prostems from breaking. Make sup- soggy. If they turn yellow and
refuse to bloom during hot spells.
ducing more showy, male
ports out of coat hanger wire
spindly or you see brown rot
Feed your begonias after you
flowers. Your plant will bloom
or see p. 43 for a place to buy
starting on the stem, it’s a sign
see flower buds. That way you’ll
longer, too.
these ready-made ones.
that you’re overwatering.
be promoting blooms and not so
much foliage. Use a weak solution of a low-nitrogen/highphosphorus fertilizer, such as 5-10-10, at
Begonia stem rot and mildew are caused water, and store it where it won’t freeze.
two-week intervals.
by the same fungus. Fortunately, you can Or, dig the tuber and let it dry for a week
control both by watering only the soil and before storing it in wood shavings in a
not the foliage, letting the soil dry between paper bag. Tubers store best at 45 to 55
waterings and providing good air circula- degrees, so a garage or cool basement is
tion. Pinch off brown, water-soaked stems a good location.
or leaves. The same goes for white mildew
Through the winter, if you find any
patches. Then spray right away with a tubers that are rooting or rotting, change
fungicide. I’ll show you a few more hints the shavings and move them to a drier
in “Tips for success” above.
location for a few weeks. If any are shrivIf they’re not cold-hardy in your eling, moisten them with a spray of water.
garden, there’s no reason to throw out
Heed a few pointers and your tuberous
your begonias at the end of summer. Take begonias will shine week after week. The
5
the plants indoors to a sunny window or breathtaking flower displays make them
{ Plant tubers in small pots of damp peat
save the tubers for next year! Here’s how: worth the extra care. Try one or two this
moss. Turn the plants every week so they grow
When the foliage wilts after the first year. Then plan how you’ll fill your garden
evenly toward the light. If any flower buds form
frost, cut the plant off at the base. Turn with begonias next year. ®
at this stage, pinch them off.
— Anne Nieland
the pot on its side so it won’t collect
CHEERFUL WINDOW BOX
What better way to enjoy tuberous begonias’ splashy colors
than from outside and inside your house. You can when you
plant begonias in a window box. And here are three plants that
really set off the deep-red color and graceful form of these
pendulous tuberous begonias. The salmon-colored impatiens
mirror the red tones in the begonias while the white Swan River
daisies add a few bright spots to the back of the box. Their
branching habit makes them drape over the sides a little. The
deadnettle does the same for the front of the box.
C
C
B
B
D
B
A
{
NORTH
Scale: 1 square = 6 in.
A
B
Plant list
Code Plant Name
Cold/Heat Zones
A Begonia Begonia Tuberhybrida
‘Sensation Red’
10 to 11/6 to 1
B Impatiens Impatiens walleriana
‘Super Elfin Salmon’
10 to 11/12 to 1
C Swan River daisy Brachycome
segmentosa ‘Moonlight’
10 to 11/12 to 1
D Deadnettle Lamium maculatum
‘Orchid Frost’
4 to 8/8 to 1
G A R D E N G AT E
No. of
Plants
2
4
2
1
17
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PLANTS IN COMMON
V
Variegated
Foliage
Design like a pro with these versatile plants.
‘Tricolor’ St. John’s wort
(Hypericum xmoserianum) grows
1 to 3 ft. tall. As its name, ‘Tricolor’,
suggests, its leaves are green with
combinations of yellow and pink.
Yellow flowers with red anthers
show up in late summer. This
shrub grows best in part shade and
well-drained soil and can tolerate
dry periods. It’s cold-hardy in
USDA zones 5 to 9, and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
18
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
G A R D E N G AT E
1
ariegated foliage is a garden
designer’s dream. Why? Even
when it’s not in bloom, you can
still get good garden mileage out
of a variegated plant. Create drama in a
large garden with a mass of streaked
foliage or add dimension to a small space
with a single plant whose leaves are margined in a contrasting color.
There are plants for shade and those
that prefer sun. Some tolerate dry
conditions while others need wet feet.
With this in mind, don’t worry whether
there’s a variegated plant to grow where
you want one — there is.
And there’s one to match the style
you’re looking for, too — contrasting
edging, irregular splotches and stripes, to
name a few. Just look at a few of the possibilities in the photos at right.
To give you an idea of the variety,
imagine you have a plain, green leaf and
a paintbrush. Use white to paint on
horizontal stripes or an edging. Or
unleash your wild side and splatter your
leaf with spots and splotches. Give
another leaf just a hint of white. Remember coloring books where you
had to stay within the lines? Well try
painting along a leaf’s veins. Then fill in
the leaf so just tinges of green show
through. Now dip your paintbrush in
yellow, gold or lime green and do this
again on more leaves.
Think variegation ends there? Dip into
your red or fuchsia paint and highlight a
leaf’s edge and you’ll get variegation like
the ‘Tricolor’ St. John’s wort in photo 1.
Occasionally paint the stem of your leaf
a matching color.
Thankfully, you don’t have to
actually paint your garden to get
these effects. Variegated forms
of normally green plants show
up in different ways. A new
seedling might make a
genetic change from its
parents and have a leaf
stripe or mottling. Or
sometimes variegated
leaves will show up
on plant offshoots if the plant has been
harmed or if there’s been an environmental change. Other times, plant
breeders use a harmless virus that creates
leaf color variations. However the variegation happens, when plant breeders
notice one of these unusual seedlings
or offshoots, they snatch it up and try to
propagate it.
Almost all plants have variegated
cousins. Put a green version next to
its variegated relative and the green
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A SAMPLER OF VARIEGATED FOLIAGE
‘Variegata’ wayfaringtree
(Viburnum lantana) is a droughttolerant shrub and grows in both
sun and part shade. It’ll reach a
height and spread of 15 ft.
Besides the splotched, variegated leaves, it has small, white
flowers that bloom in midspring.
They develop into berries that
start off yellow-green, then
flush red, and finally turn almost
black. It’s cold-hardy in USDA
zones 4 to 8 and heat-tolerant in
AHS zones 8 to 1.
‘Illumination’ periwinkle (Vinca
minor) is an evergreen perennial
that will brighten any shade to
part-shade border. It even looks
great trailing over a wall or in a
container as an accent plant.
Small, blue flowers bloom in
spring and continue sporadically
all summer on spreading, 4- to 6in.-tall plants. ‘Illumination’
grows best in fertile, moist, but
well-drained, soil. It’s cold-hardy
in USDA zones 4 to 9 and heattolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
‘Variegata’ horseradish
(Armoracia rusticana) is a perennial
that makes a bold statement the
year after you plant it. The first
year, it’s green. Then the irregular
patterns kick in. It’s a vigorous
plant, so you can grow it in sun or
part shade. It’ll reach 3 ft. tall and
2 ft. wide and can be invasive, so
plant it where you can control it,
such as in a raised bed. The bonus?
You can eat the roots. It’s coldhardy in USDA zones 4 to 8 and
‘Snow Storm’ coral bells
(Heuchera xbrizoides) leaves
look almost white from a distance. Actually, upon closer
inspection, you’ll see some
green speckled throughout. The
airy, red flowers of this perennial reach 12 to 15 in. in spring
and summer atop 6-in.-tall
foliage. It grows in either sun or
light shade and prefers rich,
well-drained soil. It’s cold-hardy
in USDA zones 4 to 8 and heattolerant in AHS zones 8 to 1.
‘Variegata’ Siberian bugloss
(Brunnera macrophylla) grows
well in light shade and rich,
well-drained soil. In late spring,
its light-blue flowers make a
cool display in combination
with the creamy white leaf variegation. Siberian bugloss
makes an excellent perennial
ground cover, at only 12 in. tall.
It’s cold-hardy in USDA zones 3
to 7 and heat-tolerant in AHS
zones 7 to 1.
‘Variegated Purple’ ornamental
pepper (Capsicum annuum)
grows in full sun, and its fruit,
albeit hot, is edible. With its
white, green and purple leaves,
this low-growing ornamental
makes a great container or frontof-the-border plant with other
annuals, such as marigolds. It’s a
tropical that’s treated as an
annual in most parts of the
country. ‘Variegated Purple’ is
‘Samantha’ lantana’s (Lantana
camara) leaves are marked with
yellow, which makes a perfect
backdrop for its golden-yellow
flowers. It grows best in bright
light and well-drained soil. This
perennial’s trailing habit makes it
great for hanging baskets and as a
colorful ground cover. Plus, you’ll
have a flower that butterflies love.
This lantana is cold-hardy in USDA
zones 9 to 11 and heat-tolerant in
AHS zones 12 to 1.
Zebra grass (Miscanthus
sinensis ‘Zebrinus’) is a perennial
that’s graceful in almost any
garden. Its arching leaves and 3to 5-ft., upright habit make it a
great specimen in summer. It
maintains its form when the
cold hits, so it has winter
interest, too. You’ll get the best
stripes if you grow zebra grass
in full sun. It’s cold-hardy in
USDA zones 4 to 9 and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
one will often win out for vigor. Where
variegated plants show their lack of
vigor is under environmental extremes.
Often, they’re less tolerant of hot sun,
cold temperatures and wind. So you
might have to keep a closer eye on your
variegated plants: If you notice the
white leaf markings of your ‘Snow
Storm’ coral bells turning brown, you
might need to move it to a slightly
shadier spot, even though coral bells
usually tolerate sun well.
Why are variegated plants less vigorous? Well, it has to do with chlorophyll — the green leaf component that
photosynthesizes, or feeds the plant.
It’s hidden behind other pigments or
missing in parts of variegated leaves, so
the plant isn’t as efficient at producing
energy for itself.
But don’t worry whether your plant
has enough chlorophyll to grow. It’ll
always keep enough green in the leaf so
the plant can function.
G A R D E N G AT E
Occasionally you’ll find that your variegated plant reverts and sends up a branch
without any variegation. The only bad
thing about this is, since the green is more
vigorous, it may crowd out the variegated
foliage. And that’s why you chose the plant
in the first place. If you do catch your
plant reverting, just prune out the foliage
that isn’t variegated. You may have to do
this a few times a year.
For ideas on how to design your garden
using variegated foliage, turn the page.
19
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Page 20
© JERRY PAVIA
G4318_21.qxd
2
JAY PAUL
{ When you repeat variegated plants in a
border, it creates unity. Even after these
‘Variegata’ irises’ spring blooms fade, the variegated foliage will still attract attention.
3
{ The white sparkle on the hosta leaves makes
an ornate frame for this fuchsia-colored rhododendron. Massing the hosta also helps lead the
focus toward the rhododendron.
Names to know
Your guide to the
names of plants on
these pages
Carex
Carex riparia
Coleus
Solenostemon
scutellarioides
Deadnettle
Lamium maculatum
Geranium
Pelargonium spp.
Hosta Hosta spp.
Impatiens
Impatiens spp.
Iris
Iris pallida
Ivy Hedera helix
20
Japanese painted fern
Athyrium nipponicum
‘Pictum’
Japanese silver grass
Miscanthus sinensus
Madrone
Arbutus menziesii
Nasturtium
Tropaeolum majus
Ornamental pepper
Capsicum annuum
Periwinkle Vinca minor
Persicaria
Persicaria virginiana
Rhododendron
Rhododendron spp.
Spotted laurel
Aucuba japonica
Turkey oak
Quercus cerris
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
4
{ The Japanese silver grass is a stately specimen at the edge of this patio. Its light-colored variegation helps it to stand out against the dark background of the madrone tree.
Designing with variegated foliage
Some contrast is interesting, but too
much can be overwhelming. If everything is variegated, there’s nothing to
provide the backdrop to set off the patterns. This is why I recommend using
variegated plants sparingly. Pick one or
two that strike your fancy and let the
rest of your garden frame them.
When you’re ready to pick out a variegated plant, try starting with an annual.
How about nasturtium, ornamental
pepper or coleus, which comes in a brilliant
range of colors, so there are plenty to
choose from? You can grow annuals for a
season and then evaluate what you like.
Replace them with similarly colored or
patterned perennials or shrubs next year.
G A R D E N G AT E
Don’t give up entirely if variegation
doesn’t seem to fit in your garden. Take a
couple of minutes to ask what it is that
didn’t work. Maybe you’d like something
more bold, such as ‘Illumination’ periwinkle. On the other hand, if the colors
were too bright and contrasting, a more
subtly variegated foliage, like that of ‘Bird
Dancer’ geranium, might fit better.
Since mixing different kinds of variegation can create a busy stir, try repeating
the same plant. The iris in photo 2 makes
a great statement — twice. Its brightyellow variegation adds a sparkle to this
border. And because you’re not distracted
by other variegated plants, your eye can
drift through the garden and easily find
places to rest.
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VARIEGATION COMBINATIONS
<The traditional garden — Variegation works
well as part of a formal setting. Prune this shrub
rose in early spring and you’ll be surrounded by
yellow blooms in summer. The flowers bring out
B
the variegated lemon thyme’s gold edge. As a lowgrowing ground cover, the thyme grows closely
around the path stones and will release its citrus fragrance as you walk. The blue-colored stone contrasts
with the warm colors of the thyme.
A
B
A
B
A
{
NORTH
Plant list
Code Plant Name
A Rose Rosa ‘Prairie Harvest’
B Lemon thyme
Thymus citriodorus ‘Aureus’
Scale: 1 square = 1 square foot
Cold/Heat Zones
4 to 11/12 to 1
No. of Plants
3
5 to 9/9 to 1
12+
A
A
B
A
B
B
{
A
NORTH
Plant list
No. of
Code Plant Name
Cold/Heat Zones Plants
A Canna Canna xgeneralis ‘Praetoria’
8 to 11/12 to 1
4
B Coleus Solenostemon scutellarioides
‘Black Magic’
11/12 to 1
5
A mass of the same variegated plant
can help another plant, like the rhododendron in photo 3, stand out. The hosta
accessorizes this shrub. And when the pink
blooms fade, the variegated hostas will be
more showy than plain ones would.
A single splash of variegation also
makes an eye-catching focal point. Take
a look at photo 4 and you’ll see what I
mean. The ‘Variegatus’ Japanese silver
grass is stunning on its own and
brightens the area under the tree. See
how the grass’s white striping contrasts
with the deep tones of the madrone’s
red bark? Later in the season, this grass
sends out copper-red plumes that provide
interest all winter. If it were surrounded
by other variegated plants, it might get
lost in the shuffle.
C
C
B
{
{ The wild look — For some
hot color and wild patterns, try
mixing ‘Praetoria’ canna with coleus.
There are hundreds of coleus to choose from, but
for this combination, I chose ‘Black Magic’. Its green edging
matches the variegation in the canna’s leaves, and the deep-purple
centers complement the brilliant-orange canna flowers. These plants
grow best in full sun and fertile, well-drained soil.
C
NORTH
{ The shade garden — In this corner shade garden, the variegation
on the Siberian bugloss mimics dappled sunlight and surrounds the
hosta with sparkling foliage. The geranium and bugloss bloom about
the same time, so you’ll have loads of pink and blue flowers together.
Plant list
No. of
Code Plant Name
Cold/Heat Zones Plants
A Hosta Hosta ‘August Moon’
4 to 9/9 to 1
1
B Siberian bugloss Brunnera macrophylla
‘Variegata’
3 to 7/7 to 1
3
C Geranium Geranium endressii
‘Wargrave Pink’
5 to 8/8 to 1
5
Need a smaller variegated plant with
the same effect? Try ‘Variegata’ carex. The
arching leaves have a bright-white midrib.
Or, make a statement with a variegated
tree, such as ‘Argenteovariegata’ Turkey
oak. It has the trademark dark-green color
and shiny texture of many oak leaves. But
the irregular leaf margins are creamy white.
A quick way to brighten a dark corner
is to let in more light. But if you can’t move
your neighbor’s garage, try adding a variegated ground cover, such as ‘White
Nancy’ deadnettle. Its silvery markings
mimic light dancing off leaves. ‘Painter’s
Palette’ persicaria has the same effect, just
with warmer yellow and cream tones.
When you’re thinking about variegated
leaves, don’t forget that you can cut them
and take them inside, too. Stems of
G A R D E N G AT E
‘Dentata Variegata’ ivy or Japanese
painted fern are excellent greenery in
flower arrangements.
I know I’ve shown you how to work
variegation into your garden so it has a
pleasing balance, but sometimes the wild
look is just what a garden needs. So don’t
be afraid to match ‘Flare’ New Guinea
impatiens’ variegated leaves with those of
‘Gold Dust’ spotted laurel.
Want some help getting started? Check
out the three plans in “Variegation combinations” above. There’s something for
everyone — even the wild gardener in you.
So give variegated plants a go in your
garden — pick a splotch or a spatter, or a
swoosh, it doesn’t matter! You’ll get a
great effect that will last all season long. ®
— Anne Nieland
21
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PLANT PROFILE
MICHAEL LANDIS
< Star magnolia can be trimmed to a single
trunk but often grows as a multistemmed tree.
1
Star magnolia — This is one of the first
flowering trees to bloom — usually in
early to midspring. Imagine looking out
your window after a long winter and
seeing a tree like the one in photo 1. What
a way to start the season!
Even though this magnolia is called a
tree, it often looks more like a large shrub.
If you don’t cut off the bottom branches,
they’ll clothe the plant with flowers all
the way to the ground every spring.
There are lots of cultivars with different flower colors and forms, but all
are sweet-scented. Most have white or
pale-pink flowers with narrow tepals, or
segments of the flower that look like
petals. ‘Royal Star’ has pink buds that
open to 4-inch-wide double flowers.
‘Centennial’ is similar with larger flowers
and a pink blush. ‘Rubra’ is purple-rose
with tepals that twist slightly. Plant star
magnolia in full sun or light shade. It’s
cold-hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9 and heattolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
Saucer magnolia — The tree in photo
2 is arguably the most popular magnolia
in America. It flowers in midspring. When
fully open, each fragrant flower can
be up to 10 inches across.
Saucer magnolia has a
curious habit of putting
out a few flowers in late
summer, though they’re
not as large or brightly
colored as their spring
counterparts.
A saucer magnolia
tree starts out growing
narrow and upright, but it
can eventually grow 20 to 30 feet
tall and almost as wide. There are
about 40 cultivars. Many of them
have pink flowers, but they can range
from white to purple. For example, ‘Brozzonii’ has 10-inch-diameter, white flowers
brushed with pale rose. And it’s one of
the later blooming saucer magnolias.
Another difference between cultivars is
growing habit. ‘Alexandrina’ grows
into an upright, oval shape. Its flowers
are white inside and rose-purple outside.
Plant a saucer magnolia in full sun and well-drained soil. In
an urban area or near a busy street, this is the best magnolia choice
— it’s pollution-tolerant. All saucer magnolias are cold-hardy in
USDA zones 5 to 9 and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
Cucumbertree magnolia — Cucumbertree magnolia blooms
later than most other species, usually in late May. That’s an
advantage if your region is subject to late-spring frosts that
could damage the flowers. It can grow up to 40 feet tall and wide,
sometimes even larger with advanced age.
Magnolias
No matter where you live,
there’s one for you.
I
f you’ve never experienced a magnolia in spring, you’re
missing out. You might be out walking some spring evening
and catch a whiff of a sweet-smelling flower. As you follow
the scent, you spot a magnolia in full bloom. Its fragrance
is almost overpowering up close, but it’s intoxicating as it wafts
through the cool, spring air. A magnolia has one of those fragrances you’ll never forget. And no matter where you live in the
country, you can grow one of these lovely trees. Here are some
of your options:
22
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
G A R D E N G AT E
10:58 AM
Page 23
© RICK WETHERBEE
11/13/01
PHOTO AND INSET: © KEN MEYER
G4322_25.qxd
3
4
{ Saucer magnolia is sensitive to late-spring frosts.
Plant it where it’s protected, such as against an east facing wall.
{ ‘Elizabeth’ is a cucumbertree magnolia with
pointed buds and fragrant,
clear-yellow flowers.
{ The “Eight Little Girls”
will sometimes produce a
few flowers in late summer
The tree above is ‘Ricki’.
PHOTO AND INSET: © CINDY HAYNES
2
MAGNOLIAS OF ALL SHAPES AND SIZES
60 ft.
Magnolias range in size from more
than 60 ft. to less than 12 ft.
40 ft.
20 ft.
5
{ Southern magnolia has
large leaves and fragrant,
white waxy flowers.
0
Southern
magnolia
The flowers are slightly fragrant and green-yellow on the
species. But some of the cultivars, such as ‘Elizabeth’ in photo
3, are primrose yellow. ‘Butterflies’ has a deeper yellow flower,
and the tree grows a bit narrower. ‘Gold Crown’ has yellow
flowers that open later than most cucumbertree magnolias.
Occasionally you’ll find a cultivar, such as ‘Hattie Carthan’, with
a purple blush at the base of each flower. In hot temperatures,
the colors soften to creamy white as the flowers age.
Where did it get such a funny name? The seed pods look similar to cucumbers. This magnolia can be difficult to transplant,
so start with small balled and burlapped or container-grown trees.
Cucumbertree magnolia is cold-hardy in USDA zones 4 to 8
and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 8 to 1.
“Eight Little Girls” — Looking for a magnolia to use in a
foundation planting? All of the trees in this group stay under 20
feet. One cultivar, ‘Ann’, only gets 8 to 10 feet tall. The cupshaped blooms open late so they’re safe from spring frosts. The
‘Ricki’ in photo 4 has been pruned to look like a craggy, old tree,
but it’s still only 18 feet tall. Others in this group are ‘Betty’, ‘Jane’,
‘Judy’, ‘Pinkie’, ‘Susan’ and ‘Randy’. The flower colors range
from pale pink to dark pink, with full sun bringing out the
most vivid colors. And the flowers are often different on the inside
than on the outside.
Plant these hybrids in full sun out of strong wind — their foliage
tatters easily. A spot with an east exposure, backed by other
trees is ideal. The “Eight Little Girls” are cold-hardy in USDA
zones 5 to 9 and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
Cucumbertree Saucer
magnolia
magnolia
Star “Eight Little
magnolia
Girls”
Southern magnolia — Southerners consider this tree the
unofficial symbol of the South. It’s the state flower of Louisiana
and Mississippi. Even songs have been written about the elegant,
creamy white flowers and their sweet perfume. Each flower, like
the one in photo 5, can be 8 to 12 inches across. The peak of
bloom is in late spring — May and June in most areas. But a few
flowers persist through the growing season. The evergreen leaves
are up to 10 inches long.
Southern magnolia has shallow roots that make Names to know
growing grass under it difficult. Try a ground
Your guide to the
cover of lilyturf, dwarf sweetbox or pachysandra common and botanical
instead. Southern magnolia will grow fine in shade names of plants on
and with extra moisture — things other magno- these pages
lias will not tolerate. It will slowly grow up to 60 Cucumbertree magnolia
feet tall and 30 feet or more wide.
Magnolia acuminata
There are lots of cultivars. For example, AltaTM Dwarf sweetbox
(‘TIIMG’) is known for its upright growth habit. Sarcococca
‘Bracken’s Brown Beauty’ is prized for the brown hookeriana humilis
Lilyturf
fuzz on the undersides of each leaf. Don’t have Liriope spp.
much room? Plant ‘Little Gem’. In about 20 years Pachysandra
it’ll only be 20 feet tall and 10 feet wide. Southern Pachysandra terminalis
magnolia is cold-hardy in USDA zones 7 to 9 and Saucer magnolia
Magnolia xsoulangiana
Southern magnolia
Because magnolias are so striking, they deserve Magnolia grandiflora
a special place in your landscape. Turn the page Star magnolia
to learn more about how to work one into your Magnolia stellata
own garden and care for it.
G A R D E N G AT E
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MICHAEL LANDIS
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MICHAEL LANDIS
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6
7
{ This young star magnolia makes an ideal spring focal point. As it gets larger, the
flowers and bulbs around it can be moved to give it more space.
{ For spring color, a saucer magnolia can’t be beat. Even in the
winter, the smooth, gray bark will add interest to this garden.
Designing with magnolias
Care and culture
Magnolias are not shy plants. Think focal point or specimen plant
when you prepare to plant one in your garden. Even the small,
white-flowering star magnolia in photo 6 can compete with the
orange and red Iceland poppies. Because magnolias flower early,
consider what will be in bloom about the same time. Spring
bulbs, such as tulips and late-flowering daffodils, are ideal.
Spring-blooming shrubs, such as forsythia and fothergilla, are also
great garden companions.
Since most magnolias bloom before their leaves emerge, the
flowers show best if they have a contrasting background. Try
backing a specimen or even several magnolias with a windbreak of Norway spruces. The fine-textured, evergreen foliage
of the spruce will make the magnolia flowers look like a flock
of pink butterflies resting in a tree. And the evergreens will protect the magnolias from winter winds.
A magnolia is just the ticket if you need a specimen tree for
your garden. The saucer magnolia in photo 7 draws the attention of passersby. The simple plantings surrounding it make it
the center of attention.
Even when magnolias are not in flower, their foliage adds
interest to the landscape. Most have large, broad leaves with a
shiny surface. In late summer, the densely leafed star magnolia
in photo 8 still acts as a focal point near an entrance. And by fall
it has colorful seed pods.
Magnolias look good in winter, too. The evergreen species hold
their leaves, and all of the magnolias have smooth, gray bark and
fat, fuzzy flower buds.
Because magnolias are so spectacular when they’re in flower,
many folks think they are temperamental. You know, the way
some gardeners feel about orchids or African violets. But really,
almost anyone can grow a magnolia. The key is finding the
one for your climate and planting it in the right spot.
With a few exceptions, magnolias like well-drained soil a bit
on the acid side, with a pH of 5.5 to 6.5. If your soil is too alkaline, the leaves will turn pale green or even yellow. Adjust the
pH with elemental sulfur or iron sulfate and work in lots of
organic matter, such as compost or sphagnum peat moss.
The location you pick for your magnolia is important. It
will need at least four hours of sun each day. In more shade, the
tree will grow, but it will be spindly and not flower well. During
the summer, magnolias need good air circulation to help prevent
mildew on the leaves; and in winter cold temperatures can be a
problem in low spots. To remedy this, I like to plant magnolias
on a hill where the air circulates and late-spring frosts don’t settle
to damage the flowers.
Planting on a south wall, like the one in photo 8, can protect your magnolia from winter winds. But on the flipside, if
you plant in front of a south-facing wall, be prepared to have
a few flowers frozen some years. The reflected heat can force
the blooms to open early and be susceptible to cold snaps. Given
the choice, planting on an east exposure offers the best of
both worlds. There a magnolia will get gentle morning sun and
be out of strong winter wind. And the flowers won’t be forced
open too early.
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F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
G A R D E N G AT E
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GENTLE MAGNOLIA PRUNING
D
B
E
A
8
{ Even after it finishes
flowering and leafs out,
a magnolia is attractive in a
landscape. This star magnolia was planted against
a brick wall and pruned to
let it show off for the
summer, By fall the lumpy
seed pods turn pink and
open to show colorful
berries (inset) that will
quickly be eaten by birds.
C
{Magnolias don’t usually require much pruning. If branches are
damaged by weather, cut them off close to a main branch or trunk (A).
Remove watersprouts, shoots that grow strictly vertically. They are
usually weakly attached and make the tree too thick so air can’t circulate (B). Suckers at the base hide the smooth, gray bark, so cut them
away (C). If there are any crossing or rubbing branches that could open
wounds and allow insects and decay into the heartwood, remove them
(D). Then just prune to balance the look of the tree (E).
Spring is the time to plant magnolias, especially in Northern
gardens. That gives them time to send out roots before the
ground freezes. In Southern states, early fall is also OK. Magnolias
often have brittle roots. When you head to the nursery, select one
growing in a container or balled and burlapped. The roots are
less likely to be damaged, and the plant won’t suffer as much transplant shock. If you’re buying through mail-order catalogs, you
might have to go with small, bareroot plants. They’ll be fine, but
they might take a couple of extra years to recover.
Dig a wide hole when you’re planting a magnolia. That way
the roots can spread easily. Always plant at the same depth your
tree was growing in the nursery. If you set it too deeply, the
roots can’t get oxygen, and the tree will be stunted and possibly
die. Planting on a low mound is ideal, just high enough that excess
water drains away from the trunk so the roots can breathe.
Spread organic mulch around the base of your newly planted
tree. It conserves moisture and keeps down weeds. A band of
mulch also helps protect the bark from your lawn mower or
trimmer. Magnolias don’t recover from bark injuries quickly.
Insects and diseases can move in and harm the tree before the
wound seals. The same is true for pruning
magnolias — keep wounds to a minimum. If
Names to know
you want to know more about what to prune,
Your guide to the
check out “Gentle magnolia pruning” in the
box above.
names of plants on
these pages
Magnolias are really quite easy to grow.
Just find the right spot, give them good soil and
African violet
soon you’ll be enjoying that intoxicating
Saintpaulia spp.
Cucumbertree magnolia
fragrance, too. ®
Magnolia acuminata
— Jim Childs
EIGHT MORE MAGNOLIAS
PLANT NAME
COLD/HEAT ZONES
Bigleaf magnolia Magnolia macrophylla
5 to 9/8 to 1
Kobus magnolia Magnolia kobus
4 to 9/8 to 1
Lily magnolia Magnolia liliiflora
5 to 9/9 to 1
Loebner magnolia Magnolia xloebneri
5 to 9/9 to 1
Sprenger magnolia Magnolia sprengeri
7 to 9/9 to 3
5 to 9/9 to 1
Sweetbay magnolia Magnolia virginiana
Willowleaf magnolia Magnolia salicifolia 5 to 9/9 to 1
Yulan magnolia Magnolia denudata
5 to 9/9 to 1
COMMENTS
40 ft. tall; 10-in.-wide, fragrant, white flowers; leaves up to 30 in. long
30-ft.-tall, multistemmed, rounded tree; white, slightly fragrant flowers
12-ft.-tall, shrubby plant; 3-in.-wide, white flowers with purple inside
25 ft. tall; fragrant, white, pink or purple flowers
30-ft.-tall, rounded tree; 3-in., fragrant, dark-pink-to-white flowers
40-ft.-tall, multistemmed tree; white, lemon-scented flowers
30-ft.-tall pyramid; fragrant, white flowers; twigs have a lemon scent
30-ft.-tall, broadly pyramidal tree; fragrant, 6-in.-wide, ivory flowers
G A R D E N G AT E
Daffodil Narcissus spp.
Forsythia
Forsythia xintermedia
Fothergilla
Fothergilla gardenii
Iceland poppy
Papaver nudicaule
croceum
Norway spruce
Picea abies
Saucer magnolia
Magnolia xsoulangiana
Star magnolia
Magnolia stellata
Tulip Tulipa spp.
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EDIBLE GARDEN
Raspberries
Grow your own summertime treat.
1
With just a few plants, you can enjoy
raspberries all summer long.
W
hen it comes to wealth,
there’s money and then
there are things that money
can’t buy — like the taste of
fresh raspberries on homemade vanilla
ice cream. If you grow the berries yourself,
the taste is even sweeter. And with just a
single row of raspberries, you can be
“rich” all summer.
Raspberries can be red, black, purple or
gold. Summerbearing raspberries bear
fruit in June and July. Everbearing cultivars produce one small batch in the
summer and a second, larger one in the
26
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
fall. You can prune each of these types differently, but I’ll show you some of these
methods later. For now, I’d like to introduce
you to the variety of colors and flavors.
Here’s some information to help you
“pick” the right one for your garden:
Red raspberries — Red raspberries
grow on stiff, upright canes, making the
fruit easy to spot and pick. And there are
both summerbearing and everbearing red
raspberries. Summerbearing cultivars have
the largest fruits, like the ones in photo 2.
Everbearing red raspberries tend to be
the most cold-hardy.
G A R D E N G AT E
Plant red raspberries and in a few years
you’ll notice suckers or sprouts coming
up from their roots — sometimes up to 6
feet away from the original plant. If your
red raspberries spread outside their allotted
space, just use a sharp spade to cut them
off and remove them.
In general, red raspberries are coldhardy in USDA zones 3 to 9 and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 8 to 1.
Black raspberries — These are the
North American native raspberries. You
might still find stands of wild black raspberries in your area. The fruit that you see
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COURTESY OF MILLER NURSERIES
© JERRY PAVIA
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2
3
4
5
{ Summerbearing red raspberries
bear fruit after strawberries finish.
{ Black raspberries begin ripening
in mid-June before red cultivars.
{ Gold raspberries are everbearing,
producing from August to frost.
{ Purple raspberries are summerbearing, from late June to late July.
in photo 3 is smaller and more aromatic
than other raspberries. Some people think
it’s a sweeter, more intense taste.
Black raspberries grow from a clump;
they don’t send up suckers as red cultivars
do. And all black raspberries produce just
one crop during the year — there are no
everbearing ones. The long, arching canes
usually reach full production in mid-June
to mid-July — a bit earlier than many of
the reds. Black raspberries are cold-hardy
in USDA zones 4 to 9 and heat-tolerant in
AHS zones 8 to 1.
Gold raspberries — The raspberries
you see in photo 4 are actually a form of
red or black raspberries with goldenyellow berries. They bear small fruit from
late summer into fall. Like red raspberries,
they send up suckers and can be pruned the
same way as everbearing red cultivars.
Their flavor is often mild compared to
black and red raspberries. And all of
them are quite hardy. Gold raspberries
are cold-hardy in USDA zones 3 to 9 and
heat-tolerant in AHS
zones 9 to 1.
Purple raspberries
— Purple raspberries
are hybrids between
reds and blacks. They
sucker some, but tend
to stay in clumps.
They branch more like black raspberries
and are pruned the same way. Even their
fruit, shown in photo 5, looks and tastes
like black raspberries, although it is often
larger, lighter in color and milder in taste.
These raspberries are resistant to insect
damage — very important if you’ve had
6
{ Plants need lots of water to
form juicy berries — at least 2 in. per
week after the petals drop and the
fruit begins to swell (inset).
problems with raspberry mosaic, a disease carried from plant to plant by
aphids. I’ll tell you more about this
problem and a few others on the following page. Grow purple raspberries
in USDA cold-hardiness zones 4 to 9 and
in AHS heat-tolerance zones 9 to 1.
There are many choices, and they’re
all good. To help you out, I’ve gathered a
list of cultivars in the chart below. And on
p. 43 there are several raspberry mailorder companies that sell certified virusfree stock. That way you’re assured of
healthy, disease-free plants.
So, how many raspberries do you
need to plant? You should be able to
pick one or two pounds of raspberries
per foot of single row. Two 10-foot rows
of black raspberries should give you
enough berries for a family of four to eat
fresh and more to preserve for the winter.
Like reds? A 4-foot-wide and 10-footlong patch would give
you about the same har- Names to know
vest. If you want your Your guide to the
raspberry plants loaded common and botanical
with berries, like the one names of plants on
these pages
in photo 6 is, turn the
Black
raspberry
page. I’ll show you how
Rubus occidentalis
to plant and take care of Red raspberry
your raspberries to get the
Rubus idaeus
best harvest.
RASPBERRIES AT A GLANCE
CULTIVAR NAME
‘Fall Red’
‘Heritage’
‘Latham’
‘Liberty’
‘Redwing’
‘Reville’
‘Blackhawk’
COMMENTS
Red everbearing; large, sweet berries; hardy plant
Red everbearing; firm fruit; consistent producer
Red summerbearing; small fruit; later ripening
Red summerbearing; earlier than ‘Latham’; firm fruit
Red everbearing; big fruit; good for fresh eating
Red summerbearing; early; large berries
Black summerbearing; large fruit; later than ‘Jewel’
CULTIVAR NAME
‘Bristol’
‘Jewel’
‘Anne’
‘Autumn Harvest’
‘Fall Gold’
‘Brandywine’
‘Royalty’
G A R D E N G AT E
COMMENTS
Black summerbearing; upright grower; large fruit
Black summerbearing; vigorous; productive
Gold everbearing; unique flavor; good for making jam
Gold everbearing; small, mild-flavored berries
Gold everbearing; rated sweetest in our test garden
Purple summerbearing; tart, firm berries
Purple summerbearing; sweet fruit for fresh eating
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Armed with information
about what’s available,
you now need to know
about caring for your raspberries. How do you plant
them when they arrive?
What problems should you be on the
lookout for? What’s the best way to prune
them so you get lots of berries? On these
pages I’ll share some tips about those
things and more. And in two or three
years I’ll expect a pie from you! ®
— Jim Childs
PLANTING, WATERING AND MULCHING: A GOOD START
2 to 4 in.
mulch
Leaf buds
•
•
•
•
Crown
2 in.
below
soil
level
•
Soaker
hose
Before you plant in spring, find a spot in full sun or part
shade and work rotted manure or compost into the soil
to a depth of about 6 in. Dig wide holes deep enough so
you can set the bare-root raspberrys’ crowns 2 in. deeper
than soil level. Cut each raspberry cane back so just two
leaf buds show above the soil. New growth will quickly
sprout from underground and on the shortened cane.
Raspberries need lots of water. A soaker hose keeps
the fruit and leaves dry, helping to prevent the spread of
diseases. And in well-drained soil, a layer of mulch helps
keep the roots moist.
6 RASPBERRY PESTS
•
Orange
rust
•
•
Raspberry
mosaic
•
•
Raspberries are easy to grow, but occasionally you
might find a few diseases.
Orange rust is carried by wind or water from
infected plants and mainly affects black and purple
raspberries, but rarely reds. Look for orange pustules
of waxy spores on the underside of pale leaves in late
June. Infected canes are weak and usually won’t flower.
Raspberry mosaic virus is carried by aphids from
plant to plant. Black cultivars are more susceptible than red ones. You’ll first notice puckered leaves with dark-green blisters
surrounded by yellow-green tissue.
Over a period of years, the plants
become stunted, and any berries that
form are seedy. Pull out and bury orange
rust- and raspberry mosaic-infested plants
4 ft. or more deep; or you can burn them.
Spur blight affects red and purple raspSpur berries. Look for brown or purple fungus spots
blight
below a leaf bud near the ground. The disease
causes buds and leaves to shrivel and canes to
split vertically. The next summer the buds are weak
or withered. Remove the infected canes in early
spring and spray the soil and lower portion of the
canes with a lime-sulfur or copper fungicide.
Insects love to eat raspberries as much as you do. Here
are some of the more common pests you might spot.
Japanese beetles skeletonize leaves — there’s nothing
Japanese
beetle
left but a tattered piece of
brown lace. As the fruit
•
ripens, they eat the berries
almost faster than you
1/ in.
2
Raspberry
1/ in.
can pick them.
fruitworm
8
beetle
Raspberry fruit•
worms chew holes in
1/ in.
Raspberry
4
•
the leaves and flower
fruitworm
buds as beetles. Later,
worms eat the ripe fruit.
Tilling the soil around the bed just 2 or 3 in. deep
brings the larvae of both of these pests to the surface.
There, predators, such as birds, can munch on them. Till in
Picnic
beetle
spring for Japanese beetles and fall for fruitworms.
Picnic beetles bore into ripening fruit to feed and
lay eggs. They also carry a fungus that causes the fruit
1/ in.
to rot quickly. Overripe raspberries are especially
4
attractive to picnic beetles, so keep your plants picked
clean of ripe fruit. Tie the canes up off the ground to
prevent damaged or spoiled fruit. And remove decaying
vegetation, where they can lay eggs and overwinter.
SUPPORT SYSTEMS
You can grow raspberries without a trellis, but guiding the canes will help
you pick berries from the thorny stems without bloodshed. And a
support will keep the fruit up off the ground and cleaner. Using a trellis
will also let more light into your plants to promote larger crops.
4 ft.
2X4
•
6 ft.
2X4
6 ft.
4X4
{Free standing — This system works for everbearing raspberries that are cut to the ground
each year. They can stand on their own, and
there are no nonproducing canes to contend
with as you harvest. Plus there are no wires or
posts in the way as you cut down the old plants.
28
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
•
•
5 ft.
4X4
•
{The horizontal, or “T,” system — In spring,
tie the long fruiting canes of black raspberries
to supports with cloth strips. Or you can carefully weave the flexible canes between the
wires. The center wires keep the new canes out
of the way as you harvest.
G A R D E N G AT E
{Hedgerow — Canes are supported by wires
along the edges of the bed. It’s a good system
for raspberries that sucker. One disadvantage:
New canes are mixed in with the old fruiting
canes. When it comes time to prune out the
old ones, it’s a sometimes a bit of a tangle.
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PRUNING YOUR RASPBERRIES
Raspberries need to be pruned because the canes are biennial. That means that the first year,
each cane just grows in height and girth. The second year, it produces fruit and dies. To make
the plants easier to work around and harvest, it’s best to remove the dead canes. There are different pruning strategies for each type. Here’s how to prune your raspberry plants.
Summerbearing red and gold raspberries
•
Everbearing red and gold raspberries
Cut all
canes to
the ground
Trim tips
•
Remove
damaged
canes
Cut out
old canes
•
•
{Step one — In late summer or early fall,
remove all of the canes that have just finished
producing fruit. Cut these old canes off level
with the ground. If you can burn, that’s the best
way to get rid of them. Or bury them 4 ft. deep
or send them away in the trash because they
can harbor diseases and insects. Leave the new
canes standing.
Black and purple raspberries
New canes
{Step two — On a warm, late-winter day, look
over the canes and remove any that are weak or
damaged. Check the remaining ones for symptoms of disease and remove those, too. As
growth starts in the spring, shorten the canes to
a height where they can support themselves
upright — usually about 3 ft. If you fasten your
canes to a support system, now is the time to
tie them in place. Then trim the tips of the
canes to fit the trellis height.
Remove
old canes
Leave 12 in. on
lateral branches
{One crop system — If you prune this way,
you’ll get one large crop that starts in August
and will often last until a killing frost.
To prune, simply cut all of the canes to the
ground. You can do this either in early spring
before new growth starts or in late fall. One
advantage to this system — it gives you a chance
to do a thorough cleanup so you can get rid of
diseases and insects that might live in the canes.
Next spring, new canes will sprout and have
time to bear one large crop by fall. Since all red
raspberries sucker, you might get lots of new
plants coming up outside the bed. Just cut
them off underground with a sharp spade and
remove them.
Two-crop system — Would you prefer to
have everbearing raspberries bear fruit over a
long season? Then follow the pruning instructions for summerbearing red and gold raspberries. Whichever pruning method you use, you’ll
get about the same total amount of fruit.
Trim off 3 or
4 in. when new
canes reach
4 ft. tall
•
•
•
•
New
canes
•
{Step one — Black and most purple raspberries form clumps rather than spreading like the
red ones do. After harvest, remove all of the
old canes, but leave the new ones that grew
over the summer.
{Step two — In spring, remove any weak or
diseased canes, leaving just four or five of the
strongest ones in each clump. There will be
long lateral branches growing from each cane.
Shorten them back so each one measures about
12 in. Those are the branches where the berries
will be produced. If you’re tying the canes to
wires or a trellis, now is the time.
G A R D E N G AT E
{Step three — As new canes sprout from each
clump and grow to about 4 ft. tall, cut off
3 or 4 in. of the tip to encourage more lateral
branching. This will be an ongoing job as canes
grow through the summer. When new canes are
produced after about July 4, cut them off at
ground level because late canes often won’t
come through the winter in good shape and
will be weak. If you remove them, the rest of
the plant will have more energy for fruit production next year.
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S P E C I A L PR O J E C T
Hedgerow raspberry trellis
W
hy trellis raspberries? Well, for one thing, trellising
makes them easier to harvest and prune. And, if
you’re fortunate enough to have a stem-bending bounty, a
trellis will keep your berries off the ground.
What’s nice about this hedgerow trellis is it’s flexible. You
can install it before or after you’ve planted. And there’s no
size limitation — you can keep adding posts and stretching
wire for as many raspberry plants as you’d like. I put up two
trellises side by side for the raspberries in our test garden.
You’ll want a post every 20 to 25 feet of row to give the
wires support. Put one post at each end of the row set
about 1 foot away from the nearest cane. Using a post
hole digger, dig the holes 2½ to 4 feet deep depending on
the frost line where you live. To even the tops of the posts,
put your posts in the holes and eye the tops or use a level.
If one seems much taller or shorter than another, dig out
some soil or fill in the hole.
You can find most of the materials I used to build this
hedgerow trellis at your local home improvement center. The
wirevises are unique because they’re designed to hold the
wire secure with hassle-free tightening. To order wirevises
or post caps and finials, you’ll find a couple of mail-order
resources on p. 43. Now, to get started building this
trellis, check out the steps at right.
1
2
Set the posts. When you have the
posts even, add a few shovelfuls of
concrete to each hole until it makes a
small mound around the post. This
mound will let water run away. Set a
level against the side of each post to
help you get it plumb. Let the concrete set up for several hours.
Mark the first post. Make a
mark on the inside of one post
1 ft. off the ground and 1 in. from the
right edge of the post. Make a second
mark 2½ in. down from the first and
an inch off the left edge. Move up 24
in. from the first mark and make a
second set of marks. Then measure
up another 24 in. and do it again.
6
7
Install the
wirevises.
Place a wirevise in each of the six enlarged holes — long end into the
hole. Then use two ¾-in. #8 screws to
attach each wirevise to the post. You
only need to tighten the wire from
one end of your trellis — that’s why
you only use wirevises on one post.
10
Install the screw eyes. On the
inside of the first post, install a
screw eye in each of the six holes that
you started earlier. You can screw
them in more easily if you use the
shaft of a screwdriver to help turn the
eye. These screw eyes will hold one
end of the wire.
Attach the post caps. Use a bead of silicone on the inside of the post
cap to hold it securely on the top of each post. How you attach your
finial depends on the type you choose. Some screw directly into the post.
30
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
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Electrical
tape
3
Mark the second post. Drill a
pilot hole at the lowest mark on
the first post. Twist in a screw eye and
tie a string to it. Stretch the string to
the other post and level the string
with a line level. Make a mark, but this
time an inch off the right edge of the
post. Measure up from there for the
other marks. Remove the screw eye.
4
Drill the holes. On the second post, use an extra
long 1/8-in. bit to drill all the way through the post at
each of your six marks. These holes will accommodate the wire. On the outside
of the post, use a 3/8-in. bit to make these holes larger for the wirevises. You
only want these enlarged sides of the holes to be 1¼ in. deep, so to keep the bit
from going deeper, wrap a small piece of electrical tape around the bit (see
inset). This will act as a depth guide.
On the first post, use a drill to make a ¼-in.-deep starter hole at each mark
so the screw eyes are easier to install later.
5
Paint the posts. Since you
haven’t installed any hardware
yet, now is a good time to paint or
stain your posts and post caps if
you’d like. That way you won’t have
to mask off the hardware. I used an
opaque stain on our trellis.
MATERIALS AND TOOLS
Wirevise
#8 screw
23/16-in. screw eye
•
•
•
•
#12 wire
8
Attach the wire. To each screw
eye, tie a piece of wire 24 in.
longer than your row. We used a 22ft. length of wire for our 20-ft.-long
row. You can use regular or plasticcoated wire. To tie the wire, thread it
through the screw eye and twist the
wire back on itself. Use a wire clamp
to secure the end.
9
Thread the wire. For coated
wire, strip the plastic back so it
will slip through the wirevises. Push
each wire through its wirevise and
tighten it with the claw end of a hammer. As the wire stretches over time,
strip back more plastic and tighten
the wire the same way. Bend the wire
end down so it won’t poke anyone.
Materials needed
for each trellis:
2 cedar, 8-ft. 4x4 posts
#12 wire
1 bag quick-setting concrete
6 wirevises
12 #8 screws
6 23/16 screw eyes
•
Wire clamp
6 wire clamps
1 tube silicone caulk
2 post caps
Paint or stain
Tools:
Shovel, hammer, pliers, screw
driver, square, line level,
caulking gun, drill, bits, brush
11
Train the canes. As your raspberries grow taller, weave the
branches through the narrow space
between the pairs of offset wires.
Check them every couple of weeks
through the growing season to
“train” any new canes.
Since we had two rows of raspberries, we made two trellises side by
side. You can do the same depending on the number of rows you have.
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BASICS
I
ILLUSTRATION: TOM ROSBOROUGH
f you’re like me, the word “parasite”
conjures up all sorts of pictures, and
not very pretty ones at that. From a
trip to the vet with the dog to things
you don’t want to contract, parasites
aren’t usually considered beneficial. But
here are a few that may change your
opinion. These parasitoids, or insect parasites, quietly go about their business
attacking garden pests.
Anytime there’s an insect pest, there’s
usually a beneficial parasitoid nearby. You
probably already have many of them in
your garden. For the most part, they’re
tiny — small enough to fit on the head of
a pin — so you may not have noticed
them. But the beneficial population usually lags behind the pest population. That
means that the going gets a little tough for
your plants before the tough get going.
What’s unique about each of these parasitoids is it needs a specific host (the pest)
to complete its life cycle. It enters or lays
an egg on or inside the host. When the parasitoid egg hatches, the young starts
feeding on the pest (yes, while it’s still
alive) from the inside out. And we wonder
where writers get ideas for horror films!
So when you employ these parasitoids,
keep in mind that they’ll take some time
to find the pest and start another life cycle
before you notice real results.
How many parasitoids you use will
depend on your garden situation. You’ll
need different quantities for an orchard,
a greenhouse or a mixed vegetable patch.
I’ve found the customer service folks at all
three companies I’ve used to be helpful in
deciding how many to order.
When you release beneficials in your
garden, there are things you can do to
encourage them to stick around. One is to
irrigate more frequently so there’s water for
your helpers to drink. Another is to keep
insecticide use to a minimum. Insecticides
have an almost immediate effect on pest
populations, but many of the chemicals are
nonselective, meaning they harm the beneficials along with the pests.
Occasionally, especially with seasonal
crops, such as bedding plants and vegetables, you’ll notice big bunches of pests.
When there’s a chance the whole plant
will die unless you act immediately, you’ll
have to enlist extra help, like washing off
the insects with a hose. If you use an insec-
ticide, you can apply it right up until you
release the parasitoids. Be sure to use one
with minimal residual effect, such as insecticidal soap. That way there’s no insecticide
left that could kill the beneficials.
There are a couple of ways that these
parasitoids can help. First, you can introduce parasitoids to the natural population
to keep pests and predators in balance. If
your garden environment matches the
needs of the parasitoids, they can take up
residence and continue to work for you.
The second way is to use parasitoids as
an insecticide. This means releasing beneficials to help you through a season,
knowing they won’t survive after the crop
is harvested or cold weather strikes. I’ll
tell you more about this at right. These parasitoids attack specific pests, so make sure
you know what’s bugging your plants
before you order. Your county extension
office can help you with this.
So if you’re looking for a good scary
movie, you’ll have to tune into late-night TV
because these garden parasitoids won’t
scare you in the least. Now if you’re a pesky
garden pest, that’s a different story! ®
— Anne Nieland
Garden Heroes
They may be tiny, but these creatures pack a big punch!
Illustration
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F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
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AMAZING APHIDIUS
NOBLE NEMATODES
What they attack — These wasps parasitize aphids. What does that mean for
your garden? Aphidius parasitic wasps
go into your garden, hone in on aphids
and start reducing the pest population.
The best part? The wasps aren’t
1
harmful to people, pets or other beneficial insects.
How they arrive — On your doorstep
you’ll find a vial of aphid mummies, or
the shells of parasitized aphids, where
the wasp eggs develop into wasps. So
when you get them, they’re ready to go
to work. Several of these wasps fit on the
head of a pin. That is if you could get
2
them to stand still. When I’ve ordered
them, the tube was already filled with a
flurry of activity — many of the wasps had hatched. If you look closely at
photo 1, you can see a lot of little black wasps in the tube.
How to use them — Order a shipment at the first sign of aphids. Release the
wasps in the evening by placing open vials under aphid-infested plants, as in
photo 2. Leave the vials for a few days so remaining wasps have time to
hatch. It can take a few days before the young wasps do enough damage to
immobilize the aphids. So you still might find aphids alive and sucking on
your plants’ juices while the wasps are doing their work inside the aphid.
Not to worry. They’ll soon start to make a difference. As with other beneficial insects, the wasps don’t kill off an aphid pest population as completely
as an insecticide would. They do help keep the population in check by
reducing it enough that the plant can recover and keep on growing.
These wasps can be pricey, so expect to pay more than you’d pay for
some other parasitoids, such as the ones for whiteflies. Aphidius wasps
won’t overwinter where temperatures drop below freezing.
TRICKY TRICHOGRAMMAS
What they attack — Just like beneficial
nematodes, Trichogramma wasps control many moth and butterfly caterpillars. The difference is that these wasps
attack the egg stage, whereas the nematodes attack larvae. How do you
choose? Both beneficial nematodes and 1
wasps have host pests in common. For
aboveground pests that are chomping
on leaves, Trichogramma wasps have the
edge. Nematodes are your first choice
for soil-dwelling insects, such as grubs.
How they arrive — When your wasps
arrive, they’ll be just ready to hatch out
of moth eggs glued on a small card and
placed in a vial. Trichogramma wasps are 2
small, but you should be able to see
them as they hatch from the eggs on the cardboard.
How to use them — You’ll want to set them out right away to get working.
Place the vial with the cardboard near where the pests are. For example, to
control tent caterpillars, place the vials in the crook of the tree (photo 1). To
control chewing pests in your perennials, place an opened vial at the base of
a plant (photo 2). Put Trichogramma wasps in your garden any time of year
that it’s not freezing; otherwise they’ll die off. Since they like it warm, the
best time to release them is when the temperature reaches 70 to 80 degrees.
Keep the moisture up in your garden so they’ll easily find a drink.
What they attack — If you’re an insect
larvae — caterpillar, looper or grub — your
days are numbered in the presence of beneficial nematodes. These are different
than the ones that harm plants. Beneficial
nematodes attack pests, such as cabbage
loopers, corn rootworms and white grubs. 1
Nematodes can affect adult stages of
these insects, but are most efficient when
they’re applied where the larvae hang out,
such as on the soil or the leaves.
You probably already have beneficial
nematodes in your soil, but by applying
more, you’re augmenting the natural population. They’re specific as to what they
attack, so they don’t harm humans, pets or 2
earthworms. If you have an annual
problem with a certain pest, such as rootworms on your sweet corn, use
these nematodes as a preventative measure. Or, you can apply them when
you first see the pests or signs of them.
How they arrive — Nematodes are microscopic. You won’t actually see
them in the packaging container. When I’ve ordered them, the nematodes
came on a vermiculite carrier, or material that holds them until they’re
released. Sometimes they come on a premoistened piece of foam.
How to use them — However they come, you’ll need to mix them with
water. Then strain out the carrier and spray the nematode-water solution
on with a pump sprayer or water it on with a watering can, like I’m doing in
photos 1 and 2 above. The strained carrier still has nematodes on it, so
sprinkle it on your soil or sod for control of soil-dwelling pests.
Nematodes are averse to direct sunlight, so plan on using them late in
the day so they have a chance to move into a protected area overnight.
As long as the ground isn’t frozen, you can put nematodes out. They’ll
work better in warmer temperatures, though. If you aren’t able to apply
them right away, you can refrigerate them for up to two weeks.
EXTRAORDINARY ENCARSAS
What they attack — Whiteflies don’t
stand much of a chance when whitefly
parasitoids are nearby. The parasitic
wasps seek out whitefly nymphs, or the
immature stage of the whitefly, and help
control the pest population.
How they arrive — The wasps will arrive 1
in the egg stage, glued to small pieces of
cardboard. Remove the plastic bag and
place the cardboard in the accompanying box, as I’m doing in photo 1.
How to use them — Hang the box from
a whitefly-infested plant or place it
in the crook of a tree, as in photo 2.
These parasitoids like it warm —
between 70 and 95 degrees is ideal. They 2
work more slowly when it’s cooler, and
don’t overwinter in areas with freezing temperatures.
Just as with controlling aphids, it takes time for the released insects to
increase in population. So if you didn’t notice you had whiteflies until they
were billowing in clouds from your plants, you’ll first need to use another
control method, such as insecticidal soaps. You can use the soaps right up
until the parasitic wasp shipment arrives. After releasing the wasps, stop
using the soaps and let the insects get to work.
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DESIGN
This rough stone boundary wall is low
enough to encourage a neighborly visit.
1
Garden Walls
A practical and beautiful gardening tradition.
W
ith apologies to the poet
Robert Frost, good walls
make good gardens as well as
good neighbors.
From ancient times, walls have
marked borders, defined spaces and created secure and protected areas to live
and work. Today, a wall in your garden
can have the same practical uses, be an
important part of the design and help
your plants, as well.
34
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
Boundaries — A low wall makes a
clear, yet subtle, boundary. Notice how
the informal stone wall in photo 1
defines the front yard without isolating
it? It’s the first element in a welcoming
layout that leads the eye from the space
outside, along the brick path and up
to the porch.
For a more private area, the taller brick
structure in photo 2 is a good choice. This
wall’s open design lets breezes blow
G A R D E N G AT E
through, helping to keep the area cool
for people. Moving air also means less
chance of diseases for plants.
Aesthetics — Walls can be an integral
part of a garden’s design. The solid forms
and repeating patterns in photo 2 have
a precise look and act as a visual anchor
for the softer, more random form of the
vine. The dark, rich reds of the brick
also contrast with the foliage. Together
they make this wall an unmistakable
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M. C. PINDAR
© CHARLES MANN
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2
3
{ A repeating pattern makes this brick wall a
solid visual foundation for the vines.
{ The smooth face of an adobe wall pulls these different plants together. Their bright colors and
multiple textures need the calming influence of the wall’s unadorned surface.
DESIGN: DAVID CULP
boundary that still lends an elegant, a warmer, more sheltered space to
tuck in all those container plants,
formal tone to the garden.
Although the wall in photo 3 is about which might have difficulty in a more
the same height, the adobe structure has exposed location. I’ll show you more
a totally different personality. The plain, about how walls create microclimates
simple surface and rounded edges don’t and how they can be used in the garden
call attention to themselves. This wall is on p. 41.
Convinced a wall would work wona privacy screen and a sound barrier for
the enclosed space on the other side. ders in your garden? In the next section
But out here, the smooth, blank wall I’ll share some of the tips and techniques
serves as a backdrop that pulls the tex- you can use to construct a traditional 4
{ A wall-turned-container garden not only
tures, colors and sizes of all the different dry-stacked stone wall for yourself. ®
— Glen O. Seibert directs traffic, it puts the plants within easy reach.
plants together.
Even purely functional walls
can be made beautiful. The
brick divider in photo 4 was
originally intended just to
control traffic between the
driveway and the lawn. But
adding a built-in planter to the
top of the wall transforms a
stern, utilitarian barrier into a
raised bed that allows easy
access to the flowers.
Microclimates — A wellplaced wall can even change
the weather. Walls create garden
microclimates in areas around
them. See that corner area in
photo 5? It’s formed by an
old foundation, which deflects
the wind and cold air that
flow down from the hill behind
it. At the same time the stones
that face the sun and the
5
concrete floor gather heat during
the day, then release it back { Walls form microclimates that can extend bloom times and shelter plants that may normally be too tender
into the area at night. It becomes to grow in your area.
G A R D E N G AT E
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SPECIAL PROJECT
To plant in your wall, plug small, rooted sections
of trailing herbs, succulents or perennials into
the spaces between the stones. Fill in the gaps
with extra soil and water gently.
Dry-stacking stone
Y
1
Define the wall’s footprint. For a wall under
36 in. high, a 24-in. width is enough. The wall
can be as long as you like. Dig out 6 in. of soil. Fill
the trench with 2 in. of sand as a fast-draining
base for the wall’s foundation.
ou’d think a structure piled together
without mortar would be flimsy.
In fact, dry-stacked stone walls the world
over have been standing for thousands
of years. Gravity and friction hold them
together so they weather extreme temperature fluctuations without cracking
or heaving.
The technique for building a stone wall
is simple. It just takes some test-fitting
and adjustments for every individual stone. Think of a jigsaw
puzzle: Each piece works to lock
all the others around it together.
And it’s so satisfying to watch
a pile of rock turn into a beautiful
wall under your own hands. So
2
roll up your sleeves, put on your gloves
and let’s get dry-stacking.
Location and materials — First, decide
where you want the wall. There could be
zoning or planning regulations about
where you can put your wall, so check
with your local building department.
Walls can be stacked using almost any
kind of stone. For this wall, I chose a
smooth, native limestone. As you see in
the photo above, it has a rough surface
but is still flat. Stone that’s native to your
Lay the foundation. Angle the foundation stones
about 20 degrees in toward the center of the wall.
The next levels, or courses, will lean in. Gravity will
settle and stabilize them.
Place the largest, heaviest stones at the edges of
the trench. Fill the center with smaller stones. With a
soft, sand base, adjusting the foundation requires only
a gentle tapping with a sledgehammer.
Arrange the stones with their most attractive
faces showing and fill the area between the stones
with sand.
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F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
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area is usually easiest to find and will
blend into the environment well. Local
materials are often less expensive because
they don’t have to be shipped very far. But
if they’re unavailable, or you’d just prefer
a different look, you could even use
chunks of broken concrete.
You’ll need to know how many cubic
yards of stone to order for your wall. To
calculate this, multiply the wall’s length
by the height by the width, then divide by
27. For example, a wall 12 feet long times
3 feet tall times 2 feet wide equals 72.
Divide by 27 and you get 2.66 cubic yards
of stone. Order 3 cubic yards, just to be
safe. Stone is usually priced by type —
sandstone, limestone, granite, etc. Some
supply companies charge a flat, per-pallet
price and let you mix and match various
stone types to get the colors or shapes
you want. You can also select prepackaged collections of stone and get a
random selection. These “grab bags” are
often considerably less expensive.
Delivery charges are usually
extra. Be sure you have an area
close to the wall to receive the
stones. You don’t want to carry
them any further than necessary.
Patience and craftsmanship are
the watchwords in building a drystacked stone wall. The pros say
that no matter how fast you work,
you can probably stack about 4
linear feet of wall a day. So take
ROUND STONE IN A SQUARE WALL
It’s unlikely that you’ll be able to build an
entire wall with nothing but uniformly
square, smooth-faced, tightly fitting stones.
River boulders, or even smaller, irregular
chunks of cut stone, can be used in dry-stack
construction. But they need to be secured
into the wall with wedges.
Start by setting the stone as firmly as
possible. Then lodge thin shards of stone
into the gaps.
Wedges work from the inside or outside,
but inside wedging is best. Gravity, the sand
fill and the structure’s inward slope will all
help to hold the stone firmly in place.
your time, invest the extra energy in doing
a good job and your grandchildren will
enjoy your work in years to come. Take
care of yourself, too. Building a stone wall
can be physically taxing, so lift even the
smaller, lighter stones with your back
straight and legs bent. And don’t stack
the wall any higher than 36 inches. Taller
structures require a different kind of
building technique, and lifting stones
above your waist isn’t something you
should try without some help.
MATERIALS
AND TOOLS
Materials:
Builder’s sand
Landscape stone
Flat, thin capstones
Tools:
Heavy work clothes, leather
gloves, safety goggles,
6-lb. sledgehammer, shovel,
steel-toed safety boots,
wooden stakes
3
Lock the foundation stones
together by filling the open spaces
with sand. Stack each additional course
and fill it in the same way.
Tie stone
Tie stone
4
Stagger the stones in the interlocking style you
see above. Each stone overlaps the one below it,
preventing weak, vertical “runs.”
Lay a tie stone crossways every 24 in. on each course.
These ties keep stones below them from tilting outward.
Finish the top of your wall with thin, wide capstones. They lock down the last course and keep water
from running into the wall.
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Questions&Answers
Gardening questions?
Jot them down and send them to Garden Gate Q&A, 2200 Grand Ave.,
Des Moines, IA 50312. Please include your name, address and daytime
phone number in case we need to reach you. If you’d like, fax your
questions to 515-283-2003 or send us an e-mail message at gardengate@
gardengatemag.com. Because we receive so many questions, we can’t
answer all of them, but we’ll certainly contact you if we publish yours.
Earwigs
Watering Boston ferns
Q
Q
An exterminator told
me that my house has
earwigs, but they’re harmless. Even so, how can I get
rid of them?
H.T., San Angelo, TX
A
Can’t blame you.
Earwigs (Forficula
auricularia) are not poisonous insects, but those
prongs on the tail end can
inflict a hefty pinch. The
bugs can also damage fruits
and packaged foods. And
they really aren’t a pleasant
sight to see running around
your house.
First, make sure the tiny
cracks and openings around
doors, windows and the
house’s foundation are
sealed up tight with caulking
or expanding foam. That’s
where earwigs come in. You
can vacuum up those that
are already inside (put some
camphor mothballs in the
vacuum’s bag to kill them).
The creatures breed and
thrive outside under debris
and rocks, so clear these
from around the house.
Earwigs don’t reproduce
or infest inside, so large-scale
extermination isn’t needed.
But a spray of ant
killer around your
windows and doors
will help to keep the
pests out. ®
Actual size:
3/ in.
4
38
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
The fronds of my
Boston fern are
drooping, and the tips are
brown and brittle. I mist
and water every three days
and keep the soil moist.
What am I doing wrong?
I.C., Rapid City, SD
A
Watering a Boston fern
(Nephrolepis exaltata
‘Bostoniensis’) can be tricky.
If its soil is too moist, the tips
of the fronds can droop and
then turn brown. But if
you’re giving your ferns just
a little water every few days,
the soil at the bottom of the
pot may be bone
dry even though
water runs through the
drain holes.
To get the soil evenly
moist, set the potted
plant in your kitchen
sink, or a large pan, then fill
the sink with water. Let the
water soak through the
bottom holes for 20 minutes
or so, then allow the fern to
fully drain before returning it
to its usual place. Do this
deep root-zone watering
every few weeks to saturate
the soil. In between these
Keeping hydrangeas in the pink
Q
I want to plant hydrangeas but don’t
want to turn them blue. How can I
get a deep-pink flower?
C.T., West Plains, MO
A
A hydrangea won’t turn any pinker
(or bluer) than it’s genetically able to.
It’s true you can change the color of some
hydrangeas by making the soil more acid
with sulfur (for blue) and more alkaline
with lime (for pink). But that chemistry
will only take the color so far.
There are cultivars, however, that have
been bred to bloom with more intense
and vivid-pink flowers.
‘Forever Pink’ (Hydrangea hortensias)
grows 3 feet tall and wide, with brightpink flowers that turn redder as the
weather cools. The shrub flowers profusely from early June until frost. ‘Forever
Pink’ is cold-hardy in USDA zones 6 to 9
and is heat-tolerant in AHS zones 8 to 1. It
flowers on new wood, so even if branches
are frost-damaged, it will still bloom.
G A R D E N G AT E
treatments, top-water the
soil lightly when the surface
becomes completely dry.
Chlorinated tap water
can also cause browning
leaves. Allow chlorinated
water to stand overnight in
an open container before
using it. Or try distilled, bottled water or collected rainwater for your fern. ®
Pink ElfTM (Hydrangea macrophylla
‘Pia’) has more pointed flowers that start
out vivid pink at the tips and fade gradually to a white center. It’s cold-hardy in
USDA zones 5 to 11, heat-tolerant in AHS
zones 12 to 1, and at 18 inches tall, it’s
good for planting in a container or in a
border under filtered sun.
Buttons ’N BowsTM (Hydrangea
macrophylla ‘Monrey’) has deep-pink
flowers with rounded edges laced in
white. It’s cold-hardy in USDA zones 7 to
9 and heat-tolerant in AHS zones 9 to 1.
It likes filtered sun. At 3 feet tall,
Buttons ’N Bows makes a great foreground plant. It also works well as a
cover for deck posts, foundations and as
a living screen to hide unsightly air conditioning machinery, utility boxes or
exterior plumbing.
Check your soil’s pH. If it’s neutral or
acid, work a cup of lime into the soil
around each plant in spring and fall. It
will keep the pH around 7 — insurance
that the flowers will remain pink. ®
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Pruning rose of Sharon
Q
My rose of Sharon has
bloomed beautifully for the
last four years. But this year there
were flowers on only one half of
the plant. Is there anything I can
do to get it to start flowering
evenly all over?
B.A., Rockford, IL
A
It sounds like one part of your
rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) was damaged by a spring
cold snap in your USDA zone 5
area. Rose of Sharon produces
flowers on growth from the current year. So if new, young
branches were damaged, you
wouldn’t see any flowers develop.
You can prune out the damaged
branches on your fast-growing
shrub to stimulate flowering and
also keep it compact. Cut all the
branches back to about 12 inches
from the ground in early spring.
This stimulates new flowering
shoots for an even bloom from Prune
midsummer to first frost. ®
stems
to 12 in.
Geranium name game
Tobacco cautions
Q
Q
I’m seeing “cutting geraniums” and “seed
geraniums” in my garden center. What’s the
difference? Is one better than the other?
I make chewing tobacco “tea” to kill garden
insects. It’s organic, so it’s safe to use around
beneficial insects, right?
R.L., Auburn, NE
S.G., Sheldon, IA
“Cutting” and “seed” refer to the way the plant
was propagated. Bedding geraniums (Pelargonium
spp.) used to be grown just from cuttings. But today
many varieties are started from seed.
Seed-grown plants have blended traits that they get
from random combinations of their parents’ genes. An
improved resistance to disease, new flower shapes and
colors or different types of foliage textures come from
this hybridization. Plants from cuttings are all identical
clones of the original.
For the home gardener, there’s really no difference.
Whether you are buying plants grown from seed or
cloned from cuttings, look for the ones that are vigorous and healthy. But other than that, choose those
you’ll simply enjoy in your garden. ®
Unfortunately, it’s not. The active ingredient in
tobacco tea is nicotine. Nicotine is a very effective
insect killer, but it’s nonselective. Your tea will kill any
bugs that come in contact with it — the good ones as
well as the bad. There’s also a chance of spreading
tobacco mosaic virus to eggplant, tomatoes and other
plants in the nightshade family by using tobacco tea.
A safer alternative, for both the beneficial insects
and the plants, would be an insecticidal soap spray.
Although it, too, is nonselective, it has no residual
effects after the soap has dried. Good bugs won’t be
harmed if they’re not directly sprayed with it.
Generally, beneficial insects are at work in the daytime, so plan nighttime raids to get the destructive
garden pests while they’re feeding. ®
A
Seaside survivors
Q
My yard is exposed to constant
wind and salt spray. What can I
plant that will survive these conditions?
K.E., Seaside, CA
A
Despite your cool and beautiful
coastal location, you’re still developing a garden in a
climate that is semiarid, Mediter-
A
ranean-type desert. In USDA coldhardiness zone 9, you’ll need to select
tough, drought-tolerant plants that are
able to resist or at least tolerate salty,
sandy soil, constant, gusty winds,
intense, full sun and the occasional
lashing from violent Pacific storms.
See the box on the right for a list of
salt, sun and wind-tolerant plants.
These tough specimens will survive
your demanding garden. ®
SALT-TOLERANT PLANTS
Ground covers
Periwinkle Vinca minor
USDA zones 4 to 9/AHS zones 9 to 1
Ice plant Carprobrotus edulis
Medium-sized shrubs, hedges or fillers
Blue fescue Festuca glauca
Firecracker plant Russelia equisetiformis
Upright rosemary Rosmarinus officinalis
Natal plum Carissa macrocarpa
Large trees
Norfolk Island pine Araucaria heterophylla
Monterey cypress Cupressus macrocarpa
Saw palmetto Serenoa repens
G A R D E N G AT E
39
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Questions&Answers
WEED WATCH
Soil mounded at
tunnel entrances
•
Voles and moles
Raised ridges mark tunnels
•
Q
How do I tell if I have
moles or voles? How
can I get rid of them?
J.W., Pickens, SC
A
Yellow nutsedge
Cyperus esculentus
Identification — Yellow nutsedge
is a perennial weed with slender,
½-in.-wide leaves that grow up to
2 ft. long. It sprouts in early
summer and matures by fall.
Triangular stems, up to 3 ft. tall,
rise from the center of each plant.
On top are clusters of yellow
flowering spikes.
While yellow nutsedge does
grow from seed, its corms, often
called “nutlets,” are the structures that reproduce most
quickly. Each plant sends out
underground runners that produce clusters of the nutlets. After
these nutlets are ready to grow
on their own, the parent plant
disconnects and the nutlets
sprout. When you pull mature
plants, the nutlets break free and
are left behind.
Favorite conditions — This weed
thrives almost anywhere it
receives full sun. And it’s damaging to crops: Yellow nutsedge
hosts a soil-dwelling bacteria that
can destroy soil-borne nitrogen.
Control — The plant releases its
nutlets before chemical herbicides
are able to kill it.
So dig mature plants as soon as
you spot them and try to remove
as many nutlets as possible. You
won’t get them all, so be prepared
to pull up large numbers of young
plants next summer. ®
40
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
Both of these animals
can cause big damage
to the garden. But moles are
carnivores that feed on
grubs and worms. Their
damage is a side effect of
their tunneling to get to
food sources. And to be
honest, moles aren’t all bad.
Like earthworms and other
tunneling creatures, moles
are part of the natural soilmaking process. They
“swim” through the earth,
pulling material from in
front of them with their
large, strong foreclaws.
Vole
8 in.
This burrowing opens and
fluffs the soil’s structure,
improving drainage and
mixing in important
organic materials.
Voles, on the other hand,
are herbivores that munch
on leaves, bark or most any
part of a garden plant.
It’s unlikely you’ll see
either of them in action.
Identify them instead by the
clues they leave behind as
they work.
Moles often dig a main
tunnel with several side
branches. Excavated soil is
mounded up around their
tunnels’ entrances.
Voles live underground,
but create sheltered surface
runs that look like small
trails cropped out of the
surface vegetation.
3 in.
Tunnel
opening
•
•
Surface runs
cropped
in grass
Not the flower’s fault
Q
The ends of my ripening zucchini
always turn brown and moldy. Will
removing the spent flowers stop this?
D.B., Carthage, TN
A
No. You’re describing blossom end
rot, caused by a lack of calcium in the
cells of the fruit. This makes it mushy and
susceptible to mold. Quick, early growth
that’s followed by very dry weather and
an excess of salts in the soil are some
causes of this problem.
G A R D E N G AT E
Mole
Trapping is the most
effective way to bring these
creatures under control.
Set mole traps on top of
active tunnels. To find one,
collapse a surface ridge with
your foot. If it’s dug open
the next day, it’s active. Place
mole traps over the area
according to manufacturer’s
directions. In theory, when
the mole starts to re-open his
tunnel, he’ll spring the trap.
For voles, set two small
snap-spring mouse traps
end to end along several of
their runways. Bait the traps
with a peanut butter and
oatmeal mixture.
Remember, voles can
carry disease, so don’t touch
them with your bare hands.
Use a plastic trash bag to
pick up the animal and wrap
it, then put it in the trash. ®
For healthy zucchini, plant in welldrained soil and water deeply, especially
in the heat of summer. This will prevent
salt buildup and keep the root zone moist
but not soggy. Mulching will help to keep
the soil from drying out, too. And avoid
using high-ammonia fertilizers, such as
fresh manure. These can burn the plants’
roots, which will prevent them from
absorbing the calcium they need. The
ammonia also chemically “locks up”
calcium in the soil, making it unavailable
to the plants. ®
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Details
Creating garden microclimates with walls
T
he old saying goes,
“Everyone talks about
the weather, but no one does
anything about it.” But
building even a small wall in
your garden does do something about the weather — it
creates microclimates
around the structure.
Microclimates are pockets
with substantially different
environmental conditions
than their surroundings.
For example, depending
on the direction the wall
runs — north-south, eastwest or some variation
— the shadow it
casts will turn previously full-sun
areas into partshade or even fullshade areas.
Yet even in summer,
when the sun is higher in the
sky and both sides of the
wall may be sunny, one side
will still have a warmer
exposure. The garden on this
bright side may become so
dry from reflected sun and
convected heat that plants
that grew well in the area
before the wall was built will
now end up toasted. You’ll
want to consider more sunand heat-tolerant, low-water
plants, such as lavender
(Lavandula spp.) or sage
(Salvia spp.), to go into these
now hotter, drier and more
intense full-sun areas.
On the other hand, in
the fall, when the sun is
lower in the sky and
shadows grow longer, the
part-shade bed created on
the darker side of the wall
will be in full shade. So
plants that do well in a
broad range of light and
moisture conditions, such
as periwinkle (Vinca
minor), would be a good
choice there.
A wall also establishes a
wind break. The breezes that
may have formerly dried or
chilled the garden are
deflected. Pockets of still air
form warmer or cooler areas
on the side of the wall away
from the winds, depending
on its exposure to the sun.
This may give you the opportunity to grow plants that
otherwise wouldn’t survive
in your cold-hardiness or
heat-tolerance zone.
Wall absorbs heat during
the day and releases it
into air and soil at night.
Full sun
Full-sun, low-water plants,
such as lavender, tolerate
extra heat.
Because the temperature,
moisture and wind conditions are so different, temperatures can vary from
10 to 15 degrees on either
side of a wall. You might
be able to coax a zone 7
plant to grow and bloom in
zone 6. But be aware that
those flowers or shoots
could be damaged by a surprise frost.
As you can see, installing a
wall gives you a lot to consider. The illustration below
shows some of the microclimate conditions a wall creates. By understanding and
controlling these microclimates, you can use walls to
your advantage. You may
even extend the range and
seasons of your garden! ®
Winds flow over the top of the
wall, creating eddies on the back
side. Fall debris and winter snow
can pile up next to the wall.
Part-sun, moisture-loving plants,
such as Siberian iris and periwinkle,
thrive in cooler, shadier conditions.
•
•
Reflected
heat
Winter
shade
Summer
shade
•
Convected
heat
•
•
•
Mulch retains soil
moisture and
keeps soil cool.
Heat reflected and
convected from the wall
warms the soil early and
keeps it warmer than the
other side of the wall.
Because of the shade,
this soil stays cooler
longer and tends to be
more moist.
G A R D E N G AT E
41
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Editor’s Choice
‘Annabel’ lilac
D
on’t certain plants
remind you of your
childhood? I was quite
young when I had my first
experience with plant propagation. With a little help, I
dug a sucker of an ‘Annabel’
lilac from my grandparents’
garden and carried it home.
This light-pink beauty still
grows in the garden where I
planted it.
That was my first introduction to ‘Annabel’
(Syringa xhyacinthiflora),
and I’ve enjoyed her company ever since. Why? It
blooms a week or two earlier
than common lilacs and
has large flower clusters.
As fall arrives, the leaves of
‘Annabel’ often turn redpurple before they drop.
‘Annabel’ flowers are
good for cutting. Slit the
stem vertically about 2
inches up from the cut to
help the flower quickly
absorb water in the vase.
‘ANNABEL’ LILAC
Size
10 to 12 ft. tall;
9 to 12 ft. wide
Habit
Multistemmed,
dense and rounded
Soil
Moist, well-drained
Light
Full sun
Pests
None serious
Hardiness Cold:
USDA zones 3 to 7
Heat:
AHS zones 7 to 1
12 ft.
9 ft.
6 ft.
3 ft.
0
42
F E B R U A R Y 2002 / No 43
Because lilacs are so
durable and dependable,
they make excellent screens
and windbreaks. A hedge of
‘Annabel’ lilacs is beautiful.
Or, choose several lilac cultivars that bloom at different
times and mix them into the
border. For example, whiteflowering ‘Edith Cavell’
blooms a week or two after
‘Annabel’. Bright-pink ‘Miss
Canada’ blooms about two
weeks after that. With
careful selection, you can
have fragrant flowers for
more than a month.
Care and culture
Lilacs are easy to care for,
and ‘Annabel’ is no
exception. Pick a spot in
full sun or with at least
six hours of bright light
each day. Too much shade
will prevent lilacs from
flowering. They grow and
bloom best in moist, welldrained soil and rarely
need fertilizing.
Patience is a life lesson I
learned from lilacs. Divisions
take about three years to
establish new roots and start
to bloom — especially if you
begin with a small sucker as I
did. Bare-root plants will be
almost as slow. To make the
transition easier, try to buy
container-grown lilacs. Their
roots aren’t disturbed as
much in moving, so they’ll
often bloom sooner.
Do you need to remove
the old flowers? Not really.
‘Annabel’s’ browning petals
are quickly covered up by
fresh new foliage. And leaving the old blooms won’t
reduce next year’s flowering.
But if you need to prune
to shape your lilac, do so
right after ‘Annabel’ finishes
blooming. Lilacs set their
{‘Annabel’ is one of the first lilacs
to bloom in spring.
{Low branching means the flowers are handy for picking.
buds for next year during
the summer. So if you trim
too late, you’ll cut them off
and the shrub won’t have
time to form more.
Like most lilacs,
‘Annabel’ does produce a
few suckers at the base. For
neatness, you can cut them
off at ground level. Or in
early spring or late in the
fall, dig a few to share.
When the suckers are about
a foot tall, dig carefully,
tracing the new root back to
one of the main roots on the
parent plant. Cut the new
plant off, making sure to get
as much of the new root system with it as possible.
Replant the sprout and keep
G A R D E N G AT E
it moist until you begin to
see new growth.
‘Annabel’ is resistant to
powdery mildew. Even
though this fungus isn’t
fatal, it is ugly. One of the
things I like about all lilacs
is that deer walk right on
by. It seems they don’t like
the taste.
Gray winters sometimes
drag on much too long. But
toward spring, I know that
my old childhood friend
‘Annabel’ will soon be back
to cheer me up with her
flowers and fragrance. ®
Mail-order sources
ArborVillage, P.O. Box 227
Holt, MO 64048. 816-264-3911.
Catalog $1.
Fox Hill Nursery, 347 Lunt
Road, Freeport, ME 04032.
www.lilacs.com. 207-729-1511.
Catalog $1.
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Page 43
Resources
Fairweather Gardens
www.fairweathergardens.com
856-451-6261. $4
ArborVillage
816-264-3911. $1
Raspberries (p. 26)
Tuberous Begonias (p. 14)
Decorative Outdoor Products
18A Sparks Ave.
Nantucket, MA 02554
www.DecorativeOutdoor
Products.com
877-434-7730
Post caps and finials
Valentine’s Day
Sweepstakes
Rather than a bouquet,
how about a garden of
roses for your sweetheart?
Enter to win eight bushes,
four each of the 2002 AllAmerica Rose Selections
winners — Starry NightTM
and Love & PeaceTM, featured on our cover.
How do you sign up?
Simply visit www.rose.org
and fill out the entry form.
Or mail a postcard with
your name, address and
daytime phone number to
AARS Sweepstakes, 221
N. LaSalle St., Suite 3500,
Chicago, IL 60601. Entries
must be postmarked by
February 28, 2002.
Jim’s Vineyard Supply
P.O. Box 668
Bakersfield, CA 93302-0668
www.jimssupply.com
800-423-8016
Wirevises
Mail-order catalogs
Mail-order catalogs
Miller Nurseries
www.millernurseries.com
800-836-9630. Free
Antonelli Brothers
www.antnelli.com
888-423-4664
Begonia tubers. Catalog free
Hartmann's Nursery
www.hartmannsnursery.com
616-253-4281. Free
Shepherd’s Garden Seeds
www.shepherdseed.com
860-482-3638
Begonia stakes. Catalog free
Indiana Berry and Plant Co.
www.inberry.com
800-295-2226. Free
Society
The American Begonia Society
157 Monument
Rio Dell, CA 95562
www.begonias.org
Dues: $17. The ABS also sells
publications, including “Growing Tuberous Begonias” ($5).
Garden Heroes (p. 32)
Mail-order catalogs
Gardens Alive!
5100 Scheneley Place
Lawrenceburg, IN 47025
www.gardensalive.com
812-537-8651. Free
For additional resources and
an archive of stories, visit us at
Rincon-Vitova Insectaries, Inc.
P.O. Box 1555
Ventura, CA 93002
www.rinconvitova.com
800-248-2847. Free
Magnolias (p. 22)
Gempler’s
100 Countryside Drive
Belleville, WI 53508
www.gemplers.com
800-382-8473. Free
Mail-order catalogs
Louisiana Nursery
337-948-3696. $6
Garden Gate® (ISSN 1083-8295) is published
bimonthly (Feb., April, June, Aug., Oct., Dec.) by
August Home Publishing Co., 2200 Grand Ave., Des
Moines, IA 50312. Garden Gate® is a registered trademark of August Home Publishing Co. © Copyright
2002, August Home Publishing Company. All rights
reserved. Subscriptions: Single copy $4.99. One-year
subscription (6 issues) $24.00 (Canada/Foreign add
$10 per year, U.S. funds). Periodicals postage paid at
Des Moines, IA, and at additional mailing offices.
USPS/Perry-Judd’s Heartland Division automatable
poly. Postmaster: Send change of address to Garden
Gate, P.O. Box 37115, Boone, IA 50037-2115.
Subscription questions? Call 800-341-4769, 8 a.m. to
5 p.m., Central Standard Time, weekdays. Garden
Gate® does not accept and is not responsible for
unsolicited manuscripts. PRINTED IN U.S.A.
KNOW YOUR COLD-HARDINESS ZONE
KNOW YOUR HEAT-TOLERANCE ZONE
AMERICAN
HORTICULTURAL
SOCIETY
7931 East Boulevard
Drive, Alexandria, Va
22308. 703-768-5700
FAX 703-768-8700
Coordinated by:
Dr. H. Marc Cathey,
President Emeritus.
Compiled by:
Meteorological Evaluation Services Co.,
Inc. Underwriting by:
• Monrovia Nursery
Company
• Horticultural
Research Institute of
the American
Nursery and
Landscape Assoc.
• Goldsmith Seed Co.
• Time-Life Inc.
September 1997
DAYSABOVE 86o ZONE
Fewer than 1
1
to 7
7
to 14
14 to 30
1
2
3
4
DAYSABOVE 86o ZONE
30
45
60
90
to
to
to
to
45
60
90
120
5
6
7
8
DAYSABOVE 86o ZONE
120 to 150 9
150 to 180 10
180 to 210 11
More than 210 12
AVG LOW TEMP ZONE
Below
-40 to
-30 to
-20 to
G A R D E N G AT E
-45
-45
-40
-30
1
2
3
4
AVG LOW TEMP ZONE
AVG LOW TEMP ZONE
-10
0
10
to -20
to -10
to 0
5
6
7
20 to 10
30 to 20
40 to 30
Above 40
8
9
10
11
43
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Page 44
Finishing
Touches
“ Shed no tear —
O, shed no tear!
The flower
will bloom
another year.
Weep no more —
O, weep no more!
Young buds sleep
in the root’s
white core.”
— John Keats
®
®

Garden Gate No. 43

Transcription

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