Perennials - page 2

My garden friend, Jan Van Weelden shared her 'Red Mittens' with me. She brought me a nice sized clump from her cutting gardens. She said if you want a pair of red mittens you can split this in two. So I did. Now I tell other people the same thing when I share this prolific little fellow with them.

The past 2 growing seasons it has set lots of seed & many prolifs. It demonstrates a prolonged blooming period too. I have several baby prolif 'Red Mittens' growing in my boxed holding beds. I shared several with my Master Gardener group at our plant exchange this fall '05.

It's so FUN!

Sage is wonderful added to perennial beds bringing texture & many vivid color combinations to the garden. The foliage on this one is such a soft, furry, fleecy texture you can't help but touch it. It smells good too.

This year I grew 3 distinctly different varieties. It is so fun! Sage can be difficult to winter-over in colder climates. It demands full sun & needs good drainage. I don't ever count on it coming back in spring but think it's worth replacing every year. I did have the surprising pleasure of one sage plant returning this spring. It made me smile. I treat sage more as an annual plant. It is relatively cheap to buy as it is usually included with the herb selections at nurseries. It is less flavorful than regular sage.

Once many years ago I grew the regular herb garden variety sage, dried it, & used it in a Thanksgiving turkey stuffing. It was so good. That same year I packaged the home-grown sage & gave it away as fun holiday gifts. Okay, it was silly but I had fun doing it.

For additional info: www.garden-helper.com/Learn/Plant_Pages/Sage.asp

My Aunt Barb gave me a couple young yucca plants a few years back. I have accidentally partially burned them up once. Ron buried them alive in snow last year by dumping the end-loader bucket full of snow onto them. They are just keep coming back & surviving nicely.

These are grow anywhere & ignore plants. The flower stalks will grow up to 6' tall. I've found out Yucca roots go to China & trying to get rid of a yucca plant is next to impossible unless you use prolonged, repeated doses of Round-up. It is a very useful plant for dry, hot spaces/places.

There are several cultivars of Yuccas:
Blue Sword / blue green foliage
Bright Edge / the leaves are edged with yellow.
Color Guard / white & cream leaves are edged with green
Garland Gold (which I have never seen) / the leaves have a gold stripe down the middle.
Golden Sword / leaves have a yellow center.
And more, I'm sure. I have 3 kinds in my gardens & enjoy them all.

Broad-leaved evergreen shrub
Hardy Zones 4 - 9
Loves full blazing sun
Ht 2-3'

These wonderful blooms greeted me when I got home from the National Hosta Convention in June. I still have my "Bus Captain" whistle & my name badge on in the picture. I had to run right away to see them. I didn't want to be gone from home 4 days in June. I was afraid I would miss things blooming.

Adds wonderful color & texture to the garden.

Silver Mound does great for me in blistering sun & very poor clay soil. My grandson cuts it clear back for me at the end of the growing season. This is a must grow plant. And it's so easy.

Learn more about Hardy Cyclamen.

A must have plant in the sun garden.

My baby brother sent me a birthday surprise. Red is my favorite color and hibiscus are so fun. The blossoms may be as large as dinner plates.

They come up really late in the spring. Just about the time you give up & think they didn't survive the winter they poke up through the ground.

Once established they are truly a low maintenance perennial plant. They thrive in heat & drought. Even though what I read says they like wet / even bog growing conditions. Mine don't get it and grow in heavy clay soil just fine.

They bloom in late summer when other things are winding down. Once hibiscus start blooming it's a non-stop flowering extravaganza.

There are tall, tall hardy hibiscus plants & bush types. Personally I like the bush ones the best. But the sight of the tall ones in other people's gardens / yards hold me is awe!

The only maintenance they require is being cut back in late winter or very early spring. Division by root is easily done. I've shared my original plant with many friends. May also be started from seed but I've never had the opportunity to try it yet.

http://my.pclink.com/~harley/hibiscus.htm

http://www.naturehills.com/new/articles/why_hardy_hibiscus.aspx

http://www.paghat.com/rosemallow-discored.html