Strawberries in October?



Strawberries in October

 It was quite a surprise to see these yesterday.  I'm not sure we'll have enough warm days left for these guys to ripen, but it sure would be nice to have strawberries this late in the year.

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Fall Color

"Pee Wee" Oakleaf Hydrangea foliage in October

"Pee Wee" Oakleaf Hydrangea bloom in July

I have a couple of plants in my container garden that put on their own little show this time of year.  One is my "Pee Wee" Oakleaf hydrangea.  The blooms start out a creamy white in spring and summer.  By mid-summer, the blooms begin to turn a beautiful shade of burgundy and by the end of September, the leaves follow suit.  This plant has been one of my best investments. 

It's worth mentioning that even with a name like "Pee Wee", it's not so wee.  I have it in a huge, lightweight composite pot and the shrub is now pretty huge.  It's about 5 feet high and has a spread about equal that amount.  It comes back bigger and better every year.  It loves full morning sun and is extremely low maintenance.   So if you have the space and the proper conditions, I highly recommend it.

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Geranium

Geranium (Annual)

Even though I add more perennials to my garden each year, I always leave plenty of space for annuals.  Here's why:  Annuals provide a constant burst of color all season long.  They bloom and bloom again--they give it their all until the end of the season when they expire from sheer exhaustion.  They don't come back the following year (at least not in my zone) so if I want the same show, I have to go out and buy new the next season.  When you combine annuals and perennials in the same container, you are virtually guaranteed that something interesting will be going on the entire season.  You can count on the perennials returning next year (make sure they are hardy in your zone) and you can change things up by filling the space left by the previous year's annual with a different type of annual.

Here's one of my favorite types of annuals, the geranium.  I tend to avoid the traditional geranium colors like white and red.  Although those, planted in quantity, can make quite a statement.  I lean towards colors like this one and I especially like the variegation.  I don't know the name of this geranium because it didn't come with a plant tag.  I have it planted in a container with herbs--sage and thyme--both of which are perennial.

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Blades of Grass

Variety is what makes a garden interesting.  I love having different types of grasses in my container garden.  I have one container with Purple Fountain Grass, another with Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass, and an iron urn planted with this--Hakonechloa.  I've had this plant in the same urn for about 4 years.  It's a native of Japan and is perennial to zone 5 so I've been able to rely on its return every year.  It gets full morning sun in my garden which brings out the golden color of the blades.  It grows to about 18" tall and has a cascading habit that is wonderful, but it gets even better when a breeze comes through. 

Who says you need to have flowers in a container garden?  I could see getting a few different grasses (or even several of the same type), planting them in fantastic containers, strategically positioning them on your deck or having them flank your front entry, and then calling it a day. 

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Remember That Blackberry Lily?



Belamcanda "Blackberry Lily" seed pod



Belamcanda "Blackberry Lily" bloom

Belamcanda seed pods

In mid-July, I wrote a post featuring Belamcanda, or "Blackberry Lily".  I talked about how after the bloom fades, a seed pod forms and then it later breaks open revealing something that looks very much like a blackberry.  Well, here it is.  Cool, huh?

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Rozanne and Margarita

Rozanne and Margarita

This is the color combination that I tend to repeat most often:  purple and lime green.  Here I did it with Geranium "Rozanne", a perennial that is hardy to zone 5, likes partial to full sun, and blooms all season long.  For the lime green I used Sweet Potato Vine "Margarita", an annual that is well worth buying every year because of its fantastic trailing habit.  (For more evidence, check out my link from last August.)  To the right of the picture, you'll see a bronze colored leaf as well.  That's from Sweet Potato Vine "Sweet Caroline".

Feel free to comment with color combinations that you like to put together.  I'm always looking for new ideas.

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Summer Heat

A little summer heat

As if summer all over the country has not been hot enough, here's something to add a little extra spice to that heat.  Although this pepper plant did not come with a tag, I'm 99% sure it's a Serrano pepper.  Serranos are pretty hot, in fact, they are 5 times hotter than a Jalapeno.  The heat of chili peppers is measured in Scoville heat units (named after a chemist by the name of Wilber L. Scoville).  A sweet bell pepper comes in at 0 on the scale; a Serrano is anywhere from 8,000 to 22,000; a Red Savina Habanero registers up to 575,000; and the grand daddy of them all, the Trinidad Scorpion, can reach a whopping 1.4 million.  Someone call the fire department!

The degree of heat of a particular pepper depends on the growing conditions, the soil, and the weather.  So the range for the Serrano can be explained by those factors.  Also, Serranos will change color on the stalk depending on how long you leave them there.  Mine turn red but others might turn brown, orange, or yellow.  I use mine mostly to make salsa, along with tomatillos that I also grow.  If you need to turn down the heat a little, you can always remove more of the seeds and the membrane from inside the pepper--that's where most of the heat is. 

If you've gotten in over your head, heatwise, there are a few ways to get immediate relief.  Some proven remedies are:  drink milk; drink sugar water; drink alcohol.  Some folk remedies are: eat cucumber slices; eat a raw carrot; and, get this, eat more of the same pepper (really??).

Hot peppers are annual in my zone so I'll have to replant if I want more next year.  Also, they like full sun and you can easily grow them as a companion plant in a mixed container. 

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books