Volunteers Welcome

This purple coneflower is a "volunteer" from a fellow gardener's landscape garden.  This particular plant was the result of hers reseeding last fall.  Lucky me, I was the beneficiary.  I replanted it in one of my containers and this was the progression of the first bloom I got this season.

The "official" name is Echinacea.  A bit of trivia:  the word comes from the Greek "echinos" which means hedgehog and refers to the spiny center cone.  Anyway, it's hardy to zone 3, if you can believe that.  Reason enough to put it in your garden.  It likes full sun to partial shade, is drought resistant, and blooms from June to October.  You may have also seen the name in the vitamin supplement or tea section of your local grocery.  Echinacea is well known for its immune boosting properties.

Finally, this flower is a big draw for butterflies and goldfinches. 

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Then and Now

It's time for a "before" and "after" post.  You may recall the chaos on my deck in early May.  Right now, everything looks pretty good.  It's been pretty warm in northern Virginia lately so I give my plants a good soaking very early in the morning.  And then in the evening, I give the smaller pots a second drink.  I have only had one casualty since my initial planting, some new kind of fern that was supposed to be able to tolerate full sun--I really should have known better.  Overall though, I'm very pleased with how it has all turned out.  See below.

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Mellow Yellow

This is a new plant for me this year.  It's called Belamcanda Chinensis--the more common name is Blackberry Lily.  It's supposed to bloom for several weeks in the summer.  Plant height is 18-24", it likes full sun, is perennial to zone 5, and its leaves are fan shaped--very similar to gladiolus.  I have noticed that the blooms open in the middle of the day but by evening have closed up.  Belamcanda doesn't just come in this very mellow color, it can also be found in shades of orange and some of the blooms are spotted.

Belamcanda grows from rhizomes, however, I found mine when they were already in the early foliage stage.  I planted them in mid-May and the first bud appeared mid-June. 

In my Google search, I came across an acupunture website that said the rhizome, when boiled in water to make a sort of tea, was effective in treating throat-related ailments such as general pain and swelling and laryngitis.  I think I'll stick with the over-the-counter Chloraseptic.

Bookshelf:  Container Gardening Books

Bud to Bloom

This is "Pee Wee" Oakleaf Hydrangea in March of this year. It's pee wee because it doesn't grow nearly as large as traditional oakleaf hydrangeas but it gets plenty big to make a statement in a container. My container is pretty large--maybe 24 inches in diameter. The information on the plant tag said this shrub (hardy to zone 5) will grow to about 3 feet by 3 feet. Mine might be a little larger than that. It likes morning sun and will bloom through July. In the fall, the enormous leaves will turn a burgundy color so at least it will still look sort of interesting after all of the blooms are gone. I have it planted with a perennial geranium (see the last picture) which winds its way up through the gaps of the hydrangea in a most appealing way. Scroll for more pictures.










Bookshelf: Container Gardening Books

A Perfect Fit

This is Canna "Tropical Salmon" and it's ideally suited for containers. Here's why: it's only 24 inches high. So you can easily use it as the "thriller" in your arrangement, and have plenty of room for fillers and spillers without throwing off the proportions of your entire combination. I've planted cannas in the past and, while they are certainly beautiful, I always had a difficult time coming up with ideas of what to plant with them because they are usually between 4 and 6 feet high.

Canna is a tropical plant, so if you want one every year, you're probably going to have to buy one every year. Unless of course you already live in the tropics or you want to dig up the bulb (technically, a rhizome) and store it indoors over the winter. I typically opt for the former.

Need a refresher on the thriller, filler, spiller technique of planting containers? Visit my "Tickled Pink" post from two years ago.

Bookshelf: Container Gardening Books

Third Year's the Charm

This is the Cumberland Black Raspberry plant. It's the third year I've had it and this is the first time I've seen any evidence of fruit. I usually don't have that much patience with plants because the real estate on my deck is valuable and I don't want to fool around with anything that doesn't fulfill its promise. However, this plant has looked healthy every season so I decided to give it one more year. The fruit is supposed to ripen in July and August. I'll report back to let you know if it was worth waiting for.

For those who have more patience than I do, here's some additional information: this plant is hardy to zone 5 and likes full sun. I've kept it elevated, of course, for good drainage and I've done nothing to it in the way of maintenance. Also, I have not used any special fertilizer, just a small handful of the time-release fertilizer every year.

Bookshelf: Container Gardening Books

Who Knew?

This is Geranium "Rozanne". I bought and planted it last year--talk about a garden workhorse. This is its first bloom of the season. Little did I know that it was awarded the 2008 Perennial Plant of the Year by the Perennial Plant Association. I did not even know such a group existed but I'm glad they do. You see, the organization gives its highest award to the perennial that successfully meets the sort of criteria that I'm always looking for. That is, a plant that survives in a wide range of climatic conditions, is low maintenance, is pest and disease resistant, and has multiple season ornamental interest.

Rozanne is a hardy (to zone 5), repeat blooming geranium. The violet-blue bloom is about 2 inches across. It likes full sun to part shade. Mine gets part shade because it's planted underneath a huge oakleaf hydrangea and butterfly bush. It grows to about 20 inches high and is exceptionally heat tolerant. It blooms all summer and shearing it mid-summer will encourage repeat blooms.

As soon as I finish this post, I'm going to the Perennial Plant Association's website to see other award winners. I love that they've done all the hard work for me.

Bookshelf: Container Gardening Books