Month: August 2017
Summer Containers in Sun: An Update
Now that it’s almost the middle of August, maybe it’s a good time to do an update on the flowering containers in the front garden. Overall, my assessment would be: they’re doing pretty well. Not spectacular, perhaps, but certainly pretty well.
And Now, the Onion Patch
Remember that song, “I’m a Lonely Little Petunia in the Onion Patch”? That Judy said everybody knew? Well, I asked people at my office and not a single one had heard of it, though they did think it was pretty catchy. Be that as it may, let me now tell you about our onion patch.
Little Wild Petunias Near An Onion Patch
Wild Petunia (Ruellia humilis) is a lovely little perennial native to most of the eastern half of the United States. It has Petunia-like lilac flowers, but it is not really a Petunia. It’s not even in the same family of plants – R. humilis is in the Acanthus family, while Petunias are in the Nightshade …
More Grist for the Natives versus Nativars Debate
Recently, the blog Humane Gardener published an interesting interview with Vermont ecological garden designer Annie White. For her doctoral research, White had conducted an experiment to determine whether pollinators had preferences for straight species native plants as opposed to named cultivars bred from native plants – “nativars”.
Euphoric Over Euphorbia?
No, not euphoric really, though I found it impossible to resist the double alliteration. But I am pleased that the Euphorbia corollata I planted about five years ago is finally establishing itself. This plant is native to Illinois and goes by the common names of Flowering Spurge or Prairie Baby’s Breath. I stick with the …
A Good Day for Butterflies
It was gorgeous on Saturday, mild and sunny. I was doing this and that in the front garden when I noticed that we had no fewer than three Monarch butterflies fluttering about. That’s the most we’ve had so far this year, though we’ve had as many as half a dozen in August and September, as …
A Plant Called … Golden Glow
So remember those two substantial-looking plants that were growing in the Driveway Border, except I had absolutely no memory of ever planting them? Well, they’re blooming now, and they turn out to be Rudbeckia laciniata, which also goes by the truly wonderful common name of Wild Golden Glow.
Should There Be Blue Chrysanthemums?
According to a recent article in the New York Times, Japanese scientists have developed a blue Chrysanthemum through splicing in genes from two blue-flowering plants. Research suggests that blue is the most popular color among people, but blue flowers are relatively rare. It turns out that a plant needs specific genetic machinery to have blue blooms. …
Iron and Purple Fuzz
I planted Prairie Ironweed (Vernonia fasciculata) all the way back in 2010, but it wasn’t until the last couple years that it started to be a real presence in the Driveway Boarder.
A “White House” That Delights
The OT Hybrid Lilies are done blooming, in fact I’ve snipped off the tips so that they won’t waste energy making seeds. Happily, the Oriental Lily ‘Casa Blanca’ has taken up where the OT Hybrid left off.
gardeninacity 