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You search – I try to give you answers

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I’ve been checking my stats regularly and I’ve noticed that people are getting some search results for my site.

I thought I’d take a minute and try to answer some of the questions that I’ve seen in your recent searches:

Iris dover beach

The Iris Dover beach is a German Iris.

It blooms for me in my US Zone 5b, or Canadian zone 6b garden in mid to late June. It has the most beautiful light blue blooms that I’ve ever seen. German Iris’ like to be planted shallowly. They will not bloom if planted too deeply, just the same as Peonies. Once the blooms fade away cut off the stems so the plants can put their energy into building up strength for next years blooms. Divide the plant in early spring.

Daylily Sammy Russel

I actually have a lovely photo of this daylily on my other site Tricia’s Musings. The daylily Sammy Russel was hybridized in 1951 by Sammy Russell. It grows to a height of 24″ to 36″ and it is hard from US zone 3a to Zone 9b. It thrives in Full sun to partial shade. It’s blooms are 3″ to 4.5″ in diameter, and for me it’s a lovely shade of rich maroon. Divide the root ball in early spring to propagate.

Rose of Sharon tree

I’ve written about the Rose of Sharon tree in the past. A full write up on the care and blooming habits can be found in the link I’ve listed above. It’s September now and my Rose of Sharon began blooming near the middle of July and it’s still blooming. I think this was it’s longest bloom period ever.

Hosta propagation from leaves

In my brief search I couldn’t find any information about this topic. I suppose one could clip off a leaf or two and put it in some water (perhaps water amended with a rooting hormone) or in some damp growing medium and wait for roots to grow. Would the new plant be true to the hybrid that it likely came from? Perhaps, perhaps not. It’s said that Hosta’s grown from seed often are not the same as the parent plant. This is probably due to hybridization.

I can tell you that the easiest way to propagate hosta is by division. They can be divided in the early spring just after they have started sprouting shoots, or in the late summer to fall. Dig up the plant and simply take a sharp shovel or knife and split the clump in half. It’s that easy.


Propagating tropicanna plants

I’m assuming that the person searching for this term was wanting to find out how to propagate a Tropicana Canna. Like all Cannas the Tropicana develops several rhizomes below the soil surface. These rhizomes are what each new plant and leaf stalk grows out of. For gardeners in zones lower than 7 we must bring our canna plants inside for the winter as they are only hardy in zones 8 to 11 (some say zone 7 but to be safe I’ll keep it at zone 8 ).

I store my canna rhizomes in a cool spot in the basement. I keep the rhizomes in a mixture of vermeculite. Some people store them in saw dust. The best time to divide your cannas for propagation is shortly after you dig them up to bring the rhizomes inside for winter storage. Simply break the clumps apart. If you are lucky enough to live in a warm zone and you don’t have to dig up your cannas in the cooler months you can dig up your plants and divide the roots and rhizomes and then replant. The best months for those in warmer climates to do this would be near the end of the cool season.

Light requirements of raspberry bush

I’ve wrote about the care and growing of Raspberry bushes back in July. Raspberry bushes need full sun. It’s said that they can do well in partial shade (bright shade I’m assuming) but full sun is best.

Stay tuned for more garden tips derived from peoples search terms.






Growing native Bee Balm

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Bee Balm Monarda Didyma

Description:

Striking red flowers that look like Jesters’ hats and last for weeks give this plant a slightly comical air. Its stem is square (characteristic of plants in the mint family) and its leaves are dark green, sometimes flushed with dark red. Quickly growing into a large, tall clump, bee balm is altogether a sturdy, colorful addition to the garden.

Maintenance and requirements:

Although bee balm prefers moist places in the wild, it can be grown in average moisture conditions in the garden.

Versatile in its light requirements, from partial shade to full sun, and also in its PH tolerance, from slightly acidic to neutral (pH 5.5 to 6.5), bee balm is very easy to grow. The only problem you might encounter is mold, which often covers the leaves in a whitish film, signaling that the plant is crowded and not getting enough air movement; divide plants every few years, and don’t spray eaves when watering. Deadhead to extend blooming.

Height: 2-5 feet (60 to 150 cm)

Blooming period: Early to mid-summer

Exposure: Partial shade to full sun

Moisture: Moist to average

Habitat: Moist woods, moist meadows

Range: North East – North America

Propogation:

Bee Balm is easy to start from seeds. Simply sprinkle seeds in pots or a bed in late fall or early spring (seeds do not need cold stratification). Or divide the plant in early spring, which is not only useful for propagation, but also helps keep the plant from getting too crowded in the center.

Good Companions:

At the woodland edge, plant bee balm with black-eyed susan (Rudbeckia hirta) and woodland sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus).

Related Species:

Wild Bergamot (M. Fistulosa)

Wildlife:

Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds swarm this plant for nectar.

Misc.:

Also known as Oswego tea, because the plants were used by the Oswego Indians for a hot drink. Bruise its aromatic leaves for the scent of Earl Grey Tea.

I grow two of the hybrid species of Bee balm and I love them. Their care is exactly the same as that of the native species that I’ve described above. Enjoy!

Annuals and Perennials

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What are Annual, Perennial and Biennial plants?

The difference between annuals, biennials and perennials relates to the life cycles of the plants.

Annuals grow from seed to full maturity within one growing season. Marigolds, ageratums, and zinnias are typical annuals. They flower, set seed and die, all within a single year.

Biennials such as Canterbury bells and some foxgloves, complete their life cycles over two years, sometimes producing a few flowers in the first season, but most often just making foliage growth and establishing their root systems.

Perennials live longer than two seasons and may outlive many shrubs. In fact, strictly speaking, shrubs and trees are perennials, but when gardeners talk of perennials they generally mean plants that don’t develop permanent woody stems.

Perennials occur in several types. Some, such as Acanthus, are evergreen and don’t have a period of total dormancy, though few flower continually except in very mild climates.

Herbaceous perennials – those most common in temperate climate gardens – usually have a period of dormancy when they die back to a permanent rootstock. Most commonly this is during winter, but plants from hot dry areas many be dormant in summer or during periods of very low rainfall.

Some herbaceous perennials have developed the ability to use their roots or stems as food storage organs to enable them to survive extended periods of dormancy. Known as rhizomes and tubers, these storage roots can often be separated from the parent plant and grown on as new plants, in much the same way as bulbs and corms. Dahlias and alstroemerias are well-known tuberous plants, while bearded irises are probably the most widely grown rhizomatous plants. Some plants have specialized rhizomes known as stolons, which spread across the surface of the ground, or just below the surface, taking root as they spread.

Some perennials are treated as annuals, either because they cease to be attractive as they age, or because they are incapable of surviving cold winters. Petunias and impatiens, for example, may live for several seasons if protected from frost, but they become leggy and untidy, so they are usually replaced annually.

It is not uncommon for a genus to contain both annual and perennial species, such as the annual and perennial cosmos, or species with differing growth habits, like the fibrous and tuberous rooted irises and begonias.

In cultivation, the differences between annuals, biennials and the various types of perennials tend to become blurred. The important thing is how you use the plants, and with annuals and perennials you can give free rein to your imagination.

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