February 19 , 2015
Super Spring To-Do Tips + Romantic Garden in Sun & Shade
Winter . I have it away it . For one affair , it brings on the cool bulbs that perennialize , even after humid hot Texas summers . One other wench I consider on : sweet fragrant Narcissus ‘ Erlicheer , ’ here with a sunny smile !
And ‘ Gigantic Star ’ narcissus . It ’s been trumpet big beautiful yellow for years in my garden , filling the spot where plumbago is now cut to the ground .
And yes , we ’re all on the pruning bandwagon!This week , get on - target tipswith Robbi Will from theAntique Rose Emporium .
She explain why we wait to prune evergreens until bud break ( later on this calendar month and into March ) . And why to leave cenizo ( Texas sage ) and blackfoot daisy alone until warmer weather condition .
On blackfoot daisy : with its flimsy root system , pruning now can harm it if we get cold , gray and showery solar day . She recommends cutting back no more than half the foliage at one time . Plus , it ’s better to trim often rather than too much at one time .
If your pink skullcap ( Scutellaria suffrutescens ) is getting too woody ( like mine is ) , whack it way back since new increment come from the crown . Like Salvia greggiis ( which we can lop back firmly now ) , it blossom on Modern growth , too .
Robbi ’s experience tips for fertilizing , too . Though she trust more on compost than products , one combining that does a bang-up job for her is half Superthrive and half liquid seaweed in water . I ’m so hold up to try it!Watch now .
Of of course , we can prune roses flop now . This workweek , Daphne ’s get tech talkto answerMaster Naturalist Marc Opperman’squestion about this eldritch increase on his American Beauty heighten .
curt answer : an apical ascendence anomaly . Find out more , and how and why your plants limit bud where they do . Great information for pruning !
Now , even the brave rose wine and other loosely pain complimentary plants can run into fungous problems like black spot and powdery mildew in our coolheaded , humid springs . John Dromgoole ’s got some comfortable homemade fungal fixes with acetylsalicylic acid , garlic , H hydrogen peroxide and milk!Find out more .
If you ’re looking for an evergreen shrub in part spectre , Daphne’sgot a great one : Pineapple yellow cattley guava ( Feijoa sellowiana ) .
Since I ’m a nut about ash grey — so operose to do in part - shade — it ’s a achiever for me , even though it confines that coloration to its oblong leaf underside . bee and butterflies go nuts on bounce blossom peak .
According to some viewer tasting quizzer , its fall - ripened fruits are best when they literally fall off ! So far , mine has n’t bring forth yield , but it ’s a staring , low - sustentation frame for me between a patio and a shady fence cartoon strip .
On tour , footmark into Chandler Ford ’s backyard ocean trip of serenity . Pineapple guava anchor the ending of a narrow textural bottom .
In May , genus Indigofera bloom mighty along with the pineapple guava , while ligularia beyond counterpoints with big shiny leave-taking .
Chandler mirror the garden for another vantage point from indoors .
Pineapple guava in turgid container flank this charming setting – all done with recycled find .
midget accents like this succulent container once again diverge grain and our viewpoint .
Chandler understands how to frame a view , like with this trio . Since her beloved oak tree is stick out , she place her “ indemnity tree , ” a bigtooth maple , beyond its spreading limb . An understory crying redbud rules this patch in winter with falls limbs sprinkled with little heyday .
Japanese maples and a possumhaw holly gently separate the terrace from a grassy cove on the other side of the walkway .
Trex walkways depart around the oak to a larger conversation patio . Trex , made from wood chips and plastic grocery bag , is durable and not slippery .
For structural attention and privacy along one side fencing , she plant clumping ‘ Alphonse Karr ’ bamboo . She paint the fence black to show off its gilded culms . At night , the fencing vanish totally , letting the culms glisten lightly with subtle backyard lighting .
In this garden of two personality , the front ’s a festive fragrant parade . Framing her 1937 cottage and sidewalk , it discontinue neighbor in their tracks to savor her ongoing festival of flowers and food .
In saltation , sweet pea sweetly loom over hardy roses and poppies .
Chandler pick up sweet pea and poppy seeds for next year , marking her favorite double poppies with Dixon fall . Great theme ! I always plan to mark irises and poppy but hate to clunk up the garden too much .
Like many of us , she has shady spots beyond the sun . A step away from vivid color , find out equally sensual colour and texture with Ligularia , Aztec forage , dwarf pittosporum , purple oxalis and persicaria .
Persicaria is one of her favorite in part shade , as it is mine . Somehow , I mess up up mine a few years back , and it ’s hard to encounter in nurseries . But I ’ll keep look !
Chandler is just as charming as her garden , so watch the whole taradiddle now !
Thanks for stopping by ! See you next hebdomad , Linda
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