The 2007 Perennial Plant Of The Year

Each year the Perennial Plant Association, the national industry group of growers and landscapers, votes on a perennial of the year. This is a plant most feel deserves wider use and recognition nationwide. The winner for this year is ‘Walker’s Low’ catmint.

As its name indicates, it is in the mint family with square stems and aromatic leaves. My own experience, and that of others, is that this plant is much less attractive to felines than its relatives. It does, though, contain the chemical nepetalactone which is what is so attractive to cats in the true catnip species (cataria). It is attractive to other forms of wildlife such as bees and butterflies, but not rabbits and deer to which it is resistant.

The name is deceiving, as this plant is not really low. Rather, it is named for a location where it was found. Mrs. Patricia Taylor found this in an Irish garden in the 1970’s, and it was first introduced for sale to gardeners in 1988 by Four Season’s Nursery of Norwich, England. This plant can reach about three feet tall and wide, making it one of the larger catmints.

The crinkled, aromatic, silver-green leaves are about one to two inches long, with scalloped edges. The dark bluish-purple flowers are in clusters on upright, arching stems creating a rather open effect reminiscent of cottage gardens. It will begin blooming in May in the south, July in the north, and bloom for much of the season.

This plant is often thought to be a hybrid between two species (nepetella x racemosa), and is often shown as this hybrid species (x faassenii) which dates back to 1784. Other authorities just list it under one parent (racemosa). Whatever the true name, these plants originally came from the Caucasus and northern Iran. This indicates they tolerate heat and drought once established.

In fact, this perennial tolerates a range of conditions, and is low maintenance with no serious pest or disease problems. It grows best in a well-drained soil, in full sun. It will tolerate some shade in the south, but in the north it will get taller and bloom less in shade. It will tolerate some salt, so may be a good choice near walks, drives, and roads in the north. It is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 8 (minimum –30 degrees F), zone 3 if snow.

In the herb garden, this plant combines well with sages, thymes, and silvery plants such as lamb’s ears. In the perennial border, place it in the front to middle with such plants as the tickseeds, peonies, pinks, foxgloves, and bearded iris. A classic combination is with roses. Also try combining it with purple-leaved sedums such as ‘Vera Jameson’, or short grasses such as blue fescues and blue oat grass.

Article Source: http://www.article-exposure.com

Leonard P. Perry, Extension Professor, Univ. of Vermont
Checked out Perry's Perennial Pages lately? www.uvm.edu/~pass/perry/

Gardening Trends In 2007

Whether you’re just getting into gardening, trying to streamline your gardening activities, or wanting to have a landscape and plants reflective of the times, being aware of the latest gardening trends can help.

This past year Chris Beytes, the editor of a professional growers magazine, described several specific trends which reflect four main traits of new gardeners and their gardening. For starters, we are no longer gardening as in past generations, nor will kids today garden as we do. Related to this is the fact that many are actually decorating instead of gardening. For many, it’s no longer about planting, watering, pruning. This can be considered work, even if there is time for such activities.

The new “luxury consumer” has and wants nice things. This consumer often skimps on one thing so they can splurge on another. Then there is “hiving”—using the home as the business center of a busy life, complete with media, internet, fitness, and the like. This is the outgrowth of the former “cocooning” and “nesting.”

There are at least a dozen specific trends in gardening:

--Blurring of lines. It is no longer clear what is annual, or what is perennial. Tropicals are planted as annuals, as are some woody plants. It is more about end effect.
--Tall. From pots to plants, tall is more popular now than in previous years. Ornamental grasses are a perfect fit.
--The tropical look. Tropical plants, and those that look tropical with exotic foliage or flowers, have been around a few years and are still popular. Cannas, alocasias, and hibiscus are popular examples.
--Big and bold. Perhaps an outgrowth of tropical, this is now seen in bright colors, bold color combinations, and big foliage such as with some of the new coleus. This trend, as well as the tropical and others, reflects a global fusion of cultures.
--Foliage. Perhaps another outgrowth of tropical, plants just for foliage are popular. There are almost too many coralbells to choose from, most the new ones grown for leaves rather than the flowers of older cultivars (cultivated varieties). Coleus and hosta are popular, as are foliage colors such as yellows and black.
--Perennials. Perhaps not as popular as a decade ago, they still are favored by many but more now with annuals, as container plants, for low maintenance, or for specific uses.
--Native plants. These are a growth area of perennials. A trend within these is choosing ones native to specific areas, or habitats. This trend reflects the desire to balance technology with nature, to seek calm, to find sustainability.
--Organics. This trend has taken off with foods, and is spilling into the landscape and gardening choices as well.
--Hardscaping. This is the term for decks, walks, raised beds, patios, stone bed edges, and the like. You don’t have to look far in most neighborhoods to see such examples.
--Bringing the indoors out. This is related to the decorating and hiving already mentioned. More each year are turning the outside into living, even work, spaces.
--Indoor decorating. Plants are being used indoors not because they are plants, but for their design element, to add color, texture and accent to the surroundings.
--Nostalgia. Old-fashioned and heirloom flowers and vegetables evoke memories of (and a desire for?) simpler times in an increasingly complex world. For others, such “retro gardening” evokes a hope and optimism of the past.

The Color Marketing Group is an organization of professionals whose focus is to identify consumer desires in colors, and to provide recommendations for all manner of consumer products. According to them, color choices in general now are warmer and brighter. Specifically, their choices for popular colors now are reds, including a raspberry hue, and blues, including bluish green (think relaxation, as from spas and oceans).

When making this year’s garden plans and shopping for plants, think of these trends for new ideas, and see if you can spot some in magazines and stores.

Article Source: http://www.article-exposure.com

Leonard P. Perry, Extension Professor, Univ. of Vermont
Checked out Perry's Perennial Pages lately? www.uvm.edu/~pass/perry/

Indoor Winter Gardening Questions

How to treat unplanted spring-flowering bulbs, an amaryllis when through flowering, and houseplants dropping leaves, are some of the common indoor gardening questions this time of year.

If you purchased spring-flowering bulbs this fall, but didn’t get them all planted, what should you do with them? Such bulbs can’t really be held over until spring, or for another year, so go on and plant them in pots. If you wait until spring to plant outside, or in pots, they will start growing with no roots, so wont be successful. Planting them now allows roots to form before they start growing tops.

To grow roots, and receive the cold they need to flower, potted bulbs should be placed in a cool (40 degrees F or less) but non-freezing location. This could be an unheated garage or basement. Or, you could place them outside in a protected area, covered with plenty of bark mulch, straw, or soil. Then remove when growth starts in spring.

If you got an amaryllis for the holidays, how should you treat it once it has finished blooming? Once the flower stalk is finished, leaves emerge. Keep the bulb watered and fertilized lightly through the winter. This helps it build up reserves for next year’s bloom. You can then place the potted bulb outdoors in summer, keeping it watered if needed. Then in early fall bring it indoors, decrease watering greatly until almost none, remove leaves as they die back, and let the bulb “rest” for about eight weeks. Then resume watering, and growth should resume.

If you had an amaryllis, and followed this process but got no bloom this year, it may not have built up enough food reserves during the year. If you just got leaves, keep the bulb watered and fertilized, and hopefully this coming year it will bloom once again. Sometimes after being “forced” they require a couple years before reblooming.

If you have a houseplant, such as a jade plant, and the leaves are turning yellow and dropping off, what can you do? With a jade plant, leaves dropping off is likely a sign that the soil is staying too wet. As with most houseplants, too little water is better than too much. If in doubt, don’t water, especially with “succulents” such as the jade plant. Make sure the plant is not in a pot with no drainage, nor sitting in a saucer of water. Using a clay pot, which dries out faster than plastic, also is good for plants that don’t need much water.

Make sure with houseplants that there is not a layer of gravel or pebbles in the bottom of the pot. Some recommend this for drainage, but in reality it only creates an area where water gathers and roots rot, or decreases the amount of soil in the pot.

Article Source: http://www.article-exposure.com

Professor Leonard P. Perry, Univ. of Vermont
Check out Perry's Perennial Pages lately? www.uvm.edu/~pass/perry/