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By EldaIf you’re anxious to get out and start adding some colour to your garden, there are a lot of exciting new flowers that will be tempting you this spring!
New for 2012 are the double superbells. Abundant, small, double petunia-like flowers all season on cascading growth. No deadheading, heat tolerant and a hummingbird favourite!!
Cherry Star is another new superbell variety. The rich cherry colour of the flower petals is dissected by a bright golden star that runs from the petal’s edge to the center of the flower’s throat. This distinct star pattern is very stable throughout the growing season.
A new petunia for 2012 is the White Russian. This white flower has nice chocolate brown/purple veining. And would be stunning displayed in a large pot along with the dark foliage of a potato vine (Ipomea).
Diamond Frost is a great performer and still one of our top selling plants. In containers this plant will gladly mix and mingle with pretty much any plant out there. Diamond Frost can be used in a container the same way Baby’s Breath is used in a floral arrangement. It adds fullness and a delicate texture. Easy to grow, maintenance free, a continuous bloomer, heat and drought tolerant, it’s even deer resistant!
These are only a few of the new varieties arriving every week. Come in and see us in the greenhouse and we will be happy to introduce you to all of our new addition
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By Lenore
Customers sometimes tell us that they want to grow only perennials and do away with all the hard work that annuals require. Once perennials are planted, they think, then there’s no more work. Ah, but experienced gardeners know that it’s not that simple. True, perennials come back year after year, but they still need to be divided over the years, cut back in the fall, fertilized in spring, and you need to find friends who will take your throw-aways because they are getting out of hand. As well, new gardeners often think perennials bloom all summer, but most don’t. The beautiful colours of Purple Aubretia, Yellow Allysum, Candytuft, and Christmas Rose you enjoy in early spring do not bloom all summer.
Now that I have completely wrecked our perennial sales – and believe me, I love perennials, but they are no less work then annuals. I hate calling anything you do in the garden “work”. If you love getting outside for fresh air, exercise and the true joy of doing a good job, gardening is not work, it is pleasure!
Why not try using perennials and annuals together in your pots and your flower garden. Then you have the best of both worlds. Try using perennial Christmas Rose (Helleborus) for early blooms with Pansies and Primulas. When they are finished in your pots, plant perennials such as Heucheras (my favourite perennials for shade) with Ferns and pretty annuals like Begonias, Impatiens, Cyclamens, and don’t forget to add indoor tropicals for those shady pots.
For sun, use some of the perennial grasses such as mid-size Miscanthus (which we call the “thriller”) in the middle of the pot. As a filler you can use Geraniums, Lantana, Marigolds and for the ‘spiller’ you can use a combination of Supertunias and Potato vine.
In the flower garden, just as in your pots, the use of perennials and annuals together make a great combination.
