13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
I say to each his own, we put up a 6' wooden fence and bought a Doberman after surprising an intruder at 3 a.m. one summer morning. The fence was for the Dobie but I must say I really liked the enclosed feeling almost like a walled garden if you let your imagination wander.
I also like the backdrop it gives for vines and such and, I can still talk to the neighbors over the fence after finding something to stand on :)
Our neighbors also use our fence for a backdrop for their plants as well. On one side I have the benefit of one of our neighbor's beautifully scented Honeysuckle cascading over on to our side of the fence, on the other side our other neighbor has the benefit of several clematis and other vines spilling over to her side. So it's a win, win, for the three of us.
Annette
Well the fence saga continues. I was up early on Saturday morning and decided to get a head start on watering the plants. This way I don't get their way and I avoid the hot sun. As I hooked up my soaker hoses I noticed several rocks from my neighbor's yard in my yard. I kindly put them back(no I did not throw them. As fate would have it, they were gone for the weekend. Monday evening, I had to do some handwatering. As I'm start to water, I noticed several glad bulbs in the middle of the yard. The wife was outside so I made sure she saw me go back up to the fence line and place the bulbs in the dirt. I'm sure there will be more over the next few days and I'll bury them then.
Later on when I was taking to my other neighbor I thought I saw something thrown in the yard. She had thrown over a small clump of dry dirt with a weed attached. Then I found purple clover that had been dug up and left in my garden. No I don't have any purple clover in my yard. I usually have white but none since the drought. I put them in the lawn bags and I start to get angry. I decided to stay outside since it was cool (90 degrees) and work off my anger What I heard next made me smile.
This whole time I thought the husband was building the fence with the help of a friend. As it turned out, they hired some guy who is charging them by the hour and taking his sweet time in getting work done. The wife was frustrated that not much had been done. So now she's trying to find someone else. I know I shouldn't take any pleasure in this knowledge but it did dissipate my anger.
My beds are 100% perennial, while my containers are a combination of annuals/perennials/tropicals. I love moving around my containers & re-doing them just about every spring, but love that my beds, I can move/add if I want to, but if I don't, they'll look better and better every year on their own.
"Does he know how pretty Heuchera, Ligularia 'Britt Marie Crawford, and so many other beautiful color foliage perennials can look so pretty for such a long time in the garden?"
If you're talking about Fred McGourty, then I suspect the answer is yes, as his primary interest has been perennial gardening (and he's written books on the subject).
You might try the Seed Exchange Forum.
Here is a link that might be useful: Seed Exchange
I love Cardoons. On the link is a pic of some I cooked and a recipe.
Remy
Here is a link that might be useful: Remy's Recipes
They are migrating north and east from TX. They are all over TN now except the Smokies. All they really need is a water source and January temps that average above 28 degrees. They are originally from South America, much like the oppossum. Nothing really stopped them so I doubt the 'dillos will be stopped either.
If you can, put up a net fence perimeter somewhere around the beds.
'Dillo range is expanding rapidly into the mid west and mid Atlantic states....even into coastal northern states. So y'all better look out!
April, these animals are considered insectivores but also feed on many other arthropods. Earthworms are a favorite. The 9-banded armadillo, the only species you'll ever see, are famous for digging deep, following a whiff of grub aroma. They also burrow for their nesting and sleeping chambers.
We know that they are notoriously difficult to trap, though I did find some plans for traps on line when doing research for an article a few years back. They are very close to being sightless and sort of need to be guided into a trap. But, then what?
Fences won't work with armadillos. They are powerful diggers and their front claws can quickly destroy the typical trap, let alone fence.
I'm all for trying to repel these animals with one of the predator urine products often used for rodents. Even though these are not rodents, they have a strong sense of smell and a prey driven sense of self preservation. A collegue of mine says that blood meal might work on 'yankee ' armadillos! Seriously, it would be worth a try.
One thing for certain is that you shouldn't be tempted to pour poisons, gasoline, moth balls or other toxic substances into the burrows. Don't do things that could have a lasting effect on your soil.
Let us know what you decide to do. Oh, and look for these critters in the early evening or just before dawn. That's when they'd be spotted by workers on the golf courses.
I planted "Red jewel" in early June, and it is now beginning to bloom. It's a very deep red with no yellow or orange whatsoever. Its almost so saturated that from across the garden it blends in. It has just popped open a few blooms so I will post pictures next week when it's in full flush. I will say that this cultivar Red jewel is sold as a vibrant fuchsia/hot pink with PURPLE centers, but mine is a dark rich burgundy with handsome brown center which I luckily like a lot. It's been extremely drought resistant for not being an established plant in full sun, especially since I've read they like generous moisture their first year. My helenium is about 3 feet tall and has an attractive compact habit. To encourage rebloom I've been advised to shear back to half stature when blooms are fading.
Wieslaw, thanks so much for that link. I wish some os those cultivarswere available here, but for some reason the selection of Helenium appears to be very limited in the US.
garcan and tupliper, I appreciate the input. Where I was thinking of planting it is in a garden that has a lot of red with blue undertones, no orange at all. Tuliper, I'd be evry curious if you could let me know if you experience the fading that garcan has experienced after a month has passed. If the plant turns orange-y, it would clash with what I currently have planted.
In my NC 7b area, my dianthus have been blooming since we put them in sometime in March and beginning of April...and they are still going very strong, despite our constant 90-100 degree temps. These are the cheap ones from the box stores. They don't seem to require a lot of water, either. I'm thinking of putting in more next year, as they are also very pretty!
Yes, it is one of the willow herbs/fireweeds, genus Epilobium. I can't begin to tell you which one, there are several hundred species. Several are used as medicinal herbs, but with the exception possibly of Fireweed, none of them are really attractive enough to use in the garden.
It will be easy to remove, just pull it, it won't grow back. BUT, be sure to do it before it goes to seed, they can be quite prolific self-seeders.
why is it potted.. they grew to 4 to 6 feet in MI ... where it is grown as an annual ...
and eventually dropped so much seed.. that it took years to kill them all ...
i hate this plant.. with the heat of a million burning suns.. or this summer.. like adrian mi heat.. lol ...
ken
ps: and it stinks to boot ... literally ....
I have to agree with Ken that it does smell bad, but personally I love the flowers. I normally mulch pretty heavily so I have never had any reseeding until last year when I got three babies this year.
There is a new cultivar which only gets 2-3 feet tall which is perfect in my garden.
I don't have an Acanthus, though I have been wanting one since I saw it planted in a bed at the Science Center in Seattle a few years ago, lol. Fantastic looking plant.
If it were me, I would probably pay most attention to the foliage of the companion plants. Personally, I would pair the Acanthus with a plant that has strappy/grassy foliage as an opposite texture and/or a plant that has delicate or ferny foliage to act as a softening contrast to the bold, jagged foliage of the Acanthus.
A small Miscanthus ('Little Zebra' would add some nice looking gold variegation too!) for beside it and then perhaps a perennial geranium (like G. sanguineum 'Vision Violet', which has nice looking delicate foliage) in front.
But that is just what I might do ;-)
CMK
I like that suggestion a lot. One of the plants I considered was Rozanne geranium, but your suggestion of a variegated small grass would fit the bill even better. Thanks!