Archive for the ‘Fall Garden Interest’ Category

2022 Perennial Plant Of the Year – Little Bluestem

The Perennial Plant Association (PPA) has named its 2022 Perennial of the Year — Little Bluestem (Schizachrium scoparum) (USDA hardiness zones 3-9). This ornamental grass was chosen because it is suitable for a wide range of growing climates, is low maintenance, and offers multiple-season interest. This North American prairie native grass is adaptable to many […]

2022 Perennial Plant Of the Year – Little Bluestem

2022 Perennial Plant Of the Year – Little Bluestem The Perennial Plant Association (PPA) has named its 2022 Perennial of the Year — Little Bluestem (Schizachrium scoparum) (USDA hardiness zones 3-9). This ornamental grass was chosen because it is suitable for a wide range of growing climates, is low maintenance, and offers multiple-season interest. This North […]

Raked Leaves Improve Garden Soil

Don’t rake and send fallen leaves to urban landfills. In a recent poll, nearly one-third of weekly disposable materials are composed of yard waste, newspapers, and food waste. Many of your neighbors are sending bags of “nutrient gold” to landfills. Improve your gardening skills and save money. Adding fallen leaves back into the garden is […]

Prepare For Storm Damage

A snow/ ice storm is both a beautiful and horrific scene in a landscape. Costly tree/shrub breakage, downed power lines, and subsequent utility shutoffs may be staggering results. Don’t feel powerless! Prepare and take action.  During the storm, do nothing / “hands off”. Working near an active electrical line is deadly. After the storm you should immediately […]

2020 Evaluation of Russian Sages By CBG

Russian sage (Perovskia spp.) is a popular garden and landscape plant valued for its lavender-blue flowers and long bloom period. Leaves are silvery green leaves. Long cultivated as an herbaceous perennial, Russian sage is technically a subshrub, a plant with a woody base that produces herbaceous stems. Perovskia spp. has recently renamed Salvia yangii and is a member […]

Hawthorn Trees In The Landscape

The world of hawthorns (Crataegus spp.) includes several outstanding landscape trees that exhibit four-season ornamental interest: 1. spring flowering, 2. disease-free summer foliage, 3. variable fall leaf color, and 4. colorful fruits for wildlife in the fall and winter months. World-wide, hawthorns are native to temperate regions of North America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, […]

Tips On Overwintering Outdoor Containers

Containers filled with shrubs and perennials, doesn’t necessarily ensure their winter survival. Without adequate cold protection plants may succumb to cold injury—turning them into dead annuals.     To over-winter perennials in containers, you need to know their root and shoot temperature hardiness. Often, plant hardiness ratings is listed on the label. Roots and shoots of several […]

Fuzzy Bolivian Sage

The large and bright fuzzy blossoms of Bolivian Spearhead Sage (Salvia oxyphora), aka Fuzzy Bolivian Sage, should catch your eye in late summer and early autumn. Equally attractive is the plant’s lush tropical-like glossy green foliage. This sage inhabits the edges of moist forests in the foothills of the Andes. It is grown as an annual in full sun in Northern […]

‘Goshiki’ Holly Tea Olive

Holly Tea Osmanthus, also called holly tea olive and false-holly (Osmanthus heterophyllus) is a large (15 feet tall), dense, upright, oval-rounded evergreen shrub. The species blooms in late fall and the tiny inconspicuous white flowers are sweetly fragrant. Small numbers of fruits ripen the following year, and often go unnoticed. Osmanthus heterophyllus ‘Goshiki’ is a […]

Goldenrods

Goldenrods (Solidago spp.) represent about 100 species of perennials that grow ubiquitously alongside U.S. roadsides, prairies, open woods, and riverbanks. (USDA hardiness zones 4-9). A few species are also native in South America and Eurasia. Goldenrods are grown for their bright yellow or golden flowers that form late in the summer. They are easy to grow, […]