The following seven (7) perennials provide gorgeous floral color in mixed perennial beds in late summer and into fall. Flowers attract pollinators, including lots of bees, butterflies, and an occasional hummingbird. ‘Blue Fortune’ Giant Hyssop (Agastache x ‘Blue Fortune’) offers lavender-blue flowers during a long hot summer extending into early fall. Leaves emit a minty-anise […]
Archive for the ‘Ground cover’ Category
Seven Late Summer Perennial Gems
Posted by Hugh on August 1st, 2020
Posted in acidic soil, Agastache (Hyssop), Aster, Attracting birds, Attracting Butterflies, Autumn flowering, Bee Favorite, Bees and other pollinators, Beneficial insects, Butterflies, Chrysanthemum, compost, Container garden, Culinary, deadheading, Disease resistant, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, Fall Garden Interest, Fragrant, Ground cover, Heuchera (coralbells), Hummingbird, Landscape Construction, Landscape ideas, mulching, Native Plant, Native Plant, Perennials, Planting tips, Plumbago (Leadwort), Propagation (Cuttings), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Russian sage (Perovskia), Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Symphyotrichum (asster), Turtlehead (Chelone), watering tips, winter hardiness 
Comments Off on Seven Late Summer Perennial GemsSix Easy To Grow Spring Wildflowers
Posted by Hugh on March 21st, 2020
These six native wildflowers emerge in early spring in rich woodland soils. In gardens grow them in moist, organically rich soils in partial to full shade. Adding compost substitutes for fertilizing. All grow in moderately acidic to slightly alkaline soils (pH 6.0-7.5). Plants go dormant by early to mid-summer, earlier if soils dry out. Under ideal […]
Posted in acidic soil, alkaline soil, Bees and other pollinators, Beneficial insects, bloodroot (Sanguinaria), Celandine poppy (Stylophorum), Deer resistant, Disease resistant, Disease resistant, Ground cover, Landscape ideas, mulching, Native Plant, Native Plant, organic gardening, Perennials, Planting tips, Propagation (dividing), Propagation (Seed), Purchasing Plants, Shade Gardening, Shooting star (Dodecatheon), Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Trout lily (Erythronium), Twinleaf (Jeffersonia), Virginia bluebells (Mertensia), watering tips, winter hardiness Comments Off on Six Easy To Grow Spring WildflowersSix Perennials For Dry Shade
Posted by Hugh on March 6th, 2020
Many of the following perennials tolerate dry shade but flourish in moist, well-drained soil. Each typically displays the richest foliage colors with a couple of hours of direct sunlight a day. All hold up well to dry conditions and are deer and rabbit resistant. Barrenworts (aka Bishop’s cap, Fairy Wings) (Epimedium spp.) represent over 70 […]
Posted in acidic soil, Barrenwort (Epimedium), Bee Favorite, Bees and other pollinators, Bugleweed (Ajuga), Container garden, Cranesbill (Geranium), Deer resistant, Disease resistant, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, Evergreen, Fertilizing plants, Geranium, Ground cover, Hellebores, Landscape ideas, Lenten rose (Hellebore), Liriope, mulching, Perennials, Planting tips, Propagation (Cuttings), Propagation (dividing), Purchasing Plants, Sacred Lily (Rohdea), Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Uncategorized, watering tips, winter hardiness Comments Off on Six Perennials For Dry ShadeThere Is Nothing “Minor” About These Bulbs
Posted by Hugh on November 1st, 2019
Companion bulbs, often called “minor bulbs”, are early signs that spring is coming. Three of the most reliable are snowdrops, winter aconites and Glory of the snow. They bloom before crocus in winter. Winter aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) returns with floral beauty less than three months after planting. Plants poke through the ground, grow and flower 3 to 6 […]
Posted in acidic soil, Attracting Butterflies, Bees and other pollinators, Beneficial insects, Bulb Crops, Chionodoxa (Glory of the Snow), compost, Container garden, Disease resistant, Flowering Bulb, Garden ecology, Ground cover, Landscape ideas, mulching, Perennials, Planting tips, Propagation (dividing), Propagation (Seed), Purchasing Plants, Rabbit/deer Protection, Snowdrops (Galanthus), Soil drainage, Soil pH, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Winter aconite (Eranthis), Winter Garden Interest, winter hardiness Comments Off on There Is Nothing “Minor” About These BulbsWood’s White Aster Are Woodland Favorites
Posted by Hugh on August 26th, 2019
It’s late August and across the Southern Appalachian region White Wood Aster (Eurybia divaricata) are blooming. Their small daisy flowers are often seen blooming in shady woodlands in late summer. They start blooming a week or two later in the New England states and Canada (USDA hardiness zones 3-8). In a natural woodland Wood’s Aster […]
Posted in acidic soil, Aster, Attracting birds, Attracting Butterflies, Autumn flowering, Bees and other pollinators, Butterflies, Container garden, Deciduous, Disease resistant, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, Ground cover, Heat Tolerance, Landscape ideas, Native Plant, Native Plant, Perennials, Planting tips, Propagation (Cuttings), Propagation (dividing), Propagation (Seed), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, watering tips, White Wood Aster (Eurybia), Wildflower, winter hardiness Comments Off on Wood’s White Aster Are Woodland FavoritesSix Flowering Perennials For Downtown Areas
Posted by Hugh on July 3rd, 2019
Here is what some downtown areas in the Southeast and Midwest U.S. were planting this spring: Rudbeckia lacinata ‘Herbstonne’ aka ‘Autumn Sun’ is a long-blooming butterfly favorite with clusters of bright yellow ray flowers with large green cones from mid to late summer. Leaves are large, glossy, deep green, deeply cut along the stems. Black Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida […]
Posted in acidic soil, Attracting birds, Attracting Butterflies, Bee Favorite, Bees and other pollinators, Biennial, Black eyed Susan (Rudbeckia), compost, Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), Container garden, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, Fertilizing plants, Ground cover, Heuchera (coralbells), Landscape Construction, Landscape ideas, mulching, Native Plant, Native Plant, Perennials, Propagation (Cuttings), Purchasing Plants, Rudbeckia 'Herbstonne', Sage (Salvia), Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum), Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Switchgrass (Panicum), winter hardiness Comments Off on Six Flowering Perennials For Downtown AreasArborvitae Fern
Posted by Hugh on June 1st, 2019
Arborvitae fern (Selaginella braunii) is native to China (USDA hardiness zones 6-9). It is not a fern at all, but a Lycopod or “club moss”, a descendant of ancient spore-producing plants which date back to the Carboniferous and Permian Ages. Its small club shaped cones give it the plant moniker – ”club moss”. Arborvitae fern is a slowly creeping […]
Posted in acidic soil, Arborvitae fern (Selaginella), Container garden, Disease resistant, Evergreen, Ferns, Fertilizing plants, Garden paths, Ground cover, Interior (house) Plants, Landscape ideas, Perennials, Planting tips, Propagation (dividing), Purchasing Plants, Shade Gardening, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer heat tolerant, watering tips, winter hardiness, Winter Protection Comments Off on Arborvitae FernSacred Lily (Rohdea)
Posted by Hugh on May 21st, 2019
Sacred lily (Rohdea japonica), aka nippon lilies, are native to Japan and China. Rohdeas are truly collector’s plants (USDA hardiness zones 6-10). In the Orient these lovely shade perennials are highly revered. In traditional Japanese horticulture, sacred lilies (known as o moto) came to be associated with long life and good fortune. Containers are planted […]
Posted in acidic soil, compost, Container garden, Disease resistant, Evergreen, Ground cover, Landscape ideas, mulching, Ornamental fruit, Perennials, Planting tips, Propagation (dividing), Propagation (Seed), Purchasing Plants, Sacred Lily (Rohdea), Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Uncategorized, watering tips, winter hardiness Comments Off on Sacred Lily (Rohdea)Black Mondo Grass
Posted by Hugh on May 11th, 2019
Black mondo grass or black lilyturf (Ophiopogon planiscapus) is sold as a number of cultivars – ‘Arabicus’, ‘Black Dragon’, ‘Nigrescens’, or ‘Ebony Knight’. This stoloniferous grass-like perennial belongs to the lily family (Liliaceae) (USDA hardiness zones 6-9). Its blackish-purple foliage (3/16 inch wide leaf blades) forms lush arching clumps. For the patient gardener, know that […]
Posted in acidic soil, Bees and other pollinators, Cold tolerance, Container garden, Drought tolerant, Evergreen, Fertilizing plants, Ground cover, Heat Tolerance, Landscape ideas, Mondo grass (Ophiopogon), mulching, Ornamental fruit, Planting tips, Propagation (dividing), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Sanitation, Shade Gardening, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, watering tips, winter hardiness, Winter Protection Comments Off on Black Mondo GrassRussian Arborvitae For Cool Areas Of The U.S.
Posted by Hugh on May 1st, 2019
Russian arborvitae and Siberian cypress (Microbiota decussata) is an underutilize ground cover (USDA hardiness zones 3-7). This tough juniper-like evergreen hails from Siberia and demonstrates exceptional cold hardiness to -40 ° F. In extreme northerly sites, the lacy evergreen foliage may turn complete brown in the dead of winter and re-sprout in spring. In the cool temps of […]
Posted in acidic soil, Container garden, Deer resistant, Disease resistant, Evergreen, Fertilizing plants, Ground cover, Landscape ideas, Microbiota, mulching, Planting tips, Propagation (Cuttings), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer heat tolerant, Trees & Shrubs, watering tips, Wind protection, Winter Garden Interest, winter hardiness, Winter Protection Comments Off on Russian Arborvitae For Cool Areas Of The U.S.
