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Enjoy your red rock garden from spring till late summer. Most of the plants below are easily grown and require no special treatment, which makes the plants for a rock garden more attractive: rock gardening can be an addictive hobby. We recommend you to mix these three shrubs for a perfect rock garden: Berberis Thunbergii ‘Bagatelle’, Helianthemum ‘Henfield Brilliant’ and Leptospermum Scoparium ‘Kiwi’.

Berberis Thunbergii ‘Bagatelle’, also called Japanese Barberry ‘Bagatelle’, is a small, very compact, spiny, spring flowering, deciduous shrub with deep red-purple leaves which turn orange and red in autumn. The pale yellow flowers are followed be glossy red fruits. Good, as we specified before, for a rock garden, but may not survive in areas with cold winters. Berberis thunbergii ‘Atotpurpurea Nana’ or ‘Crimson Pygmy’ is other small purple-leaved berberis, to 60 cm (24 in) tall. Read the rest of this entry »

The species of Salvia most used as summer bedding are Salvia Coccinea “Lady in red”, Salvia Farinacea “Victoria”, Salvia Fulgens, Salvia Pratensis Haematodes Group, Salvia Splendens “Scarlet King” and Salvia Splendens Sizzler Series.

Salvia Coccinea “Lady in red” is an annual bushy plant that bears slender spikes of small but showy red flowers all summer long.

Salvia Farinacea “Victoria” is also an annual plant. The small, deep blue flowers are crowded on spikes held well above the leaves. Read the rest of this entry »

Orange is brought into fashion again this year. You must never forget about the white flowers when have to mix the colors.  The white color must exist in every flowers garden. So try even for a little segment of your garden to create a lovely happy combination of fresh orange flowers and pure white flowers. This chromatic couple invests your resting place with lively air because of orange flowers during the day and the white stands out in the night, gently shining the sunset.

Orange flowers are also able to attenuate the distances and bring closer the insidious places of the flowers garden. The orange can be used in 30 – 40 percents mixed with white, it becomes overwhelming and obsessive when it’s too much. Different orange tones send away the monotony: apricot orange, yellow-orange, red-orange. But if we speak about white flowers, you’ll put how many you want to. Let free your imagination, allow the blue-violet spots to get the gold.  Plant some of these here and there and we guarantee the effect. Read the rest of this entry »

Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) is a member of the lily family. It has been grown for more than 2,000 years and is quite popular in the home garden today. On the other hand Asparagus is an excellent source of vitamin A and contains significant levels of calcium, phosphorus, riboflavin, thiamine and Vitamin C.

Asparagus characteristics:

Asparagus is a perennial and will produce for many years when properly planted and maintained. It has underground storage roots and compact stems called rhizomes. The roots store food and the rhizomes produce edible shoots or asparagus spears. If the spears are not harvested, they rapidly develop into fern-like bushes 4 or more feet tall. The foliage produces carbohydrates, which is again stored in the roots.

Asparagus has both male and female plants. Both sexes flower and the female plants produce small, round, red berries in the fall. Female plants do not live as long or produce as well as male plants.

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Spring flowering bulbs are planted in the fall. Late September is the time to begin, but spring bulbs can be planted up to December as long as the soil is not frozen solid.

In spring, nature unlocks her treasure chest to reveal the beauty of bulbs. The glorious displays in gardens and parks are the result of gardeners who plan ahead: Tulip, Daffodil, Hyacinth, Alium bulbs (Flowering Onion), Amaryllis, Anemone (Windflower), Chionodoxa (Glory of the snow), Crocus, Erythronium Pagoda (Trout lily), Galanthus (Common snowdrop), Ipheion (Spring Starflower), Leucoium aestivum (Summer Snowflake), Muscari armeniacum (Grape Hyacinth), Pansy.

How to plant bulbs

· With bulbs, it pays to buy the best. Smaller, low quality bulbs may be somewhat cheaper, but the effort of planning and planting is the same. The results are much more rewarding if top-quality bulbs are planted. Read the rest of this entry »

The first step in avoiding winter damage is to select plants that are winter-hardy to the area.

If you choose to use a plant that is marginally hardy, choosing the correct site may determine the survivability of the plant. Buildings may or may not offer winter protection for plants. West walls reflect heat, which can cause plants to be damaged by daily freezing and thawing. While the same plants growing in the shadow of north walls may be damaged less because they thaw more slowly.

Protecting plants from dry winter winds is also important for some plant species. Placing the plant on the downwind side of a wall or windbreak of other trees and shrubs will help reduce the incidence of desiccation or drying out.
The second step is to keep plants healthy during the growing season. Plants in poor health or poorly adapted species are the first to suffer during any weather stress. Few landscape plants recommended for Oklahoma die directly from cold weather during an average winter. Generally, many factors contribute to what is commonly called winterkill. To keep plants healthy avoid late-summer fertilization and pruning, supply plants with adequate moisture, and mulch to keep moisture and temperature levels even.

Landscape plants fertilizing

Fertilizing is best done between early spring to mid-august while the plants are actively growing. It is during this time that plants can best utilize the nutrients available in fertilizers. Even though plant roots continue to grow during the winter months when soil temperatures are favorable (above 40oF), much of the elemental nitrogen can be lost due to leaching or vaporization. However, if plants seem to be weak or if nutrients are deficient as determined by a soil test, then a fall application of low nitrogen fertilizer can be beneficial. Nutrient-starved plants should be fertilized to correct deficiencies after frost, but before freezing weather if possible. Lack of proper nutrition makes all plants more subject to winter damage. Read the rest of this entry »

For the best result from your roses, it is important to pay close attention to the following points:
• Select a proper site
• Prepare the soil thoroughly
• Plant healthy, vigorous rose bushes
• Provide necessary seasonal maintenance

With the correct care, your new rose will grow vigorously and provide pleasure for many years.

Roses site selection

Choose a well-drained site that will receive about 6 hours of direct sun daily. Be sure it is away from the roots of large trees and roof overhangs.

Roses site preparation

Roses will grow in any good soil. For the best results, prepare the beds at least 3 weeks in advance of planting to allow soil to settle. Improve the soil by adding generous amounts of peat moss, and wellrotted manure or compost. Mix these well into the soil to a depth of at least 30 cm (12 inches). Good drainage is important. Where the water table is high beds should be raised 30 cm (12 inches). Mix bonemeal into the top 30 cm (12 inches) of the dug bed. To avoid injury to the young roots of roses, do not add any other fertilizer at planting time. Read the rest of this entry »

Roses are one of the most popular and versatile flowering shrubs grown throughout South Carolina. Most roses require a lot of care to grow and bloom properly. One of the most common causes of failure with roses is poor disease control. The three most serious diseases of roses in South Carolina are black spot, powdery mildew, and stem canker and dieback.

Remember that different types of roses vary greatly in their resistance to diseases and the maintenance they require. To grow roses successfully, you must select varieties that require an amount of care equal to that which you are able to provide. Shrub type roses bloom beautifully with few chemical controls needed, while the more susceptible varieties such as hybrid teas, require an effective spray program to be in place before the growing season begins.

BLACK SPOT

Black spot is a common and serious rose disease often reaching epidemic proportions in a season. The disease is caused by the fungus, Diplocarpon rosae. It is most severe after long wet, warm periods in the spring. Symptoms occur on rose leaves as circular, black spots surrounded by a yellow area. Infected leaves often drop from the plant. Infection continues throughout the summer months. The immature wood of first year canes develops raised, purple-red irregular blotches. Plants become stunted and produce fewer, paler flowers. By mid-summer severely infected plants may have lost all of their leaves. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the first jobs a gardener needs to do is to decide what crops to grow. This is fun, but it’s also serious business. Unfortunately, we can’t grow everything we might like in a small, backyard garden or in a community garden plot. Your first consideration should be what do you and your family like to eat. Other important factors to think about are the value of the crop and its nutrition.

Value & Nutrition of Crop

Vegetable value can be due to either a high price per pound or a high yield of produce. Vegetables highest in value for the space they take up are:
1. Tomatoes, grown up supports to save space
2. Rhubarb
3. Green bunching onions
4. Leaf lettuce
5. Turnips, for greens and roots
6. Summer squash: zucchini, scallop and yellow types
7. Asparagus
8. Edible podded peas
9. Onion bulbs for storage
10. Beans, pole or runner types (green or wax pod)
11. Beets, grown for green tops and roots
12. Beans, bush (green or wax pod)
13. Carrots
14. Cucumbers, grown up supports to save space
15. Peppers, sweet or bell
16. Broccoli
17. Kohlrabi
18. Swiss chard
19. Mustard greens
20. Spinach

At the bottom of the list are potatoes, Brussels sprouts, celery, corn, winter squash and melons. Other veggies are in between. Read the rest of this entry »

Remember that the low desert provides gardeners with two distinct growing seasons. Warm season flowers can be planted from approximately February through May, for bloom through the summer. Cool season flowers are planted in the fall and bloom through May, or until temperatures heat up. This Guide provides a range of dates that offer a high probability of success. However, yearly weather conditions can vary considerably and the low desert contains a myriad of microclimates. Use these dates as general guides and adjust them as necessary for your local conditions.

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Time to Bloom

Next, the chart provides information on approximate time from planting seed untill the plant will bloom. You can use this to plan for blooms at a certain time of year. On a calendar identify the date you want blooms, back up the number of days listed in the “Time to First Bloom” column and plant seed slightly before to slightly after that date. Plant over a window of time to allow for variation due to weather conditions.

Height 

The information on plant height will be useful in designing your garden. When planting a one-sided bed (next to a wall, for example), put taller plants in back. If the flower bed can be seen from two sides, tall growers look best in the center so they don’t conceal smaller plants.

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Biennials Flowers

Biennials grow vegetatively in their first year, flower in the second year and typically die after flowering. Because we have two growing seasons here, some biennials complete their entire life cycle in one year.

 Perennials Flowers

Perennial plants live more than two years and, once established, bloom each year. Some die back to the ground in their off-season; others retain foliage year around. In the low desert, perennial off-seasons are usually during the intense heat of summer and the colder winter months.

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Annual flowers complete their life cycle —vegetative plant, bloom, setting seed, to death of the plant — in one growing season. Most annuals need to be replanted each year, but others easily re-sow themselves. Their seed is scattered by wind, weather and wildlife, to pop up the next season when conditions are favorable. These unexpected visitors are called “volunteers” and can be a delight or a source of frustration, depending on your outlook and how rigidly you follow the garden’s original design! Larkspur, cornflower, poppies, desert marigold, calendula, scarlet flax, gaillardia and Johnnyjump – ups are a few flowers that are easy to grow and readily reseed.

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There are many types of beautiful flowers that can be grown in the low desert. Use this chart to plan for year round color and interest in your yard. Select plants that will do well in our climate and meet your individual needs. Plants are listed in alphabetical order by their common name. Some plants with more than one common name are listed under each common name. The common name is followed by a letter designating whether the plant is annual (A), biennial (B), or perennial (P) here in the low desert, and then the botanical name for the plant. More about Flower Planting Guide next week.

Tags: flower planting, flower guide, flowers growing, low desert

The white flowers are a reason to relax and enjoy your time in the home garden. The white means purity, innocence and satisfaction. The white flowers are gladding the eyes and soul. Especially when you’re a busy man and you got tired after a full week, the white garden is the perfect answer. If your only chance to admire the home garden is in the evening, we are suggesting you to choose to garnish the garden with white Flowering Tobacco (Nicotiana affinis). In Romania, we like to call it the Queen of the night, because of its blooming in evening and also of its special calming effects scent.

Description

Coming from South America, Nicotiana Flowering Tobacco sweetens the hot summer air, without being such a decorating plant. The love and appreciation for Nicotiana affinis comes from the perfume that its flowers are spreading in the air. Flowering tobacco is a flowering shrub which can reach even 1 m in height. The flowering tobacco’s leaves are a kind of silky and the flowers seem like little trumpets very bright colored. There are white flowers as well as pink, purple, red, yellow, violet flowering tobacco’s flowers. Read the rest of this entry »