Innholdsfortegnelse for March/April 2024 i Garden Gate

It’s easy to give ho-hum plantings an exciting new look when you add speedwell to the mix. Long spikes of purple, lavender, blue, pink or white last for several weeks starting in late spring or early summer. SPEEDWELL LOVE Bees and butterflies are frequent visitors to the dozens of tiny individual flowers on each stem. Groups of five or more speedwell make it easier for pollinators to spot and provide a splashy focal point for your borders. Everyone takes note of the sweep of ‘Red Fox’ at right when they pass by. This old favorite is a variety known for its 15-inch-long deep pink to rosy-red spikes and compact size. But there are a lot more speedwells that are worth growing in your garden. Let’s take a look at what…

Wouldn’t you love a plant in your vegetable garden that you didn’t have to start every year? Get a rhubarb patch going, and you’ll have plenty of this tasty fruit every spring and summer for pies, jams, sauces and syrups. As a bonus, the plants are beautiful, with vibrant red stems and enormous green leaves. Here are four things you need to know to successfully grow this classic perennial. 1 FIND THE BEST SITE Rhubarb thrives in full sun with fertile, moist, well-drained soil. Grow plants in an isolated spot where the roots won’t be disturbed from foot traffic or at the front of a border, where they’ll have room to spread. If you’re not sure which rhubarb variety is the best fit for your garden, check out a few commonly…

Seeds can be started many ways: outdoors directly in the ground, indoors under lights or in a greenhouse, and even in the refrigerator in a paper towel. I use all of these methods. The needs of the plant and how it germinates best determine the way I do it. But the reasons I grow specific plants from seed vary. For example, sometimes it’s because that’s the only way I can find a particular variety. Let me walk you through seven plants that I always start from seed and highlight the whys and hows. Learn more about how to start plants from seed. GGMagExtra.com GROW A BUNCH Petunia Petunia spp. and hybrids WHY GROW SEEDS? I use petunias in mass plantings, and it can be expensive to fill in large beds…

Delphinium Delphinium elatum When you dream of the perfect flower border, are bright blue delphinium spikes at the top of your list? You’re not alone. But good looks aren’t the only thing these 3- to 6-foot-tall perennials have to offer. The blue, purple, pink, red or white late-spring flowers with attractive centers called a “bee” will bring in plenty of butterflies and hummingbirds, and the plants aren’t usually attractive to deer or rabbits. WHERE IT WORKS BEST Plant delphinium in the back of beds and borders, where its bold spikes can make a statement. It’s also a long-lasting cut flower— snip the long stems when at least one bud has opened at the bottom. HOW TO GROW IT Plants grow best in full sun in fertile, moist, well-drained soil in…

Q I overwintered a Spanish lavender topiary. It’s showing new growth, but looks ragged. How do I prune it? Melissa Russell, NJ A As growth starts, remove dead sections of your Spanish lavender (Lavandula stoechas) plant first. Then snip off any growth along the main stem and base that distract from the formal shape you’re after. Next, snip the ends of the branches to encourage dense growth. But don’t remove more than a third of the branching. And avoid cutting back to woody stems; they may not regrow foliage. If ties are starting to strangle the main stem, replace them too. During the summer, pinch off spent flowers to encourage more side branches and help keep the head dense and blooming. Q Help! I left my favorite spade outside over…

Can’t wait to start gardening this spring? Grab a few Senetti Magenta Bicolor cineraria plants at the garden center and get growing. This cool-weather-loving tender perennial’s bright 3-inch blooms last for weeks in spring without a lot of fuss. CREATE COOL COMBOS You may have seen cineraria’s charming daisylike flowers in the houseplant aisle, but the Senetti series is a bit tougher and meant for growing outdoors. Magenta Bicolor is just one of several colors to choose from in the series, which includes purple, blue, pink and white. Energize a spring border by growing Magenta Bicolor alongside other spring bloomers, such as pansies and hellebores. Brighten up an entry or add interest to the patio by growing its jewel-toned blooms in containers. “Cool Weather Color” below will provide you with…

To remedy the splaying stems of a geranium plant, Kathleen popped some dried agapanthus (Agapanthus africanus) flower stems into her containers for support. The small prongs of the seedheads prop up floppy flowers for a tidier container. Kathleen Durkee, MA Accessible raised beds Sheryl Fullner, WA Arthritis makes gardening in low beds or at ground level difficult for Sheryl. When she saw some used industrial liquid containers, called IBC (intermediate bulk container) tanks, for sale on Craigslist, she got an idea. With the help of her son, she cut one container in half to make two raised beds. A reciprocating saw or circular saw work well for cutting the metal bars and the plastic container, but even most handsaws can do the trick. Most IBC tanks are about 48×40×40 inches.…

Flowers are usually the first thing someone notices about a plant. After all, you can’t miss the bold orange blooms of a daylily or a giant sunflower, but once those flowers fade, there’s not a whole lot to attract attention. So if your borders are looking a bit blasé, some of the best plants you can invest in are a few multiseason shrubs. They provide structure for borders filled with annuals and perennials and grow happily in the garden for years. Even better, they have more than one season of interest so they keep the show going even after the flowers fade. MULTISEASON BENEFITS Foliage is one of the ways shrubs provide nonstop border color. You’ll find some with variegated leaves or that change color seasonally. Flowering shrubs often produce…

Whether you’re moving a plant across the yard, across town or across the country, relocating trees, shrubs and perennials can be stressful for them. When the plant is a treasured heirloom peony or an expensive hellebore, you want to do your best to see it transplanted successfully and thrive in its new home. However, not every plant is worth moving: Ask yourself the questions in “Should I Move It?” before you go to the effort. If you decide it is worth it, you can help make a seamless transition by paying attention to a few details as you prepare, during the move and when you plant. PREPARATION It’s best to move most plants when they’re dormant. If you can, match the season to the plant—see “Timing a Move” at right.…

Virginia waterleaf Hydrophyllum virginianum What it looks like This native woodland perennial has flowers that are popular with many species of bees. While not invasive, it can be aggressive, spreading by seeds and rhizomes to form dense colonies in shrub and perennial beds. In early spring, the first leaves have white or silvery splotches on the surface. Later leaves are plain green. Each leaf is 4 to 6 inches long and composed of three to seven leaflets. Slightly hairy stems may have a red or brown tint. By late summer the foliage disappears. Clusters of pink, white or pale lavender flowers open in late spring to early summer. Each cluster has 8 to 20 individual flowers with prominent stamens that give the clusters a fuzzy look. Seed pods are brown,…

Maybe you’ve never quite put your finger on why you choose the plants and designs that you do. This quiz will help you define your preferences, quirks and motivations. Take it to see how your approach aligns with these four global garden styles. That said, wherever your preferences fall, don’t lose sight of the one element that can’t be found in any other garden: your own personal touch! 1 Which genre of plant is your favorite? A TropicalB Cut flowersC Shrubs and treesD Native plants 2 If you could live in any of these geographical locations, which would you choose? A Near the ocean — I like to relax in the sunB In the countryside where there’s a little more spaceC On the edge of a grand forest that I…