Great Companion Plants-Mid July Color

Great companion plants that will do great together! Shasta Daisies in the back, Rose Campion in the next row, Coreopsis and Centaurea Montana staggered in the front. Red, white, blue, yellow---all bold colors that will look fantastic for weeks. My previous posts extolled the virtues of these four perennials. If you have a nice sunny location you will get excellent results by following this rough sketch. Think massing and grouping, not straight lines. If you are purchasing plants, go for 1 gallon or even 2 gallon sizes to get them to fill in quickly. Otherwise, 3 inch and 6 inch clumps from a fellow gardener will work perfectly!

Good luck!!!

Centaurea montana-blooms all summer

Centaurea montana---

This plant is best called by its Latin name. The common names are too confusing so when I give away some starts, I call it by its official name.

Fuzzy deep blue-gray leaves are covered in blue-purple flowers from early spring until frost. It just keeps growing and growing! At one half to two feet tall, this is the backbone of my flower bed. It spreads by the roots and self-seeds. Pull out what you don't want. Share with friends by all means. In deer country this one will make it because it grows so fast.

The plants will get lanky and ratty after awhile so I cut them back to the ground. In a few weeks, repeat blooms follow lush basal re-growth. I've had as many as 4 sets of blooms in one year.

I can't say enough good things about this plant. Full sun to part sun. Tolerates poor soil, does fine even in drought conditions. A welcome addition to any garden. This, by the way, is not knapweed but looks something like it. It's a lovely perennial given to me as a start from a friend's garden. A must have for your garden!

Rose Campion-Gorgeous and Easy!

Rose Campion---Lychnis coronaria

This flat, deep crimson blossom popping out at the very top of the silvery white foliage is gorgeous on a hot summer's day. Attractive even before it blooms, the heat and dry weather do not seem to phase this great plant.

It is technically a bi-ennial, meaning that it takes two growing cycles to get your first set of flowers. However, our summer growing season is so long that seeds planted in July will bloom next summer. Once you have a stand of this in your garden, you will see the babies pop up all over the place. For the casual look, leave them alone. For a bit more formal look, transplant to a better spot. And don't forget to offer some to your friends!

Rose campion prefers full sun, doesn't mind poor soil and little water. Basal leaves appear first, then tall stalks shoot up and produce color. Later on the seed pods appear and are decorative and fun. When I was a little girl, we used to use the ripe seeds for "pepper" and the unripe ones for "salt" when we were making our mud pies. When I taught preschool, the kids just had so much fun growing this one!

Coreopsis

Terrific beginner's perennial, thread-leaf coreopsis is a sturdy, upright plant that loves the sun, needs little water and does fine even in poor soil. It blooms in mid summer, about the same time that Shasta Daisies are at their best too. They reach a height of about 2 feet and do nicely in front of taller plants. In the spring, delightful fine foliage emerges. Nice by itself, it looks like a mounded green bush.

Excellent as cut flowers. When the blooms fade, cut the plant down by about half, it will have a smaller showing of flowers in the fall.

Fast growers, these plants will spread quickly. Divide as often as you wish. Remember, when the center of the clump stops blooming the plant needs to be divided. They form shallow root systems and become matted with roots. Clumps about 3 inches across do well. The young plants seem to flower a little earlier than the older clumps. I tried growing them in part sun. While they survive, they are less vigorous and have fewer flowers. If given too much shade and fertilizer, they will become spindly and unattractive.

A great plant for the Northwest. Pair it with Shasta daisies, Rose Campion, and Bee Balm for a stunning display. I'll tell you more about those plants later on.

Is there more than one coreopsis?

Yes, there are several kinds of coreopsis. This is the standard one but with the finely divided leaves. There is another coreopsis that older gardeners have grown for years---Coreopsis lanceolata. It has broader, hairy leaves and the flower is not as delicate. I prefer this one because of its upright habit. The other can get sprawled out but other than that, is a a great plant.

Horticulturists have also developed different varieties of coreopsis. Coreopsis verticillata 'Moonbeam' is a nice pale yellow variety. You'll see the complete scientific name on the tag of the plant at your local nursery.

Your best bet as a beginner is to stick with the old standards until you gain some confidence, then start trying new things from the nursery.

And by all means, make friends with other gardeners. Most are willing to share a clump of this or that and help you get started. My favorite plants, and some of my best performers, have come from the shovel of dear friends!

Tip of the Week: Watering

We all start thinking about how much to be watering our lawns and gardens when the weather gets hot.

The rule of thumb that I use is: Lawns 1 inch per week, a little more if it's really hot and breezy.

Flower beds 2 inches per week.

I like to water the entire yard twice a week and then hand water the beds. I love being out there to hear the birds and see what's happening in the garden.

When to water? It's best to water in the cooler parts of the day. Mornings or evenings, depending on your schedule. Shady areas can be watered at other times as well. One thing to avoid is the scorching hot sun. If water lands on the leaves and is quickly evaporated off, the leaves can scorch. Unsightly and harmful to the plant. Resist the urge to run out after work on a hot day to give your sunny beds a drink. Once it cools down, it's safe to water them.

How much to water?

The old tuna can rule is helpful. By placing an empty tuna can in your lawn you can measure how much water the lawn is getting. My low level sprinklers throw about one half inch of water in 20 minutes. So, I move my hose every 20 minutes with the reminder of a timer that I set.

What sort of sprinkler to use?

The traditional broadcast sprinkler with the arm that moves back and forth is very pretty to watch, great for the kids to run in but wastes quite a bit of water. (See lower right photo) A lot of the water evaporates by this method of delivery. At your local hardware store you will find low level sprinklers that are very rugged. (Upper left photo is a close up, lower left shows it in use) They cover a smaller area but work great. Since there are no moving parts they last just about forever too!

What about the cost?

I have about a quarter acre lot and lots of flower beds. My vegetables are now in raised beds. These dry out quickly and need daily or even twice daily watering. My water bill will increase by 50% this summer. If it's really hot it could be double. To me, it all evens out on the utility bill side. Less electricity, more water. Plus we get all the beauty and bounty from the gardens.

What if the lawn has turned brown?

If your lawn has turned brown, it is signaling to you that it did not receive enough water and has gone into dormancy. This will not hurt the lawn and you will see it green up when the fall rains return. I would avoid really heavy use of the area however, since it can't recover from say a football game. The roots could be damaged and you may end up with bald spots next fall, a great place for weeds to take hold.

I have seen lawns "watered back to life" in the middle of summer. It takes a LOT of water to get there. In my opinion, it's not worth the effort. If you really like a green lawn, it's important to stay ahead of the game. When the spring rains taper off, make sure you start watering so that it gets the needed one inch per week. Waiting for brown spots to show up means you are too late.

Good luck with your gardening!

Shasta Daisy

Shasta daisy-Chrysanthemum maximum

This hardy perennial is one of the first on my beginner's list of easy to grow plants. I started out with a little clump nearly 20 years ago. It was a token of appreciation from a dear old friend. We'd spent the day together working in her garden. I got some of my first lessons there and so it was fitting to start with these daisies.

This plant spreads quickly and can be divided after just a couple of years. I like to plant in clumps about six inches across in grouping of 3, 5 or 7, depending on how much space you have in your garden. Mid summer bloomers, 2-4 feet high. When the blooms fade, cut them down to about half their height and you will get more growth and a bonus crop of blossoms in the fall. Young garden helpers will have fun making daisy necklaces with all the flowers you will get off this big producer.

I have grown the super fluffy cultivars of this rugged plant. They were more ornate but required staking (something that takes more effort than I tend to give to my plants) and did not perform as well for me. They died out after a few years.

Once your plants are established, you might notice that the center of the clump no longer puts out flowers. Your daisy is now overcrowded and needs to be divided. This is best done in the fall but seems to work fine in the early spring too. Cut back foliage. Use a sharp shovel to cut into the clump and divide it in smaller clumps. Replant the healthiest looking clumps, share your extras with friends, toss out the weak or spindly looking clumps. Great performers even in heavy clay soil. These bright sunny flowers need full sun, might look wilty on a hot day but revive unharmed later in the day. The only problem I have had is weeds sometimes work their way into a clump of daisies. Tough weeds sometimes need to be dug out. Other than that, it's a work horse of a plant.

Welcome......

Welcome to my backyard. Designed for comfort, ease of care and of course, beauty, the open gate leads the way to the sunny back. I built my gardens one bed at a time, using whatever I could find to enrich the soil, create the borders and mulch the beds. After 17 years the result is peaceful, colorful and refreshing.

Note the pathway. When developers were removing some old sidewalks, I was able to take home the broken pieces and laid my own pathway. All it cost me was my labor! I simply dug out the path and settled them in as I pleased. I filled in the cracks with some of the native soil and did not insist on perfection. The result is a casual surface that adds character to the yard. This is common sense home gardening and is not intended to rival a professional landscaper's version of a path. I wanted dry feet on the way to the patio and that's what I got. For years I just used a hoe on the weeds that popped up between the slabs. I do use a bit of weed killer now and then, when the weeds are small and numerous.

Backyard Garden Shed

There's nothing like a bright, sunny morning in July to remind us of why we live in the Great Northwest!