Innehållsförteckning för November/December 2020 från Garden Gate

Direct sun refers to areas that actually receive the sun’s rays for at least 1 to 2 hours per day. Bright, indirect light is bright for 6 or more hours but doesn’t get hit with the sun’s rays for more than 1 to 2 hours per day. Medium light is diffused by a sheer curtain or a few feet away from a spot with direct sun. Low light is several feet away from a spot with direct sun. Pick up a copy of Danae’s book and see where to buy some of her other favorite products: GGMagExtra.com/essentials…

Tropical. Fascinating. Otherworldly. Passion flowers may look exotic, but they can be grown almost anywhere. You may even find these delicate-looking vines growing along the side of the road. If you’re in the market for a climber that can cover an arbor or trellis with handsome foliage and unusual blossoms in a single season, check out the world of passion flowers. The genus Passiflora contains more than 500 species (and hundreds of cultivars and hybrids), so the common name passion flower can describe a number of different plants. They all share one thing: fragrant flowers that remain open for only a day or two. Passion flowers climb by long tendrils produced at the leaf axils. They can reach 20 to 30 feet in height with distinctive flowers that have a…

Arkansas amsonia Amsonia hubrichtii American native with threadlike leaves topped with clusters of powder-blue flowers in spring; stems and leaves exude a milky sap that is toxic to deer; 2 to 3 ft. tall and wide; full sun to part shade; cold hardy in USDA zones 5 to 8 False indigo Baptisia australis American native with blue-green leaves and purple pealike blossoms in spring that age to black ornamental seed pods in fall and winter; 3 to 4 ft. tall and wide; full sun to part shade; cold hardy in USDA zones 3 to 9 Lungwort Pulmonaria spp. and hybrids Rough, hairy leaves spotted or blotched white with funnel-shaped blue, pink, white or purple flowers in spring; deer avoid the leaves covered in coarse hairs; 6 to 18 in. tall,…

There are many reasons to grow your own garlic. First, it’s really easy to do. I always tell new vegetable gardeners to include a patch of garlic. The plants are bothered by few pests and diseases; even the deer and rabbits that nibble on my other crops rarely venture into the garlic patch. It’s also extremely low maintenance, requiring little fussing during the growing season. The best reason to plant garlic, however, is flavor. Homegrown cloves are packed with a depth of flavor that you’ll never find with supermarket varieties. And while garlic cloves can technically be planted in early spring, autumn is the best time to plant if you want really big bulbs. I time my planting for about four to six weeks before the ground is expected to…

Rabbit’s foot clover Trifolium arvense What it looks like Like other clovers, the rabbit’s foot clover is a low-growing annual, reaching only 4 to 18 inches tall. Its leaves have the characteristic three leaflets of a clover; however, these are long and narrow with short hairs covering the whole plant. Feathery, pink-gray flower heads appear on top of stems from midspring to late summer. Where to find it Rabbit’s foot clover is native to Europe and was introduced to North America, where it now appears throughout the eastern and western United States, southern Canada and even Hawaii. It tends to grow in poor soil and dry, sandy locations. Habitats include upland sand prairies, areas along railroads, sandy fields and waste areas. How to get rid of it It can be…

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The garden season is winding down, and your head might be spinning in review of this year’s greatest garden hits—and misses. While it’s fresh in your mind, take some time to gather some bold solutions for those less-than-satisfactory spaces in your garden so that next year’s display can be better, and maybe even bigger. Without expanding the square footage of your garden, make some sizeable improvements by growing plants with huge, irrepressibly beautiful flowers. WHAT’S THE TRICK? Sure, there might be some reasons why you’ve avoided growing big flowers in the past. Large, heavy blooms can droop and flop, requiring staking to keep them upright. This isn’t always the case, however. In fact, you’ll find some wonderful examples in the following combinations of plants whose big blooms don’t need any…

Dealing with unwanted deer is frustrating and challenging for even the most tolerant of gardeners. Do repellents work? Which plants are truly deer proof? Are there plants that deer can’t resist? Besides damaging plants, deer cause car accidents and introduce ticks to residential areas. The tips and strategies you’ll see here to deter, scare away and limit deer in your garden are gathered from years of visiting deer-ravaged gardens and listening to frustrated gardeners. They apply to all species of deer, including whitetails, blacktails and mule deer. I’ve also included plants deer tend not to eat (keeping in mind that when deer are hungry enough, they have been known to eat almost anything). Let’s get started saving your garden! HOW DO YOUR PLANTS SCORE? Rutgers University maintains an online list…

Bluebeard Caryopteris x clandonensis Silvery, aromatic leaves and fluffy powder-blue flowers in late summer; the plant’s heavy scent repels deer; 2 to 3 ft. tall, 3 to 4 ft. wide; full sun; cold hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9 Boxwood Buxus sempervirens Small, dark green evergreen leaves have a strong odor that deer dislike; insignificant white blossoms in spring; 5 to 15 ft. tall and wide; full sun to part shade; cold hardy in USDA zones 5 to 8 Butterfly bush Buddleja davidii Arching stems topped in summer with clusters of purple, pink or white flowers with orange-yellow throats that deer tend to ignore; look for sterile varieties to ensure plants don’t reseed invasively; 3 to 10 ft. tall and wide; full sun; cold hardy in USDA zones 5…

When to plant Best planted in autumn but can also be planted in spring Light Full sun When to harvest Bulbs are harvested when half of the plant has yellowed, early to midsummer depending on the region and when you plant. Scapes of hardneck garlic are harvested in late spring. How much to plant 15 to 50 cloves per person Problems White rot is the most common disease. Buy disease-free planting garlic and practice crop rotation to prevent it.…

Anne knows it’s important to support native pollinators like bees and butterflies. “Plants and pollinators both benefit from a close relationship,” she says. “The efforts of our hard-working bees give us fruits and seeds.” She eschews the use of commercial herbicides and pesticides in her garden, instead relying on an organic spray of 30% vinegar to water for weed control. “It always works,” she insists. Here are some of her favorite flowers in her pollinator garden. A Coreopsis Coreopsis ‘Jethro Tull’ Perennial; compact coreopsis with brilliant golden, fluted petals in summer; full sun; 12 to 18 in. tall and wide; cold hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9 B Bee balm Monarda ‘Raspberry Wine’ Perennial; berry-red tubular flowers in mid- to late summer; full sun to part shade; 3 to…

When you think about it, a gate is really the beginning of a journey—with the click of a latch and the creak of hinges you cross a threshold where you can meander through the garden and enjoy its beauty. Sure, gates have some down-to-earth, practical benefits like keeping the dog in the yard or providing some privacy, but they also express your garden’s style and mark the transition from the rest of the world to a place where you can relax. It’s hard to believe that it’s been 25 years since Garden Gate magazine started its journey. A lot has changed, but one important thing has stayed the same—the kindness and generosity of gardeners everywhere. We’ve been welcomed through many gates over the years to photograph and learn from the…

If you had to move and start your garden all over again, what’s the first plant you’d put in? Or what’s a must-have plant that makes your garden complete? We all have at least one. I polled the Garden Gate team to see what a virtual room full of plant geeks favored. The results were varied—some picks were unusual and hard to find, but many were tried-and-true workhorses that never fail to disappoint. Peruse the list and see if you agree. Or maybe you’ll find one that will become a new favorite! HARD-WORKING ANNUAL FOR SUN OR SHADE “‘Canary Wing’ blooms from the time I plant it in May to frost.” — Eric Flynn, Executive Art Director ‘Canary Wing’ begonia Begonia x hybrida Eric loves wing…

If you enjoy the multitude of blooms the smaller-flowered, jump-up type of violas provide but would like them in a bigger size, the ColorMax series is just what you need. These floriferous violas have ¾- to 1-inch blooms in 10 colors and four mixes. WHERE TO PLANT ColorMax violas are great in container combos like “Colorful Containers” below. But they’re gorgeous in borders, too. These are small plants, though, so space them closer together than you would other annuals to get a big impact. Violas handle cold weather much better than they do heat, and take frost with ease. In USDA zones 6 and warmer, violas are often bedded out for color from fall to the following spring. In the Midwest and Northeast, violas are usually planted in spring or…

“PEOPLE FROM A PLANET WITHOUT FLOWERS WOULD THINK WE MUST BE MAD WITH JOY THE WHOLE TIME TO HAVE SUCH THINGS ABOUT US.”— IRIS MURDOCH Most gardeners have heard that they’re supposed to fertilize their plants, so every spring they pick up bags of the stuff to spread around. But applying too much fertilizer wastes money and time and may even damage your plants. To make sure you’re feeding just the right amount, it’s wise to understand a little more about what your plants really need. So to help you get started, you’ll find several questions here that you might have about the why, what, when, where and how of feeding plants. Fertilize your plants wisely to save time and get great results Q: Do all plants need to be…

You don’t need to follow a complicated fertilizing schedule to grow the best container plants in the neighborhood. All you really need are three basic fertilizers: Slow-release pellets, a liquid sea-based fertilizer and a water-soluble bloom enhancer (one with a higher middle number, such as 5-10-5). Slow-release pellets are a no-brainer — add them once early in the season and you’re done. After that, mix sea-based or water-soluble fertilizer with water and simplify container care by watering and feeding at the same time! Follow this simple feeding schedule for fantastic container plants and flowers: 1 EARLY SPRING If your potting mix doesn’t already contain it, mix in some slow-release granules or pellets before you plant. This type of fertilizer has a coating that slowly breaks down when it comes in…

If you have many different hose nozzles to suit a variety of needs, try John’s hack: Keep all of the nozzles in one place by hanging them on a piece of chain using “S” hooks. It saves space and makes it easy to swap nozzles out when needed. John Prebstle, IL Ring them out Eva Woodring, TN The excitement of a new plant emerging in spring can be quickly followed by puzzlement—wait, is that a weed? To remind herself and her family members where her perennials (especially those that are hard to recognize as they emerge) are planted, Eva cut up her older tomato cages into individual segments. Each segment has a round circle top and some legs that she inserts around a plant in fall as a reminder for…

1. Redefine your garden’s purpose to make it fit who you are now. Do you really need 12 tomato plants now that the kids are grown, or would one patio-sized tomato work in a pretty planter? Which kinds of plants reflect your current preferences? 2. Focus on patio living. Decorate your small space with fewer but larger containers that create a focal point. Switch to self-watering containers if you are traveling more often. 3. Don’t try to squeeze too much in. A cramped garden can make a small space feel overwhelming. It will feel more spacious if you let the mulch show in a few places instead of packing plants in tightly. 4. Swap out higher-maintenance flowers. Instead, grow easy-care ornamental grasses, shrubs and evergreens. 5. Add more ornaments. Choose…

Breadbox poppy Papaver somniferum Papery blossoms in shades of red, pink and white on wiry stems atop gray-green foliage; the plant is toxic, which causes deer to steer clear; 2 to 3 ft. tall, 1 to 2 ft. wide; full sun Dusty Miller Jacobaea maritima Silvery, woolly-felted leaves throughout the season with yellow flowers, if any; since the plants are toxic, deer usually avoid them; 10 to 18 in. tall, 8 to 12 in. wide; full sun to part shade; grown as an annual in USDA zones 7 and colder Flowering tobacco Nicotiana spp. and hybrids Trumpetlike flowers are highly fragrant and bloom all season in pink, red, purple, white and green; all parts of the plant are toxic, which is why deer avoid them; 4 to 60 in. tall,…

Dwarf Alberta spruce Picea glauca ‘Conica’ Blue-green needles on small woody stems and a compact pyramid shape; deer tend to avoid the sharp, pungent needles; 6 to 8 ft. tall, 3 to 5 ft. wide; full sun; cold hardy in USDA zones 3 to 8 Flowering dogwood Cornus florida Famous for their white, red or pink blooms in spring; deer generally ignore dogwoods as well as the bright red fruit that develops after the blooms; 15 to 30 ft. tall and wide; full sun to part shade; cold hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9 Ginkgo Ginkgo biloba Leathery fan-shaped leaves turn bright yellow in fall; for some reason deer seem to ignore the leaves and branches even though the leaves and nuts are edible; 50 to 80 ft. tall,…

Anne loves hydrangeas for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that they bring back childhood memories of summers spent on the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay at a sprawling hotel overgrown with white hydrangeas. But she also appreciates their sheer beauty, long-lasting bloom time and the diversity of flower shapes. “The blossoms are varied,” she says, “with mopheads, lacecaps, panicles, oakleafs and even climbers. They come in all sizes, and many of them tolerate both shade and full sun. Plus, they make an impact! What’s there not to like?” Here are some of Anne’s favorite hydrangeas. A Smooth hydrangea H. arborescens Incrediball ® Strong stems and big white snowball blossoms in summer; full sun to part shade; 4 to 5 ft. tall and wide; cold hardy…

Should I cut off the runners from my strawberry plants? Jane Wagner, MO Many people will pinch strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) runners in order to allow the plants to concentrate their energy on producing fruit. You can cut them off and pot them up to make more plants. If you want the runners to produce more plants in place, keep the closest ones to the mother plant (they are the strongest) and pinch and toss those that are the furthest away. Q What plants do you suggest for a fragrant garden? Chris Dupree, WI A Fragrant plants can add a whole new dimension of pleasure to your garden. Just a whiff of a flower’s sweet perfume can lift your spirits and bring back memories from long ago. So when you’re…