The Sun, the Moon and the Stars
How would you like a plant that is drought tolerant, is heat tolerant, blooms for weeks, is deer resistant, is native, and is a butterfly magnet? Does this sound too good to be true?
Heuchera – Coral Bells
Heuchera, commonly called coral bells, is a group of North American-native plants, with several species native to Maryland. In fact, if you go to the C and O Canal National Historic Park in Maryland to see the Great Falls of the Potomac, you can easily spot some Heuchera pubescens
Ferns – All the Colors of Green
It is said that Ireland has a thousand shades of green. That has nothing to do with ferns, and having been to Ireland I have to say that it’s green all right, but the subtle nuances escaped me. I digress and it’s only the first paragraph. So: garden ferns: like Ireland, mostly green. Pretty subtle, with some notable exceptions. Below are the ones that I have found to be the most reliable.
Gardening Basics – A Little Bit on Herbs
One of the easiest and most rewarding things for a gardener to grow is a selection of herbs. It’s fun to use your own fresh herbs in cooking, they are interesting to learn, the most common ones all have the same growing requirements, and animal pests tend to leave them along.
Treadwells, Stepables and Perennial Ground Covers in General
We are introducing a new line of perennial ground covers to our offerings this week, the Treadwells line, in a distinctive lime-green pot. You will find some overlap with the Stepables perennial ground covers line, but the thrust of Treadwells is “tried and true for the mid-Atlantic region.”
A Little Information on Dianthus
On special this week in our perennial department is the entire selection of Dianthus. Garden dianthus are commonly called pinks, because the edges of the petals are often notched as if cut with a pinking shears. We also have some…
Gardening Basics: Perennials
Perennials are plants that grow for more than a year (assuming they live; it’s a life style, not a contract with God). They take their time; frequently they don’t even bloom in the first year of growth after the seed germinates.
Japanese Forest Grass
Hakonechloa macra (Japanese Forest Grass) 2009 Perennial of the Year My favorite ornamental grass is the Perennial Plant Association’s Perennial of the Year for 2009, Hakonechloa macra or Japanese Forest Grass. This is an interesting choice because, while they are…
How to Handle your Hosta
Behnkes Banks on ‘Shade Aristocrats’ The large, coarse leaves of most hostas tend to break up the monotony found in many landscape designs. With various sizes, colors, light requirements, foliage shapes and textures, it is possible to fit an easy-to-grow…
Purple Coneflower ‘Magnus’ and ‘Rubinstern’
Behnke Nurseries’ Perennial Department is featuring two cultivars of one of the best summer blooming perennials, the Purple Coneflower, Echinacea purpurea – ‘Magnus’ and Echinacea purpurea ‘Rubinstern’ (often translated as “Ruby Star.”) Although the common name is purple coneflower, they…
Lilies – A Splash of Color For Partial Shade
Our perennial department has potted lilies. These are budded and blooming plants, 3 per pot, in 3 gallon pots, so they are quite showy! We suggest you enjoy them in the pot as a deck plant, then, when they are…
All About Heuchera
As a silverback in the garden center world, and a frequent traveler, I have seen about a billion perennials and heucheras are among my top favorites. The species are North American natives, with small flowers that range from showy (giving…