Written by Mike Darcy, photos by Rich Baer
When I wrote my April article for this newsletter, I thought when May arrived we would surely have warm weather. While we have had a few warm days, overall it does not appear at all like spring. In the last few days we have continued to have cool/cold weather, some hail, and lots of rain. Trying to be optimistic, I am thinking the weather will change by mid month!!
A neighbor recently came back from a trip to Mississippi and she told me it was the worst trip she had ever had and how thankful she was to be back in Oregon. She told me firsthand of seeing and being in some of the tornado weather and how frightening it was. Now that she was home, she did not care if it was cold and raining; she was enjoying the beauty of the trees, shrubs and flowers out her window and very happy that she was back in Oregon. After hearing her story, I decided I could live and garden and be happy with a cool and rainy spring.
Regardless of what the weather is, this is May and there is much to do in the garden. I marvel at all we have in bloom and the beauty of all our flora. It seems as though this year the Magnolias have been especially prolific and I have enjoyed seeing their magnificent flowers as I drive around various neighborhoods. This is a good time to buy them for your own garden because you are able to see exactly what the flower is like and not have to rely on a photo. In anticipation of warm summer weather, here are some suggestions for plants that provide much color and texture in both leaves and flowers.
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An excellent example of how leaves can provide different textures and colors is this photo of a container garden on a slope. All of the plants shown are in containers. At the time of planting, Black Gold All Purpose Potting Soil was used in the containers and mixed in with this was Black Gold All Purpose Fertilizer and also Black Gold Blood Meal. There are just two different named plants here; sun coleus (two varieties) and sweet potato vine (two varieties). There is a wide selection of leaf colors on sun coleus and thus a gardener could easily pick two or three favorites. One of the sweet potato vines has chartreuse foliage and the other a very dark (almost black) foliage. Both the sun coleus and sweet potato vine are excellent choices for summer color and will continue growing through September and even October if the weather is mild. These would both be considered summer annual plants in our Pacific Northwest climate.
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There are many summer annuals to choose from. Garden centers will have marigolds, zinnias, petunias, cosmos, impatiens, and many more to select from. Any of these can be planted in containers or in the ground. Since you are reading this newsletter, it would indicate to me that you are a gardener and so you might be looking for some new ideas for summer color. An old fashioned annual that seems to have gone out of favor and might now be coming back are the Amaranthus. A particular favorite of mine is Amaranthus tricolor ‘Joseph’s Coat’. It is not too late to start these from seed with Black Gold Seedling Mix; sow in a small container indoors and then transplant outdoors when the weather warms. The photo of ‘Joseph’s Coat’ is an example of how much color some leaves can provide. From a distance it would look as though the plant was in flower, but it is just the leaves. These leaves turn this wonderful color beginning in mid summer and the color stays through early fall.
| Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view.  |
| Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view.  |
Another favorite summer blooming plant for my garden is Abutilon. Commonly called Flowering Maple, Abutilon is a shrub and while they often do not survive our winters, with their bloom all summer they are worth growing even if considered as an annual. An optimistic way to look at this is to consider them an annual (even knowing they are a perennial) and if they make it through the winter, then it is a pleasant surprise! I have had these grow to over six feet in height in a single summer and once flowering begins, it does not stop. Abutilon would probably not survive a Pacific Northwest winter in a container but sometimes I have had them survive in the ground. I have applied a heavy mulch of Black Gold Soil Conditioner in the fall to help protect the roots. Sometimes this works and sometimes it does not. One of the most spectacular flowers is from ‘Red Dragon’. To me, this looks like a piece of beautifully stained glass. The dark red, ‘Nabob’ is also a good one to look for.
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I am always looking for new plants to grow in my garden and last spring a friend gave me a small plant of Cuphea micropetala. I decided to grow this in a container as since it was not winter hardy, it was one I wanted to keep (a friend kept it for me during the winter in his greenhouse). This became a surprise new ‘must have’ plant for me. Once it started blooming in June, it was never without flowers. The flowers were tubular, I planted it in full sun and hummingbirds loved it. This might be hard to find, but it is available and well worth the search. As for overwintering, it is easy to start from cuttings. Make 6-8 inch cuttings in the fall before frost. Remove lower leaves and place stems in Black Gold Perlite and you should see roots forming in 4-6 weeks.
If you have some favorite summer plants, I would like to hear what they are. Send me an email and be sure to note where you live.
Enjoy a colorful garden this summer!