Posts Tagged ‘Long Blooming’

Hardy Ice Plant has been thriving here for 5 years (Zone 5). It has super good drainage and gravelly soil

Delosperma is a tough drought proof groundcover for hot, dry places like curbs and driveways.  Hardy Ice Plant is low growing with green succulent foliage and stunning flowers that bloom non-stop all summer long while thriving in heat, humidity and little water.

Given the right spot and growing conditions, it will bloom most of the summer and thrive in your garden.

I hear a lot of feedback from gardeners that have difficult growing and/or overwintering Delosperma.  This beautiful ground cover is very, VERY  fussy about drainage.  If you don’t have SUPER sharp drainage, you should probably opt for growing  Sedum or SedumSod – an instant colorful groundcover.

If I were to grow in containers, I would add gravel or cactus to sharpen the drainage in the soil.

Delosperma is ideal for strips along a driveway (where it is often more gravelly) or rock garden.   Right plant – right place as the saying goes.

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Easy sun perennial combination for a small space or container garden

Here is a sun perennial combination idea for your garden with 3 easy to grow garden plants

For season long interest I like using perennial plants that will give me 3 seasons of foliage color.

I love the new cherry red SEDUM  (Sunsparkler) CHERRY TART and pairing this with the blue foliage of FESTUCA for a front of the border planting.

For long season flowering color, I added COREOPSIS STAR CLUSTER which grows up to 15″ – so plant in the back). Star Cluster picks up the deep red color in the center.  Another alternative to Star Cluster would be a yellow flowering Coreopsis such as Creme Brule or Moonbeam.

All these perennials are easy to grow in full sun and well drained soil while providing season long interest in your perennial garden.

What would you combine Sedum Cherry Tart with?

KnockOut Roses are disease free, ultra hardy, long blooming and long lived rose!

Need a Back-yard Makeover Idea?  KnockOut Roses are an ideal  choice for a  a busy young mother of 2 energetic young boys.

Natalie Meeks of Mommy’s Memorandum decided to use KnockOut Roses for her garden project.  KnockOut Roses is one of the best-selling flowering shrubs on the market day.  They are long blooming, disease free, ultra hardy and long lived.

Natalie  talks about her project installation and shares some helpful tips on plants she purchased from www.GreatGardenPlants.com

Natalie states “Despite the record high temperatures, these plants continue to thrive.   I think that these plants will be the perfect addition to our backyard for many summers to come.”

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Mercury Rising is both Heat & Drought Proof with stunning red blooms!

Coreopsis Mercury Rising is one of the most colorful, drought proof perennial ground cover for sunny areas and a personal favorite new plant introduction for 2012.

Finally, a velvety-red flowering HARDY Coreopsis ((PPAF)that blooms for 5+ months, takes on the heat & humidity and is bone hardy to zone 5,  This year our record breaking heat & humidity has not deterred the performance of this stunning, hard working garden plant in my Michigan  garden.

This breakthrough new hybrid is the result of many years of hand-crossing by famed hybridizer Darrell Probst.

Darrell has spent the past ten years striving for a Zone 5 (possibly Zone 4) ultra-hardy bright red-flowered Coreopsis to add to his much-acclaimed Big Bang Coreopsis series. He has hit it out of the park with his new velvety-red Mercury Rising Coreopsis!

Breeder Comments

“From what I have seen, there are no other Coreopsis in the market place that combine short, compact habit and large flowers with striking colors in a zone 5 hardy, true perennial”  stated Darrell.

“Plants are sterile, so no deadheading is needed to keep them in bloom. Plants blooms from early May in the south, early June in the north until autumn frost, producing more and more flowers as the season progresses.”

Prolific in containers as well!

“My Big Bang breeding program (which includes Full Moon, Red Shift, & Cosmic Eye) is from 100% perennial species, no annual species are in their blood and tested as far as Georgia with good results.”

Foliage is a bright, healthy green all season and shows NO hint of the dreaded mildew disease that often affects other Coreopsis.

Helpful Info

• 1 1/2 to 2” red flowers with yellow centers
• 18-24” tall
• Spreading Habit
• Blooms all Summer
• Thrives in Heat & Humidity
• Full Sun- Part Shade
• Thrives in dry, moist, well drained loamy soil
• Pest Free
• Disease Free
• Blooms First Year
• Butterfly Loving

Combine Mercury Rising with Cosmic Eye Coreopsis for a color echo effect

Design

I combined Mercury Rising with  Nepeta Walker’s Low and love how it looks together. Other combination possibilities: Festuca Boulder Blue, Coneflowers, Sedum Angelina , Rudbeckia Goldsturm,  Yellow Knock Out Roses, or  Cosmic Eye Coreopsis Use in groupings of 7 or more for best effect.

Coreopsis Mercury Rising is a powerful color that looks dynamite in the sun perennial garden. As the season wanes the flowers just keep getting bigger.  Late in the season  flowers take on a cream streak.

You’ll want to add this remarkable perennial to your garden so you can start to enjoy the many features and rewards this Coreopsis offers!

Nepeta & Roses combine beautifully on this slope

Nepeta or Catmint is one of the easiest drought proof ground covers you’ll ever grow.  This sun perennial is a member of the mint family and known for its fragrant foliage & flowers.  Catmint  will fill in fast, thrive on neglect and little water, yet still reward you with long lasting blooms.

Walker Low's gentle lax habit adds a soft look in this garden setting

I’ve grown a number of varieties of Nepeta over the years, and one that I’m particularly fond of is Walker’s Low .(Zone 3 hardy)  Just give this tough plant a sunny, well drained location and enjoy delightful blue  blooms from early summer-frost.

Here’s why Nepeta is such a great plant:

• Terrific for banks and slopes.  Drought tolerant so it can take those tough sites
• Edging – Gentle spilling habit softens any hardscape
• Ground cover – makes an excellent ground cover for sunny areas
• Sprawling habit  fills in fast
• Blooms the first year
  
• 8” lavender blue spikes (I cannot get enough of blues!)
• Long bloom time
• Thrives will little water
• Garden Design –   Cool blue Nepeta blooms combine so well with warm yellows/golds such as Rudbeckia or Coreopsis,  For one of the longest blooming combinations, combine with Knock Out Roses.
• Resistant to pests and diseases

Nepeta works well in sunny areas as an under planting to small trees

About the only thing I do is shear it back after its first flower flush.  This not only makes for a tidy plant but encourages a new flush of blooms.   I also remove old growth in early spring.

If you are looking for easy gardening – make sure you add Nepeta Walker’s Low to your list – you’ll be glad you gave it a try.

More on Nepeta:

Nepeta & Rose Collection