Issue 5              Seasonal tips and featured varieties coming to a retailer near you              April 18, 2008

The sun is coming out and we’re ready to work the soil – but as you’re out there poking veggie seeds into the ground and monitoring newly emerging perennials, take a minute to get your attention out of the dirt and think about filling some spaces that are often overlooked in garden planning.  Planted now, climbing plants like our Vines & Screens will fill the upper reaches of the garden or act as curtains or dividers; varieties in our Background Plants Collection can be used in similar ways but without the need for trellises or other supports.  The exceptional annuals in our Cut Flower Collection will ensure a steady supply of brilliant blooms and varied textures for indoor arrangements summer through fall. (click on image at right to see larger version)
 
 

 
 
VINES & SCREENS
The “flowering-vine-as-window-screen-and-shower-curtain” (see Sunset’s Fresh Dirt article from April 13) may be best in a warmer climate than the Pacific Northwest, but we still have many uses for climbers. Climbing plants in the wild have adapted to take advantage of more rigid, upright plants like trees or shrubs; by twining their stems through branches or attaching themselves to host plants with thorns or spines they gain more access to light, moisture, air, or pollinators.  You can use the same informal method in the garden or train the vines up arbors, trellises, walls, fences, or other supports to create background screens, vertical interest, and even outdoor “rooms.”
 
Vines are also quite convenient for disguising that falling-down old shed you’ve been meaning to tear down…
 
ANNUAL COLLECTIONS
Annual Cut Flowers - There are two great advantages to cutting annual flowers for indoor arrangements: you bring the beauty of your garden into your house, and you encourage even more blooms in the garden by frequently harvesting the blooms.  For this collection, we’ve chosen some showy beauties with long, strong stems and an extended bloom period and vase life. 
 
We’ve also tried to find varieties with unusual flower forms that will draw attention to an arrangement.  Two worth mentioning that we’ve been sending out to nurseries this week are Salvia horminum in ‘Marble Arch Blue’ and ‘Marble Arch Rose,’ whose flashy blooms are actually deeply colored bracts that keep their intense hues much longer than flower petals would; and Salpiglossis sinuata (aka “Sloppy Galoshes”) in ‘Royale Blue Purple Bicolor’ and ‘Royale Deep Red Bicolor,’ each with vivid, velvety trumpet flowers exquisitely veined in gold.
   

Some things we’ve learned about growing and displaying great cut flowers:
• Most grow best in full sun in loose, well-drained soil that’s not too high in nitrogen (which encourages leafy green growth at the expense of flowers).
• Deadhead spent blooms to promote steady long-term flowering.
• “Condition” the flowers: Cut in the evening or morning, then allow flowers to rest in deep water in a cool dark place, overnight or for several hours.
• After conditioning, trim an inch from the stems and strip off leaves that will be underwater in the vase.
• Place stems in room temperature water (putting freshly cut flowers in cold water may shock them and cause them to wilt).
• Use vertical spikes like larkspur, salvia, or celosia as the structural “skeleton,” then add large rounded flowers or flowers clusters – like salpiglossis, calendula, or gaillardia – for bulk and splashes of bright color, and fill in around them with airy delicate blooms such as ageratum or baby’s breath. 
 

Background Plants – These tall, bold-textured, long-blooming annuals provide a strong, colorful backbone for the garden, whether grown alone or with perennial flowers and shrubs.  Bulky enough to form loose, colorful garden hedges, screens, and space dividers, they can create a sense of enclosure, frame an attractive view, or block an unpleasant one.  Ready-to-go this week are breadseed poppies, which we love for their cool bluish foliage and huge, fluffy blooms in black, white, and every glowing shade of pink, red, or purple in between; and a selection of Nicotianas, including our new favorite, ‘Bingerdon Brown,’ with masses of rich coffee-brown star-shaped flowers.  Happy planting!

  

Recent issues of GARDEN NEWS:
Issue 1, March 21, 2008 (Delphiniums, garlic starts)
Issue 2, March 28, 2008 (Sweet peas, edible peas, perennials)
Issue 3, April 4, 2008 (Nasturtium, baskets)
Issue 4, April 11, 2008 (Arctotis, veggies)