Digitalis Foxglove Growing
Digitalis – Foxglove, Witches’ Thimbles
A well grown Foxglove in full flower is a plant of dignity and beauty. The long flowering spikes grow from 3 feet to 6 feet tall, rising high above large clumps of broad, downy leaves. Upon the flowering stalk, the flowers open slowly as the impulse to bloom moves upward. This tends to lengthen the blooming season. The flowers are tubular or bell-shaped and hang closely on one side of the stem so that sometimes four rows try to occupy the same position. This arrangement is more apparent than real, for the flowers really originate on all sides of the stem, but the short stems somehow twist around so that they all seem to be on one side. These spikes which are so tall and erect, bear the small, thimble-like flowers in many colors-white, lilac, purple, rose and yellow-with odd and various shadings and markings. They bloom in .June and July.
D. purpurea is the commoner sort and bears purple to white flowers. There is, however an interesting form of D. purpurea, known as Monstrosa, or the Mammoth Foxglove, which has a large saucershaped flower surmounting the spike.
D. grandiflora (ambigua) is the yellow flowered species. It has smaller, narrower leaves and does not attain the height of D. purpurea.
The Wooly Foxglove (D. lanata) is an interesting sort with long, dense spikes of small, grayish flowers marked with yellow. This sort does not resemble the other Foxgloves.
Utilize. They are planted in masses in the garden among the shrubs in solid beds, in the border, in the orchard or naturalized on the edge of the woods or along brooks. Wherever they are planted, they give an appearance of strength and dignity. They are excellent for decorations where tall-spiked flowers are needed. Foxgloves are beautifully combined with Sweet Williams and Hardy Grass Pinks. A whole border of this combination is suggested. Foxgloves need no edging plants as their foliage is most attractive, even at the soil.
GENERAL. Foxgloves succeed well in any garden soil which has been enriched with old manure. They naturalize very readily in half shaded positions, but will grow in full sunlight if the ground is moist. If the main flowering stem is cut after it has finished blooming, many others will come up. Liquid manure should be given to the plants during the flowering season. They require a light Winter protection, which must not be given however, until after a good freezing of the soil. Dry leaves or pine boughs will serve as a sufficient covering for the foliage. Dampness, either from ill-drained soil or too much mulching, will injure the plants quicker than anything else. The leaves must be kept dry and on mild days plenty of air should be given to prevent sweating and heating.
PROPAGATION. Foxgloves are propagated most easily from seeds which should be sown every year in order to have blooming plants the next year. The Foxgloves are treated as biennials. The seed should be sown in late Summer or Fall and wintered over in the coldframe. When the plants are once established they should not be disturbed, although new plants can be started by root division.
Growing wisteria in pots
Why is it that just as my wisteria reaches its peak the weather breaks and we get night after night of cold weather and frost?!
After buying a wistera and not being able to find the right home for it, I decided to experiment by training it as a standard, in a large terracotta pot. I trained the main by tying it to a strong wooden stake, bending shoots round and weaving them together to create a domed head – rather like an umbrella on top of the main stem.
Pruning has simply involved shortening the long wispy side shoots back to about 20cm during summer (July is perfect), and then cutting these stems back further to about 5cm during winter. Pruning twice a year in this way not only controls the mass of new growth that develops each year, but also encourages flowers to form at the base of each of these pruned shoots.
I regularly hear of people whose wisteria won’t flower, but my plant flowers very reliably. Perhaps growing it in a pot helps, along with correct pruning, and feeding with a high potash tomato fertiliser during summer to encourage flower bud development.
All this is really irrelevant if at the very moment the flowers are coming to their peak the weather changes for the worse. Frost can damage flower buds and young new shoots, so I haven’t been leaving things to chance. When frosts were forecast last week I decided to throw a large sheet of fleece right over the wisteria in the evening, removing it again when conditions had warmed up the next day.
It’s useful keeping a sheet of fleece handy during May just in case of frost. A covering will keep off a light frost, protecting blossom and buds from damage. So while it might not be possible to protect a wisteria trained to an arch or pergola, my modestly sized standard wisteria in a pot can be given protection. And long may it bloom.
Top 10 Selling Perennials Plants
Here are September 2010′s top selling perennial plants we have been keeping track of sales this month and hope you find our findings interesting.
10. Hosta Patriot
Hamamelis – Witch Hazel – A well needed winter colour explosion
The Hamamelis is a truly understated gem of a plant.
Whilst the garden bursts with life during the spring and summer months the unasuming Hamamelis sits there waiting for the onset of the winter chill.
And as promised, whilst all the other colour and scented plants move westwards or back underground – the Hamamelis sets out do what it does best – that is – to bring an explosion of warming colours to an otherwise colour and scent descalate garden. A number of cultivatars exist, each with its own unique colour, scent and form – these plants are outstandingly beautiful and leave the minds senses in rapture, especially on crisp, frost or snow covered mornings – the plant is a real investment and will give you years of lasting pleasure.
There is a Hamamelis open day organised by the garden designer Arabella Lennox-Boyd at Gresgarth Hall on the 13th Feb – its definately worth a look in, some of the many vaireties on display are as Hamamelis x intermedia: Hamamelis Ruby Glow, Hamamelis Westerstede, Hamamelis Orange Beauty and a Hamamelis Diane.
For help and advice, please contact www.floraselect.co.uk
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Gardening with Containers and Garden Planters
However big or small, any sized garden or balcony can benefit from a container or two. They create leafy pools of interest outside doors and bring colour and scent to patios and terraces, ideal for creating a relaxing environment.
If your home decor is sleek and modern, you’ll want contemporary planters that enhance and compliment your living style. Over recent years the selection of garden planters has greatly improved, with very simple styles becoming increasingly popular. These garden planters are influenced by architectural trends, with modern interpretations of classic and traditional styles.
New materials and design concepts transform traditional outdoor planters into unique focal pieces, making a bold statement in your outdoor living space. Many designers and architects have turned their design collections to include outdoor decor and have created beautiful and practical modern garden planters. Sleek, clean lines in materials such as galvenised zinc, polystone and polyterrazzo, and fibreclay are all available in sleek, modern designs. From square garden planters, to round garden pots and large tank planters, metal, fiberglass and fibreclay are readily available.
Containers give the opportunity to combine contrasting plants in small areas. Or use as a focal point, planted out with a stunning architectural plant to create interest. By matching a black, square garden planter with a striking accent plant like the Astelis chathamica Silver Spear, a unique, clump forming grass-like perennial with elegant, silvery-scaly leaves, you can create a wonderful focal point. Equally fill a large tank planter with bamboo plants, garden grasses, trees and shrubs or climbers plants to soften the appearance of walls, fences and other hard surfaces all year round.
For more information on garden planters and containers and for expert advice on what to plant contact sales@floraselect.co.uk
Canna Lilies
If you want a bright, happy, tropical look to your garden but you don’t live in the tropics, think about planting canna lilies. No other plant has the same magic of the big, bold, tropical leaves and flowers. Canna Lilies, or otherwise known as ‘Indian Shot’ are undergoing a new wave of popularity and are back in high fashion. Bring a touch of tropical excitement to your garden with the bold colours and attractive foliage.
Originating throughout tropical and subtropical areas, these are vigorous plants which bring beds and borders alive with their brightly coloured, long flowering blooms and attractive foliage. Grown for their large, paddle shaped leaves and upright, reed-like stems which bear brightly coloured, attractive lily-like flowers from June to October.
Canna Lilies prefer to be grown in full sun in moist, humus-rich, well-drained soil and feed well. They look great planted in the border and stunning planted up in containers both outdoors and in cool conservatories.
They will survive outside in winter provided they are mulched thickly and planted in free draining soil. Alternatively lift and store in a frost free place over winter and plant out again in spring.
Canna care: Most cannas like a sunny position, but off-white flowering varieties prefer dappled shade. They grow well in moist soil enriched with organic matter such as compost. Fertilize in late winter. Cannas also respond well to applications of well-rotted cow manure. Remove spent flower heads to maintain an attractive long-flowering display. Only cut off up to 15cm, as new flowers will be forming lower down the stem. At the end of the flowering season, cut old stems down to within 2cm of the ground. Leave new young shoots – these will flower early next season. Lift and divide the clumps every three years.
Recommended Cannas
Canna Lucifer has a bold, fiery red flower with golden-yellow edges above green foliage. A dwarf Canna, growing up to a height of 90cm, Lucifer is ideal for low beds or specimen planting in containers.
Canna Black Knight, with dramatic dark burgundy leaves and tall stalks of deep, red orchid-like flowers. Growing up to a height of 2 metres this Canna will provide an exceptional tropical appeal to any garden.
For help and advice contact www.floraselect.co.uk
Clematis armandii-Evergreen Clematis
Just announced by the Horticultural Trades Association, The Evergreen Clematis has been named ‘Plant of February.’ Brighten up your garden after a dull winter, with this sensational, early flowering Evergreen Clematis, Clematis armandii. With evergreen foliage and hawthorne blossom like fragrance, the Clematis armandii will make a valuable addition to any spring garden.
The handsome, dark, mid-green leathery leaves, stay looking attractive all year round and in early to mid spring, the vine is covered with a blanket of delicate, white, almost translucent flowers. An exceptional flowering vine, Clematis armandii will cover a trellis, fence or pergola with a graceful blanket of delicate floral beauty. A vigorous climber making an effective year round screen, grow this evergreen clematis in a sheltered position away from cold winds.
A vigorous climber with the ability to climb vertically and horizontally, transforming a dull landscape. Reaching a height of 3 metres and spread of 2metres very quickly . Clematis armandii prefers cool, well-drained, loamy soil, plant in a sunny position for the best flowering results.
If you buy just one plant this season, make it Clematis armandii and transform a dull landscape with the beautiful scented blooms and glossy evergreen foliage.
Help and advice please contact: www.floraselect.co.uk
Choosing Garden Planters for your Garden
Over the last 30 years we have enjoyed an explosion of varieties of garden planters that brighten up our gardens. In the 80’s and 90’s terracotta went from becoming a functional pot to an intended feature with the advent of multi-shaped, sized and highly decorated varieties. These burst onto the scene and we have never looked back.
Although terracotta remains a firm favourite in a traditional garden, the new and contemporary styles and materials have encouraged us to be more adventurous in our summer retreats, even if it is just to inject an interesting corner of excitement.
The introduction of these new materials has given us a desire to become more daring in our outlook.
Metal Zinc coated galvernised planters create a modern feel to any garden and if a shaped box, a beautiful palm or grass, are added to a cubed pot, the contrast in the green foliage and the silver planter look stunning. The trough varieties look particularly striking with herbs, which have the added advantage of helping you in the kitchen too.
Polystone planters is a newer variety of material, which is made from fibreglass mixed with powdered stone , giving the appearance of smooth solid stone but the benefit of being lightweight and therefore easier to move. This look, coupled with a contemporary design, combine the traditional and modern creating a stunning addition to any patio.
Polyterrazzo planters are again made with fibreglass with a granite chip mixed in to give them appearance or the much heaver concrete versions . These are usually available in black and white and create a stylish look with a bay tree ball or spiral box, placed in a cube or tower planter, either side of a door at home or in front of a restaurant.
Fibreclay Planters are made from liquid clay pored into a mold with jute matting to give it strength. The look is quite natural with the advantage of a large range of colours and light weight compaired to terracotta
Which ever are chosen, you will not be disappointed as these hard wearing, beautifully designed pots that will be impressing you for years to come. If you need any help or advive please contact www.floraselect.co.uk
Worlds First Dwarf Buddleja (also spelt Buddleia) – Lo and Behold ‘Blue Chip’!!
Floraselect are delighted to announce a new and exclusive to the UK market, the first true dwarf Buddleja! Buddleia Lo and Behold ‘Blue Chip’, bred by Dennis Werner of North Carolina State University is an attractive, hardy, free-flowering miniature Butterfly Bush. This stunning new variety will brighten up your garden with its countless blooms of gorgeously sweet honey scent. The new miniature Buddleja; ‘Blue Chip’ has stunning, short spikes of lavender-blue flowers bursting throughout the late spring and summer months. It’s genuinely dwarf, only reaching 1mt in height, so it’s compact enough to plant in a terrace or patio pot or add to other shrubs within a garden border. Buddleia as a species can be invasive, but you will love our new Buddleia ‘Blue Chip’, with all the charm of a full sized Buddleja, but without the upkeep and unexpected seedlings (the cultivar rarely produces seed which limits seedling proliferation). Buddleja ‘Blue Chip’ is easy to maintain, just remove spent flowers to watch it blossom continuously throughout the summer. Buddleia also has benefits for increasing garden diversity as it’s blossom encourages Butterflies and Bees to visit the garden which will also persuade the small bird species to investigate.
If you love butterflies, low maintenance gardening and a beautiful scent, then this is the plant for you. Buy now from www.floraselect.co.uk for £15.95 in a 3lt pot.
Solanum jasminoides Album
On the look-out for a late flowering wall shrub? Look no further, Solanum jasminoides Album is a great choice for a large dollop of Autumn colour. Related to the more common Solanum crispum, which is more tree-like, and has blue flowers Solanum jasminoides Album, also known as winter jasmine, is a much more elegant proposition. A sheltered spot is preferred, it will need to be trained against a wall as it is not a true climber. Once established, it will flower throughout summer and well into autumn.