I've been growing and selling perennials for over 30 years, with a short hiatus doing landscaping. I started with seven or eight varieties, sold some extra divisions on a picnic table near the road, and went on from there. I now grow about 400 varieties. I've tried many others that I've eliminated for one reason or another, usually because of failure to reliably survive the winter, but sometimes because of pest or disease problems.
I propagate and grow almost all of the plants that I sell, but every year I buy a few new varieties, or replacements for ones I've sold too many of. This is the reason that I am able to sell my plants for five dollars apiece in 1 gallon pots. I find that my own plants are nearly always of a better quality than ones that I purchase wholesale. If you visit other nurseries, in May especially, you'll find that many of their plants are much more advanced than mine. This is because they buy plants that are shipped in from Florida or other warm climates, or the plants have been growing inside greenhouses for a month or two. Most nurseries also pump their plants full of fast acting chemical fertilizers and plant growth regulators. Seems crazy to me.
I garden completely organically. I have never found a reason to use chemical fertilizers- I incorporate large amounts of my own compost into the soil each year. Nearly all perennials and other plants, shrubs and trees will perform better in compost enriched soil. I also feel very strongly about pesticides, herbicides and fungicides. In the 50 years or so that I've been gardening with flowers, vegetables, and fruit, I've seen that organically grown, healthy plants are able to resist pests and diseases better. By walking through the garden frequently and making close observations, one can often find and identify problems early and deal with them safely. If I find a few aphids on a particular plant, and I notice that there is a ladybug or lacewing larva feeding on them, I will leave them alone. If there is a large number of aphids in a group, I will spray them with a water and dish soap mix, very safe and non-toxic - but it will kill aphids. I occasionally use NEEM, pyrethrin, or another organically approved product, any of which will break down rapidly into harmless substances. I often spend 12 or more hours a day in the garden seven days a week- even if I were to selfishly ignore the birds, toads, bees, butterflies and other co-inhabitants of my garden, why would I want to spread a toxic poison where I'm going to be working and breathing?
As Rachel Carson wrote in Silent Spring, "How could intelligent beings seek to control a few unwanted species by a method that contaminated the entire environment and brought the threat of disease and death even to their own kind?”
Watering
Established perennials do not need to and should not be watered every day. Daily watering encourages the plants roots to stay small and near the surface, when they should be spreading deep and wide. A thorough, once a week watering during the growing season, if there is no rainfall, is more than adequate. Newly planted perennials, depending on the soil, will need a bit more, but a compost enriched soil will hold more moisture and alleviate the need for frequent water. Of course, perennials in containers will need more frequent watering.
Sun and shade
When a plant is said to require full sun, that ordinarily means six hours of sunlight or more per day. Part sun and part shade perhaps means less than six hours, but nothing is set in stone. A plant that is said to enjoy full shade can easily grow in four or five hours of sunlight. In fact, many shade plants will perform better with several hours of sun light, especially morning sun. A plant that is growing in partial shade will flower longer than the same plant growing in full sun. For a plant like Bee Balm, Monarda didyma, whose blossoms I enjoy as much as the hummingbirds do, I usually have several patches of it, one in full sun, one in half sun, and one in limited sunlight, so that I have an extended period of bloom for a long time in summer.
I propagate and grow almost all of the plants that I sell, but every year I buy a few new varieties, or replacements for ones I've sold too many of. This is the reason that I am able to sell my plants for five dollars apiece in 1 gallon pots. I find that my own plants are nearly always of a better quality than ones that I purchase wholesale. If you visit other nurseries, in May especially, you'll find that many of their plants are much more advanced than mine. This is because they buy plants that are shipped in from Florida or other warm climates, or the plants have been growing inside greenhouses for a month or two. Most nurseries also pump their plants full of fast acting chemical fertilizers and plant growth regulators. Seems crazy to me.
I garden completely organically. I have never found a reason to use chemical fertilizers- I incorporate large amounts of my own compost into the soil each year. Nearly all perennials and other plants, shrubs and trees will perform better in compost enriched soil. I also feel very strongly about pesticides, herbicides and fungicides. In the 50 years or so that I've been gardening with flowers, vegetables, and fruit, I've seen that organically grown, healthy plants are able to resist pests and diseases better. By walking through the garden frequently and making close observations, one can often find and identify problems early and deal with them safely. If I find a few aphids on a particular plant, and I notice that there is a ladybug or lacewing larva feeding on them, I will leave them alone. If there is a large number of aphids in a group, I will spray them with a water and dish soap mix, very safe and non-toxic - but it will kill aphids. I occasionally use NEEM, pyrethrin, or another organically approved product, any of which will break down rapidly into harmless substances. I often spend 12 or more hours a day in the garden seven days a week- even if I were to selfishly ignore the birds, toads, bees, butterflies and other co-inhabitants of my garden, why would I want to spread a toxic poison where I'm going to be working and breathing?
As Rachel Carson wrote in Silent Spring, "How could intelligent beings seek to control a few unwanted species by a method that contaminated the entire environment and brought the threat of disease and death even to their own kind?”
Watering
Established perennials do not need to and should not be watered every day. Daily watering encourages the plants roots to stay small and near the surface, when they should be spreading deep and wide. A thorough, once a week watering during the growing season, if there is no rainfall, is more than adequate. Newly planted perennials, depending on the soil, will need a bit more, but a compost enriched soil will hold more moisture and alleviate the need for frequent water. Of course, perennials in containers will need more frequent watering.
Sun and shade
When a plant is said to require full sun, that ordinarily means six hours of sunlight or more per day. Part sun and part shade perhaps means less than six hours, but nothing is set in stone. A plant that is said to enjoy full shade can easily grow in four or five hours of sunlight. In fact, many shade plants will perform better with several hours of sun light, especially morning sun. A plant that is growing in partial shade will flower longer than the same plant growing in full sun. For a plant like Bee Balm, Monarda didyma, whose blossoms I enjoy as much as the hummingbirds do, I usually have several patches of it, one in full sun, one in half sun, and one in limited sunlight, so that I have an extended period of bloom for a long time in summer.
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Lychnis coronaria Stylophorum diphyllum Astilbe "Visions in Red"
(Rose Campion, Mullein Pink) (Celandine Poppy)
(Rose Campion, Mullein Pink) (Celandine Poppy)