Annuals

Believe it or not, some people just don’t like poinsettias. Certainly not the majority of people, but if you are one of them, don’t despair. There are several seasonal flowering plants which will give you months of satisfaction as flowering houseplants. What hostess would not be thrilled with a ‘green’ gift that’s just a bit different from the six poinsettias she/he already has lining the banquet table?First in the line up is the cyclamen. Now there are hardy cyclamen that bloom outside in the garden, but the more common version is the florist’s cyclamen, (Cyclamen persicum). This plant grows from a tuber and is native to the Mediterranean region of the world. In its natural habitat, it blooms in the cooler, damper weather of fall, winter, and/or spring and it goes through a dormant cycle during the dry months of summer. This will give you a key to how best to care for a cyclamen. They prefer temperatures between 55F-65F, bright light and good air circulation, and they can be watered from the bottom. If you do water from the top, water at the sides of the container since the tuber should be kept dry. Your cyclamen will last several months. When picking a cyclamen plant, pick one with just a few flowers open and lots of buds. Gloxinia (Sinningia speciosa) is a member of the Gesneriaceae family, which is the same family as African violets and the cape primrose. As such, it also prefers warm indoor temperatures and bright indirect light. It differs from its family members in that it grows from a tuber, and tubers generally have a dormant stage. Gloxinias are native to Brazil and come in a wide variety of flower colors. They are rich and velvety in both leaf and flowers. Lush is the word that comes to mind and we all need a bit of lushness in our lives.Amaryllis are well known to gardeners and non-gardeners alike. They have huge, very satisfying flowers and are available in an array of colors. Amaryllis kits are readily available at this time of year and they’re a great project for both adults and kids. The amaryllis is actually in the genus Hippeastrum, and it originates in tropical and sub-tropical areas of the Americas. Pot them up, water them and watch them grow. Amaryllis bulbs can be kept from year to year. Once the flower has bloomed, cut off the stalk and let the foliage develop. Put it outside during the summer months and fertilize every two weeks. Bring it back in the house before frost and wait for the flower stalk to emerge. Paperwhites, narcissus species, are as easy to grow as amaryllis. This tender bulb is best planted in a group either in soil or in marble or glass chips. Planting them in a straight-sided clear vase will keep them tidy but they can always be prettily tied with raffia and stakes to keep them upright. When planted in clear marbles where the roots are visible, there is the added dimension of watching those silky thread-like roots infiltrate the marbles. Keep a ruler handy and let the kids chart the growth each day. Their fragrance is heady and pleasant to some, though not to all. Cooler room temperatures keep the plants a bit shorter and bright light also helps. Yes, there is a hydrangea available for Christmas sale and it is a beauty. Shooting Star Hydrangea is actually a Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Hanabi’, which is a tender hydrangea, hardy in warmer zones than ours. It has both fertile and infertile flowers and is a member of the lacecap variety of hydrangeas. The white, star-shaped infertile flowers shoot off from the main cluster of small blue fertile flowers. It is lovely to behold and easy to grow. Water when dry to the touch and keep this plant in bright light and moderate room temperatures. One last suggestion for the person in your life who has a black thumb. Try a tillandsia. As much art as greenery, tillandsias - air plants - require only infrequent misting to maintain their health. There are tiny tillandsias and larger varieties, but these little mini-greenhouse ornaments available at the garden center make a perfect conversation piece in your home or as a gift to that person who can kill a silk plant. It is all about choices and there are enough to please everyone.

Creating a garden for butterflies is not difficult. If you plant flowers, they will come.  You will get a wide assortment of butterflies, but which butterflies?    When you hear the word butterfly, which one do you picture?  In many cases it is the Monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus, which is native to North America.   The name Monarch was given to this butterfly in the late 1800’s because it is one of the largest of the butterflies and it rules over a large geographic area.  The Monarch is quite distinctive, with its bands of black surrounding the orange-stained glass pattern of its wings.  Even children can recognize and name the Monarch butterfly. 

Monarchs are unique in that they feed exclusively on plants in the Asclepius or milkweed family.  You can learn more about this butterfly here.  Common milkweed (Asclepius syriaca) can be found in the pastures and roadsides of much of North America east of the Rocky Mountains, and while it is a rather pedestrian-looking plant, it has an uncommonly rich fragrance.  I have left it to grow in areas of the perennial border because it is food for the Monarch butterfly caterpillar.  Each year  I check the plants hoping for sight of the vibrantlly colored caterpillars.  Each year, I have been disappointed.  This year, I added some annuals from the milkweed family to the garden.  One plant I added is Gomphocarpus physocarpus, commonly called ‘Fur Balls,’  which is a name much easier to pronounce and remember.  This plant has a delicate flower which the bees love, and its seed pods will generate much discussion.  Unusual in form, the seed pods are 2-inch-wide globes. When the ball is broken open, it reveals a traditional milkweed pod that contains the seeds. I started these plants from seeds I picked up at the garden center.  They have been slow to flower but when I checked them in late August I was excited to discover not one Monarch caterpillar, but five.   Five hungry, munching, striped caterpillars feeding on the plants.  Sacrifices must be made and I was willing to sacrifice flowers and foliage to the hungry caterpillars.  As you can see, this caterpillar is quite beautiful and eye-catching.  What I didn’t realize is that it is eye-catching not just to the gardener but perhaps to any hungry bird in the vicinity.  One by one the caterpillars fell victim to an unknown predator.  This gardener has learned yet another harsh lesson from nature.  Sometimes we have to nurture and protect the visitors to the garden.  I am hatching a plan for  protecting the next crop of caterpillars with a mini-screen house for their enjoyment.  I do hope they give me another chance. 

Do you have Monarchs or Monarch caterpillars in the garden?   If you haven’t seen them, you may want to plant some of the annual milkweeds for their dining pleasure.    

Are your petunias doing well this year? If not why?

My petunias weren’t looking very floriferous. Weak in the blossom department.

Knowing that petunias don’t like the heat, my first thought was that the summer heat got to them. Also, they like regular feedings, and maybe I didn’t feed them enough in the weeks before I went away.

But then I looked more closely and noticed that the few flowers that were there were eaten with those infamous black dots all over the foliage.

Finally, I found the insect - the petunia budworm - and remembered that it caused the same problem last year, too. This caterpillar will devour petunia flowers in a couple days, so most people think it’s just time to give up on them when in fact, mine came back to life in a couple days. I sprayed the petunias with Bonide’s Captain Jack Organic Spray and fed them with some water-soluble fertilizer and they bounced back to full bloom in about three days.

Since then, I’ve had about 20 people come into the Chelmsford garden center with the same problem, so I’m posting this “fyi” for people who are about to give up on their petunias: They may not be lost after all; check for the symptoms.

Photo source and for more information: Penn State.