Prudent Pruning

I’ve been studying the seminar schedule again, won’t be the last time between now and when I get to the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. There are just so many great options, and only one of me.

Given the season, pruning has been on my mind. In the course of checking out the offerings, I noticed a pruning seminar, “Extreme Makeover for Rhodies,” that’ll be offered by Cass Turnbull. So I took to cruising the web, as I am wont to do, to see if I could find out more about Turnbull. In pretty short order, I found myself on the Plant Amnesty website – what a treasure trove this site is! This non-profit organization is deeply committed to eliminating plant pruning atrocities and has a website packed with tons of great information on proper pruning practices and techniques.

Plant care, especially pruning, can be confusing and frankly a bit nerve-racking at times. It’s the routine gardening task that’s most likely to give a beginning gardener fits. I know that it can be mystifying at first, I’ve been there. Most of us don’t take our reference books out in the field with us, so putting some time into developing a solid understanding of the basic principles before you head out the door with loppers in hand helps you to make good decisions when you’re working in the garden.

Plants do behave in predictable ways, and once you have an idea of what they’ll do in response to what you do, that’s when it’ll all start making more sense. An excellent primer on basic pruning principles for the Pacific Northwest can be found on Plant Amnesty’s website. If you happen to be wrangling with old, overgrown rhodies on your property, you won’t want to miss Cass Turnbull’s seminar on this topic at the show. She’ll be presenting Friday, February 22^nd at 1:45 pm.

For more great gardening tips, visit Jasmine’s San Francisco Flower & Garden Show blog.

Bare Root Basics

‘Tis the season for planting bare root woodies –  ornamental trees, roses and other shrubs for your garden, and for your edible garden, fruit trees, cane berries, and strawberries. And that’s just for starters. You’re going to find lots of choices for bare root perennials this time of year as well, such as hosta and daylilies, and oodles of tubers like dahlia and iris.

So what the heck does “bare root” mean? Bare root plants have been dug up at their nursery of origin and the soil has been removed. They’ll likely be packed in moisture-retentive sawdust and be in a plastic bag when you receive them in the mail or pick them out at your local nursery.

Bare root plants tend to establish themselves more quickly in your garden. A plant that is allowed to root directly into your garden soil isn’t being asked to deal with two types of soil – your soil and the growing medium in its container. This is relevant because water has difficulty passing from one soil texture to another.

Also, the economic benefits of buying bare root plants can be significant. The bare root version of a plant is going to cost a lot less than the very same plant purchased in a nursery pot a couple months down the road. This can really add up if you’re buying a lot of plants to start a new garden or orchard. Plus, let’s not forget the environmental benefit of one fewer nursery pot in circulation.

Shipping bare root plants while they’re dormant has a couple of benefits. For starters, without soil, the overall weight of the package is going to be reduced, so you’ll be saving on shipping costs. Also the dormant plants have an easier time of it in transit, are perhaps a little less susceptible to shipping trauma. And because we’re shipping while the weather is cool, heat stress is reduced.

If you’re like me, though, and will have a hard time getting your act together soon enough to place an order for direct shipping to your home, worry not. You’ll still find tons of selection at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show’s marketplace.

For more great gardening tips, visit Jasmine’s San Francisco Flower & Garden Show blog.

Calling it like it is

I think we can pretty much all agree on what a daffodil is. Heck, lots of people even know the scientific name for this genus – Narcissus. But it gets a bit dicier when it comes to deciding what you might be talking about when you call something a “daisy.” If you ask for a daisy at your local nursery, you might get directed to any number of different plants. Common names can be confusing and inconclusive. Are you looking for Aster novi-belgii? Osteospermum fruticosum? Chrysanthemum frutescens? Or perhaps you were just trying to refer to a particular shape of flower? Using the scientific name allows us to be more precise.

Lots of gardeners, especially those newer to the pastime, are intimidated, a little uncomfortable and consequently, unconvinced as to the merits of identifying plants by their scientific or botanical names. But really it’s the only way to know if we’re both talking about the same plant. Some might say that a rose by any other name is still a rose. But actually, a rose could be a rosa or sometimes even a Rosa glauca.

And, if you break them down, scientific names can even tell you something about the plant. For instance:

• Color: rubra = red, alba = white, aureus = golden
• Growth habit: prostratus = low-growing, contortus = twisted, nanus = dwarf
• Origin: australis = southern, riparius = off river banks, chinensis = from China
• Or any number of other things: edulis = edible, praecox = early, sagittalis = arrow-like

Don’t worry overmuch about your pronunciation at first. And yes, it really does get easier over time, though scientific names can be a tongue-twisting mouthful and difficult to get right at first.

So let’s call a spade a spade. That flop-proof daisy you were looking for earlier? Let’s call her Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Becky’, just to be clear.

For more great gardening tips, visit Jasmine’s San Francisco Flower & Garden Show blog.

Dillying with Dahlias

You can’t beat dahlias for adding color to your late summer garden. But you need to plan ahead. When my garden was younger, I busily installed all sorts of plants, but mostly those focused on creating garden structure, so not very many dahlias. I would always kick myself when the dahlias really started coming on in late summer in other people’s gardens,. The blooms just kept coming, starting in August, sometimes sooner, and kept going strong into September, October and often later still.

So now, I poke them in here & there in my small garden wherever I can find room, integrating them into my mixed borders. I try to plant enough so that I can enjoy plenty as cut flowers.

To be certain you don’t miss out on these late summer winners for your garden, make sure you get your tubers this spring. I’ll be doing my shopping at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show coming up February 20^th – 24^th in Seattle. Here’s a list of the dahlia specialists who will be offering a staggering array of choices in the Marketplace:

• Connell’s Dahlias
• Dan’s Dahlias
• Swan Island Dahlias
• The Dahlia Barn

You can plant your new tubers as soon as danger of frost is past.  If you find yourself caught up in a dahlia delirium, you might look for kinship with the Puget Sound Dahlia Association, as they will also have a booth at the show.

For more great gardening tips, visit Jasmine’s San Francisco Flower & Garden Show blog.

Ask Flora

Q: Dear Flora – My neighbor offered me some divisions of Japanese anemone, the white variegated Bishop’s weed, and an evergreen groundcover called Mrs. Robb’s bonnet. She said they’ve been doing great for her and she thought I might like some, since she has plenty to share. They look like they might even look nice together in my garden. Can you tell me more about these plants? — Nervous Nellie

A: Whoa, Nellie! This may seem like heresy to some, but nevertheless, here goes: beware of friends & neighbors bearing gift plants. I know this sounds a bit harsh and out-and-out unappreciative, but hear me out.

I’m sure your friend is just trying to be generous, sharing her bounty and seeming good fortune. Heck, she probably thinks they’re awesome plants, plugging along with nary a blip of effort on her part. But really, if it sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be true.

Watch out for these superficially benign but downright naughty plants:

• Japanese anemone (Anemone x hybrida) – This is the one I get the most guff for. Yeah, I do agree the late summer blooms are beautiful and they do indeed illuminate the shady understory. But they’re too pushy for my taste. I began the process of trying to remove them from my garden four years ago and I still find volunteer plantlets emerging from the root remainders of this tenacious perennial.
• Robb’s Euphorbia, aka Mrs. Robb’s bonnet (Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae) - Another one I will likely take some heat on. This is a rather handsome plant, sporting deep-green, evergreen foliage and showy, chartreuse blooms in winter. Even though I’ve seen it used to beautiful effect, I wouldn’t use it in my small garden, where I prefer to safeguard my prospects for growing a diverse mix of plants. Again, a good plant for a small number of circumstances, but it’s just too aggressive for my taste. 
• Variegated Bishop’s weed (Aegopodium podagraria ‘Variegatum’) – This one I think we can all agree upon. I mean really, any common name that includes “weed” should be a tip-off to hostile behavior. Unsuspecting gardeners are drawn to the allure of a fast-spreading, drought-tolerant, low-maintenance, weed-smothering, sparkly-variegated groundcover suitable for the shadiest, most inhospitable conditions. Sounds good, right? Well, it’s all fun and games until someone puts out an eye.

Yes, yes, yes. Some of these aggressive plants can be quite lovely (in someone else’s garden) and can even serve a valuable purpose. But I call them plants of last resort. If absolutely nothing else will grow, then by all means think about turning to a plant like one of these to help with a difficult situation. But these marauders can spell trouble for those who wish to grow a variety of plants in their borders and/or reserve the gardener’s prerogative to plant something else later.  Once they take hold, they can be difficult or impossible to remove.

If, after careful consideration, you decide that these plants are right for you, Godspeed. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.

For more great gardening tips, visit Jasmine’s San Francisco Flower & Garden Show blog.