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It's Perennials Week!

By daylily
June 19, 2013

Twenty-seven years ago I planted my first perennials, shrubs, and trees around the Ohio home where I currently live. The natural soil is heavy, poorly draining clay that is almost impossible to dig into, so I have added a lot of organic matter to the perennial beds. We have summer temperatures up to 105 and winter temperatures of -25. Years with little rain, and years with lots of rain. Once considered zone 5, the latest update now has it as zone 6. I've grown many perennials through the years. Many grew one or two seasons and then never appeared again. Some were plagued with insect or disease problems that I didn't want to deal with. A few had no problem surviving - I had a problem with them spreading or setting seed that grew everywhere.
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(7 comments) (5)

By Joannabanana
June 18, 2013 Petchoa - The New Kid In Town
XPetchoa is a recent new genus. The plants are a genetic cross between a petunia and calibrachoa. The Petchoa is a milestone in plant breeding and the result is a combination of the best characteristics of both the petunia and the calibrachoa. It is an amazing plant for home gardeners who enjoy hanging baskets loaded with blooms all season.
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By dave
June 17, 2013 A Huge Perennials Week Not-A-Raffle-Raffle
Our biggest raffle ever! Eight different companies have provided prizes for this month's raffle. How exciting! Come on in and take a look, and buy your tickets.
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(42 comments) (17)

By Sharon
June 16, 2013 A Closer Look at Perennial Foliage
It's that time of year again: blooms, blooms and more blooms! And every year just like clockwork, we wake up, grab our coffee and our cameras and race to see the newest blooms in our gardens. If there are no new blooms, we drop our heads and slowly walk back inside to wait for tomorrow. But wait a minute; there's something we shouldn't miss! Let's take a closer look at foliage.
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(16 comments) (18)

By chelle
June 15, 2013 Manage Difficult Perennial Planting Sites with the Use of Planting Pockets
Are your dreams of a yard packed with perennials hampered by difficult potential planting sites? Establish strong and healthy plants by utilizing planting pockets.
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By fiwit
June 14, 2013 A Quick Tip for Changing Hose Attachments
I'm constantly switching between connecting my hose to a soaker hose or to a nozzle attachment. This little accessory has become my new best friend.
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(17 comments) (14)

By dave
June 13, 2013 ATP Podcast #22: Just Some Garden Talk
In this episode, Dave and Trish talk about the new features added to ATP this week, and hold the drawing for the recent contest. They also discuss a good variety of gardening topics, including a rant about some specific pins on pinterest.
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(24 comments) (7)

By valleylynn
June 13, 2013 Making 'Image Sets'
Easy to follow instructions for creating your very own Image Sets.
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By tinpins
June 12, 2013 Easy Seedling Carrier
This simple way to support small peat pot trays for transporting will make planting a little easier.
(139 words - Full article)
(3 comments) (8)

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The newest comments to the plant database:

By gardengus on Jun 18, 2013 6:57 PM, concerning plant: Red Barrenwort (Epimedium x rubrum)
This plant has been in my garden for several years. Always a pleasure to see in the spring , one of the first shade plants to show and the leaves have a good color.
No need for extra care here.
[ (0) | Reply to this comment ]

By gardengus on Jun 18, 2013 5:49 PM, concerning plant: Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca)
This is a medicinal herb, extremely bitter. Normally used dried.
Should be gathered and dried after flowering.
[ (0) | Reply to this comment ]

By gardengus on Jun 18, 2013 5:33 PM, concerning plant: Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum)
Sweet woodruff is called sweet because of the foliage and not the flower.
For best fragrance cut plant just after flowering and hang in bunches to dry. It has a fresh mown hay sent sometimes with a hint of vanilla.In the past it was used to freshen bed linens. Today more often used in potpourri.

A native of England, North Africa and western Asia

Will crowed out weeds in moist shade and grow in very dense shade. If it gets too aggressive for your garden,try moving it to a sunnier place and don't water.
[ (0) | Reply to this comment ]

By Calif_Sue on Jun 17, 2013 10:25 PM, concerning plant: (Vitis 'Thomcord')
The result of crossbreeding Concord and Thompson grapes.
They have the blue-black hue and aromatic flavor of the Concord, with a touch of Thompson sweetness and they also inherited the seedless quality from the Thompson grape.

[ (1) | Reply to this comment ]

By flaflwrgrl on Jun 17, 2013 6:03 PM, concerning plant: Tomatillo (Physalis ixocarpa)
The tomatillo is native to Mexico & Central America and is used extensively in salsa. Tomatillo is in the tomato family. You grow it just as you do tomatoes. It also benefits from staking or caging, as tomatoes do, in order to keep fungus from taking hold and to keep the fruit off the ground. Tomatillos will, like their cousin the tomato, develop roots along the stem. Also like their cousin the tomato, tomatillos benefit from being planted deep and they will develop roots along the stem portion you planted.

Tomatillo takes anywhere from 75 to 100 days to produce fruit. The fruit itself looks like a green tomato, only smaller, but it is encased in a papery shell, which is green & purple and then turns brown. There are purple & yellow varieties. While growing, the fruit with its shell looks much like little Chinese lanterns. When you remove the papery husk, the fruit itself is sticky & can leave some residue on your hands. Just wash the fruit (& your hands) before using. Tomatillo is frost tender, just like tomatoes, but it will bear fruit right up until frost.

When the fruit is ripe, it splits the paper husk. Store them in the fridge, in their husk, for up to a month, or you can put them in a paper bag in the fridge.

It is difficult to describe the flavor of the fruit. It is sweet & tart & tangy and it has citrusy undertones. It's really quite pleasant tasting and I add them to tossed salads to give them some zing and I throw some into stir-fry dishes.

Tomatillos will self sow if you leave fruits to rot on the ground. Next spring you may discover many volunteers all over the place.

TOMATILLOS ARE NOT SELF POLLINATING. YOU MUST HAVE AT LEAST 2 PLANTS OR YOU WILL NOT GET FRUIT.
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