Scorching summer heat slows or halts tomato flowering and fruit production in the American Southwest. (photo by Jessie Keith)
Out here in the dry western states, the growing season is far longer than most realize. We plant earlier, our plants peak earlier, and by the time the heat of late July and August rolls around, growth and yields have slowed considerably. This is partly due to temperatures flirting with 100 degrees Fahrenheit in low humidity, which halts flower production, slows fruit production, and stimulates pests, like wooly aphids and spider mites. Once the days cool at the start of September, the month of the Equinox, many summer vegetable plants like tomatoes start to flower again and will produce a secondary crop, but only under the right conditions. Continue reading “Extending the Vegetable Harvest in the Southwest”
Oxydendrum arboreum (sourwood) is often overlooked but deserves to be seen in more gardens. (photo by Jessie Keith)
Warm and sunny fall days have continued here in the Pacific Northwest through mid November. They have given gardeners time to trim summer perennials, transplant all those plants that were planted in the wrong location, plant bulbs, dig and protect tender plants and finish general garden cleanup. The mild weather has also allowed us to enjoy plants that provide fall color, whether via flower, fruit, berry, bark, foliage or a combination of these. I still have dahlias blooming in my garden, and while the plants are not at their best, they are still providing enough flowers for bouquets.
Burning bush is truly fiery in fall, but be sure it is not an ecological menace in your area.
Last week when I saw my neighbor Janet working in her garden, she wanted me to see her blooming autumn crocus (Colchicumautumnale). While not actually a crocus, it resembles one and many gardeners know it by that name. Janet told me that whenever she sees the light pink flowers appear, she knows that fall is here. Continue reading “Brugmansia, Burning Bush, Bulbs and Cleome in the Fall Garden”
The saffron crocus is a fall bloomer that yields one of the most expensive spices on Earth.
From each fall-blooming crocus flower emerges three red, precious strands. These are elongated stigmas (female flower parts) otherwise known as saffron—an extraordinarily expensive aromatic spice popular in Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Indian cooking. Continue reading “Just Wild About Saffron”
Rows of the pretty kale Brassica oleracea ‘Lacinato’ are lined up for fall growing.
“Eat your Greens!” is a familiar directive to consume some form of the Mustard Family, formally referred to as Brassicaceae or Cruciferae. And, what a large family of leafy vegetables it is! Its members, called brassicas or cole crops, include many adored (or abhorred) leafy edibles such as Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, kale, mustard greens as well as collards, bok choy, pak choi and arugula, among others. Continue reading “Growing Fall Greens”
What a glorious time of year! Summer is over and autumn is here. The garden is still looking good with lots of color from summer annuals that are still going strong, and at the same time there are late fall flowers emerging. Continue reading “Fall Flowers: Crape Myrtle, Dahlias, Salvia & Lespedeza”
In the garden, these old fashioned violas spread, mound and cascade throughout the cooler seasons.
I once worked for Roger’s Gardens Colorscape, a world famous nursery that installs fabulous annual color gardens for stately homes on the southern California coast. That experience taught me how to grow annuals for two seasons. In early summer, we’d plant the traditional marigolds and petunias that love the heat. Come September, it was time to tear out all those warm season flowers and fortify the beds with compost and fertilizer before installing our cool season annual palette. Violas were a favorite for gracing our gardens with intense color all winter long. Continue reading “Cool It with Violas”
A monarch butterfly perilously drinks from a Monarda didyma flower–a plant typically pollinated by hummingbirds!
Late summer and fall are when pollinators prepare to migrate or overwinter, so it’s an essential time to ensure the garden is filled to the brim with good plants for pollinators to eat. And usually the best plants on the pollinator menu are native wildflowers. So, it helps to be privy to the prettiest and best behaved fall wildflowers for pollinators fit for the garden
The pale violet blue flowers of Aster oblongifolius ‘October Skies’ are loved by bees and butterflies.
Fall Composites
Composites, or plants in the daisy family, offer the most late-season bloom options on the menu. And their variety does not disappoint. Aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium), bright Fireworks goldenrods (Solidago rugosa ‘Fireworks‘), dwarf Low Down sunflower (Helianthussalicifolius‘Low Down‘) and reddish-purple meadow blazingstar (Liatris ligulistylis) are all top-notch garden plants enjoyed by butterflies, bees and even hummingbirds. Classic annual sunflowers are also easy, much-favored blooms. Then later in the season, when all these composites have gone to seed, they produce food for hungry seed-eating birds, like gold and purple finches.
A monarch favorite, orange butterflyweed can continue blooming into fall and also bears beautiful seedpods.
Milkweeds
Milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) of all kinds will continue to bloom into fall. And even when not in flower, their foliage provides essential forage for Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) caterpillars. Those that are showiest in fall include the tangerine-orange flowered butterflyweed (A. tuberosa) and swamp milkweed (A. incarnata), both of which can offer flowers and showy seedpods in fall. (The non-native, semi-tropical Mexican bloodflower (A. curassavica) also provides good butterfly food, but be sure not to let it set seed as it can be weedy.) Gardeners are always surprised to see how quickly fluttering groups of butterflies (called ‘kaleidoscopes’) visit their gardens after planting Asclepias. Some may also be dismayed by all the monarch caterpillars eating their milkweed leaves, but let them eat! Beautiful, essential butterflies are a small price to pay for a few chomped plants.
Glowing hot pink flowers, on a Salvia greggii hybrid, are a sure hummingbird lure.
Salvias and Beebalms
Late-season salvia, hyssop (Agastache spp.) and beebalm (Monarda spp.) blossoms provide essential food for a wide array of pollinators. These fragrant mints come in many beautiful garden-worthy varieties. The annual scarlet sage (Salvia coccinea) is one of the best, offering endless bright red flowers until frost; white and pink varieties (‘Snow Nymph’ and ‘Coral Nymph’) are also available. A little deadheading will keep these annuals looking their best. Garden varieties of the Texas and Mexican native autumn sage (S. greggii) will also provide a big show of fall color, to the delight of travelling hummingbirds. Likewise, sunny colored hyssops in shades of orange (Agastache aurantiaca), pink (A. cana), and sunset hues (A. rupestris) lure many butterflies and hummingbirds eager to drink the last of the season’s nectar. The resilient horsemint (Monarda punctata) is another uniquely beautiful mint for late summer and fall that is favored by bees as is the hummingbird favorite, scarlet beebalm (M.didyma).
Swamp milkweed is a colorful long-bloomer that grows well in moist garden soils.
Night Bloomers
Gardeners seeking to lure sphinx moths and other charming evening pollinators might consider late-day bloomers like four-o-clocks (Mirabilis spp.) and ornamental angel’s trumpets (Datura spp.). Non-native ornamental tobaccos are also superb, non-invasive plants for moths. Two South American winners are the tall, white-flowered woodland tobacco (Nicotianasylvestris) and pink– and white–flowered jasmine tobacco (N. alata). Both provide wonderful evening fragrance and charming flowers that attract moths of all sorts.
Creating a sumptuous wildflower planting for pollinators is a snap because growing well-adapted, regional plants makes for easier gardening. All mentioned in this article thrive in full to partial sun and appreciate quality soil with good drainage (with the exception of swamp milkweed). Topdressing plantings with a little Black Gold Garden Compost Blend in fall will help maintain soil quality while deterring fall and winter weeds.
When the hard frosts hit, the pollinators will be gone, wintering away somewhere deep and protected or busying themselves somewhere lovely South of The Border. Either way, gardeners that plant wildflowers for pollinators can feel confident that they helped many of these creatures towards good health and survival, which helps us all.
Gorgeous purple hued Echeverias and mint green Sempervivums in a shallow wide pot make a perfect table top feature for autumn outdoor dining.
For parents, back to school season is the happiest time of year. Finally things slow enough to spruce up the garden for fall. But what to do when food plants and flowers are going to seed at summer’s end? Try some experiments with colorful late season succulents in pots to give outdoor living spaces a contemporary feel. When cold nights arrive, just bring them indoors to decorate your home all winter long.
Designing Succulent Pots
You’ve seen them everywhere, those fabulous pots stuffed with vibrant succulents. They look great on tables or arranged on a sunny deck, balcony or window. And, growing and overwintering success is easy. Start by selecting a lightweight pot (with large drainage holes) that is easily carried in or out, and fill with porous Black Gold Cactus Mix potting soil, which provides the ideal root zone environment. Then pick out an array of unique succulents from the garden center, and get planting.
In this composition you can readily see the upright plants, strong rosette forms and cascading edge plants.
To achieve the trendy looks of decorator showrooms, select succulents that represent three different forms. First are upright branching types like Euphorbia ‘Firesticks’ or Portulacaria jade trees. Second are the rosette forms of cold hardy Sempervivum and Echeveria varieties. Third are crawlers, such as Senecio string-of-pearls and cascading groundcover sedums that hang off pot edges.
A pot with a balanced design will have one or more of these three forms, but the actual plants you select will define your personal creation. Shop by foliage color for vivid hues that give your composition punch without flowers. For more subtle effects, select pastel shades for a perfect match to your interior color palette.
Planting Succulent Pots
The best succulent pots are created by packing young plants tightly into the container. Generally speaking, succulents plants don’t resent crowded conditions, so purchase good sized individuals that are in scale with the size of your pots for eye popping effects on day one. Fill tiny gaps between root balls with Black Gold Cactus Mix. It’s best to wait a few days to water them in so that any broken stems or roots can heal over with a waterproof callus. This ensures that exposed tissues are not exposed to waterborne diseases that cause rot. (This is a succulent gardening basic; to protect fresh cuts/breaks during the planting process.) And don’t worry about not watering, succulents won’t wilt if not promptly watered.
This composition at the Proven Winners® trials shows how perfectly succulent hues blend into fall and water color palettes.
Finished pots should be given plenty of light, a cool winter environment and light water. As days grow shorter and cooler, be aware that succulents don’t need much additional moisture because there’s less loss to evaporation. The cooled, drier conditions of fall will demonstrate just how long moisture can remain in the soil. Succulents will truly thrive through winter with little to no supplemental water while excess water can kill them.
If you’ve been dying to jump into succulents for the first time, late summer is a good time and slower season to start. It’s also more affordable because not only will they make your fall garden sizzle, you’ll enjoy them all winter too. This is economy we can all live with, and if well cared for, they’ll be ready to go back outdoors when it warms up again next year.
Think it’s too late to sow easy cut flowers for fall? It’s not. Fast and easy bloomers like cosmos, zinnias, cornflowers and compact sunflowers still have plenty of time to reach flowering and shine before frosts take them for the season. Early August is the ideal time for planting fall cut-flowers. Sow them directly into beds with rich, friable soil and gently cover with a light sprinkle of Black Gold Seedling Mix to a depth no greater than ¼ of an inch. This will ensure they get light, moist cover and germinate better. By late September you should be ready to cut and arrange your colorful new blooms.
