plants of the week Archives

These are my favourites for this week…

Traditional perennials: hostas

hostas are great at the front of a border or bed and thrive in deep shade through part sun. Most hostas prefer shade, but those with yellow leaves or fragrant flowers prefer more sun. They come in many colours and sizes these days from miniature to huge. If you do plant the large ones, be sure to give them lots of space as they do not look their best when crowded.

Modern perennials: geraniums, not the red annual type your grandmother planted, but the perennial variety

Perennial geraniums also look great at the front of borders or beds. They tolerate shade and part sun. I love them because they are the first to green up in the spring, offer some colour with the blooms, but look great even when not in bloom. They come in many colors and sizes. Some of the larger ones can tend to be floppy, so I stick to the smaller ones.

Shrubs: Black Lace Elderberry

The deep wine colour of Black Lace Elderberries look wonderful mixed with all of the shades of green in your gardens. They die down to the ground each winter in my area, and are often slow to come back in the spring, but can grow to heights of six feet or more. This spring was so late and the winter so cold, I thought my black lace had died. Thankfully I decided to give it another week, and sure enough, one week later it was one foot tall! The pale pink flowers are pretty but I consider them a bonus as they don’t last long. The dark coloured lacy foliage is the reason I love this shrub. This season it is a great backdrop for my lily trees featured in the third picture.

Vines: Silver Lace

Although the Silver Lace vine blooms in the fall and so not blooming this week, I am always suggesting it to my clients. It is quick growing, covering any structure very fast with white lace like flowers, a beautiful sight in September through November. Unfortunately I lost mine this past winter due to the severe cold weather we experienced. It is only hardy to zone 5 which is pushing the envelope for my Ottawa garden.

Annuals: Coleus

Coleus are great for filling in blank spots and contributing splashes of colour in shady spots of your gardens. I never used to like them, but after seeing them tucked in among perennials in a client’s garden, I’ve changed my mind and added some to my own gardens this year. Coleus come in many combinations and shades of pink, red and green; all make vibrant additions to a garden or container.

Stay tuned for next week’s choices…

These are my favourites this week…

Traditional Perennials: Roses, roses and more roses…because, in my opinion, you can never have too many roses…

Roses come in many colors and growth habits; climbers, shrubs, bushes and even trees. They look awesome climbing a wall or fence, at the front of a perennial border, or towards the back of a large bed. Although I have them under the traditional perennial category, the modern versions are much hardier and require less maintenance to keep them looking beautiful year after year. With the exception of the yellow shrub rose pictured that only blooms for about one week, the other roses, especially the shrubs, in my garden bloom from June right through to a hard frost. A few years ago the white one was still blooming in November!

Modern Perennials: Goats Beard or Aruncus or Wild Spirea…

I have only seen Goat’s Beard with white blooms, it is new to my knowledge base. Please let me know if it comes in other colors too, it is absolutely striking! In addition to the towering version shown here, it apparently comes in a dwarf variety as well.

Shrubs: Weigela

The weigela in my garden is in tree form (right), although the bush form is much more common. The tree form fits into the back of a border, especially in front of a fence, or veranda in this case. One of my clients once talked me into cutting his weigela bush right back to about one foot tall because a backhoe was scheduled to work on his pool area and he thought the bush would get ruined. I did cut it back, but was worried as the bush must have been six feet in diameter and five feet in height: spectacular. I wish I had taken a picture of it to show you before and after the pruning. It did survive the drastic hair cut, but is not quite as large yet two years later.

Vines: Clematis

Clematis vines come in many colours too, from white to yellow to pink or blue and many shades of purple; all are beautiful ways to cover a wall or fence. Some blooms are flat, singles and others have raised centers (doubles) I have two that climb through a tree. Unlike other vines, they will not damage a tree as their stems are very light, almost fragile.

Annuals: Pansies

Pansies look like tiny, cheerful faces to me; I love them in containers of any kind. They too come in many colors, although I do tend to go for the purple ones.

Stay tuned for next week’s picks…