Some Summer Winners

Once again Madison missed an opportunity to get that blessed rain we so badly need.  The perfect hurricane -- if there is such a thing -- entered the Gulf, did not do horrific damage, moved its way up into Georgia with lots of rain to share.  But not with us!  Oh well, there are still several months of hurricane opportunities to come.

On this otherwise rainy day I thought I'd share some sunshine with you through some pictures of containers from the past years.  All with the "tough as nails" plants that I like to use.

The plants in this photo are two of my favorites.  Coleus 'Redhead' and Supertunia Vista 'Bubblegum'.  In a normal year, not one like this overheated disaster, Redhead will keep its color, not go to seed quickly and not bolt.  This year it did hold its color well but struggled with too much heat and not enough water, wilting frequently.  A daily watering would have kept it handsome.

The perfect combo for a shady area.  Caldiums, Dragon Wing Begonias and Torenia.  It must be said though that the begonia will outsize everyone else by the end of the season if it isn't kept in check.  But that is so easy to do and it doesn't show stubby stems when nipped back.  If I were to do this arrangement again, I might consider putting the begonia in the middle with the caldiums around it with torenia as fill-ins between them.  There is a container now near the Courthouse with these plants and it has done very well all summer -- no wilt and continuous blooms.

Perky is probably the best word for this arrangement.  Purple Angelonia with Vinca Cora Punch. The middle plant is a rosemary that doesn't add any color but gives a stable centerpiece.  This year's plants have done well against the heat -- a continuous bloom and finally given their Monday drink, reviving themselves after a long weekend without water.  The vinca does need to be clipped back regularly or it will sprawl and not maintain its upright behavior.  Again, easy to do and with no sign of the haircut. While the angelonia doesn't need clipping, randomly nipping out the spent flower heads will encourage more blooms.

Hopefully, these cooler day and the light rain we did get will revive the containers -- giving them enough hope to keep on going until the fall/winter plants can be installed.  I know I'm looking forward to the change.  Hopefully you enjoy this pleasant change in the weather.  A cup of tea and a gardening magazine await me as I plan for the fall colors to come.

Know When to Hold 'em - Know When to Fold 'em

Well folks, it is really time to "fold 'em" on some of the containers.  The weather hasn't been as brutual this year as it has in the past, but the containers still had to struggle to keep up their best appearances.  And that struggle shows in those containers that had all day sun and minimal watering.  I finally decided that even though I don't have the winter plants in hand to change them out, that it would be better to just leave empty containers of dirt than to have stringy, yellow plants sitting there, longing for the peace of the compost heap. 

At 35 miles an hour, this one might even have looked "okay" but up close you could see it deserved a rest.  This is one of the containers with three Sunpatiens.  Lost one late in the summer to some fungus -- leaving a good sized hole -- but the other two hung in there until this last week and then they started failing.   Not a pretty sight!

 

 

I'll have to spend some time investigating what makes Sunpatiens happy cause I sure didn't find the formula this year.  But there were some "hold 'ems" that will stay in the containers until the first frost.....let's get some happy pictures going here -----

 

 

How about this Kong Rose Coleus  -- three small plants were put in the container in May and now they look like they could actually take over the Empire State Building.   If you need a plant that loves the shade and gives you a big return on your investment, any of the Kong Coleus are a good buy.

 

On a smaller scale, Angelonia are definitely a must have in any container or garden bed.  After everyone else had given up the game, they were still blooming strong and looking good.

 

 

All of the Angelonia that I used this year were from the Serena series.  But there are others that will perform as well -- maybe with smaller flowers but still worthy players.

 

 

So be prepared....there are now four empty containers on lower Jefferson, across from the Park, that either look better or worse -- depending on your attitude about life.  But, hang in there, in just a few days there will be bright new plants that will love the cool weather coming our way.