Plants I really NEED for 2009

.

Notice I didn’t say “want”.

I’ve been thinking about these plants for several years. I have more plants that I would like to have but these three have moved into the “really must have” category.

Tuberose

Casablanca lily

Daphne (Daphne burkwoodii)

.

I’m ready to shop!

.

Euonymus Shrubs

.

The leaves of Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald Surprise’ (on the left in the picture) turn slightly pink in winter. The winter pink color was the one of the reasons I bought them.

I planted three bushes in spring 2000. Leaves with a green center and creamy white edges create a showy shrub but it’s not without problems.

Scale destroyed one of the shrubs and threatened the others. The tiny white, armored invaders can suck the life out of them in one season. University of Minnesota “IPM of Midwest Landscapes” has some excellently gross pictures and information.

I control the scale using a spray of 1 gallon water, 2 tablespoons baking soda and an little dish soap. I’ll spray several times in spring. I usually get the bush dripping wet. Then, I repeat the spraying during the summer.

I also prune back hard in spring. The growing season will produce about two feet of growth so I try to get them really short. Virginia Cooperative Extension pruning schedule includes times to prune shrubs in our area.

Euonymus fortunei ‘Moonshadow’ (to the right in picture) with its creamy white center and green edge doesn’t have the same problems in my garden. It is low growing, doesn’t need much pruning and has never been bothered by scale. It never turns pink in winter but it’s a lot more care free. It’s amazing what a difference a variety makes.

.

Deadheading Rhododendron

.

After the amazing bloom of a large rhododendron, the spent flowers look messy.

According to the American Rhododendron Society (ARS) http://www.rhododendron.org/pruning.htm :

“It is desirable, with the large flowered rhododendrons, to remove the withered flower clusters after the blooming season. This is fairly easily done as the central axis of the cluster, usually called a truss, will break free from the plant with a quick snap of the thumb pushing on the side.”

It’s a simple, although tedious, job. I just snap the spent flower at the brown-ringed collar with my thumb and forefinger. Sometimes deadheading is impossible on a large shrub (without a ladder and arms like a gorilla).

I don’t stress about deadheading and I do as much as I have time to do.

ARS says, “Dead-heading is usually done to make the bush look more attractive, to reduce the prevalence of fungus and to prevent a heavy set of seed. If it is not possible to remove the old flowers, it is usually not too detrimental, but flowering the next year may be reduced.”

So, every time I pass the rhodys I stop and break off as many spent flowers as I can.

.

Topiary

In the corner of our side garden, we have some variety of juniper which is probably about 40 years old. It is overgrown and a bit of an eyesore. We have been going to replace it for years, but that never happens. So, I decided to try my hand at topiary.

With a hand hedge trimmer, I attempted to make a spiral shape – not very exciting or artistic – but at least it’s now within bounds.