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In the never ending race to be first, this year I think I may be last to begin my annual review of what’s new for the garden.
It’ll take a couple of weeks to get through what I have lined up but there’s still plenty of time to order. That is, anything but vegetable seed.
Last year saw robust sales in veggie seeds from nearly every vendor and supplier, so if there’s something you missed out on last year, don’t delay and order now. Production of seed is way up. But then so is demand.
Keep your seed packets closed and cool when you get them. And seal them tight once you’ve opened them. Best to put them in a sealable plastic bag and keep them in the refrigerator, never in the freezer.
Remember also that you don’t need a garden, plot or a backyard to grow vegetables. There are many veggies that can be grown in pots, planters, balconies and hanging baskets for those short on space. Look in the catalogs for vegetables specifically noted as good for container culture. Even crops like cucumbers and zucchinis can be grown in pots if you use compact non-vine types. These are often referred to as “bush” types as opposed to the vine types.
For those of you who want to step out from the usual plants and veggies, do your homework and research or have a gardener or coach who will do it for you. There are mail-order and niche nurseries and growers all over the country who would love to sell you their plants. But you’ve got to find them. Try gardening magazines, websites and by asking friends. Traveling to other areas and visiting the garden centers and nurseries along the way will also bring other plants and suppliers to your attention.
I found a wonderful delphinium grower near Delhi, New York. But he’s open only two weekends a year before he’s sold out. Farther west, there’s a lilac grower who has more than 200 varieties of lilacs that he says get up to four months of blooms. I hope to visit him late this spring.
Closer to home, I found a guy growing his own hybrid hostas behind a pizza joint. The only way you’d know he’s there is because he puts a sign near the highway when he’s open. The 2-by-3-foot sign at ground level simply says “Hosta Sale.” For years I just sped by, but I’m glad I finally stopped.
Long Island used to be a great place to discover new plants. From Queens to the tip of each fork, the island was liberally anointed with growers and hybridizers of perennials, trees and shrubs. These specialty growers are very rare now and what you find more is wholesale growers who buy plants from large producers and they simply grow them and market them. The likes of Andre Viette left the island long, long ago.
But, for those who want to stretch their legs a bit, take a drive to West Virginia and visit Sunshine Farm and Gardens where Barry Glick does his magic. Or if you’re in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, visit Niche Gardens where you’ll find perennials and trees not common in most gardens. The list goes on and on.
I can think of other great places to explore in Minnesota, Oregon, New Mexico, Michigan, Wisconsin, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Those are the places where I’ve made some wonderful discoveries and I’m sure there are many, many more.
We tend to get very insulated out here on the East End. And while our climate and growing conditions are wonderful, it’s always good to know what’s going on elsewhere and bring those ideas and plants back to your own garden. So, what’s new?
I hear that Fiskars will be out with a new reel-type push mower this spring. It was spotted at a trade show last fall and it’s said to require 30 percent less effort to push, as well as having a new cutting mechanism.
This mower is also said to address the problem that has hindered reel mowers, in that they have been limited to a cutting height of only 3 inches. That’s fine for some, but many now want a cutting height of 4 inches, as that can result in a denser lawn and fewer weeds. The mower is called the “Momentum” and it should need only an annual sharpening. I’ll tell you more when I have the details.
Gardens Alive is marketing a new all-natural herbicide that’s based on chelated iron. According to the advance word, it’s applied as a liquid and has no effect on people, pets or the environment. And you can go back on the lawn as soon as the product dries.
The company claims that broadleaf weeds turn black and begin to die (while grass plants are unharmed) within hours. There is a caution not to spray the material on trees, shrubs and other plants.
The only catch is that the press release I saw had chickweed as one of the broadleaf weeds that the product allegedly controls. I think we usually consider plants like plantain and dandelion, both perennials, as being broadleaf weeds. Chickweed, an annual, doesn’t fit that category. Hmmmmm.
In any event, I hope to try the product this year and will report on my results. Let me know if you use it as I’d like to know how it works on your weeds as well.
Also on my schedule for trials in the garden this year is AzaMax, a broad-spectrum insecticide and miticide that’s neem-based (neem is an evergreen tree endemic to the Indian subcontinent). I’ve tried neem-based products in the past, mostly to control Japanese beetles on my perennial hibiscus and shrub hibiscus. Last summer’s neem trial was inconclusive because the beetle population was very small, but when the gardening columnist for the Detroit Free Press read of my trials, she suggested that I try this product as she thought it had a more stable and reliable formulation. Try it we will.
My understanding is that this product has been Organic Materials Review Institute-listed and can be used in all residential and commercial organic growing situations. Again, if you’ve tried this product or if you use it this summer, please let me know what you think.
As you may recall, I’ve been smitten by some of the new introductions of heucheras. Back in the day, virtually any heuchera you bought was a seed-grown plant or a division of the species sangunea. Its main attribute was that it had interesting, low-growing foliage, thin spikes of red (or white) flowers and it thrived in dry shade. There are now over 30 varieties of heuchera available and they’re not the plants of 20 years ago. The plants have been cross-bred and hybridized to create a range of foliage texture, size and color that is a tribute to modern plant work.
This is an all-American plant with five species occurring in different areas of the country. When you blend the genetic characteristics through cross-breeding you can get the best traits of each in one or more plants.
H. Americana,
which can be found from central Canada down to the Gulf Coast, is great for the extremes of heat and cold.
H. villosa
, found from New York to Georgia as well as the Midwest, thrives in heat and is very tolerant of humidity so it’s well-suited to our gardens.
H. micrantha
, found in the Pacific Northwest down to southern California, is the genetic source for ruffled and curled foliage that holds well into the winter and protects the crown from sudden winter freezes. It’s also tolerant of wet feet.
H. cylindrical
, which has compact flowers and can survive harsh temperatures and wind, is native to the west but is also found in the colder areas of Idaho, Utah and Colorado. Lastly, there is
H. sanguinea,
a New Mexico native known for its flower color as well as heat- and drought-tolerance.
Blend them all together and you get quite a plant. When shopping for these plants, see if the label tells you the ancestry and you’ll know its best qualities. While I’d encourage you to experiment with the various offerings, I think some of the more reliable in our area will be chocolate ruffles, ginger peach, Hollywood, marmalade, purple petticoats, and sashay, among the newer varieties.
I’ll continue my updates on our trials later in the spring when we see which ones made it through the winter and in what condition.
I’d also like to share a couple of thoughts about hydrangeas. Like the heucheras, there has been a great deal of breeding, research and new introductions in this perennial to semi-woody shrub. I’ve had variable success with some of the new introductions but none to the point where I’d tell you to run out and get one, other than the time-tested standards.
I’m not quite sure what the problem is, but people growing the same variety under the same growing conditions in the same hardiness zone have had very different results with hydrangeas. So for me, the jury is still out.
I’ve been trialing five varieties and I get very sporadic flowering—as in one or two flowers per plant. Maybe you are having different results? Please share them with me as I can add your experiences to the database.
Next week, on to the vegetables and annuals. Keep growing.
Andrew Messinger has been a professional horticulturist for more than 30 years. He divides his time between homes and gardens in Southampton, Westchester and the Catskills. E-mail him at: Andrew@hamptongardener.com. The Hampton Gardener is a registered trademark.
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