Garden Notes

Two different snapdragons still blooming after hard frost.

My goal for our garden has been to have color from earliest spring to latest autumn. To achieve that late fall goal I have started planting a few annuals to fill in when the perennials are finished and I especially like those annuals that can survive a light freeze. I have found that marigolds, salvia and especially snapdragons seem to be at their best and look quite spectacular when most of my perennials have finished for the year. They even seem to skate through a few light frosty nights with the snapdragons being the last deep freeze hold-out.

At this point on November 22, 2011, we’ve had frost that killed almost everything and still the snapdragons are blooming. They sometimes survive even our whole Wisconsin winter and I think the deciding factor is snow. When we have snow cover during the most bitterly cold weather, then we usually have a few survivors. When those snapdragon survivors emerge the second year, they form a large clumps, bloom beautifully and are much more showy. I usually cut off the spent flowers to keep them blooming and once again they last until winter. I personally have never had survivors last more than 3 years, but one can always hope.

In the Milwaukee area, we typically have cold winters and occasionally we have a lot of snow as well. But somehow, in the middle of digging out from a blizzard and wishing for spring, I always think — I bet this is good for the flowers!