Archive for the ‘Perennials’ Category

We live in a Milwaukee suburb and our area is supposed to be a planting zone 4. I cannot tell you the number of hardy chrysanthemums I have planted over the years. They were all supposed to be hardy in our climate but many times the darn things bloomed that first year and then died. […]

A few years ago I planted a pink Hardy Hibiscus in our front garden. It was situated next to a small Hawthorne tree, but still got plenty of sun. That first year, my Hibiscus got at least 6 feet tall and had delicate blooms the size of saucers looking as if they were fashioned from […]

I have the Russian Sage variety “Little Spire” or (Perovskia atriplicifolia) planted in our front perennial bed in an area of full sun. It is an exciting new variety of the Sage family and is a semi-woody perennial with fragrant silvery foliage, lavender purple flowers and an open branching habit. I chose Little Spire because […]

I have always liked hollyhocks, but had not tried to grow them until recently. In visiting one of my sisters a few years ago, I noticed a hollyhock clump in her garden that was at least 7 feet tall with very dark maroon flowers (A. rosea ‘Nigra). I could just visualize those flowers in my […]

In the pursuit of a garden that is attractive with flowers blooming from spring to fall, I have acquired more than one “volunteer plant” that turned out to be a keeper. If I find an unfamiliar plant, I usually wait until it blooms before deciding whether it deserves a spot in the garden. One year […]

I love the look of the various grasses and I especially like the way they add movement to the garden. Unfortunately, many grasses are too aggressive for the home garden and eventually they become weeds. Not so with Karl Foerster. It is a perennial clumping variety of grass that stays put and does not send […]