(Some of) My Favorite Plants

Plants perform differently every growing season depending on the weather.  I occasionally find myself crazy about a plant and two weeks later when the blooms have diminished ... not so much.  Here are some of my favorites from this year.

Every year I am a big fan of lavatera trimestris 'Silver Cup.'  This rose mallow is covered with large pink flowers and they are excellent in bouquets.

'Silver Cup' Lavatera

Tall summer phlox can be tricky because of powdery mildew.  Even the highly touted 'David' does not completely escape from the attack here.  My favorite phlox for performance, fragrance and bouquets is 'Laura.'

'Laura' Phlox

Rudbeckia 'Denver Daisy' has been another great performer in my garden this year.

'Denver Daisy' Rudbeckia

And year after year 'Annabelle' hydrangea has never let me down.  Besides its manageable height and long lasting flowers, the fact that it blooms in part shade is a big plus.

'Annabelle' Hydrangea

It has been a hot and dry summer and some of my hostas exposed to the sun have not faired well. 'Sun Power' hosta has lived up to its name, providing a nice burst of color all season.

'Sun Power' Hosta

I never go without a tall blue ageratum for cutting.  They are not bothered by disease or bugs and are very long lasting in bouquets.

'Dondo Blue' Ageratum

And the mums are just beginning to show color ... and just beginning to sell.

Fall Flowers in Vermont

Fall is around the corner and our early mums are showing color. If you see mums in full bloom right now here in Vermont it is because they have been tricked, with the use of dark covers, to think the days are shorter than they really are, forcing the flowers.

Once the mums really get going I like to use them for bouquets, as they are long lasting. Typically I will combine whatever perennials are blooming with with annuals I have on hand. One of my best performing annuals this year has been "All-Around Purple " gomphrena" which has supplied blooms on long stems for months now.

'All-Around Purple' Gomphrena

Another annual that I like for bouquets is didiscus, kind of a light blue Queen Anne's Lace. I hope next year I remember to somehow stake this one.

Didiscus

'Little Joe' Eupatorium ('Joe Pye Weed') is supposed to be a a diminutive version of the species, at 3-4' feet. Not so in my garden - it's still at least 5 feet tall, but the flower is smaller and more refined than the species and it lasts a good long while in a bouquet.

'Little Joe' Eupatorium

Sanguisorbia canadensis ('Canadian Burnet') does its thing right now. I like the foliage of this plant all season and am always happy to have some spikey white flowers for bouquets in the end of summer. Verbena bonariensis is always a favorite of mine providing loads of flowers and I never go without pink lavatera. I don't find the white lavatera is as long lasting in bouquets. It also seems more attractive to insects.

Lavatera 'Silver Cup'

I was a reporter for a daily newspaper for seven years and managed to write something just about every day. You would think keeping a blog would be a piece of cake. Apparently not.

Great Flowers - Poor Sellers

Sometimes I am the only customer for some of the flowers I grow. There are a number of reasons for this. Many gardeners are not familiar with these plants and I don’t have photo tags for them. Seed catalogs push new varieties and they also carry the most popular, familiar varieties.

I always plan on advertising the underused flowers better with photos and information .... and I don’t find the time.

One of my favorites flowers is lavatera trimestris or "rose mallow". It is related to hibiscus and hollyhock and can bloom up to five feet, but the common ‘silver cup’ is typically about 3 - 4 feet. Lavateras do best in areas with cool summers, so here in central/northern Vermont they usually do well.





LAVATERA

The most common cultivar is a pale pink. I like 'tanagra' as well, which is rosier, and there is a shorter white version.



'Tanagra' LAVATERA



'Twins White' LAVATERA


Not only is this a showy bloomer most of the summer, it’s also great in bouquets. At farmers’ markets, my bouquets with lavatera sell first.






Summer visitors are always surprised by my tithonia. It’s a bright orange flower and a real stand-out. I have seen it listed as a good cut flower, but I find it better for display, as the stem is hollow and it hasn’t held up well for me in bouquets.



'Torch' TITHONIA

'Twinkle' phlox is an adorable short (8”) grower, good for sunny borders front of borders. It comes in a mix of bright colors.



Twinkle Phlox

I also like tri-colored amaranthus. It's a head turner and is actually an edible herb, although I haven't tried it in that capacity.





AMARANTHUS tri-colored


Verbena bonariensis is a perennial south of us, but here it is a well-loved annual. It blooms from mid-summer until frost and butterflies love it. It is tall (4 - 5 feet), but needs no staking. Its lavender ball-like blooms are somewhat similar to allium, but there are tons of them on slim branches, giving it an airy, swaying appearance. It is one of those delicate looking plants that's actually tough. I have a few customers who buy these by the tray for landscaping, but very rarely do I sell a single six pack.




Verbenea Bonariensis




All of these plants do best in full sun here.