PATRIOTIC perennial : A NEW GARDENING TREND FOR 2002
ByDr . Leonard PerryExtension Nursery and Greenhouse Crops SpecialistUniversity of Vermont
After the events of declivity 2001 , a Modern trendin flower gardening is emerging , that of plant perennialgardens with a loyal theme . This trend calls forusing only plants with a patriotic name or only cerise , clean , and puritanic flush in your garden , or perhapsa combination of the two .
If you are think of establishing apatriotic perennial garden , this is the time to startplanning and ordering your plants . Some of these perennialsare honest-to-god standards , others brand new . Consider , forinstance , the Modern Dianthus ‘ Spangled Star ’ with itsred flower with white blotches . Or you could includethe new Coreopsis ‘ American Dream , ’ an improved variationof rosea with dark pink flowers that blossom most ofthe summertime .
A new Peruvian Lily ( Alstroemeria ) suitablefor a patriotic garden is ‘ Freedom . ’ Developed at theUniversity of Connecticut , this garden smorgasbord haspink efflorescence , is about 30 inches mellow , and makes a greatcut flower . Since it is only dauntless to about USDA zone6 , it must be thought of as a stamp perennial in thenorth and will need to be grown as an yearbook .
Do n’t forget the big groups like rose , hosta , Siberian iris , and daylily . For roses , considerthe afternoon tea roses ‘ Mister Lincoln ’ and , of course , the mostpopular of all time , ‘ Peace . ’ Although not reliablyhardy in the north , these turn well if treat as annualsand planted in warm , prolific , and well - watered soil .
Hostas ( also sleep with as funkia or plantainlily ) are a good choice for suspect spots . These include‘Revolution , ’ ‘ Patriot , ’ ‘ Minuteman , ’ ‘ Pilgrim , ’ ‘ Loyalist,’and ‘ American Dream . ’ Siberian irises with flag - wavingspirit - evoking name include ‘ Manhattan Blues ’ and ‘ Overin Gloryland . ’ Like daylilies ? How about planting‘Beloved Country ’ and ‘ American Revolution ? ’
For a blood-red , whitened and blue topic , thereare too many option to fully mention here . You canplace these blossom in informal designs , the variouscolors contrasting and growing together . Or flora themin discrete blocks of each color in a more formal purpose .
For red flowers consider many of the daylily , New York asters , speedwell ( Veronica ) ‘ Red Fox , ’ ordianthus . These require Sunday , so if your garden isin the shade , you might institute some of the many red astilbesor the lungwort ( Pulmonaria ) ‘ Red Start . ’ cogitate aboutthe red clematis cultivar for vines , either climbinga trellis or weave through shrub like hardy rose . Plant these with white rosebush , and you have two of thecolors !
For white flowers look at some “ nearwhite ” daylilies , asters , speedwell , dianthus , and clematis as above . Or how about peonies , bee balm , phlox ( ‘ David ’ is a vigorous and disease resistant one),Siberian iris diaphragm , foamflower , and Lamium ‘ White Nancy,’The latter , as well as many hostas , have a lot of whitein their foliation as well , and are good for shade .
Blue unremarkably is a harder color to findin flowers , but Jacob ’s run ( Polemonium ) , Russiansage ( Perovskia , only dependably hardy to zona 5 ) , andmany of the Siberian irises are possibility . Forshade , plant the ground covers bugle ( Ajuga ) andperiwinkle ( Vinca minor ) . Just beware that many catalogsmay call a efflorescence “ blue ” when in realism itis red or purple .
Blue is a hard color to multiply in print , so do n’t rely on the pic in the catalog . It ’s bestto view the plant in peak at your local garden storeor call for the expert there for their advice .
