Moxie Gardener

Liatris are popular in perennial borders and as cut flowers.

Liatris are native to the eastern United States and west to the Great Plains. They have been exported to Europe and have become one of the most popular flowering plants cultivated to be sold in bouquets.

A Native American wildflower goes legit in the world of florists and cut flowers.

Liatris spicata is its Latin name; it is also commonly referred to as liatris, gayfeather and blazing star.

Liatris like full sun and will grow in average soil that is well drained. They are very drought tolerant and their roots need to grow free of standing water, especially during winter. Too much water at any time of the year will cause their roots to rot. They will tolerate light shade, but will produce fewer flowers.

They are easily started from seed or by root division. Divide plants every 3 to 4 years and replant the divided corms 9 to 18 inches apart, depending on the variety.

Seeds need a period of cold weather before they will germinate. Scatter them in your garden in late fall and many will germinate the following spring. You can also mix their seeds with damp sand in a plastic bag. Refrigerate the bag for a couple of months, then plant in a seed starting mixture. Keep them at temperatures of around 70°-75° until they germinate (in about 10 days to 2 weeks). After that, you can grow them on at temperatures in the upper 60’s.

Plant them outdoors in the garden after all danger of frost is past. Liatris that are started from seed will not bloom until their second year.

They have an unusual bloom habit. Rather than the flowers opening from the bottom up, as do most flowers born in clusters on spiky stems, liatris flowers open from the top down. You can cut off the top of one of the spikes and the flowers further down the stem will continue to open up in the garden.

Liatris will give you few problems, as long as they are spaced far enough apart and the soil they grow in is well-drained. If they grow too close together they are susceptible to powdery mildew. Remove affected leaves at the first sign of it; you may be able to ward off a full blown infection.

You’ll notice a large number of butterflies flocking to liatris. They are well-known as plants suitable for a butterfly garden. Birds, especially goldfinches, eat their ripened seeds in late summer and early fall.

Tags: blazing star, gayfeather, liatris

Sweet alyssum is a popular plant for containers and the borders of flower gardens.

Sweet alyssum is an ideal plant for edging flower gardens or for the edges of containers. It grows just a few inches high and eventually flops over in an attractive way that many find charming.

Alyssum is one of the most popular container plants because of its small growth habit. Don’t be fooled though, it may be small but it commands attention.

The tiny, dainty flowers bloom continuously from late spring right up until a hard killing frost effectively ends the growing season.

A member of the Cruciferous family, sweet alyssum is classified botanically as Alyssum maritima. Although it is almost always referred to by its first name, it is sometimes called “candytuft.”

Sweet alyssum is also available in pastel pink, lavender, and purple varieties. A perennial variety produces similarly shaped yellow flowers.

Alyssum is a natural for lazy gardeners because it self-seeds itself and will begin to come up in mid spring after the soil has warmed up a bit. If you want earlier blooms, you can start it from seed indoors about 4 to 6 weeks before your last spring frost.

Plant candytuft in full sun to part shade. In hotter areas of the county they will appreciate partial shade, particularly during the hottest months of summer. Plants grown in partial to mostly shade will grow less vigorously, but will still produce a respectable amount of flowers.

Feed them regularly to keep the flowers coming. It is best to use a liquid fertilizer or a tea made from manure or compost. This will help you to avoid damaging the roots of the plants when you cultivate to incorporate granular fertilizer.

Alyssum begin to look leggy as they grow larger and will benefit from a good trimming about half way through the growing season. Cut the plants back by about half. This will force them to branch out and they will produce many more flowers.

The “sweet” in sweet alyssum comes from its subtle fragrance. Like other subtly sweet-smelling flowers, it is best planted near an entrance or patio where its lovely scent can be enjoyed by all who pass by. Like so many other white flowers, it seems to exude more fragrance at night.

Alyssum is a good plant to include in a moonlight garden…but that’s another post.

Tags: candytuft, sweet alyssum

Petunias are one of the most popular flowers grown in both private and public gardens.

Petunias are one of the most popular flowers in urban home gardens, landscaped parks, and public areas everywhere. They are also featured in containers and hanging baskets in cities all over the country.

Petunias are also one of the newest garden flowers. They are native to South America and didn’t become well-known until the last part of the 19th century. It wasn’t until the 20th century that plant breeders began to select and breed them into the modern varieties we know today.

Petunias are collectively referred to today as Petunia x hybrida. They are thought to be a cross between Petunia axillaris (the night-scented white petunia) and Petunia integrifolia (a small violet-flowered variety). Petunias belong to the Solanaceae family, along with tomatoes, potatoes and tobacco.

New classes of varieties of petunias have continued to be released, with the latest big addition in the early 1990’s. There are now four main classes of petunias, suited to a variety of different uses, from garden specimens to ground covers to those with pendulous habits that cascade over the edges of window boxes or hanging baskets.

These classes of petunias include groundcover or “spreading” petunias, grandiflora petunias, milliflora petunias, and multiflora petunias. Here’s a short description of each:

Grandiflora petunias. These produce large flowers that are at least three inches across, and sometimes larger. They come in single- or ruffled double-flowered varieties. Most are upright plants that develop into large, foot-high mounds of flowers.

Groundcover or “spreading” petunias. This variety grows to only about 6 inches high, but spread rapidly to cover a very large area in a single growing season. They will quickly cover an area of several square feet and are ideal for use in hillside gardens where quick coverage is important. These spreading varieties are stunning planted in hanging baskets or window boxes because they cascade 2 to 3 feet over the edge of the container.

Milliflora petunias. These are compact, miniature plants producing large quantities of small perfect flowers that are only 1 to 1 1/2 inches in diameter. They are perfect for the front of the flower border or in containers, especially those near the entrances of buildings, where the flowers can be enjoyed up close.

Multiflora petunias. This variety has the same growth habit as grandifloras, but they are more compact plants with small but more numerous flowers. Their flowers can be single or double,  but the majority of varieties are single. They make an eye-catching display massed together in a single color in the garden.

Petunias need at least six hours of sun a day to produce the abundant blooms for which they’re famous. They will grow in partial shade, but will produce fewer flowers. In the Deep South and the Southwest, petunias will be happier in partial shade.

Tags: petunias

Anti-oxident-rich black raspberries can produce fruit for many years in your urban garden.

Studies have shown that dark colored berries contain very high levels of anti-oxidents, which are believed to help prevent cancer and heart disease. Black raspberries are particularly high in these anti-oxidents.

They’re sweeter and taste better than red raspberries, too.

Unfortunately, they’re more prone to all of the diseases that affect raspberries and other bramble-type fruit.

Don’t let that deter you from growing black raspberries in your urban garden. They are rarely, if ever, available for sale at supermarkets or even farmer’s markets. Growing your own is perhaps the only way you’ll get your hands on them.

Prepare the soil before planting in early spring. Add large amounts of well-rotted manure, compost and peat moss. Get your soil tested and add amendments to bring the pH down to a range between 5.6 to 6.2. Spread 25 lbs. of 10-10-10 garden fertilizer per 1,000 square feet of planting bed. Cultivate the soil well to break up any large clods of soil.

To guard against the spread of diseases from their more vigorous red cousins, plant black raspberries at least 300 feet away from red raspberries.

Plant black raspberry crowns four feet apart in rows 8 to 12 feet apart. (For urban gardens the smaller spacing is best; plant them 12 or more feet apart only if you will use a tractor to cultivate between the rows.)

Install a 4 foot high wooden stake next to each plant. Run a thick wire down the row, attaching it to each stake. The fruiting branches of each cane will be spread along the wire and secured with twine when they appear later in summer.

Mulch well between the rows and around individual plants. Spread and maintain a 3 to 4 inch layer of organic mulch such as wood chips, shredded bark, pine needles, or rotted leaf mulch. Hand pull weeds to reduce competition for water and nutrients and reduce the possibility of disease.

Provide your black raspberry patch with the equivalent of 1 to 2 inches of water per week. Never use an overhead sprinkler, it could help spread diseases; use a soaker hose instead.

Fertilize each year by applying 20 lbs. of 10-10-10 fertilizer (or an organic equivalent) per 1,000 square feet of planting bed. Split the application by applying half of this amount in mid-April and the second half in late May to early June.

Maintain the base of each row at a width of 12 to 18 inches and remove any suckers that grow outside this range. This helps bring light and air into the row, resulting in increased yields and healthier black raspberries.

Cut off the tips of new shoots in early summer when they reach a height of about 30 inches. These canes will send out lateral branches near the end of summer, which are fastened to the wire running the length of the row. These lateral branches will in turn send out small branches the following year on which the berries will form.

In early spring prune the lateral branches that formed at the end of the previous summer. Cut each off so that there are two buds per branch on thin diameter canes and up to six on stout lateral canes.

Also remove any main canes—those which are growing vertically out of the ground—that are less than 1/2 inch in diameter. Each healthy plant should have 2 to 5 canes that are over 1/2 inch in diameter. If all the canes are smaller than this, cut out all except the largest ones.

After the canes fruit in mid to late summer, they die. Remove them soon after harvest to control disease. Cut them off close to the ground. Also thin new shoots at this time and leave only 3 or 4 of the sturdiest ones per foot of row. These will form lateral branches that will bear fruit the following summer.

Remove all pruned materials and destroy them by burning or by putting in the trash. This will help stop the spread of the many diseases that raspberries are susceptible to. They also suffer from the same diseases that affect roses, to which they are related.

A raspberry planting that is properly maintained by mulching, watering, pruning and fertilizing will bear fruit for twenty years or more.

That’s a lot of anti-oxidents.

Tags: anti-oxidents, black raspberries, cane fruit, raspberries

Black radishes in late fall at the farmer's market. They make excellent vegetables for winter storage.

Black radishes were first cultivated thousands of years ago in China before being brought first to Egypt and then to Greece. Evidence suggests that the builders of the pyramids ate them daily. They were so highly regarded in ancient Greece that replicas of black radishes were fashioned out of gold.

Black radishes are not as highly regarded today, although they should be. They keep for a long time under refrigeration or in a root cellar, and are at their peak during the fall and winter months. Store them without their leaves in perforated plastic bags.

Classified as Raphanus sativus, or Raphanus niger, black radishes are members of the Cruciferous family. “Raphanus” is an old Greek word that means “quickly appearing.” The common name “radish” is thought to derive from the Latin “radix,” which means “root.”

All varieties of radishes grow best in light, sandy soil that is well-tilled to a depth of 4 to 6 inches. The soil shouldn’t be too rich or they will grow all tops and no roots.

They grow best in full sun and need a lot of consistent moisture during their short growing period. Plant the seeds at a depth at least 3 times their diameter; radishes that are planted too shallowly fail to develop to their full size. Thin to stand about 4 to 6 inches apart when they are 2 inches high.

These “winter” radishes grow more slowly than their red counterparts. They are good companion plants and their pungent scent is believed to repel a host of garden pests.

Black radishes can be round, cylindrical or pear-shaped. Their skin is black but the interior flesh is pure white. Peeling them is optional, although they are less peppery tasting without their skins.

Serve them raw on the relish tray, in salads or on sandwiches. Briefly stir-fry them so they retain their crispness. Add them to soups and stews or even roast them whole. Cooking tempers some of their peppery flavor.

Radishes have been used medicinally to treat a variety of ailments including coughs, congestion, constipation, arthritis, intestinal parasites and liver problems. They have been used to cleanse the liver of toxins and purify the blood.

Interestingly, a poultice of the mashed-up root is touted as a cure for smelly feet. Wish I’d known that years ago….

Tags: black radishes, radishes

Ageratum make good edging plants for flower beds or trailing over hanging baskets.

Ageratum, also called “flossflowers” are native to Central America and Mexico, although four species are identified as native to the United States.

The most commonly grown variety is Ageratum houstonianum. Ageratum is from the Greek “a geras,” which means “non-aging,” most likely referring to the longevity of the flowers.

The flowers are fluffy and available in lilac, pink or white, as well as the ever-popular lavender-blue. They spread in compound umbels, giving them a fluffy appearance, sort of like flattened pompoms.

Because most varieties grow less than a foot high, Ageratum are popular as edging plants or tucked into containers or hanging baskets. They bloom profusely from June until killed by frost. Although they prefer full sun, they are happiest with a little shade during the hottest parts of summer.

You can seed them directly in the garden but they won’t bloom until past midsummer. For earlier bloom start them indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last spring frost. The seeds need light to germinate, so sprinkle them on the seed starting medium and lightly press down with your hand.

Water from below by placing the starter pots into a larger container containing an inch or so of water. Remove the pots from the water when the surface of the seed starting medium looks moist. This keeps the seeds from being washed into the depths of the soil. Allow the excess water to drain and don’t let the starter pots sit in standing water. Remember: the seeds need light to germinate so they need to stay at or near the surface of the soil.

Flossflowers need warmth to germinate, so put the starter pots in a warm location, like on top of the refrigerator. The seeds will rot if the soil temperature is below 75° and they will be even happier at 80°. If you have difficulty providing these temperatures, set the starter pots on a seed starting mat or even a heating pad set to the lowest temperature and covered with a folded towel.

Once the seeds are germinated (in about 7 days) and they have two sets of leaves, you can grow them on at temperatures as low as 60°. Paradoxically, they need very warm temperatures to germinate but prefer cooler temperatures when in active growth. Go figure.

After hardening off, plant outdoors a week or so before your average last spring frost. Although they are frost tender, plants that are adequately acclimated to outdoor conditions and that have been growing in the ground for a week or so show some tolerance to light frosts.

Remove the faded flowers by deadheading to prevent seeds from forming. Ageratum can become rampant weeds when grown outside of their natural range.

Some species are used medicinally, although there is little data on specific uses or on its medicinal effectiveness. Ageratum houstonianum is known to cause liver damage or tumors if ingested.

Plant flossflowers near marigolds or any other yellow flowers for a stunning, eye-popping display.

Tags: ageratum, blue flowers, flossflower, yellow flowers