 Blue and purple lobelia, ageratum, petunia and lupine are filling out nicely where I planted them in the neighbor's planter box. I planted them, except for the lupine, from small cell packs, which I am still in the habit of referring to as "six packs." Like lobelia or alyssum, many warm season annuals get established as smaller plants from these cell packs more readily than they would as larger plants from jumbo packs. Others, such as ageratum, petunia, impatiens, marigold and fibrous begonia may perform slightly more impressively if planted from jumbo packs or even 4-inch pots. I am just too cheap to justify the minor extra expense for such minimally improved results.
I planted lupine and "black velvet" nasturtiums (that my neighbor is not yet aware of) as seed because they germinate and grow so rapidly. Small plants in cell or jumbo packs are sometimes available, but they are so distressed from transplanting that they spend considerable time recovering. In fact, I would expect that lupine and nasturtium, as well as poppies and sunflowers grown from seed, would outgrow the same, planted from cell or jumbo packs.
Beans, corn, lettuces and the root vegetables should be grown from seed that is planted in phases to prolong production. This is important because individual plants of each phase mature and finish production at approximately the same rate. Tomatoes, peppers and eggplant can be planted from cell packs because only a few of each are needed and because the small plants are easier to grow than seedlings. Because they produce all summer, they are planted only once.
The open house at Bay Laurel Nursery will continue for three more Saturdays: April 23 and 30 and May 7, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Different rhododendrons will bloom each week. I will be available for horticultural consultation on April 30 and May 7. Bay Laurel is located at 1554 Bean Creek Road in Scotts Valley. More information may be obtained online at www.baylaurelgardens.com or by calling 831.438.8770.
Spring in Guadalupe Gardens will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 23 at Columbus Park, at Spring and Taylor streets, in San Jose. This is the only day I will be absent from the open house, because I will instead be available for horticultural consultation with a few of my colleagues at Spring in Guadalupe Gardens. More information may be obtained online at www.grpg.org/sgg or by calling 408.298.7657.
The 33rd annual Wildflower Show will also be April 23 and 24 at the Hospitality Management Building of Mission College in Santa Clara. More information may be obtained online at www.cnps-scv.org or by calling 650.691.9749. Admission and parking are free at all three events.
Flower of the Week:
Flowering dogwood
Flowering dogwood, Cornus florida, usually blooms before foliation in May, but those grown at Bay Laurel Nursery were impressively profuse for the first open house on April 9. The most popular cultivars bloom white, and a few bloom pink or "brick red." Some have variegated foliage and at least one cultivar has a pendulous branch structure. The bright orange and red autumnal foliar color can be as impressive as spring bloom.
Each 4-inch-wide or slightly wider bloom is composed of a small cluster of unimpressive flowers that are surrounded by four colorful, distally notched bracts. Distended floral buds develop as foliage is abscising in autumn. The quantity of floral buds that are evident at that time will indicate how profuse bloom will be in spring. The rather rounded leaves are mostly less than 3 inches long. Small bright red berries are usually eaten by birds before anyone else sees them in winter.
Flowering dogwood naturally grows as an understory tree in eastern North America, so prefers to be sheltered by at least partial shade of trees with higher canopies. Because humidity is so minimal in the Santa Clara Valley, dogwoods are more easily damaged by over-exposure, particularly if also exposed to drying breezes. Their height is limited to less than 20 feet in optimum climates and considerably less locally. They therefore fit easily below larger trees.
Horticulturist Tony Tomeo can be
contacted at 408.358.2574 or at LGHORTICULTURE@aol.com.
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