Michigan Gardener - June 2013

June 2013

MichiganGardener.com

Your guide to Great Lakes gardening

Please thank our advertisers in this issue

feature New perennials for 2013 tree tips Dispelling tree myths how-to Plant a weak stem tomato perennials Geum gardener profile The artistic country garden

PLANT FOCUS Special Report

Impatiens Alternatives, part 3: Foliage

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

June is National Rose Month.

Telly’s has cultivated a reputation for offering the finest collection of high quality roses available anywhere.

We offer a selection of roses that everyone, even the most casual gardener, can grow and enjoy. Telly’s is proud to offer the Easy Elegance Collection. These roses are disease resistant, hardy, low-maintenance plants that bloom all season long.

Welcome to where Summer always comes up roses.

At Telly’s, Summer is our time to bloom.

From roses to perennials to annuals and beyond, we truly are a summer gardener’s paradise. Come in for a visit and let us make your season really bloom.

June Events 41st Annual Bonsai Show - Saturday & Sunday, June 29-30 Presented by Four Seasons Bonsai Club of Michigan.

See www.fourseasonsbonsai.com for more information.

Bonsai Workshop - Saturday, June 29, 1pm

In this hands on workshop, you will work through all the steps of creating your very own bonsai! Topics include selecting a plant, matching a plant to a pot, root combing, root pruning, proper potting, pruning, basic styling techniques, and bonsai care. Pre-registration is required. $35

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contents June 2013 Clippings........................................................ 6 Vegetable Patch..........................................8 To-Do List.................................................... 10 Ask MG.........................................................12 Healthy Lawns........................................... 14 Plant Focus: Impatiens Alternatives part 3 of 3.....................................................16 Weather Wrap...........................................19 Tree Tips......................................................22 Perennials: Geum.....................................24 Places to Grow..........................................32 Calendar...................................................... 34 Classified Ads............................................36 Advertiser Index.......................................37 Subscription Form....................................37 Organic Gardening..................................38 Books for the Michigan Gardener.......39 Where to pick up Michigan Gardener....................................39 Profile: The artistic country garden....40 How-To: Plant weak stem tomatoes...43

Publisher/Editor Eric Hofley Design & Production Jonathon Hofley

Editorial Assistant Anna Kowaczyk

SHELBY TWP 4343 24 Mile btwn Dequindre & Shelby Rd.

248-659-8555 Summer Hours (both locations): Mon-Sat: 8am-9pm Sun: 9am-6pm

find us on

www.tellys.com

Janet’s Journal.........................Back Cover On the cover: Coleus is an excellent option to use in the shade in place of impatiens. See page 16 for more on coleus and other great foliage plants.

Photo: Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener

When you see its full design possibilities, foliage becomes much more than something that sprouts out of the stalk below the flowers, and the color scheme of your garden is not limited to a sea of green with bright spots of color in it. You can have a garden with almost no green at all—or with no flowers. —Barbara Damrosch

Circulation Jonathon Hofley

248-689-8735

New Perennials for 2013 ��������26

Garden Wisdom

Advertising Eric Hofley

TROY 3301 John R–1/4 mile north of 16 Mile

Blooms of Bressingham

Geranium ‘Azure Rush’

Contributors Karen Bovio Cheryl English Mary Gerstenberger Julia Hofley Rosann Kovalcik Janet Macunovich Steve Martinko Beverly Moss Steven Nikkila George Papadelis Sandie Parrott Jean/Roxanne Riggs Jim Slezinski Lisa Steinkopf Steve Turner Rick Weller

16291 W. 14 Mile Rd., Suite 5 Beverly Hills, MI 48025-3327 Phone: 248-594-5563 Fax: 248-594-5564 E-mail: publisher@MichiganGardener.com Website: www.MichiganGardener.com Publishing schedule 6 issues per year: April, May, June, July/Aug, Sept/Oct, Nov/Dec. Published the first week of the mo.

Subscriptions (Please make check payable to Michigan Gardener) 1 yr, 6 iss/$14 2 yr, 12 iss/$26 3 yr, 18 iss/$36 Back issues All past issues are available. Please send your request along with a check for $3.00 per issue payable to Michigan Gardener.

Canadian subscriptions 1 yr, 6 iss/$22 US 2 yr, 12 iss/$42 US Copyright © 2013 Michigan Gardener. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or used in any form without the expressed, written permission of the publisher. Neither the advertiser nor the publisher will be responsible for misinformation, typographical errors, omissions, etc. contained herein.

Michigan Gardener is published by Motor City Publishing, Inc.

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4 NEW! Control of Diplodia Tip Blight (browned tips of needles) on all Pines, especially Austrian and Scotch (fungicide injection provides control for 2 years) 4 NEW! Control of Phytophora Root Rot (Example: scraggily-looking Rhododendrons, Azaleas, and Hollies)

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

clippings Reforesting Detroit provides multiple community benefits

Piechnik’s GREENHOUSE & GARDEN CENTER

Come explore our beautiful Trees and Shrubs, and extensive Perennial and Hosta selection: 1000’s to choose from!!

4000 sq ft. gift shop specializing in gazing globes and everything else you may want or need for your garden.

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WE ARE WORTH THE DRIVE, AND WE’RE SURE TO PLEASE! We carry a full line of flower, herb, & vegetable flats, bulk seed, onion sets & seed potatoes. Hanging baskets, container gardens, fairy gardens, and all the flowering plants and supplies to plant your own!

We also carry wind chimes, mobiles, statuary, memorial stones, bird baths, bird feeders, plant stands, ceramic planters, plastic planters, garden flags, solar lights, flower picks, kinetic yard art...oh, and don’t forget fairy garden supplies: we carry fairy garden items from 6 different suppliers!

Come see our spectacular, handmade, European gazing globes. New styles and colors arrive daily!

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Back in the day, almost every residential Detroit street was lined with big elm trees that formed shady, green tunnels. That’s why Detroit was once called “The City of Trees.” Unfortunately, Detroit has been losing trees throughout the city at an alarming rate since the 1950s when Dutch elm disease wiped out the majority of elm trees on most streets. Ash trees were planted to replace the elms, but the emerald ash borer beetle is now wreaking havoc on the ash trees throughout the region, leaving many Detroit neighborhoods treeless and barren.

Trees, however, are more than just beautiful—they play an important role in protecting the environment. “Trees help clean the air, provide shade and cooling in the summer, and reduce carbon emissions,” said Sal Hansen, senior forester for The Greening of Detroit. “And now there is research indicating that neighborhoods with lots of healthy, big trees have lower crime rates and higher real estate values. There are so many good reasons to invest in trees.”

The Greening of Detroit, a nonprofit organization, has been planting trees in Detroit for 24 years.

Last year, volunteers helped plant more than 6,100 trees in neighborhoods throughout Detroit.

If you are interested in volunteering, call 313-285-1254 or visit www.greeningofdetroit.com for more information.

Pick out new pots. Plant some flowers. Try a topiary. Grow some vegetables.

Give a pot of herbs to a friend. Think water in your garden. Find the right bench.

Plan a garden party. Do what’s good for you and yours—make a garden.

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When there’s no space for a vegetable garpreciate crowding. The Ohio State University den in your yard, look to container gardening.

Extension has a nice factsheet on container Anywhere there’s a patio, deck or balcony, gardening with a table of container sizes for there’s a place for potted plants. Indoors, a variety of vegetables: www.tinyurl.com/ with a good pot and the right light, anyone q8k56m9 can grow something. Vegetable gardening Remember that pots can be rather heavy in containers is a great way to teach children depending on the size of the container and about how their food grows, and for seniors it the type of potting soil in it. If the container is an opportunity to garden a bit without the is going to be moved, plan ahead for mobility. space and effort a full scale garden requires.

Second, the type of soil being used in the The nice thing about growing vegetables in container is very important. Do not dig up containers is that they can be moved to meet the soil in your garden to use in a container. sunlight requirements or to protect them Garden soil in pots tends to compact, resultfrom frost or extreme weather conditions. ing in poor drainage and aeration. Garden It is also easier to control insect soil can be mixed with peat moss Mary problems. However, to successfully and perlite to make an acceptable Gerstenberger raise vegetables in containers there potting mix. Various potting mixes are a few things to take into considcan be purchased at garden centers. eration.

Soilless mixes tend to be lighter and First, what type of container may be best if the container is to be should be used? Almost any conmoved around. Soil mixes tend to tainer will do, although it is wise hold water better. to avoid containers that previously Third, be aware of nutrient availwere used for storing chemicals in ability to plants in pots. A sloworder to avoid contamination probrelease fertilizer may be added at lems. Containers may be porous planting time. About mid-season, (such as unglazed terra cotta which may alwater-soluble fertilizers are applied as the low loss of moisture through the pot) or nonplant begins to produce. porous (such as plastic which would prevent Lastly, watch the water! Plants in conloss of moisture through the pot). All containtainers need to be monitored for their water ers should have drainage holes, and several needs. If allowed to become too dry, roots will small holes scattered around the bottom albe damaged, thus stressing the plant. If walow better drainage than just one large hole. tered too frequently, nutrients may be washed Coffee filters or permeable garden cloth can from the soil. Check the soil before waterbe placed at the bottom of the container to ing and remember that on very hot or windy prevent soil loss. days, you may need to water 2 or even 3 times The size of the pot is determined by the to maintain the moisture in the pot. Mulches type of vegetable that is to be grown in it. may be used to help reduce water loss.

Vegetables need their root space and don’t apWhen selecting vegetables for your pots, look for those described as good for container gardening, or choose plants that are described as having compact growth. Vegetables that are “bush” or “dwarf” are also good choices for container gardening. With a little care, you can reap an abundant harvest. landscape design More information on container gardening can be found at: www.tinyurl.com/ng3lofq • Native Plant/Habitat Design

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Mary Gerstenberger is the Consumer Horticulture Coordinator at the Michigan State University Extension in Macomb County, MI. For gardening information from MSU, visit www.migarden.msu.edu.

Call the toll-free Michigan State University Lawn and Garden Hotline at 888-678-3464 for answers to your gardening questions.

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

to-do list Annuals • The key to keeping annuals looking their best is regular water and fertilizer. Water annuals whenever the soil is dry to the touch about an inch down. Sticking your finger in the soil is the best way to check.

Use a water-soluble fertilizer every 10 days to 2 weeks when watering for great blooms and healthy plants.

• If you planted new varieties this year, be sure to keep at least one plant label from each type. It’s easier to make notes and remember next year whether you liked this plant and the color and how it performed.

Taking a few photos is also great.

• If some areas of the annual garden aren’t blooming or filling out as well as they have in other years, be sure to take a good look at how much sun the area receives. Trees may be shading the area more now or an area may be far sunnier than it was before.

Houseplants • Take houseplants outside for the summer and they’ll thrive. Most will do well in a partially shaded location, away from direct sunlight. Fertilize regularly with a balanced formula to support strong new growth. A regular application of systemic insecticide will prevent bugs coming into the house with the plants in the fall.

• This is a good time of year to re-pot and prune any plants that have outgrown their containers. This will encourage healthy, strong growth.

Lawns • A healthy lawn needs an inch of water a

week, generally half an inch at a time. Use a rain gauge to measure the amount received.

• If you’re following a four-step fertilizing program, be sure to apply the second step, which usually contains broadleaf weed control.

Be alert for any insect or weed breakouts. A healthy lawn is better able to fight them off, but it’s also easier to take care of a problem when it’s small, before it overwhelms the entire yard. If necessary, use a liquid weed killer to spot treat any outbreaks.

• Regular mowing will keep the grass looking good throughout the month. Be sure to cut off no more than one-third of the grass blades at one time. Trimming too much causes stress.

Perennials • June is National Perennial Gardening month. Perennials fill the gaps left between shrubs and annuals. They bloom year after year, providing color for a specific period of time. There are varieties which stay about an inch tall and others that grow more than six feet tall. If you have a space in the garden in need of something special, be sure to consider a perennial.

• Deadhead spent blooms to keep perennials blooming. Flowers produce seeds to perpetuate the plant species. If the plant has gone to seed, it has no reason to continue blooming, so keep your pruners handy.

• Apply a good organic fertilizer once a month. Organic formulas help improve the soil, which helps improve plants even more.

Roses • June is also National Rose Month. It’s a great month for the rose garden. Cooler

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Feature Task: Maximizing blooms on your roses Roses can essentially be divided into two categories: garden roses and shrub or groundcover roses. Garden roses include hybrid teas, floribundas, climbing and miniatures. Shrub roses include the newer Knock Out brand roses, and groundcovers include the Flower Carpet brand.

Shrub or groundcover roses are virtually maintenance-free, and will bloom profusely if planted in a sunny location (at least six hours of sun a day). They are easy to grow and will flourish in most any conditions. You can pretty much leave them alone and they will look outstanding.

For garden roses, proper placement is important to vigorous flower production.

Roses perform best with a minimum of six hours of direct sun daily. They don’t like to be crowded. There should be air circulation through the foliage to keep it dry and discourage diseases. Keep rose bushes away from large trees or other shrubs that will compete for nutrients, moisture and sunlight.

Roses like well-drained soil. If necessary, amend clay soil with soil conditioner, or sphagnum peat in sandy soils. A 2- to 3-inch layer of mulch around the base of the plants helps keep moisture in, and reduce weeds.

temperatures encourage larger blooms and more fragrance than hot summer heat.

• Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions for frequency and dilution rate on any fertilizer, insecticide, and fungicide.

• When pruning roses, prune down to a set of five leaflets pointing out of the rosebush.

New growth will point in the same direction the leaf does, so this outward direction increases air circulation and cuts down on diseases. The rose cane borer can be a problem, so seal the cut afterwards.

• Roses need about an inch of water a week.

Watering at the base of the plant instead of using overhead sprinklers will cut down on diseases.

Trees and Shrubs • As a general rule, shrubs that bloom before Memorial Day should be pruned by the 4th of July. This gives plants time to put on healthy new growth and form flower buds before the end of the year. These early spring-blooming shrubs start forming buds in late summer and fall so pruning too late will remove some of next year’s blooms.

• Only water trees and shrubs when they need it, but water deeply. Try to imitate nature in the form of a thunderstorm. A deep

Rose plants need about an inch of water a week. Monitor rainfall and apply supplemental watering if necessary. Apply water at the base of the plants, rather than with an overhead irrigation system. Keeping water off leaves will help prevent black spot.

Feed roses every three weeks during the growing season through August. A slowrelease organic fertilizer is an excellent choice.

Regular pruning is essential to rose health. Roses should be pruned in the spring once new growth begins to emerge.

Winter dieback will appear, so prune away dead wood. Also remove any branches that are crossing or rubbing together, or are broken. Any branches growing inward should also be removed.

For garden roses, the goal is a vaseshaped plant with branches extending away from the stem. Be sure to prune spent blooms throughout the season. This will encourage new growth.

Shrub or groundcover roses also benefit from pruning in the spring. This keeps them looking tidy, and helps encourage new growth. Never trim more than one-third of the shrub at any one time.

watering 8 to 12 inches down will promote good root growth. Then, wait to water again when the soil is dry a couple inches down. If you only water the top, and water lightly and frequently, you could actually be blocking oxygen to the roots, which can lead to root rot and death.

Vegetables • For a bountiful harvest, give your vegetable garden regular attention. Vegetables are mostly water, so be sure the garden receives regular, consistent water—either from rain or supplemental methods.

• Keep the soil around plants cultivated and remove weeds when they’re young so they don’t compete with your vegetables for fertilizer and water.

• Mulch is also a good way to keep weeds down, and it helps stop soil compaction as you walk the rows.

• It’s not too late to add vegetables to beds and borders if there isn’t room in the yard for a separate vegetable garden. Peppers and tomatoes are lovely mixed in with flowers.

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Transplanting established bulbs Can I move daffodil and tulip bulbs just after their foliage dies down? Is that the best time? S.R., Ann Arbor Waiting until the foliage dies down to move spring-blooming bulbs is a good time, as it gives the bulbs time to store food for next year’s show. The spent foliage has provided all it can for food storage.

Make sure you dig deep enough to get below the bulbs and not split them. Slicing a bulb can compromise its integrity and cause it not to flower. This also gives you the chance to check for bulb offsets, separating them from the mother bulb and planting them as their own plant. It gives each bulb a chance to produce a flower. Add a tablespoon of blood meal or granular bulb fertilizer to the base of the planting hole, add soil, and then top dress with fertilizer as well. Giving the bulbs additional nutrients helps them survive the important, dormant cold period of winter and provide color in spring. Their metabolism requires a chill period. This is why forcing bulbs indoors requires a period of cold timed to the desired bloom schedule.

Identify the new location of the bulbs in the garden so that during the growing season you do not accidentally plant something else there. If you have problems with squirrels, chipmunks or other suburban pests digging up your bulbs, place a layer of chicken wire over the planted area just below the soil surface. This will help prevent the digging critters from making a gourmet meal out of your newly planted bulbs.

Pruning rhododendrons Will rhododendrons put out new growth from a trimmed branch? Can an old rhododendron be rejuvenated by cutting it back?

M.M., Livonia If a broad-leaved rhododendron is in good health, has the proper soil conditions, moisture and light, a gentle pruning after bloom can improve the overall shape and stimulate development of renewal branches. This is considered maintenance pruning, where flower trusses are removed to make way for new buds and winter-damaged branches are removed. When trimming a branch, cut flush to the stem, leaving no stubs.

Rejuvenation pruning calls for drastic cuts on old wood. It is best used to restore older shrubs that have become leggy, overgrown and unattractive in form, and best done in winter when the plant is dormant. If the shrub has bloomed poorly or is misshapen, it becomes a candidate for rejuvenation since

there is nothing to lose. Rhododendrons often have three or more main or primary branches. Each is cut to a different height to produce a more natural staggered appearance.

A quick method is to cut the entire plant to within 6 inches of the ground. Not all rhododendrons survive this drastic solution. The plant may be compromised by hidden disease or poor nutrition and subsequently does not survive the stress of hard pruning. If your shrub appears healthy, cut only one main branch to 6 inches and the others to about 2 feet. If new growth appears, you can cut the rest of the shrub the following year and be more confident it will return in spring. Apply a granular fertilizer for acid-loving plants to the shallow root zone to help the shrub recuperate.

Lawn weeds I have hundreds of red- and green-leafed seedlings growing in my grass. They have a woody (tough) stem and a single root that is 4 to 6 inches long, resembling maple tree seedlings without the hairy root system.

What are they and what can be used on the lawn to kill them? L.H., Warren Without a photo, it is impossible to identify a seedling that mimics a number of different weed and tree species. You can go online and check out MSU’s turf weed ID site: www. msuturfweeds.net. If your seedling is there, you are one step closer to addressing how to correctly remove it. You can take a seedling to a reputable garden center and ask their experts to identify it. Often multiple mowings simply starve the root because you repeatedly remove its food source.

As a rule, it is not advisable to spray chemical treatments for “mystery weeds” without identifying the pest. Indiscriminate use of herbicides can leach into and contaminate groundwater as well as enter the storm water runoff. Using a non-target specific herbicide can do more damage to adjacent desirable plants and never affect the one you want. Weed pests have different vulnerabilities at different stages of their development. This is why positive identification is important. Secondly, not all herbicides are created equal. What works for broad-leaved dandelions may not be nearly as effective on spreading weeds such as creeping Charlie or the common wild violet.

Planting a walnut tree When is the best time to transplant a walnut tree from its container into the garden? Are walnut trees poisonous to other plants? D., Warren Spring is an excellent time to transfer a

www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

walnut tree from its container into the landscape. Make sure the site has moist, welldrained soil and full sun.

Presuming your tree is a black walnut (Juglans nigra), be advised this tree produces a substance called juglone in all parts of its structure that insures its survival in the landscape. Juglone is toxic to many trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals. The reason the mighty walnut stands solitary in a field is that it has killed off its competition for nutrients. It is a protective reaction this tree developed to insure its continuation. It is not the only tree to produce such a chemical. Hickory and butternut trees also produce a similar substance but to a lesser toxicity.

The Ohio State University Extension has an excellent fact sheet with lists of plants that are sensitive to juglone and those that are more impervious (tinyurl.com/qw4zo). No list is foolproof however. Juglone toxicity can remain in the soil for years, long after the tree is gone. Rotting roots can continue to produce the chemical.

Give careful consideration to what will grow around it. The juglone in the roots can extend beyond the immediate canopy by several feet. Plant wilt from juglone toxicity is often confused with lack of moisture at first. But when moisture is adjusted, juglone wilt does not reverse. Placing adjacent plant material in raised beds will help limit root contact with the walnut, provided the beds are lined with landscape fabric and new uncontaminated soil is used. Prevent walnut leaves, nut hulls, and stems from lingering on the soil, allowing juglone to leach.

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13

fairly heavy in clay. The lot has box elders and used to have elms. White violets grow well in it. M.M.C., Ionia There is no foolproof list of deer-resistant plants. If deer are sufficiently hungry, they will sample anything, especially new growth.

There are a few resistant trees and shrubs that will work with lean, predominantly clay soil and northwest exposure. Even planting relatively mature specimens, it will take 2 to 5 years for the hedge to fill in. Remember deer can easily jump over an 8-foot barrier.

But they cannot jump both high and a wide distance. They have poor depth perception as well. So consider a 5- to 6-foot tall hedge but about 4 feet deep.

The rule of thumb for deer-resistant plants is prickly texture and bad taste. Norway spruce (Picea abies) is dense and has stiff, short needles. Upright junipers (Juniperus chinensis) such as ‘Spartan’ and ‘Wichita Blue’ are full-bodied, fast-growing junipers, tolerant of drought, poor soil and full sun. Their flat needles are thorn-like and annoying. To get the depth of barrier needed, plant shrubby, fast-growing red osier dogwood (Cornus stolonifera) and ordinary forsythia on the outside of any evergreens. Both form colonies as they mature, sending out underground rhizomes to produce another plant. Although deciduous, their strong, twiggy structure often proves impenetrable. Both are spring bloomers, with the yellow forsythia heralding spring. In winter, the red branches of the dogwood give visual interest in the landscape. By using a variety of plants, creating a hedge with depth more than height, and augmenting the early growth years with flexible deer fencing, you should have a substantial hedge to secure the area.

Answers provided by Beverly Moss, owner of Garden Rhythms.

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

healthy lawns Lingering lessons from the 2012 summer heat Getting to this point of the season has certainly been wrought with challenges and many homeowners are experiencing problems like never before. Some are attempting to reseed lawn areas that just didn’t come back while others have monumental insect and weed issues. Oxalis, chickweed, dandelions, and insects like European crane flies are flourishing this year, but there are two consistent patterns this time.

First, those who Steve mowed their lawns in Martinko April look better than those who waited until May. Some folks faced bad weather head-on and made sure to mow in April (and thereby benefitting from their efforts), while others chose to wait for the grass to green up first. Perhaps it’s the effect of last year’s long season that people decided to hold off mowing as long as they could. Either way, lawns were generally exhausted this spring and lacked the energy to bounce back after such a long hot summer, coupled with three months of snow cover.

There is a rule in nature that still holds true. The year following a hot and dry summer will produce the best flowering show in your landscape. We’ve seen this before, especially following the summer of 1988. This is true because trees and shrubs slow their metabolism down, storing sugars and carbohydrates instead of spending their energy on excess growth.

However, the grass plant has much less storage capacity to conserve itself, thus leaving it vulnerable. In fact, the second noticeable pattern is lawns that are inadequately watered in the heat tend to suffer the worst the following spring. The condition is simply

called winter kill. Some of us cut back on watering too much last year and now the consequences are far more costly than expected.

If you cut back on mowing and watering last year, the best advice I can give you this year is to re-invest back into your lawn and landscape.

If another hot summer occurs, the plants will not have enough stored energy to bounce back if you’re not doing things correctly. Follow these important tips to ensure their survival: • Keep your mowing blades sharp all season.

• Water your lawn every other day when temperatures are in the 70s, 5 days a week in the 80s, and 6 days a week at 90 degrees or above.

• Lawn zones should be set for 20 to 30 minutes on large heads and 5 to 10 minutes for mist heads.

• Always mulch the lawn clippings.

• For those of you irrigating your trees, shrubs, and perennials with automatic sprinkler systems, pay very close attention to the amount of water you are actually applying to your plants. It is very easy to over or underwater. I frequently see overwatering, which is especially problematic on heavy clay soils. Keep this in mind: healthy soil needs air (oxygen), and that yields better stored energy in plant roots.

• New insects and diseases are occurring on trees and shrubs this year due to last season’s record heat. Assume nothing—when in doubt, get problems checked out.

• Deep root feed your landscape. If you haven’t done so this spring it is recommended to do so this fall.

Stay mentally strong despite the weather challenges. Green lawns, blue lakes, and beautiful flowers. This is why we love Michigan!

Steve Martinko is the owner of Contender’s Tree and Lawn Specialists in Oakland County, MI.

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16

SPECIAL REPORT

Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

Impatiens

alternatives

Ball Horticultural Co. (4)

Coleus Versa ‘Crimson Gold’

Coleus Versa ‘Lime’

Coleus Versa ‘Green Halo’

Coleus Versa ‘Watermelon’

A new disease has swept across the country and promises to change the way many of us will garden this year. Impatiens downy mildew has found a way to dethrone the most popular bedding plant in the U.S. Downy mildew first appeared in England around the beginning of the 21st century. It showed up in California in 2004 and limited areas of the South in 2009. Here in Michigan in 2012, impatiens that were thriving one week were defoliated and nearly dead a week later.

Regular, seed-grown impatiens (Impatiens walleriana) are the victims of this rampant disease. In the early phase, the leaves yelGeorge Papadelis low and curl. If you turn the leaves over, you will clearly see the downy mildew (white powdery spores) on the underside. In the late phase, plants completely defoliate within a couple weeks.

The disease produces spores that can move in the air and overwinter in the soil. Even if you didn’t have downy mildew last year, it is very likely that you will have it this year.

Growers can apply specialized fungicides that will protect impatiens for up to 6 weeks, but there is no cure once the plants are infected. It is unpractical for the home gardener to try treating the disease since these chemicals need to be applied frequently by a certified applicator.

Many commercial growers have chosen not to offer regular or double impatiens (Impatiens walleriana) this season. The good news is that we have so many great alternatives, including New Guinea impatiens (Impatiens hawkeri), that can perform beautifully where we used to grow regular impatiens.

We will discuss many alternatives in this special three-part series. Explore the third part below and you’ll see that this disease has created an opportunity for gardeners to try several interesting and potentially rewarding candidates.

Part 3 of 3: Foliage Plants Coleus

Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener

Coleus ’Henna’

Coleus produce ornamental foliage whose diversity, beauty, and performance has turned this genus into one of the most popular bedding and container ornamentals. Coleus should be divided into two distinct groups.

Seed-grown coleus are typically upright growers. There are several series, nearly all of which prefer shade to part shade. As these are seed-grown, they are more likely to develop into flowering plants in an attempt to produce seed. When flowering occurs, plant vigor drastically declines. So, the flowers must be continuously removed. There is a relatively new series called ‘Versa’ which sports seven different varieties. These are sun or shade tol-

erant, heat tolerant, and very late to initiate flower development. ‘Versa’ coleus have rated very high in North American trial gardens since they were developed a few years ago.

Vegetatively-propagated coleus can usually be grown in sun or shade. They are available in a plethora of colors, many leaf forms, and various growth habits from trailing to upright. Most are very late to start flowering and require almost no maintenance. With so many colors and textures, it has become more and more challenging to create a container combination that doesn’t include coleus as a “thriller,” “filler,” or “spiller.” continued on page 18

C K EM E EK S FO NR IN L R OO A Y TI T R M S S ES .C O M

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18

SPECIAL REPORT

Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

continued from page 16 Caladiums make excellent accent plants in the shade. Some cultivars will also thrive in sun as well. They have beautiful, multicolored, veined leaves with colors like red, pink, white, yellow, and burgundy. They are ideal in containers where soil is generally welldrained, but also tends to be warmer. Caladiums dislike cold soil, especially cold and wet soil. They are grown from corms, which can be purchased and planted once the soil is warm. They can also be purchased in pots.

Heights vary from just 6 inches to about 18 inches. Being that they are not grown from seed, they are significantly more expensive than impatiens.

Sweet potato vine (Ipomoea). This group of plants has become very diverse since the early 2000s. Originally there were simply yellow- and black-leafed varieties with heartshaped leaves and exceptional vigor. These are still available but now we can choose from red, bronze, green, and bicolored, with either heart-shaped leaves or the “finger”leafed type (a more dissected leaf pattern).

We also have more compact forms such as the ‘Bright Idea’ series, the ‘Illusion’ series, and the chartreuse cultivar ‘Chihuahua.’ All grow effortlessly in beds or containers, in sun or shade. Keep in mind that the more vigorous types will likely require some pinching to keep them under control.

Polka dot plants (Hypoestes) are seedgrown, foliage plants with leaves speckled green and pink, red, or white. They can be planted in mass to carpet the ground, but are most often used as a colorful foliage accent in small containers. Polka dot plants typically only grow 8 to 12 inches tall and wide. They are usually available in pots, but a few growers offer them in flats. Use polka dot plants in shade or nearly full sun.

Golden creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’). This perennial groundcover has become incredibly popular since the late 2000s. The small, round, waxy leaves hug the ground and cascade over pot edges. It is very vigorous and may require some pruning in containers, but is more likely to offend the unsuspecting gardener in beds where it attempts to “cover” the ground if not kept under control. Besides being adored by slugs, it is easy to grow in shade to part shade.

It will perform well in sun if kept moist. continued on page 20

Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener

Pink variegated polka dot plant

This container planting at Chanticleer in Pennsylvania incorporates golden creeping Jenny as a cascading accent plant.

Proven Winners (2)

Left: Illusion ‘Emerald Lace’ sweet potato vine Above: Illusion ‘Garnet Lace’

Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener

White caladiums mingle with white variegated polka dot plants in this shady spot.

Beste’s Indoor/Outdoor Garden Center

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Haack’s Farm Greenhouse

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Eckert’s Greenhouse & Perennials 34075 Ryan Rd., Sterling Heights 48310 586-979-2409 www.eckertsgreenhouse.com

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a dv e r t i s i n g f e at u r e

Temperature

Precipitation April 2013

Detroit Flint Lansing

Normal Monthly 2.90 2.89 3.03

Actual Monthly 5.29 6.44 7.87

April 2012 Deviation from Normal +2.39 +3.55 +4.84

2013 Year to Date: Jan 1 - Mar 31

Detroit Flint Lansing

Normal Yr. to Date 9.16 7.91 8.21

Actual Yr. to Date 12.31 12.67 14.05

Deviation from Normal +3.15 +4.76 +5.84

Normal Monthly 2.90 2.89 3.03

Actual Monthly 2.15 1.33 2.55

April 2013 - Average High Deviation from Normal -0.75 -1.56 -0.48

Detroit Flint Lansing

Normal Avg. High 57.8 56.2 56.6

Detroit Flint Lansing

Normal Avg. Low 38.4 34.6 34.5

2012 Year Total: Jan 1 - Mar 31

Normal

Yr. to Date 9.16 7.91 8.21

Actual Yr. to Date 10.01 7.14 8.94

Data courtesy National Weather Service

Deviation from Normal +0.85 -0.77 +0.73

ACTUAL Avg. High 55.8 55.1 53.6

Deviation from Normal -2.0 -1.1 -3.0

April 2013 - Average Low ACTUAL Avg. Low 37.1 35.1 34.8

Deviation from Normal -1.3 +0.5 +0.3

April 2012 - Average High Normal Avg. High 57.8 56.2 56.6

ACTUAL Avg. High 60.0 59.7 58.6

Deviation from Normal +2.2 +3.5 +2.0

April 2012 - Average Low Normal Avg. Low 38.4 34.6 34.5

ACTUAL Avg. Low 38.7 34.9 35.1

Deviation from Normal +0.3 +0.3 +0.6

20

SPECIAL REPORT

Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener

Persian shield continued from page 18 Persian shield (Strobilanthes) produces spectacular metallic leaves of purple, rose, and green tones on two-foot tall, round bushes. It is rarely used in mass but rather as an accent in shady borders or large containers. I have seen it growing beautifully in full sun but it consistently shines in shade to part shade. It is exceptional with silver leaves (like plectranthus) and pink or blue flowers.

Plectranthus. This diverse genus includes flowering plants, foliage plants, and even a few herbs. The more common bedding types are upright or cascading with silver, green and white, or green and gold leaves. All will grow in either sun or shade in beds or containers. Be sure to know what you are buying, as many of the upright and cascading types look quite similar when immature.

The flowering plectranthus, such as ‘Mona Lavender’ and ‘Velvet Elvis,’ are beautiful, violet-blue flowering plants in the spring and fall (late September). Like mums, they only

flower when the days are short. The velvety green leaves have purple undersides and remain attractive through the summer when the mounding plants are flowerless. These prefer part sun for the best flowering and grow to about 12 to 24 inches tall.

Purple heart (Setcresea). This versatile plant is very durable. It tolerates poor soil, heat, dry or wet conditions, and sun or shade.

It makes a beautiful underplanting for orange or yellow flowers but also looks great alongside blues and pinks. Purple heart is popular in containers, but has been underused in beds. It can grow to about a foot tall by the end of the season.

Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener

George Papadelis is the owner of Telly’s Greenhouse in Troy, MI.

Silvery-green plectranthus and raspeberry-purple coleus are beautiful companions for the shade.

Editor’s note: Parts 1 and 2 of “Impatiens Alternatives” appeared in the April 2013 issue (page 14) and May 2013 issue (page 14). Those issues can be seen on our website (MichiganGardener.com) by clicking on “E-Edition.”

Eric Hofley / Michigan Gardener

Purple heart (Setcresea)

Terra Nova Nurseries

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

tree tips Tree myths busted!

While talking with clients about their this technique works well for rejuvenating landscapes, I often get asked about differshrubs, it should not be used in large trees. ent tree care practices and if they should use The problem is that when you make big them. While certain ones have some merit, cuts in trees, they respond by producing suckmany are outdated myths. Let’s look at and ers to try and quickly replace the lost canopy. dispel three myths.

While it might look as if the tree is respondI will start with by far the most common ing favorably by regrowing vigorously, it is acone I am asked: What do I seal the wounds tually in shock. The tree is using its reserves with after pruning? Paint? Tar, etc.? The to regrow in order to avoid starving due to the answer: NOTHING! Originally, inability to produce food from its it was believed that this practice lost leaves. These new limbs will be Steve would seal out decay-causing orweakly attached around the old cut Turner ganisms and prevent trees from and grow fast, putting on weight forming hollows from old cuts. It as they go. At the same time, they was later discovered, however, that are right next to a large wound these organisms are microscopic that will not be able to callus over and pass right through the seal. because the tree is using its energy Plus, they are actually aided by the to grow and can’t heal all the large seal’s ability to hold in moisture, wounds fast enough to prevent the which helps create the ideal enviinevitable decay that will set in and ronment for them to thrive. begin to compromise the wood Years of research on tree decay has shown around it. that sealers do more harm than good and Over the course of a few years, you have should not be used except in a couple of spelarge limbs that are growing at a rate much cial circumstances, such as sealing wounds faster than the original canopy would have, from storm breaks in trees that are suscepoften defeating the original intention of retible to wilt diseases spread by insects. While ducing its size. Add on another few years: as the paint can’t stop decay, it can stop sap one part is gaining weight, the other part is flow, which is what attracts insects to oaks losing strength. Now you have a virtual time or elms in our area. This helps reduce the bomb in your yard just waiting for the next chance of oak wilt or Dutch elm disease durstorm to begin shedding large limbs that are ing the summer months. breaking off the rotten The best way to prevent wood left from the old cut.

Topping is the indiscrimidecay pockets in trees is to There are ways to renot remove large limbs: 4 duce a tree’s crown more nate removal of the tree’s inches and under in most effectively and causing top canopy to reduce its trees should be able to much less damage. Called callus over before decay crown reduction, it involves height. It often involves sets in. Anything above making smaller cuts back large cuts into big wood, that and you are taking to lateral branches to minia chance depending on mize the impact on the leaving minimal branching the species and tree vigor. tree. This technique is only and large stubs. While this as good as the arborist doStart removing limbs 10 inches and over, and the technique works well for re- ing the work. It requires a odds go way up that a holskill and knowledge level juvenating shrubs, it should that not all tree workers low will form in time.

The next myth: Topnot be used in large trees. possess. Make sure you ping trees. While I don’t do your homework before see this as often as years hiring an arborist to do past, I still see more than I care to. It is always this type of pruning. These techniques are sad to see trees treated this way because as an often used to help preserve trees that might arborist I know they will NEVER recover to have structural issues. By reducing the tree’s their original condition. What was once an height, you reduce the stress on the tree’s asset will now be an eyesore first, and then weakened area and you can extend the tree’s become a hazard later, once the tree regrows. useful life.

It will end up a liability until it is removed.

The last one is filling tree cavities. Maybe Topping is the indiscriminate removal of you have seen cement poured in tree cavithe tree’s top canopy to reduce its height. It ties to help prevent decay. This practice was often involves large cuts into big wood, leavcommon in Europe after World War II, when ing minimal branching and large stubs. While many trees were destroyed or damaged dur-

ing the war. Great care was taken to remove decayed wood and install rebar supports in hollow trunks of huge trees. In an effort to preserve them, they were filled with cement to help provide support. This practice is where the term “tree surgeon” comes from, as it was quite the process to complete and dangerous as well.

Today we know that this practice often caused more harm than good, as all the activity allowed decay to spread much faster than had it been left alone. This is similar to applying pruning paint—both techniques have gone by the wayside in professional tree care.

23

The only acceptable way to fill cavities today is spray foam. We use it to fill voids that might collect water and accelerate the decay process. While we know it won’t prevent decay completely, we can certainly slow it down by keeping the cavity dry. The spray expands as it dries, filling every nook and cranny, but remains flexible and watertight. As an added bonus, when the foam dries it can be sanded smooth to blend it in and get rid of any drips or excess material.

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

perennial perspectives Something old, something new – a comparison of new cultivars with the tried-and-true Geum Geum (GEE-um) is a lesser-known perennial that is starting to attract the attention of both plant breeders and gardeners. Most references give this genus the common name of avens, although I have never heard anyone use it. I prefer the more pleasant and easy-toremember name Grecian rose—appropriate since geum is a member of the rose family.

There are about 50 species of geum worldwide, many of them native to woodlands and alpine meadows in Europe and the Americas. The two most ornamental species, G. chiloense from Chile and G. coccineum from the Balkan region, bear flowers in the red/orange/yellow color Karen range, and while quite attractive Bovio in their naturally-occurring forms, they also form the backbone of the earliest horticultural varieties. G. chiloense ‘Mrs. Bradshaw’ (red) and ‘Lady Stratheden’ (yellow) are well-known seed-grown strains that have been around for a century. They bear clusters of semi-double, rose-like flowers on somewhat floppy 24-inch stems arising from fuzzy, dissected foliage mounds.

A newer seed strain named ‘Blazing Sunset’, with larger, more fully double red flowers, was developed by the British seed company Thompson and Morgan. Unfortunately, it still has the lax habit and short bloom period of its predecessors.

In the Geum coccineum group, the old strain ‘Borisii’ with its goldfish-orange single flowers is still widely available in nurseries, although two new hybrids, ‘Cooky’ and ‘Koi’

are probably superior. Both are bright orange (a surprising color in the spring garden when soft pinks and blues usually prevail) and are earlier, longer blooming and more compact than ‘Borisii,’ growing only 8 to 12 inches tall.

New varieties The newest cultivars, which are typically multi-species hybrids that are propagated through tissue culture, are no doubt the best performers in the genus. Hybridizers from England and Holland were the first to create substantial improvements, with American breeders not far behind. Breeding work has focused on developing longer blooming and reblooming varieties, with an emphasis on profuse flowering. The range of colors has been expanded greatly. While reds, yellows and oranges still predominate, there are now many cultivars with beautiful, blended shades of apricot, coral, tangerine, salmon, brick red, and russet, many with contrasting picotee edges, fluted petals, and burgundy flower stems. Many of these new cultivars have a more compact habit, and while not all of them are short, the flower stems are tidier and more upright than older varieties.

Nurseryman Brent Horvath of Intrinsic Perennials in Illinois has developed one of the best new series of geum, called the Cocktail Series. Included are varieties with fun names like ‘Tequila Sunrise,’ ‘Mai Tai,’ ‘Alabama Slammer,’ and ‘Sangria’ (with more on the way!). These bear clusters of intricately shaped, rose-like double and semi-double flowers. These varieties are profuse bloom-

www.PerennialResource.com

Totally Tangerine

Terra Nova Nurseries

‘Fireball’

www.PerennialResource.com

‘Blazing Sunset’

www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

Intrinsic Perennial Gardens

Tequila Sunrise

Intrinsic Perennial Gardens

Sangria

Intrinsic Perennial Gardens

Alabama Slammer

25

ing, from May through June, with good rebloom potential.

Terra Nova Nurseries has introduced a heavy-blooming English selection, discovered in a walled garden in York, called ‘Fireball.’ It is a showy bicolor with semi-double yellow flowers edged in orange, attaining a height of about 20 inches. Terra Nova plant breeders worked to reduce the height, and came up with ‘Fireball,’ which makes a wonderful addition to smaller gardens or at the front of perennial borders.

Totally Tangerine (aka ‘Tim’s Tangerine’) is an introduction from the United Kingdom that is anything but dwarf, reaching heights of up to 30 inches. According to the breeder, it is totally sterile and will produce 5 times as many flowers as previous varieties. It is a robust grower, heat tolerant, and far less fussy about soils. The appealing tangerine- to apricot-colored flowers are easy to work into nearly any garden color scheme.

Geum prefers a position in full sun to partial shade, in moist well-drained soil. It dislikes drying out, nor can it tolerate continually damp soil where root rot may become a problem. In general, geum dislikes heat and humidity. However, the newer cultivars have been bred for more tolerance to adverse conditions.

Blooming starts early, generally in May in Michigan, with the newer hybrids continuing to bloom for six weeks or more and repeating in late summer and fall. The warm colors contrast beautifully with purple or blue flowers, making geums great companions for plants that bloom at the same time like pansies and violas, perennial salvia, Jacob’s ladder, alliums, and irises. With its neat, mounded habit, geum also looks great with variously-colored coral bells (Heuchera) in partly shaded settings.

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Julia Hofley

26

Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

Cho

‘Azure Rush’ Geranium You’d be hard pressed to go into any garden center and not find the 2008 Perennial Plant of the Year, ‘Rozanne’ geranium. It won the hearts of many professionals and gardeners alike as a beautiful garden workhorse. ‘Azure Rush’ is a new sport from ‘Rozanne’ and has some of the same garden-worthy traits, plus a few new distinctions of its own.

‘Azure Rush’ is a lighter blue color and is more compact, resulting in a neater, lowgrowing, and mounded habit. It is a vigorous grower, with an impressive, long-lasting display of 2-1/2-inch flowers from late spring through fall. That’s the kind of flower power I like in a perennial. Bring it on!

Height: 18-20 inches. Width: 24-28 inches.

Light: Sun to part sun. Zone 5.

Blooms of Bressingham

Terra Nova Nurseries

‘Solar Power’ Foamy Bells

I am always drawn to interesting foliage plants that help me weave a colorful groundcover tapestry. This cross between coral bells (Heuchera) and foamflower (Tiarella) fits the bill. This mounding variety of foamy bells (Heucherella) features lobed, yellow-gold to lime-green leaves splashed with red along the veins. Tiny white flowers are raised above the foliage in spring.

As the name suggests, it takes sun and heat better than most yellow-leaved foamy bells cultivars, but achieves its brightest yellow color with some afternoon shade and moisture. The more shade it gets, it will take on a lime green tone with splatters of deep red.

Height: 12-16 inches. Width: 20 inches. Light: Sun to part shade. Zone 4.

www.PerennialResource.com

‘Mercury Rising’ Coreopsis Another new coreopsis from the Big Bang series by Darrell Probst. This one is red, hardy, disease resistant, and has a spreading habit. Unlike previously introduced red-flowered selections, ‘Mercury Rising’ is from the hardy perennial Coreopsis rosea (not the annual Coreopsis tinctoria) and is hardy to zone 5. ‘Mercury Rising’ is sterile, with no deadheading or other maintenance required to keep it blooming over a long period. That is newsworthy for a coreopsis! In field trials, it proved to have excellent disease resistance compared to common hybrids from Coreopsis verticillata.

From early summer through early fall, the wide-spreading, well-branched clumps of bright green narrow leaves are covered in velvety, claret-red blossoms with a striking gold-

en orange button in the center. The blooms attract butterflies and honey bees. Some flowers are lightly frosted with a touch of creamy white on the petals, especially going into the chilly days of autumn.

Another interesting feature is that the flowers expand in size as they age, from 1-1/2 to 2 inches. Even the backs of the flowers are decorative: a creamy yellow with a purple stripe down the center of each petal. This continuously-blooming plant combines well in the perennial border; just remember to give it some space to fill. Then, like me, look forward to long-lasting cut flowers to enhance your floral arrangements.

Height: 15-18 inches. Width: 3 feet.

Light: Full sun. Zone 5.

www.PerennialResource.com

‘Pardon My Purple’ and ‘Pardon My Pink’ Bee Balm These new bee balms are bred for smaller city lots and for gardeners who have limited space and want something new in the front of their perennial borders. These selections are petite but have 2-1/2- to 3-inch, full-sized flowers that just clear the tops of the foliage and will repeat bloom with deadheading. The bushy, compact clump has attractive, aromatic, deep green, and glossy foliage that is mildew-resistant.

These plants are a good addition for gardeners with smaller spaces who want to enjoy a mid to late summer magnet for hummingbirds and butterflies.

Height: 10-12 inches. Width: 8-12 inches. Light: Part to full sun. Zone 4.

NEW PERENNIALS continued on page 28

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

continued from page 26

Terra Nova Nurseries (2)

Dragonfly ‘Sakura’

Dragonfly ‘Angel Kiss’

Dragonfly ‘Angel Kiss’ & Dragonfly ‘Sakura’ Bergenia In early spring, semi-double flowers on ‘Angel Kiss’ gracefully emerge snow white and take on a light pink glow in great abundance, updating the look of this garden classic. Extending the season, the dark winter foliage has red and purple highlights.

“Sakura” means “cherry blossoms” in Japanese and that is what these pink semi-double flowers will bring to mind when you see their floriferous bloom. ‘Sakura’ has a compact habit, is drought tolerant, and displays evergreen, dark winter foliage.

Height: 10-15 inches. Width: 12 inches. Light: Full sun to part shade. Zone 4.

www.PerennialResource.com

‘Midnight Marvel’ Hibiscus This plant is a cross between 2 of my favorite hibiscus plants: ‘Summer Storm’ and ‘Cranberry Crush.’

From ‘Summer Storm’ it inherits deep wine-purple, dissected, maple-like leaves that are thick and leathery and need full sun to achieve their darkest foliage color.

‘Cranberry Crush’ gives it glossy, black-

red buds that open to 8- to 9-inch scarlet red flowers. This relatively compact plant is an indeterminate bloomer (it has buds at several nodes up the stem) and will bloom for an extended period from midsummer into early fall. It also attracts butterflies.

Height: 4 feet. Width: 4-1/2 feet.

Light: Full sun. Zone 4.

‘Innisfree’

‘Drumcliff’

Skagit Gardens(2)

‘Drumcliff’ and ‘Innisfree’ Primula ‘Freak!’ Shasta Daisy This shasta daisy earned a prestigious pedigree of awards from both sides of the Atlantic. Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Freak!’ is covered with numerous fluffy-looking flowers, formed from layers of white petals. The 2- to 2-1/2-inch flowers attract butterflies and are evenly distributed over compact, wellbranched plants. They start blooming in June

Blooms of Bressingham

and, with deadheading, reliably rebloom, which lengthens the bloom period into fall.

That means there will be enough flowers to cut for arrangements and to enjoy in the border. ‘Freak!’ received Greenhouse Grower magazine’s “Best New Perennial” award.

Height: 13 inches. Width: 21 inches.

Light: Full sun. Zone 5.

Dark, bronzy-olive foliage really sets these Irish primulas apart from others along the primrose path. This dark-leaved series was in the making for 35 years and bred from old stock in Ireland by Joe Kennedy, a dentist and amateur primula breeder. ‘Innisfree’ has bright, ruby red flowers with a yellow eye and is named for a poem about a mythical cabin by W.B. Yeats entitled, “Lake Isle of Innisfree.”

The flowers of ‘Drumcliff’ emerge pale lavender but quickly turn white for a stunning contrast in the woodland garden. Drumcliff is the final resting place of Irish poet W.B. Yeats.

These primula prefer a partly shady location and moist but well-drained, humus-rich soil.

Height and width: 5 inches. Light: Light shade to shade. Zone 5.

NEW PERENNIALS continued on page 30

Outstanding collection

of summer-blooming trees, shrubs & perennials available

Japanese maples

Colorful leaves in spring, summer & fall!

Come see our 55 varieties

Time To Plant!

Come in for some

fresh ideas.

We can help. landscaping- FULL SERVICE event planning garden center architecture/art fresh flowers/gifts

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VISIT OUR BEAUTIFUL FRENCH COUNTRY COTTAGE

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2781 Scio Church • Ann Arbor 734-665-TREE (8733)

8215 Elizabeth Lake Rd. • White Lake

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248-698-4741 MulliganLandscaping.com Open 7 days during May & June

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Explore The Weed Lady . . . where every visit is an adveture.

9225 Fenton Road • Grand Blanc 25 min. from Great Lakes Crossing

www.TheWeedLady.com

810.655.2723

Milarch Nursery Q U A L I T Y P L A N T S & S E R V I C E S I N C E 19 7 2

25 ACRES of flowering & shade trees, flowering shrubs, perennials, evergreens, and ground covers.

We have gorgeous Rhododendrons, Roses, Topiaries and Perennials!

PROVEN—by independent research to out-last and out-perform all other repellents —up to 6 months over-winter!

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TO SEE OUR INCREDIBLE SELECTION, PLEASE VISIT MILARCHNURSERY.COM AND CLICK ON “AVAILABILITY.”

HUNDREDS OF ROSES IN MANY COLORS

SAFE—for use in vegetable gardens, on fruit trees and food crops.

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GORGEOUS RHODODENDRONS

BONUS—built in fertilizer for bigger, healthier plants!

For our DEALER LOCATOR, testimonials and answers to FAQs, visit: www.plantskydd.com

#1 Choice of Professional Growers, Landscapers & Foresters

28500 HAAS RD • NEW HUDSON, MI 48165 • 248-437-2094 www.milarchnursery.com • Mon-Fri: 8-5:30 Sat: 8-3 Sun: Closed

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

Valentine Bleeding Heart I’ve often heard that gardeners started a piece of old-fashioned bleeding heart from a beloved relative. Or, they took a piece from their childhood home and it went with them wherever they moved and on to their children when they grew up—the next generation.

This new bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis Valentine) is an updated version of that sentimental plant that gardeners speak of so fondly. The leaves emerge a dark and sultry purple and lighten up with age, but the flowers pick up from there with puffy heart-shaped blooms that are bright red with a white tip.

Like the original plant, the flowers dangle romantically from the stems over a period of many weeks. This is a robust and fast-growing plant, so you need to have space, like a shady bed with low groundcovers that would benefit from a focal point in spring. And like the original, it usually goes dormant by midsummer. Bleeding hearts are one of my favorite cut flowers for bouquets as they last up to

continued from page 28

www.PerennialResource.com

two weeks.

Valentine would make a meaningful gift to a gardening friend to commemorate a special occasion, as it is long-lived, easy care, and resistant to animal browsing. This new red color would delight any gardener or gardener-to-be for years to come.

Height and width: 30 inches. Light: Shade.

Zone 3.

Terra Nova Nurseries

‘Thunderhead’ Sedum

Named after Oregon’s summer thunderhead clouds, these huge, deep rose flower heads perched upon stout, upright stems become the stalwart of the mid-border. Gray-green foliage complements the long-lasting flowers that extend seasonal color into August and September. A water-wise plant. Height: 27-30 inches. Width: 24 inches. Light: Full sun. Zone 4.

Julia Hofley

White seed puffs on the Pretty Lady series provide unique winter interest.

‘Pretty Lady Julia’ Anemone A new addition to the kinder, gentler Japanese anemone ‘Pretty Lady’ series. This compact version of the usually larger-than-life perennial will be dwarf in habit, yet covered in 2-inch, double pink blooms that come to life just when many borders are beginning to look summer-worn.

What surprised me about the others in the Pretty Lady series (‘Diana’ and ‘Emily’) is a unique white seed puff that held up nearly all winter long. These little cottony clouds added

Plants Nouvaeu

‘Sea Heart’ Brunnera

Blooms of Bressingham

‘Pretty Lady Julia’ unexpected winter interest—a good reason to leave these plants standing for the winter and hold off cutting them back until spring. I hope ‘Pretty Lady Julia’ has this feature as well.

Height: 16-18 inches. Width: 20 inches.

Light: Part shade to full sun. Zone 5.

What first caught my attention about this new selection of brunnera (Brunnera macrophylla ‘Sea Heart’) last summer was the sheer size of its paddle-like leaves. Then the variegation on those big leaves was flashy, as there was a lot of surface on which to admire the colored mottling. I was then invited to touch the leaves, which were super-thick, with the venation on the back of the leaves noticeably strong and scratchy-sharp. Apparently, all of

this infrastructure causes the plant to hold up better, even until autumn, and not melt in the heat of the summer like other varieties can do.

This is a welcome new shade plant addition that kicks off spring season with traditionally pretty blue flowers that may become twotoned with pink as they age.

Height: 6 to 12 inches. Width: 12-24 inches.

Light: Part shade to full shade. Zone 4.

Julia Hofley is a plant collector, freelance garden writer, lecturer, and independent sales rep (E-mail: julia@juliasbiglife.com).

Bloom! Garden Center 1885 Baker Rd., Dexter 48130 734-426-6600 www.bloom-gardens.com

Saline Flowerland DEXTER CHELSEA

May/June hours: Mon-Thur 10-6, Fri 107:30, Sat 9-5, Sun 12-5 A new local source for “Art in the Garden” and the new home of Elemental Design landscape contracting. The Garden Center carries a myriad of garden art, vintage finds, fine art & jewelry, gardening & water gardening supplies, perennials, shrubs and trees. Bi-monthly workshops and Friday night art gallery openings.

English Gardens

7370 Michigan Ave., Saline 48176 734-429-4458 www.salineflowerland.com

ANN ARBOR

YPSILANTI

SALINE

MANCHESTER

155 N. Maple Rd., Ann Arbor 48103 734-332-7900 www.EnglishGardens.com Thru Sun, June 9: Mon-Sat: 8-9, Sun: 8-6; Starting Mon, June 10: Mon-Sat: 9-8, Sun: 10-6 Founded in 1954, English Gardens is family and locally owned, operating six full-service stores, three seasonal stores, and a full-service, landscaping company in Metro Detroit. Each full-service store has a nursery, garden center, patio shop, and seasonal Christmas center featuring the best value and finest quality products and services.

For more information: 800-335-GROW.

Fraleighs Landscape Nursery 8600 Jackson Rd., Dexter 48130 734-426-5067 www.fraleighs.com May/June hours: Please call or visit website for current hours Wide variety of perennials, shrubs, ornamental grasses, flowering ornamentals, native plants, shade trees, and evergreens. Expert staff to assist with your landscaping and horticultural questions. We source plants from Michigan growers whenever possible. We stock unusual items, but we really love selling plants that are reliable and functional, but never boring!

Hidden Lake Gardens 6214 Monroe Rd. (M-50), Tipton 49287 517-431-2060 www.hiddenlakegardens.msu.edu May/June hours: Open daily 9-7 755 acres. Don’t miss one of the finest collections of Dwarf and Rare Conifers—over 500 specimens. Hosta Hillside has over 800 varieties. Enjoy a leisurely drive through the Arboretum. See lush tropicals in the Conservatory. Serene outdoor displays in the Bonsai Courtyard. The Demonstration Garden shows attractive mixed plantings. Hiking trails too and dog-friendly!

May/June hours – Before May 13: MonFri 8-6:30, Sat 8-6, Sun 11-4 • Starting May 13: Mon-Fri 8-7, Sat 8-6, Sun 10-5 • Memorial Day: Open 10-4 Hundreds of hanging baskets, over 20 varieties of potted annuals, perennials, groundcovers, vegetable plants, herbs, pond plants, tropicals, and patio plants.

Bring and plant your own pot. Our quality plants, grown on-site, are the foundation of our success. Need to replace your impatiens? We have ideas and plants for you—come see us!

Wild Bird Center MILAN TECUMSEH

HillTop Greenhouse & Farms 8996 West Liberty, Ann Arbor 48103 734-302-4233 www.hilltopgreenhousea2.com May/June hours: Mon-Fri: 9-7, Sat-Sun 9-6 Just 10 minutes from Ann Arbor or Chelsea, our greenhouse is a relaxing drive from all corners. Choose from over 8,000 baskets and 10,000 flats, plus veggie starters, specialty annuals, and lush combination planters. Each plant is grown on site, with hands-on care from start to finish. Smiles, hugs and a friendly staff, free of charge!

Lodi Farms 2880 S. Wagner Rd., Ann Arbor 48103 734-665-5651 www.lodifarms.com May/June hours: Mon-Fri: 9-6, Sat 9-4, Sun ‘til Fathers’ Day 1-4 Come visit our wonderful nursery! We have shade and ornamental trees, evergreens, shrubs of all types, lots of dwarf conifers, and perennials. Bring your pictures and plans and we’ll help you choose the best plants! Check our sales calendar for specials and browse our catalog on the website. Take a roadtrip here soon!

Matthaei Botanical Gardens & Nichols Arboretum 1800 North Dixboro Rd., Ann Arbor 48105 734-647-9679 www.mbgna.umich.edu Display gardens, Conservatory, Garden Store, and lobby: May 1-17: Daily 10-4:30; Wed: 10-8 • May 18-June 30: Daily 10-8. Trails open sunrise to sunset.

The University of Michigan Matthaei Botanical Gardens & Nichols Arboretum offer trails and natural areas, children’s garden, native plant gardens, bonsai garden (opening May 19), large collection of heirloom peonies, yearround conservatory, wedding venues, special events and sales, youth and adult educational programs, gift shop, and more.

Nature’s Garden Center 6400 E. Michigan Ave., Saline 48176 734-944-8644 www.naturesgardencenter.com May/June hours: Mon-Sat 8-8, Sun 10-5 Your one stop garden center: Large variety of latest products at competitive prices.

Knowledgeable staff to help you succeed.

Region’s largest supplier of fairy garden items and miniature plants. Birding supplies.

Nursery filled with shade trees and evergreens to perennials and annuals. Full landscaping design and installation available.

advert i s i ng feature

2775 Plymouth Rd., Ann Arbor 48105 734-213-2473 www.wildbird.com (click on “Store Locator”) May/June hours: M-F 10-6, Sat 10-5, Sun 12-5 Owner Lisa Haanpaa has always been an avid bird enthusiast, and is pleased to provide top-of-the-line, quality products as well as expert advice and personal service to her customers. Wild Bird Center bird seed and exclusive seed blends are field-tested and proven to attract the widest variety of birds.

Willow Greenhouses 7839 Curtis Rd., Northville 48168 248-437-7219 www.willowgreenhouse.com Hours: Mon-Sat 9-6, Sun 10-3 Voted #1 Garden Center in Metro Detroit Area!

Buy direct from the grower! Thousands of Annuals, Perennials, Proven Winners, Wave Petunias, Vegetables, Heirloom Tomatoes, Herbs, GMO FREE Heirloom Seeds and much more! Many hard-to-find varieties! Our competitive pricing keeps our customers coming back year after year! Like us on Facebook!

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A collection of stores and gardens to shop and visit.

Please call ahead for hours, as they may vary from season to season.

Columbiaville, Davison

Bay City, Clio, Gladwin, Midland, Roscommon, Saginaw

North Branch

Lapeer

Emmett

Lennon

Port Huron

Dryden Metamora

Altermatt Greenhses Boyka’s Greenhse Deneweth’s Garden Ctr H Elya’s Village Gardens Landscape Source Joe Randazzo’s Nurs Olejnik Farms Wade Nurs

Lakeport

Hadley Grand Blanc

Flint

Bancroft, Owosso

macomb

Imlay City

Flushing

Almont

grand blanc H Bordine’s Fenton

Oxford

Ortonville

Orion Clarkston Hartland

White Lake Highland

East Lansing, Fowlerville, Grand Rapids, Haslett, Lansing, Mason, Williamston

Commerce

West Bloomfield

Walled Lake Wixom Brighton

Rochester Hills

Pontiac

Milford

New Hudson South Lyon

Whitmore Lake

Novi Northville

Auburn Hills Bloomfield Hills Birmingham

Farmington Hills Farmington

Troy Sterling Hts.

Southfield Oak Park Ferndale

Eastpointe

Grosse Pointes

Ypsilanti

Taylor Romulus

Saline

Tecumseh

Brownstown Twp.

Southgate Trenton Grosse Ile

Rockwood, Monroe

H Garden Mill 110 S. Main St., MI 48118 734-475-3539 www.thegardenmill.com

addison twp H Yule Love It Lavender Farm 960 Yule Rd., MI 48367 248-628-7814 www.yuleloveitlavender.com

almont

American Tree

ann arbor

H Abbott’s Nurs Ace Barnes Hardware Downtown Home/Gard H English Gardens 155 N. Maple Rd, MI 48103 734-332-7900 www.EnglishGardens.com H HillTop Greenhse/Farms H Lodi Farms H The Produce Station Turner’s Greenhse/Garn Ctr H Wild Bird Center Wild Birds Unltd

auburn hills

Drake’s Landscp & Nurs H Haley Stone 3600 Lapeer Rd., MI 48326 248-276-9300 www.haleystone.net

birmingham H Blossoms 33866 Woodward Ave, MI 48009 248-644-4411 www.blossomsbirmingham.com

H State Crushing

H Plant Station Tiffany Florist

bancroft

brighton

Grand Oak Herb Farm

bay city H Begick Nursery & Garden Ctr 5993 Westside Saginaw Rd. 48706 989-684-4210 www.begicknursery.com

belleville

Banotai Greenhse Gardeners Choice H Pinter Flowerland H Zywicki Greenhse

berkley

Garden Central Westborn Flower Mkt

bloomfield hills Backyard Birds

H Beauchamp Landscp Supp H Bordine’s Brighton Farmer’s Mkt Cowbell Lawn/Gard Leppek Nurs H Meier Flowerland

brownstown twp Bruce’s Pond Shop Ruhlig Farms & Gard

canton

Canton Floral Gardens Clink Nurs Crimboli Landscp/Nurs Keller & Stein Greenhse Wild Birds Unltd

cement city

Hallson Gardens

H English Gardens 22650 Ford Rd, MI 48127 313-278-4433 www.EnglishGardens.com

detroit

Allemon’s Landscp Ctr H Detroit Farm & Garden 1759 21st St., MI 48216 313-655-2344 www.detroitfarmandgarden.com

dexter

H Bloom! Gard Ctr Dexter Mill

The Potting Shed

H Fraleighs Landscape Nursery 8600 Jackson Rd., MI 48130 734-426-5067 www.fraleighs.com

chesterfield

eastpointe

Van Thomme’s Greenhses

clarkston

H Bordine’s Country Oaks Landscp I Lowrie’s Landscp H The Pond Source

clinton twp

H Denotes MG Advertiser

dearborn heights

H Eastern Market

chelsea

Dearborn Dearborn Wayne Heights

New Boston Tipton

Clinton Twp.

Westland

Belleville Manchester

Utica

H English Gardens 44850 Garfield Rd, MI 48038 586-286-6100 www.EnglishGardens.com

Ariel’s Enchanted Gard H English Gardens 22501 Kelly Rd, MI 48021 586-771-4200 www.EnglishGardens.com Semrau Gard Ctr

farmington

Backyard Birds

farmington hills

Michigan Koi H Tropical Treasures

Angelo’s Landscp Supp Farmer John’s Greenhse Loeffler Stone Ctr H Steinkopf Nurs

clio

fenton

H Piechnik’s Greenhse & Gdn Ctr 13172 McCumsey Rd, MI 48420 810-686-9211 www.cliogreenhouse.com

columbiaville Hilltop Barn

Gerych’s Flowers/Gift H Heavenly Scent Herb Farm

ferndale

Casual Modes Home/Gard Green Thumb Gard Ctr

flushing

Backyard Birds Zoner’s Greenhse

H Flushing Lawn & Garden Ctr 114 Terrace St., MI 48433 810-659-6241 www.unclelukes.com

davison

fowlerville

H Wojo’s Gard Splendors 7360 E. Court St., MI 48423 810-658-9221 www.wojos.com

H Arrowhead Alpines 1310 Gregory Rd., MI 48836 517-223-3581 www.arrowheadalpines.com

dearborn

gladwin

commerce twp

Fairlane Gardens Westborn Flower Mkt

H Stone Cottage Gard

Green Carpet Sod

manchester

grosse pointe

mason

Allemon’s Landscp Ctr Meldrum & Smith Nurs

New Baltimore

Detroit

Dexter

Ann Arbor

Macomb

madison heights

grosse ile

H Westcroft Gardens

St. Clair Berkley Roseville Shores Madison Royal Oak Heights Warren

Plymouth

Cement City, Chelsea, Jackson, Stockbridge

Shelby Twp.

Livonia Redford

Canton

Ray

Rochester

Sylvan Lake Howell

Washington

Oakland Holly White Lake Waterford

H The Weed Lady 9225 Fenton Rd., MI 48439 810-655-2723 www.theweedlady.com

Addison Twp.

H Wiegand’s Nursery 47747 Romeo Plank Rd. 48044 586-286-3655 www.wiegandsnursery.com

McLennan Nurs H Wildtype Nurs

metamora

grosse pointe woods

Gilling’s Nurs

hadley

One Stop Landscp Supp Milford Gardens H The Pond Place

Wild Birds Unltd Le Fleur Décor

hartland

Deneweth’s Garden Ctr

haslett

Christian’s Greenhse Van Atta’s Greenhse

higgins lake

The Greenhouse

highland

Colasanti’s Produce/Plant Fragments Highland Garden Ctr One Stop Landscp Supp

holly

H Rice’s Garden Ornaments

milford

monroe

H The Flower Market

new baltimore

H Meldrum Bros Nurs

new boston

H Gorham & Sons Nurs H Grass Roots Nurs Mums the Word

new hudson H Milarch Nurs 28500 Haas Rd., MI 48165 248-437-2094 www.milarchnursery.com

howell

north branch

H Howell Farmer’s Mkt Downtown Howell @ State & Clinton St., MI 48843 517-546-3920 www.howell.org/19.html

H Campbell’s Greenhouses 4077 Burnside Rd., MI 48461 810-688-3587 www.campbellsgreenhouses.com

Penrose Nurs

northville

H Specialty Growers 4330 Golf Club Rd., MI 48843 517-546-7742 www.specialtygrowers.net

Oldani Landscp Nurs Begonia Brothers Gardenviews Glenda’s Gard Ctr Stone City Wild Birds Unltd

imlay city

oak park

H Earthly Arts Greenhse

Four Seasons Gard Ctr

jackson

ortonville

The Hobbit Place Schmid Nurs/Gard

lake orion

Lake Orion Lawn Orn H Orion Stone Depot H Wojo’s of Lake Orion 559 S. Lapeer Rd, MI 48362 248-690-7435 www.wojos.com

lapeer

Country Oaks Landscp II H Wojo’s Greenhse 2570 Oakwood Rd., MI 48462 248-627-6498 www.wojos.com

owosso

H Everlastings in Wildwood

oxford

Candy Cane Xmas Trees Oxford Farm/Gard

H Iron Barn Gard Ctr 6823 N. Lapeer Rd (M-24) 48435 810-358-0010 www.theironbarn.com

plymouth

lennon

H Plymouth Nursery 9900 Plymouth Rd., MI 48170 734-453-5500 www.plymouthnursery.net

Krupps Novelty Shop

livonia

Bushel Mart Superior Growers Supp Westborn Flower Mkt

Backyard Birds Graye’s Greenhse Lucas Nurs

Plymouth Rock Rock Shoppe Sparr’s Greenhse

www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

33

CELEBRATING 27 YEARS!

Quality Plants for Dedicated Gardeners pontiac

southgate

ray

st clair shores

Goldner Walsh Gard/Home Van’s Valley Greenhse

Hall’s Nurs Soulliere Gard Ctr

sterling heights

rochester

H Eckert’s Greenhouse 34075 Ryan Rd., MI 48310 586-979-2409 www.eckertsgreenhouse.com

H Bogie Lake Greenhouses 1525 Bogie Lake Rd., MI 48383 248-887-5101 www.bogielakegreenhouses.com

Flower Barn Nurs Greenhouse Growers Prime Landscp Supp

H Mulligan’s Gard Sunshine Plants

stockbridge

H Alexander’s Greenhses

sylvan lake

Christian’s Greenhse

H AguaFina Gardens International 2629 Orchard Lake Rd., MI 48320 248-738-0500 www.aguafina.com

Brainer’s Greenhse Angelo’s Landscp Supp Milford Tree Farm

Fogler’s Greenhse Sherwood Forest Gard Ctr

rochester hills H Auburn Oaks Garden Ctr 3820 West Auburn Rd 48309 248-852-2310 www.auburnoaksnursery.com H Bordine’s H English Gardens Patio Shop H Haley Stone 3975 S. Rochester Rd., MI 48307 248-852-5511 www.haleystone.net Shades of Green Nurs Wild Birds Unltd

rockwood

Marsh Greenhouses Too

romulus

Block’s Stand/Greenhse H Kurtzhals’ Farms H Schoedel’s Nurs H Schwartz’s Greenhouse 30705 Sibley Rd., MI 48174 734-753-9269 www.schwartzgreenhouse.com

roscommon

The Greenhouse

roseville

Dale’s Landscp Supp World Gardenland

royal oak

Billings Lawn Equip H English Gardens 4901 Coolidge Hwy, MI 48073 248-280-9500 www.EnglishGardens.com Wild Birds Unltd

saginaw H Abele Greenhse & Garden Ctr 3500 Wadsworth Rd., MI 48601 989-752-5625 www.abelegreenhouse.com

saline H Nature’s Garden Ctr 6400 E. Michigan Ave. 48176 734-944-8644 www.naturesgardencenter.com H Saline Flowerland

shelby twp

H Diegel Greenhses H Hessell’s Greenhse Maeder Plant Farm Potteryland H Telly’s Greenhouse 4343 24 Mile, MI 48316 248-659-8555 www.tellys.com

south lyon

Hollow Oak Farm Nurs

southfield

3 DDD’s Stand H Eagle Landscp/Supp H Lavin’s Flower Land Main’s Landscp Supp

Decor Statuette

Gee Farms

H Detroit Garden Works

taylor H Beautiful Ponds & Gardens 20379 Ecorse, MI 48180 313-383-8653 www.skippysstuff.com D&L Garden Ctr H Massab Acres H Panetta’s Landscp Supp

white lake

whitmore lake

Coleman’s Farm Mkt Lucas Nurs Margolis Nurs Materials Unlimited Sell Farms & Greenhse

Gardens to Visit

H Beste’s Lawn/Patio Supp Garden Ctr Nurs Young’s Garden Mart

washington

Arjay Miller Arboretum at Ford World HQ Henry Ford Estate

detroit dryden

Seven Ponds Nature Ctr

east lansing emmett

H Sunny Fields Botanical Park 5444 Welch Rd., MI 48022 810-387-2765 www.visitsunnyfields.org

flint

grand rapids

waterford

Edsel & Eleanor Ford Hse

Frederik Meijer Gardens

grosse pointe shores

Hoffman Nurs H Merrittscape

lansing

H Oakland County Market 2350 Pontiac Lake Rd., MI 48328 248-858-5495 www.DestinationOakland.com

midland

wayne

royal oak

west bloomfield H English Gardens 6370 Orchard Lake Rd., MI 48322 248-851-7506 www.EnglishGardens.com Planterra

Come see our HUGE SELECTION of perennials!

Applewood

Landscp Direct Miller’s Big Red Greenhse H Rocks ‘n’ Roots

Artman’s Nurs

We will have plants for sale at the ANN ARBOR GARDEN WALK on Saturday, June 8 (www.AnnArborFarmandGarden.org) and the MILFORD GARDEN WALK on Saturday, June 15 (248-698-7841).

dearborn

H MSU Horticultural Gardens W.J. Beal Botanical Gard

warren

Excludes non-plant items • Expires June 30, 2013

bloomfield hills

utica

H Suburban Landscp Supp

plant purchase of $30 or more

ann arbor

Anna S Whitcomb Conservtry

walled lake

Our complete catalog is now online! www.specialtygrowers.net

5 OFF

$

ypsilanti

H Uncle Luke’s Feed Store 6691 Livernois Rd., MI 48098 248-879-9147 www.unclelukes.com Dale’s Landscp Supp Stone City

Hours: Monday-Friday 9am - 6pm Saturday 9am - 5pm Sunday 10am - 4pm

wixom

H Cranbrook Gardens

H Telly’s Greenhouse 3301 John R Rd., MI 48083 248-689-8735 www.tellys.com

Specialty Growers

Gra nd Riv er A 96 ve.

May 4 - July 13, Saturdays, 8am-1pm

troy

Carefree Lawn Ctr

Golf Club Rd.

4330 Golf Club Rd. ~ Howell 517-546-7742 find us on

Also visit us at the Brighton Farmer's Market

trenton

Mitchell’s Lawn/Landscp

M-59 (Highland Rd.)

williamston

H Matthaei Botanical Gardens/ Nichols Arboretum 1800 North Dixboro Rd., MI 48105 734-647-7600 www.mbgna.umich.edu

tecumseh

acclimated to Michigan’s weather for better performance in your garden

Hughes Rd.

H Pinter Flowerland Seven Mi Gard Ctr

Perennials, annuals & herbs...our outdoor-grown plants are Laston Rd.

Artman’s Westland Nurs H Barson’s Greenhse Bushel Stop Panetta’s Landscp Joe Randazzo’s Nurs

Pinckney Rd.

redford

H Ray Hunter Gard Ctr

westland

Cooley Gardens

Annuals • Vegetables Herbs • Unique Foliage Plants Combination Planters • Hanging Gardens

Dow Gardens

novi

Tollgate Education Ctr Detroit Zoo

tipton H Hidden Lake Gardens 6214 Monroe Rd. (M-50) 49287 517-431-2060 www.hiddenlakegardens.msu.edu

248-887-5101 1525 Bogie Lake Rd. • White Lake, MI 1-1/2 Miles S. of M-59, Across from Lakeland H.S. June Hours: Mon-Fri 8-7 Sat 9-5 Sun 10-5

www.bogielakegreenhouses.com

Discover Flowers & Plants at Great Prices!

Bedding Plants • Roses • Herbs • Vegetable Plants Perennials • Proven Winners • Garden Ornaments

Our Specialty is Spectacular Hanging Baskets!

Over 12 Acres of Greenhouse and 2 Acres of Shopping!

June hours: Please call

Schwartz’s Greenhouse 30705 Sibley, Romulus • 734-753-9269 www.schwartzgreenhouse.com 380 Lone Pine Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48303 248 645.3149 gardens@cranbrook.edu housegardens.cranbrook.edu Cranbrook Gardens Open for the Season: May - October Come see what’s in bloom! Enjoy the gardens all year long with a season pass!

Cranbrook House Tours: Thursdays, Fridays & Sundays, June - October Experience a guided tour of the oldest manor home in southeastern Michigan. All tours include a garden visit. Tickets can be purchased online or at our Gatehouse.

Diamonds at Twilight, Stars at Night: September 7, 6:30 - 10 pm Savor the beauty of Cranbrook Gardens and the wonder of the Cranbrook Institute of Science all in one lovely evening. Rarely seen Native American artifacts will compliment the diamond motif of this year’s Sunken Garden, and provide accent to the green treasure that is the Conservatory Greenhouse. Gaze at the stars through the Cranbrook Institute of Science telescope and marvel at their amazing collection.

Light hors d’oeuvres, dessert and a cash bar will be available to complete the night.

Mention thiS ad and receive 5% oFF your order

Say no to stale, box-store bagged mulch.

Say YeS to our fresh bulk mulch! Call us today!

SphagnuM peat The Best Quality Products—Period!

Gardening Soils Mulch • Boulders Sand • Brick Pavers Top Soil & Peat • Flagstone Driveway Gravel • Stone

We have Michigan’s best supply!

We deliver in bulk • Rich, organic soil • 99.9% weed free Use it to improve your soil or mulch your beds

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

calendar June / July / August H Denotes Michigan Gardener advertiser

June H Brenda’s Butterfly Habitat Tue, Jun 4, Tue, Thu, Fri & Sat through Sep 7, 10am-2pm, Westland. At Barson’s Greenhouse. Butterfly life cycle & native host & nectar plants. www.ButterfliesInTheGarden. com Downtown Ypsilanti Farmers Market Tue, Jun 4, Tue through Jun, 2-6pm, Ypsilanti. By Growing Hope at Ferris & Hamilton St. 40 vendors, all grown/made in MI. market@growinghope.net, www.growinghope.net.

H Pre-School Series Wed, Jun 5, 10-11:30am, Tipton. At Hidden Lake Gardens.

Bring your child to learn & play. $8. 517-431-2060, conleyj9@msu.edu.

Wayne Farmers Market Wed, Jun 5, Wed, through Jun, 3-7pm, Wayne.

By Growing Hope at Goudy Park. 25+ vendors, all grown/made in MI. market@growinghope.net, www. growinghope.net.

Indoor Pest Control Thu, Jun 6, Novi. By MSU Extension at MSU Tollgate Education Ctr. How to control unwanted indoor pests. www.oakgov.com/msu.

Westland Farmers Market Thu, Jun 6, Thu, through Jun, 3-7pm, Wayne. By Growing Hope at Goudy Park. 25+ vendors, all grown/made in MI. market@growinghope.net, www.growinghope.net.

Native Planting Site Work Days Fri, Jun 7, 1st & 3rd Fri, Jun-Sep, 9:30-11:30am, Detroit.

By Detroit Garden Ctr at Woodbridge & Dequindre.

Volunteer for plant site & educational area maintenance.

313-259-6363.

H Bloom! Gallery Fri, Jun 7, 7-9pm, Dexter. At Bloom! Garden Center.

Sculpture work presented by Traven Pelletier in collaboration with Malton Gallery. www.bloom-gardens. com, 734-426-6600 x 206.

H Faerie House Sat, Jun 8, 10am-noon, Fenton. At Heavenly Scent Herb Farm. $86.75. Build your own faerie house for your garden. www.heavenlyscentherbfarm.com, 810-629-9208.

H Rhubarb Leaf Fountain Sat, Jun 8, 10am-noon, Fenton. At Heavenly Scent Herb Farm. $99.75. Create a 15” leaf shaped concrete fountain.

Dress for mess. www.heavenlyscentherbfarm.com, 810629-9208.

Home & Garden Tour Sat, Jun 8, 10am-6pm, Southwest MI. A tour of splendid, professionally designed homes & gardens in SW Michigan. Tickets: http://homeandgardentour.com, 312660-1344.

H Kid’s Club Plantable Paper Sat, Jun 8, 10am, Davison, Ortonville & Lake Orion. At all Wojo’s locations. FREE. Make your own paper with seeds embedded. Register: www.wojos.com.

H Perennial Gardening Sat, Jun 8, 9am at Lake Orion, 11am at Ortonville & 2pm at Davison. At all Wojo’s locations. FREE. How to grow a perennial garden that has interest all year long. Register: www.wojos.com.

For information about Public Gardens, please visit MichiganGardener.com.

Click on "Resources" then "Public Gardens."

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Jun 8, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

The Herb Garden Sat, Jun 8, 10am, Brighton. At Leppek Landscapes. Gardening with herbs for cooking. www.leppeklandscape.com.

H Ann Arbor Garden Walk Sat, Jun 8, 10am-4pm, Ann Arbor. By Ann Arbor Farm & Garden at 6 private gardens. $15. Community nature preserve, marketplace & more. www. annarborfarmandgarden.org.

Late Spring Nature Walk Sat, Jun 8, 10am, Royal Oak. By Royal Oak Nature Society at Tenhave Woods. Meet at Lexington entrance. 248246-3380.

Garden City Garden Walk Sat, Jun 8, 10am-4pm, Garden City. By Garden City Garden Club. $8. Tickets available at Barson’s. www.gcgc. weebly.com.

Pest Management Basics Sat, Jun 8, 10-11:30am, Ypsilanti. By Growing Hope at Growing Hope Ctr. $10. Prevent or manage fungal, insect, & animal garden invaders. www.growinghope.net.

Native Plant Garden Sun, Jun 9, 1-2pm, Ann Arbor. At Leslie Science & Nature Ctr. $3. Creating a native garden at home. www.lesliesnc. org, 734-997-1553.

Tomlinson Arboretum Presentation Mon, Jun 10, Noon, Mt. Clemens. By Mount Clemens Garden Club at Mount Clemens Library. Presented by local historian Don Green. 586-263-4891.

Franklin Garden Walk Wed, Jun 12, 10am-4pm & 6-9pm, Franklin. By Franklin Garden Club at Village Green. $14. Artisan market, student art show & Master Gardener presentations. 248851-1066.

H Brick Paving & Retaining Wall Seminar Wed, Jun 12, 6pm, Lake Orion. At Orion Stone. DIY seminar by Unilock. 248-391-2490, www.orionstone.com.

Home Composting Workshop Wed, Jun 12, 6:30-8pm, Madison Hts. By SOCWA at Red Oaks County Park. FREE. Turn yard waste & kitchen scraps into yard riches. Register: 248-858-0916, LFDean@aol.com.

H Garden Design with Robert Schutzki Thu, Jun 13, Novi. By MSU Extension at MSU Tollgate Education Ctr. Special lecture with Dr. Robert Schutzki, MSU Department of Horticulture. www.oakgov.com/msu.

Design & Planting Perennials Thu, Jun 13, 1pm, Shelby Twp. By Shelby Gardeners Club at Burgess-Shadbush Nature Ctr. $5. Presented by Janet Macunovich, author, educator & garden designer. Mail checks to: Shelby Gardeners Club PO Box 183324, Shelby Twp., MI, 48318.

Fresh pine BarK mulch in bulk!

This finely ground pine bark is a great way to improve clay soils. It is hard to find and the supply is limited—call us today to order this premium product. Your soil and plants will thank you!

Promote your events! Send us your information!

Serving Metro Detroit

Website: Go to MichiganGardener.com and click on “Garden Event Calendar” E-Mail: calendar@michigangardener.com

248-960-4000 • 960 Ladd Rd • Walled Lake

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www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

Native Plants Thu, Jun 13, 7:30pm, Dearborn. By MGAWC at U of M-Dbrn, EIC building. Ruth Vrbensky speaks about flowers & grasses for eco-friendly residential gardening. www.mgawc.org, 734-786-6860.

H Caring for Roses Sat, Jun 15, 9am at Lake Orion 9, 11am at Ortonville & 2pm at Davison. At all Wojo’s locations. FREE. Bob Filter will guide you through the care & culture of roses. Register: www.wojos.com.

Ponds & Water Garden Sat, Jun 15, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

The Kitchen Garden Sat, Jun 15, 10am, Brighton. At Leppek Landscapes.

Discuss the use of plants in cooking. www.leppeklandscape.com Trenton Garden Walk Sat, Jun 15, 10am-4pm, Trenton. By The Moonglow Garden Club of Trenton at 7 Trenton gardens. $8. Door prizes, master gardener booth, vendors & lunch. 734-2816504.

Hypertufa Container Workshop Sat, Jun 15, 10am-noon, Detroit. By Detroit Garden Center at Instructor’s home. $30. Make a long-lasting planter of your own design. Materials supplied. 313-259-6363.

Rain Barrel Workshop Sat, Jun 15, 11am, Romulus. By Romulus DDA, MaxiContainer, & Romulus Comm. Gardens at 36525 Bibbins. $50. Save money this year while collecting water for your garden. 313-891-3880.

Milford Garden Walk & Market Sale Sat, Jun 15, 10am-6pm, Milford. By The Milford Garden Club at 6 Milford gardens & Milford’s Central Park. $12. www.themilfordgardenclub.org, 248-684-2149.

H Rose Show Sat, Jun 15, 11am-8pm, Macomb. At Ray Wiegand’s Nursery. Show stopping roses. www.wiegandsnursery. com. To enter: 313-886-5689.

Laurie Tennent’s Botanical Opening Mon, Jun 17, 6-9pm, W. Bloomfield Twp. At Planterra Conservatory. Proceeds to benefit CCS. www.planterra. com, 248-661-1515.

Annual Rochester Garden Walk Thu, Jun 20, 10am-6pm, Rochester. By Rochester Hills Museum & Rochester Garden Club at 6 unique gardens & Van Hoosen Farm. $14. www.rochesterhills.org/ musprograms, 248-656-4663.

Farmers Market Vendor Highlight Series Thu, Jun 20, 6:30-8pm, Ypsilanti. By Growing Hope at Growing Hope Center. $15. Meet our vendors & learn their gardening tips & tricks. www.growinghope.net, 734-7868401.

Grosse Pointe Garden Tour Fri, Jun 21, Fri & Sat, 10am-4pm, Grosse Pointe. By Grosse Pointe Garden Ctr, Inc. at 7 private gardens in the Pointes. $15. 313-881-7511.

Wayne Garden Walk Sat, Jun 22, 9am-3pm, Wayne. By Wayne Garden Club at 8 private gardens. $10. Rain or shine. 734-721-8232.

Master Gardeners Garden Tour Sat, Jun 22, 10am-4pm, Jackson. By Jackson Co. Master Gardener Assn. at 5 private gardens. $10. Tour questions answered by Master Gardeners. nancyewmg@hotmail. com, 517-629-7225.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Jun 22, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

Companion Planting Sat, Jun 22, 10am, Brighton. At Leppek Landscapes. What plants work best together in proximity. www.leppeklandscape.com Master Gardeners Garden Tour Sat, Jun 22, 10am-4pm, Port Huron. By Master Gardeners of St. Clair Co. at 8 private gardens. $15. Rain or shine. mgvcharlenekidd@gmail.com, 810-985-8587.

Spring Rose Show Sat, Jun 22, Grand Rapids. At Frederik Meijer Gardens.

Grand Valley Rose Society members will be available to answer questions and provide tips. www.meijergardens. org, 616-957-1580.

H Fairy Day Sat, Jun 22, 11am-3pm, Saline. At Nature’s Garden Center.

New fairy garden items, children’s activities & more. www. naturesgardencenter.com, 734-944-8644.

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Sylvan Lake Home & Garden Tour Sat, Jun 22, 10am-4pm, Sylvan Lake. $15. Tour begins at Sylvan Lake City Hall. www.SylvanLakeHomeTour.com, 248-615-6296.

H Silver Anniversary Garden Party Sun, Jun 23, 11am-4pm, Fenton. At Heavenly Scent Herb Farm. Celebrating 25 years of business. Free party & lunch.

20% off all purchases. www.heavenlyscentherbfarm.com, 810-629-9208.

Master Gardeners Garden Tour Sun, Jun 23, 10am-5pm, Genesee County. By MMGAGCC. 7 gardens in Argentine Twp/Gaines. www.

GCgardentour.weebly.com.

Rhubarb Leaf Fountain Sun, Jun 23, 11am, Fenton. By Garden Angel Art Works at Gerych’s Flowers & Gifts. Create a 2-tier cascading concrete fountain. Register: 810-629-5995.

Huntington Woods Garden Walk Sun, Jun 23, 1-4pm, Huntington Woods. By Seed & Sod Garden Club at 9 private gardens. $10. Tickets available at Huntington Woods library. sbrown8881@gmail.com.

Plymouth Garden Walk Tue, Jun 25, Noon-8pm, Plymouth. By Trailwood Garden Club. $10. Purchase tickets in advance at Backyard Birds, Sideways, & Saxtons. 734-455-6867.

H Canning Jams Wed, Jun 26, 6-9pm, Fenton. At Heavenly Scent Herb Farm. $58.75. Learn to make an herbal infused strawberry jam. www.heavenlyscentherbfarm.com, 810-629-9208.

The Bartenders Garden Fri, Jun 28, 6pm, Brighton. At Leppek Landscapes. Create festive drinks with herbs & fruits. www.leppeklandscape. com.

Jubilee: Centennial Celebration Fri, Jun 28, Grand Rapids. At Frederik Meijer Gardens.

100th show anniversary featuring floral design through the decades. www.meijergardens.org, 616-957-1580.

2013 Lakeside Garden Walk Sat, Jun 29, 11am-5pm, Lakeside. By Lakeside Association at 9 unique gardens. $35. Proceeds benefit the Scholarship Fund for area seniors. thelakesideassociation. org.

Bonsai Club Annual Show Sat, Jun 29, Troy. By Four Seasons Bonsai Club at Telly’s Greenhouse. Bonsai master Jim Doyle demonstrates tree styling. Exhibit, raffles & sale. www.fourseasonsbonsai. com, 248-689-8735.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Jun 29, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

H Brick Paving & Retaining Wall Seminar Sat, Jun 29, 10am, Lake Orion. At Orion Stone. DIY seminar by Unilock. 248-391-2490, www.orionstone.com.

Saline Garden Walk Sat, Jun 29, 10am-4pm, Saline. By The Saline Stone & Thistle Garden Club at local Saline gardens. $10. Rain or shine. 734-994-7455.

Garden City Garden Walk Sat, Jun 29, 10am-4pm, Garden City. By Garden City Garden Club. $8. Tickets available at Barson’s. Start at Brenda’s Butterfly House for garden walk brochure. valerietempleton@hotmail.com.

H Bonsai Workshop Sat, Jun 29, 1pm, Troy. At Telly’s Greenhouse. $35. Hands on workshop includes root combing, pruning, proper potting, styling & care. Register: 248-689-8735.

July 4th of July Art Fair & Garden Tours Thu, Jul 4, 10am-5pm, Hadley. At Le Fleur Decor. Art Fair, Garden Tours, Live Music. 586-495-4076.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Jul 6, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

Clarkston Garden Walk Wed, Jul 10, Noon-8pm, Clarkston. By Clarkston Garden Club at 6 Clarkston Gardens. $18. 248-625-9665, www. clarkstongardenclub.org.

Troy Garden Walk Wed, Jul 10, 9:30am-3pm & 5pm-8:30pm, Troy. By Troy Garden Club at 6 private gardens & Troy Historic Village. $15. www.TroyGardenClubMI.com, 248-540-4249. continued on next page

FREE Koi for all Fathers during Father’s Day Weekend, June 14-16 With any $10 or more purchase* at The Pond Place of Michigan (OPEN: Sunday, 11-3pm)

Visit our website for info on: • FREE Workshops and Seminars • In-Store Coupons • Store Hours & Directions • Products & Service • Online Shopping • Pond Articles & News * Limit – one FREE Koi per father.

Must be present to receive.

The Pond Place of Michigan 3505 W. Highland Rd. (M-59) Milford, MI 48380

248-889-8400 www.pondplace.com

NOW OPEN FOR MULCH & FLOWERS! Beauchamp’s NEWEST Garden Center: 4570 Stearns Rd. Ottawa Lake, MI 49267 734-854-5050

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NEED A HAND? Call “The little gardener that could.” 15 yrs experience at Botanical Gardens. FREE Estimates. Pat: 586-214-9852, agardenspace.com.

DO YOU ENJOY SCRAPBOOKING? Then pick up a copy of Michigan Scrapbooker magazine. It’s free! Visit MichiganScrapbooker. com for more info and to sign up for the free Michigan Scrapbooker e-newsletter.

Join the conversation at facebook.com/ MichiganScrapbooker.

DON’T LOOK. Oops, you looked. And so will 70,000 potential customers. Advertise in Michigan Gardener. Call 248-594-5563 or e-mail publisher@michigangardener.com.

MICHIGAN GARDENER E-NEWSLETTER Sign up for our free e-newsletter! We send out a few each year, and there are contests to win prizes as well. Go to www.MichiganGardener. com and simply enter your e-mail address.

Michigan Gardener Classified Advertising is a cost-effective way to promote yourself and your business. Need help? Have help to give?

Have a big event coming up? Have some items to sell? Let our readers know! Go to MichiganGardener.com and click on “Classified Advertising.”

Hidden Lake Gardens BOTA N IC A L G A R DEN & A R BOR ET U M

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

continued from previous page Northville Garden Walk Wed, Jul 10, 9am-4pm, Northville. By Garden Club of Northville at 5 private gardens. $10. Vendors & music at Mill Race Village. www.cgcnv.org, 248-348-3263.

Fresh Flower Show Thu, Jul 11, Thu,10am-8pm, Fri & Sat, 9am-4pm, Shelby Twp. By Shelby Gardeners at Shelby Township Library.

586-781-6742.

H Cobblestone Covered Planter Box Sat, Jul 13, 10am-noon, Fenton. At Heavenly Scent Herb Farm. $86.75. Make a stone covered planter box. Dress for mess. www.heavenlyscentherbfarm.com, 810-629-9208.

Gardening in Harmony with Nature Sat, Jul 13, Bloomfield Hills. At Manresa Jesuit Retreat House Grounds. Speakers, marketplace & entertainers for garden & nature lovers. 248-644-4933, www.manresa-sj.org.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Jul 13, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

H Daylily Exhibition Show Sat, Jul 13, 9am-4pm, Rochester Hills. By S. MI Daylily Society at Bordine Nursery. Enter your daylily 9-11am & vote for your favorite. Experts available. www. midaylilysociety.com.

Daylily Show Sat, Jul 13, Grand Rapids. At Frederik Meijer Gardens.

Tips & advice from Daylily Society members & children’s projects. www.meijergardens.org, 616-957-1580.

Garden Tour Weekend Sat, Jul 13, Howell. At LaCasa Ctr. $20. Proceeds benefit vulnerable children & adults from Livingston Co. www. lacasacenter.org.

H Daylily Dig & Garden Party Sat, Jul 13, 9am-6pm, Waterford. At Merrittscape. You pick ‘em, we dig ‘em. 1000’s of plants. 248-681-7955.

Open Gate Garden Tour Sun, Jul 14, 10am-5pm, Fenton. By Open Gate Garden Club at 7 Fenton area gardens. $10. 810-210-9637, www. opengategardenclubgardentour.com.

Midsummer Blooms DeWitt Garden Walk Sun, Jul 14, Noon-5pm, DeWitt. By DeWitt Millennium Garden Club at 5 DeWitt gardens. $10. 517-668-6592.

Tenth Thyme for Tea Sun, Jul 14, Lapper. By Lapeer County Master Gardener Association at Display Garden on Suncrest Dr. 10th annual fundraiser for the display garden. 810-667-1994.

How Does Your Garden Grow? Workshop Tue, Jul 16, 6:30pm, Charlevoix. At Castle Farms. $5. Make your home landscape more “sustainable” by reducing your expenses & labor. larissa@castlefarms.com, 231-2370884, ext. 236.

Traverse City Garden Walk Thu, Jul 18, 11am-7pm, Traverse City. By The Friendly Garden Club of Traverse City at 6 Traverse City gardens. $10. Tickets available at Traverse City Visitor’s Ctr. 231590-6946.

H Hurrah for Hydrangea Sat, Jul 20, 9am at Lake Orion, 11am at Ortonville & 2pm at Davison. At all Wojo’s locations. FREE. Joe Lutey explains pruning requirements & care of different types of hydrangeas. Register: www.wojos.com.

H Kid’s Club Mini Succulent Pot Sat, Jul 20, 10am, Davison, Ortonville & Lake Orion. At all Wojo’s locations. FREE. Reuse a tin can to make into a man & then plant seeds for hair to grow. Register: www. wojos.com.

H Ponds & Water Gardens Sat, Jul 20, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

Pond Tour Sat, Jul 20, 10am-5pm, Farmington. By Michigan Koi & Pond Club at 8 Farmington area ponds. 248-495-6461.

H Daylily Dig & Garden Party Sat, Jul 20, 9am-6pm, Waterford. At Merrittscape. You pick ‘em, we dig ‘em. 1000’s of plants. 248-681-7955.

The Garden Cruise Sun, Jul 21. Tour of gardens designed and/or inspired by Deborah Silver, to benefit The Greening of Detroit. www. thegardencruise.org. 248-335-8089.

Belleville Area Garden Walk Sun, Jul 21, 11am-4pm, Belleville. By Belleville Area Dist.

Library. $12. Marketplace at 10am. 734-699-3291.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Jul 27, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

Detroit Pond & Garden Tour Sat, Jul 27, 10am-5pm, Detroit. By Metro Detroit Pond & Garden Club at 10 backyard settings. $10. Rain or shine. metrodetroitpondandgardenclub.org, 313-779-2912, 248969-2110.

H Daylily Dig & Garden Party Sat, Jul 27, 9am-6pm, Waterford. At Merrittscape. You pick ‘em, we dig ‘em. 1000’s of plants. 248-681-7955.

Cobblestone Covered Planter Box Sun, Jul 28, 11am, Highland. By Garden Angel Art Works at Colasanti’s Greenhouse & Market. Create a stone covered wood planter box, sealed with polyurethane. info@ gardenangelart.com.

H Bonsai Mentor Worksop Sun, Jul 28, Troy. By Four Season Bonsai Club at Telly’s Greenhouse. A BYO tree workshop where beginners are paired with experienced members. www. fourseasonsbonsai.com, 248-689-8735.

August H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Aug 3, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

Intro to Healing Herbs & Whole Foods Sun, Aug 4, 11 am, Highland. By Garden Angel Art Works at Colasanti’s Greenhouse & Market. Learn about & take home herbs & whole foods to instill good health. info@ gardenangelart.com.

H Canning Pickles Wed, Aug 7, 6-9pm, Fenton. At Heavenly Scent Herb Farm. $58.75. Learn to make fresh dill, bread & butter, brine pickles & other fruits & vegetables. www. heavenlyscentherbfarm.com, 810-629-9208.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Aug 10, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

H Rhubarb Leaf Bowl Sat, Aug 17, 10am, Davison. By Garden Angel Art Works at Wojo’s. $40. Create a bowl which can be used as decoration, planter or fountain. info@gardenangelart.com, 810-658-9221.

H Ponds & Water Gardens Sat, Aug 17, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

H Bonsai Auction Sun, Aug 18, Troy. By 4 Seaons Bonsai Club at Telly’s Greenhouse. Quality bonsai, low cost stock plants, pots & tools. www.fourseasonsbonsai.com.

H Master Gardener Class Thu, Aug 22, Thu, through Nov 14, 9am-1pm, Waterford.

By MSU Extension at Oakland County Service Center. $300. Each class will prepare you for MG certification. www.mg.msue.msu.edu.

H Herbal Summer Faire Sat, Aug 24, Sat, 10am-5pm & Sun, 11am-5pm, Fenton.

At Heavenly Scent Herb Farm. $2. Activities for the whole family. www.heavenlyscentherbfarm.com, 810-629-9208.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Aug 24, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

Pruning Workshop Sat, Aug 24, 9am-noon, Belle Isle. By Detroit Garden Ctr at Belle Isle Conservatory Lily Pond. $30. Lecture & demo with Janet Macunovich. 313-259-6363.

Bonsai Auction Sun, Aug 25, Troy. By Four Seasons Bonsai Club at Telly’s Greenhouse. High quality bonsai, low-cost bonsai stock plants, pots & tools. Potluck lunch. www. fourseasonsbonsai.com, 248-689-8735.

H Brick Pavers, Walls & Steps Sat, Aug 31, 10am, Washington. At Rocks ‘n’ Roots. FREE. 586-752-4900. www.rocksnroots.com.

National Dahlia Show Sat, Aug 31, Grand Rapids. At Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. 100’s of flowers entered by dahlia enthusiasts from across the country. www.meijergardens. org. 616-957-1580.

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EcoChic Landscape Design......................................... 8 English Gardens............................Inside Front Cover Everlastings in the Wildwood..................................10 The Flower Market.........................................................15 The Garden Company..................................................17 The Garden Mill............................................................. 38 Garden Rhythms..............................................................13 A Garden Space.............................................................. 14 Haley Stone Supply........................................................15 Heavenly Scent Herb Farm......................................... 6 Hidden Lake Gardens...................................................36 Iron Barn Iron Work.......................................................37 Lavin’s Flowerland..........................................................23 Lodi Farms..........................................................................25 Meier Flowerland...........................................................23 Merrittscape.....................................................................22 Milarch Nursery............................................................. 29 Mulligan’s Garden Ctr................................................. 29 Nature’s Garden Ctr......................................................27 Oakland Cty Market......................................................17 Organically Done........................................................... 38 Orion Stone Depot..........................................................13 Osmocote............................................................................21 Piechnik’s Greenhouse.................................................. 6

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

Simple Steps to Organic Gardening In our last article we discussed general organic gardening steps and focused on the importance of soil health. Now we will discuss amendments and fertilizers, the importance of diversity in your garden, and pest and weed management.

Organic fertilizers and soil amendments Ever wonder what the difference is? An amendment is used to modify the physical properties of soil such as water retention, aeration, drainage, and structure. A fertilizer is used to add nutrients. Many amendments also add nutrients and many fertilizers also modify physical structure.

Common organic soil amendments include sand, compost, sphagnum peat, and worm castings. If you do nothing else, make sure that you amend your garden with compost every year. It is the best source for necessary organic matter and soil biology. The use of other amendments is dictated by availability, personal preference, and your soil environment.

Fertilizers replenish the nutrients that are continuously consumed by your plant life.

Most nutrients in organic fertilizers must be converted into plant-available form by the biology in your soil. Because of this, they are, by

definition, slow-release fertilizers with little risk of plant burn (there are some exceptions) or nutrients leaching into water supplies.

They provide a much broader range of minerals than chemical fertilizers do and can also provide natural plant growth hormones, enzymes, and amino acids—important elements to healthy plant growth.

Organic fertilizer components primarily come from four categories, each with their own unique pros and cons. Some components are mined material and not “organic,” meaning they did not come from something that was once living. However, these materials are natural products and can conform to the standards defined for use in organic agriculture.

When selecting soil amendments and fertilizers for your garden, there are several questions you should consider in addition to their amending and fertilizing capabilities.

Are they made from renewable ingredients?

What is the environmental impact of harvesting? What is the risk of source contamination?

• Plant-based. Example: alfalfa meal. Pros: rapidly renewable. Cons: contamination risk (pesticides, genetically modified organisms).

• Animal by-products. Examples: manure, blood meal. Pros: renewable waste. Cons:

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contamination risk (growth hormones, antibiotics, pathogens, GMO feed).

• Fish by-products. Example: fish bone meal.

Pros: renewable waste. Cons: contamination risk (heavy metals, pharmaceuticals).

• Mined. Example: greensand. Pros: typically a plentiful resource. Cons: non-renewable, contamination risk (heavy metals, salts).

Guano (seabird/bat feces and urine) has gained some attention as an organic fertilizer in recent years due to high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus. Unfortunately, harvesting guano is extremely destructive to habitats and the guano itself has a high level of pathogen contamination risk.

Humic and fulvic acids are a very interesting category of products that are generally not well understood by consumers. They are analogous to a concentrated, fully-decomposed compost (an excellent food source for microbiology) and have been shown to significantly improve plant uptake.

Organic diversity Following organic gardening Rick Weller practices means taking a holistic approach to nurturing our plant life. We maximize our use of the abundant natural processes and resources that nature provides to help us achieve our gardening goals. Part of this is fostering a diverse population of microbiology, insects, plants, and habitats.

In our previous article we discussed the diversity of soil biology. Insect diversity plays a key role as well. The majority of insects we see in our gardens play a beneficial role that we should encourage.

Pollinators. Virtually all seed plants require pollination and this is often accomplished by a diverse group of pollinators including bees, bats, birds and butterflies. Nectar and pollen attract a variety of these pollinators to your garden. Select flowers that provide an abundance of colors, shapes, scents, and blossoming schedules. Plant your flowers in clumps.

Select a diverse mix of indigenous plant species for your garden and landscape. These species have developed naturally to thrive in our local environment. Non-native plants contribute to the decline of local species by competing for resources (water, space, sunlight, and nutrients). Not only will native plants flourish in their natural environment, but they support the needs of the local wildlife and insect population.

Appropriate habitats encourage pollinators and other insects. Providing water, nesting sites, materials, and overwintering shelter are some key habitat elements. Bat houses for bats, patches of long grass for caterpillar eggs, and areas of bare ground for ground-nesting bees are just a few ideas.

Part 2 of 2

Pests and weeds

I had pests partially eating my tomatoes during a very dry period last summer. After placing a watering bowl away from my garden but in the general vicinity, my tomato pest problem disappeared. The critters weren’t really interested in the tomatoes but had been searching for water and I provided an easy alternative.

Not every problem is as simple to solve as this one, but there are usually environmentallyfriendly alternatives to pesticides and traps.

While healthy plants are less susceptible to disease and pest damage, they are not immune and you should take steps to minimize the risk. Good garden planning establishes natural processes that prevent pest and disease introduction. Rotate the location of vegetables and vegetable families each season. Companion planting (also called intercropping and plant associations) can help discourage pests and attract beneficial insects.

Appropriate maintenance practices will also help keep your garden pest- and disease-free.

Harvest fruits and vegetables as soon as they are ripe. Remove plants that are diseased (immediately) or unproductive. Remove weeds from the garden area.

Even with proper planning and maintenance you may still have unwanted and damaging pests. Insecticidal soaps are non-toxic and work well but can also damage beneficial insects, so use caution when you apply.

Weeds. For the organic gardener, there is no magic bullet to combat weeds. Maintain a thick layer of mulch on uncovered ground.

Some folks use straw but beware of weed seeds in it. The best method to get rid of weeds is to pull them on a regular basis with your favorite mechanical tool.

The joy of organic gardening As a lifelong organic gardener, I get great satisfaction knowing that I am helping to maintain a healthy environment. My children and pets, along with the local wildlife and water supplies, are safe from toxins in my small part of the world. Our backyard is full of diverse plants, insects and wildlife. Year after year, the flower beds are full of vegetation and brilliant colors, and our garden produces an abundance of healthy, toxin-free fruit and vegetables.

Rick Weller is the founder of Organically Done Plant Products (www.organicallydone.com).

Editor’s Note: Part 1 of “Simple Steps to Organic Gardening” appeared in the May 2013 issue of Michigan Gardener. If you missed that issue, you can find it on our website, MichiganGardener.com. Click on “E-Editions” in the upper right corner.

www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

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Everyday Roses: How to Grow Knock Out and Other Easy-Care Garden Roses

by Paul Zimmerman Sometimes roses can get a bad rap as fussy, garden divas. If you love roses but think they’re too hard to grow, you’re not alone. Everyday Roses (The Taunton Press, 185 pages, $22.95) will show you how to grow Knock Outs and other easy care garden roses. Written for the weekend gardener, Everyday Roses offers clear guidance for successfully growing no-fuss roses with the help of rosarian Paul Zimmerman.

Information includes how to buy and plant garden roses, pruning and growing tips and techniques, natural disease and pest control methods, rose suggestions that fit your landscape needs, and video links that illustrate the book’s text. Zimmerman’s approach uses garden roses as part of an overall landscape design, with options for growing them as flowering shrubs, groundcover, or climbing vines.

The Speedy Vegetable Garden

by Mark Diacono & Lia Leendertz Sprouts can be grown from seed and micro greens cropped on your windowsill in as little as a few days. Discover the tastiest baby vegetable and new breeds of fastgerminating, quick-maturing varieties that put food on your plate in record time.

In The Speedy Vegetable Garden (Timber Press, 205 pages, $18.95), well-known foodies Mark Diacono and Lia Leendertz describe the techniques of speedy cropping, from seed-sprouting in jars, trays and bags, to sowing salad leaves for a summer-long harvest. Perfect for the impatient gardener, this book shares how to grow sprouts in 3 days, cherry tomatoes in 8 weeks, and a variety of other quick-growing greens. Full color photos and recipes will inspire readers to go straight from the garden to the kitchen as they harvest everything from edible flowers to potatoes. This book makes vegetable growing fast, fun and pain-free as it guides readers through cultivation, recommended varieties, and harvesting their new garden.

Kiss My Aster: A Graphic Guide to Creating a Fantastic Yard Totally Tailored to You

by Amanda Thomsen For novices in the world of home landscaping, the choices appear overwhelming and the potential landmines plentiful. Garden blogger and landscape designer Amanda Thomsen comes to the rescue with her practical advice cloaked in cartoony humor and irreverence.

In Kiss My Aster (Storey Publishing, 160 pages, $16.95), Thomsen guides and encourages readers through their gardening adventures in a graphic, nonsequential format, laying out landscaping options in a fun and sometimes hilarious voice. Perfect for young homeowners, Kiss My Aster allows readers to open to any page for lighthearted yet frank advice as they work to transform their backyard into a stylish outdoor living space.

From stone walls and hedges to a vegetable garden, patio, lawn, or water feature, the author reassures the novice that there are no “right” answers, only those that make you happy. For any yard-challenged homeowner, this book will entertain, stimulate the creative juices, and cultivate a confident attitude.

The artistic country garden The garden of Judy and Larry Rowe reflects their love of art and creativity

On the path to the Tiki Village, with umbrellas made out of satellite dishes, is a thyme groundcover path, many daylilies, hydrangeas ‘Little Lime’ and ‘Quick Fire’, along with phlox, sedum and coneflowers.

S

atellite dishes for patio umbrellas, welded tool gates, glass dish flower ornaments, arbors, a real garden “bed,” and even robot men. They were created from reused objects to make the garden of Judy and Larry Rowe a fascinating trip down memory lane and maybe an art show—all with plants and flowers.

The house in the Flint suburbs was purchased in 1985. “We liked the country feeling, but gardening was not yet a part of our lives Sandie when we bought the Parrott house. We were newly married and working was the biggest part of our lives at the time,” recalled Judy. The house was originally purchased with one acre. Two years later they added two more

p h oto s by S a n d i e Pa r r ot t

acres purchased from their neighbor. “What a blessing, or our gardens never would have happened. We wouldn’t be the people we are today. The land and gardens are how we developed our love of art and creativity,” said Judy.

Judy credits her sister for influencing her to be a gardener. “My sister became a Master Gardener in the early 1980s. I used to walk in her garden and say to myself, ‘Someday when I have time I would love to garden.’ In the middle to late ‘80s it became my time,” Rowe remembered fondly.

She continued, “In the beginning my garTheir first garden, located behind the garage and named after Judy’s dear friend Marty, holds a tool gate Larry made by welding Judy’s father’s and his father’s old tools together.

www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

41

A mosaic coneflower created by Judy on a small satellite dish presides over a garden path leading to the Tiki Village.

Larry made this when he found part of the bike along the roadside and already had the mower. He welded them together to make what he calls a “riding” lawn mower. When he shows people the piece, he tells them he bought Judy a riding lawn mower, but doesn’t understand why she never uses it! The mower is surrounded by two ‘Annabelle’ hydrangeas, Judy’s mother’s name.

They fondly call this their “Cracker Barrel” front porch. It contains milk cans, a cream separator, bean shelling machine, wagon wheels, oxen yoke, a white swing Larry made by welding two chairs together, and the push plow out front that started it all.

dens consisted mostly of rock beds. In the late 1980s, a new neighbor moved in named Marty. I loved her like my own mother. Marty came from a large family, all living on a farm.

She told me all her gardening secrets and I named one of my gardens after her.” Judy made it official in 2004 and became a Master Gardener through the Genesee County MSU Extension Office in Flint. Larry works with Judy in all their gardening endeavors and also invents a few of his own.

The antique garden really started with a push plow, still sitting proudly in front of what they call their “Cracker Barrel” porch.

“A former supervisor of mine was passing our house and stopped by and said we needed a piece of old farm equipment to set off our barn that was being built at the time in 1993.

He gave us an old push plow that we later put in front of the porch,” stated Judy. In the late 1990s, a gazebo was built around the original rock pile that the previous farmer created when the backyard was a farm field.

Judy’s favorite area is the Tiki Village. It began with a single, 10-foot satellite dish that Larry made into a lighted patio umbrella in 2004. Since then, six more 8- to 10-foot satellite dish umbrellas have been added to make this their fun Tiki Village. Visitors reach this

area from an open lawn or a ground-covered path. This popular gathering spot is surrounded by plantings, trees, shrubs, and a large waterfall they had built.

The property has been featured on two Genesee County Garden Tours, the first in 2003 and also in 2012. Judy made new mosaic flower satellite dishes for the 2012 garden tour. They had an estimated 300 people tour the garden and several came back later with friends in tow. They have also hosted a formal wedding of 250 people.

Judy described their garden decorating style: “I would say our gardens are considered to be different, because that is just us. We reuse old things to make our yard art; like insulators to keep hoses out of the beds, different size satellite dishes, old porch railings, antique farm equipment, old barn wood, watering cans, tools, glass dishes, antique laundry tubs, and old metal bed frames. Most of our things we found at garage sales or flea markets, or they were given to us. People would bring things and say, ‘I saw this and thought you and Larry could make something with this.’ And we could!”

Along with recycling, they try to garden earth-friendly. “As anyone can see, we recycle a lot, that is what most of our garden art is made of. Larry has placed a rain barrel at each end of the house and also at the end of his barn. Larry uses coffee grounds and flower garden cuttings to till into his vegetable garcontinued on next page

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

V Website Extra Go to MichiganGardener.com and click on “Website Extras” for: • More photos of Judy and Larry Rowe’s artistic garden.

Judy and Larry purchased this pot girl and added a t-shirt proclaiming “Gardening is Therapy for a Dirty Mind.” She has her gloves and watering can ready to go and sits next to a fairy and a potato digger. Somehow it all works together!

A large cauldron filled with flowers looks great in the garden, along with a 1950s seahorse birdbath and some of Larry’s birdhouses. The iron flag was given to them by a former neighbor.

The orange daylily (‘Orange Crush’) is one of Judy’s favorites, along with her “best girlfriend” geranium ‘Rozanne’ in blue. continued from previous page den. He grows corn, tomatoes, green beans, watermelon, and cantaloupe,” said Judy.

Maintaining this large garden would seem like a huge task, but Judy and Larry work on it most every day the weather is good. “We go out in the gardens daily after breakfast to have our morning coffee and discuss what needs to be done and who is going to do what.

I mostly keep up the flowers and make the glass and mosaic art. Larry maintains the buildings, antiques, and grass, and makes some of the garden art,” Judy explained. Typically they spend about 20 hours a week from May to October.

Judy has a few garden tips that make life easier for her. They use a groundcover called elfin thyme (Thymus serpyllum ‘Elfin’) in most of their pathways. It is soft-looking, can take foot traffic, keeps out weeds, has little flowers, and fills in between stones. She dead-

heads all of her many daylilies each morning, although she lets nature take care of the other flowering plants. She does, however, cut them down in the fall. For the waterfall they use a biological clarifier to control the algae. Mulch is from white pines that border the property.

Their biggest challenge is deer and rabbits during the winter. Every year they put chicken wire fences around all the bushes and some of the trees. One year, they used 350 feet of chicken wire! They also have installed five electronic deer sensors and think this may be helpful.

Asked if they think gardening is a chore, Judy responded with a smile, “Oh no, we love our gardens, we love working in them all day, then sitting at night with all our lighting (gas pumps, satellite dishes, and more) and saying to each other, ‘I could live here.’ Gardening to us is our together time.”

Sandie Parrott is a freelance garden writer, living and working in Oakland County, Michigan.

“Larry made this water feature about 18 years ago, and what a wonderful sound it makes. The water hitting the watering can makes a metal tingling sound and the water going into the bucket produces an echo sound of water pouring,” Judy enthused.

“I loved the thought of having a real antique rock bed, so this is what we made. The rock bed has a little man who has an antique chamber pot, two bed pans, and even a urinal. It is surrounded by a variegated weigela, weeping larch, and a ‘Magic Carpet’ spirea,” Judy described.

www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

how-to

43

Steve Nikkila

Plant weak stem tomatoes Sometimes gardeners don’t always get the best plants. We’re late getting to the garden center, it was all that they had of the type of tomato we want to grow, or they were on sale as is. The result? We end up with long, weakstemmed tomato plants. Those plants just need a little extra care when planted. Here’s how.

Text and photos by Steven Nikkila, who is from Perennial Favorites in Waterford, MI (E-mail: hortphoto@gmail.com).

Right: This tomato plant has a long, curvy stem with limited lower foliage and long branches on top. This plant is very top heavy and had to be staked in the pot. Remove the tie from the stake before you remove the stake from the container. Keep the stake handy; it may be used later.

1

3 2 Pinch off all the lower leaves at the stem.

4

Dig a wide planting hole, but only deep on one end of the hole—as deep as the root ball is wide, since the plant will be placed on its side.

Carefully remove the plant from the container using one hand to support the root ball.

5 Place the plant on its side in the planting hole. Make sure the curved part of the stem is going upward and the wounded area of the stem (where the leaves were picked off) is going to be underground. Those node areas that were picked still have cells available to them to create roots.

The plant will develop a larger root system and be stronger in the long run. Finish planting, staking (if necessary), and water in well.

6 The same plants in late September—the plants all produced tomatoes well into the fall.

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

Janet’s Journal continued from back cover on one side in fall to excavate the prize from the side.

Just keep in mind that the higher you go, the higher the cost of filler and bed construction materials, and the more involved the building process. For instance, an island bed 8 feet long and 4 feet wide (32 square feet) requires 3 cubic yards of soil if it’s 30 inches tall. If you decide to make it two inches taller, you need not add only more wood, stone, or block but another heaping wheelbarrow of soil. You also may need braces or deep posts at the corners as you rise up. A raised bed made of landscape timbers is pretty sturdy at 18 inches tall but from there on up it needs extra support to bear the enormous pressure that wet soil can exert.

Preventing trouble: Treat the interface between old and new soil Before you fill a bed with new soil, create a transition layer between the base and the fill.

Do this to prevent creating a perched water table there where new soil meets old.

A perched water table is a layer where water puddles and moves sideways rather than continuing its fall down through soil pore space. The puddle happens when water comes to a layer with different size pore spaces and backs up rather than flowing smoothly down into the next layer.

Many people inadvertently create a perched water table when they make a raised bed. They pile very loose soil on top of soil more tightly packed. The original soil may even make a decent garden, yet if it’s denser than the fill, it spells trouble. The water problem will be invisible, yet manifest itself in mysterious plant failures.

The way to avoid this water flow problem is to loosen or rough up the original soil at the bed’s bottom so there is a transition layer of varied pore size. Aerate with a garden fork, or corrugate the soil by digging a few shallow trenches across the area.

When there is a lot of traffic alongside a growing area it can seriously affect a garden. Even if only one shoe in fifty strays from this public walk, the garden at that level would take a real beating.

The raised bed is a good solution. It was also a wise move to build back from the walkway, accepting the lawn as a necessary extension of the walkway during busy times.

The soil in these wetland beds is heavy and often wet. Although the path is little used, the soil is so easily damaged that the beds are raised a few inches and edged with cedar.

Filling the raised bed Fill with soil that is right for the plants you plan to grow. For the average garden, you can use soil from elsewhere on your property or a mix of soil and organic matter. Overfill the bed to allow for settling of any organic matter that’s still decomposing, such as sod removed in bed preparation, fall leaves, nearly-done compost, decaying mulch, etc.

If you will purchase soil to fill an averageplant raised bed, shop for what is called 5050 mix or plant mix. This is a combination of screened (debris-free) topsoil and some type of fine-particle organic matter such as compost or shredded peat. Every landscape supply outlet makes or selects its own mix, so go look and feel before you buy.

For the least weed seeds and rogue weed roots, make your own mixture of half sharp sand (coarse sand or builder’s sand) and half clean compost. Sharp sand is often nearly

Build a dry-laid rock wall at the bottom of a steep slope, and fill behind. It’s a raised bed to control erosion. Weep holes where water can ooze out of the bottom of the bed are a critical part of any raised bed but especially important where a big area drains into the bed and pressure from water and soil can push the wall out. weed-free because it was quarried from great depth. Freshly done compost is also weedfree. Buy from a supplier that is also a producer of compost so you can be sure to select what’s just come through the process rather

than from a pile that’s been sitting cool and acquiring wind-blown weed seeds for many weeks.

You can mix two materials by alternating wheelbarrow loads and raking each layer.

The action of planting will finish the blending. Overfill or tamp this mix to compensate for the settling of the compost.

If your raised bed is meant to house specialty plants, follow the recommendation of those

www.MichiganGardener.com | June 2013 | Michigan Gardener

who grow those plants. For instance, a bed for acid-loving plants might have peat as its main filler, or peat plus sharp sand tested in advance to be sure it is not alkaline in reaction. For alpine plants that need lean soil and perfect drainage, sharp sand alone may be the ticket or sand plus decayed granite or turkey grit.

How to calculate the amount of soil materials you need Ordering materials in bulk: To calculate how many yards (which is short for “cubic yards”) of fill you need, measure the length, width, and depth of your bed in feet. Multiply those 3 figures to calculate the cubic yards. For a bed

that’s 9 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 1 foot deep, that is 9 x 3 x 1, which is 27 cubic feet. There are 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard (3 feet by 3 feet by 3 feet), so divide 27 by 27 and you need precisely 1.0 cubic yards to fill that bed.

Another example: for a bed that is 12 feet long, 5 feet wide, and 9 inches deep (9 inches

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divided 12 inches in a foot is 3/4 or .75 of a foot), that is 12 x 5 x .75, or 45 cubic feet. 45 divided by 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard is 1.67 yards.

Buying materials by the bag: Use the same calculation process as above to determine the cubic feet you need. Then find out the bag size in cubic feet. In the first example above, 27 cubic feet are needed. Let’s assume there are 2 cubic feet per bag. 27 divided by 2 is 13.5 bags.

In the second example above, 45 cubic feet are needed. 45 divided by 2 is 22.5 bags.

Preserve the air in a raised bed, assure the root growth Good garden soil is about 50 percent mineral matter and 50 percent pore space. Pores in the soil, some large and some small, hold air as well as water. Both are essential to root growth. In an ideal soil called “moist and welldrained,” the pore space is usually occupied with about equal volumes of water and air.

In soil that’s being prepared for building or paving, engineering requirements may specify packing the soil to 90 percent density or greater. That leaves only very tiny pores that do not absorb water or exchange gas very well. That soil cannot hold enough water or air for good plant growth.

Good garden soil that is walked on regularly may become nearly as dense as the ground at a construction site because a foot or paw may exert as many or more pounds per square inch as a tractor on its big tires.

When compaction is a good thing Soil purchased in bulk has often been moved frequently and fluffed in handling. It may be more than half air by volume—even Recycled materials like broken concrete can be a sturdy wall for a raised bed. Like dry laid rock, the vertical face of this bed can be planted too.

We made a 24-inch raised bed with the house wall (waterproof it first) and a wall of ledge rock, a type of soft sandstone. The rock was all leftover and mismatched so we planted it with golden bleeding heart (Corydalis lutea), Serbian bellflower (Campanula poscharskyana), and other plants happy in crevices. Blooming white at left is horsechestnut-leaf rodgersia (R. aesculifolia), which occupies the base of the wall, appreciating the moisture from its weep holes. 30 years later the walls still hold but we hardly ever see them.

continued on next page

Wood works as a raised bed. My first choice is wood such as these cedar planks that are naturally resistant to decay. The planks are anchored to posts in the ground at corners and joints and will last many years.

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Michigan Gardener | June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

continued from previous page airier than newly loosened garden soil.

So the soil you put into a raised bed will settle. If you are growing annual flowers or vegetables, the settling does not present a problem. Let it settle and add more as needed before planting each spring.

If you are planting permanent plants in a raised bed, it’s a good idea to lightly tamp the fill as you place it. If you do not compact the soil to approximate gentle natural settling, or overfill and allow it to settle for about a year before planting, the soil level and plants will sink. It’s difficult to predict how much a soil will settle since every fill varies in density at the start, but it’s not unusual to see the level fall 10 to 20 percent.

Since it undermines the health of a tree or shrub to have its trunk buried by adding new soil, a settled bed of permanent plants can only be re-elevated by digging out the plants, adding soil, and replanting.

Some lumber is “pressure treated” to incorporate rot-resistant chemicals. This wood has a long life too but users should be aware of potential risks.

The person who does the carpentry should wear a mask and gardeners work in heavy gloves to avoid dust and splinters that contain the chemicals.

Some evidence suggests that the chemicals may leach and travel a short way in the soil, so certain food plants should not be grown near the edge of that raised bed. Finally, at the end of its useful life it goes to a solid waste landfill as it is not allowed in compost with untreated wood and yard waste.

Choice of material Almost anything can form the sides of a raised bed, from cardboard boxes or baled straw to recycled metal drums or poured concrete. All that’s essential is enough strength and endurance to serve your purpose for the desired amount of time, a look that’s acceptable to you, and a way for excess water to seep out at the bottom. Some materials last longer than others, some stack higher more reliably, some make thinner walls and thus leave more space in the bed for plants, and so on. In this arena, photos and imagination serve best, so I leave you with these pictures and ideas.

Rock names vary by supplier, so this wall rock might be “blue mountain” at one source, and “Ohio gray” at another. “Flag stones” are basically the same materials in larger, often thicker pieces.

Janet Macunovich is a professional gardener and author of the books “Designing Your Gardens and Landscape” and “Caring for Perennials.” Read more from Janet on her website www.gardenatoz.com.

V Website Extra Go to MichiganGardener.com and click on “Website Extras” for: • More examples of raised bed construction with wood, brick, and stone pavers

This front wall of a raised bed puts a good face on a utility corner. This bed is retained with gray ledge rock on two sides and slopes down to grade on its other faces. The back wall creates an alcove to enclose pool equipment. Various kinds of naturally flat stone are sold as “ledge rock” and “wall rock” because they stack easily. Ledge rock is generally thinner and stacks like wafers. Wall rocks are generally thicker and stack in a bolder pattern.

Raised beds can also be miniature. This gardener said, “We tried about everything there and everything died, until we realized the drainage just could not be fixed and the soil is full of things thrown out the kitchen door for more than 100 years. So now we grow on top of the ground in troughs.”

Concrete fashioned to look like brick or natural cut stone is a versatile material. Manufacturers make pieces that can serve as pavers, wall rock, capstones, cornerstones, and more. Give a block supplier a scale drawing of what you plan to build, or other detail of size and shape, and they can tell you how many of each kind of block you need, as well as provide assembly instructions.

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| June 2013 | www.MichiganGardener.com

janet's journal

Give your garden a raise

Reasons to raise a bed. We can raise a bed to...

A raised bed offers many benefits— these tips will help you build one properly

I

magine all the things you could do with so that plants will have 18 inches of airy soil a pay raise. That’s how it is for a garden to grow in above the root-killing soggy layer. planted into a raised bed. The plants in The average plant needs an 18-inch depth of it have more resources and they put them to well-drained soil to grow well. use right away.

To test your soil’s drainage, dig or drill Mound up soil to make a raised bed and an 18-inch deep hole. Width of the test hole there is more room for roots. It’s airy soil is unimportant. The test tells how long it too, and since it’s a hop or step up, it won’t be takes for water to filter down into and away much damaged by foot, paw, and wheel trafthrough the soil at the bottom of the hole. fic. If the soil at grade tends to be soggy, the Fill the hole with water, and let it drain. plants in the bed literally rise above that probThen fill again. Water will have saturated the lem. A raised bed is also an answer where sides of the hole on the first fill. The second the native soil is not of the type a filling tells the true tale of drainparticular plant needs. Such a bed age through the bottom. If the hole Janet Macunovich can foster acid-loving plants in an empties in 12 to 18 hours, drainage alkaline region or nurture sandis good. After 18 hours, if there is loving peanuts that would struggle water left in the hole, measure the in heavy clay. inches of water and you have the People benefit from raised beds minimum amount of additional too. Beds raised to hip height resoil needed to lift plants above the duce the need to bend and give the problem. gardener a spot to perch. Terraces Make the bed too low—not high (raised beds on a slope, which need enough to get above drainage trouretaining only on one or a couple ble—and the work you did to make of faces) make gardening possible the bed may be wasted. where the grade was too steep to navigate safeExtra height is fine and some plants or purly or soil tended to erode. The right material poses require it. Many tallgrass prairie plants used to retain the mounded soil can make the grow bigger, stand sturdier, and maintain bed into an attractive feature in its own right. better health if they are assured several feet of well-drained soil. In my case, a bed with a How high? sturdy edge at hip height is wonderful for me Depth depends on purpose and opportuto tend if it’s 29 inches tall—that’s about the nity, and affects construction. height from the ground to my hip. Someone If you’re raising a bed to allow plants to will want to beat the world record by growgrow where drainage is poor, do a simple ing a carrot longer than 19 feet 2 inches, in drainage test to learn how high you must go which case that person will build a 20-foot tall raised bed, of material that can be opened P h oto g r a p h s by S t e v e n N i k k i l a

Janet’s Journal continued on page 44

...create a different soil mix for acid-loving plants such as rhododendrons in an alkaline soil region.

...hold plants that need sharp drainage up off of poorly drained ground.

...create airier soil to improve production in a vegetable garden.