Happy Mother’s Day, y’all.  I spent mine with my three kids. First breakfast in bed, then garden maintenance with my 11 year old son helping me mulch.  Then dinner consisting of  hot dogs and s’mores on the grill in front of the newly roofed Garden House.  It really doesn’t get any better than that.

Since I’m traveling this week for garden bloggers Fling in Asheville, I needed to get some maintenance done in Helen’s Haven before I left town.  I weeded, cleaned the fountain filter, mowed, and mulched.  Things are looking mighty tidy.

David Spain and his crew with Moss and Stone Gardens did a couple of projects for me this week. The first was to take the tobacco sticks I’ve been holding on to and build fence panels to cover the chain link fence that divides the back of my property with the owners behind me. More on that later.

Next, they added a roof to the Garden House. As if on que, it started to rain as were cooking the Mother’s Day dinner. The roof protected us from the rain so  we were able to enjoy extended time outside.

David and his crew also took down a once loved willow ‘Scarlet Curls’. It aged out and had become a trash tree.  More on that later, too.

Here is May’s maintenance for the Mid-Atlantic.

Helen  Yoest is a writer and speaker through her business Gardening with Confidence ®.

Follow Helen on Facebook

Helen’s writing

Helen’s book,  Gardening with Confidence–50 ways to add style for personal creativity is due out this fall.

The book launch will  held at the JC Raulston Arboretum, Thursday, November 1, 2012, 7:30 p.m.

Name: Eupatorium maculatum ‘Bartered Bride’, White Joe Pye Weed

Zones: 7– 9

Size: 6 – 8 feet

Conditions: Average to moist

When it comes to unique plants, I have an unfair advantage of learning about really cool ones early on, and with a few choice plants, they were growing in my garden a year or two before they even hit the market. This is because I live so close to and volunteer at  the  JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, NC.  There has never been a visit that I didn’t walk away in wonder at the amazing plants that make up the JC Raulston Arboretum.  It has definitely spoiled me as a gardener. I often think anything is possible.

If you are not familiar with the man bearing the arboretum’s name, Bobby J. Ward sums up J.C. Raulston here:

J. C. Raulston was the most important and influential figure in American horticulture in the latter part of the twentieth century. His passion for promoting new plants for landscapes was unmatched. As a teacher at Texas A&M and at North Carolina State University, he gave generously of his time to students, profoundly influencing their lives, altering career paths and personal directions. He saw potential in both plants and students. Against many obstacles, he succeeded in establishing the North Carolina State University Arboretum that now bears his name. Chlorophyll in His Veins is an intimate biography, celebrating the life and accomplishments of one of the most-loved gardening personalities.

 

Over the years, I’ve found that living nearby the JC Raulston Arboretum is both good and bad, though. I get to see some really cool plants, but they are often not widely available, if at all. It’s chicken and egg thing–which comes first? Nursery growers will propagate and grow plants if there is a demand.  But how do you create demand if the plants aren’t widely available so people can get excited about them?

For a few years, I’ve admired the Eupatorium maculatum white Joe Pye Weed in the White Garden at the JC Raulston Arboretum.  My garden, Helen’s Haven, has the rosy-pink pure species and a ‘Little Joe’ but I wanted white.  My search for the plant began with Tim Alderton, Research Technician, at the arboretum.  He suggest I call Tony Avent at  Plant Delights Nursery, Raleigh, NC. Tim took an advanced look at Tony’s on-line catalogue and added with the encouragement by saying, “Tony use to carry it but I don’t see it on his website.  Write him to see if he still has it.”  I did.  Tony wrote back, “We’ve offered several through the years and sales were worse than horrible. If I thought people would buy them, I’d be glad to propagate them again.”  This was followed up with a note from Dianne Austin, Manager, Customer Service & Shipping, “I’m afraid very few gardeners have shown interest in this great plant. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if a garden writer or two would resurrect interest in this under-used, overlooked garden gem?”  Ditto.  I took the interest.

I Googled and searched and was not able to find Eupatorium maculatum. Nothing. A Rolling Stones song came to mine but I couldn’t accept You Can’t Always Get What You Want…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toiM1B6E2ww

So, I called Tim back and ask if I may come over to get cuttings.  The JC Raulston is known for this kind of generosity.  I’m not much of a propagator but I wanted this plant bad enough. Tim assured me it was easy to propagate with soft cuttings.  As I was getting ready to head over to the arb, I did one final search and found it at  Lazy S’s Farm.  I ordered 2.  I still plan to propagate it for myself just in case.

My order has been placed, and I was happy to learn it was grown by Northcreek Wholesale Nursery who is does a lot of work with natives.

So now I shall wait for my white Joe Pye weed to arrive. In the meantime, I will be dancing in the street…

Helen  Yoest is a writer and speaker through her business Gardening with Confidence ®.

Follow Helen on Facebook

Helen’s writing

Helen’s book, Garden with Confidence, is due out this fall.

I’m hoping March will be the start of the new year for me. So far this calendar year, I’ve tried to keep up with a challenging schedule as I met deadlines, gave talks, and finished writing my book. As of this week, the draft of my book, 50 Ways to Garden with Confidence, is officially complete. As it goes through the edit stages, I’m looking ahead to where I can direct my established momentum.  I have two books in mind and will slowly begin a bit on each. In the meantime, I’m taking my blog in a new direction, something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.

When garden blogging began, most people started blogging about their garden. But in the 5 years I’ve been blogging, I’ve written very little about my garden. I’ve written about Helen’s Haven some, but not as much I should have.

This was mostly because it has a complicated design that I’ve never taken the time to adequately describe. Nor have I tried to explain why I did what I did. My garden was never about what is pretty for pretty’s sake; it has a purpose. Pretty is part of that purpose, but my garden is also a sustainable, water-wise, organic, wildlife habitat.

Now I want to share my thinking on the building of Helen’s Haven. My goal for my blog this year is to write about my garden and the passion that went into each of the various garden beds. Over the 14 years I’ve gardened at Helen’s Haven, the garden’s structure and purpose have changed drastically in some ways. But in other ways, the change was just a natural progression as I got bored with a landscape, or made an important shift to water-wise design, or wanted to add more natives to the gardens.

When I give tours of my garden, I usually start at the mailbox and traverse the lawn to the various beds. I don’t believe I will use that order for writing about the gardens, though. Most likely, I’ll start in order of importance. Yes, I have a favorite child—I like some beds better than others.

Recently I was asked by Rebecca Pledger, JC Raulston Arboretum Graduate Student and president of the North Carolina State University Pi Alpha Xi (PAX) Horticultural Honor Society, to speak at their initiation banquet, where she wrote, “I would love for you to be our guest speaker at our initiation banquet. I have heard you speak many times and I love your enthusiasm and your words of wisdom.”

I’ve met Rebecca at Arboretum Friends’ meetings. Often I’ve watched her, in a casual ponytail, with a fantastic future ahead of her and I wonder what I might have done differently if I knew then what I know now. I’m a bit envious of Rebecca for knowing what she wants.

So when she asked me to speak to the group about how I got into horticulture and to share some wisdom with the other graduate students, I immediately felt like a fraud. But I knew what I would share—the humble beginning of my horticulture career. It only took me 30 years to get here. It all started with a gladiolus.

The next post will be the speech I gave to the new initiates.  This speech tells the tale of how I became the hort head I am today.

Then the documentation of building Helen’s Have will begin — the good, the bad, the what was I thinking?  My goal is to complete this in 2012. It’s a goal, anyway.  Since the speech addresses how I got into horticulture, I feetl it was the natural beginning as to how I came to build Helen’s Haven.

Helen  Yoest is a writer and speaker through her business Gardening with Confidence ®.

Follow Helen on Facebook

Helen’s writing

Helen’s book, 50 Ways to Garden with Confidence, is due out this fall.

2011 held many garden surprises.  It was the year of the unexpected.  It wasn’t my plan to re-do my entire garden in 2011, but that is, indeed, what happened.  In one year, I learned more about gardening and who I was as a gardener, than all the other years combined.  It was a gardening epiphany.  A strong word?  Yes; but appropriate.

All of what I learned in 2011 resulted in my “I’m gonnas” for 2012.  Most of what I will write about in 2012 will be about my gardening epiphanies.  Here is a peak what I hope to accomplish:

1)  Enhance the purpose of my garden.  Helen’s Haven is a wildlife habitat.  This is something I never want to forget.  It’s the core of my garden’s purpose.   But I also like garden art — even in the form of artistic looking plants.  If it’s twisted, weeping, or stuck strangely on a standard, I will grow it in my garden.  It’s not a departure from wildlife gardening since every plant, by some definition, meets a criterian providing for wildlife:  food, cover, place to raise young.   In broad terms, a plant may not offer food or a place to raise young, but all plants can provide some sort of cover.  However, not all plants are created equal – some are better than others at providing for the wildlife’s needs. In my case, I have enough land (1/2 ace) that, with careful planning, allows me to indulge in the fun and freaky.  2012 will find me trading up some pedestrian exotics for equivalent (or better) natives.  Out with the Forsythia, in with the Hamamelis virginiana.  If my Forsythia had more value than yellow flowers, such as varigated foliage, or used as a seasonal clock telling me when spring is near or when I need to fertilizer my tall fescue, I would keep it.  But I have iCal for that.  And even though Forsythia is an excellent provider of cover and a nectar source for early spring pollinators, so is the the native Witch Hazel, but on a grander scale.

2)  Less maintenance, higher impact. Given that Helen’s Haven was already low maintenance, I even surprised myself when I found the last vestige of high maintenance in my garden and converted it to year round interest and less maintenance.  Out with the dedicated Perennial Border, in with the Mixed Border.

3)  Photograph my garden more.  As I journey through the seasons, side by side with Helen’s Haven, I want to remember the first galanthus of the season, the daffodils facing the sun, the butterfly alighting the Lantana, and the fall color setting my soul on fire.  And as a note to self, tag my photos better.  I’m really bad at this.  Out with the random photos, in with the  photos with purpose.

4)  Entertain more.  We all lead busy lives.  Mine is not much different than yours.  But at some point, having friends over to share a nosh, a cup tea, or a glass of wine, fell low on my list.  I plan to change these priorities.  Out with just me in the garden and in with friends over more.

5)  Stop to watch the flowers grow.  I actually do a very good job of  this.  But I think there is room for improvement.  Doing more of number 4 will help this along.  It is not uncommon for me to just sit and stare at the beauty that surrounds me.

6)  Weep at nature’s beauty.  When I finished my Mixed Border re-design, taking it from a perennial bed to a mixed border, for several days and even now, 3 months later, I want to weep at the beauty I created it.  After years of searching, I found the soul of my garden.  It’s no longer just a good selection of great plants, placed in a pretty pattern.  This garden now has soul.  I’m gonna weep if I want to, when I want too.

7)  Enjoy the seasons as the come. My garden epiphany helped me realize, that there is something beautiful and wonderful in every season.  I clearly remember when I lived in England and it was raining again, I thought to myself, If I didn’t go out because of the rain, I wouldn’t get out much.  The same with the garden.  Raleigh has beautiful winters.  Half chilly, half cold, but with flowers that bloom and berries that ignite.  I will just quit my whining and accept the season I’m in.  Why am I so anxious for spring when I have a winter waiting to bring me beauty.  Yes, I must bundle up and the days are shorter, but I will no longer let that deter me.  I’m gonna enjoy the season I’m in.

EIGHT)  Eat pray mulch.  I’m gonna eat what I sow, pray for nature to take it’s course, and mulch for all the good mulching does.

9)  Sit in the Garden House to just look and listen.  The Garden House was one of the first plans I had for my garden and finally after 14 years those plans were rallied.  I’m not gonna squander my good fortune.

10) Write more, blog less.  This is not what it sounds like.  Blogging is writing; but as I go into my 5th year blogging, I realize I feel I need to post something when I’m not really in the mood.  I much rather write a post when the mood strikes me, not by the turn of a calendar.  After all, isn’t that what blogging is all about — being able to post in real time?  Besides, I’m writing a book.  That has to take precedence. I’m gonna go back on blog vacay now and come back when my book is done.  Then, I’m gonna write whatever I want, when ever I want.  I like that!

May all your dreams come true in 2012 and remember, they may not even have been invented yet.  So keep a keen eye open for dreams not even thought of yet.

H.

Helen  Yoest is a garden writer, speaker and garden coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™.

We are so fortunate to be able to garden year round in the Raleigh area. I’m sharing the story below from  the current issue of Triangle Gardener magazine.  This gives just a taste of what we can grow in our area with particular interest in providing cover and food for the wildlife.

Winter Wonders – plants for wildlife

Flowers, berries, evergreens and grasses will fill the winter garden with wildlife and give you reason to walk around.

One of the best parts about living in the Triangle are winters worthy of gardening.  In winter, it is more about admiring the garden and the wildlife it brings, than worrying about weeds.  While your winter flowering trees and shrubs are in bloom, the weeds sleep.

Designing a wildlife friendly garden by adding water, food, cover and a place to raise their young, will help entice your wildlife to stay in the garden year ‘round.

Particularly in the winter, providing plants for a wide range of food sources and cover, will keep your wildlife coming back to feed and feel safe.

FOOD

There are many sources of food for wildlife in winter, including seed, nectar, pollen, berries and nuts.

With a wide variety of cultivars to choose from, the winter flowering, evergreen shrub, Camellia japonica, provide nectar on a day warm enough to move a bee, as do Mahonia and wintersweet (Chimonanthus).  So do flowering apricot trees (Prunus Mume), and perennials such as Hellebores, adding gorgeous flowers to your winter landscape.

With just a few varieties, your winter garden can be filled with blooming flowers all season long.

Many birds will be happy to find Ilex verticillata ‘Winter Red’ holly growing in your garden.  It’s not uncommon to have a a flock of cedar waxwings dine on these and other species of holly berries, as well as, Eastern dogwood, junipers and fruits, such as cherries.  Robins, bluebirds, and thrushes will also find protein rich winter berries the perfect meal.

Crab apple (Malus spp.) can be quite showy in the winter landscape and also provide food for many birds.

COVER

When wildlife feed, having cover near by provides protection, creating a safe haven for your wildlife.

Dense, low growing ground covers such as a creeping yew (Cephalotaxus harringtonia ‘Prostrata’) provides winter shelter for many birds.

Tall protective grasses like Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’ and Muhly grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris), left uncut, add interest in the winter garden, as well as, cover for many wildlife.  Native switch grass, Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’, can grow 4 foot tall with a nice blond winter color.

DOUBLE DUTY

Often times, plants will do double duty providing both food and cover. Viburnum tinus, Spring Bouquet ‘Compactum’, offers berries for birds and quick cover, when needed.

It’s worth noting, most double flowers are actually of little use to bees and other insects as many of these new cultivars are bred with the pollen bearing anthers replaced by extra petals. Others are just too ornate for the bees to get to the nectar.  A good example of this is the Camellia japonica cultivar ‘Governor Mouton’.  Indeed, a beautiful flower and worthy of growing in the winter wildlife garden.  But while this Camellia may not have nectar readily available, the ‘Governor Mouton’ will still provided cover for the wildlife and be gorgeous to boot.

Although not all winter plants provide food for wildlife, every evergreen tree and shrub does provide cover.  Choose plants that provide food and cover for your wintertime enjoyment and also enjoy the wildlife they bring.

COME ON OUT TO SEE ME!

Join Helen Yoest at the JC Raulston Arboretum for the Winter Lecture and Tour,  February 13, 2011.  Helen’s talk on Winter Wonders for the garden that also attract wildlife, begins at 1:00 AM followed by a winter garden tour.

The Arboretum is located at 4415 Beryl Road in Raleigh, North Carolina. For more information call the JC Raulston Arboretum at (919) 515-3132 or visit their website at:  JC Raulston Arboretum

Helen  Yoest is a garden writer, speaker and garden coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™.

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook Friend’s page, Helen Yoest; or facebook Like page, Gardening With Confidence™

Helen is a field editor for Better Homes and Gardens and Country Gardens magazine and she also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum.

AND

Helen is the founder, publisher and editor of:
Tarheel Gardening – your online resource for North Carolina gardening enthusiasts.

You can follow Tarheel Gardener.com on Twitter @TarheelGardenin and on facebook at Tarheel Gardening.com.

GARDENING WITH CONFIDENCE™

THIS MONTH IN THE GARDEN

Mid-Atlantic Region

INTRO

January is a good time to look back on your gardening year and to plan ahead. Walk around your garden, shoot some photos, and make a wish list of your garden’s hopes and dreams.

It is always a good idea to photograph your garden each month as a photo journal of what is blooming when. But also, looking at your garden through the lens is telling. What you see and what others see are often times  two different things. We all have our priorities. What you may pass by everyday and don’t notice  because you got used to looking at it, will show up and be noticed in print, and by others.

It’s no different when seeing oneself in a photograph. Most of us don’t like what we see; we start picking it apart.  Do you like what you see in your garden photographs?  So while it is a good idea to walk around your garden to jot down ideas and list what needs to be done, it is a better idea to evaluate what you see from photographs.

We gardeners tend to plan our gardens to spring and summer showings.  Make your winter garden just as rewarding by planting for winter interest – flowers, color, fruit, textures, and scent.  Take a good look around. January is a good time to look back on your gardening year. Are there things you would like to change? Make a list, keep it handy, and add to it, as necessary, and check off the tasks once completed – its a good feeling.

Another thing to do at the first of the year is to conduct a soil test. Consider this your yearly reminder.

BULBS

If you will begin to see bulb foliage begin to emerge. It’s OK.  The leaves are hardy and if harmed, they will grow more.  Keep bulbs mulched so they aren’t lifted by heaving resulting from repeated freeze and thaw.

As the tips of your daffodils emerge, add a general 10-10-10 fertilizers or a fertilizer especially designed for bulbs, such as Holland Bulb brand.

If you didn’t fertilize your bulbs with a slow release fertilizer last fall, it is still OK to do.  Apply about a teaspoon per square foot of bed after the foliage emerges.

ANNUALS

To keep your pansies happy, apply an organic fertilizer such as bone meal or root simulator fertilizer designed specifically for pansies following the label directions. Re-apply every 4 – 6 weeks.

PERENNIALS

Semi-evergreen ferns look great in the winter garden.  There are some great ones to choose from including Christmas, Holly, and Autumn.

Late January and February is a good time to dig and divide liriope and mondo grass.  Now is also a good time to cut back liriope before the new growth emerges.  If done before new growth emerges, a lawnmower or string-tirmmer can make short work of this annual task.

When to Fertilize Your Grass.

TREES & SHRUBS

The most common Camellias grown in our area are Camellia sasanqua and Camellia japonicas.  C. sasanquas bloom from September to January and tend to have a mass of small flowers (as compared to C. japonicas) blooming all at one time.  C. japonicas bloom from September to March and tend to have a fewer flowers bloom at a time.  Camellias like acid soil with some organic matter in semi-shady conditions.  Camellia sasanquas are also tolerant of some sun.

Figs do fine in many soil types, but perform best in slightly alkaline soil. To aid in this, given our areas natural acid tendencies, add powered dolomite limestone (CaCo3) to the fig bushes.

ROSES

With black spot so prevalent in our area, rack and clean underneath the rose bushes and discard.  this will help to reduce the amount of disease going into the next growing season.

Check that the crown of the rose bush is still covered. Often times, winter winds can blow mulch away.

HERBS

Lavender foliage remains a silver-green color during the winter months creating nice interest in the winter months.

VEGETABLES

Now is the time to plant English (green) peas.  A common mistake is to plant too late in the season.  English peas are very hardy and withstand sub-freezing temperatures.

Indoors or in a cold frame, sow seed of cool-season vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage.

WATERWISE

Plants in the winter still need water. We usually get a gracious plenty of rain in the winter and in the spring, but in times of drought, remember a winter drought can be as severe as a summer one. In fact, a plant planted in the fall that was not watered sufficiently in the winter and dies in the summer is often times blamed as a summer problem when it was more likely caused in the winter. Not that this is much consolation for the dead plant. But it does remind us that plants need water even in the winter.

Pansies have a shallow root system – make sure they get watered weekly, if not by nature, then by you.

For your Plumber…leave the hoses attached to your faucets! Your plumber will love you for it. If this is not the kind of love you seek, remove the hoses from your faucets so they don’t freeze and bust.

Stay on top of your weeding by handpicking your weeds from the grass and beds on a routine basis. Dig up wild onions and garlic as they emerge.  If possible, walk my gardens daily and note what needs to be done, creating a to-do list. Then weekly, I work through the list!

GARDEN PESTS

Spray for your aphids, scale and mites with a dormant oil. This will help to reduce the number of pest. Wait until the temperature is at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer for at least 24 hours.

Look for and remove bagworm pouches hanging in junipers or other narrow-leaf plants.  Fire is an effective way to destroy bagworms.  If not removed, they will begin the cycle again during the next growing season.

Camellias (particularly Camellia japonica) really start to shine in January. To discourage Camellia petal blight, remember to rake spent flowers that have fallen underneath the bushes.

WILDLIFE

Recycle your Christmas tree to the garden for the birds. Fill with “ornaments” of pine cones covered with peanut butter rolled in birdseed and add some dried cranberries for color and good eats. The birds with thank you and you can reap the rewards of watching them enjoy.

Adding hollies to the landscape brightens up garden with color and food for the wildlife.  

CONTAINER GARDENING

It is not too late to pot up some spring bulbs.

Helen  Yoest is a garden writer, speaker and garden coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™.

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook Friend’s page, Helen Yoest; or facebook Like page, Gardening With Confidence™

Here at Helen’s Haven, we take every chance to have new beginnings. In the world of gardening, everyday offers a new beginning; most, sadly, are not necessarily planned.

On New Year’s day, we have an opportunity to plan some resolutions and then hope for the best.  As someone profound once said, “if you don’t have any goals, how do you know when you got there”, or some such talk.  So I have goals for the garden…drumroll, please. Here are my I’m gonna’s:

10. I’m gonna stop waking up in the morning and going straight to the window to see if the boxwood hedge in the back connected during the night. The Best and Hardest Thing to Give Your Garden is Time

9. I’m gonna deadhead like I should.

8. I’m gonna grow more plants from seed.

7. I’m gonna sow poppy and larkspur seeds again, even though I know I will fail.

6. I’m gonna reduce even more lawn. Lawn Reform Coalition

5. I’m gonna add more native plantings to the garden. North Carolina Native Plant Society

4. I’m gonna take a series of monthly images at predetermined stops in the garden so I can slide show the beds annual pattern with monthly performance.

3. I’m gonna stop worrying about where my garden gnomes go. Six Places Your Garden Gnomes May Go

2. I’m gonna read plant labels and then I’m gonna factor 25% to whatever number they print. What do You Want to Know About a Plant?

1. I’m gonna kick zonal denial in the butt.  Only plants with a zone wrapped around my zone 7b garden will be allowed in Helen’s Haven…unless it’s for the south side and I can’t help myself.

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence ™ Face Book Fan Page.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

As a garden communicator, when I write about a plant, I like to present as much information as possible,\’a0 at the same time making it readable.  Also, most times, I have had a good experience with a particular plant, bringing me joy and I want to share this experience and hopefully encourage the reader to plant one in hopes they experience\’a0 similar joy. I don’t like to write about a plant I don’t have a personal experience with.

What I want to know about a plant may be different than what you want to know.  The variables per reader are vast.  Most gardeners will want to know about the plant’s USDA hardiness, sun requirements, soil type and the like. There are those plagued with deer who want to know if it’s deer resistance, with nearly every communicator qualifying the answer with, “But as you know, deer will eat anything if hungry enough.”

I need to know the plants water needs.  I have a waterwise garden design, so I need to know if the plant of my desire will go into my oasis, transitional, or xeric zone.  From there, I can decide if I have room, or if I really want it, I’ll make room by trading up. I find it frustrating when I see a plant I want and have to go to several sources to get all the info about a plant that I need.

When I’m gathering gardening info, I’ll gather even more info than I need personally, in the event I really like the plant and want to put it in a clients garden or if I want to write about it.  For example, I am plagued with bunnies.  I need to know if a plant is resistant to bunnies.  I don’t have deer.  However, I will want to know this information to file away for a client’s need or for a writing assignment.

The magazines (me included) are currently writing about the 2009 Perennial Plant of the Year,Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ ornamental grass.  A timely endeavor.  I like it.  It looks good in the photos and I want it.  But with having made too many plant purchase mistakes to mention, and finding that zonal denial only benefits the nursery or garden center, I’m getting to where I need to be gaining more knowledge and killing less. If a plant is listed as a bunnies favorite, I’ll stay clear of it.  No use building a buffet line for those marauding, munching, members of the cute critter club.

Here is what I want to know about a plant.\’a0 The list started out organized and ended up random as I continued to think of things I wanted to know:

Hardiness range My garden, Helen’s Haven, is in Zone 7b.  I have to really, really like it if it’s at the end of it’s zone.  Preferable, I like to have another zone wrapped around it.  I no longer buy zone 8 plants; those days will be here soon enough if you listen to the global warming conversations, but for now, I’m sticking to my zone.

Water requirement I will accept most conditions, dry, moist or wet.  I don’t have all the waterwise zones covered, but I do have most of them including, sunny oasis, sunny transition, sunny xeric, shady transitional, shady xeric and a tiny bit of shady oasis.  I need a plant’s watering need so I know where to plant it.

Sun/shade requirements Absolutely need to know. Boy oh boy, this simple concept can be so confusing. A footnote could accompany just about any plant going something like this – give afternoon shade in hot climates, or give extra water if planted in sun…you get the point.

Height We all gotta know.

Width Ditto.

Good for containers Very useful for those with limited space and those of us who like to use containers throughout the home and garden.

Drainage requirements  For the most part, most of Helen’s Haven is well drained. This is by design.  As I created my gardens, I amended the heavy clay with lots of organic matter. However, there are parts of my oasis zone that receive a lot of extra water either by my neighbors lawn sprinklers or from fountain splash.\’a0 As such, these areas stay wet.

Soil structure This usually goes hand-in-hand with drainage, but not entirely. There’s more too it when growing a living thing. Every gardener needs to know their soil structure.  We are solid clay.  The kind I imagine potters use to throw pots – I sure would like to throw it about.  But, reality sets in and it does make good soil, if amended properly.

pH Every plant has a pH preference. It is no coincidence here in the south that pines and azaleas are the most common combination.  Not only do the azaleas benefit from the dappled shade provided by the pines, they also benefit from the acid soil the pines provide.  The pH in Helen’s Haven tends to be acid; a common occurrence in the south, which is why our hydrangeas tend to be blue and if we want to change to the color to pink, we need to go through some hoops and amendments, too many for me, besides I like blue.

Does it reseed? This could be a good thing or a bad thing. I also need to know more than if it is listed as a reseeding annual.  Poppies, Larkspar, Cleome, Monarda are all considered reseeding annuals. But the the success of each will depend of many factors, including mulching. I can mulch like crazy and my Cleome and Monarda are snug as a bug and perform beautifully.  If I treat my Poppies and Larkspar with mulch, they will not survive.

Evergreen, semi-evergreen or deciduous This is most important in design.\’a0 If I’m building a buffer hedge, I may well benefit from an evergreen hedge for year round privacy. Or I may like the lightness a deciduous hedge offers in the season I’m not in need of as much privacy since I’m not outside cooking burgers on the grill and such.

Deer resistance More and more people need to know this.\’a0 The deer population is growing at about the same rate as land is being claimed for new developments. I don’t even want to consider how this gets balanced.  But my clients want to know what they can grow that the deer won’t eat.  I make suggestions and then of course I say, “But as you know, deer will eat anything if hungry enough.”

Bunny resistance This is my biggy.  I need to know.  I don’t recall reading this as clarification on a plant tag.  As such, I’m always doing extra research, usually with no success.  My success comes if I find it is still standing the next day.

How it spreads and how fast.  Is it invasive?  You have to look for code words to know.

• Reseeds freely
• Spreads by stolons
• Plenty to share with your gardening friends
• Oh, it’s easy to pull up if it gets out of hand
• It’s worth it

Origin Some want to know if it’s native.  Others not.  I think in general it is good to know.  Sort of like all of us. Our origins are conversation worthy.

As I lust over the 2009 Perennial Plant of the Year Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ ornamental grass, I decide to consult the current literature and see how many source reviews I needed to do to get all the info needed necessary to decide if this beauty will go into my garden.

Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’

Golden Japanese forest grass

Hak-on-eh-KLO-ah MAK-rah

The table above, represents 6 reputable reference I consulted to answer my questions about this plants performance. I have hidden their identify with letters. But, just to give you an idea, one was a nursery, one an e-magazine, one a botanic garden, two were gardening magazines, one a professional organization.

My, my this exercise thought me a lot. Did it you? I  had other referenced I could have considered, but I had enough trouble importing this table as it was.  But it didn’t matter, the sources I referred to all varied as you can see above.

Notice all the blank blocks?   Me too.  Who knew?

Sadly, I still do not know if this plant is favored by bunnies.

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™ Face Book Fan Page.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum\

Detail of Lily's tweet treat

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™Face Book Fan Page.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

Condition greenery by soaking in water for a few hours or overnight

Begin stuffing floral frog with conditioned gre

Paint magnolia Crims

Painted magnolia in a hose pot

When in doubt, add more! Now that you have the hang of it, tie your outdoor decorations together by adding red elsewhere.

Unleash your inner painter. These magnolia leaves were used in a window box

Don't stop with magnolia; these pine cones were used in garland around a door

So you see, little is needed to create awesome Christmas decorations.

Helen  Yoest is a garden writer, speaker and garden coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™.