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Hi, guys!
It’s like Christmas over at my house this week with all the trial plants that have arrived at my doorstep.
Burpee, PanAmerican Seed, Proven Winners, Walter’s Gardens and others send boxes of annuals, perennials, vegetables and herbs each year for me to grow and (they hope) write about.
Many of the plants I receive are previews of the following year’s new introductions. That comes in handy the next year so I can give you first-hand recommendations about what performed well instead of simply passing along each brand’s marketing descriptions.
It’s one of the best perks of being a garden writer, but it’s also a bit of a challenge fitting all the plants into my cramped garden. I typically plant the edibles in the raised beds with the ones I start from seed, scatter the annuals that coordinate with my garden into the beds and borders, and plant the rest in a designated trial garden strip on the side of my house, which I call the “maternity ward” (an adorable name borrowed from a friend).
One plant absolutely jumped out at me this year as I was unpacking a box, which along with the others, was dropped upside-down on my porch (FedEx can’t seem to grasp what “This End Up” means, at least not at my house). After wiping away all the spilled soil, the happy little “Safari Dusk” South African phlox annuals wooed me with their royal purple flowers, each with an orange-yellow eye.
The heat-tolerant annual (winter hardy only in zones 10-11) is meant to grow 6-12 inches tall in sun to part sun and bloom from spring through fall. This one won’t be available in garden centers until 2024. I’ll let you know how it grows.
In the meantime, here are some promising new 2023 introductions I grew last year. They should be available at your local nursery now.
📬 Ask Jessica
DEAR JESSICA: I have blue irises that are in decline because they are at the edge of a 250-square foot, sloped space that is waist-high. Daylilies, spirea, hostas and greater Celandine border them, and Japanese knotweed is nearby. Those plants seem to be nosing out the irises, which last bloomed in 2021.
In another space, I have yellow irises near our driveway, which are in a bed with Irish snow and milkweed in the shade of a cherry tree. There are only a few iris plants, but one has a stem with a future flower.
If I try clearing around the irises, I feel the same plants will encroach again, or an invasive will sneak in. Do I have to install a physical barrier for the irises to keep everything else out? —Richard Stroshane
DEAR RICHARD: I don’t think your daylilies, spirea, butterfly weed or hosta pose any threat to your irises. Irish snow and greater Celandine, however, could be posing competition, but since your photo doesn’t really show a takeover, I can’t be sure.
If they are to blame, I would sooner recommend removing them from the area or relocating the irises rather than installing a barrier. But not before ruling out some other possible culprits, as their growing conditions could be affecting their ability to bloom.
You don’t say if the irises on the slope ever bloomed well. If not, it’s possible they were planted too deeply. Unlike most other plants, irises should have their rhizomes slightly exposed above the soil line.
Have you been fertilizing them? Depending on the formulation, it could be helpful or harmful. Too much nitrogen fertilizer would force your irises to spend most of their energy on growth rather than flower production. If not directly applied, consider that nitrogen could be leeching from a fertilized lawn nearby.
Unless you’ve already applied a balanced fertilizer, a dose of phosphorus should improve blooming. Phosphorus is the 2nd component of the three-number ratio noted on fertilizer packages. Look for one labeled 5-10-5 and follow package instructions.
Bulbs, corms and rhizomes should be fertilized every year as soon as new growth appears, again immediately after following and once a month during the remainder of the growing season. But don’t overdo it; follow the dosing instructions carefully.
It doesn’t appear to be the case, but know that irises could crowd themselves. They should be divided roughly every three years to keep blooming at their best. If you remove the invasives, you might plant the divisions in the bare spots left behind.
You don’t mention the sun exposure on the slope, but irises growing under the cherry tree likely need more sun. The plants will grow well in the shade but won’t bloom well.
Also, you didn’t ask specifically, but the Japanese knotweed has to go.
If there’s a small amount, cut or mow over it at least every other week during the growing season. It will weaken with each mowing but take several years to eradicate. If you do this, don’t dispose of the cuttings as you would grass. The USDA recommends burning, mincing and composting or burying it at least 5 feet deep.
Or you can smother it with heavy plastic held in place with stones, bricks or another object and left in place for 3-5 years.
Another strategy would be to inject each stem with an herbicide that targets the weed. Look for a “Japanese knotweed stem injection kit” and follow the label’s instructions. This method is preferred over spraying because it will concentrate the herbicide on the knotweed without endangering neighboring plants.
Whatever you do, don’t try to dig it up because even a small amount of root left behind will form a new colony, potentially making the invasion worse. Knotweed is no joke.
💡 If you do one thing this week…
Leave spring bulb foliage alone until it’s faded. It might be unsightly, but if you remove it before it’s brown and withered it won’t have enough energy to bloom its best next year.
👏 Sunday shoutout
Reader Mike Dennis of Mt. Sinai, NY, shared this lovely photo of his colorful garden bed featuring purple coneflowers, dahlias and hollyhocks.
Send in your photo, and you could be featured next (bonus points if you’re in the photo!)
📰This week in my Associated Press gardening column
I write a weekly gardening column for the AP, so you might have seen my byline in your local paper (or news website) — wherever in the world you happen to be. In case you miss it, though, I’ll post the most recent here every week.
This week, I wrote about hardening off seedlings, an essential step in your spring gardening routine.
Before that, I went against the grain and wrote about why No Mow May is a terrible idea. Somebody had to do it.
A week prior: I wrote about soil pH, why it’s essential for healthy plants, how to test it and what to do if it’s out of whack.
You can read all my AP gardening columns here.
📚📺🎵 Random things I enjoyed this week
I finally installed the simple raised-bed drip irrigation system I purchased last year, and it’s a game-changer.
I watched “You Don’t Know Me,” the Anna Nicole Smith documentary on Netflix. I love biopics, and this one brought me back to the long-forgotten (by me, anyway) scandals and, ultimately, mysterious tragedies the poor woman endured. If you remember the nonstop media circus, you might appreciate the inside look.
I also binged the first season of “From” on Prime and am in dystopian heaven.
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📧 How’m I doing?
I welcome your comments and suggestions, so please send them along — as well as any topics you’d like to see covered and questions you’d like answered in the Ask Jessica section.
Until next week, stay safe. Be well. And always keep your mind in the dirt. —Jessica
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