Advice

Getting Your Garden to Grow

I am a novice gardener who has attempted an all seasons flower garden on my own, without the valuable aid of research. The garden sat dormant in my front yard all winter. Fortunately, I have renewed inspiration, thanks to a lecture I attended at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show.

First Plan, Then Plant
I attended a seminar on "Easy Perennials for Beginning Gardeners," given by John Valleau, master gardener from British Columbia and author of Heritage Perennial's Perennial Gardening Guide. Valleau talked about how research and planning would provide ". . . a payoff in your living room." He said beginners (like me) can plan and plant a simple garden that will provide color and green all year long.

OK, I thought, planning makes common sense. But how do I plan if I don't know what to look for? How do I know what to purchase without wasting time and money? How do I look up Chrysanthemum in the dictionary if I think it starts with "Cri?" I'm still getting used to speaking the two languages of gardening: Common and Latin; plants are listed under their Latin names in many gardening dictionaries. It figures.

Fortunately, Valleau provided a list of hardy perennials in both languages and suggested beginners do the following:

• Research research research to give yourself an idea of what goes where. Although Valleau recommended his own book on perennials, I suggest getting The Sunset Western Garden Book, the one item I purchased last year that didn't need cutting back for the winter. I now consult it constantly, dubbing it my gardening bible.



• Sit down and list the plants and colors you like. I adore purple Cosmos (Asteraceae), yellow Daffodils (Narcissus) and diverse Dahlias (Asteraceae), among others.



• Start with a small patch of soil and then sketch out on paper how you'd like your garden to look. Keep in mind that your garden won't be set in concrete.

I also suggest checking out a great gardening Web site, Virtual Garden (www.vg.com). It's got great suggestions for all levels of gardeners.

What to Plant This Year?
I found Valleau's description of his perennials very helpful. Not only did he describe each plant, but he also described how different plants can accentuate each other. I did as he suggested and made my own list of what to plant this year for each season.

This spring, I'm pleased to say, I didn't have to do much. My yard is emitting some color now with blooming Double English Primrose (Primula) that have special double flowers like a little double African Violet and, yes, Daffodils (Narcissus). The tulips are peeping out, too.

For the summer and fall I've envisioned plants with long blooming periods, like dazzling, showy Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)--six weeks of color!-- and Daylily (Hemerocallis) that moves in the wind and provides colorful flowers from June to November. I'm also an Aster (Asteraceae) fan. There are more than 600 species to choose from, including Cosmos and Dahlias. Fortunately, they're all very hardy, colorful and most luxuriant in fertile soil.

Flowers need not be the sole perennials to provide color to your garden in all seasons. I've included long, sweeping grasses that rustle and swish in the breeze. Last year, I planted some Maiden Grass (Miscanthus sinsensis) which display little feathery flower tips amidst slender, weeping leaves. This year, I'll add two evergreen grasses: Blue Oat Grass, (Helictotrichon sempervirens) a bushy, bluish evergreen with spiky tips, and Feather Reed Grass (Calamagrostis acutifolia), a handsome ornamental grass with bright green leaves growing to four feet in height. Tall flowering stems shoot up to four feet above the foliage in the early summer.

I'd also like to add some more ground cover for year-round color. Last year I planted some Periwinkle (Vinca minor for the shade and Vinca major for the sun) that survived the winter and are beginning to spread. I have three hardy Pieris japonicas with green foliage and tiny urn-shaped flower buds bunched together like grapes on display right now. Delightful.

This year I'll plants some Bergenia 'Bressingham Ruby' (Saxifrageaceae), a graceful evergreen with glossy green leaves and good for foreground planting with rhododendrons and Japanese Aralia (Fatsia japonica), another glossy evergreen with tropical, fanlike leaves.

You can never go wrong with Scotch Heathers (Calluna vulgaris) which provide a stimulating range of colors and textures from June to November. Combined with the many varieties of Heaths (Erica), they will make my garden bloom year-round!

I'm a Sociable Person. I Am.
The last and final tip from me, personally, is talk to other gardeners! Take a course or get involved in a garden club. I'm in one that begins this spring - the Garden and Barbecue (GAB) club! Our first meeting is set and I'm inspired and preparing to dig. I'm a little more confident and ready to take the plunge first with pen and paper, then shovel and dirt. Hope you are, too!

By Bronwyn Doyle.

Edited by Jenny Neil.