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grEen News
from Smithfield Gardens
August 2010
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Dear Friends,
Well, July certainly was one hot month with really sporadic rainfall. Hopefully August will be less stressful to the garden, even though it usually isn't, one can always hope. For some of us these past few summer storms have dropped life sustaining rains, while a mile down the road falls nothing but a few drops. This unpredictable precipitation makes it really hard to judge how much rain your garden is getting, especially combined with drying heat and wind. That is why we recommend that everyone have a rain gauge in the garden, so you can tell exactly how much you have been getting. The magic number is an inch per week, otherwise you will have to get out the hose.
Even though this is not the best time of year to plant, (it might even be the worst time) it can still be done provided you have plenty of water. It is a good time to buy, however, as our Summer Clearance Sale will continue until the 29th, and all plants are discounted at least 30%, some are more. We also have some great deals going on inside the store as well. If you do decide to wait until fall to plant you may want check out the links page on our web site. Here you will find several of the people who grow plants for us. You can browse their site and start a shopping list from the air conditioned comfort of your home.
In this month's issue of grEen News Ann and Les both have written articles about plants that can survive a stressful summer. Ann's is on Russian Sage and Rudbeckia, while Les has written about Oleander. If you would like to be taken away to a cooler climate, you will want to read Margie's article about her gardening observations while she was in England this summer.
We hope to see you soon and happy gardening!
Your Friends at Smithfield Gardens
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Upcoming Events and Classes
at Smithfield Gardens
Each Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Naturally grown, local produce will be available for sale in our parking lot from Batten Bay Farms. You won't find much fresher unless you grow it your self.
Plant a Fall Vegetable Garden
August 28th (Sat.) 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.
If you thought the vegetable gardening season was over until next year, you are very wrong. There is a whole group of goodies that can be planted now and harvested through the fall. Come let JoEllen Gienger enlighten you.
Would you like to save 10% on your purchases at Smithfield Gardens? Monday is Military Discount Day and active duty military, Coast Guard, police, fire and rescue all are entitled to a discount. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are Senior Days. Also, anyone who attends one of our free classes is entitled to a discount on the day of the class. All of our discounts apply to any item not already on sale and can not be used towards landscaping services or bulk materials.
Other Events:
TCC Horticulture Fall Classes
Register for the 16-week fall session that begins Aug. 19th. Call 822-5149 or visit www.tcc.edu/horticulture for more details.
Hoffler Creek Wildlife Refuge
- Butterfly and Dragonfly Tour, Aug. 7th (Sat.) 10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
- Early Bird Walks, Aug. 14th (Sat.) 8:00 a.m.- 10:00 a.m.
- Volunteer Work Days, Aug. 14th (Sat.) 10:00 - 4:00 p.m.
- Kayak Lessons, Aug. 28th (Sat.) 3:00 - 3:30 p.m.
- All About Snakes, Aug 28th (Sat.)1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Monthly Bird Walk
August 21st. (Sat.) 9:00 a.m. Weyanoke Bird and Wildlife Sanctuary at 1501 Armistead Bridge Rd. in Norkfolk's West Ghent neighborhood. Call 625-1907 for more information.
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Two Award-Winning Perennials for August
Are you peering out of the curtains on these hot days, checking for anything that might be looking good in your flower garden? Two perennials that I know from experience look "fresh as a daisy" in August are Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) and black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida 'Goldsturm'). Both of these perennials have earned Perennial Plant of the Year honors, 'Goldsturm in 1999 and the Russian sage in 1995, so you know that they are easy to grow.
Russian Sage, photo by Lord Koxinga |
Frequently described as a handsome sub-shrub with silvery aromatic foliage, deer-resistant Russian sage is often used in landscape designs with pastel colors like pink and lavender. It is native to the Himalayas and a member of the mint family. You won't notice the plant's distinctive spicy aroma unless you rub its serrated foliage, so if you dislike the smell you can always plant this perennial somewhere where you won't be bumping into it. When given full sun and well-drained soil Russian sage can reach 3'-4' tall---without staking. The airy spikes of violet-blue flowers are most effective when massed in a design, however a few plants would make a nice addition to a butterfly garden. Another plus is that established Perovskias are tolerant of drought, coastal conditions and even median strips. One co-worker recommends trying this perennial with pink Flower Carpet roses and pink coneflowers like 'Magnus' or 'Kim's Knee High'.
Black-eyed Susan 'Goldstrum' |
Rudbeckias are long-blooming natives that belong in any perennial garden, in some form. Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm' (German for "Gold Storm") can form an impressive colony within a few years if it is happy in full sun. At 24"-36" tall it is an especially nice companion for drought-tolerant ornamental grasses, but many sites report that the best bloom comes with consistently moist soil. Either way, native means dependable. Occasional deadheading will keep it looking good but be aware that seed eating birds like goldfinches are crazy about this plant's seedheads. You may want to let a few heads remain for them and deadhead the rest. Rudbeckias are a favorite plant of butterflies too. Again, this is a perennial that's tolerant of drought and even clay soil. During the difficult days of August I call my 'Goldsturm' the "Energizer Bunny"! The 2010 Beautiful Gardens selection R. subtomentosa 'Henry Eilers' is a new one we are carrying this summer so you may want to check it out the next time you visit us.
If you're thinking that August is too hot to plant any new perennials, take note of these two so that you can purchase them in September. Remember that fall is a great time to plant because temperatures cool down, rainfall is more plentiful and a lot of root growth occurs for several weeks.
Ann Weber |
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Oleander: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Pink Oleander, photo by Ian W. Fieggen |
I want to start off this month's article by apologizing to anyone who has ever gotten behind me in traffic. You see, I slow down (way down) when I see plants that catch my eye. This summer on several trips to Virginia Beach and the Outer Banks, my brakes have been applied whenever Oleander (Nerium oleander) has caught my eye. It is not easy to drive by this large showy shrub with its pink, red, or white blooms without giving it a second look.
Althea and Oleander, Howard St., Ocracoke | So what is the "good" about it? Well, I have already mentioned the color, which around here starts to show itself in early June and will continue until temperatures cool in the fall. The other good thing about this evergreen is where it will grow. Oleander is a Mediterranean native that thrives in the brightest sun and can tolerate the reflected heat off of roadways. It is also very drought and salt tolerant, plus it can withstand quickly draining sandy soil. So you can see why this is such a good plant for summer at the beach. If it is happy, Oleander will reach anywhere from 6 to 12 feet tall and wide around here, unless something happens to it over the winter - and this leads me to the "bad" about this plant.
White Oleander, photo by Forest and Kim Star | For as much as Oleander thrives in the heat, it hates the cold and is only reliably hardy in zone 8 through 11. The critcial temperature for Oleander is about 15 degrees, and anything below that will lead to damage. Single digits can kill established plants, but sometimes just to the roots and they will come back in the spring. Newly planted Oleanders are usually the most susceptible to cold damage, so we recommend spring or summer planting, not fall. The worst damage occurs in years when we have up and down temperatures over the winter. However, Oleander blooms on new wood, so a little pruning to remove damaged branches and the plant will flower again in June. If you live west and north of Norfolk and Virginia Beach, plant Oleander where it is protected from winter winds. The other thing Oleanders do not like is heavy, mucky soils that do not drain well. In this climate Oleander has few pests, but the bright orange, Oleander Aphid is one of the only things that can safely feed on Oleander - and this leads me to the "ugly".
Red Oleander, Virginia Beach | Oleander is one of the most poisonous of all garden plants, with every part having some toxin in it, even the dried branches and leaves. Oleander poisoning will cause digestive distress, heart trouble and even death, especially in small children. So my advice to gardeners is to go ahead and plant it, prune it, touch it, rake it, enjoy it - but do not let anyone eat Oleander. There are many urban legends about Oleander poisoning, usually involving Boy Scouts using them for hot dog sticks or disastrous soccer camp picnics. There is also a haunting tale of a slave named Chloe in Louisiana who sought revenge on the plantation mistress and her children by baking them a birthday cake made with Oleander. While these gory tales and legends are entertaining, they are more than likely fiction, but the toxins in Oleander are very real.
If the bad and ugly about Oleander outweigh the good for you, you can still enjoy them. Just take a drive to the beach where they will be on display all summer, but watch out who you get stuck behind in traffic.
Les Parks |
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What I did on my Summer Vacation
 As a lot of you know I was very lucky this year and was able to vacation in England. I didn't go for the "London Experience" or the "RHS (Royal Horticulture Society) garden day tours". I opted instead to go to the Cotswold's section of that magnificent country and tour personal gardens and city parks. There are some very striking and obvious differences in what the English call a garden and what we know as a garden. Hopefully, you will find it as fascinating as I did.
 The English have many types of gardens; formal, cottage, and rose to name a few. Every home is different but every one has a garden! The front gardens were mostly formal and usually colorful. Flowers of every color were in abundance and not only in the ground but trellised on the house, wall baskets were attached to the brick walls and there were even baskets on the roof lines and overhangs of the front porch. All were very beautiful and well cared for. Clusters of colorful pots filled to the brim with flowers of every description. Never have I seen so many things blooming at the same time. Wisteria, roses, hydrangeas, lupine and delphiniums all bursting with color. One of the strangest facts about this was that most gardeners there rarely use plant food, but instead use lots of compost. With their climate, soil and ever present rain, gardening in England leads to fabulous results. Not to say they aren't in the garden everyday, they are but only for maintenance jobs. Gardening is truly their national pastime.
 Backyards there seem to be more informal; consisting mainly of fruit trees, water features and lawns. These were definitely more personal and relaxed spaces. They were harder to see as well but I did see a few. Play equipment and swing sets for small children, outdoor eating spaces and grape arbors were very popular and abundant. This was also one of the few places I actually saw lawns. Lawns aren't common or large there. That was a big difference for me. Water gardening was  also huge there. In one garden center I visited, they had rooms of salt water fish and anemones. The koi even had their own building. Every size and type of fish had their own tank and huge koi were in what could only be called a pool. In our area we tend to use our ponds for stimulation with waterfalls and colorful plantings whereas theirs are quiet and serene, seamlessly fitting into the surrounding landscape as if Mother Nature herself had put them there.
 The city parks fascinated me as well. Small or large, they were all planted with areas of annual and perennial flowers, mostly done in geometric shapes and outstanding colors. I finally realized the saturation of color in those flowers was due to a lack of heat and harsh sunlight. With a park on almost every corner I never lacked a place to go and explore. Strolling thru weeping willows, shrub roses, fuchsias and salvias was a gardener's delight. I must also add that I saw my first Magpie, and their pigeons are the size of chickens!! I was totally in awe!
 To say I enjoyed my stay there would be a gross understatement. The only thing depressing or upsetting about my vacation is that it had to end! And just let me say to the many customers and friends who helped me with my trip THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! Without you my dream would never have come true.
Margie Cooper
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