GARDENING : Big Production: Blooms for All Seasons
A gardener’s right of passage to summertime usually involves ripping out tired fall annuals and replacing them with summer-blooming annuals. Marigolds, petunias or impatiens usually fill the empty holes in the landscape.
But there’s a vast selection of perennials that will reward the grower with long seasonal color for many more months than annuals can produce.
Discriminating garden enthusiasts seek choice perennials or shrubs with nonstop color from either showy flowers or pleasing foliage. There are many plants that will reward gardeners in mild winter areas such as ours with colorful blooms practically year-round. The key is to find those that thrive in the long, sunny days of summer and fall and also flourish in our mild winter with its shorter days.
Such old standbys as lantana, hibiscus and even true geraniums (Geranium incanum) demand little and produce mightily.
Others can be used as ground covers, along borders or as garden focal points. Some are improved hybrids of standbys, other are new introductions such as Scaevola aemula ‘Blue Wonder,’ which “really is a wonder plant that jumps out at you in the landscape,” said Kevin Naughton, owner of Laguna Hills Nursery in Laguna Beach. “It’s hardy, a vigorous grower, and gives a blaze of vibrant blue color much of the year.”
Naughton encourages his customers to include plants in their gardens that are free-flowering most of the year yet demand minimal maintenance. Among his top recommendations are Gaura, a perennial that produces vertical spikes of whitish-pink flowers for at least eight months; several varieties of lavender; Salviagregii, with a pungent aroma, and Helichrysum ‘Golden Beauty,’ an overlooked strawflower.
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Barry Barton has been gardening for more than 20 years. He maintains an English cottage garden at his Santa Ana home but selects plants more suited to the dry conditions of Southern California. One of his favorites is Phlomis fruticosa (Jerusalem sage), which he prizes for the woolly gray-green foliage and the endless spikes of yellow flowers that emerge in ball-shaped whorls. He encourages continuous flowering by cutting the plant back after each bloom cycle.
Heliotropium arborescens used to be planted widely in Southern California gardens at the beginning of this century. It gradually fell out of fashion and almost disappeared but has been making a comeback.
Heliotrope is highly fragrant, grows to four feet and produces continuous clusters of delicate flowers in white, dark violet or bluish-purple. The white variety, ‘Alba,’ is the most fragrant and free-flowering but may be harder to find. Huntington Botanical Gardens in San Marino propagates it for sale during its yearly major plant sale and also its monthly sales.
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While some plants are noted for long periods of bloom and relatively easy care, heavily blooming plants usually need regular water and fertilizer. In general, avoid fertilizers with high amounts of nitrogen.
“Too much nitrogen can encourage the plant to produce new growth rather than flowers,” cautions Wade Roberts, director of Sherman Gardens in Corona del Mar.
He recommends a consistent fertilizing program beginning in early spring and continuing until the start of cool weather in the fall.
“Day length is the important factor,” he added. “A plant usually doesn’t need as much fertilizer in cooler weather, when the days are shorter, but you have to interpret what each plant needs.”
Some Nonstop Bloomers
* Argeranthemum frutescens ‘Butterfly.’ Compact, brilliant yellow Marguerite daisy. In our mild climate, blooms year-round.
* Begonia Richmondensis. Sturdy plant produces two-foot-long arching stems with profuse, salmon pink flowers. Attractive deep green foliage with red undersides. Sun or partial shade.
* Brachycome iberidifolia ‘Swan River Daisy.’ Annual native to Australia produces blue, white, rose and bicolor flowers in spring, summer and fall.
* Chrysanthemum hosmariensis ‘Moroccan Daisy.’ Low mounding plant that thrives in heat or cold (to 20 degrees). The silver-green foliage is topped with large white flowers with big yellow centers, similar to daisies. Blooms October through July.
* Dipladenia ‘Red Riding Hood.’ Bush produces prolific dark rosy-red flowers year-round. Loves warmth but will bloom along the coast.
* Euryops. Shrubby evergreen perennial with yellow, daisy-like flowers. Long bloom season, but needs to be cut back after flowering to prevent woody, scraggly growth.
* Erigeron karvinskianus. This variety of fleabane is also called Santa Barbara daisy. Perennial, with daisy-like flowers; has trailing growth, suitable for rock gardens, ground cover or hanging baskets. Naturalizes easily and can be invasive.
* Felicia. South African shrubby perennial with blue, daisy-like flowers. Vigorous grower, needs pruning to maintain an attractive appearance.
* Gaura. Native to the Southwest, this perennial produces four-foot flower spikes with whitish-pink flowers. Excellent for vertical color to tuck between other plants. Blooms spring through fall and reseeds freely. Needs full sun.
* Helichrysum bracteatum ‘Golden Beauty.’ A perennial strawflower popular in Europe and new to the United States. Thrives in heat as well as cold and is free-flowering throughout the year. Compact plant for containers or landscapes. Flowers can be dried and used in arrangements.
* Heliotrope. Very fragrant perennial shrubs with cascading growth. ‘Alba’ has a vanilla-like aroma. Continuous bloom year-round. Excellent for slopes. Prefers sun but will bloom in part shade.
* Lavendula Provence. This heavily fragrant lavender is the tallest of the many varieties of lavender, forming clumps four-feet wide and sending up four-foot tall spikes of sweet-smelling blue flowers. Repeat flowering year-round.
* L. pinnata. This lavender produces multitudes of vibrant blue flower spikes but no fragrance. Gray-green foliage is softer in appearance than Provence.
* Osteospermum ‘Sparkler.’ New ever-blooming bush-type African daisy. This improved variety blooms year-round with iridescent white flowers larger than the traditional freeway daisies.
* Salvia leucantha. Mexican bush sage. Produces velvety five-foot blue spikes in spring, summer and fall. Drought tolerant but performs well with increased water. Cut back once yearly to control growth.
* Verbena bonariensis. Tall graceful spikes topped with tiny lavender flower clusters. Annuals that reseed freely and bloom spring through fall.
