Fabulous New Care Free Flowers
By Marion Jacobi
From the April 2006
Issue of Applaud Magazine

Everyone wants their home to look great during the warm weather months, but not everyone has the time to constantly care for growing plants all season long. There is an exciting new plant introduction this year that can make any home shine. Proven Winners is introducing Supertunia Vista Bubblegum Pink and Supertunia Vista Fuchsia this spring. These easy care, ever blooming Petunias were trialed in various parts of the country in 2005 to insure superior performance, and Bubblegum Pink was rated “Best in Show 2005” by Colorado State University. What makes the Vista series so unique is that they were bred specifically for landscape use. A single 4 inch potted plant will grow into a mound of showy flowers nearly 2 feet tall and wide when planted in the ground. I had the pleasure of seeing these beauties myself last summer at the trial gardens at Pleasantview Greenhouses in Loudon. These flowering sensations were absolutely magnificent and needed only minimal care – a bit of fertilizer when watering and you get mounds of flowers until the first heavy frost in the fall. Vista Petunias will perform best in full sun to part shade conditions. Another easy, care free plant to add to your perennial border is Caryopteris Sunshine Blue. Caryopteris is a great plant because it provides color in the garden when many other plants have passed their prime. Sunshine Blue has golden yellow foliage and rich blue flowers. It blooms when grown in full sun and gets to be 36 inches tall and wide when full grown. In this climate it is treated as a sub-shrub, which means that it gets cut back to 6-8 inches tall in early spring. The rich blue flowers are absolutely glorious in late summer and make fabulous cut flowers. One more new favorite is Weigela Midnight Wine. What is special about this Weigela is that it stays relatively small so can be used in groupings with other perennials for stunning combinations. Midnight Wine has dark burgundy purple leaves, has rosy pink flowers in the spring, re-blooms throughout the summer, and stays between 18-24 inches tall. It grows best in full sun. A nice low maintenance feature is that it never needs any pruning! Last but not least is Itea Little Henry. This little wonder grows in full sun or full shade but requires little pruning or other maintenance. Little Henry has lightly scented pure white flowers in early summer. It is a lovely addition to a mixed border, and in the fall it turns into a ball of fire with a mixture of oranges and reds in the foliage. Little Henry grows between 24-36 tall and wide when fully grown. So if you have a corner of the yard that needs a little extra color, try one or more of these stunners. You will be very pleased. Marion Jacobi, The Divine Gardener, has been designing gardens for homeowners since 1999. She can assist homeowners in getting the plants referred to above. Marion can be reached at 603-626-7729 or at Divinegardener@comcast.net.