Category: Flowers

Wildflowers

Wildflower gardening is natural, easy and rewarding. Like magic, a handful of seeds can transform a little plot of soil into a bouquet of color and texture – and all with minimal effort.
 
In our Valley, it is natural for wildflowers to get started in late fall just as soon as the soil cools. So, following Mother Nature’s lead is the best approach – Fall planting is taking the path of least resistance and greatest success.
But there are a few things to keep in mind to ensure your wildflower garden is the success you want it to be:

Soil Preparation
Of course, in nature wildflowers fend for themselves without soil preparation; but Mother Nature can tolerate a much higher rate of failure than most homeowners. Some minimal soil preparation will go a long way, ensuring your wildflower success, and it does NOT have to be a major project. Just scratch the soil surface down an inch or two, rake it smooth, and distribute the seeds according to the package instructions. This small preparation will help your wildflowers get a good start and protect the seeds from becoming a bird banquet.
TIP: Use a light covering of mulch to protect your wildflower seeds then press the seeds into place by simply walking over the planting areas. For a large space borrow one of our water rollers to simplify the job.
 
Don’t Plant Too Deep
A planting depth of ¼” to ½” is preferred. While wildflower seeds will germinate at greater depths, they will not have the strength to push through the overlying soil.
 
Irrigation
Make sure the seeds stay moist; NOT WET. Avoid overwatering and make sure the location is well-drained to avoid root rot and leaf mold. Wildflowers are very hardy and drought-tolerant; more water than necessary is NOT better; when in doubt, err on the side of under-watering.
 
Patience
Wildflowers are somewhat more weather responsive than domesticated flowers – they will grow when they think it best. Here in our Valley, weather permitting it is possible to get some fall and winter color from your wildflower garden. If the weather runs too cold or wet, they will wait until spring to show up. This delay is NOT a sign of failure; it is how wildflowers have learned to survive.
Wildflowers can be a rewarding, low maintenance gardening project if you keep in mind they are “WILD” flowers and resist the temptation to micro-manage them. Generally, they will prosper best with what might be called benign neglect.

Fall is Time To Plant Perennials

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Fall is the perfect time for planting a perennial garden from gallon cans and four-inch pots. Perennials planted now will spend the winter putting down roots so come spring they will be ready to grow and bloom. Try drought-tolerant options this year. Planting in the fall requires much less water to establish. Drop-in and let us help you get started on a beautiful, blooming perennial border. You’ll find some of these bloom from summer into fall.

Salvia

Salvia Hot Lips

Salvias add water-wise color. The salvia family is endless! There are ornamental and edible members of this expansive family. They love the sun but even perform well with a little afternoon shade. Many Salvias are long-blooming, attract hummingbirds and butterflies, and require very little care once established.

Penstemon

Apple Blossom Penstemon

Penstemons are hardy evergreen shrub-like perennials with tubular flowers. The flowers are borne on spikes with color ranging from reds, blues, pink, salmons, purples, white and lilac. Penstemons attract hummingbirds. Penstemon are an excellent addition to the California garden because they are drought tolerant once they are established.

Shasta Daisy

Shasta Daisy

Shasta Daisies make excellent cut flowers as well as a beautiful addition to the perennial border. They bloom mid-summer through fall, finally giving in as the days get shorter and the temperatures drop. Shasta Daisies may be single or double petalled. A long leathery stem supports each flower. We have them in 4″ pots.

Lavender

Spanish Lavender

Lavender is a great looking perennial plant that is low maintenance, sun-loving, drought-resistant once established, and tolerant of benign neglect. — It is ideal for busy Valley residents who need to leverage their gardening time. By the way, lavender plants also make great additions to cut flower bouquets and are an ideal colorful, fragrant enhancement to dried flower arrangements or potpourri.

Fall Mums

If there is one flower that really lets us know it’s autumn – it’s the Chrysanthemum or Mum! Richly colored and aromatic, the chrysanthemum comes in a dazzling array of colors. Choose from white, orange, yellow, maroon, and purple.

Mums are sun-loving perennial plants often blooming in both spring and fall. 

Pop some color into a bed or container to set the stage for autumn. Add Soil Moist Granules to cut watering in half.

We are carrying fresh 4″ plants as well as larger one gallon pots. Each plant is loaded with blooms just beginning its bloom cycle.

Remove finished flowers as the fade to encourage future blooms.

Don’t overhead water because this encourages blossom rot.

Black-Eyed Susan

Although we all know the chrysanthemum as one of the outstanding beauties of the autumn garden there are other glorious plants that should also have top billing especially Rudbeckia or Black-Eyed Susan. These will fire up your late summer garden with a burst of sunshine and perform well through fall.

Black-Eyed Susan has an upright growth pattern to three feet. The plants bloom from mid-summer through fall with a color range from warm yellows to browns and coppery tones capped with dark brown or black centers (hence the name Black-Eyed Susan).

Prepare the soil with Master Nursery Planting Mix as Rudbeckia like well-draining soil. Remove faded blooms to extend the flowering season. Use Sluggo snail bait on a weekly basis to keep slugs away from the foliage. Avoid overhead watering to prevent powdery mildew.

Rudbeckia make an excellent cut flower just immerse the stems in boiling water for 30 seconds before adding them to your floral arrangements.

Succulents in the Garden

Succulents are easy to grow, beautiful, and popular. And that is not hard to understand when you see all the advantages they offer, especially here in our Valley.

Why are Succulents so Grand?

Low Water – Succulents can withstand drought better than soggy soil. These plants thrive where others wilt from lack of water. Your water district recommends these plants as an essential part of landscaping and gardening water conservation.

Low Maintenance – These plants are about as close to “plant it and forget it” as you can get. Most are native to the harsh southwestern desert where they have learned to fend for themselves. If your time for gardening and landscaping is limited, succulents belong on your shopping list.

Versatility – These plants are equally happy to be in your garden, landscaping, containers, and inside your home as houseplants. As long as you keep in mind, they do have some special needs. Most require at least 6 hours of sunlight others morning sun only; all require fast-draining soil. Our Cactus & Succulent Mix works great! Location is important, and some will need protection during the colder months.

Good Looks – Fortunately, you don’t have to sacrifice appearance for all these benefits. Succulents are some of nature’s most beautiful and exotic plants. Outdoors, your succulents will liven up your garden and give your home an original look. Few plants attract as much attention as these. You can use them as dramatic accents or go all out and create a complete desert garden motif. Inside, dish gardens with succulents can provide an attractive tabletop decoration that is sure to be a conversation starter.

Off-Season Blooming – When most other plants are in their dormant cycle, and the rest of your landscaping has the winter color blahs, many of these plants are at their colorful best. The aloes are in their glory from December to January; the cacti, puyas, yuccas and agave flower from April to June. A well-chosen selection and placement of cacti, succulents and their cousins will give your landscaping a year-round color look your neighbors will envy.

Here at Alden Lane, we have a large selection available for you to combine or we can suggest combinations for you. With their wide variety of architectural forms, succulents are a great garden addition.

We also have many color selections. You may like the blues, bronzes, purples or pinks of the Echeverias or the fuzzy feel of the Kalanchoe. 

These plants are among the most versatile of drought-tolerant garden offerings. They can express your artful side or your whimsy, whatever you choose. Also, they combine well with other low-water-use plants to make a lush garden display. Come in and catch on to this ongoing trend.

Spectacular Salvias

Salvia Black and Blue

The salvia family is endless! Salvias add water-wise color & texture. There are ornamental, edible and native members of this expansive family. Salvia display a variety of colors both in flowers and foliage. You can often enjoy wonderful aromas from the leaves as well.

Salvias are sun loving with a few varieties appreciating a shade break in the afternoon.

Many are long blooming, attract hummingbirds and butterflies and require very little care once established.

Favorite Salvias:

  • Salvia greggii – Known as Autumn Sage, this variety is available in a number of flower colors – red, yellow, pink, white and purple. Erect growth to about three feet with medium green foliage. Plant in full sun.
  • Salvia microphylla – This salvia is more leafy and dense than the Salvia greggii. Bright red flowers are borne in 4-6 inch clusters. The plant itself can reach 3-5 feet tall. This salvia is easy to grow and can be cut back almost to the ground if needed without harming the plant. It has a very long bloom season in mild areas. Hummingbirds love it!
  • Salvia leucantha – This variety is commonly known as Mexican Bush Sage. Long velvety purple spikes set with small white flowers crown the top of arching gray-green foliage. Long lasting bloom from summer to the first frost. Makes a good background plant in a border or large planting bed. Cut back in winter if stems have become too woody.
  • Salvia guaranitica – The ‘Black & Blue’ variety is a 3-4′ shrub with spikes of dark blue and black flowers. This is a long bloomer, hardy to 20 or 25 degrees.
  • Salvia elegans – Known as Pineapple Sage requires a bit more water than many of its saliva relatives although still fairly drought tolerant. This is a hummingbird favorite – blooming in late summer to early fall (August to October) when food sources may be less abundant.

Native Salvia Favorites:

  • Salvia apiana – White Sage is much loved for its distinctive foliage.
  • Salvia clevelandii – Fast growing and highly aromatic.

Plant Fall Decor – Start a Crop of Sunflowers

August is surprisingly good time to plant sunflowers from seed. Warm yellow sunflowers popping into bloom set the mood perfectly as days shorten and fall arrives. Make plans now for a seasonal transition.

Many sunflowers planted this past spring have already sprung, their flowers are fading, and seed heads are forming. Thanks to our mild California climate we can enjoy a bumper crop and second harvest by planting sunflowers a second time. Planting sunflowers from seed now will give an abundant crop of bouquet-ready blossoms for the fall table.

The best varieties for fall color are generally the shorter ones and the multi-branching ones. Sunflowers are easy to grow in any soil. Water to establish and expect blooms in six to eight weeks.

Feeding Roses – The Ultimate Recipe

The ultimate recipe for feeding roses includes a variety of ingredients meant to nurture your roses into spectacular bloom with healthy vibrant foliage.

Inspired by our friend, local rosarian, the late David Lowell, this program provides for general plant vigor and wonderful looking roses! For use on established roses only (planted for at least 6 months).

Feed now and exhibit in the Mt. Diablo Rose Society Fall Rose Show on October 11th & 12th here at Alden Lane.

davesrosemarch[1]Apply in AUGUST and MARCH.

For each rose apply:

  • Use a 5-5-5 for the August Application – 1/2 cup/rose (4# box for about 9 roses)
    Use a 16-16-16 for the March Application – 1/2 cup per rose (5# bag for 18 roses)
  • Bone Meal – 1/2 cup per rose (4# bag for 18 roses)
  • Sulfur* – 1/2 cup per rose (5# bag for 18 roses)
  • Gypsum – 1/2 cup per rose (5# bag for 18 roses)
  • Magnesium Sulfate – 2 Tbs. per rose (5# bag for 70+ roses)
  • Chicken Fertilizer – 1 shovel per rose (1 bag for 9 roses)

*To supply sulfur, use one of the following: Iron Sulfate, Iron Plus*, or Soil Sulfur. Iron containing products can stain. Wash off adjacent paving after application. (*Iron Plus is non-staining.)

Make sure to water your roses the day before feeding. Sprinkle the first 5 ingredients around each rose and mix into soil if possible. Then sprinkle the chicken fertilizer around each rose and water everything in.

Do NOT combine this recipe with systemic rose fertilizer. It poses a serious health risk to pets if ingested. Pets are attracted to the bone meal and may ingest systemic rose food if it is included in this recipe or applied other months in the same area.

Alden Lane Nursery recommends applying Master Nursery Rose and Flower Food monthly, April through July and September (skipping August for Spring and Fall Fertilizer Program above).

Summer Container Watering Tips

Container plants in the heat of July and Dog-Days of August can dry out in less than a day.

Test soil around plants before watering
Soil should be only slightly moist before liberally applying water to any plant, whether in your garden or a container. Poke the probe of a moisture meter about 1″ deep around different parts of the pot to get an accurate sense of the moisture levels.

Water each plant
At the nursery, we water frequently in the summer heat. The correct procedure is to flood the containerized plant until the water runs slightly over the top sides of the container and drains out the bottom of the pot. If it drains quickly, then water it twice.

How often do I water?
You can become the best judge because you know the surroundings better than we do. Test the soil around the plant. Water thoroughly if needed. Check the soil moisture frequently and allow the plant to go slightly dry before watering thoroughly again. After 2 or 3 times of following this procedure, you will know the intervals of days the plant can go without watering again. On excessively hot days check plants two times!

Watch the Weather

Remember, if there is a drastic change of temperature; either way, it will affect your watering schedule.

Add water-holding polymer
Soil Moist to all your container plantings of flowers and shrubs. It will help cut your watering in half.

Alstroemerias

Alstroemerias or Peruvian Lilies are blooming around the nursery in a bright array of colors, and their attention-getting flowers deserve a place in your garden.

Alstroemerias are easy to grow perennials that bloom much of the warm season. They look good in the garden, and they look good in a vase. Alstroemerias are some of the best cut flowers on the market, often lasting two weeks in your home.

Alstroemeria can fill a good-sized spot in your sun garden if you let them. These long-lived perennials are a reliable bloomer from spring through summer. They are available in a wide range of colors, therefore, complementing many of your other plantings. For best results give them some shade in mid afternoon. They can flourish in dappled shade as well. They have strong stems for great cut flowers, love wet or dry conditions, and they come in pink, yellow, purple and many more colors.