[ Salvia Rockin'® Deep Purple | Posted on October 2, 2022 ] Rockin' Deep Purple does produced the occasional seed/seedling. Seedlings I have found so far have had dark purple, pink or light blue almost white blooms. While all these colors are in the Rockin' series, they are not exact matches to the original blooms or plants. But for the price of one Deep Purple and a couple years, I have two new colors. |
[ Common Blue Violet (Viola sororia) | Posted on April 20, 2018 ] I find this mildly aggressive spreading plant a welcome addition to the few beds it has decided to make a home in so far, mainly because it is a host plant for Fritillary butterflies. Its pretty purple early blooms and cute heart-shaped leaves are an added bonus to my often otherwise drab and fairly barren early spring beds. |
[ Spider Flower (Tarenaya houtteana) | Posted on June 23, 2017 ] Spider Flower (Tarenaya hassleriana) is a butterfly host plant for the Great Southern White, Cabbage White, and Checkered White butterflies. |
[ Hummingbird Plant (Ruttya fruticosa) | Posted on May 9, 2016 ] Just a few thoughts and observations of my year of owning ruttya fruticosas. |
[ Hummingbird Plant (Ruttya fruticosa) | Posted on February 6, 2016 ] Just a small word of warning: If you are trying to save any seed pods, harvest them as soon as the pods turn brown. The pods will explode and eject the seeds soon after they do. |
[ Crocosmia 'Lucifer' | Posted on July 3, 2015 ] I have tried for 7 or 8 years to get this plant to bloom. It always produces stalks and plenty of offshoots, and last year had a flower stem with buds, but it got chewed up by something and fell off before it ever matured. This year I finally have actual flower blooms on 2 stalks and a whole lot of extra offshoots, more then usual. Only thing I can say I really did differently this year was to water it every other day heavily at the soil. The hummingbirds seem to enjoy the flowers, as do I. It was a long time from bulb planting to actual flowering for me, but it is a very pretty flower and a hardy plant that has come back year after year in my zone. I look forward to the day when I have an army of them blooming. |
[ Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum) | Posted on May 17, 2015 ] This is a must have every year. It is easy to grow and I love the scent. Bees and hummingbirds love the flowers in summer, goldfinches love eating the seeds out of the buds in fall, and adding dried deadheaded buds to my smoker's firebox adds a nice flavor to my smoked meats. |