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Seeds For Trial Garden

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A few of the seeds that were sent to me

This year I received seeds to trial in my gardens from American Meadows. They arrived this last week, and the weather is finally warming up so that I can get ready to plant them. Exciting, is it not?

I have a large amount that were sent in the nicest cloth bags, 1/4 lb. worth of an annual Wildflower mix, and equal amount of a Honeybee mix! Those are really generous amounts.  I plan to place some in my prairie style patch in the front yard, some in the vegetable patch ( a row of honeybee friendly plants should help with pollination) and go looking for other sunny spots for this windfall of glorious seed.

I was especially glad to see the little packets of forget-me-nots. This has always been a favorite of mine and I lost them due to the fact that I mulched heavily in that area of my garden. Reseeding can’t take place when smothered by mulch. In fact, that is the main reason we mulch, to prevent seed sprouting- although it is the weedy type that is unwanted.

Just goes to show that when we prevent one type of seed, we sometimes unknowingly deny ourselves some of the pretty plants that we wanted to reappear.

American Meadows Wildflower Seeds

Some of the things that I like about what I received is the fact that that this company is GMO free.

“All the seed we handle at American Meadows is GMO free.”

Seed Order
A timely order well sent

They have regional mixes, and mixes for specific uses, like fragrance or the Honeybee mix I received. The seeds arrived on one of the few nice days we’ve had and were well packaged in a bubblewrap type of envelope.

I am going to be able to prepare some ground this week, and will plant at least some of the seeds into the ground. I plan to stagger the planting since we are able to have frost into May. That way I can also determine the best results from planting times. In looking at the types of seeds in the mix, I expect that if planted too early, some would be lost to cold conditions.

Meadow gardens

I have been wanting to create more of this type of garden, although I do find that I must keep after my wild looking little prairie patch. Canadian thistle likes to settle in there, and the goldenrod is pretty pushy, although it belongs in such a place.

I mix in exotic species (don’t hate me), including some ornamental grasses, plants like the Shasta daisies that do a little too well elsewhere. My rationale is that an ecosystem like a prairie is almost impossible to truly replicate. So, I am happy with an area that is supportive of bees, wildlife, and has little or no need of extra water, or chemical and mechanical maintenance.

I expect to have plenty of topic and photo fodder to report on throughout this growing season.

Are you changing how you grow and landscape your yards? In what way?

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© 2013 written for Ilona’s Garden Journal by Ilona E. An excellent blog.

Globe Thistles And Other Nice Looking Xeriscape Plants

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Globe Thistle

The last post was about thistles, since I had been hard at work in the garden getting rid of as many as I possibly could manage, but there are lovely garden flowers that have thistle characteristics without their tendency to elbow everything else out.

Long ago, when planting my first garden on Glen Echo (isn’t that a lovely name for a street? Too bad it was located right next to a raucous, busy thoroughfare), I helped an elderly lady do some yard work. She grew a pretty perennial border and the globe thistle stood in a healthy stand within it. She called it “Goat’s thistle” as I recall, but its official name is Echinops. I think “goat’s” thistle is more of a noxious kind, and as a matter of fact, grazing goats are one means of getting rid of your thistle weed problems. Anyway, once I started my rural garden I decided that I had room for this plant with the steely blue flowers, and for another lovely thistly looking bloom, Eryngium.

Those were both planted in a part of the garden I sadly had to relinquish back to nature’s grasses, and the Eryngium succumbed to constant mowing, but the Globe thistle still survives. Surprisingly it never did spread into a large patch like I envisioned, but I like its odd flowers; they are reminiscent of a stiff Allium that comes along in midsummer.

I’m thinking of those flowers, now, since I would like to renew their acquaintance, and find a place to start them in my present flower gardens. They normally are quite persistent and tolerant of drought. Their subtle colors blend well into the garden and I think they would match up well with Russian sage and red Monardas. They might look pretty near the dusky ‘Diablo’ ninebarks (Physocarpus), if I have a space to tuck them in. I think I do! So that is an idea to jot down in my notebook.

It was E. maritinum that I grew, and while I might try Miss Willmott’s Ghost ( E. giganteum) the smaller “Sea Holly” has a cultivar called ‘Sapphire Blue’ that I’d like to look for at the end of summer.

Plant Families

Although Canadian thistle, Globe Thistle, and Eryngium all have a bristly appearance, only the two thistles are related inside the Asteracae family. The Sea Holly” is a different clan, completely: the Apiaceae. Yet, they have a similar appearance in the garden and their assets are much the same as well. Blue ( gray blue, actually) in flower, architectural in presence, of medium heights, and tough plants.

Globe ThistleConeflowers and eryngium
In these pictures the first one has Echinops with Adenophora and an orange daylily. The second picture has a stand of eryngium and coneflowers (Echinacea) just coming into bloom.

Plants For A Xeriscape

Both these plants like sunny spot, even sun baked. They handle drought and are beneficial plants for bees and butterflies, but not native to the USA. You can also dry the flower heads for arrangements.

 

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Visit Ilona’s Garden Journal on facebook: Click here
© 2013 written for Ilona’s Garden Journal by Ilona E. An excellent blog.