Vibrant Village ™

If you've never been thrilled to the very edges of your soul by a flower in spring bloom, maybe your soul has never been in bloom.

~Terri Guillemets

Two beautiful, fragile daffodils...better than any red breast that may fly along, and the only harbinger I need to remind me that spring is right around the corner.  These daffodils are my springboard into garden visions.  These daffodils inspire me to survey the rise and, unfortunately, fall of my garden inhabitants.

I begin to think about possible new plantings….new foliage or color options for the garden palette.    Like any woman who’s moved her furniture around a few times or tried out new comforters or couches as her color tastes have changed, so it goes in the garden.

At one time, I was absolutely nuts about pink…..hot or pastel, it didn’t matter.  It spoke summer passion and beauty to me.  I still love pink, but I’m also mad about anything blue for the garden and adore a splash of vivid red and an even bigger splash of golden yellow.

Sadly, there are always a few favorites that, for one reason or another, do not weather the winter’s difficulties.  This was an especially troubling one with long periods of heavy rain and extremes of temperature.  But, whether a plant fails due to weather trials, or gardener error, their absence in the garden is not an option.  Some plants are simply too spectacular to live without.  When they fail, they simply HAVE to be replaced.

My all time favorite can’t-live-without blue bloomer is the Lithodora diffusa (Heavenly Blue).  It is a ground cover with dark green leaves, but, living up to its name, dons the most heavenly electric blue blooms in early spring.

Of course, there are so many favorites, but let me share just a few others that you may want to include in your spring/summer landscape.  Baptisia is another lovely blue perennial with dark smoky stems.  Its emergence from the earth is always a surprise to me in the spring.

I am a “peeping Constance.”  As soon as I notice a few things popping up, I’m pulling away mulch and scratching into the earth to see what’s on its way.  My Baptisia is one of those plants that I never find….despite my deep scratchings…..but as soon as I think…”well maybe not this year,” it is up and going strong.  The variety growing in my garden is a dwarf variety (18 inches or so), but taller ones reaching 4 to 5 feet are available with blue or white flowers.

I find my splash of red in a hardy gladiola called Atom.  Hardy glads are not the massive long stem bloomers we associate with gladiolas, but are shorter with smaller blooms.  Atom is that perfect red stroke of the paintbrush.  Its blossoms are a hot red, as the name suggests, set off by a tiny border of white around each bloom.  It’s a real eye-catcher.  Adding more of these beauties is definitely part of my garden expansion for this summer.

If you can get past the pronunciation of Oenothera you’ve essentially won the battle.  I was first introduced to this golden jewel at my home in Salisbury.  It was a taller variety than the one in my present garden border, and more of a spreader, but both live up to its common name, Sundrops.

The flowers are a bright golden yellow that continue to bloom and brighten the landscape throughout the summer.    I purchased this one to mix in a container garden.  It was beautiful in that setting most of the summer.  Once it stopped blooming, I transferred it the garden border where it has weathered the winter beautifully and is well on its way to garden glory.  It is definitely a keeper.

I just don’t think you can plan and plant a garden bed in this area that does not include day lilies.  There are endless color varieties that are hardy, dependable and prolific bloomers.  One of the things I love about them is their ability to spread and fill a bed.  They are wonderful plants to share and easily separated with a trowel or shovel.  Most of the varieties I have were gifts from friends that were eager to help me fill my garden canvas.

Let me share one more favorite idea with you. There are an abundance of flowers, vegetables and herbs that you can easily start from seed.  I experimented with several varieties last spring, and had virtually 100% success.

Two of my favorites in the flower realm are nasturtium and zinnia.  As a child, one of my fondest memories is the border of nasturtiums outside our house. The blooms range from yellow to orange to cherry red.  There are varieties that trail as well as clump. Get them started early, and you’ll have gorgeous blossoms into early summer.  They are not a favorite of heat, so they will tend to fade as summer temperatures rise.

Zinnias, on the other hand, thrive in the hot temps of summer.  They are available in a rainbow of colors and bloom varieties.  Over the last couple of years, I’ve discovered two newer varieties that I, now, must plant every year.

Zinnia Profusion is a smaller plant (around 10 -12 inches in height) with 2 inch blooms.  I started them from seed and then transplanted them into clusters in the garden.  Available in a yellow, orange, coral, deep red and cherry red--the perfect splash of color for a garden border.

The other zinnia, discovered last year, is a variety called Zinnita.  These tiny wonders are 6 to 8 inches in height, but a carpet of gorgeous oranges, reds, whites, yellows and pinks.  They are very easy to grow…..I just sowed them into a large pot and let them fill up the space.  Really wonderful.

I know you have favorites and “can’t-live-withouts” of your own.  I am always looking for more to add to my list, and would love to hear about them.  Write and tell me about your 'must have's.'

What colors bloom on your perfect palette?

Constance is a life-long North Carolinian and learned her gardening craft from her 'green-thumbed grandmother' who allotted Constance a small garden space and a package of pumpkin seeds and let her “have my way with it.” Today Constance continues to “practice” her gardening efforts at her home in Beaufort, North Carolina, assisted by her tribe of feline garden helpers.