Insp覺rat覺ons Spring/Summer
2016
Four Season Solutions for Home and Garden
Petunias Made Easy
Gorgeous Container Gardens for Shade Creating a Backyard Habitat 4 Ways to Refresh Your Garden for Summer
2016
Your quest for effortless beauty is over. Hardy, dwarf-sized Bobo速 Hydrangea is engulfed with blooms beyond your imagination. Visit us at provenwinners-shrubs.com.
Spring/Summer 2016
About Homestead Gardens Founded in 1973 by Don Riddle, Jr., our landmark nursery is nestled amidst the beautiful rolling countryside of Davidsonville, Maryland and is the largest enclosed garden center in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. metropolitan areas. From our humble beginnings as a roadside stand first selling azaleas, bedding plants, mums and poinsettias, Homestead Gardens has since expanded to become one of the country’s leading garden centers. Homestead Gardens, Severna Park was opened in 2010 and continues to thrive. Our stores boast the area’s largest selection of annuals, perennials, trees and shrubs, landscaping design and build service, outdoor lighting, garden accessories, casual furniture and more.
Our Locations Homestead Gardens
743 W Central Ave Davidsonville, MD 21035 410-798-5000
And our second location: 522 Ritchie Highway Severna Park, MD 21146 410-384-7966 homesteadgardens.com
Best Garden Center
How to Reach Us ADVERTISING Gil Kidd Inspirations Magazine 248-798-4243 gkidd@ecgc.com Inspirations is published for ECGC LLC by ECGC Distributors, Inc. © 2016 ECGC LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part of any text, photograph, or illustration without express written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Correspondence: On matters concerning the magazine, write to Gary Jones, 2200 E. Route 66, Suite 200, Glendora, CA 91740; gjones@armstronggarden.com; 626-914-1091; fax: 626-335-0257. Opinions expressed within are not to be considered official expressions of ECGC LLC, Inspirations. ECGC LLC assumes no responsibility for errors and omissions appearing within. ECGC LLC reserves the right to accept or reject all editorial and advertising matter. ECGC LLC does not assumes any liability for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, or artwork.
Dear Gardening Friends in the Capital Region,
Welcome to spring! It had a rocky start, but we are confident that warmer weather is here to stay. May is peak gardening season and many of you may have already made the annual trek to the garden center for fresh color or new trees and shrubs to spruce up your yard. However, what you may not know is that gardening is no longer limited by the seasons, your property size or your experience. New technology has allowed people to get growing regardless of where they live, their age or the weather outside. Here at Homestead Gardens we have embraced these advances and are excited by the opportunities they present – introducing new people to the joys and benefits of cultivating a garden. That is why we have built an entirely new department dedicated to these gardening technologies – Modern Homesteading. Homeowners, apartment dwellers and others will find everything they need to get started, from the growing medium, to grow lights, and nutrition. Gardening enthusiasts will find growing systems to cultivate their hobby into a passion. We invite you to join us for weekly seminars and workshops to introduce you to new technologies, methods and more. The series is designed for beginning and advanced gardeners alike. Topics to be covered include: • • • • • •
Organic Gardening Made Simple Managing Pests and Disease ‘Smart’ Gardening in Pots Year Round Gardening Hydroponics for Beginners & more!
Visit HomesteadGardens.com/events for the full schedule and to learn more. Grow your own way – whether it’s a veggie garden on the balcony of your apartment, starting seeds in the garage, or a pot of herbs on the kitchen counter. No matter your reasons – whether for health or hobby – Homestead’s NEW Modern Homesteading department makes it easy.
Brian Riddle
President and CEO, Homestead Gardens
SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Inspirations
1
Contents
I N S PIRATIONS S P R I N G / S U M M E R 2 0 1 6
4
Equipped for the Season What to use when your garden needs help.
8 13
Container Gardens for Shade
One Hour Project: Brighten dull, shady corners.
Easy and Effective Organic Lawn Garden Solutions
Once the decision’s made to “go organic”, gardening choices become easy.
20 22
24 27 30
Petunias Made Easy
New varieties are introduced every year, each one an improvement on the last.
Low-Maintenance Gardening
Follow these simple rules and techniques to have a “party-ready” garden all summer long with little effort.
20
Winging It
Creating a Backyard Habitat
Stylish Garden Living
4 Ways to refresh your garden for summer.
Summer Refresh
Containers so colorful they’re sure to put you in a sunny mood.
13
12 2 Inspirations
24 22
SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Ebony Series Crapemyrtles
Baby Gem Boxwood PP21159
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Equipped for the Season
What to use when your garden needs help. “A workman is as good as his tools” is a phrase that most gardeners would agree with. A task or project is always more pleasant (and efficiently finished) when the right tools are at hand. And Michele Cordrey, Homestead’s hardgoods buyer, believes that every garden task “ought to be a pleasant one.” She has ensured that Homestead Gardens has everything you need for a beautiful, year-round garden. Michele has created an easy 5-point outline to make sure you’ve got just what you need in your garden shed for any garden project.
4 Inspirations
SPRING/SUMMER 2016
1 Accessories Simple things like top-quality gloves, a pair of knee pads, and hats and shoes designed just for gardening can really make a difference in comfort. Sloggers gardening shoes and boots for men and women offer all-day comfort insoles and deep treads.
2 Tools For hand tools, you can’t do better than lightweight, sturdy, ergonomically-designed Corona and Fiskars. For long-handled tools, Michele recommends Bully and True Temper tools. Garden knives come in handy for all sorts of projects and for cutting small stems that are hard to reach with pruners. Homestead’s got a great collection of knives by Case, Fiskars and Victorinox. Once gardeners find their favorite pruners, they can be pretty locked in. That’s why Homestead has a wide selection of the best cutting tools from Corona, Fiskars and Swiss-made Felco. With replaceable parts, Felcos will last a lifetime.
3 Seed Starting If you and your kids (or grandkids) want to experience the wonder and joy of starting plants from seeds, you’ll want to begin with the best-quality seeds from Botanical Interests and Renee’s Garden. Starting a lawn? Then choose seed designed just for your area from Homestead Gardens and Jonathan Green.
4 Amendments, Feeding and Problem-Solving For a great garden, always start by improving your soil. Espoma and Miracle-Gro both offer high-quality amendments and potting soils. To control weeds, both Bayer and Bonide [specific product names here] will do the trick. Just like people, plants need regular feeding. For lawns, choose organic foods from Jonathan Green or traditional fertilizers from Greenview Fairway. Espoma makes safe, organic foods, including Espoma Safe Paws, designed just for pet owners.
5 Stone and Mulch Mulching reduces weeds, holds in moisture and reduces heat stress on plants. Homestead’s created one that is ideal for our area. We call it Homestead Maryland Select. Preen Plus mulch has an added pre-emergent weed killer that stops weeds before they start. Homestead also carries bagged stone for all kinds of projects. For landscaping, we’ve got a great selection of wall stone as well as boulders from Everlast Quality Natural Stone.
(410) 586-3404 | (410) 257-3257 | FAX (410) 586-2843 P.O. BOX 6 | SAINT LEONARD, MD 20685
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One Hour Project
Container Gardens for Shade Brighten dull, shady corners.
I
n less than an hour, you can brighten up dull, shady garden corners and drab, sunless patio spots with containers of richly colored shade plants. It’s a fun family project that will provide beautiful color and a sense of satisfaction all summer through fall. Pots and containers allow you to garden where it’s not normally possible: on cement and brick patios, wooden decks and under trees where thick roots make planting difficult.
8 Inspirations
SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Start by choosing your containers
Plants for Shade Containers Small Trees Acer palmatum (yellow and red varieties) Amelanchier
Remember, with Homestead Gardens’ wide selection of glazed pottery, you can add a blast of color merely with pots. Your container choices will then set your color theme.
Shrubs Aucuba japonica Burkwood Viburnum Calycanthus floridus Camellia Chaenomeles Corylopsis Daphne Euonymus (variegated forms) Hydrangea Judd Viburnum Kalmia Kerria japonica Pieris Rhododendron
If you decide on neutral containers, then choose a bright color theme for each grouping. This will unify the look and provide a pleasing harmony.
Next, choose your plants Anything’s fair game for containers: compact shrubs, annuals, ornamental grasses, quirky perennials, exotic tropicals (including houseplants), veggies and herbs. Plants with colorful foliage will guarantee that there’s never a dull moment.
Perennials ‘Autumn Brilliance’ fern Alchemilla Aquilegia Astilbe
Don’t be stingy: pots and containers look best when they’re full and overflowing. This is one instance in gardening where crowding is okay.
Brunnera ‘Jack Frost’ Campanula Carex elata ‘Bowles Golden’ and ‘Ice Dance’ Chrysogonum ‘Eco Lacquered Spider’ Tiarella ‘Running Tapestry’ or ‘Brandywine’ Euphorbia ‘Ascot Rainbow’, ‘Shorty’, ‘Tiny Tim’ Geranium ‘Rozanne’ Helleborus Heuchera Heucherella ‘Redstone’, ‘Yellowstone’ or ‘Golden Zebra’ Hosta (miniature varieties) Ipomoea Ivy Lamium ‘Red Nancy’, ‘Shell Pink, ‘Orchid Frost’
Liriope muscari Lobelia cardinalis Polemonium Primula Pulmonaria ‘Raspberry Splash’, ‘High Contrast’ Tassel Fern Annuals Angel Wing Begonia Browallia Coleus Dragon Wing Begonia Fuchsia Ivy Kalanchoe Lobelia Primula New Guinea Impatiens Torenia
Place small screens over pot holes and fill pots almost full with Homestead’s own Maryland Select potting soil. Press it down firmly to compact it. This should leave enough room for your plants. As you plant, adjust the soil so that the tops of the roots are at least one inch below the top of the pot rim. This will allow you to give it plenty of water throughout the summer.
Next page:
The
Rule of Three
How to create a beautiful planter
SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Inspirations
9
Follow the
Rule of Three design principle
What’s the “Rule of Three”? Use “thrillers, “fillers” and “spillers” to guarantee a beautiful shade container—no matter the plants you choose. Start with a thriller
This will anchor your design, making a strong, vertical statement. It will be the tallest plant and is typically centered in the container. One is all you need. Have fun with it— grass-like plants are often used, but why not a striking tropical plant or a shrub with colorful foliage?
Now add mounding plants, the fillers They’ll occupy most of the space in your planter. Fillers are typically your flower power. For a simple design you can use two or three of the same plant. It’s fine if they’re different, but you’ll want to keep some commonality among them to create harmony and unity: a repeated color tone, a leaf or flower shape, a repeated texture.
Crackling Fire® Begonia, red
Next, add plants that will spill Spillers give a sense of abundance and fullness. They soften edges, tie the container to the plants, and unify the design as a whole. Here’s another opportunity for creative expression. Anything that trails can be used as a spiller: trailing houseplants, annuals or groundcover plants. Lysimachia Container gardens always look best when they are abundant and very full. To get them that way, and to keep them colorful, use the one-two feeding trick that top garden designers use. Right after planting, apply a timed-release food like Osmocote. In addition, feed regularly with Jack’s Classic All Purpose Plant Food every two to four weeks. This one-two feeding trick will keep your shade containers looking vibrant, colorful and full all season long.
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THINK OF IT AS A FORCE FIELD FOR INVASIVE PESTS.
With Bayer AdvancedTM Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed, your customers will be able to protect their trees from invasive pests, such as Emerald Ash Borer* and Hemlock Woolly Adelgid.** By offering a solution with 12 months of protection from a single application, we can partner to promote healthy trees for life together. *All liquids and NY formula granules only. For best results, apply in early spring. **For best results, apply in late summer.
© 2016 Bayer CropScience LP. Bayer Advanced is a business group of Bayer CropScience LP. 2 TW Alexander Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709. Always read and follow label directions. Bayer (reg’d), the Bayer Cross (reg’d), and Bayer Advanced™ are trademarks of Bayer.
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APPROVAL: Addl. Notes: None
Easy as 1...2...3! Peacock Garden Supports grow with your plants, providing a smart alternative to sticks, strings, and cumbersome wire cages. With completely interchangeable stakes, rings, borders, and grids, they are perfect for all types of plants, small or large. And they can be put in place at any time throughout the year without damaging the plants. See our entire collection at Homestead Gardens or online at PeacockSupportsUSA.com.
Exclusively distributed by
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For nearly 90 years and three generations, our family has provided solutions to home lawn & garden pest problems. Whether it’s natural or synthetic, liquid, dust or granule, concentrate or ready-to-use, Bonide will always provide you the best solution to your pest problem.
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Weed Control Insect Control Disease Control Insect & Disease Control Animal Repellents Home Pest Control Captain Jack’s DeadBug Brew contains spinosad, a compound first discovered on a Caribbean island at an abandoned rum distillery. This all natural product provides excellent insect control on your fruits, vegetables, flowers and ornamentals. Go gardening with The Captain.
It’s better than Seven. Eight brand insect control lasts for up to 4 weeks and kills over 100 different types of insects on vegetables, fruits, roses, flowers, trees, shrubs and lawns.
Best Solutions for home, lawn & garden
NATURAL
BEAUTY
Organic Easy and Effective
Lawn & Garden Solutions
If
you’re going to go organic, first, make a commitment to yourself that you’re going to follow through.” That’s really the hardest part. Once that decision has been made made, gardening choices become easy. Gardening organically is really quite simple. It’s helpful to think of it in two basic ways: practices and solutions. Practices are the day-to-day things you do in your garden. Solutions are the products you use to make improvements or to solve problems.
Do you dream of a lush, healthy garden that’s completely safe for children and pets? It’s possible and much easier than you think. Using simple organic techniques and the latest organic solutions will get you there in no time.
However, gardening organically, you’re much less likely to have problems in the first place. Research shows that all-organic gardens have fewer disease and insect problems than conventional gardens do. That’s because plants and nature are designed to work in harmony—if you just let them.
SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Inspirations
13
Organic Practices The cardinal principle of gardening with nature is to feed the soil, and let the soil feed the plants. Soil health is paramount. Homestead Gardens carries organic plant and lawn foods, potting soil, amendments and supplements from Espoma, Dr. Earth and Down to Earth. If your soil’s alive with earthworms and microbes, pretty much everything else falls into place. Plants will be healthy and resist diseases and pest attacks. You’ll have to discontinue using chemical, synthetic fertilizers, disease and pest solutions of all kinds. They can harm naturally occurring microbes and insects. It also means that anything you add or use in your garden must be organic.
Soil health Healthy soil is full of life. It’s got lots of humus, beneficial bacteria, and mychorrizae. Most garden soils need help to reach this state. Modern-day organic amendments and fertilizers are packed with all these good things. Love Your Lawn – Love Your Soil, a Jonathan Green soil food, stimulates soil microbes, creates a biologically healthy soil, and helps to loosen heavy, hard packed soils, releasing trapped nutrients. Leafgro, 100% organic, is a top-quality compost used as a source for humus for soil improvement. Remember that soil amendments are not fertilizers. Amendments are designed to improve the soil texture. This will help your soil retain moisture and nutrients, increasing their availability to plants. Composted amendments are important additions to both sandy soils and clay soils.
Fertilizers provide plants with the nutrients they need day-to-day. Today’s organic foods designed for specific plant groups make gardening a snap—they’re a mixture of all the things those particular plants need to be healthy and productive.
Patience It will take a while for things to adjust. In the meantime you need to be a bit patient. You’re likely to have a small bug breakout or perhaps a disease problem while your garden finds its natural equilibrium. You can’t be overly intolerant in an organic garden. You’ll have a few bad bugs but you’ll also have lots of good bugs, too. Let them do their work.
Pest solutions Once in a while you may need to step in and help your good bugs with their work. That may mean adding more good bugs like ladybugs, green lacewings or praying mantises. Or, it may mean spraying with a natural pesticide. Captain Jack’s Dead Bug Brew will safely control most harmful insects. Don’t be fooled into thinking that these are completely harmless to everything but what you’re trying to eliminate. Follow the directions so you don’t harm your good bugs or your plants. Ask your Homestead Gardens expert to advise you on what’s best to use for each specific problem
Disease solutions Solutions to disease problems won’t be solved by pesticides. Ask a Homestead Gardens expert to help you diagnose the problem and advise you on the correct organic control.
All natural and organic, Jonathan Green’s Love Your Lawn – Love Your Soil stimulates soil microbes and creates a biologically healthy soil. This soil food helps to loosen heavy, hard packed soils, and releases trapped nutrients. You can grow better turf by creating better soil!
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SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Natria Insect, Disease & Mite Control takes care of most insect and disease problems on vegetables, flowers, shrubs and houseplants. It can be used up to the day before harvest on edibles.
Day to day Observation is what’s needed—and what’s enjoyable, too. You want to watch carefully to what’s happening and not step in too quickly to help. Continue to add organic soil amendments and starter fertilizer whenever you plant. Remember, it’s impossible to have too much humus in your soil. Especially with vegetable gardens, your plants are taking a lot out of the soil, so you’ve got to replenish it.
Compost or not? Composting is often part of organic gardening. But it’s not required. You can have a fully organic garden without composting. But it can be very helpful (and healthful) and satisfying, too. If you’ve got room for a compost pile or composter, then go for it. You’ll want to read up on composting techniques to get you started.
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Professional Quality for Life
available at independent garden centers & online retailers
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Howard W. Phillips is a best practices independent agency serving Maryland and Washington, DC for 100 years. Working with Erie Insurance to offer competitive pricing and exceptional service for all of your business and personal insurance needs. CONTACT US TO LEARN HOW MUCH HWP CAN SAVE YOU ON YOUR AUTO, HOME, LIFE OR BUSINESS POLICIES THROUGH ERIE INSURANCE. Barbara Beavers, Personal Lines · Neill Lewnes & Steve Suter, Business Insuance Annapolis, MD 2530 Riva Road Suite 402 (443) 603-9200
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ces independent Howard agency W. Phillips servingisMaryland a best practices and Washington, independent agency“The serving and Washington, joy ofMaryland seeing the garden reborn, the erosion curtailed, the beautiful plants thriving seeing the pleasure the rie Insurance DCtofor offer 100competitive years. Working pricing with and Erie exceptional Insurance to offer competitive pricing andand exceptional Phillips is a best practices independent agency serving Maryland andresidents Washington, receive from walking through the Woodland d personal insurance service for needs. all of your business and personal insurance needs. at Ginger Cove, makes it a labor of love for me.” years. Working with Erie Insurance to offer competitive pricing andGarden exceptional Carolyn, Ginger Cove Resident Since 2006
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Proven Winners
®
Only the Best for Your Garden Looking for plants you can trust to create a beautiful, easy-to-maintain garden? All you have to do is look for the Proven Winners name to know you’re getting the most vibrant, healthy and unique plants for your garden. In addition to strenuous trialing for outstanding garden performance, Proven Winners goes the extra mile to ensure that you start with the healthiest plants possible. We want you to remember Proven Winners as the best plants you’ve ever grown. Our plants have been proven in trials from coast to coast and are specially screened to ensure they are ready to thrive in your garden.
Proven Winners searches the world to bring you beautiful flowering annuals, perennials and shrubs that are: • Easy to grow and care for • Bright and colorful
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Top 9 Supertunia Petunias for Landscapes and Containers ®
SUPERTUNIA® Vista BUBBLEGUM® Petunia
SUPERTUNIA® Vista Fuchsia Petunia
SUPERTUNIA® Vista Silverberry Petunia
SUPERTUNIA® Royal Velvet Petunia
SUPERTUNIA® Bermuda Beach Petunia
SUPERTUNIA® PRETTY MUCH PICASSO® Petunia
NEW SUPERTUNIA® Limoncello Petunia
SUPERTUNIA® Violet Star Charm Petunia
NEW SUPERTUNIA® PICASSO IN BLUE™ Petunia
Superbells : The Key Ingredient ®
What’s So Super about Supertunia? • Masses of vibrant color • Non-stop bloom from spring to frost • Self-cleaning flowers – no need to remove old flowers • Versatility of use in containers and landscapes • Broad color range to suit every style • Remarkable vigor and disease resistance Whether you’re looking to add a mass of color to your garden beds or create impressive containers with curb appeal, Supertunia® Petunias are the best choice for your sunny landscape. You’ll be amazed how green your thumbs are when you grow these vigorous, reliable flowers. Uses for Supertunia Petunias: Hanging baskets, upright containers, and garden beds
When crafting your container recipes this spring, be sure to include the key ingredient for sunny combinations: Superbells. They’re available from Homestead Gardens in a rainbow of colors that persist from spring into fall. Pick one of every color to act as the fillers and spillers in your hanging baskets and patio containers.
NEW SUPERBELLS Lemon Slice Calibrachoa
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SUPERBELLS HOLY MOLY!™ Calibrachoa
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SUPERBELLS Cherry Star Calibrachoa
SUPERBELLS Evening Star Calibrachoa
SUPERBELLS® Yellow Calibrachoa
SUPERBELLS® Blue Calibrachoa
SUPERBELLS® Cherry Blossom Calibrachoa ‘
®
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Care Tips: • Grow Supertunia Petunias in full sun and water them regularly. Do not let them dry out to the point of wilting. • Supertunia Petunias love to be fed! Feed them with Proven Winners water soluble plant food every third time you water. Also apply slow release fertilizer once in spring and again in midsummer. • If their trailing stems grow too long for your liking, give them a light trim and they will grow back fuller with even more blooms.
NEW
SUPERBELLS® HOLY MOLY!™ Calibrachoa
Petunias
just keep getting better. New varieties arrive every year, each one an improvement on the last. Exciting new colors and patterns. Better bloomers, larger flowers. Improved heat tolerance and disease resistance. New types of plants— mounding, trailing, spreading.
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Petunias Made Easy Supertunia Pretty Much Picasso
T
oday, petunias do it all. They’re the essential warm-weather annual. They’ll reward you with continuous color from late spring through summer and into early fall months. Hummingbirds and butterflies love them, and deer don’t. All petunias appreciate rich, well-drained soil, regular watering feeding. They flower best in full sun.
Charles Kemberling, one of Homestead Gardens’ expert buyers, recommends seven petunias you won’t want to miss for your summer garden. African Sunset Really, there’s no other petunia in this color. Its large, profuse blooms are a unique, intense blood-orange color that won’t fade—even in the hottest sun. African Sunset is a spreader, so it’s terrific in hanging baskets, pots, and in the ground. It thrives in heat and humidity.
Cascadia
Headliner
Wave
The petunias in this collection are mounding/trailing types in a range of fluorescent colors. Included are subtly striped and veined flowers, too. Headliner petunias really take the heat and are perfect for baskets and containers.
The famous Wave petunias will spread to three or four feet wide, while staying low to the ground. You’ll have non-stop flowers through fall, without ever having to trim them back. Waves are also diseaseresistant, tolerating both hot and cold weather in stride.
Starlet
Supertunia
Here’s a group of petunias that is tidy and compact— perfect for smaller gardens and spaces. There’s a great assortment of colors, including a “black” called ‘Velvet’. Use them in containers or plant in the ground.
These petunias are very versatile—great in hanging baskets, perfect for pots and beautiful in landscapes. Each plant forms a very full, 18- to 24-inch mound. Plants bloom all season long with very little care. Even if you forget to feed, they’ll keep on blooming.
With this group of vigorous petunias, you’ll find a huge assortment of colors and patterns. Included are bold bicolors, elegant solids, beautiful veined types, solids uniquely “rimmed” with contrasting colors, and flowers with distinct, colorful “eyes”. Cascadias are trailing type petunias.
Dream “Dream” offer very large, ruffled blooms. They are well know for their ability to tolerate hot, humid, and rainy conditions. The series includes some striking picotees—rosepink, bright red and burgundy, all ruffled and edged in pure white. These are mounding plants, perfect for borders.
.
African Sunset
Cascadia
Starlet Magenta Dreams ‘Appleblossom’ Wave Headliner ‘Lemon’
SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Inspirations
21
Low-Maintenance Gardening
A Party-Ready Garden with
Little Effort
Relaxing, outdoor living can be a breeze when you plan and plant well. Follow these simple rules and techniques to have a “party-ready” garden all summer long—with little care and effort. Use Pre-Emergents Still on your knees weeding your garden? That’s old-school. Let pre-emergents weed for you! At the first sign of spring, broadcast Preen over all exposed soil or areas where weeds typically flourish. It will stop weed and grass seed before they even germinate. It’s especially effective over groundcovers or difficult to weed areas, since it won’t burn or affect existing foliage or plants. Doing this will save hours and hours of work.
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Plant Compact Plants Many trees and shrubs in garden centers today have been bred to be tidy and compact. This saves you from having to shape unruly or encroaching branches. Ask your Homestead Gardens expert to point out compact, space-saving plants for you.
Tidy is Nice Just as you expect children to clean up after themselves, plants should too. Flowering shrubs and perennials that cleanly drop spent flowers shorten the list of garden tasks. Shrub roses such as Knock Out bloom like crazy, but quickly shed old petals, eliminating the need to deadhead. Lilacs do too. So do lots of other shrubs and perennials. Ask a Homestead expert for suggestions.
Multitasking Plants Just about everyone and everything multitasks in our world, so gardens should too. Choose plants with year-round interest such as flowers, colorful foliage, seedpods and berries. Many edible plants can be highly decorative, too—filling several needs at once. Blueberries are a great example: gorgeous spring flowers, beautiful, tasty berries and colorful fall foliage.
Annuals Deliver Feed Smartly Timed release fertilizers such as Osmocote can save a lot of time and effort. Most feed for three- to four-months at a time, reducing feeding times to just twice a year. Another alternative is to use Espoma organic foods. They release nutrients slowly, feeding at a rate that the plant can use. You won’t get lots of soft, new growth that needs lots of water to support, nor will you need to stake or prune.
Choose annuals that kick off spring with loads of color and don’t let up until frost. That’s called “once and done” planting. A small spring effort pays off through fall. Check out the latest versions of old favorites like petunias, marigolds, begonias and impatiens.
Mulch Mulching reduces gardening time in several ways: weeding, watering and disease prevention. A thick layer applied after planting will last all summer long and will save time and money. It also prevents soil-borne diseases from moving around the garden and up into plants.
Save Watering Time A lot of time can be saved with an automatic sprinkler system, of course. But it’s often containers that need frequent watering attention. Consider using water-holding polymers such as Soil Moist which can reduce your watering by half. Or better yet, install a simple do-it-yourself drip system. Homestead Gardens carries a large variety of Raindrip irrigation products.
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Winging It
Creating a Backyard Habitat In the age of multitasking why shouldn’t our gardens multitask too? Shrubs, annuals and perennials can be much more than pretty and colorful. They can invite birds, butterflies, bees and other beneficial visitors. They’ll also provide needed food and shelter. Consider what visitors you’d like to welcome. Butterflies and bees are great pollinators and can increase production in kitchen gardens. Beneficial insects of all kinds help control the “bad” bugs. Birds help control bad bugs, too. All of these garden friends are fun to watch and make gardens interesting and exciting.
A
s you create your new backyard habitat, you’ll likely need to make some minor changes in the way you garden. Avoid all chemical-based insecticides, repellants or disease solutions. There are organic alternatives to all of these, but follow the directions carefully since they can be harmful too, if not properly applied. Additionally, if you’re hoping to attract songbirds, you won’t want to deadhead perennials and flowering shrubs since it’s the seeds, berries and fruits that birds will come for. All winged visitors will appreciate a source of water. Placid water is best, but the still edges of fountains and waterfalls are fine, too. Leave open patches of mud if possible. Ground-nesting bees need these areas for homes or building materials. You’ll want to feed using an organic high-bloom food such as Dr. Earth Bud and Bloom fertilizer, since it is the flowers that will produce pollen and later, seeds and berries. Flower nectar is loaded with sugars and is the main source of energy for bees and butterflies. Pollen is important in providing protein and fats. Perennials and shrubs are the best sources of pollen and nectar and herbs are very attractive to bees and butterflies. It’s best to have a wide variety of plants for pollinators. Heirloom varieties of herbs, vegetables and perennials are excellent choices. Plants placed in clumps of one variety will attract more pollinators than individual plants scattered around. An ideal clump is four feet in diameter.
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Plant several colors of flowers to help pollinators find the flowers. Bees are especially attracted to blue, purple, violet, white and yellow flowers. Various sizes and shapes of flowers will attract various pollinators. Don’t forget to plant larval host plants for butterflies and moths. We all know that milkweed is vital to the larval stages of Monarch butterflies. Finally, provide nesting sites. Collections of reeds or holes drilled in blocks of wood provide great nesting sites for insects of all kinds. Songbirds love to nest in shrubs and some have favorite nesting plants.
Plants for Attracting Pollinators and Beneficials Agastache ‘Blue Boa’, ‘Golden Jubilee’ Aster ‘October Skies’ Aster x frikartii Basil (don’t remove the flowers!) Bidens Bluebeard (Caryopteris) Borage California poppy Ceanothus Centaurea Citrus Common sunflower Coneflower Coreopsis grandiflora ‘Jethro Tull’ Cosmos (annual) Gloriosa daisy Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium) Lamb’s ears (Stachys) Lavender Mexican orange (Choisya ternata) Nepeta Orange jessamine (Murraya paniculata) Oregano Penstemon ‘Red Rocks’ Phacelia Pride of Madeira Privet (Ligustrum) Rosemary Russian sage (Perovskia) Salvia Sea holly (Eryngium) Sedum Spearmint Sweet alyssum Thyme Wild buckwheat (Eriogonum)
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Plants for Attracting Song Birds Arborvitae (Thuja) – seeds (in tiny cones) in winter Aster (perennial types) – seeds in fall Barberry – seeds in winter Boxwood – for nesting and cover Coneflower – seeds summer-winter Coreopsis – seeds Firethorn (Pyracantha) – berries in winter Goldenrod – seeds fall-winter Grape – fruit summer – fall Holly – berries in winter Liatris – seeds in summer Mahonia – berries in fall Marigold – seeds in fall Red fountain grass – seeds summer – fall Rugosa rose – hips (fruit) in summer and fall Sedum (perennial types) – seeds summer-winter Sunflower – seeds in fall Viburnum – seeds summer-winter
BEE A Hero
Join the Homestead Gardens Pollinator Club!
Pollinator-friendly gardens and landscapes play an essential role in the effort to revive the health of bees, butterflies, birds, bats and other pollinators across the country. Planting flowering plants and trees will increase nectar and pollen sources and thus improve the health and numbers of these pollinator populations. Homestead Gardens supports the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge. This campaign seeks to register a million public and private pollinator gardens across the nation in 2016. Through our efforts, we hope to increase the number of pollinator gardens in our own backyard – the DC, Baltimore and Chesapeake Bay regions. You too can make a difference. Join the Homestead Pollinator Club for education, expert advice and special sales on pollinator friendly plants and resources.
Homestead Gardens’ Mission
Homestead Gardens is committed to building a community of gardeners devoted to preserving and protecting pollinators and their habitat through education, exploration, fun, science and adventure. Regardless of age, available space and gardening experience, anyone can BEE a Hero... learn how online at: www.homesteadgardens.com/BEEhero
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Stylish Garden Living 4
ways to refresh your garden for summer
Creating a stylish outdoor gathering place is easy with Homestead Gardens’ help. Buyers Sue Adams and Erin DeHaas have spent the last six
Sue and Erin suggest you keep things
months searching for the perfect additions to refresh your garden rooms.
simple by grouping things into four categories: casual seating, outdoor dining, accessories to complete your outdoor room, and grilling. Once you’ve got each of these items covered, your garden will be familyand party-ready.
1 Casual
Seating
Comfortable seating is a top priority to enjoy your outdoor space. It’s usually the first consideration for outdoor rooms. When choosing a style, consider your home’s architecture as well as your indoor style. Outdoor furniture should be in keeping with the rest of your home. Today’s furniture is created to withstand weather of all kinds.
Materials have been updated—they’re made of lightweight aluminum to move around easily, but they’re beautifully powder-coated to look like wrought iron. Plush cushions make the seating comfortable.
composed of powder-coated aluminum and deep cushions. Casual adirondack chairs and seating groups from C.R. Plastics are made from recycled plastics with UV stabilizers to make them hold their color for many, many years.
Don’t be timid about color. It’s just as important outside as in—and should flow nicely from adjacent indoor rooms.
If wicker or teak are the materials you’re looking for, consider North Cape furniture. New resin wicker looks just like the real thing, but lasts much longer, and is used to create traditional styles as well as clean-lined casual furniture.
For really kicking back, you can’t do better than a hammock. Homestead’s got just what you need for spending lazy afternoons.
Hanamint furniture’s traditional styles are in keeping with historical architecture.
The Castele collection from Pride Family Brands, has a Mediterranean flair, and is
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2 Outdoor
Homestead offers many, many styles of dining furniture, including exquisite, handcrafted wrought iron dining sets by O.W. Lee. Their furniture is designed and built to last for generations and is backed by an incredible warranty.
Dining
You’ll also find top-quality, stylish dining sets in powder-coated aluminum by Hanamint, Pride Family, and resin, wicker and teak by North Cape. Outdoor furniture maker Alfresco Home offers beautiful, stone-topped dining tables with coordinating dining chairs.
3 Accessories
As with interiors, it’s lighting and accents that really complete the room and give it personality and flair. Homestead offers a range of outdoor lanterns for soft, cozy lighting. Outdoor rugs really warm up seating and dining areas and soften outdoor surfaces.
and
Accents
Shade is important if you’re going to enjoy your outdoor room. Homestead Gardens’ selection of outdoor shade umbrellas is the best. You’re sure to find your favorite size, color and shape for dining or seating areas. Outdoor tableware will complete your alfresco dining experience. Homestead Gardens offers a wide selection of acrylic dishware and accessories. Nothing cozies things up like an outdoor fire pit. It becomes the gathering spot for everyone once the sun goes down. You’ll find top-quality choices in various styles and sizes from O.W. Lee and Hanamint. Add color and flair with colorful pottery between pillows and flag. Color can really perk up an outdoor room and make things look festive and fun.
4 Outdoor
With outdoor living comes outdoor dining, so you’ll want to complete your outdoor room with a chef-quality grill. Of course, Homestead has a terrific selection. You’ve got lots of choices of grills from Weber and Fervor.
Grilling
For smoking and roasting, you can’t beat the famous Big Green Egg. It’s so versatile, you can also bake with it, grill, and use it as a pizza oven! Finish off your outdoor kitchen with all the grilling accessories you’ll need. They’re available at Homestead.
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Saber Grills Exclusively available at specialty retailers like Homestead, Saber Grills infrared grilling systems do not sacrifice quality in order to hit that consumer-friendly price point. Technological innovations combined with quality workmanship make Saber a superb option when shopping for a new grill.
Premier Designer of garden accents
Concrete Statuary, Fountains, Birdbaths & more!
R E M SUM SH E R F E R
so Containers y’re sure colorful the n a to put you i d. sunny moo
Glazed Ceramic In the global economy, colorful high-fired, imported glazed pottery has become very affordable. Best of all, it comes is a huge range of colors, sizes and styles. Your choice of glaze can become the starting point for truly fabulous container gardens. A grouping of variously colored pots can really spark up a patio.
Fiberclay Durable containers made of fiberclay are handcrafted and lightweight. Because they’re so easy to move, they’re ideal for both indoor and outdoor use. Fiberclay is made of recycled material, is recyclable itself and frost-resistant.
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Patio Tropics Terracotta Classic terracotta is always popular because it complements all styles. It’s long-lasting, and acquires a lovely, time-worn, neutral patina. Homestead carries a super selection of simple, high-fired, frost-resistant terracotta and imported Italian estate pottery in many sizes and styles.
Lightweight Containers made of lightweight materials can be quite varied. They can be made to look like concrete, terracotta, metal and other plant container materials. They can also vary in construction, being composed of fiberglass, hard plastic, faux concrete and mixtures of all these. Whatever the look or construction, the advantage is that they are easy to move—up stairs, on balconies, around patios and on decks.
T
ropical plants make great focal points for summer containers. Bold bananas such as red-leaved Ensete maurelli or fruiting Dwarf Cavendish make great anchors. Palms and Tradewinds hibiscus make great centerpoints, too. Fill in with uber-flowering tropical hibiscus, mandevillas and dipladenias like Sun Parasol or Sundenia. There wonderful fillers and spillers. Bright, tropical container gardens are great for attracting pollinators to your garden.
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