Summer Stunners

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Summer Stunners

SUNPATIENS GIVE NON-STOP BLOOMSFROM HERE TO HALLOWEEN

The day the SunPatiens are delivered at Moss Mountain Farm is like an early Christmas. I’mcontinuously inspired by their various colors, shapes, and full blooms, while ideas start flowing likewater from a hose.

I plant them almost everywhere I can. They’re the perfect summer flower: beautiful, long-lasting,heat-resistant and low maintenance. I can’t say enough about them!

They work well in hanging baskets, containers or garden beds. They’re also disease-resistant,don’t require deadheading, and some even have variegated foliage.

But the best part has to be the non-stop blooms all summer long.

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The right type for you:

These flowers come in three types: compact, vigorous and spreading. Your landscape will determine the right one for you.

VIGOROUS: The vigorous SunPatiens make a big visual impact! Use them to create a backdrop or massive color display. Vigorous varieties can grow 24-42” tall and 24-30” wide in the garden and are ideal for large landscapes. Like the spreading series, Vigorous SunPatiens are great for “fill-ins” and ground cover.

SPREADING: These provide more coverage than compact SunPatiens, with the plant width typically exceeding its height. Spreading SunPatiens can grow 18-36″ tall and 24-36” wide. Their aggressive spreading nature allows you to plant further apart (14-24” spacing) and increase your coverage, compared to traditional annuals. This type of SunPatiens is ideal for hanging baskets or areas where you need quick “fill-in.”

COMPACT: These grow 14-32″ tall and 14-24” wide. They like warmer night temperatures, like those in the South and Southeast, and result in stronger growth while SunPatiens planted in cooler, northern locations are somewhat shorter. Compact SunPatiens have a somewhat mounded shape and are perfect for containers.

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PLANTING SUNPATIENS:

■■If repotting into larger container or basket, plant in welldrainedsoil. If planting in a garden, use organic matter,such as compost.

■■Incorporate a slow-release fertilizer at half the label ratesinto the soil (if the soil you are using does not alreadycontain fertilizer).

■■An alternative way to fertilize is to apply water-solublefertilizer at one-third the label rates, as needed; do notover fertilize.

■■Plant in full sun or shade.

■■Water plants well after planting and keep the mediaevenly moist until plants are established (7-10 days).

■■If plants wilt after they are established, simply water welland they should revive within 24 hours.

■■New leaves and new flowers will cover old blooms, so youdon’t need to remove old flowers or cut off older growth.

■■In most cases, SunPatiens should not be cut back tocontrol size, as it alters their natural form.

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