On Gardening:
Luminary Sunset Coral creates a new phlox fanatic
The end of June shows Heart to Heart Bottle leaves are huge, giving a hand-painted look echoing the color of Luminary Sunset Coral tall garden Phlox. Photos courtesy Norman Winter/TNS
The first week of June shows the Heart to Heart Bottle Rocket caladiums growing at a rapid pace, but Luminary Sunset Coral is also reaching its 30-inch height.
By Norman Winter Luminary Sunset Coral has turned The Garden Guy into a full-blown phlox fanatic. The rousing color would probably remind you of some electrifying lipstick or fingernail polish, a rare color in the plant world. Our master bath has a huge window overlooking a square-shaped bed with an 8-foot-tall windmill palm in the center. It gives you a touch of the tropics as you soak in the tub. Most plant partnership gurus would never consider a summer phlox, caladiums and elephant ears as an ideal combo, but all I can say is, holy wow. I first reduced the number and size of existing clumps of Royal Hawaiian Maui Gold Colocasia to three clustered in a triangular pattern around the palm. They were just returning from a winter rest in April. I then planted three Luminary Sunset Coral phlox. They debut next year and will be in high demand.
SUNSET CORAL Continued on page 22
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SANTA BARBARA NEWS-PRESS
REAL ESTATE
SUNDAY, JULY 17, 2022
