The Gateway Gardener June 2017

Gateway Gardener

JUNE 2017

THE

®

Your Guide to Enjoyable Gardening and Easy-Care Landscapes

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Gateway Gardener THE

®

Your Guide to Enjoyable Gardening and Easy-Care Landscapes

JUNE 2017

Volume 13, Number 5

Founded in 2005 by Joyce Bruno & Robert Weaver Publisher and Editor Robert Weaver Columnists

Barbara Perry Lawton Garden Book Author and Garden Writer Diane Brueckman Rosarian Joyce Driemeyer Master Gardener Matt Even Gateway Greening Steffie Littlefield Nursery Professional Abby Elliott Nursery Professional Jennifer Schamber Nursery Professional Scott Woodbury Native Plant Specialist

Printing: Breese Publishing, Breese, IL The Gateway Gardener® is published 9 times/year by Double Dig Communications, Inc. to promote enjoyable, successful gardening and livable landscapes in the St. Louis greater metropolitan area. The magazine is distributed free to the public at designated garden centers, nurseries, garden gift shops, lawn equipment rental, repair and sales establishments, and other locations supporting sound gardening, lawn and landscaping practices.

Please send letters-to-the-editor, questions, event announcements, editorial suggestions and contributions, photos, advertising inquiries and materials, and any other correspondence to: The Gateway Gardener Magazine® PO Box 220853 St. Louis, MO 63122 Phone: (314) 968-3740

info@gatewaygardener.com www.gatewaygardener.com The Gateway Gardener® is printed on recycled newsprint using environmentally friendly soy-based ink, and is a member of the PurePower® renewable energy resources network.

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From the Editor

ilies are the talk of the town—at least they will be in a few weeks when the North American Lily Society hosts the International Lily Show and Symposium right here in our fair burg. Lily fanciers from all over the world will celebrate all things Lilium (and other genera), and for several events, including the Lily Show, the public is invited to attend. For FREE! For details, turn to page 10. Welcome, visitors, we hope you enjoy your stay in St. Louis, which appropriately honors as its civic symbol the Fleur de Lis—“lily flower” as you probably know.

Not true lilies at all, as you can learn on pages 6-7, daylilies (and again, we’re told there, the single-word spelling is preferred) are of the Hemerocallis genus. My mother, a child of the depression, created her garden from pass-along plants like hosta, garden phlox, and yes, the common “ditch lilies” (Hemerocallis fulva).

Were she gardening today, she probably would also have some Stellas. But daylilies have come a long way, and their beauty and

bush. An oft-asked request is for a shrub alternative to roses that will provide similar longlasting bloom performance.

Butterfly bush is one candidate to fulfill that requirement, but it has come under fire in recent years for being invasive in some parts of the country. In addition to Abby’s ‘Prince Charming’, Steffie Littlefield suggests on page 4 other newer cultivars of Buddleia that are not only sterile (and thus considered non-invasive), but are more variety are also being celebrated diminutive for use in smaller this summer in a cozier regional landscapes and even containers. affair known as Daylily Daze.

After bringing yourself up Finally, since Father’s Day is to speed on the qualities and coming, we addressed the only characteristics of these plants, plant to rival turf in many men’s eyes—tomatoes. you can read about the event on gardening Matt Even helps us understand page 7 as well. the difference between June is about more than lilies determinate and indeterminate and daylilies—it’s Perennial varieties on page 14. All that Gardening Month. To celebrate, and more as always.

Abby Lapides Elliott has selected a few of her picks Good Gardening! for perennials and a couple of shrubs that will bloom and bloom for much of the summer!

You’ll find them on page 8.

One of her recommendations is ‘Prince Charming’ butterfly

On the Cover...

Lilies are a lovely, fragrant addition to any garden, and come in a world of varied colors and shapes. The world that fancies them descends upon St. Louis this month to take part in the International Lily Show and Symposium. See page 10 for details (photo of ‘Majesty’ lily

by Lynn Slackman, a local member of the North American Lily Society hosting the event)

IN THIS ISSUE 4 Newer Butterfly Bushes 6 Delightful Daylilies 8 Super Summer Bloomers 10 Welcome Lily Lovers!

11 Meet Our Urban Tree Heroes 12 Organic Zoysia Lawn Care 14 Tomato Types 14 JT’s Fresh Ideas 16 Disease Resistant Roses 18 Nativar Pluses and Minuses 20 Dig This!

22 Upcoming Events

In Defense of (Newer) Butterfly Bushes

by Steffie Littlefield

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s many of my gardening friends and clients know, I’m among the first to jump on my soap box and lecture about invasive plants ( bush honeysuckle and Euonymous groundcovers being my biggest targets). I certainly have my share to deal with in my own gardens so I’m very careful to warn others.

On the other hand I think some of the fear mongering can go too far when it gets applied across the board to a family of plants. So let’s investigate the butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii) controversy together.

I’ve been to the northwest and I saw self-seeded buddleia along the road sides, I’ve seen them in England growing along the train tracks and yes I’ve seen some invaders take over the

‘Miss Molly’ 1990s style butterfly garden.

How does anything become invasive? It happens when the seedlings are left unchallenged by the home gardener, or in the cases of callery pear and bush honeysuckle spread to the wild and uncultivated lots by birds. In the case of the 1990s Butterfly

BEST BLOSSOMS

Garden Plan, the home gardener was hesitant to weed out any volunteers hoping to encourage the native plants that were not going to thrive in the rich loamy garden bed, but the old fashioned buddleia did. It only takes one or two seasons of neglect before you really have a problem. Did this necessarily threaten our native plant populations in the lower midwest? Not really, but I agree those old fashioned plants can be a nuisance.

So I want to bring to your attention a few new buddleias that are seedless, dwarf and a great source of nectar for months and sometimes half the year. It

all started with the Nanho series of buddleias, introduced some time ago, which were somewhat smaller and seed-free, but the flowers and foliage and even the plant were kind of skimpy, not robust or attention getting for gardeners and pollinators alike.

Then a few years ago the Lo & Behold® ‘Blue Chip’ Butterfly Bush jumped into the game with big “BLUE” flowers, medium blue-green foliage and a lovely fountain type shape. Right behind it came ‘Miss Molly’ with those irresistible magenta/hot pink blooms and a similar uniform growth habit, then ‘Miss Ruby’ with a truer pink flower, ‘Miss

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The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

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Lo and Behold® ‘Blue Chip’ 2) If you want to attract butterflies and other pollinators to STAY in your garden, be sure to plant native host plants as well, not just nectar producers. So add your milkweed, black-eyed Susans, shasta daisies, asters, hardy native hibiscus, sunflowers and coneflowers and enjoy all the color these flowers will bring to your garden.

Tutti Fruitti Violet’ with a true purple flower, and ‘Miss Pearl’ to be seen this year with bright white flowers.

Other new compact growers are Tutti Fruitti with pink/purple flowers and Blue Heaven with periwinkle blue flowers. Both shrubs are small 2-3’ plants and perfect for the city garden.

Back to the controversy: 1) I recommend cutting back your spent flowers on these butterfly bushes just as a precaution and to keep them blooming all season.

3) Be wary of accepting gifts of plants from the well-meaning gardener down the street. You could be bringing an invasive plant into your garden and creating a huge maintenance issue. Make sure to identify and know the characteristics of any plant you introduce to your garden!

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Finally, a few other reasons to try these new butterfly bushes: they’re deer resistant, heat tolerant and fragrant! photo credits: ‘Miss Molly’ and ‘Blue Chip’ courtesy Proven Winners® Color Choice® Blue Heaven and Tutti Fruitti courtesy Garden Debut®

Steffie Littlefield is a St Louis area horticulturist and garden designer. She has degrees from St. Louis Community College at Meramec and Southeast Missouri State and is a member of Gateway Professional Horticultural Association, Missouri Botanical Garden Members Board and past president of the Horticulture Coop of Metropolitan St. Louis. She is part-owner of Edg-Clif Winery, Potosi, MO. www.Edg-Clif.com.

JUNE 2017

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Delightful (and Delicious!)Daylilies photos and text by Nikki Schmith

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aylilies have been in our landscapes and in our healing communities for centuries.

Because you see them in most every civic planting and in front of every convenience store in the Midwest, you might think you know what there is to know about our frequently seen friend. But, with more than 85,000 registered varieties and hundreds of hybridizers working on its modern form, you might be surprised at the following facts:

preparation. Blooms can be floated in summer punch bowls, used to garnish salads and also stuffed with chicken salad!

See below for more on daylily snacking.

They come in all colors of the rainbow.

From near white to near black and almost everything in between, daylilies the early 1930s, hybridizers in are so much more than shades the United States and England of orange and yellow. Since have made great improvements in daylilies. Originally, the only colors were yellow, orange, and BALLWIN fulvous red. Today, we have NURSERY colors ranging from near-whites, & LANDSCAPE CO. Family-owned since 1958 pastels, yellows, oranges, pinks, vivid reds, green, deep crimson, purple, neon pink, nearly true$100 or more Plant Purchase blue, and many fabulous blends. w/coupon

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various sizes and shapes planted together in a mixed bed provides fireworks of color throughout the season, while maintaining a good foliage structure. Look to plant daylilies that are of similar height, but varying flower size for a surprising pop of interest!

All parts of the daylily are edible and proven delicious for humans. Some compare They range in flower size from the tuberous roots to al dente 1” to 15”! And some daylilies fingerling potatoes and their also grow to be over 50” tall. unopened, sautéed buds to crisp This size and color diversity radishy green beans. Blooms of makes the daylily the perfect different colors taste differently choice for a season stunner in the and there are recipes available mixed bed. A trio of daylilies in online for bud, bloom and tuber

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Auction prices can rival those of Sotheby’s. Daylily enthusiasts enjoy annual conventions and organized garden tours where a live auction most often takes place.

A bare root division of a newer introduction easily sells for $150-$200, and occasionally the price is in the thousands for a cultivar that offers something new to the gene pool. You can find high-performing, equally as beautiful and unique specimens for around $10 at your local

‘Blue Darling’ garden center, at several local daylily farms, including Rosewood Farm Daylilies in Dorsey, Illinois, or at the great bare root daylily sales hosted at MOBOT at least twice each season.

A lily is not a daylily. Easter lily, Asiatic lily, tiger lily, toad lily, lily of the valley, surprise lily—none of these are in the same plant family as the daylily, which is Hemerocallidaceae.

Previously, many older works placed daylilies in the Lily family, Liliaceae – but this is not the case in modern categorization. Daylilies are more closely related to grasses

The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

than they are some other “lilies” spell it as two words, the and their culture varies, too. preferred spelling is as one word.

‘Paco Bell’

Of all the residents in our perennial gardens, there might not be one more underestimated, or more diverse than the daylily.

You can learn more at www. daylilies.org, the site of the American Hemerocallis Society or by visiting the “Daylily Daze” planned for July 1 at MOBOT. (see sidebar)

Some lilies are highly poisonous to animals and humans, and should not be handled in the same way in the garden or on the table.

Yes, each flower really only lasts ONE DAY. The word Hemerocallis is derived from two Greek words meaning “beauty” and “day,” referring to the fact that each flower lasts only one day. To make up for this, there are many flower buds on each daylily flower stalk, and many stalks in each clump of plants, so the flowering period of a clump is usually several weeks long. And, many cultivars have more than one flowering period. Although not required, many gardeners prefer to “deadhead” spent blooms each day so the plantings look clean and new blooms are able to open unobstructed.

‘Southbound Odessey’

Nikki Schmith is the current president of the American Hemerocallis Society and serves as a senior exhibition judge and exhibition clinic instructor.

She is also a co-host of the Daylily Daze show July 1st at the Missouri Botanical Garden (see sidebar). Her own garden in Worden, Illinois, features more than 500 daylily cultivars.

You can learn more about her and daylilies on her website Spellcheck. D-A-Y-L-I-L-Y. AGirlAndHerGarden.com.

Although many dictionaries

Missouri Botanical Garden, Beaumont Room July 1st Entries Welcome 8:30-10:30am Open to Public 11am-5-pm

T

here is no better way to determine what type of daylilylover you are than by attending a daylily show. On July 1, 2017, plan to visit “Daylily Daze” at the Missouri Botanical Garden. You can see hundreds of blooms on display, inside, and share the space with daylily experts and enthusiasts! The Greater St. Louis Daylily Society hosts a large plant sale in September at MOBOT, too, and you can start to make your wish lists now by visiting the July 1 exhibition show.

All daylily growers are invited to display flowers by like color and/or form, and allow visitors to connect on a more personal level. Guests will find themselves drawn to highly-saturated blooms, or extra-large blooms, or miniature flowers, or heavy-substanced faces...whatever makes their heart sing! All attendees can vote for their favorite blooms to win People’s Choice honors and awards will be given to exhibitors at 4:30pm. Organizers expect to display over 400 blooms both on and off-scape, in addition to the ones that will be blooming outside in the renowned Jenkins Daylily Collection at MOBOT. It is an amazing opportunity to get up close and personal with the daylily and find your own favorite daylily genre!

To display or for more information, call Nikki (248-7399006) or Kathy (618-304-5907).

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7

Super Bloomers for Summer Sensation!

by Abby Lapides Elliott

J

une is here! It’s time to pull out the tank tops and sunhats. As you prepare for the summer heat, many perennials are preparing for their big summer show. These stunning flower displays will knock those sunhats right off ‘Starship Deep your head. Below are some of Rose’ Lobelia the easiest-to-grow, longestblooming summer perennials flowers, blossoms may appear as and shrubs around. early as late June. Expect to see Considered the best in its class, spectacular color and interesting ‘Starship Deep Rose’ cardinal architectural structure from this flower features vibrant, jewel- robust, well-branched plant. pink flowers that bloom up and Hummingbirds and butterflies down dark, almost-black flower flock to its delicious flowers. stalks. Glossy, dark red to black While a pollinator favorite, foliage fashions a deep contrast deer and rabbits tend to leave to the showy flowers. Earlier it alone. It loves moist, rich soil to bloom than other cardinal and can tolerate full sun to part

shade.

If you’re looking for a little magic in your life, look to ‘Lumos’ shasta daisy. Unlike other yellow shasta daisies, through some mysterious wizardry, the canary-yellow daisies of ‘Lumos’ don’t fade.

You won’t need to levitate to see these flowers, as ‘Lumos’

‘Lumos’ Shasta Daisy

reaches only 12-23” tall. Shasta daisies make excellent cut flowers, and deer and rabbits usually don’t bother them. It is best to divide them every few years, discarding the woody, unproductive center of the flower clump.

I love lavender. Its heady scent, beautiful flowers and ease of growing make it indispensible.

That’s right; certain lavenders are easy to grow—even in St. Louis! One that particularly excels above the rest is Lavender ‘Big Time Blue’.

Earliest to bloom, longest to flower and showcasing the largest blooms, ‘Big Time Blue’ has it all. It also tolerates the weird weather swings of

Missouri. Last summer, when we went through weeks of

Lavender ‘Big Time Blue’

pounding rain followed by weeks of nothing but sun, ‘Big Time Blue’ performed like a champ, pushing out flowers like it was in the south of France.

The one key to any lavender, including ‘Big Time Blue’, is they do need well-drained soil.

Be sure to place it on a slope, on top of a berm, or in an area that has been well amended. Deer and rabbit resistant.

From the breeders who brought you Incrediball®, comes a new mini smooth hydrangea called Incredibelle® Wee White®.

The first smooth hydrangea this size, Wee White reaches only 2 ½’ tall and grows into a tidy

Hydrangea Wee White®

Abby Lapides Elliott is owner and a speaker at Sugar Creek Gardens Nursery.

She has degrees from the University of Missouri, and is a member of the Landscape and Nursery Association of Greater St. Louis. You can reach her at (314) 965-3070.

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The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

mound that looks like a snowwhite bouquet placed in the garden when blooming. The large white flowers on sturdy stems begin blooming in early summer and continue until frost.

This brand new hydrangea is sure to be a must-have addition to any garden that needs a punch of white without the size.

grassy-green foliage enhances the circular blue blossoms. On top of the masses of flowers you will receive from Mel’s Blue, you won’t need to worry about deer or rabbits bugging this easy-to-grow plant. One gardener reported that when she was deadheading her Mel’s Blue she counted over 350 flowers, and it was budded up with more I’m disappointed to say that on the way. the blooming powerhouse, Mel’s Blue cornflower aster, The first time I saw the has been overlooked for too raspberry-pink flowers of many years. But no more! The ‘Prince Charming’ butterfly 4” periwinkle-blue flowers that

Mel’s Blue Cornflower begin blooming in June and continue well into August will be ignored no longer. Strappy,

JUNE 2017

bush, I had to touch them to make sure they were real!

The new, unique cerise color saturates these large, 10” blossoms, creating a headturning display all summer.

This mid-sized shrub grows to the perfect size for a backdrop in a perennial garden. The tasty nectar from these unbelievably

colored flowers will attract hummingbirds, butterflies, bees and other pollinators to the garden. Deer and rabbit resistant.

Plant a few of these great bloomers in your yard and you will have a magnificent flower show all summer long.

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Welcome Lily Lovers!

North American Lily Society Show and Convention Sheraton Westport Chalet Hotel St. Louis June 30th-July 2nd

Lilium pumilum

Auditorium at the MBG located at 1344 Shaw Blvd.

St. Louis, Mo, 63110.

For more information about the Lily Show and Convention, call Peggy Nerdahl at (952) 479-7478 or (763) 221-1648, e-mail rodnerdahl@comcast.net, or visit websites for the Lily Show and Convention at http://nals2017.lilies.org/, and the North American Lily Society at http://www. lilies.org/.

Peggy Nerdahl

‘Aspen Gold’ Martagon

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American Lily Show features Asiatic, Martagon, Oriental, trumpet, species and interdivisional lilies exhibited by lily growers from the United States and Canada. Lily growers from throughout North America display never-before-seen varieties, the results of their hybridizing efforts. During the show, International Lily Society members will be happy to talk with visitors about their favorite flower – how to select lilies for the garden, how to grow them, and how to hybridize existing selections to make their own new lilies.

at the Sheraton Westport Chalet Hotel, visitors can take a short 30-minute drive to the Missouri Botanical Garden (MBG).

Included in admission to the MBG is a lecture by Dr. Peter Zale, renowned modern-day plant hunter and current Curator and Plant Breeder at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania.

Lynn Slackman

‘Time Zone’

Peggy Nerdahl

The Lily Show display is free and open to the public for viewing at the Sheraton Westport Chalet Hotel on June 30 from 2pm to 5pm, July 1 from 9am to 5pm and July 2 from 9am to 3pm.

Come and experience the variety of colors, forms and sizes lilies have to offer and inhale their heady and varied fragrances as you enter the show room floor. Vote for your favorite lily photographs

Lynn Slackman

Dr. Zale has participated in over 20 plant exploration expeditions throughout the United States, Japan, Vietnam, Myanmar and the Republic of Georgia.

Dr. Peter Zale will speak on “Lily Species Around the World and in Cultivation”.

The lecture will be on Saturday, July 1, 1:302:30 pm in the Shoenberg

Peggy Nerdahl

Lynn Slackman

S

pectacular lily stems, fabulous lily floral designs and stunning lily photos are highlights of the North American Lily Society’s (NALS) 2017 Show and Convention held in St. Louis this year, June 30 – July 2. The Lily Show and Convention is a part of the 70th Annual International Lily Show and Symposium that takes place from June Lilies in the garden of NALS memberBill Bauer, photo by Peggy 28th-July 2nd.

Nerdahl. and enjoy creative floral After enjoying the Lily designs focusing on St. Show on Saturday morning ‘Montego Bay’ Louis themes like: “The Louisiana Purchase”, “The ‘Robina’ Black Pearl Dances”, and “Classic Chocolate Treats”.

This 70th annual North

The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

Meet Our Urban Tree Heroes

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he Missouri Community Forestry Council (MCFC) is committed to urban and community forestry in Missouri. The Council is made up of local and state forestry professionals, tree care professionals, nonprofit and allied industry partners, as well as active and engaged citizens.The group’s goal is to preserve, protect, expand and improve our shared tree The McBaine Bur Oak near Columbia, MO, has benefited from resource. several work days provided free of charge courtesy of members of Six active regions make up the State Council. St. Louis and East Central members meet together bi-monthly to discuss current tree issues and carry out local

in regional parks, and hosting annual educational programs.

MCFC has partnered with MDC to develop various marketing campaigns to discourage tree topping and promote proper pruning techniques.

To learn more about the Missouri Community Forestry Council, visit www.

MoCommunityTrees.org.

the Missouri Community Forestry Council. Photo courtesy Kyle Spradley Photography, www.kspradleyphoto.com.

projects.The St. Louis/East Central regions have worked on projects including: restoration pruning on the

Famous McBaine Bur Oak, EAB protection treatment on the State Champion ash tree, invasive species control

The Missouri Community Forestry Council Presents:

2017 Tap Root Speaker Series EE R F Win oor D s! e Priz

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2 ISA CEU’s per class are available.

A $10.00 contribution to support the community education activities of MCFC is most appreciated!

Wed. July 12, 7-9pm: Local Spirits – Native Trees: A Distilled Tale presentation by Gary Hinegardner, Proprietor, Wood Hat Spirits Wed. September 6, 7-9pm: The REAL Cost of NOT Maintaining Trees presentation by Josh Behounek, Urban Forester, Davey Resource Group; Cory Meyer, Municipal Forester, City of Kirkwood Wed. November 15, 7-9pm: The Songbird – Tree Connection: Did you know baby birds require native trees?

Mitch Leachman, Executive Director, St. Louis Audubon Society Tap Root Series Collaborative Alliances Gateway Greening • Missouri Department of Conservation • St. Louis Audubon Society University of Missouri Extension St. Louis County • Urban Forestry Consortium

Visit us on the web at www.mocommunitytrees.org JUNE 2017

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S

Your Organic Lawn: Zoysia Care

By Bill Dalton

t. Louis has a high percentage of warm-season grass lawns, mainly zoysia, and they require a little different treatment than your neighbor’s fescue or bluegrass lawn. There are many benefits of zoysia grass, including its ability to withstand traffic, drought, heat, fill in bare spots by spreading and tolerance of pet urine/feces. Zoysia can be plugged, sprigged or sodded to establish, but takes longer to establish a healthy root system than cool-season grasses.

Its downsides are dormancy in winter to late spring, longer establishment time, thatch build up, difficulty mowing if allowed to get too long, and susceptibility to negative nematodes and fungi. Some fertilization and cultural practices can help you keep your zoysia growing healthy, and summer is the most

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important time to concentrate on zoysia since it is growing at its fastest rate late spring into summer. This will establish the lawn for the rest of the growing season.

The basics of zoysia lawn care differ from fescue, especially in the Midwest where the weather is unpredictable. Watering for zoysia should be done every 5 to seven days and a heavy deep watering, early morning is ideal. This will lead to less thatch and decrease the chance of getting a fungus. If the lawn becomes a dull gray-green, your zoysia lawn is in need of watering. Mowing should be done as frequently as needed, generally every week, and you should never cut more than a third of the blade growth off in a single cut. If you get far behind in your cutting schedule it is better to raise the mower deck and cut, then lower and cut three days later at desired height. Weeds like dandelions and chickweed, which start growing earlier than zoysia, can easily be sprayed with an organic weed control or pulled in early spring when the food reserves are at their lowest.

The biggest difference you can make for your zoysia lawn is how you feed it. Zoysia prefers an organic diet for many reasons. Most important is that the slower growth delivered by organic fertilizer is ideal for zoysia lawns. The more nitrogen you give zoysia the more upper blade growth and thatch it will have. Organic fertilizer is limited in nitrogen and higher in micronutrients and bacteria that benefit zoysia.

Protein-based organic fertilizers such as liquid seaweed, soy meal, cottonseed meal, and molasses can also build the populations of positive fungi and bacteria that will fight off the negative fungi and insects. Fertilizer timing is essential to zoysia; because of the slow breakdown of organics, it should be applied a little earlier than recommended for

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The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

synthetic fertilizers, preferably in April, June, and August— no fertilization should be done in fall or winter. It may also be beneficial to give a lower amount of fertilizer in June and then give another in July, especially if synthetic fertilizer is being used. An organic pre-emergent like corn gluten can be used in the spring at a rate of 20 lbs/1000 sq/ft, please read product recommendations. Organic fertilizers for zoysia can be purchased at fine garden centers in our area or online at safelawns.org, natural-alternative.com, and planetnatural. com.

kelp, and had an 11- month growing season. Establishing it in the Midwest, we must thus fertilize slower and lower in nitrogen, water less frequently and deeply and avoid feeding when dormant. Zoysia can be a friend to us with its ability to withstand our erratic seasons as long as we treat it as the foreign visitor it is and make it feel at home.

Bill Dalton is the owner of Natural Green Organic Lawn Care, which has served St. Louis with organic lawn care and organic gardening for over 15 years. He has over 25 years as a lawn If there are bare spots in fall, overseed with perennial rye care professional, completed the NOFA course, attended Truman grass or a fine fescue, to fill in bare spots and keep weeds State University for Biology and has hundreds of hours of Organic at bay. Then the zoysia will come back in late spring and course training. If you have an organic question contact him at take back over. A fall agricultural lime application is a great naturalgreenlawncare.com or (314)503-0733. help if a soil test shows a low pH. The recommended rate for raising pH is 50 lbs per 1000 sq/ft but concentrations of lime can differ between types of lime so follow product recommendations. Zoysia prefers a pH of 6.0 to 6.5.

Zoysia, like all grasses, has its positives and negatives, but if you choose it as your grass for your lawn, remember it’s native to Phillipines and coastal Asia. It grew in sandy soil that held very little water, its nutrients were mainly fish meal and

$2.00 OFF One Gallon Size

Perennial Plants

Good through 6/30/17. Not good with any other sale, coupon or discount or on previous purchases.

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bellefontaine after hours Explore beautiful gardens and rich history at Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum. Horticulturists and Master Guides will be on hand to introduce you to the cemetery's Mulberry Hill area.

Light refreshments will be provided.

dates: April 20th, May 18th , June 1st time: 5:30 pm -7:30 pm tickets: $15 per person $10 for Friends of Bellefontaine online: bellefontainecemetery.org/calendar by phone: 314-381-0750

bellefontaine cemetery and arboretum ◆ 4947 w. florissant ave. ◆ saint louis mo 63115

JUNE 2017

The Gateway Gardener™

13

The Cornucopia Corner

To Determinate or Indeterminate, That is the Question!

By Matt Even

I

depending on your space limitations, goal of preserving for later, or eating fresh, it’s essential to know where to begin. Use the categories below to plan and prepare for what will work best in your environment.

don’t get asked about any other plant as much as I do the floating, tasty water balloon, otherwise known as a tomato (a ripe tomato is roughly 94% water). Considering there are hundreds of varieties that you can potentially choose to grow, I like to break them down into some digestible categories for the average grower and the consumer to navigate what to grow.

Determinate

Sometimes referred to as “bush” tomatoes, determinate varieties grow to a compact height (typically 3’-4’). This When purchasing seedlings, type of tomato is bred to stop or growing your own, it’s best continuous growth when fruit to focus on two tomato types and their growth patterns. An sets on the tallest part of the plant. Another characteristic of additional category, grafted tomatoes, is also an option, determinates is their fruits tend to ripen close to the same but more on that later. This is important to know, because time, usually over 1-3 weeks. Due to their compact nature, they need less support from staking, unlike other varieties, and are perfectly suited for container planting.

Jt’s Fresh Ideas Caprese Zoodles

Courtesy: http://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a47336/caprese-zoodles-recipe/?src=social-email

Ingredients 4 large zucchini 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 2 c cherry tomatoes, halved 1 c pearl mozzarella balls ¼ c fresh basil leaves 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar Directions Using a spiralizer, create zoodles out of zucchini. Add zoodles to a large bowl, toss with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Let marinate 15 minutes. Add tomatoes, mozzarella and basil to zoodles and toss until combined.

Drizzle with balsamic and serve.

Stick with growing determinate varieties if you would like to have a lot to harvest at once, which is best for preserving food for the fall and winter. If processing tomatoes is your goal, or you’re working with a tight growing space, this is the type for you.

Indeterminate Often called “vining” tomatoes, indeterminate varieties will

Recipe courtesy of: http://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas

Please share some of your favorite recipes with us.

You can e-mail us at: info@gatewaygardener.com

Veggies yum and you won’t miss the carbs!

Jt

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The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

Tips for Growing, Buying and Cooking Fresh, Locally Sourced Food for Your Table grow and produce fruit until killed by frost. These towering, foliar-heavy varieties will reach heights of 6’ but sometimes make it to 12’! Blooms will set, form new fruit, and ripen throughout the season. This growth pattern is perfect if you are planning on harvesting small amounts each week as the summer lingers into fall.

tomato enemies like verticillium wilt, tomato mosaic virus, and nematode damage. If you decide to go with these highly disease resistant grafted tomatoes, be ready to pay more up front. Someone has to do all that work of grafting plants, after all…

Whatever varieties you Due to their nature of growing large before setting fruit, these choose to grow this season, varieties may require some pruning to signal reproduction to do some planning ahead of start, and for fruit to set. Make sure you brush up on simple time. Being strategic with pruning techniques if you plan on getting monster tomatoes your “garden real-estate” from these plants. goes a long way when it comes to yields. Experiment!

Grafted Find what works the best Gaining popularity, grafted tomatoes attempt to bring for your growing habits and the best of two worlds together. Heirloom tomatoes are curiosities, and bring that often tasty and interesting, but frequently diseases prone. knowledge with you into the Hybrids have disease resistence bred in, but frequently at next season. the expense of taste. Similar to fruit tree grafting, tomato grafting is the process of taking the top-scion of any variety (although usually heirloom) that is roughly the same size as another’s rootstock (hybrid varieties), and attaching them to grow together.

The result, hopefully, is to grow those tasty heirloom tomatoes while having the strength, vigor and disease resistance characteristics of a hybrid rootstock. Some growers claim to have higher yields and much higher resistance to common Matt has worked on organic farms from Northern Minnesota to Austin, TX, and has been growing food since he decided to put his Sociology degree to good use. The past 6 years, he has lived in St. Louis working as an Outreach Manager and Educator for Gateway Greening, helping to start urban agriculture projects across the region.

You can reach Matt at (314) 588-9600.

Passionate about Perennials?

JUNE is Perennial Gardening Month!

Explore one of St. Charles County’s LARGEST selections of beautiful and unusual, locally grown perennials, including NATIVES!

Perennial Gardening Month Special

Buy any 3 Perennials & Get 1 FREE (of equal or lesser value!)

Must present coupon at time of purchase. 1 coupon per customer, please. Expires June 30, 2017.

FARM AND GREENHOUSES

www.danielsfarmandgreenhouse.com

SUNDAY, JUNE 11 9:30 a.m.– 4:30 p.m.

352 Jungermann Rd. St. Peters, MO 63376 (636) 441-5048 Hours: M-F 9-7, Sat 9-5, Sun 10-5

advance tickets required

www.mobot.org/gardentour | (314) 577- 5118

JUNE 2017

The Gateway Gardener™

15

Disease Resistant Roses

by Diane Brueckman

I

the spread of RRD. A new diagnostic test is being studied that will make diagnosing RRD faster and cheaper. At present many plants are condemned to the burn pile or a black plastic bag that may not actually have the disease. The current thinking is it’s better to destroy a suspect plant than to chance keeping a sick one.

‘Top Gun’ and worse, seemed to gather strength spreading throughout the country killing our garden roses. Many of our garden

Since 1942

Weeks Roses

t wasn’t all that long ago that RRD (Rose Rosette Disease) was virtually unknown. We rose lovers were in a blissful state of ignorance.

RRD is a native disease that infected a limited number of roses with many of the native species of roses having some resistance to the disease.

Problems began when some scientists started to experiment with the disease as a means to control Rosa multiflora, which is very susceptible to RRD. R. multiflora is a native to Japan and the Far East and had been introduced to the U.S. as a hedge plant. It quickly took over farm fields and became a nuisance to farmers. Unfortunately, RRD did not control the rose,

roses have multiflora in their bloodlines, making them targets for RRD. There were dire predictions of garden roses going the way of the Dodo bird.

Today, though, help is on the way. Entomologists and plant pathologists have been working with the hybridizers to find solutions to control the disease.

The eriophyid mite that carries the disease and infects the roses has been studied. Strategies have been developed to help control

Plants that have shown resistance to disease have been studied in an effort to isolate the gene/ genes for disease resistance.

Over the years, plants that were seen not to develop RRD have been collected and studied. The scientists have enlarged the genome base of plants making it easier to glean information about the roses and narrow down the genes responsible for disease as well as those that pass along disease resistance. Most hybridizers have been working with the information in their breeding programs, and Weeks Roses has a rose that is truly the Best of the Best in disease resistance.

July 8-9, 2017

Don’t miss Henry Shaw Cactus and Succulent Society’s big annual event – FREE with Garden admission.

See hundreds of award-winning plants, then shop for rare specimens and starter plants priced from just $2!

9 a.m.-5 p.m. Daily Free Kids Corner!

Find more at ... www.hscactus.org/SHOW/

For Beautiful Blooms and Bountiful Harvest!

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Look for these and other ferti-lome products at your favorite independent nurseries and garden centers.

For plant care and information on over 8,000 plants, visit www.fertilome.com

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The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

‘Top Gun’, a shrub rose, has been extensively tested in the Eastern United States for disease resistance, not just to all major rose diseases but also to RRD. ‘Top Gun’ was free of RRD symptoms while surrounded by plants that displayed symptoms of the disease. This shrub to be released in 2018 has clusters of red blooms suffused with dark burgundy and golden stamens.

To add to its many charms it has a moderate fragrance. Rosey Acres has been privileged to receive some of the plants this year. They are not for sale but are being planted in the West End Garden in Belleville and the Henry White Research Farm in Millstadt. Both gardens are open to the public so you will be

able to see this remarkable rose.

Expect to see many more disease resistant roses in the future.

The collaborating scientists are sending out the first set of seedlings from roses that should have some resistance to RRD. Included in the collaborating team are names you may be familiar with: Weeks Roses (Christian Bedard), David Zlesak, Star Roses and Plants (Michele Schreiber), Ball Horticultural Company (Scott Trees), Roses

by Ping (Ping Lim at Altman Plants), and Roses by Design (Jim Sproul). Thanks also, to the American Rose Society for contributing to the funding of RRD research.

Diane Brueckman is a retired rosarian with Missouri Botanical Garden, and currently owns Rosey Acres in Baldwin, Illinois. You can reach her at (618) 785-3011 or droseyacres@ egyptian.net.

Pond-O-Rama Pond and Garden Tour June 24 & 25, 2017 Pond-O-Rama is simply the most spectacular garden tour of the summer!

See 39 SLWGS member ponds.

Tickets are $15.

Garden club and group discounts are available.

For ticket locations, call (314)995-2988 or visit our website, www.slwgs.org JUNE 2017

The Gateway Gardener™

17

Naturally Natives Are “Nativars” Too much of a good thing? text and photos by Scott Woodbury

Hydrangea arborescens species

H. arborescens ‘Annabelle’

J

une is a colorful month, packed with many blooming native plants like purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea, yellow wild indigo,

Baptisia sphaerocarpa and wild hydrangea, Hydrangea arborescens all of which are “to die for” from a gardener’s perspective. Magically they

bring it back to what matters

Proud contributor to the Parkway Southwest Middle/Circle of Concern Community Garden.

make gardens a hit on garden tour day and transform gardeners into superstars, if only for a day.

But I forgot to mention that our garden tour hero is growing the native cultivars (also called “nativars”) ‘Hot Papaya’ purple coneflower, ‘Screaming Yellow’ wild indigo and ‘Annabelle’ wild hydrangea, so-called improved varieties.

But I wonder, an improvement to whom? With ‘Annabelle’ hydrangea the flower is a profusion of white petals, a big hit with some humans. But not a big hit with pollinators because the flower parts that make nectar and pollen are missing and in their place are an unnatural,

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but beautiful profusion of white petals. The straight species of wild hydrangea has a more modest ring of white petals surrounding true flowers that produce pollen, nectar, seeds and a parade of pollinators.

In addition to lacking pollen and nectar, ‘Hot Papaya’ purple coneflower has one additional so-called improvement… no seeds. Gardeners might celebrate in this because it means that plants will stay where they are planted (the straight species purple coneflower moves around from seed). But if you are a goldfinch you will be sorely disappointed…or at least confused. If you are a gardener who loves wildlife you won’t find any butterflies, bees, hummingbirds or goldfinches because there’s nothing left to attract them, just ‘Hot Papaya’ orange petals. That said, I’ve noticed some cultivars of purple coneflower that still have nectar, pollen and seeds and do a great job attracting wildlife, among them ‘Rubinstern’, ‘White Swan’ and ‘Magnus’. Doug Tallamy, author of the book Bringing Nature Home, once

The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

Tips and Resources for Growing and Landscaping with Sustainable Native Plants Echinacea purpurea sp.

said in a lecture in St. Louis that if a native plant cultivar flower resembles that of the parent species, it likely will still produce pollen, nectar and seeds and therefore serve wildlife.

E. purpurea ‘Hot Papaya’

purple coneflower. But many cultivars serve a utilitarian purpose like fitting into small spaces. Aromatic sumac, Rhus aromatica, winterberry holly, Ilex verticillata and garden phlox, Phlox paniculata come to mind. Aromatic sumac (6-8 ft.) and winterberry holly (1520 ft.) are too tall and leggy in most gardens but their cultivars ‘Grow-Low’ sumac and ‘Red Sprite’ holly fit into small spaces nicely. The native garden phlox spreads aggressively from seed and roots but many of its cultivars, like ‘David’ and ‘Bright Eyes’ don’t.

With ‘Screaming Yellow’ wild indigo I see a steady flow of bumblebees in the flowers, decent seed production (though they hybridize with blue wild indigo) and both gardeners and wildlife enthusiasts grinning from ear to ear. ‘Screaming Yellow’ has brighter yellow flowers than the straight species and originates from a prairie in northern Arkansas so is a good choice for an Ozark garden with The main point here is that full sun. cultivars are not good or bad.

Each one is different. Some Blanton Whitmire, who along attract people, some attract with his wife Peg gave the wildlife and others work well Whitmire Wildflower Garden to for both. Plant choice depends Shaw Nature Reserve in 1991, on your landscape goals and had a favorite saying from the situation. You may be gardening Greek Temple of Apollo in for wildlife or you may be Delphi that reads “Nothing to interested in visual impact, or excess”. I read those words both. You may need a small daily from the side of my pencil plant to fit in a tiny garden. holder that sits on my desk. So You may even want a plant that why is it that gardeners seek spreads from seed, especially if to improve on what is already you are going for a naturalized good and possibly perfect. Some woodland or prairie style. cultivars seem an homage to Whatever your interest there weird science, excessive mixing are native plants that can work of plant species for shock for you. Take time to research value like the ‘Hot Papaya’ JUNE 2017

The Gateway Gardener™

cultivars before you buy them.

Unfortunately there is a lot of generic conversation about the pros and cons of cultivars but not so much discussion about specific cultivars. Doug Tallamy said that if a cultivar and its straight species have similar flower shape and morphology then they both will likely serve wildlife. It is the bizarre

cultivars that are ignored by wildlife and stray a little too far from Blanton Whitmire’s favorite saying carved into stone over two thousand years ago…nothing to excess. Good advice for all times! For more information about selecting native cultivars contact a Grow Native! member professional.

Horticulturist Scott Woodbury is the Curator of the Whitmire Wildflower Garden at Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit, MO, where he has worked with native plant propagation, design, and education for more than 20 years. He is also an advisor to the Missouri Prairie Foundation’s GrowNative! program.

If you plant them, they will come!

Butterflies, bees, hummingbirds, and songbirds that is!

Let Forrest Keeling partner with you to bring natural beauty to your home habitat!

Visit Forrest Keeling’s all-new Habitat Headquarters in Elsberry.

Forrest Keeling Nursery forrestkeeling.com

in the back yard to the back forty!

19

Dig This!

Gateway Gardeners and Businesses in the News Local Entities Use MDC Grants to Improve Urban Forests

Two regional entities recently reported receiving funds from the Missouri Department of Conservation, and both used the funds for a similar project. Each year the MDC makes funds available to communities and other public entities to take steps to improve their urban forest. These funds are called TRIM grants, an acronym for Tree Resource Improvement and Maintenance, a competitive, cost-share tree care program administered by the Missouri Department of Conservation and the Missouri Community Forest Council.

The St. Louis Community College-Meramec Horticulture P r o g r a m announced it recently received A screen shot of the Meramec such a grant, and campus tree survey. used it to complete a tree inventory of its campus forest. The Horticulture Program received the grant of just under $10,000 last fall and Hansen’s Tree Service, of St. Louis, was hired to perform the inventory. The inventory was completed in early February and analysis of the inventory began soon after. In addition to inventory funds, the Horticulture Program received funds for inventory management software. The software will allow the Horticulture Program to better manage its campus forest. From initial analysis of the inventory, the Horticulture Program learned the campus forest is comprised of approximately 1,020 trees containing about 60 distinct genera. About 62% of the forest is in good to excellent condition, 28% is in fair condition, and 10% is in poor to critical condition. After an in depth analysis of the inventory data, the Horticulture Program will develop a management plan with a focus on successional planting, improving forest diversity, and increasing campus canopy cover. If you’d like to view the inventory and learn more about the STLCC-Meramec campus forest visit: www.pgcloud/Meramec/ The City of Rock Hill also received a TRIM grant, and, collaborating with Missouri Botanical Garden’s

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Deer Creek Watershed Alliance, plans to conduct its first comprehensive tree survey of all City of Rock Hill public property. The City of Rock Hill’s vision to promote and preserve the urban forest and improve the management of public trees was a fundamental inspiration for this project. This vision will ensure canopy continuity, which will reduce stormwater runoff and improve air quality, public health, and aesthetic values. One of the greatest benefits that urban trees provide is their ability to improve water quality and decrease flooding by reducing the amount of water runoff rushing through storm drains and into creeks after a rainfall. In fact, according to the Tree Inventory Summary Report, the 972 trees inventoried intercept 29,274 cubic feet of stormwater annually! And, they have a structural value (an appraised value based on the size, condition, species, and location of each tree) of approximately $2.28 million!

In addition to the TRIM grant, the City of Rock Hill also partnered with the Great Rivers Greenway District for additional support.

If your community would like to apply for a TRIM Grant, applications are due the first Friday in June every year. Go to MDC’s TRIM Grant website at https://tinyurl.com/knkeh9o for more information or speak with your regional MDC forester.

Radio Show Gets New Gardening Voice

David Sherwood (The Tree Guy) & owner of Sherwood’s Forest Nursery can now be heard across the region as the new co-host for the “Inside Out” radio program, joining John Shea (Mr. Fix It) of Shea Construction and Design. David is taking over for the retiring Jim McMillan, formerly of Rolling Ridge Nursery, and will continue offering listeners information on the gardening, landscaping, and plant care side of the show, while promoting area independent garden centers. John Shea will continue fielding listeners’ questions about home improvement and maintenance issues. The Inside Out Show Page at www.ktrs.com will also post garden tips and helpful The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

resources, including the Gateway Gardener’s current month’s Upcoming Events calendar. Listeners can call in with their questions at 314-969-KTRS or text questions and topics to 84126 from a cell phone. The Inside Out Show airs Saturday’s 11am-1pm on KTRS 550 AM.

MBG President Honored

Peter Wyse Jackson, president of the Missouri Botanical Garden, received one of the highest honors bestowed by The Garden Club of America (GCA), the Distinguished Service Medal.

The award, presented to Wyse Jackson at the GCA’s annual meeting in Baltimore, recognizes exceptional service in the field of horticulture.

In honoring Wyse Jackson, the GCA hailed him as “one of the world’s foremost and best-known botanists and plant conservationists” and a “leading voice for the entire field of public horticulture.”

Under Wyse Jackson’s leadership, the Missouri Botanical Garden has become “the world’s most vibrant, effective and influential institution for science-based plant conservation,” according to the GCA. Among his achievements are establishing a seed bank and conservation genetics laboratory and launching international programs in ecological restoration, rare plant propagation, conservation biology and genetics, global change and economic botany, all staffed with world experts. In addition, Wyse Jackson initiated a plant systematics project, the World Flora Online Consortium, to prepare an online flora of the world, intended to be the definitive source of knowledge on Earth’s plant diversity by 2020.

The GCA also noted Dr. Jackson’s extensive work and influence in reshaping and leading the international botanic garden community.

The Ladue Garden Club of St. Louis, member of the GCA, nominated Wyse Jackson for the award.

Garden of Glass Now Open

The Missouri Botanical Garden summer exhibit, Garden of Glass, opened in May. The majority of the exhibit is housed inside the Garden’s Climatron® conservatory. Orchids, orange blossoms, dandelions, butterflies, lotus and bird of paradise are among the flora and fauna featured in the 30 larger-than-life JUNE 2017

The Gateway Gardener™

pieces.

Michigan artist Mitchell Smith is known for his custom kiln-fired technique and style. He uses fusing, texturing, slumping and cold-working to create his pieces. The pieces were commissioned specifically for the Garden and collectively will be the world’s largest kiln-fired glass exhibit to date.

Daytime hours are 9am-5pm until August 13, 2017.

Daytime tickets are $17 adults, $12 for adult residents of St. Louis City/County, $7 children, $5 members and $4 for member children. All prices include regular daytime Garden admission.

Evening hours are 7-11pm on Thursday through Saturday nights through August 12. Tickets are $16 adults, $10 children, $12 for members and $6 for member children. The pieces will be illuminated during evening viewings. Evening events feature live music as well as food and beverage sales. The Garden’s grounds are open from 7-11pm for those with evening tickets. Tickets to enter the Climatron are date and time-specific, but guests are encouraged to arrive early or stay late and enjoy the rest of the garden grounds.

There are also special late-night ticket and drink packages available for guests visiting during the 9:30 and 10pm entry times. Those tickets are available at www.mobot.org/latenight.

Garden of Glass is presented by PGAV Destinations.

Additional sponsorship by Caleres, Drury Hotels Company, Edward Jones, Peters Family Charitable Trust, Renewal by Andersen, Corporate Council of the Missouri Botanical Garden and Young Friends Council of the Missouri Botanical Garden.

For general information, visit www.mobot.org or call (314) 577‑5100 (toll-free, 1‑800‑642‑8842).

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Upcoming Events Plant Shows, Sales and Tours

Meetings, Classes, Entertainment and More

Updates to this information are often posted on our online events calendar at www.GatewayGardener.com, so check there for the latest details.

Give us the details of your upcoming gardening, lawn or landscaping event and we’ll add it to our website and include it in our next issue. Deadline for printing in September issue is August 1st.

How to reach us: Mail: PO Box 220853, St. Louis, MO 63122 Email: info@gatewaygardener.com

Garden Club and Plant Society Meetings Interested in Joining a Garden Club or Plant Society? We have meeting dates, locations and contact information on more than 50 area garden clubs on our website at www.GatewayGardener. com. Don’t have access to the internet?

Just call us at (314) 968-3740, or write us at PO Box 220853, St. Louis, MO 63122, and we’ll get the information to you. So share your joy for gardening and join a garden club or favorite plant society today!

Fun for Kids June 3rd 9am—Children’s Garden Club.

Plant A Colorful Annual Combo.

FREE, no reservations required, everyone welcome. The Children’s Garden Club is designed to educate and bring delight in gardening to children with projects they do themselves.

Sherwood’s Forest Nursery & Garden Center, 2651 Barrett Station Rd. 11am-2pm—Hillermann’s First Saturday Kids. Bring the kids to play in the garden and enjoy a FREE activity. Make a bluebird house for Father’s Day. Call to RSVP. Hillermann Nursery & Florist, (636) 239-6729, www.hillermann.com.

June 3rd 10am-1pm—Native Plant Sale.

Washington In Bloom and Missouri Wildflowers Nursery are hosting at the parking lot at Elm and West Main Streets next to the Farmers’ Market in Washington, Missouri. Pre-orders can be placed at MoWildFlowers.net or call at (573) 496-3492. Pick up and pay for pre-orders the day of the sale.

Proceeds benefit the beautification of the City of Washington.

10am-4pm—The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days. America’s only national private garden-visiting program, made possibly of the work of hundreds of volunteers nationwide.

Featuring 4 gardens. Admission is $7 at each garde. Children 12 and under free. No reservations required.

Rain or Shine. For locations, visit OpenDaysProgram.org or call 1-888842-2442.

June 3rd-4th 9am-5pm— 23rd Annual Hermann Garden Tour and Plant Sale. Two Tours in 2017: the popular Town Tour, a walking tour of gardens in downtown Hermann, and the Country Tour, a driving tour to country gardens. Separate $10 ticket for each tour includes visits to at least four private gardens and the Garden Demonstration Area. Town & County Garden Tour Combo Ticket for $15 includes 8 or more gardens. Also Special Ticket By-Reservation-Only Luncheon/Silent Auction on June 2nd. Visit the Hermann Garden Tours website at www.hermanngardentours. com for up to date events, ticket prices, and photographs. “Like” us on Facebook at Hermann Garden Club Tours 2015. Call Hermann Welcome Center at (800) 932-8687 or go to www.visithermann.com.

June 7th-8th 2-7pm Wed., 9am-3pm Thurs.— “Summer Time” Standard Flower Show. Hosted by the Mid Central District of the FGCM. It is free & open to the public. Featuring both a design & a horticulture division using the theme of summer activities. Participate are garden club members from the Mid Central District. Immanuel Lutheran Fellowship Hall 632 East Highway N in Wentzville, MO 63385.

June 10th 9am-5pm—The

22

St.

Louis

Carnivorous Plant Society Show and Sale. Missouri Botanical Garden, Beaumont Room. Lots of great plants-- Venus flytraps, Sarracenia, Drosera,etc. For further info contact stlcarns@gardener.com.

10am-1pm—Maryland Heights Garden Tour. The tour is FREE and open to the public. Enjoy a stroll around some of the city’s fabulous gardens.

Maps are available at the Community Centre, City Hall, many city garden centers, on MarylandHeights.com, or by sending an email to GardenTour@ MarylandHeights.com.

10am-4pm—Franklin County Garden Tour. Presented by Franklin County Master Gardeners. Proceeds provide community educational programs in horticulture. $15 in advance, $20 day of event. Cash or check only, children under 12 free.

Refreshments.

Purchase tickets in advance from Franklin County Master Gardeners, University of MO Extension—Union, Sharon’s Nursery, Union, Hillermann Nursery, Washington, and Town & Country Nursery, Dutzow. For information call (573) 45999-2454.

June 11th St. Louis Garden Tour. Missouri Botanical Garden members and their guests are invited to enjoy a self-guided tour of seven spectacular gardens across the St. Louis community. Each garden will also feature a unique “tablescape,” designed to evoke garden elements through distinctive place settings. Every three years since summer of 1986, the Garden hosts a tour of private gardens across the region. This event provides a special opportunity for Garden members to tour the loveliest gardens in St. Louis.

Self-guided tour tickets are $50.

Advance ticket purchase required.

Purchase tickets online at mobot. org. Event occurs rain or shine. The Gateway Gardener is proud to be a sponsor of this tour.

11am-4pm—Sustainable Backyard Tour. Visit dozens of area home landscapes promoting sustainable practices such as rainwater harvesting, composting, keeping chickens, bees or goats, using renewable energy, repurposed materials, native gardens, and more. For a tour map or to register your garden, go to www. sustainablebackyardtour.com or search the same on Facebook. The

Gateway Gardener is proud to be a sponsor of this tour.

1-5pm—New Town at St. Charles Garden Tour. Tickets are available at Brown Paper Tickets. They are also available at Marsala’s Market, Dwell in Design and The Bridge, all located in New Town.

June 22nd-23rd 2-5pm Thurs., 10am-4pm Fri.— “Songs of Summer” Standard Flower Show. Friendship Village, 15201 Olive Blvd., Chesterfield. Free admission. Presented by the Garden Guild.

June 24th 9am-3pm—2016 Soulard Garden Tour “Art in the Garden.” Art, music and a peek into the gardens of St. Louis’ oldest neighborhood.

Eight homeowners will open their gardens to the public and each garden will host local musicians and a local artist. This self-guided tour will begin at the Soulard Station – 1911 South 12th Street – where tickets may be purchased or picked-up. Tickets may also be purchased on-line at www. soulard.org. $15/person. Proceeds benefit the Soulard Restoration Group Beautification Committee’s work.

Contact (314) 852o-9880 or (314) 366-1601 for information.

June 24th-25th 9am-5 pm—Pond-O-Rama 17th Annual Pond and Garden Tour.

Sponsored by The St. Louis Water Gardening Society, the self-guided tour includes 39 water features that range from choice small ponds to magnificent large ones located in both Missouri and Illinois. The tour is divided geographically by day with about half the gardens available for viewing each day. Tickets, good for both days, are $15 per person, and are available at garden centers across the area. Children 17 and under are admitted free. All persons age 18 and over must have a ticket. The ticket booklet includes maps to all tour locations. Each ticket booklet also includes a coupon for a free membership in the St. Louis Water Gardening Society for the remainder of the year. For more information about the St. Louis Water Gardening Society and its activities, including Pond-O-Rama, visit the SLWGS website at www.slwgs.org.

Rose Society of Greater St. Louis

The Gateway Gardener™ JUNE 2017

Show and Sale. New cultivars and old favorites are shown and sold by the area’s top rose growers, who are on hand to offer plant care advice and share information about their organization. Missouri Botanical Garden Ridgway Center.

June 25th 12:30-5pm—Bittersweet Garden Club Annual Garden Tour. Tour beautifully landscaped gardens in the Jefferson City area. Learn new tips and techniques to apply to your own garden. www.bittersweetgardenclub. com/ or (573) 295-6435.

June 30th-July 2nd 2-5pm Fri., 9am-5pm Sat., 9am3pm Sun.—North American Lily Society Show. See Page 10 for details.

July 1 11am-5pm—Daylily Daze. See page 7 for details. st

July 8th-9th 9am-5pm—Henry Shaw Cactus and Succulent Society Show and Sale. Choose from a wide array of cacti and succulents shown and sold by the area’s top growers, including thousands of rare specimens and starter plants priced from $2. Cactus Society members will be on hand to answer questions and give plant care advice. Missouri Botanical Garden, Beaumont Room. Entry included with Garden admission. www.hscactus.org.

Classes, Lectures and Events

Now through August 13th Garden of Glass: The Art of Mitchell Smith. Experience the Garden’s Climatron® conservatory like never before as it blooms with 30 largerthan-life fused glass works of art by Craig Mitchell Smith. All summer long, see colorful glass orchids, orange blossoms, dandelions and more flourishing amid the lush, tropical setting of the Climatron. Visit Mobot. org for hours, ticket information and other details. Missouri Botanical Garden.

June 1st 5:30-7:30pm—Bellefontaine After Hours. Explore beautiful gardens and rich history at Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum. Horticulturists and Master Guides will be on hand to introduce you to the cemetery’s Mulberry Hill area. Light refreshments provided. $15/person, $10 for Friends of Bellefontaine. Tickets available at www.bellefontainecemetery.org/ calendar or (314) 381-0750.

JUNE 2017

June 3rd 8:30-Noon—St. Louis Urban Gardening Symposium. Featuring a series of workshops led by experts in their respective fields to help gardeners learn how to plan, plant and care for a neighborhood or home garden.

Registration/check-in from 8:30-9. $15/person (fee waived for qualifying Neighbors Naturescaping participants.

Register online at BrighsideStL.org or call (314) 400-2115. Brightside Demonstration Gardens, 4646 Shenandoah Ave., St. Louis.

9am-4pm—Green Homes Festival.

Celebrate sustainable living and explore ways to maintain a healthy you and a healthy planet. Bring your home improvement ideas and talk with green product and service exhibitors.

Presented by the EarthWays Center of the Missouri Botanical Garden.

Included with Garden admission; free before noon for city and county residents. Visit www.mobot.org for more information.

10am—Garden Stroll with Ann Million. Class takes place at Ann’s extraordinary garden in Crestwood.

Sugar Creek Gardens. FREE. Call (314) 965-3070 for reservations and directions.

10am—The Beautiful Herb Garden.

Join members of the St. Louis Herb Society as they share the herbs that are tasty as well as pretty. Sugar Creek Gardens. FREE. Call (314) 965-3070 for information.

June 4th 1-2pm—Pollinator Talk.

Join MaryAnn Fink as she introduces you to meal planning for pollinators and shows you how easy that can “bee” by using St. Louis County Parks Pollinator Guide. Hillermann Nursery & Florist, 636-239-6729, www. hillermann.com.

June 6th 10am—Best Summer Gardening Tips. Learn great tips for summer gardening from Karen Collins, author of Karen’s Garden Calendar. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. Call (314) 965-3070.

June 6th, 13th, 20th, and 27th 10am-Noon—Herbs & Heirlooms Tuesdays. Connect with some of the oldest friends of mankind: herbs. Drop in to explore the culinary, sensory, beauty and uses for the herb featured each week. The first 150 participants will pot an herb to take home and receive a plant profile sheet with care tips and ways to use your new plant.

Missouri Botanical Garden in the

The Gateway Gardener™

Herb Garden, weather permitting.

Included with Garden Admission.

No registration is required. For more information, visit www.mobot.org.

June 8th 1-4 pm—Native Plant School: Front Yard Formal Native Landscaping.

Learn how to incorporate native plants into a front yard setting, covering plant selection, design methods, maintenance and more.

Session includes hands-on tours and demonstrations.

Audience participation encouraged. $17 ($14 Garden members). Classroom behind the Joseph H. Bascom House. For reservations or more information, call (636) 451-3512 ext. 6007 or visit www.shawnature.org.

June 10th 9-11am—Tillman Elementary School Garden Work Day. Meet at the prairie patch on the west side of school. Wear close-toed shoes, bring water and gloves. 230 Quan Avenue, Kirkwood.

10am—Succulent Container Garden Make-N-Take. Make a succulent container garden for your home. ($30.00 supply fee). Call to RSVP. Hillermann Nursery & Florist, 636-239-6729, www.hillermann.com.

10am—Best Summer Gardening Tips. Learn great tips for summer gardening from Karen Collins, author of Karen’s Garden Calendar. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. Call (314) 965-3070.

1am-12pm—Perennial Shade Gardens. Join Frisella staff and St. Louis Hosta Society member Bruce Buehrig for an enlightening conversation on how to handle those shady areas. Focus will be on plant selection for shady locations including everything from the many varieties of Hosta, to Astilbe, Heuchera, Brunnera, Ferns and more. Frisella Nursery, frisellanursery.com/events, 636.798.2555.

June 13th 10am—Let’s Make a Terrarium.

Sugar Creek provides all the supplies and an expert terrarium tutor to guide you through the process. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. $45 for supplies. Call (314) 965-3070 for reservations.

June 17th 10am-2pm—Valley of the Flowers Car Show. 20% off Garden Club members on beer/wine supplies this day only. Hillermann Nursery & Florist, 636-239-6729, www.

hillermann.com.

June 17th & 18th 10am—Gardening with Missouri Natives. Learn about the long blooming sun perennials, along with delightful shade plants to ensure successful low-maintenance landscapes. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood.

FREE. Call (314) 965-3070.

June 24th 10am—Native Trees of Bellefontaine Cemetery. Enjoy a tree walk led by experts and learn about the beautiful trees in this haven for nature that is also a significant St. Louis historical landmark. Organized by Missouri Prairie Foundation’s Grow Native! Program. RSVP to MPF at GrowNative.org or call 888-843-6739.

June 25th 2pm—Pollinator Pantry Pollinator Week Celebration. St. Louis County Parks hosts a “Pollinator Playday” to recognize partners in their Pollinator Pantry Program. The event will take place at the Butterfly House in Faust Park. Recognitions include: B+ Award (professional education), Litzsinger Road Ecology Center; Bee-ology Award ( public education), Greenscape Gardens and Gifts; Partnering for Pollinators: Let’s Bee Together-Sherwood Forest Nursery & World Bird Sanctuary; Webster Groves Herb Society, The Historical Hawkens House & Museum & The City of Webster Groves; The City of Olivette & Olivette In Bloom Volunteers; St. Louis County Library, Gateway Greening & The Butterfly House. The Parks Department also invites guests to visit various Pollinator Pantry Garden Displays (Viewable Gardens) at:The City of Olivette’s The Native Garden at Community Center, 9723 Grandview Dr, Olivette MO 63132; Jefferson Barracks The Laborer’s House Garden, 345 North Rd, St. Louis MO 63125; and The Hawkens House and Museum’s Helpful Herb Garden, 1155 S. Rock Hill Rd, Webster Groves MO 63119. St. Louis County Parks Pollinator Pantry program is part of a community education program in cooperation with Project Pollinator.

June 27th & July 1st 10am—High Impact for Small Spaces. Discover landscape ideas to maximize the impact for smaller gardens and yards. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. Call (314) 9653070.

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