8 minute read
Tidewater Gardening: K. Marc Teff eau
TIDEWATER GARDENING
by K. Marc Teffeau, Ph.D.
Phloxing to Your Garden
With so many types of perennial flowers available for home gardeners, deciding what to plant can sometimes become a challenge. One advantage of perennials is that they come back each year. You do not have to replant them each spring, as with annual flowers. Another advantage of perennials is that they multiply…sometimes too much! Right now, I am having to divide and clean up a crowded and overgrown daylily bed. Of course, the over-reproduction of daylilies is a nice problem to have because you can give away the extras to friends and family!
Well, the National Garden Bu-
reau (NGB) ~ ngb.org ~ has designated perennial phlox as one of its “Plants of the Year” for 2022. In addition to the daylilies, I have an overabundant bed of purple phlox that needs to be divided. According to the NGB, phlox (Phlox sp.) is truly an “All American” plant because it is a native wildflower in the U.S. from Florida to Canada and all the way to Alaska. Different species can be found in woodlands, prairies and meadows.
Phlox is a genus with a multitude of species, heights, bloom times and garden applications. The NGB notes that phlox were among the earliest native American wildflowers to be brought into garden cultivation. Over the years, plant breeders have created many different varieties.
To help differentiate the varieties of phlox, the NGB indicates that “perennial phlox can be loosely grouped into two types: spring bloomers and summer bloomers.” Depending on their growth habits, phlox can be either spring-flow-
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ering low-growing and creeping kinds (AKA “spring bloomers”) or tall “summer bloomers.” Creeping phlox, Phlox subulate, is also known as moss pinks. These varieties grow well as groundcovers and can be used en masse to cover large areas.
Phlox paniculata (tall garden phlox and related types), a clumpforming perennial, blooms in midsummer and is among the tallest of the species. Tall garden phlox produces perfectly formed large, rounded flower panicles atop each stem. One characteristic of summer bloomers is a propensity to rebloom after the first flush of flowers, particularly when trimmed back.
For an excellent description of phlox types, planting and care, check out the NGB “Plant of the Year” website at ngb.org/year-ofthe-phlox.
While digging in the flower bed, don’t forget that you can always do additional plantings of annuals and other perennials ~ beside phlox ~ at this time. Garden centers have many beautiful annuals to choose
from, including geraniums, impatiens, marigolds, petunias, vinca and salvia. Perennials that provide interest in June include daylilies, astilbe, rudbeckia, yarrow, foxglove and heuchera. I like to recommend fertilizing annuals, perennials and flowering shrubs and trees with a slow-release plant food that contains nitrogen, sulfate of potash, iron and other micronutrients for overall plant growth and development.
June is the time to divide and replant German iris. Cut back the leaves and divide the clumps into single plants with one or two sections of healthy rhizome. Discard any plants infected with disease or iris borer. If disease has been a problem with your iris, it may be wise to try them in a new location.
June is also a good time to prune woody ornamentals. Pruning now involves cutting back the rampant growth that trees and shrubs made during the spring season. You can head back and thin over-vigorous shrubs to the desired size. Cuts on trees and shrubs made at this time will heal quickly. Do not cover the pruning wounds with pruning paint, as this is no longer a recommended practice.
While you’re at it, be sure to remove the old seed heads of lilacs and rhododendrons by hand. Do this now to increase growth and stimulate the development of flower buds for next year. You want
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the plant’s energy to go into maintaining the plant, not producing seeds. As I have reminded in the past, pruning on spring-flowering shrubs should be done now. If you prune in late August, you will prune out next year’s flowering wood and buds.
June is not the time to stop planting. Shrubs and trees that provide color this month include late blooming azaleas, hydrangeas, rhododendrons, spireas, butterfly bush, mock orange and golden rain tree. Planting woody plant material in June will require a little extra attention, especially when we get into dry spells, but the effort is well worth it.
Don’t forget your houseplants! You can move them to the deck or patio and enjoy them outdoors for the summer. To prevent the leaves from being burned, it is best to gradually introduce them to more direct sunlight. Feed houseplants with a quality indoor plant food, either in liquid form or as one of the CRFs (controlled release fertilizers) available at garden center and retail stores. Pinch and shape them as they grow to produce nice, symmetrical full plants to bring back into the house next fall. Be sure to keep the insects under control so you don’t bring them into the house in fall along with your houseplants.
This is also a great time to move root-bound houseplants to a larger pot if needed. Use a potting mix specifically formulated for houseplants when you do the repotting.
In addition to moving your houseplants outdoors, look for plants that can add color to the patio and deck. Hibiscus, jasmine, oleander and mandevilla are just a few of the flowering tropical plants that provide summertime color.
Weed control in June is very important in the vegetable garden and landscape. If you haven’t already mulched your plants, it’s not too late. First, clear the bed of existing weeds. If you use a hoe, be sure not to cultivate too deeply around shallow-rooted plants. This is a good place to use a swan scuffle or rocker hoe, as this tool does not penetrate the soil deeply. Azaleas and boxwood are two shrubs especially vulnerable to careless cultivation. Do not mulch too deeply. Two inches is adequate. Over mulching is one of the main causes of dead landscaping plants.
With all the organic matter now being produced, don’t forget about the compost pile. Grass clippings, weeds and any other organic refuse will decompose rapidly during the warm summer months. To speed up the decomposition, shred the organic material as finely as possible and add a thin layer of soil, some lime and some high nitrogen fertilizer and keep the pile moist. Turn it every couple of weeks to help the process. You can find numerous types of composting bins and a ton of information about proper composting online.
During June, you may notice odd growths on your trees. When I was the extension agent for Talbot County, I received a lot of calls about and samples of odd structures that homeowners found in their trees. These lumpy protru-
sions are galls which form on the branches, twigs and leaves of certain trees and shrubs. Most result from the activity of tiny insects and mites that “sting” the branch, twig or leaf surface. The sting of this insect is actually the depositing of eggs in the plant leaf tissue. The galls that form safely house the developing insects or mites as they feed on the host plants.
The gall formation process is not completely understood, but it seems that the egg or the stinging process applies an enzyme that the plant cells react to. The size and shape of the gall is characteristic of the insect species which produces it. Galls vary in appearance from small, pimplelike projections on leaves to relatively large, inflated swellings, such as the familiar golf ball-sized “apples” sometimes seen on oak trees. Several types of insects are responsible for galls. For example, small wasps cause most oak galls. Aphids produce spruce galls. The dogwood club-gall is formed by a tiny fly. And a mite causes maple bladder-gall, which frequently af-
fects certain species of maples.
Controlling galls can be difficult. Where practical, prune out and destroy them. I haven’t seen galls actually kill a plant, but they may make it so unattractive that it loses its landscape value. Spraying is usually not recommended, especially on the oak galls, as timing the spray is almost impossible. Fertilize infected plants to encourage new growth. Sometimes galls are caused by bacteria or fungi. Common examples include cedarapple gall on red cedar, crown gall on roses and Exobasidium leaf gall on azaleas. These are best controlled by removing and destroying them.
Happy Gardening!
Marc Teffeau retired as Director of Research and Regulatory Affairs at the American Nursery and Landscape Association in Washington, D.C. He now lives in Georgia with his wife, Linda.
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