Coneflower is one of those sentinels of high summer. A native perennial, great pollinator, and cut flower—you could even make echinacea tea with it! After native bees, moths, and butterflies feed on it for months, goldfinches love to peck at the seeds.
If you would like a deeper dive into some of the types you could grow, go to the Mt Cuba Center trial results for all kinds of detailed information. If you just want to find out if your fave cultivar won, read on:
“The best performing Echinacea included in our trial are E. purpurea ‘Pica Bella’, E. ‘Sensation Pink’, E. ‘Santa Fe’, E. ‘TNECHKR’ (KISMET® Raspberry), E. ‘Snow Cone’, E. ‘POST301’ (Postman), E. ‘Glowing Dream’, E. ‘Purple Emperor’, E. purpurea ‘Fragrant Angel’, E. ‘TNECHKIO’ (KISMET® Intense Orange), E. ‘Balsomcor’ (SOMBRERO® Hot Coral), and E. ‘Julia’.”
Yes, my Fragrant Angel won. And yes, I am smug.
If the Mt. Cuba trial sounds familiar, I mentioned it a couple of weeks ago during my P.O.W segment on Monarda.
Guest
I have been tracking Steph Green’s amazing container game for a few years now. She puts together luscious combinations for her lucky clients down in Richmond. Contained Creations also has an envy-inspiring Instagram feed, and besides knowing what to put into elegant containers, Steph knows how to keep the creations looking good. This week, we share tips on dealing with soil, ferts, colors, scale, and maintenance!
The Play List
There are some pests in the garden right now, and I have some ideas on how to deal with them.
Bunnies
Chase, yell, terrorize (it’s a work out).
Use bad smells such as Deer Scram (contains dried blood—your dog will love it, so be careful. It won’t hurt your dog, but bunnies won’t smell it anymore if your pooch loves it), or REALLY hot cayenne pepper.
Japanese Beetles
Go out in the early morning to pinch or drop into a bucket of soapy water.
Spray with soapy water.
Please try not to use Sevin—bad for bees!
Using a trap attracts more beetles than your trap can handle—not good, because they will look around to see what else is tasty in your garden besides the overflowing trap party.
Prune your plants after the wee beasties have had their way, and wait for them to be gone (mid-late August).
Ailanthus Trees (Tree of Heaven)
Pull while small—the ONLY thing they have going for them is that they are easy to pull.
Japanese Stilt Grass
Again, mercifully easy to pull, so if you have a little, pull now before they go to seed.
If you have a lot, strim (string trim/weed whack) them down before they set a jillion seeds.
Listen
Maybe just listen to the birds and buzzing this week… I checked out the song behind the very popular hashtag #hotgirlsummer because I thought I was being so cool using #hotgardensummer. Turns out, there’s a reason we don’t hear that song on the radio!