Last summer’s long drought and oppressive heat proved the value of drought-resistant plants in your garden. Little or no watering is the main virtue; with consistent blooms coming in second.

Achillea (Yarrows of all colors), Artemesia (four varieties), Buddleia (Butterfly Bushes in 23 colors), Sedums (hundreds of varieties), Hardy Cactus (60 varieties to date), Shasta Daisy, Thyme (dozens of possibilities here), ornamental grasses and bamboos (50 varieties available), Pennstemmons (six varieties), Arum, Rudbeckia (Black-Eyed Susans and Gloriosa Daisy), Echinacea Pink, Purple and White Cone Flowers), and several dozen more can be found in our Production Greenhouses 3 & 4.

Enjoy them all.

By Michelle Wood Kempske
Freelance Landscape Designer

As summer approaches and the spring blossoms fade, it is time for the perennial flowers to earn their keep. There are many blossoms of summer to choose from. Some show their colors for weeks on end. The lovely scented and showy pastel blooms of Garden Phlox, Phlox paniculata, the constant bright yellow of the Oxeye, Heliopsis helianthoides, are great for cut flowers, and the delicate petals of Pink Tickseed, Coreopsis rosea, are just a few. Though we rely on these faithful bloomers to bring color to our gardens and joy into our hearts, there is more to consider than the flowers alone.