Dwarf Morning Glory "Royal Ensign"

I bought this plant just as a trial when I was placing my order with Select Seeds, and so far it is a real winner in the garden at the Big House.  It is actually "Convolvulus tricolor," which bears very little resemblance to a morning glory under than the shape (and perhaps the color) of the blooms.

In any case, it has stood up (and even thrived) in the crazy Atlanta heat, and is dancing in and out amongst some of the other things in the perennial bed.  It is fairly compact, and is a great stand in for the blue geraniums that fill that role during spring and fall. 

I started some inside and some directly outside in the beds, and both are doing beautifully.  This is definitely going to be on next year's shopping list, as well.

Seeds, Glorious Seeds!

I get so excited when the seeds start arriving in the mail, like a six-year-old in the days leading up to Christmas.  All of those packages waiting to be opened, knowing that it's just not time yet!  As something of a "temporary fix," Patti planted spinach and a couple of different lettuces in the cool corner of the greenhouse the other day, so we'll be seeing signs of green any day now.

The package that arrived this morning is from Select Seeds, one of my favorite companies for annual flowers.  Here's the list, which will start to get planted soon in the greenhouse:

"Royal Ensign" Dwarf Morning Glory.  It only grows to 12 inches tall, so we're going to use it to border the cutting beds at the Big House.  I adore all of the geraniums as they wander through the other plants, but they fry in the summer heat here, so I'm hoping this flower will fill in some gaps in July and August.

Garden Heliotope (Valeriana officinalis).  This is not the little purple plant, but a huge towering plant that looks a little like Queen Anne's lace.  Doesn't do particularly well in Atlanta heat, but at the beginning of the season, nothing beats that vanilla scent.

Lavatera "Pink Blush".  Another one that might not do so well in Atlanta heat and humidity, but we'll see.  A close look to Hollyhocks, which start to melt from rust the moment they break ground here.

Amaranth "Oeschberg."  Amaranth is another of those that will one day take over the South, but such a fabulous and dramatic plant in the back of the beds!

Mina lobata ("Spanish Flag").  An awesome vine that we'll put into a couple of containers, let climb up and over some other vines that don't flower in summer, and some on trellises.  This is one that Christopher Lloyd had climbing over Eucalyptus at Great Dixter 

  Nicotiana "Woodland."  This is one of my favorite plants, that does really well in the southeast.  Very tall (about 5 feet here), with that overwhelming night time fragrance.

Cleome "White Queen."  Cleome is like a weed here, but I love the white, and want to add it to the White Border.  It's such a distinctive plant when it sprouts, it's easy to pull up all of the volunteers one inevitably finds in the beds.

The box from Johnny's Seeds is waiting for me at the Big House!  Can't wait to see what's in that box!

The Weather Rollercoaster

Growing up in New England, it was common to hear people say, "If you don't like the weather, just wait a minute." Although we get seasonal changes in Atlanta, they aren't typically as crazy as they have been this season. From record cold temperatures with snow that stayed on the ground for a week, we went to 60 degree days when we could work in t-shirts. Yesterday was blustery and cold, and today it's raining and getting steadily warmer...go figure.

This is the time of year when I'm chomping at the bit to get things into the ground. It's made even worse by the fact that the seeds have arrived for lots of new things, and they're just sitting there waiting for a few weeks before we can start sowing them indoors. I've ordered lots of cool things for spring...mignonette, wallfowers, heliotrope, etc....all of which will fry by the middle of the summer here, but will hopefully be pretty glorious for April and May. The galanthus is up and blooming at the big house, which only makes my cabin fever worse!
In the stepchild garden, we're building and fluffing on those rare days when it isn't raining...hard to believe we're still in recovery mode from two years of record drought! Most of the actual construction on the "non-potting shed" is almost done, and now it's time to do the fun stuff (the tin roof, the door, window, little architectural details, etc. ) I'm still a little bit undecided about the door and trim color, but so far this blue is winning. At the time of year, everything in the wooded area looks pretty sad, but the blue chairs are as happy as can be!

The Final Version of the Select Seeds Order

Okay, so I finally sat down and actually ordered the things I "need" from Select Seeds. Go figure, the list is a little longer than originally planned. (Just a note that there is a 5% discount on orders placed by February 28).

I ordered all the things in my last entry about Select Seeds, but here's what I added: "Ballerina Yellow" Datura, to go under the "Betty Marshall" Brugmansia.....I think it's very cool to do the combination of Angel's Trumpet above Devil's Trumpet in one container!

Senecio (Mexican Flame Vine, shown above), which will climb a little iron tuteur in a container

Heliotrope "Frangrant Delight"....pain-in-the-butt plant, but the vanilla fragrance is awesome!

Night Blooming Jasmine.....a magnet for mealy bugs, but a night time fragrance that will knock you over! ( I will be cursing this plant by July, if history is any indicator.....)

Plus some seeds for a really simple new cutting garden we're doing by the house: Cosmas "Rose Bonbon," Zinnia "Benary's Giant Salmon Rose," Zinnia "Oklahoma Mix," and Zinnia "Peppermint Stick.

Lastly, another antique geranium called "Mr. Wren," with has single scarlet flowers edged in white. That's going in a container with a purple trailing geranium I already have called "Taj Mahal".....photos coming in summer!

Now it's off to the Brent & Becky's Catalog, right after I make the credit card payment!

Some "Must Have Plants" for 2009

Just finished perusing the new catalog for Select Seeds (have I mentioned before that they are an AWESOME company to buy from?) A few things that I think I definitely need to find homes for this season:

Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia) "Betty Marshall"....pure white with pale yellow-green ribs in the flowers...I still love the old-fashioned apricot color, but this one is really amazing looking! It's such a great containter plant, especially if started early indoors.

All of these different nicotianas (Patti and I can never agree on the pronunciation.....), especially the cultivars called "Jasmine" and "Woodland"

Amaranth! The Love-Lies-Bleeding that I planted last year promises to continue bleeding all over the place for the rest of my life, but in the dead of winter I tend to forget how quickly they spread here in Atlanta.....I'm thinking I need to have "viridis" to mix in with the ones I'll inevitably have from last year's LLB seeds.... (Photo above)

Texas Sage "Brenthurst"....The catalog says it's "RARE," which means I really need to have at least one of those plants! Plus, "Mrs." is going to love the color!

"Benary's Giant Lime" Zinnia.....how cool is this going to look popping up in the midst of the perennial borders?

Black Eyed Susan Vine "Alba".....this definitely looks like the start of a great container arrangement, climbing up a beautiful black tuteur

Clematis "Chinese Lanterns" along with Clematis "Roguchi".....I can just picture how beautiful that will be climbing up through the tea olive hedge (That's "Roguchi" above)

Apple Blossom Rosebud Geranium.....got this one last year (three of them), and they are still going strong in the greenhouse! This is a really special plant!