There’s nothing more satisfying than dianthus crowned in blooms during spring. My Stargazer plants burst into bloom early April, and unlike the chinensis varieties, this perennial hybrid has reliably returned despite some harsh summers.
I’ve had Coconut Punch on my plant wishlist for sometime, but I’m thinking of adding more such as striped Pinball Wizard and green eyed Mojito.
If a longer-lived Super Parfait-type dianthus ever came on to market, I’d be a happy gardener.
I discovered that plucky pink primrose growing and blooming in between the flagstone in my front yard flower bed. The species version is blooming out in the wild fields surrounding the neighborhood, but in my flowerbed it is getting bullied by Gregg’s Mistflower. I would love to see more of these Oenothera berlandieri ‘Siskiyou’ blooming in my beds, but I realize I may need to have something blooming that lasts all season, rather than the spring show.
Admittedly it’s not planted in a very sunny spot but I admire it’s determination.
Progress pictures on the late winter, early spring garden.
Take a look closer and one can see the seedlings starting to pop!
Lest we forget, the narcissus and tulip show ramping up for April blooms.
It’s been a busy week sowing seeds and taking cuttings, not to mention putting new plants into the ground and all around maintenance. Weather has been mild enough to promote outdoor yardwork. Hey, it’s spring!
Potted lavender needed haircuts, so the White Anouk and Lavender Lady got pruned down to the base. I kept some Anouk cuttings to see if I could get them to root.
Other cuttings include silver thyme, golden sage, variegated berggarten sage, and catnip. I sheared half the catnip bush sitting in the Rogue Bed to give the Silver Fountain gaura some room, plus propagate more plants for the catkids, who are delighting and rolling in all the pots that house them. This particular catnip has a very lemony fresh scent, one that I hope to make more child plants out of.
As for seeds, I’ve indoor sowed mirabilis jalapa, Thai long green eggplant, lemon bee balm, Korean hyssop and Sirius blue sage. I’m also giving the habaneros another go, and started some Fish Pepper as well. I hope that starting in soilless sterile mix plus 80F+ temperatures will produce better germination rates in the habanero peppers. My previous success with ornamental peppers did not prepare me for the stubborn nature of the spicy hot ones.
For outdoor sowing, I decided to chance the mild weather and broadcast flower seeds directly into the flower beds: lemon bee balm, marigolds, cosmos and zinnias. The majority of these were from my stash of Botanical Interests seed packets that I received earlier in the month.
I love purchasing budget friendly plants from Colonial Creek Farm. They always have a great selection of herbs and pollinator plants.
| Kitten Around Catmint x1 |
| John Whittlesey Salvia x1 |
| Mirage Rose Bi-Color Salvia x1 |
| African Blue Basil x2 |
This year, I get to grow African Blue Basil! I also purchased a dwarf catmint. Can you guess which one of the plants pictured attracted the kitties?
I also picked up Rose Bicolor Salvia. I had this plant last year but lost them to the heat. I did get another specimen from Denton Plant Factory.
