The Larkspur Ascending

(For those who don't get it, the title is a reference to a beautiful classical piece by Ralph Vaughn Williams called "The Lark Ascending.")

Larkspurs are an annual related to Delphiniums (which unfortunately don't grow in the Deep South.)  They are planted from seed in October or November down here and will grow throughout the winter and bloom profusely from March through May.  The flowers are highly prized by bumblebees and hummingbirds.

My variety is called "Rocket" larkspurs and they get quite tall.  They are very reliable re-seeders and come back year after year without me having to replant.  I sometimes scatter the seeds in new places if I want them in other areas.

They come in all shades of blue, purple, pink, lavender, and white.  I really like the blue ones.  They are essential for the cottage garden look and for the insects and birds that I love so much.

They are best planted at the back of a bed because of their height.  I think they mix well with sweetpeas, dianthus, nigella, and petunias for a cool season bed.

Dog Days Planning

This cool-season flower bed of mine had California poppies, toadflax, Telstar dianthus, and sweetpeas in it.  It was wonderful to see in March and April of last year.  During these dog days of summer, I'm trying to plan out my strategy for cool season annuals so I can have this again next year. 

This wall of sweetpeas was so successful that I will definitely plant more of them.  So much fragrance and beauty!  These need to be planted in late October / early November where I live.  They have to be some of my favorite flowers of all. 

I tried some nigella ("Love in a Mist") last fall and they turned out well.  They are easily grown from seed and mix well with other flowers.  They will definitely find a place to grow in this fall's garden.

Larkspur are another favorite of mine that grow very well from seed and look nice in a cool season bed.  Hummingbirds appreciate coming to these in the early spring too, as do the bees. 

Some of my other plans for fall planting include some Wave petunias, pansies, and violas for containers.  I like to have a few hanging plants around the house and these look gorgeous in the cool season.  Toadflax is another option that grows and blooms quickly in the cool season, plus I love their bright colors and they are easy to grow from seed.  Alyssum are a great favorite of mine because they fit so well at the front of a bed where their small size works well.  Plus, the honey-sweet fragrance of alyssum wafts tantalizingly on cool evenings.  California poppies are so simple to grow that I have to plant some of them.  Calendulas are another bright-colored annual to fill in some spots.  I've never had much success growing snapdragons from seed, but I love them so much that I want to get some seedlings from a nursery to plant in my beds.  A new plant I want to try this fall is nicotiana ("flowering tobacco.")  I hear it thrives in the cool season down here and has heady fragrance.  Anybody out there have some more suggestions for cool season annuals in the Deep South?

Have a Lark with Some Daylilies

I love when plants make clusters of flowers. The cottagey look of these larkspurs and daylilies really caught my eye this morning. My larkspurs are about done for the year, but I can't imagine not having them planted in sundry places around the yard. They will always be a staple cool season annual at my place. They mix well with about every other flower.

Have Some Delicious Strawberry Candy

Thanks to a fellow blogger (Thanks, NellJean!) I have now identified this daylily as Strawberry Candy. This is one of the most popular daylilies on the market these days, and I can see why. These blooms are BIG, they have wonderful coloration that varies with sun exposure, and they rebloom. Not only that, but this was my first daylily to bloom this year! What more can you ask for? Definitely worthy of its popularity. I've got a few volunteer larkspurs growing next to my daylily bed and they make nice companions. Thanks to my sweet wife for e-mailing me these pictures to post on the blog when I'm working offshore and unable to even see these beauties.

My Wildflower Garden

I don't know why I call this my "wildflower" garden since it's not made up of wildflowers. Maybe because it's wildly unorganized. Here's what I did: Early last fall, I cut down a hedgerow that was right here and then put a truckload of cotton waste on the spot. The cotton waste was still "hot" and pretty much killed everything that would have grown up in it. After a couple of months, the cotton waste had aged to the point where I felt it was safe to plant seeds in it. So I purchased a hodge-podge of seeds and threw them in the ground on the spot. Seeds included were California poppies, Telstar dianthus, toadflax, Rocket larkspur, Old Spice sweetpeas, and some others. The above mentioned were the ones that survived this battle of the fittest. Some flowers that did not make it were snapdragons, alyssums, hollyhocks, and petunias. I guess they were crowded out by the more vigorous plants. This is what it looks like today. The only thing I did to this bed was water it during dry spells last fall - no watering this year. Probably in a month or two when it starts looking ragged, I'll pull up everything and do it again with warm season annuals.

April Garden Blogger Bloom Day - The Others

Here's a pic of the "wildflower" garden. How about this wall of sweetpeas? The fragrance is unimaginable!

A close-up of one of the dark pink larkspurs.

A mound of dianthus.

Sorry for the poor picture quality. My camera is not the best and I'm not a great photographer.

Cottage Craziness

Here are some of my "cottage" flowers. This first picture is a bloom on my lone stokesia ("Stokes Aster.") This is a nice perrenial that grows well in the South. It's said to be a butterfly attractor. It's also evergreen for me. It only gets about a foot tall and comes in all shades of blue/purple/pink. It's a very nice looking plant that I may plant more of in the future. This lone plant came from the fall plant sale at the LSU Arboretum.

Next up comes my larkspur. I think this is the "Rocket" variety, but I'm not positive about the name. I'm a big fan of larkspurs - they are very easy and put on a spectacular show. The hummingbirds down here like them and visit frequently. They get about 5' tall, so don't put them at the front of the flower bed. You can also see some sweetpea blooms, toadflax, and poppies in this picture.

Here's littly Ali watering away on my larkspurs, California poppies, and dianthus. I think orange and purple flowers look nice together. This is my first year of planting California poppies, but it will certainly not be the last. They are definite winners for cool season planting in the South. I just have oranges and yellows, but might try some different types next year. Mine are about 18" tall and very showy.

How about some cottage material?

Today's posting is all about some "cottage" garden favorites. These are some good choices for Louisiana.

First off, the first of my larkspur blooms this year. These come in all different shades of blue and pink and red. They are easy and often will come back the next year on their own. One thing I really like about them is how the hummingbirds love them. Their are different types, but the ones I have get pretty tall - 4'. They melt in the Louisiana heat around May. Plant them in October down here.

Next up, some Telstar Picotee Dianthus. These little rascals are prolific! They stay covered in blossoms and should bloom till around May. The Telstar variety is a Louisiana Select one and should do well all over the South. I think this would also be a perfect candidate for container planting. It gets about a foot tall.

Last, is a close-up of one of my Old Spice sweetpea flowers. Old Spice is supposed to take the heat better than other types. It still melts away around April down here. Right now I have a section of fence covered with these vines and the fragrance really wafts on a still day. Mine are all different colors from this wine red to lavender blue. If you deadhead the flowers when they fade, the vines will keep producing blooms longer. Plant them in late October / early November in the deep South. This is about the only cool season annual vine I know of for down here, but it's a good one.