Perennial Gardeners Thread!!!

[Coopa Cabana]

My favorite line, from Plant Delights Nursery, is "Friends Don't Let Friends Buy Annuals!". Although I must admit I plant annuals in a few containers - this thread is dedicated to Garden Perennials and Shrubs.

What did you get planted today? What zone are you in? Any favorite perennials to tell us about? Any perennials you're looking for? Garden shrubs included!

I'm in Denver (zone 5), and here's what I got planted today to fill in some dead spots in the flower beds:

3 Delphiniums - Pacific Giant Hybrid 'Summer Skies'
3 Papaver orientale - All pink Oriental Poppies: 'Helen Elizabeth', 'Pink Pearl', and 'Pink Ruffles'
2 Helianthemum - 'Ben Ledi'
2 Heuchera - Coral Bells 'Midnight Rose' and 'Silver Scrolls'
1 Gaura - 'Passionate Rainbow Petite'
1 Salvia Superba - Meadow Sage 'Rose Queen'
1 Sedum Stonecrop 'Munstead Dark Red'
1 Sedum Stonecrop 'Red Cauli'
1 Sedum reflexum 'Cristatum' - Crested Blue Spruce Stonecrop - pic below - I'd never seen this one before, and had to have it!

I didn't find the Lobelia "Queen Victoria" that I was looking for, to put in front of the fountain where it's always wet. I found it online, but I'll keep looking locally.
I also have a Pink Scotch Broom that needs to get planted - most probably will go in the back of my Bearded Iris bed.

Some of my other favorites that I have around the yard are Agastache, Daylilies, Lenten Rose, Lilacs, Barberry "Helmond Pillar', Peonies, Purple Gas Plant, and Tall Bearded Irsi.

Here's a pic of the Crested Blue Spruce Stonecrop:

 

[Balefire]

thank you for opening this post. I love to do work in the garden , BUT this year I can't do anything, because we want to move ( whenever the morgage company is ready

). Hope I can start in fall

, to get some flowers next spring in my brand new garden. Till then, I enjoy your pic

 

[Crabella]

Hi, I live in the inland Pacific NW, zone 5. We moved to a couple years ago, to some property we bought a few years back. This is the year I finally get my yard in. I planted a few shrubs and trees last year, but the majority of the work is being done this spring. We tried to start in March, but the cold and generally lousy weather had us waiting until April to begin this years projects. First we hauled in dirt from another part of the property, then laid 150 + retaining wall blocks and hauled more dirt so we could have a 'semi-level' lawn area. Two pickup loads of well rotted horse/cow manure, 10 bags of peat moss were tilled in before the planting could begin. I laid about 200 12"x12" paver blocks for the walk way and steps, followed by 2000 sq. foot of sod. I planted 4 rose bushes, 7 euonymous (spelling?)-emerald gaiety, 2 red twig dogwood, an eastern red bud, a deep rose wegelia, & a star dogwood. When those were in I planted several varieties of columbine, dianthus and mums, tucked in a few Shasta Daisies, some oriental day lilies and a few potted bulbs. Last week I planted 20 dinner-plate dahlias (donations from my sister in law) and filled 3 pots with more pink dahlias and petunias, 4 pots with red geraniums and red dahlias, 2 others with yellow rose bushes that are destined to be put out towards the coop and (future) green house.

It's been a while since I uploaded photos, so will have to figure out how to do that again. Still waiting to be put in are 4 more lilacs, 2 spirea, a flat of petunias for quick color, and another of ground cover for the rocky, hilly slope that we are trying to terrace. I need to do some more rock picking and haul in more soil to level the east side of the yard so we can get lawn on that end too. Next week I am heading to my friends house, and my sister in law's place to raid their gardens for starts. I have three more large beds I want to get done this year. I may have bitten off too large a bite....

 

[starina]

I love Plant Delights. Interesting plants and a fun-to-read catalog. I'm not adding very many 'new' perennials this year, but I am moving around a lot of what I already have. I am adding roses, and dwarf conifers. I use annuals, I like the continuous bloom/color they provide, but mostly in containers.

 

[catwalk]

Sedum groundcover makes a great mulch substitute, so I'm collecting as many kinds as I can. I also love my lupine, columbine, irises, and roses. My north bed has several varieties of hostas and ferns, but I planted them too close together; gotta divide this fall. I'm looking for suggestions for interesting roses, as I want to turn the south side of my driveway into a rose garden.

 

[starina]

Catwalk, I love your avatar photo! there is an interesting thread on roses in this Hobbies section on BYC. I love roses also, and grow many. I'm particularly fond of the many petalled fragrant ones.

 

[starina]

I picked up a half dozen new hosta yesterday. Some of these are repeats of what I already have, and love, but some are new. I love hosta, and I'm partial to interesting edges on them. I do not like white on them though, cream is fine, but pure white is a turn-off

I also grabbed several heuchera, an old mum, and a couple of echinacea. I have a hydrangea (incrediball, what an awful name!), a lilac and a couple of dwarf conifers waiting to be planted..

I love my garden!

 

[KBlue]

I do mostly perennials....daylillies, roses, iris, coneflowers and other various wildflowers, butterfly bush, lilacs, hydrangea, asiatic lillies, narcissus, tulips, hosta, lily of the valley....I could go on (lots of variety here!).......

We're on the border of zones 5 and 6, and nearly everything I've planted are perennials. The only annuals are a handful of marigolds that I put in our "window" boxes that are mounted to the front porch railing.

We've been in this house almost 4 years now, and it is finally starting to mature and look good. The previous owners planted a few things but didn't care for any of it properly so the landscaping needed a ton of work. But of course, now that things are looking nice, we'll be moving next year!

And I get to start over at the next place! Oh well, I enjoy it.

 

[Crabella]

My sister came for the weekend. She helped me get 4 lilacs, 2 spirea and a flat of dianthus planted. Not an easy task in my rocky soil. Let's just say digging a hole usually involves a pick ax and a pry-bar in addition to the shovel. When we were done with that we planted a couple flats of annuals for quick color. Wish the rest of my yard looked as good as the south and west sides look now. It's coming along nicely. Tomorrow I get the tractor out to move the two large boulders we pried out of the new shrub border.

 

[AquaEyes]

I love Plant Delights Nursery . They are where I go when I'm looking for something unusual. For most of the basic stuff, I HIGHLY recommend Bluestone Perennials . The plants are shipped small, but very healthy. They have pre-planned gardens and end-of-season sales that are not to be missed.