Plant of the Month
Epilobium cana / Zauschneria californica
Common names: California fuchsia, Hummingbird Flower
California Fuchsia
Now here is an easy to grow CA. native that gives you loads of orange-red trumpet shaped hummingbird attracting flowers from late summer through fall. They take full sun, but there are some varieties of the lower growing type like ‘Mattiole Select’ that prefer afternoon shade. They survive on very little water and prefer well drained soil but will adapt to heavier soils. There are several named varieties, the lower ones grow to 8” tall with taller varieties reaching to 2 ft. The foliage ranges from green to grey green to silver depending on variety. They spread by underground roots.
California Fuchsia
CA. Fuchsias go dormant in winter so I always cut the old stalks down in winter sometime after the first good freeze. They work well in the native garden, among rocks or to help with hillside stabilization. This is a very enjoyable low maintenance perennial and it is deer resistant.
September Specials
- Green-All Soil Booster 1.5 c.f. bags- Buy 3 and get 4th FREE
- 20% OFF all ‘gallon’ sizes from 1 to 15 of perennials, shrubs, citrus, olives and trees
- 30% OFF all our berries, grapes, nuts and most fruit trees.
- (Ongoing- plant of the month is $1.00 OFF 4” , Fill a Flat and Baker’s Dozen specials)
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Get one FREE 4” perennial or seed pack of your choice with every $25 worth of purchases
September 2012 Newsletter
My vacation to my niece’s wedding at Waterton Provincial Park has come and gone, young and old alike are back at school and the unofficial end of summer is here. Time for the second round of gardening!
It’s not too late to groom and fertilize your roses and long blooming perennials and annuals to keep them looking good through October. Now is the month to feed your fruit trees to give them a good start next year. Use our E.B. Stone Fruit Tree Food. If you postpone till next month then the E.B. Stone Ultra Bloom will be the better choice. It has no nitrogen and your trees will be going into dormancy and will not use it. Fertilize your lawn after the long hot summer. Fescue type lawns grow most in spring and fall so you will want to feed those now to keep them looking healthy.
Fall/winter vegetable starts are here and I am hoping the seed order to stock up on cool season vegetable and flower seeds will be in by Labor Day week-end. I have pulled all the warn season seeds from the shelf so you should have no problem choosing appropriate seeds. Many people plant sweet peas in the fall for early spring bloom before the days get too hot for them. We should have the beginning of our poppy and wildflower seeds coming too. Calendulas start easy from seed and can help brighten your winter yard.
Our suppliers are starting to have a nice selection of pansies, violas, ornamental cabbage and kale, stock and snapdragons. We are beginning to stock these cooler weather lovers so you can get them up to a good size before the cold weather inhibits growth. Looking for some fall container ideas? You could use the ornamental peppers with grasses, cabbage and pansies or throw some hardy succulents into the mix.
You have till the end of October to get your special fruit tree orders in for bare-root season. I will have plenty of bare-root to choose from in winter but you will be limited to the varieties I ordered for stock. Is there a special cherry or perhaps the donut peach you have always wanted? Do you make your own canned peaches and want a cling stone variety? How about an Asian Pear or a not so well known apple? Go to davewilson.com for a full listing of fruit trees to choose then call or come by the nursery with your order.
I have switched bulb companies and have had to look for onion and garlic starts elsewhere so you will be seeing some changes in selection this fall. The new company provides a smaller bag of bulk daffodils which most of you might prefer but for my customers who buy the big bags every year you will have to buy two or more. The per bulb price will be comparable so I do not see it being a big issue. Expect onions, garlic, shallots by the end of September. My iris selection is already here and I expect more flowering bulbs to arrive as the month progresses.
We are into prime planting months (Sept and early October) for hardy trees, shrubs and perennials. To help you get in the mood all one gallon and bigger size containers in stock are 20% OFF this month. Get the jump on Spring 2013 by planting this fall. Some of you have been waiting for the shorter days, slightly cooler weather and the fall nursery specials so wait no more.
Some nice late blooming perennials to choose from are CA. Fuchsia, lots of the Salvias, ornamental oregano, Black-eyed Susans, Coneflower, Swamp Sunflowers, Russian Sage, Gaura, Crape Myrtle and ornamental grasses. The nursery is still loaded with color. Shouln’t you be, too?
Tanya