THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 21, 1996 TAG: 9604200062
SECTION: HOME & GARDEN PAGE: G2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Robert Stiffler
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
THE SOUTHERN GARDEN Writers meeting held recently in Augusta, Ga., was all about organic gardening, covering everything from perennials to mulch.
``More gardeners should grow the new white amsonia, as well as the many new colors of Baptisia,'' also known as wild indigo, said Professor Allen Armitage of the University of Georgia.
``Purple Smoke'' baptisia with purple and white variegated blooms is the ``hot'' variety this spring. It's available only from Niche Gardens in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Armitage, one of this country's authorities on perennials, is devoting more time to annuals and recommended a new coleus that grows in full sun. Labeled ``Sunlovers'' or ``Solar Series,'' these coleus grow 3 to 4 feet tall, with vivid, deep-colored foliage.
They are being grown in this area by White's Greenhouses in Chesapeake and are available in its retail shop, White's Old Mill Garden Center. In 6-inch pots, they cost $3.99 each.
Armitage also discussed Organic Gardening magazine's classification of gardeners in this country. They are: ``60 percent dabblers, 27 percent yardeners, 10 percent cultivators and 3 percent master gardeners.'' You can decide which group you fit, depending on how much time and money you spend in your yard and garden.
Several authorities discussed rhododendrons and recommended that if you try to grow them in the South, they should be planted on top of the ground and then mulch or organic material raked up around them. If you consider the plant too tall or rootbound, split the root ball from the bottom toward the top and flatten it out like a pancake when planting.
Several growers talked about other problems with plantings. ``When you dig a hole for a camellia or azalea or many other plants, you're digging a coffin,'' one commented. Make your hole no deeper than the plant was previously planted, but much wider. Then hose down the inside of the hole, which will help the soil better accept water. If drainage is poor, punch some holes under the planting hole and fill with small gravel, making a dry well.
Newly planted shrubs and trees must be watered every two to three days all summer unless nature does it for you.
Another grower noted that mulching plants with poor drainage worsens the problem. Mulch provides cold protection but also holds moisture in the ground.
Ted Stephens, owner of Nurseries Caroliniana, offered a practical tip. He said every homeowner should measure his or her lawn.
``Fertilizer and chemicals are packaged and sold by square-foot coverage and half the homeowners who buy these products don't know how much yard they have - so how can they apply the product properly?'' he asked.
A tip for getting the proper soil mix is to remember that sand does not help improve clay. Only compost, peat moss, ground up leaves or other organic material helps make clay soil a better place for plants to grow.
Bob McCartney, co-owner of Woodlanders, a source for native plants of the South, told me he'd bought my book but didn't think I'd included enough information on palm trees.
I told him few people in this area grow them, because they're hard to grow here.
He said, ``Bay Island is one of the best areas on the East Coast to grow palm trees because of water on both sides.''
McCartney agreed to write an article for this newspaper on how to successfully grow palms here. So watch for it.
If you're still complaining about the weather here, rest assured you're not alone. The weather in Augusta was worse than Hampton Roads, and that area had more winter damage than here. Gardeners there lost flowering cherry trees, gardenias and oleanders. by CNB