Ask the Expert: Jason Reeves

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Cannas ( Cannaspp . and cvs . , USDA Hardiness Zones 7–11 ) , bananas ( Musaspp . and cvs . , Zones 8–11 ) , and elephant ’s auricle ( Colocasiaspp . and cvs . , Zones 8–11 ) wreak great planted in a perennial molding , add a bluff , tropical look . They may even be winter hardy in your garden , depending on where you subsist and the cultivar you choose . Favorites include ‘ Bengal Tiger ’ and Tropicanna ® cannas ( Canna‘Bengal Tiger ’ , Zones 7–11 , andCanna indica‘Phasion ’ , zone 8–11 ) ; dauntless Nipponese banana ( Musa basjoo , zone 8–11 ) ; ‘ Siam Ruby ’ banana ( Musa‘Siam Ruby ’ , Zones 9–10 ) ; and ‘ Lime Zinger ’ , ‘ Diamond Head ’ , ‘ Black Magic ’ , and ‘ Thailand Giant ’ elephant ’s ear ( Colocasia esculentacvs . , Zones 8–11 ) .

If you live where they will not endure out of doors , cannas , bananas , and elephant ’s ear are easy to overwinter . If you are not sure if they ’ll make it over wintertime , dig some up and leave some in the garden . Plants to be maintain indoors should be potted and placed in a coolheaded localization where they can survive wintertime in a semidormant state .

If using the garage , cellar , or crawling space , dig plants up and remove most of the soil and folio . If the soil is wet , tolerate the root - formal to dry for a day before wrapping it in newspaper . Place the wrapped antecedent in a loose moldable purse , go along the bag unresolved at the top to allow the origin to breathe , thus forestall rot . Check on the plants a few times during winter , and remove any that are molder ; scatter the root - balls with a little weewee if the soil appear ironic . Replant the tropicals in leaping , and enjoy .

Choose varieties of each that have a firmly thick rind or pelt because these keep longer . Most wintertime squashes have this machine characteristic . Some favorites include ‘ fairy story ’ pumpkin ; delicate squash ; cushaw squash ; and all types of hubbard , butternut , and acorn squash vine .

Pumpkin varieties with rib tend to have a harder rind . If you ’re plan on chip at a jack - o’-lantern , a fluent - skinned pumpkin carves best . Do n’t forget about gourds : As most calabash are dark-green , they can add great contrast to your display . gourd vine will dry out over time and form a hard shell , which can be kept for years . In addition , once dry , they can be carve for a variety of use .

Wash all pumpkin , gourds , and squashes in a 5 percent bleach answer to remove any filth and fungal spore , which can cause untimely decomposition of the yield . If you are using the fruit outdoors , placing them on straw or mulch will keep them from contacting the primer , thus draw out their life .

Cannas , unfearing hibiscus ( Hibiscus moscheutosand cvs . , Zones 5–10 ) , and ‘ Morning Light ’ miscanthus ( Miscanthus sinensis‘Morning Light ’ , Zones 4–9 ) are three rock-steady , sunlight - eff perennials that grow speedily each natural spring . All three are drought patient of once established , but they will do best in moist , modal to rich , well - drained soil . Hardy hibiscus will even grow in troublesome soused sites once established . Miscanthus can do well with almost no supplemental water .

Cannas will emerge quickly once the weather warms and will form a vertical delight of lucullan foliage in the garden . The height will depend on the cultivar you prefer , the soil fertility , and the amount of water usable . Choices such as ‘ Bengal Tiger ’ and Tropicanna ® arrive at 5 to 7 feet tall with mysterious orange flowers hold improbable above the colored foliation . The foliage of ‘ Bengal Tiger ’ are striped with light-green and yellow , while Tropicanna ® are purple with dramatic stripe of green , chickenhearted , pink , and red . If you are attend for a upstanding color , ‘ Australia’—with its inscrutable Burgundy wine ( almost black ) sheeny leafage and red prime — is a great choice .

dauntless hibiscus are hard to beat for their big , bluff flower and power to bloom for calendar month . bloom can be up to 1 base widely . Many have large coloured leaves , adding to the effect . calculate on the cultivar , works can rank from 3 to 8 foundation grandiloquent and can be up to 3 foot wide once they ’ve been in the garden a few yr . A few favourite are ‘ Summer Storm ’ , with 10 - column inch - wide pink flowers with a red eye view as above benighted purple leaves on a 7 - fundament - tall plant life ; ‘ Moy Grande ’ , with 1 - metrical foot - wide vibrant pinkish flowers on cushy green foliation make 5 feet tall ; ‘ Peppermint Schnapps ’ , with 8- to 10 - inch - broad pink blossom with bolshy to deep pink dashes on a green - foliaged 6 - groundwork - tall plant ; and ‘ Midnight Marvel ’ , with 8 - inch - spacious deep cerise red flowers on a 4 - substructure - tall and -wide plant life with deep wine empurpled foliation .

For a simple , more courtly look , ‘ Morning visible light ’ miscanthus makes a nifty choice . This 5- to 6 - foot - improbable , clump - forming weed remains squiffy at the base , while the leaf arch out at the crown , giving it a fountainlike result . The OK - textured leaves have a clean stripe down each side , giving the plant an overall silver expression . In later summer , the clustering produces copper - colored tassel - like inflorescences above the foliage , which turn into silvery white plume as they age . Unlike many other miscanthus mixed bag , ‘ Morning Inner Light ’ is not known to seed in the garden . The leafage ages to an attractive tan in recent autumn and persists through winter , adding another season of interest .

Annuals

overdrive : Geraniums ( Pelargoniumspp . and cvs . , zone 8–11 )

Underused : Cupheas ( Cupheaspp . and cvs . , Zones 9 - 11 )

Cupheas derive in many signifier and efflorescence types . Depending on the coinage , usual names depart ; they include bat face , tiny mice , confect corn , cigar plant , Mexican Calluna vulgaris , and firecracker flora . drouth tolerant once prove in the landscape painting , they all appeal the evermore crucial bees to the garden . deary include ‘ David Verity ’ , Vermillionaire ™ , and‘Strybing Sunset ’ .

Perennials

overuse : Daylilies ( Hemerocallisspp . and cvs . , Zones 3–10 ) , especially ‘ Stella de Oro ’

Underused : butterfly stroke sess ( Asclepiasspp . and cvs . , zone 3–11 ) are essential for the survival of monarch butterfly ; ‘ Iron Butterfly ’ dwarf ironweed ( Vernonia lettermannii‘Iron Butterfly ’ , Zones 4–9 ) is also a favourite nectar plant for the butterflies .

Overused : Dwarf yaupon holly ( Ilex vomitoria‘Nana ’ , Zones 7–11 ) , and ‘ Helleri ’ and ‘ Compacta ’ Nipponese Holly ( Ilex crenata‘Helleri ’ and ‘ Compacta ’ , respectively , Zones 5–7 )

Underused : Dwarf Japanese cedar tree ( Cryptomeria japonica‘Globosa Nana ’ , Zones 6–9 ) and ‘ Conoy ’ viburnum ( ViburnumXburkwoodii‘Conoy ’ , zone 5–8 ) shape in nerveless as well as warmer office of the United States . If you live in a tender part of the country , ‘ Crimson Fire ’ loropetalum ( Loropetalum chinense‘Crimson Fire ’ , Zones 8–9 ) and Jubilation ™ and Scentsation ™ gardenias ( Gardenia jasminoides‘Leeone ’ and ‘ Leetwo ’ , respectively , Zones 14–15 ) are gravid pick .

Overused : Bradford pear ( genus Pyrus calleryanacvs . , Zones 5–8 )

Underused : American fringe Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ( Chionanthus virginicus , Zones 4–9 ) ; Taiwanese fringe Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ( Chionanthusretusus , Zones 5–9 ) ; Iranian Ostrya virginiana ( Parrotia persica , zone 5–8 ) ; and redbuds ( Cercis canadensisand cvs . , Zones 4–9 ) , such as ‘ Appalachian Red ’ , ‘ nerve of Gold ’ , and ‘ Alley Cat ’

‘Diamond Head’ elephant’s earsPhoto/Illustration: Stephanie Fagan

There is no works that can liken to the Bradford pear . But the small tree mentioned above are dependable in the landscape and have many positive attributes .

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‘Morning Light’ miscanthusPhoto/Illustration: Michelle Gervais

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