Tag Archives: perennials tacoma

Butterfly Gardens

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Creating a Butterfly Garden Tips:

■Choose plants with various heights & bloom time

■ Include plants for larvae to feast upon

■ Butterflies prefer flowers with multi-cluster heads the best, but most any will do!

PERENNIALS:                               ANNUALS:

Achillea(Yarrow)*                                    Cosmos

Agastashe*                                           Heliotrope

Agapanthus                                            Licorice plant

Aquilegia(Columbine)                                Lobelia

Armeria(Thrift)                                         Marigold

Artichoke                                              Morning glory

Asclepias(Butterflyweed)                     Mustard/Cabbage

Aster                                                      Nasturtium

Astilbe                                                 SweetAlyssum

Chrysanthemum                                     SweetPea

Coreopsis                                              Snapdragon

Delphinium                                              Sunflower

Dianthus                                                    Verbena

Diascia                                                        Zinnia

Dicentra(BleedingHeart)

Digitalis(Foxglove)                                                    SHRUBS:

Dill*                                                          ButterflyBush         Calluna(Heather)

Echinacea (Coneflower)                                     Caryopteris(Bluebeard)

Erysimum(Wallflower)                                Ceanothus            Choisya(Mex.Orange)

Fennel *                                                             Clethra            Escallonia

Gaillardia                                                                  Hebe        Hibiscus

Geum                                                                  Lavatera        Lavender

Iberis (Candytuft)                                             Lilac          Mahonia (OregonGrape)

Liatris*                                                              Philadelphus (MockOrange)

Lupine                                                          Potentilla         Rhododendron

Monarda(BeeBalm)                                             Ribes(Currant)          Rose

Oregano*                                                              Rosemary         Spirea

Penstemon                                                                        Viburnum

Phlox                                                     

Rudbeckia

Salvia                                                  *Indicates plants with                                                              Leaves for caterpillars

Veronica                                     Adults feed on flower nectar.

Vinca                                                     

Wisteria

You can find these plants at Alpine Nursery and Landscape, home of The Pond Pad, in Puyallup, WA.

 

Deer Resistant Plants for the PNW

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We often get the question here at Alpine Nursery, Are these plants Deer Resistant? Deer will eat almost anything when they are hungry.  Here is a collection of plants that are Deer Resistant, by plant category, common name  and botanical name (where applicable).

Trees 

Ash Fraxinus; Cedar; Cypress Cupressus; Douglas Fir; False Cypress Chamaecyparis; Fig; Fir Abies ; Ginkgo; Hawthorn; Magnolia;  Maples;  Oak; Olive; Palms; Pine; Redbud;  Redwood Sequoia; Silk Tree;  Spruce 

Shrubs

Abelia; Bamboo;  Barberry; Boxwood; Buckeye Aesculus; Butterfly Bush; Cinquefoil Potentilla; Coralberry;  Corokia; Cotoneaster; Currant; Daphne; Elaeagnus; Escallonia; Evergreen Huckleberry; Firethorn Pyracantha; Flowering Quince;  Heather; Heavenly Bamboo Nandina; Holly; Juniper; Kerria;  Lavender; Lilac; Mexican Orange; Oregon Grape; Plumbago; Rhododendron (not Azaleas);  Rockrose  Cistus(most); Rosemary;  Sage;  Salal; Snowberry; Spirea; St. Johnswort; Sumac; Sweet Box Sarcococca; Wax Myrtle; Wild Lilac  Ceanothus; Viburnum

Ground Covers / Vines

Beach Strawberry Fragaria chiloensis; Carpet Bugle Ajuga; Dwarf Plumbago; Ivy; Jasmine; Lithodora; Myrtle Vinca; Japanese SpurgePachysandra; Potato Vine; Rockcress Arabis;  Sweet Woodruff Galium odoratum; Wisteria 

Perennials / Bulbs / Grasses

Artemisia; Aster; Astilbe; Bachelors Button; Bear’s BreechAcanthus mollis; Bee Balm Monarda; Bellflower Campanula; Black-Eyed Susan; Bleeding Heart; Blue or Yellow Eyed Grass Sisyrinchium; Blue Fescue; CA Poppy; Calla Lily, Candytuft; Chrysanthemum; Columbine; Coneflower Echinacea; Coral Bells Huechera; Coreopsis; Cranesbill Geranium; Crocosmia; Crocus; Daffodil; Dahlia; Day Lily; Dead Nettle Lamium; Euphorbia; Euryops; Ferns; Flax Phormium; Fountain Grass Pennisetum;  Foxglove; Gailardia; Helleborus; Iris; Lamb’s Ears Stachys byzantina; Lily-of-the Nile Agapanthus; Lily Turf Liriope; Lupine; Miscanthus Grass; Mondo Grass; Monkey Flower; Nepeta Catnip / Catmint Nepeta; Oregano & Marjoram Origanum; Penstemon; Phlomis; Phlox; Pincushion Flower Scabiosa;  Poppy; Red-Hot Poker Kniphofia; Red Valerian Centhranthus ruber; Santolina; Saxifrage; Sedge Carex; Society GarlicTulbaghia violacea; SpeedwellVeronica; SquillScilla; Stipa Grass; Sweet Violet Viola odorata; Thrift Armeria; Thyme; Wallflower Erysimum; Yarrow Achillea

Annuals / Tender Plants

African Daisy; Agave; Aloe; Begonia, Tuberous; Calendula; Clarkia; Dusty Miller; Forget-me-not; Gazania; Helichrysum; Impatiens; Rose Campion Lychnis;Scaevola; Statice; Verbena

If you would like to learn more, stop by and one of our friendly and knowledgeable staff can help you make your selections.  Or you can email your questions to thepondpad@gmail.com.

Hellebore (Christmas Rose) Care

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Hellebore or Helleborus (Christmas Rose)  are hardy evergreen perennials with thick leaves and long lasting flowers.  There are many varieties with bloom color ranging from white, pinks and burgundies.  Most flowers are single petaled, some are spotted and others have double flowers.

  • Prefer part sun to full shade. Varies in  exposure by variety.
  • Long lasting blooms from late winter through spring.
  •  Deer resistant.  Deer usually stay away from this plant.
  • Likes rich, moist, well draining soils.  Use organic fertilizers and a soil amendment a few times a year to promote thick lush growth and sturdy, long lasting blooms. Try Dr. Earth Rose and Flower food to promote healthy soil = healthy plants.
  • Grows from 12′-24″ tall and 12″ -30″ wide, depending upon variety.
  • Very versatile- preforms well in containers, landscape or  shade gardens.
Rosemary

‘Rosemary’ is hardy to -30 deg. F, grows to 12″ x 18″. Blooms December through May. Part Sun to full shade.

‘Pink Frost’ Flowers open whitish pink aging to burgundy red. Silvery green leaves with red stems. grows to 12-15″ x 18-24″ hardy to     zone 5. Part sun to shade.

‘Cherry Blossom’ upright, stunning, soft pink bloom with red picotee edging and red centers. Grows 12-14″ x 14-20″. Likes part sun. Gorgeous! Hardy to Zone 5.

For additional information on Helleborus visit: www.bloomingnursery.com and www.drearth.com for fertilizing tips, schedules and healthy soil.

 

Huechera (Coral Bell) Care

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Huecheras or Coral Bells are hardy, evergreen perennials with colorful, mounding foliage.  They bloom in spring (May, June) with spikes of white, pink or red flower “bells” that are magnets for hummingbirds and butterflies.

  • Hardy in zones 4-9. Heat & humidity tolerant.
  • Prefer moderately well draining soils, allow to dry somewhat in between waterings. Drought tolerant. Make sure not to bury the crown when planting.
  • Full to part sun. Darker colors can take more sun (some color may fade in too much sun), the veined varieties generally require more shade. Good for cut flowers.
  • Very versatile & popular- use in containers, landscape or gardens.
  • Fertilize a few times a year with an organic fertilizer like Dr. Earth Rose & Flower or All Purpose and add a soil amendment or compost to promote healthy the plants.

‘Midnight Rose’ Splashes of pink on burgundy foliage.

‘Marmalade’ Shiny, wavy foliage from amber to deep sienna.

‘Obsidian’  “The Black Standard”, will not fade in full sun.

‘Peach Flambe’ Bright peachy leaves turn plum in winter.

 

If you would like to learn more about Heucheras visit: www.terranovanurseries.com  We carry many of their perennials, stop by and see our selection, it’s growing more and more as we get closer to spring, Alpine Nursery, Puyallup, WA.