Joe and Penny have a beautiful home. The front landscape is beautiful and looks just like it's supposed to. Then you go to the back and it is nice too...but there are a lot that needs to be done. There are flower beds everywhere. Some have been planted, but most haven't. But they made a wise decision. They decided they needed a plan before they went much further. Which is an excellent idea. So, we walked and talked about it, and I started working on some idea. Here are some plants that will work for them.
-Bicolor Iris will bloom all summer if it's planted in a sunny location.
-Yew Podocarpus is nice because it doesn't grow too fast or too wild.
-Prostrate Rosemary is low growing and will trail over the side of the bed.
Here are some ground covers that work well in a partly shady area.
-Sun-N-Summer Asiatic Jasmine-the new growth is variegated pink and white
-Vinca minor has smalll leaves and blue flowers
-Variegated Vinca major has bigger, variegated leaves
-Oakleaf Hydrangea is the only Hydrangea that does well in our soil here in Central Texas. And it has huge white blooms in the mid to late spring.
-Variegated Flax Lily definitely brightens up a dark area.
-Summer Beauty Acanthus blooms in the summer.
-Redbuds have great spring blooms and are native to much of the state.
-Potomac Crapemyrtle has great fall color and has pink blooms all summer.
-Basham's Party Pink is one of the biggest crapemyrtles you can find.
Radiance Abelia has variegated leaves and will get about 3' tall in 3 years.
-Giant Leopard Plant is evergreen and likes it shady.
-Giant Liriope like sun or shade.
-Coral Bells Heuchera is a perennial that comes in many different leaf colors and bloom colors. Here are three different ones...two with red leaves and one with green leaves.
-Red Star Cordyline is different. Leaves look dangerous, but they are soft.
-Blue Daze blooms all summer.
-Salvia greggii blooms on and off the entire growing season
-Santa Barbara Salvia blooms all summer.
-Whirling Butterflies puts blooms up above the plant.
-Wooly Stemodia is a great gray ground cover.
-Zexmenia blooms all summer.
-Pink Skullcap has littel bitty flowers and lots of them
-Orange Shrimp Plant does good in the shade and is winter hardy.
-Holly Fern is an evergeen fern that likes the shade.
-Turk's Cap is a native plant that blooms all summer.
-Orange Bulbine blooms all summer
-Jerusalem Sage blooms in the spring.
-Chocolate Chip Ajuga is pretty small but it has blue flowers in the spring and sometimes after a good rain it blooms again.
-Variegated Ginger takes shade or a little sun.
-Firebush loves it hot. And Hummingbirds love it.
-Big Blue Liriope makes a great border for a flower bed.
-Giant Liriope looks good all by itself
-Mexican Feather Grass has narrow blades of leaves that sways in the wind
-Muhly Grass is also a native that only gets about 2' tall.
-Blackfoot Daisy is a native that starts blooming in the early spring and continues until it get too hot for it, then it quits. After it cools down it starts blooming again.
-Firespike blooms in the fall.
-Mystic Spires Salvia starts blooming in the spring and goes until the fall. It will get about 3' tall.
-Katie Ruellia can be found with pink or purple blooms.
-Allison False Heather only gets about 12" tal
-Frances Purple Oxalis likes a little shade in the hot summer.
-Mexican Oregano will bloom in the summer and can tolerate the shade.
-There are a dozen selections of Upright Rosemary. Tuscan Blue is one of the more common ones.
- Same with Turks Cap. But the native Turk's Cap only gets about 3' tall and blooms all summer.
That's it for today. Let me know if you have any questions.
Comments