| I am looking for perenials to put around my mailbox..not wanting all green. Would plumbago work? what to put with it? |
| Instead of plumbago, why not consider planting: Centaurea montana (perennial bachelor?s button)Blue flowers about 2 inches in diameter are held erect12 inches or more above the basal foliage. Blooming in early summer, full sun and light soils are best. Do not confuseC. montana with C. cyanus (cornflower, bachelor?sbutton), an annual that grows wild in Georgia. Coreopsis. Coreopsis grows from 1 to 3 feet high and bloom from May to fall if the old flowers are removed. It grows best in full sun and is fairly drought tolerant. Coreopsis is often treated as a biennial. Yellow and gold predominate in the flower color range. Coreopsis is among the easiest perennials to grow. Gaillardia X grandiflora (blanket flower) - Gaillardia grows 12 to 30 inches high and blooms from midsummer until frost. It grows easily, prefers full sun, tolerates poor soils and needs good drainage. Yellow, red and orange varieties are available. Monarda didyma (beebalm, bergamot) - Monarda blooms all summer; colors range from white to rose-pink to wine-red. Most varieties grow 2 to 3 feet high. Monarda is an old garden favorite still worth growing. Rudbeckia hirta (blackeyed Susan) - Rudbeckia is among the easiest of perennials to grow and is naturalized in many areas of the state. Most cultivated varieties grow 2 to 3 feet high and bloom early summer to fall. Orange, gold, yellow and brown colors predominate. Double-flowered varieties are available. Salvia farinacea (blue salvia); S. X superba (perennial salvia) -Blue salvia produces a blue flower spike 1? to 3 feet tall; flowering begins in early summer and continues until fall. Perennial salvia produces violet-blue flower spikes. Both are useful in backgrounds and when a spike effect is desired. S. elegans (pineapple sage) is a late-blooming red species reaching 4 to 5 feet high. S. leucantha (Mexican sage), a tall, bushy, late-blooming purple species is cold tender in North Georgia. Hope these suggestions help. |
