Plants for Problem Places, Seed Catalogs, Growing Asparagus, and Norfolk Island Pine
It’s a New Year with all kinds of possibilities. I appreciate you for getting this newsletter and being part of my gardening universe. I have recently changed my email server. If you happen to be getting this newsletter after you had unsubscribed, I apologize. Please just unsubscribe again so I can have a clean list or let me know and I’ll unsubscribe you. Thank you.
I always get excited come January because for us it’s the beginning of a year long process of planning, planting, and caring for our gardens. There’s so much potential right now. One of the tasks that we do in preparation for planting in spring in our zone 5 garden, is look at the places in the landscape that need help. I call them “problem places”. In this newsletter I talk about those places, be they shady, sloped, too hot or poor soil. Those places where plants don’t grow well. I offer some ideas on the best plants in this newsletter.
The seed catalogs started coming to our house in November. But it’s not until January when I really look at them. I’m particularly interested in the vegetables and annual flowers. I offer some seed catalog choices and some specialty ones if you’re interested in trying some unusual varieties.
One of the first vegetables of the year that will emerge is a perennial that can last for decades, if properly cared for. Asparagus is a spring treat and whenever we share some with friends, they feel so honored. It’s that precious! I talk about planning, planting and caring for an asparagus patch in this newsletter.
Finally, winter is all about houseplants in our home. I’ll be covering a number of different houseplants in these winter newsletters helping you decide which are best for your house or apartment. This month it’s the Norfolk Island Pine. If you have room, this is a care free tree to grow indoors and it makes for a fun holiday tree. Learn about Norfolk island Pines here.
Until next time I’ll be seeing you, in the garden.
Charlie
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Where to Find Charlie: (podcasts, TV and in-person)
- In the Garden (WCAX-TV CBS) – This week: Growing Herbs Indoors
- All Things Gardening on Vt Public Radio– This week: Seed Catalogs
- WJOY In The Garden Podcast– This week: The In the Garden Radio Show is on hiatus until March, 2025. Check out the past podcasts here
- Where’s Charlie Speaking? 1/9/25- Amherst Garden Club, NH
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How to Grow: Plants for Problem Places
Many gardeners are perplexed by plants in different locations in their yard. We all have those spots where nothing seems to grow well. We try different plants and they still either limp along or just eventually die. But I believe there is a plant for every place. It’s just a matter of finding the right one. For years we tried to grow a tree up on a knoll away from our house. We tried redbud, amelanchier and other flowering trees to create a colorful spring scene on top of that hill. But they all just died. It wasn’t until I realized that although is was a knoll, the soil was heavy and wet. So, I needed to think about trees that can tolerate those conditions. Enter the willow. Now our willow is thriving. We had to change our expectations from flowering tree to beautiful, graceful, wildlife tree.
So, let’s talk about problem places. One is clay soil. Clay is tough on many trees, shrubs and perennials that don’t have strong root systems. Certainly you can try to amend the soil and raised the ground to make it better drained. But changing the soil composition is a long term proposition. I’d rather grow some plants that can tolerate and even thrive in clay. The first step is finding plants with strong root systems that can break through the clay. For trees, try willows, honeylocust, crabapple, birch, cedar and lindens. For shrubs, look for lilacs, ninebark, shrub dogwood and aronia. For perennials, try baptisia, Veronia, salvia, echinacea, ornamental grasses, and aster. Of course, you want to match the right light conditions for each plant. Also, just because they can tolerate clay, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be amending the soil to get these plants off to a good start.
Another situation is shade. First, it’s good to know if you have dry or wet shade. Different perennials will grow best in those different conditions. Then think of the space. What size plant will fit there. Also consider other characteristics of flowering, evergreen, creeping…. that you’ll need. Then, look at plant lists. Some good shade perennials for dry areas include lamium, hellebores, geranium, heuchera and salvia. For wet shade, try perennials such as hydrangea, hosta, ferns, astilbe, ligularia, and black cohosh. Of course, not all shade is created equal. Most of these plants will need some sun to thrive, but often just some morning sun is enough. You can select individual plants or purchase a preplanned shade garden to help you along.
The final area is a slope. Many gardeners have an area that too steep to mow, but difficult to garden. The key is to take the slope section by section each year. Pick areas to start, remove the weedy growth just where you’ll be planting and plant shrubs and perennials that will spread over time. By giving these plants a head start, they will eventually spread into the weedier areas where they will, hopefully, out compete those weeds. Some good choices for a slope include dwarf forsythia, creeping barberry, creeping juniper, catmint, geranium, oenothera, groundcover roses, and creeping sumac. The shrubs will root along the stems as they grow, expanding the area they cover.
Learn More About Plants for Problem Places here
Check out my Plants for Problem Places Webinar here
Seed Catalogs
The seed catalogs have been arriving at our home for months. It started in November and continues into January. Winter is a good time in our zone 5 garden to sit by the fire and look through at new varieties of veggies and flowers. It’s also a good time to remember and assess which varieties did best in our garden last year and which ones we’ll stop growing. While I could spend hours looking through all the catalogs, I tend to stick with catalogs I’ve had a good experience with in the past.
One of my criteria is regional catalogs. When it comes to vegetable and annual flowers, I like regional seed companies that have trial grounds. This helps me know that if it grew well in their trials in my region, it probably will grow well in my garden. In our New England garden I usually order from High Mowing Seeds in Vermont and Johnny’s Seeds in Maine. Both have organic seed and many tried and true and specialty items. Check out which seed companies you might have in your region, or at least in a similar climate as your garden.
I also love to experiment with unusual varieties. There are specialty seed companies that feature just certain types of vegetables. For example, Tomato Growers Supply Company in Florida has more than 300 varieties of tomatoes to gush about. Sand Hill Preservation in Iowa has hundreds of varieties of squash. Filaree Farm in Washington state has pages of garlic varieties. Wood Prairie Farm in Maine has tons of potato varieties. One of favorite specialty catalogs is Baker Creek in Missouri. They have a colorful, printed catalog and offer some unusual vegetables and flowers I’ve not found anywhere else from around the world.
It’s good to get your seed orders in early as sometimes your favorite variety will sell out. Often I get on waiting lists for varieties as seed supplies can fluctuate. As much as seed growing has become a big operation with lots of science behind it, growing seed crops still are subject to the vagaries of weather and even the best growers have crop losses.
Learn More about Seed Catalogs here
How to Grow: Asparagus
Perennial vegetables are a delight to grow. I’m writing a new book and I have a chapter devoted to perennial vegetables. The star of the perennial vegetable world has to be asparagus. I’ve known home gardeners who’ve had an asparagus patch for decades, enjoying the delicious spears each spring. If taken care of properly, asparagus is a long lived crop.
Asparagus needs full sun, well-drained soil and weed controls to thrive. Asparagus is native to the coastal areas of the Mediterranean, so you can image what conditions it likes. Heavy clay, wet soil tends to rot the crowns. Start with crowns when planting asparagus. Varieties such as ‘Millenium’, ‘Jersey Knight’ and ‘Jersey Supreme’ are newer, all male varieties that grow strong without setting lots of seed. ‘Purple Passion’ is a fun purple colored variety. The seed germinates into small baby plants that can crowd out your patch. Plant crowns in compost amended soil. It pays to build up the drainage and fertility of the soil in advance of planting since the crowns will be there for years. Dig a trench about one foot deep, make small volcanoes of soil in the bottom spaced about 1 foot apart and drape the spider-like crowns over the volcanoes. Back fill with soil to cover the crown. As the shoots emerge, keep back filling until you’ve filled the trench with soil.
It’s important to keep the bed weed free. The only thing I’ve seen thwart asparagus is a weedy bed. We use wood chip mulch on our beds because it slowly breaks down, feeding the plants and blocks weed growth. Wood chips are best because they are large and won’t mat on the ground blocking water flow to the roots. Fertilize in spring with compost.
The first two years you’ll just let the asparagus ferns form to feed the crown. Don’t harvest until the third year and only select those spears that are larger than a pencil in diameter. Each subsequent year keep harvesting for a month or so in spring until the diameter of the spears gets small. Then let it grow to fern. Asparagus has a few pests such as the asparagus beetle. Hand pick the red adults and crush the grey larvae in the summer. Japanese beetles also can attack the ferns.
For fun, consider growing white asparagus. The white spears are more tender and milder tasting than green or purple ones. White asparagus is not a different variety but is produced by blanching the spears. In spring, before the spears emerge, cover part of the bed with black plastic mulch. Check periodically for the spears and you’ll find they are white.
Go here for more on growing asparagus
In Our Garden: Norfolk Island Pine
Winter is houseplant time. I’m going to try to highlight various houseplants in the next few months to hopefully inspire you to give some a try. In this newsletter it’s all about Norfolk Island Pines. These large, pine trees, are native to the Southern Hemisphere and amazing garden specimens in frost free, warm climates where they grow outdoors. But most of us know them as the small houseplants in garden centers and nurseries. Knowing they want to grow into tall trees help when purchasing them. If you’re intending to grow your Norfolk Island Pine for years in your home, it will need a tall ceiling. Even grown in a pot, it still wants to grow tall. I have friends who’s home is a Norfolk Island Pine sanctuary because they have tall ceilings and friends keep giving them pines that have outgrown their own space.
But you can start small with a 1 foot tall pine and grow from there. They’re slow growing in pots so it could be years before they outgrow your space. Norfolk Island Pines like bright light indoors, out of direct sun. Fill these evergreen’s pots with moistened potting soil that’s high in organic matter such as compost and bark mulch. Water when the soil is dry to the touch, but don’t let the roots sit in soggy soil. Let the soil dry out between waterings. In winter in cold areas, increase the humidity around the Norfolk Island Pine by placing a pebble tray filled with water under the plant, adding a humidifier to the room and by misting. Brown needles are usually a sign of too low humidity.
Don’t prune the top to dwarf the tree. It will just deform it. You can remove side branches and cut them back if needed. We also like our Norfolk Island Pine as an alternative holiday tree. The branches are strong enough for light weight ornaments and lights. In fact, we leave lights on it all winter to brighten up the room.
Go here to learn more about growing Norfolk Island Pines.
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