Park Seed Garden Journal

Hibiscus shrubs always amaze me, somehow.  These flowers are inextricably associated in my mind with the warm, breezy tropics.  When I think of Hibiscus, I think of the flowers tucked behind an ear in Hawaii, or printed on the shorts of a surfer in Malibu, or cast onto the waters in India.  However, there are many varieties of hardy Hibiscus shrub that thrive all the way to Zone 5.  We even have a new Hibiscus this year, Hibiscus ‘Jazzberry Jam,’ that is hardy into Zone 4 (and features mammoth 9-inch blooms)! 

In the US and Canada, Hibiscus syriacus, the most common hardy Hibiscus, is often referred to as "Rose of Sharon," though this phrasing has gone somewhat out of style.  In the UK and Australia it is the flower Hypericum calycinum that bears that name (in the US that plant is more commonly called Great St. Johns Wort or Aaron’s Beard).  Interestingly (to me, anyway), the name Rose of Sharon is a flower mentioned in English translations of the Bible.  Nobody is certain what plant exactly it refers to, and Bible scholars have many theories.  Neither plant commonly called Rose of Sharon, Hibiscus or Aaron’s Beard, is considered likely to be the real Rose of Sharon, though.

Hibiscus come in a variety of forms, though most of them have the trumpet-shaped flower that one normally associates with them.  Some are even showier, though, such as the Hibiscus ‘Boule de Feu,’ an heirloom hibiscus with flowers so showy that they look almost like giant carnations.  My favorite Hibiscus, though, is the Rose of Sharon Blue Satin.  It’s elegant 3-inch blooms come heavily through much of the summer and even into autumn, and it doesn’t lose any color even in the most brutally hot and sunny spot in my mother’s South Carolina garden.

There's something that's just right about a great plant in a container.  I'm not sure if it's the traditional look of it, the flexibility, or just something undefinable, but sometimes nothing but great container plants will do.  Plus, it's great to be able to grow plants that would otherwise be frost-bait in your zone.  Peruvian Lilies, for instance, aren't generally what most would consider "hardy."  However, with the new Princess Lilies™, it's easy to have amazing Peruvians in a container that you can easily bring inside for the cold months.

The Princess Lilies are georgeous Alstroemeria hybrids that are small enough to thrive in containers without giving up any of the amazing color.  The blooms are around 2 inches and come over two seasons.  They last well in the vase and are extremely easy to care for.  Princess Paola (pictured) is my favorite, with her happy bright pink stripes and eye-catching yellow- and red-streaked center.  It's fantastic alone as a centerpiece or in an arrangement.

By far one of the most exciting and exceptional plants we’re offering for the first time this year is the Superpoppy ‘Heartbeat’.  This guy’s got all of the hallmarks of a truly great poppy; the crepe-like petals have a delicate, elegant appearance on huge blooms that look quite like an Oriental Poppy of a stunningly deep, rich maroon.  American breeder James DeWelt didn’t spend thirty years working to create just another poppy.  His creation is truly a qualitative leap ahead of all other poppies I’ve ever seen.  It has the astonishing blooms that can proudly stand next to any Oriental and likely surpass it, but it is almost inexhaustibly floriferous.  It just produces and produces those long-lived blooms.  And those blooms are not tender and easily destroyed like so many Oriental Poppies, either.  The Superpoppy holds up like a native plant through rain, wind, and even heat.  With a dozen or more blooms open at a time on this plant, the Superpoppy is poised to become the new standard against which all other garden poppies are measured.

I was recently in a meeting in which we were discussing many of the new plants we’re offering this fall, and the Superpoppy was probably talked about more than any other.  With a name like "Superpoppy," though, some of us couldn’t resist cracking wise.  My good friend Claire (who writes for the Park Seed Memories blog) raised some important questions that I think we should go ahead and answer before I start getting emails:

No, the Superpoppy has no letters on its chest.  It’s a flower, and, to my knowledge, they rarely have chests (though they do have throats and heads).  No, the Superpoppy does not require an actual emergency to show how Super it is.  Nor will you need to provide it with a very small telephone booth in which to change clothes.  No, I do not know where the clothes get left when it changes, and Yes, I am old enough to remember telephone booths.  The Superpoppy is always a Superpoppy, though it might seem like a mere mortal Poppy when it wears those tiny glasses to blend in.  Yes, the Superpoppy does, in fact, draw its great powers from the rays of our yellow sun (along with the nutrients in well-drained soil).  No, it doesn’t come from another planet, however unearthly its blooms may seem.  I have not yet tried to throw one of the blooms, so I cannot speak to its ability to fly.  We also haven’t yet gotten any Kryptonite with which to experiment, though I suspect that the flowers would not react well to it.

All kidding aside, this truly is a spectacular new class of Poppy.  Give the Superpoppy a try in your garden, and I’m confident that you will be, as we were, convinced that this is the new standard for Papaver.

We’re really excited about all of the new Tulip bulbs we’ve got available this year.  There’s nothing in the world that so clearly announces spring to me as do tight Tulip buds about to open.  The Tulip flower is one of my favorite blooms, with its elegant form opening to a softly colored cup.  No flower so perfectly strikes the balance of simplicity without being at all boring.

Of course, not all Tulips feature such simple blooms.  Parrot Tulips manage to bring real excitement to the genus.  This year we’re offering the Tulip ‘Green Wave,’ a Parrot that’s nearly as dynamic as it is beautiful.  The feather-like petals open green, but start to blush at the tips within a few days.  Before long, you’ve got a brilliant pink and cream flower with a strong green stripe at the center of each petal.  It’s a late-bloomer, and what a great way to finish your spring bulb season!

Don’t think, though, that we’ve moved away from the more traditional-formed Tulips.  ‘Green Wave’ is just one of our nine new Tulips for this fall, each one more exceptional than the last.  Add drama to the normally light spring displays with the deep burgundy of ‘Alexander Pushkin,’ or enjoy the warm pinks of ‘Albert Heyn.’  There’s also the aptly-named ‘Grand Perfection,’ an extraordinarily full and well-formed Single Early.

Whatever you’re looking for in your spring blooming bulbs, there’s a very good chance that we’ve got it this year.  We’re committed this year to bringing our customers more of the worry-free ease of bulb gardening than ever before this fall, and our new collection is definitely worth a look.

To say that this is a busy time at Park Seed would be the understatement of the century.  We’re in the midst of changing our product lines over to the Fall Planting lineup.  The new catalogs are shaping up, which means page mockups spread all over the building (I’ve actually got a copy of the Fall Planting 2008 catalog on my desk now: it’s beautiful!).  There’s new webpages to be designed, copy to be written, and, of course, we’re always getting new images together.  It’s a really exciting time to be here.  The best part, of course, is getting to know the new plants.  Our horticulturists did a great job this year, and I think that this fall’s lineup really is the best we’ve ever had.  We’ve really expanded our fall offering of spring-blooming bulbs this year, but that’s nowhere near to all of the new plants we’ve got this year (check out the amazing new ‘Superpoppy;’ it’s better than any poppy I’ve ever seen).

We’re also gearing up for our single biggest day of the year: Flower Day!  Each year we invite all of you to come to our home here at Park Seed so we can show you around.  This day is the heart of the South Carolina Festival of Flowers, and, judging from the way our Trial Gardens look, it may be the best one ever.  Come on down to beautiful Greenwood, South Carolina to visit us; it’s a lot of fun to get shown around our killer gardens by some of the best horticulturists in the business (I’ve been coming since I was a kid).

Maybe the best thing of all this year, we’re ecstatic to again welcome Paul James of HGTV’s Gardening by the Yard.  He’s one of the funniest people on TV (much less gardening television), as well as an amazingly knowledgeable gardener.  The last time he was here for Flower Day we all called him "the Pied Piper" because of the way that all of our other visitors followed him around in huge packs.  He’ll be doing a couple of Q&A sessions this year, as well as signing autographs.

Many gardeners, myself included, are always looking for a really great ground cover.  I need something with great color that can be planted out toward the ends of my garden, where the waterings come a great deal less often (hey, I’m a gardener, not a workhorse).  Most importantly, I need something with a low habit that won’t overwhelm my border plantings.  Dianthus ‘Cranberry Ice’ is the perfect solution for me.  It’s drought-tolerant and deer-resistant, so it won’t have a problem out at the drier fringes of my garden.  It’ll also bring in a lot of pollinators, which is always a good thing.  Each plant grows to only seven inches high, but it spreads to about a foot wide, so it’s great for mass plantings.  It does well in containers, too, so it’s great for a container planting that won’t need to be watered as often as most.

For all of its easy care, this Dianthus doesn’t skimp on color at all.  These brilliant cranberry-red flowers have interesting hear-shaped pink markings that really draw the eye.  They’re also fragrant and profuse, blooming, in late spring and early summer.

I have a big soft spot for flowering vines of all sorts, so I'm always on the lookout for great ones.  The Genus that most consistently pleases me is Clematis.  Most Clematis are remarkably easy to grow.  Even my Dad, whose gardening abilities are pretty much limited to rebuilding the carburetor on the lawnmower, recently proved that he can not only keep a Clematis alive, but get it to thrive.  He was ecstatic with his climber's performance, and it's no surprise; the best thing about these vines is the stunning, prolific flowers.  Most Clematis bloom passionately at least once a year, and many are rebloomers, with more than one distinct blooming cycle each year.  The blooms of a Clematis never fail to please, either.  They're so varied and interesting that there's sure to be a Clematis that's perfect for nearly every gardener.  I tend to gravitate toward the plants with simpler, more elegant blooms, such as Clematis 'Ruutel' or Clematis Durandii (which is the plant I left in the care of my father), but there are also many Clematis varieties available with showier blooms, such as Clematis Patricia Ann Fretwell™.  Some of my very favorites, though, are the varieties featuring more unique blooms.

Whatever you're looking for in your Clematis, there is probably one that is just right for you.  I encourage every gardener to take a look at many different Clematis varieties, as just searching for the right one for you is a great, rewarding experience.