This gorgeous native accomplishes so much in the landscape! Its lush, full habit (reaching 6-8’ high) makes this shrub a nice choice for screening. The conical white flower heads emerge in late spring, then slowly deepen in color from pink to burgundy throughout the summer. Left to dry, the flowers make a dramatic addition to dried fall arrangements. And the fall color! The deeply lobed leaves are spectacular, ranging from shades of red, bronze and purple. A truly wonderful plant!
Tuscarora Crape Myrtle
The Crape Myrtle is quickly becoming a landscape staple in the Mid-Atlantic region. This small flowering tree is available in a wide palette of long lasting summer blooms, ranging from white, pink, purple to red. Crape Myrtles boast attractive exfoliating bark, particularly lovely in the winter time, and are resistant to deer, drought and disease. Plant this wonderful tree and enjoy great summer color for years to come.
Summer’s heat is much more bearable thanks to these garden gems! Here are some of our favorite summer blooming perennials:
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea Purpurea, Powow Wildberry)
Echinacea loves full sun and this variety will bloom all season, reaching a height of 20-24 inches. Deadheading not required!
Bees love this taller perennial. Growing 2-4 feet, Agastache will nicely anchor the back of a perennial border. It’s flowers are edible and the plant is deer resistant!
This bold Rudbeckia for sun or part shade is filled with lovely brown centered blooms. It stands 16 – 24” high and is resistant to powdery mildew.
Here is a wonderful variegated Dogwood for the shade garden. Cornus kousa ‘Wolf Eyes’
Eye-catching gray-green leaves are accented with ivory along wavy margins, making this dogwood a beautiful specimen. Large, long lasting, star shaped white flowers bloom in late May-early June. Autumn leaves fade into a pink-red hue, and its star-like flowers are followed by bright-red berries. Wolf Eyes grows slowly to 10-15 ft. tall and wide, and prefers partial shade. A show-stopping addition to any shade garden, as their creamy white margins seem to glow in a shady area.
Beautiful Amur Maackia
Here is another new addition to our tree selection this year at Rutgers Nursery. It is also one of the trees we grow ourselves!
Amur Maackia is an attractive and rare small tree with so much to offer – showy spikes of fragrant, creamy white pea-like flowers rise above the foliage in mid-summer when few trees bloom, tidy forest green foliage which emerges a fuzzy silver in spring, and glowing golden bark that exfoliates with age. This is a very clean tree and excellent for small yards. Amur Maackia will grow to be about 25 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 30 feet. It prefers full sun and moist,well-drained soil.
Their shining iridescent colors and ‘humming of wings’ make hummingbirds among the most beautiful and fascinating birds to attract. The Ruby-throated Hummingbird is the only species of hummingbird found in northern New Jersey. Male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have a brilliant, metallic-red throat that can appear black in the shade, while females have a white throat. Both have bright iridescent green backs and wings.
The Ruby-Throated Hummingbird is the only Hummingbird that breeds in the eastern US. Hummingbirds migrate seasonally and are attracted to woodland edges and openings near streams where their favorite nectar producing plants grow. The nectar provides the necessary energy for the Hummingbird’s rapid flight movement – a Hummingbird may beat its wings up to 75 times per second.
Although Hummingbirds feed from nectar-bearing flowers of all colors, they are mainly attracted to bright red, pink, and orange tubular flowers. The most important thing you can do to attract these birds to your garden is to plant flowering annuals, perennials, shrubs & trees.
Also, these birds will eagerly come to special feeders that are stocked with sugar water. There are several models of Hummingbird feeders available to suit your budget and taste. It’s recommended to fill the feeders daily, with fresh “nectar solution”. Every four to five days clean the feeder thoroughly with hot water and a little vinegar to prevent mold establishment. Scrub the feeder with a bottle brush and rinse thoroughly before refilling.
The following garden plants provide color and nectar that can help attract Hummingbirds to your garden:
A garden with a combination of these flowers (and a nectar feeder!) can assist in attracting these unique birds to your garden.
All of these annuals and perennials are available at Rutgers Nursery and Landscape in their respective seasons. Our staff is always willing to assist in all of your gardening projects.
With all the rain we’ve had lately, you may be wondering how this excess water affects our plants! For areas that drain well, our rainy periods shouldn’t have a negative effect. However, heavy clay soils that are not amended with organic material (like compost) can prevent easy drainage. Why is water a problem? Excess water in the soil forces out air. When there is less air available, the oxygen is rapidly used and becomes inadequate for good root growth. Adding compost is a great way to loosen clay soil and improve drainage. Adding a trench to divert water away from plants works well too.
Water AdequatelyDiligently check the moisture level in the rose beds at least twice a week in dry summer weather. When watering, avoid frequent shallow sprinklings, which won’t reach the deeper roots and may encourage fungus.
Once a month between April and July, apply a balanced granular fertilizer (5-10-5 or 5-10-10). Allow 3/4 to 1 cup for each bush, and sprinkle it around the drip line, not against the stem.
In May and June, add in an additional tablespoon of Epsom salts along with your fertilizer; the magnesium sulfate will encourage new growth from the bottom of the bush.
Mulch, as an element to rose care, helps minimize weeds, keeps the soil moist and loose, and adds essential nutrients.
Removing dead leaves and canes will help reduce pests. Local pests to watch out for are:
Stem Borers
Japanese Beetles
Aphids
Spider Mites
Black Spot/Powdery Mildew
Pruning your roses keeps them blooming repeatedly all summer long. Deadhead religiously and keep beds clean. Every leaf has a growth bud, so removing old flower blossoms encourages the plant to make more flowers instead of using the energy to make seeds. Clean away from around the base of the rosebushes any trimmed debris that can harbor disease and insects.
Stop deadheading all your rose plants 3 to 4 weeks before the first hard frost so as not to encourage new growth at a time when new shoots may be damaged by the cold.
These simple techniques for rose care will assure you a season of abundant flowers and healthy plants.
One of the great joys of the garden is lush, flowering perennials. New gardeners may find the thought of planning and planting a perennial bed intimidating, but it’s really easy! Long-term success with perennials is a direct result of good planning and some simple prep work. Here’s what you need to know:
First, pick the spot for your perennial bed. If necessary, use a garden hose or string and stakes to visualize the bed lines. If the bed is already cut, so much the better. Either way, be sure the space is the size and shape you want. Remove any vegetation in the bed. Lift sod and/or remove any weeds.
Healthy soil promotes healthy plants, which are more insect and disease resistant. We can’t over-emphasize the long-term value of adding organics, like peat moss, compost and manure to the garden. One part peat moss to two parts existing soil, or one part each garden soil, peat moss, and compost (or dehydrated manure) will give you great soil in which to start your new garden. Also add a handful per plant of an organic, balanced fertilizer like Plant-Tone. Mix or till these materials into the soil prior to planting. Grade the soil so the final desired contour is achieved.
The hole you dig for each perennial should be twice the size of the container the perennial comes in. The wider the hole, the better, since plant’s roots grow out more easily into loosened, enriched soil. Remove the perennial from the container and lightly loosen the roots so the plant will grow out of its tightly wrapped ball and settle in more quickly.
Refill the hole with enriched soil, setting plants into holes at their original growing level. Never bury a plant deeper than its crown (where the roots and the stems meet) Buried crowns mean suffocated plants! Plant 2 inches higher than ground level if you are going to mulch. Backfill the rest of the hole with enriched soil. Tamp down the soil to remove any large air pockets. Water well, with a soft trickle of water that lasts long enough to saturate the root ball deep into the soil. Perennials prefer one inch of water a week, in one application. However, different soil types may need slightly more or less water. Use your fingers to poke into the soil to test the dampness of the soil. In order to conserve precious moisture and to keep weeds down, mulch your perennials with a 2-3 inch layer of organic mulch (not stones!)
A well-planned, well-planted perennial garden will be a joy for many years. Let us help you make the choices that will give you the garden you’ve dreamed of.
Now in addition to custom landscape design and installation, Rutgers Landscape Design now creates and installs custom pools! This enables us to offer a greater range of services from property master plans to landscape planting to hardscaping to pool installation, all with one company, all integrated as one beautifully designed unit.
