Friday morning on our way to St Louis we stopped at Wine Country Gardens (we alway do) out in Defiance Mo. They had a bunch of very small ground cover plants sold under the brand name Stepables. We bought 3 kinds. One is called Dwarf Wooly Yarrow (achillea tomentosa 'lemon). It only grows to 3-4 inches tall and looks like a small fern. has yellow flowers in early summer. The second one is called miniture stone crop(sedum requieni). This is a dandy. I placed it in a pot with miniture hosta that we will be taking to the State Fair if they have a class for this type thing in the seniors show. This stuff only gets to be 1/4 inch high and stays very small and grows slow. It too has yellow flowers in mid to late summer. The third one has tiny purple leaves and grows to 3 inches. It comes from New Zealand and is called Purpurea (acaena inermis 'purpurea') has whitish flowers in in the summer. So if any of you around St Louis happen to go there check them out. Crystal the purple one would go nicely with your shed.
Found some new ground covers
They all sound very cute. I like some of the ground covers that stay very small.
We have alot of Steppables on sale at work that are left over from the plant sale 2 wks ago. Half off too! If I had a place to put them I would get some.
That reminds me. What animal would dig up a clematis, toss it to the side and take the dirt from the hole? Twice!!!! I put a tomato cage and some black pepper around it today after I replanted it again for the second time. I have another plant on the other side of the pole that it leaves alone but it messes with my clematis!! I hope the black pepper gets it good. lol.
Sounds mysterious Pepper. That reminds me of the squirrel that was removing this man's yellow ribbon nightly from his tree and taking it to the nest, then he put a camera on it and saw the culprit! Black Pepper?! So, thats where you get the name!
I think I'd put a $29.99 little black and white video camera from Harborfreighttools on it. Well, you'd still need a VCR and a monitor but their cheap too. I think I'm gonna get those cameras to watch my garden and my recent DG acquisition, a steer skull for my upcoming cactus garden.
I'd like to find some ground-cover that will grow in full shade. A friend of mine doesn't have any grass in her front yard due to the heavy, full shade from 2 big Pin Oak trees there.
I'm talking about a large area that would be too expensive to plant pricey ground-cover
so much, any ideas?
Hey guess who came out and got some tree seedlings this morning, EvaMae (leaflady)!
Its always nice to have visitors.
There is a succelent ground cover called mother of millions. It has little yellow flowers on it and it is really pretty when it covers a nice size area. It will grow in any condition. We have fulll shade to full sun in our yard. I can send you some if you want. They are very easy to grow. If you break a stem stick in the ground and it will grow. lol
Sure Pepper, if you was asking me, I'd be glad to have some to try.
Are you sure its hardy here? From what I read on Plantfiles on it, its more of a zone 9 or so plant. http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/594/
Even if its not supposed to grow here, I'll try it. I have the evergreen Red-Tipped Photinia growing here, and I don't think its supposed to either! :)
Shortleaf, I grow Gill Over the Ground for a cover. It is a wild plant and doesn't seem to care to be transplanted tho it can be done. I can get you a lot of it. It roots where the leaf nodes touch the ground at time. It's a long viney plant. You may have it in your area and don't know it. Most people will be glad to give it to you if you ask for it. Check plant files & if you can't find it in your area I'll try to get some to you. I also like Lamium Maculatum. There are several cultivars of it. Widely available at most garden centers.
Many people have micro climates that will sustain plants not normally hardy there.
Thanks leaflady for the kind offer, I'm going to give Pepper's evergreen Mother of Millions a try first. My friend that needs it currently has a funny way of landscaping. She has Japanese Honeysuckle growing everywhere because she says it pretty. Well, it is kind of pretty I guess, but she has way too much of it. I'd say it is currently ravaging about half of her front yard. She knows she has to do something about it, but she doesn't know what. In most places this open Honeysuckle is 5 or 6 feet tall.
I'll surely keep that Gill over the Ground in mind though.
How about these vine names Mother of Millions and Gill over the Ground?! :)
I am Will of Independence!..LOL
I try to use the microclimate when-ever I can.
I've been kinda lucky in that regard actually. My friend's bare front yard is facing South protected from the North by her house and a hill behind that. My mobile home's front yard is facing South, where the Red-Tipped Photinia is at. It didn't even have any die-back that I've seen yet, it still hasn't fully leafed out. That cold snap in early April killed all the foliage that had already emerged on it. It is protected from the North by the mobile home. I also tried 3 Crape Myrtles there in the same bed. Its not a small bed,` it is 33 feet long. Only 1 of the 3 Crapes came thru the Winter though, and they are just base sprouts. I knew there was a chance they might not make it, so I will return them with receipts to Lowes for a full refund. According to the tags on them they should have made it. 2 of the Crapes were 'Acoma' and 1 was 'Dynamite'. One 'Acoma' made it.
I don't recall exactly how cold it got here in the KC area, but I believe it was only 0 degrees F to 10 degrees, I think closer to ten. The 'Dynamite' said minimum 0 degrees and the 'Acoma's said -10 on the tag. I think Lowes must be embellishing a little on their hardiness. They might really be good for that, but their provenance (likely from Florida) probably doesn't allow that.
I wonder what my neighbors will think there when I get the cactus garden going, complete with steer skull! I think I might put Prickly-Pear in a hanging planter too!
If you need cactus, I have a Starr Cactus that you can have a cutting of. It has a very unique smell when it blooms. lol. It's in a pot with a pencil tree cactus which will need it's own pot soon. It's not looking happy. lol
I'd love to have Starr cactus. Is it a houseplant or is it hardy outdoors?
I went to my mobile home a while ago with another load of stuff (I'm moving, that little trailer comes in very handy). While I was there I looked at the tags for the three Crape Myrtles there, I was wrong about the hardiness that I said above. They are supposed to be hardier than that even. I was 10 degrees off for each of them. The Lowes 'Dynamite' is supposed to be hardy to -10 F, and the 'Acoma's down to -20, I've been duped! Oh well, I always keep the receipts anyway.
If you'd like more cactus I have a bunch of two types, Chainlink Cholla and Prickly-Pear.
They are hardy outdoors here, even in pots.
Well, I think its Chainlink Cholla anyway, but not entirely sure.
From what I read about Chainlink Cholla it can withstand temps down to +15 degrees F.
And it can get quite a bit colder than that here for sustained periods.
The photos that I've seen of it look just like it. I hope I didn't mislead anyone with my plantfiles entry. http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/66650/index.html
Shortleaf
You cholla plant is very hardy in MO. We are south of you but we have a cholla that we brought back from TX 29 yrs ago and it grows great here. If the temps get too cold it may not bloom that year but it still grows. It took it forever to bloom or we just weren't giving it the soil it liked. My DH planted 3 in my flower bed, GRRRRR, and they are doing great. They are pretty cactus but I know they will grab you from 3 feet away and the stickers are barbed so they really hurt. If you like cactus I would recommend them.
I don't have any place safe to put them. lol. Too many cats and dogs. I will also get the Starr Cactus ready for you. I have no idea if it is hardy here or not. I keep mine in the house in a big pot it shares with the pencil tree cactus.
That's too bad about the Crepe Myrtle.
Hi Dylan- I think your the first person that I've known of in Missouri to also have this Cholla (well besides the guy down the street
who I got cuttings from a couple years ago).
I may have mis-named it, I may have the Cholla part right, but it has many different names in Plantfiles (Giant Tree Cholla, Tree Cholla, Candelabrum Cactus, Cane Cactus, Cane Cholla, Walking Stick Cholla Cylindropuntia imbricata) are many common names it says. http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/66650/index.html
Well, besides Cylindropuntia imbricata, I think thats the botanical name.
There is a photo in Plantfiles by htop that has the Cholla in that tree form I think. Its an impressive photo, it must be an older cactus.
It has what appears to be a woody trunk, like a tree, maybe thats where it gets its name. I didn't make a Plantfiles entry on it.
I thought I had uploaded a photo of it, but I don't see it. I may have only uploaded a photo of my Prickly-Pear (Opuntia humifusa),
I've raved on it too, but I think its more common than the Cholla in Missouri.
I read a little on the Star Cactus, it sounds like an indoor plant http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/57974/index.html, that minimum zone
9b would probably finish it off here outside. I have something of an indoor greenhouse though. Its just this small curio size thing that costs $19.99 from Biglot. Its still in the box but I plan on putting it to use this Winter,
I already have a flourescent grow-light for it, I may need to get more lights for it. I have a shop light fluorescent light, complete with gro-bulbs. I might try to rig that up next to it somehow.
I'm not sure if its the same thing as you got Pepper but my friend down the street has one of those tall pencil-like cactus.
It got so tall that he had to cut off the top of it, it wouldn't fit in his house! Its not hardy here, its more like an Arizona cactus, he takes it in the house in the Fall.
Yeah, that stinks about the Crepe Myrtles (I never know how to spell it, some spell it Crepe and some spell it Crape).
I wanted this staggered flowering effect, white, red, white. But its not to be I suppose. Oh well, I'll return them and plant something else there.
Starr Cactus, also known as Carrion Flower is what I have. There are other names for it too.
www.davesgarden.com/pf/go/2273/index.html
I see. Interesting plant also. I'd love to have a cutting of your Starr Cactus aka Carrion Flower and Toad Plant.
The cholla probably is called a tree cactus. The people we got ours from had one in their yard that had been there for 10-15 years and it was HUGE. It grew about 8' tall and about that wide with beautiful hot pink flowers. The people cut it down when grandkids came along so the kids didn't get into it. My dogs get into it about one time and that is it, they give it a wide berth after that.
I would rather mess with the cholla cactus as a prickly pear though. The cholla cactus can be handled without gloves IF you are careful, the PP cactus stickers get in my gloves and I have just thrown a few pairs away and bought new gloves.
LOL. I can't believe you are willing to try it. I took it to work one day and our direc of hort saw it and started freaking. He HATES it. LOL. I threatened to put it in his office to make him suffer but since he is a nice guy I didn't. I will try to get some separated soon. I will have the mother of millions dug up hopefully tomorrow. I just finished demolishing an iris bed today so tomorrow it's on to something else. Something safe where my mom won't kill me. LOL
That Cholla poked me once and I don't want to do that again, I bled like a stuck pig if I remember right!
Yeah, I know about those little needles, they are almost invisible.
I remember when I brought my big pot of Prickly-Pear home, I had those needles all over me from carrying it.
It was hard to sleep that nite because they were irritating the skin so bad.
I found another good use for duct tape tho, removing Prickly-Pear needles!
I use barbeque tongs on my cactus now, all types. I try not to even touch them with gloves on!
Sure, I'll try almost anything, well, I'd have to resist Kudzu, Ailanthus or Garlic Mustard I'm afraid!
Does Mother of Millions thrive for you Pepper?
Is that the horticulture guy that has this funny long last name?
I think he taught this native plant class I took there and also building a coldframe class I took there, both 2 or 3 years ago. I believe he was the hort director also when I applied for a job there about the same time, which I didn't get! LOL
Alan Branhagan. That's him.
I planted the Mother-of-Millions almost a week ago. I hope the mother comes thru with the millions! There is quite a bit of bare space to cover. I forgot to mention that much of that front yard is like a sponge from sunflower seed husks from my friend's mom feeding the wildlife 200 lbs. of birdseed about every 3 weeks for about 5 years! I know, because I'm the one that got the seed from the store. I remember the squirrels were fat and birds around there looked like flying chickens, and there was uhh.. bird excrement on everything. I was mowing her yard a while back and a bird that looked like a flying chicken almost hit me, I had to duck!
Well, I'm off to a family reunion in Arkansas, this should be interesting!
Will
Warn your friend about the japanese honeysuckle. It's considered a pernicious weed. Now, IMO anything less invasive than kudzu should have a less nasty label, but JH has it for a reason. I remember japanese honeysuckle from my childhood, we had large swaths of it and I'd walk along it pulling flowers off and sucking the nectar from them. IMO any childhood without honeysuckle is a deprived childhood! But unless your friend lives on 52 acres with sheep (which will mow anything down that they can reach), she had better keep her honeysuckle restrained.
I sow white clover for ground cover. It has many extreme virtues: I can keep seeds at hand for a couple of years, so it's always available -- and with a little water it'll sprout in a couple of days. Although its initial tendency is to grow to 6-8", if you mow it, it'll settle down at 3" and spread and bloom at the shorter height. Its broad leaves shade the ground and discourage weeds. The same leaves reduce evaporation and it therefore not only withstands drought itself but helps adjacent grass to withstand drought better. It fixes nitrogen in the soil, good for itself and the adjacent grass. And of course its leaves are a lovely bright green.
Wow, hi neighbor! You are close, I am also in Independence, MO. Gawd, I hope your not my next-door neighbor, I'd feel bad. Yeah, I've tried to tell her about that Honeysuckle, thats probably why she likes it. Seriously, she says its pretty and it hasn't caused anything bad really besides a big mess. Her front yard just looks like a salvage yard is all, because of it. It could be so much nicer, but she is the uhh.. the working stiff lachadaisical type, much like myself I suppose.
shortleaf: if you're really in zone 5b you're way east of me (Gentle reader, Independence runs a long ways east-west), and you're neither the deaf Vietnam vet nor the ex-con (and not so very ex-, either) who are my neighbors. I'm working stiff lackadaisical, too, but I don't have honeysuckle, nor would I plant the Japanese one. My childhood honeysuckle was in Maryland south of DC, and thanks to developers the 52 acres and sheep are no more, and also likewise the honeysuckle.
I was visiting with a neighbor down the road the other day and she showed me a "Creeping Raspberry" that she got at Lowes the other day. Anyone know anything about it before I buy one?
http://classygroundcovers.com/item----284&affl=google-rubus
I found that. Seemed informational.
Thanks Pepper
I may have to try it later.
Hi carriebryan,
LOL..I was kidding about you being my neighbor..LOL
My neighbors are family members unfortunately! Independence is a big city in geography, also in population. Did you know Independence is the 4th most populous city in Missouri too? I am a gentleman AND a gentle reader!..LOL
Zone 6 does result when my East Independence zip code is put into a zone finder as you probably know about yours. The Kansas City heat island effect includes all of Independence I think. There is even large, old, straight species, Southern Magnolias growing in Kansas City! I used to have 6a on my zone but I figured its best, for the zone bullies, to stay a little down from that!
EEeeek! A con-man?! I think I'd get the little $29 black and white video camera from Harborfreight tools in use!!
Will
Carrie, thanks for the info on the white clover. We do have more and more of it coming up in the yarden. I do hope the spray I used to kill off the dock, some of the dandies, milk thistle, miner lettuce, bindweed, etc. didn't do it or the precious wood sorrel much if any damage. I'll resow if it did. I love both of those. Red clover on the other hand can and will take over a flower bed and has roots that are very long and hard to remove. One would think that someone who have lived on a farm all but the first five and maybe 2 of my adult years would know more about such things. I'm not up on a lot of that horticultural stuff except what I have learned at PG and on DG. I do remember one rule of thumb for many farmers of the past for determining if a plant is a weed is the strong acrid odor of the plant. If it has that, kill it now.
Shortleaf, when I have met with and visited with you I am reminded of a southern gentleman. Slow of speech(not in a bad or inferior way), soft spoken, intellegence that isn't pushy but very much evident, well mannered, helpful & sharing/caring. By the way, Holly still has the trees in pots I notice and they are getting HUGE!! I am sure she has an area where little Skyler will grow up playing picked out for them. I may want one for myself but am leaning more toward a willow from the pond bank or a magnolia like Ally & her DH have in their yard.
I need to go till a small area to plant my new veggies in. I like to try new ones at least one time. This year it is bulbous fennel(I have bronze already)and Arugula.
GOD bless and keep each of you.
Thanks leaflady. Actually, that describes me pretty well. I am the most mis-understood person that I know! Sometimes I wish people would meet me before they say I'm a son of a gun!..LOL
I'm glad to hear the Honeylocust is doing good, it is a tough plant.
Remember though, if they are sitting on dirt, the roots will likely go thru the drain-holes of the pots and go into the ground. Then when they are pulled up someday, the roots will get severed and the plant will die. I wish I had a dollar for every time thats happened to me. If they are on pavement or something more solid, not to worry.
Have a nice weekend, Will.