Name: Nepeta subsessilis ‘Grandview’ aka nepeta grandview Type of Plant: A tall perennial plant that’s easily grown from seed. Plant this Nepeta in full sun in a perennial or cutting garden. Hardy in zones 4 (although sometimes listed as low as 3) to 9. The...
Name: Geranium sanguineum aka bloody cranesbill geranium Type of Plant: A low growing (1.5 feet tall and wide) perennial for full sun to part shade. Why I Love/Hate this plant: I love the plant because it gently self-seeds in the garden, is fairly weed smothering,...
Name: Begonia x hybrid BabyWing aka Babywing begonias Type of Plant: An annual begonia for part shade. Why I Love/Hate this plant: Frankly, the world needs more begonias. Since planting impatiens can still be iffy (Impatiens downy mildew) and because many people have part-sun or...
Name: Malus x ‘Snowdrift’ aka Snowdrift crabapple Type of Plant: Small tree for full or part sun, growing 20 feet tall and wide, so suitable for average yards and gardens. Why I Love/Hate this plant: This tree has white flowers over a two to...
Name: Juniperus procumbens nana aka green mound juniper Type of Plant: A ground cover juniper…truthfully, the only one I commonly recommend. Hardy zone 4 to 9. Why I Love/Hate this plant: In general, junipers are really great plants that are misused and abused by people who...
Name: Tulip sp. aka tulips Type of Plant Spring flowering bulb, usually planted in the fall. Why I Love/Hate this plant: Tulips are the magic wands of spring, waving colorful flowers at the end of their stems, cheering us up and onward. I love them...
Name: Dicentra spectabilis ‘Gold Heart’ Type of Plant Spring flowering form of bleeding heart with bright yellow foliage. A perennial that is most striking in early spring when it has the traditional bleeding heart flowers and brilliant foliage. Why I Love/Hate this plant: At...
Name: Rhododendron ‘P.J.M.’ Type of Plant One of the hardiest Rhododendrons (Zones 4 to 8) and the earliest to bloom. This plant is also one of the most sun-tolerant rhodys and one that is nicely scaled to smaller yards and gardens. Why I Love/Hate this...
Name: Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ aka yellow Hakon grass, aka yellow Japanese forest grass. Type of Plant Low, graceful clumping grass that likes part-shade and adds color and texture to the garden from spring until hard frost. Growing a foot and a half tall...
The graphic might say four steps to fantastic outdoor living, but I'd call it Four Steps to Joy, because that's what creating beautiful landscapes leads to. [caption id="attachment_20561" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Four books (full disclosure: two are mine) to gardens that feed body, mind and soul...
