I have decided I will use this forum to start noting the stuff I put in my garden so I can stop going “I wonder if I tried this before” and “that’s a cool plant but I have no idea what it is!”
So today’s garden notes:
I’m going to try the loosely constructed cedar edging around my maple tree bed. It’s a pretty cheap option and visually OK – it doesn’t make a really sealed edge but it’ll help keep mulch in and it’ll give the lawn guys a visual edge around which to mow. It’s supposed to be stuck into the dirt a bit to hold it in place but I don’t want to disturb the maple roots so instead I acquired lawn staple thingies that I’ll try using to pin the edging in place. That’s not yet accomplished so I’ll have to report later how it worked.
I also picked up some more mulch – a bag to reinforce the rosemary bed, and a couple bags to use on the areas of new planting. I figure I’ll just grab a bag or two every time I shop until the yard is fully mulched.
I bought a few pieces for the front yard. In the space to the right of the front door, I put two little dusty miller, and three dianthus. All in six inch pots, all intended to provide some color and curb appeal this winter and be replaced later, probably. Both are supposed to like full sun but I figure that once the tree drops its leaves it’ll be pretty sunny there; come spring, it’ll be time for something that likes hotter weather anyway.
I also planted a ferny-looking something in a 4 inch pot that supposedly likes shade but was totally unlabelled otherwise. Should be fun trying to figure out what it is. Had no idea what it might like soil-wise; plopped it under the crepe myrtle and I’ll see later whether it likes it. If it survives, I’ll post a picture and people can tell me what it is, maybe.
Planted a vine along the south side of the house – in between the grape vines and the jasmine. It’s called Southern Belle Bower Vine – Pandorea jas. ‘Southern Belle’; it’s billed as a fast-growing tropical vine with green foliage, Fragrant funnel-shaped pink blooms. Protect from frost, grow in full sun. Was in a one-gallon pot so has a lot of growing to do before it’s impressive at all.
I bought a few things to try in the bed by the patio and house. All are things I never used before, have no idea if they’ll like the spot, all were pretty cheap so figured it was worth a try. First, there was a Diascia (Diamonte TM Diascia, Diascia x Diamonte Coral Rose, in a 1-gallon pot) – a perennial with pink flowers, not real tall, supposed to like sun to part shade, 9-12 inches tall, spreads to round shape. Said “Heat-tolerant plants put on a lovely show all summer, performs best in fertile, well-drained soil with regular watering, cut back after flowering” on the little plastic marker dude but said “10-12″ tall, coral-rose flowers spring and fall, sun to part shade” on the pot sticker. So if I’m lucky, maybe it’ll bloom spring, summer, and fall?
There was also a “Firecracker Plant” (Russelia equisetiformis, Ivory, Lagrimas de Amor) Which is supposedly drought tolerant and low maintenance once established, says 3-5′ tall but looked so small and fluffy that I wonder if that’s actually inches especially since it was in a 3 inch pot and sold with groundcovers; says it wants full son and low water and is an annual.
And a pair of Sweet Potato Vines, one green and the other purple. 3 inch pot. Ipomoea batatas ‘Pinkie’ Batata – supposedly 12 inch tall and spreads eagerly and likes full sun. Wonder if they actually make sweet potatoes?
Anyway, that’s the accomplishment for now.
![[info]](https://i0.wp.com/stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
Scrappy Blog 
