Julie Rutledge's List: Gardening

• it doesn't bloom, snails don't like it as much, it is more drought tolerant  and cold resistant.

• Calla Lily
• perennial bulb
• Planting Time: spring to early summer; plant tubers in fall if using as houseplants
• Exposure: full sun to light shade
• bulbs can be dug up and stored over winter in cooler zones
• Calla Lilies need to be planted deeply for their size. Plant them at a depth of 4 inches, spacing each bulb 12 inches apart.
• transplant them in the spring when danger of frost has passed.
• Apply a bulb fertilizer monthly during the active growing season.
• Calla Lillies can also be grown as house plants if placed in a sunny window.
• Most Calla Lilies need a rest period after flowering, so gradually withhold water until the leaves die back and let plants rest for 2 to 3 months before resuming watering to encourage new growth.

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• The Most Important Thing About Planting

  
  The one thing I will do is ensure the growing tips or “eyes” are not buried more than 1/2 inch deep in the soil. Deeper than that and the plant will grow vigorously but never bloom.

• Two Useful Tips

   
   Here are two tips you should know: The flowers on many cultivars flop over so I straighted a wire coathanger and wrapped it around the plant about 2/3 of the way up the foliage. With the hooked ends adjusted to the right length, the wire holds the plant upright without the use of a stake. The wire is also invisible. In the fall, simply unhook the wire and clean up the foliage.
   
   The second thing you should know is that the only serious disease you’ll likely to see is peony gray mould blight (a form of botrytis) which causes the flower buds to go soft, wilt and turn gray. The solution to this is good air circulation, plenty of sunshine, and good plant hygiene in removing spent flowers and stalks. If it persists, the use of a fungicide such as lime-sulphur will help control it.

• Saving Seed

  
  Some folks have asked about collecting the seeds. And the answer is yes, you can easily collect peony seed. Treat it like any other perennial seed (see articles on this site about germinating seed) but do understand that it takes several years to see a plant.
  
  The first year, the seed doesn't produce leaves, only roots so you'll think it is dead. It is only in the second year that it will start throwing up small leaves. Starting from seed is not for the impatient gardener.
  

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• Ice Plant
• Sun/Part Sun
• Excellent groundcover for hot, dry places.

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• Semi-evergreen perennial
• Autumn Fern
• Shade
• One of the best ferns! Can tolerate deep shade but can also take morning sun. New foliage is bronze.
• Gaura
• Fast growth rate
• Very tolerant of drought, heat, and humidity.
• Gaura

  Gaura lindheimeri �Siskiyou Pink�
• Blooms summer until fall. Very tolerant of drought, heat and humidity.
• Evergreen perennial
• Lenten Rose
• Partial Sun
• In late winter into early spring pendant saucer-shaped flowers appear!

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• You can use several methods to naturalize bulbs in the landscape. The first is to randomly scatter self-establishing bulbs such as daffodil and crocus on the ground before leaf drop in the fall. These bulbs will root and establish themselves under the leaves by spring.
• Caladiums should be dug and stored over winter. They may be pre-sprouted indoors to extend the growing season. They should be grown in shade and are well adapted to pot culture.
• They can be grown outdoors as summer blooming bulbs.
• When planted outdoors, the nose of the bulbs should be just at the soil surface. In pots, leave about half the bulb above the soil surface.
• H. orientalis is hardy but not notably persistent; the bulbs eventually decline, becoming too small to flower. H. orientalis albulus (French-Roman Hyacinth) has smaller flowers but is said to be more persistent.
• Daffodils, like jonquils, are but one type of narcissus.
• Sternbergia. An underused bulb, Sternbergia is valued for its fall-flowering habit. It is frequently mistaken for autumn crocus. The plant grows best in full sun and can remain undisturbed for years. Foliage is produced in the fall and remains green during winter.

  • fall blooming bulb!
• Commonly Grown Bulbs Suitable for Georgia

  • Information about planting time, flowering time, & hardiness.

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