GARDENER'S READING ROOM
Perennials

Survival of 1/2 Hardy Favorites

Oh! The half-hardies fill our minds with indecision: to plant, or not to risk the heartbreak of losing a favorite plant over the winter. But with some simple steps your half-hardies can become whole heartedly enthusiastic about reappearing in your garden next summer. Here are a few half-hardies to tickle your senses.

Cosmos atrosanguineus, or Chocolate Cosmos... its deep, dark, rich velvety mocha colored blossoms are enticing enough to eat, but instead just dive in and take a deep breath of its vanilla tinged chocolate fragrance. While Chocolate Cosmos is consistently fragrant, it is not consistently hardy. To help this Mexican native survive our Northwest winters, cut the foliage to 2" in the fall. Dig up the tubers and shake off the excess soil. Store them in slightly damp peat moss or vermiculite to prevent them from shriveling up. They need to hibernate in a cool, dark area. In the spring plant the rested tubers back into the garden and you'll be swimming in chocolate fragrance by June.

Melianthus major, or Honey Bush, has softly dusted blue-green foliage which can reach up to 6 feet tall. This light-colored tropical foliage is topped off with prominent burgundy red flowers rising high above the foliage. When you rub the edgy-zigzag foliage your fingers will smell like peanut butter. Melianthus enjoys well-drained soil and adequate moisture in full to part sun. This intriguing perennial needs a blanket of mulch 4-5" deep around the base of the plant in the fall. When temperatures warm up in early spring move the mulch away and cut the plant to the ground. You'll see fresh foliage rising up soon after. You can also plant Melianthus in a container and before a hard frost hits pull the well-watered container into a garage or protected area.

Another perennial with incredibly striking foliage is the hot, hot, hot Canna Lily. This plant creates a party of colors in your garden with its bright foliage and flowers. Ahhh! What fun! Bring the fun through winter by cutting foliage to 3" above the bulb after the first frost, digging up the bulb, and placing it in a cool, dry place for a few days to dry the soil. Then shake the loose soil from the bulb. Place in a paper bag with dry peat moss, then replant in the spring, Or you can plant Cannas in a pot in the ground. After cutting back the foliage, simply lift the pot in the fall to store in a protected area. Water once a month, then pop the pot back in the ground when temperatures warm and winter wet has wound down. As the bulb grows transplant to a larger container or divide.

In the warm weather of summer you may be enjoying refreshing Lemon Verbena iced tea or its leaves candied like lemon drops… or just the citrus scent in your garden. However you're enjoying it now, Lemon Verbena needs to take a vacation from the cold in a greenhouse or indoors next to a bright sunny window (the brightest you can muster). It will lose its leaves, but as you gradually bring it outdoors next spring, lustrous bright green leaves will emerge when the temperature is right.

There you go! Now you can enjoy these half-hardies whole-heartedly in your garden!

By Kristel Dillon
Skylights Autumn 2006, Vol 21, No. 3

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