Shades of Purple and Blue in Your Southern Garden

Note to the reader: These plants were all photographed in a Botanical Garden in Columbia South Carolina which is zone 8a.

    Photograph by Dawn Gagnon © 2023

Spanish Blue Bells

(Hyacinthoides hispanica) 

If you're looking for something to plant where other plants wont grow, while adding a lovely splash of blue Spanish Blue Bells may be the solution. These lovely bell shaped flowers point downward and each stalk produces around 12-15 flowers. These flowers are known for their ability to reproduce and spread in all types of soil, sun or shade and are ideal for a novice gardener.

Photograph by Dawn Gagnon © 2023

Wisteria

Wisteria is a member oddly enough of the legume family and they are absolutely beautiful with flowers resembling clusters of grapes. They have ropey climbing wood vines and are used to add color to fences and trellises. They can have a light smell or a pungent one depending on which type you buy. In the southeastern US this vine is often seen wrapped around the trunks of pine trees and in roadside ditches flanking dense forests. You can also find them in other parts of the world such as Canada, Japan, Vietnam, China, Korea and in the middle east. If you have lots of pets this plant could be toxic to them so use caution.

Photograph by Dawn Gagnon © 2023

Larkspur

(Ranunculaceae)

Delphinium

There are over 300 species of Larkspur so you will definitely have no problems finding this beautiful plant in your local nurseries and home and garden outlets.  The come in both annual and perennial varieties. They originate throughout the Northern hemisphere and are considered a toxic plant to humans and pets, so research this plant thoroughly before planting in your garden, especially if you have toddlers or pets that like to sample everything.

Photograph by Dawn Gagnon © 2023

Bengal Clock Vine

(Acanthaceae.)

Known also as Thunbergia Grandiflora, the Bengal Clock Vine is a plant by many names including Blue trumpet vine. It is a native of India, but it is found in a lot of areas of the world, including China, Nepal, Burma etc.  It can grow up to 30' and grow on woody vine stalks. 

Carolina Bird Watch: The Carolina Wren

If you love to garden, chances are you love nature in general and that includes our lovely winged friends that visit our gardens, always adding lovely tunes and keeping insects in check. Since this blog is about the southern garden I decided it was high time to start sharing with my readers the lovely bird photographs I have taken through the years and also a little information on them as well. Today we will be highlighting quite appropriately, the Carolina Wren.

Dawn Gagnon Photography ©2023

Carolina Wrens can be best identified by their white brow strip located just above their eyes, their long pointed beak and up turned tail. They are typically a warm brown color and quite small. They eat a wide variety of insects and are not particularly skittish of human beings. 

I have had them land on my front porch just within several feet of where I am sitting. They tend to fuss a little  but that no doubt is due to the fact they were nesting which they do all summer.

Males and females tend to mate for life and nest in many odd places. Their nests are shaped differently than other birds often having an enclosed structure with a side entrance.

                                 Dawn Gagnon Photography © 2023

This baby Wren flew out of his nest after outgrowing the tiny space shared with several siblings.  This little fellow allowed me to pick them up and move them to safety.

Yellow in the Garden

Double Flowered Japanese Kerria

 Dawn Gagnon Photography © 2023

Gorgeous flowers are everywhere beginning in Spring, and every year I stumble across this lovely flower. The real issue is, I haven't a clue as to what this flower is, however after a quick google image reverse search I was finally able to find out.  With that being said, I was delighted to inherit this lovely flower in my yard and will update its care and growing information soon. 

Dawn Gagnon Photography © 2023

Dawn Gagnon Photography © 2023
Yellow Chrysanthemums
Garden mums aka Chrysanthemums are available are various times of the year and come in a myriad of colors. We see them primarily in the cooler months and they are usually paired with orange and reds for a splash of fall color before winter sets in. These flowers adorn doorsteps and even can be found in pumpkin planters. Either way if your garden needs bright yellow en masse during the cooler months you can hardly go wrong here. They are beautiful.

Keeping those plants alive!! Spotlight: The Confederate Rose

Confederate Rose

(hibiscus mutabilis)

© Dawn Gagnon Photography 2017

The Confederate Rose is not a rose but a large growing flowering shrub that produces large ruffled blossoms that are pink. It also goes by the common name "cotton rose" and it is seen widely across the southern US hence the most common name Confederate Rose. It is a member of the Mallow family, but unlike many varieties of Hibiscus you may find in nurseries, this variety will set root in your garden and comeback year after year in a beautiful display of glorious white and pink blossoms. If you don't have much frost, this plant is vigorous and can grow upwards to 30 feet, so when planting be sure to give it room to grow. Even where there is some frost this plant once established does very well. 

So how do we keep this lovely plant alive? Well it needs space, good air circulation, moisture but with good drainage. The soil needs to be fertile and in full sun. Past that, this plant will do very well in zones 8 and warmer. It can even withstand drought, and another added bonus is it is deer resistant, so if you live where deer can be a problem and they've attacked your roses, try this lovely flowering shrub instead.

3 Easy Care Roses

White and Yellow Lady Banks Rose

Now if you have a place with room to grow, lets say an eyesore you'd like to obscure, or an old fence you'd like to cover, the Lady Banks Rose may be a good fit. A vigorouse grower, the Lady Banks Rose, whether its the yellow or white will over you some help. They can cover a sunny corner with lovely miniature double blooms in Spring. Need a perfect climber for an arbor and don't want to wait a long time, then this rose is awesome for that as well. The best feature of a Lady Banks Rose? Disease and pest resistance. The most important thing to do in caring for this rose is to make sure it gets a lot of water in hot weather. Other than that, this one thrives with little assistance.

KnockOut Rose

The Knock Out rose has been around for a while now, and it is a good starter rose for those looking to try their hand at rose growing. While this rose variety is disease resistant and pest resistant, that doesn't mean it can't get diseases or pests. To really get these roses to live up to their name you should water regularly, prune well during the winter, mulch, and feed. Because they can be heavy bloomers they need a good dose of feeding.

Wild and Carpet Roses

One of the best choices for a rose is a wild rose. Now if you're lucky enough to live close to the country where wild roses tend to grow on road sides and abandoned homesteads, then you need not do anything but grab a shovel and dig one up. Wild roses are strong, resilient and can take drought, disease and pests on the chin and comeback fighting. However, if you don't live anywhere like that there are awesome varieties that are just like the beautiful pink wild roses that we've talked about, the Carpet Rose. Carpet roses offer all the vigor and rampant blooming that wild roses offer and are virtually carefree. If you have a fence that needs personality, or a boring spot in your yard the lovely Carpet rose will not let you down. Perfect for those who don't want to have to do a lot of work with roses.

Gerbera Daisy Mouse Pad

 If you love gardening as much as I do, then you may be like me and love to not only garden but fill your home with garden treasures. Why should all the beauty be outside? I love to bring the garden in with my photography and also love to share my love with my readers too. If you love gerbera daisies, there are a lot of gifts I have for you, check out the link below.

http://www.zazzle.com/gerbera_candy-144145866872482764?CMPN=addthis&lang=en&rf=238409482662567802

Fast growing trees for your zone 8 or warmer garden

The Riverbirch

Now the River Birch doesn't offer flowers, but it does offer one advantage over many trees, it can grow 2-3 feet a year. If you purchase a River Birch that is already 5 feet or taller you may end up with a nice shade tree of 15 feet in no time. The River Birch is an interesting specimen in your yard for other reasons as well with its distinctive peeling bark. It adapts well to many soil types and is wind and ice resistant. This is good news even for those in zone 8, as there is the odd ice storm on occasion and windy months as well. Also beneficial to the homeowner, this tree is drought tolerant which is always an issue  in zones 8 and warmer.

Sweetbay Magnolia also known as Magnolia Virginiana

Can be found growing in many forests throughout the south. Unlike the large Magnolia Grandiflora, Sweetbay Magnolia offers you all of the lovely benefits without the long wait. Sweetbay Magnolia grows in stalks from the ground up and offer quick shade. One benefit in addition to their fast growing, and lovely scented blossoms is that you can easily take this plant and create many plants from its base.

These lovely trees/shrubs like an acidic soil, full sun to part shade and are extremely disease and pest resistant. They can grow up to 20' in height and 20' feet wide if you don't thin and separate the new shoots that come up. These shoots make new trees when transplanted which makes this a great investment for your zone 8 or warmer garden. The scent of the smaller blossoms is intoxicating in the evening especially. For those living in zones 5-9 the Sweetbay offers exotic and lush privacy.

Lombardy Poplars (Photo credit: wallygrom)

Lombardy Poplar

These trees are fast growing, up to 5 feet a year, tall and column shaped. They reach a mature height of up to 60 feet and can be a great way to create a soft barrier between properties, or used to block unpleasant views like a busy road. They thrive in zones 4 through 8. Lombardy Poplars also are a great windbreak as well and are relatively inexpensive. They prefer a loamy soil with good drainage and a location that has full sun to do their very best growth wise.