- Waterwise Gardening | David Salman
New and Tried True Plant Combinations #5
Spring 2018 plant sale events are in full swing and we're offering 100's of amazing new and tried & true perennials, ornamental grasses, shrubs, cacti and succulents. We're be showcasing interesting plant combinations you can use as inspiration designing a small space or an entire garden.
Succulents in your Perennial Garden
Have you been bitten by the 'succulent bug' but don't know how to begin incorporating them into your perennial garden? Are you afraid succulents won't blend with your garden's style? Not sure which succulents are best for Santa Fe Gardens? We have you covered with the an extensive selection of ground cover South African succulents like Delosperma and many of the very best succulents for xeriscapes. There are many benefits to designing these beauties into your landscape including low water use, pollen for bees and interesting foliage. Please consider succulents as problem solvers in the garden: they're as hard-working as they are beautiful, helping you to control weeds, define garden beds, reduce your water bill and provide year-round interest.
New for 2018!
Cotyledon orbiculata (Red Edged Pig's Ear) has large disk-like silver leaves, edged in red, grow on short stubby stems. Mature plants bloom in summer with candelabras of dusky pink flowers that sit high above the foliage. Excellent as a long-lived container plant for outdoor patios and other garden spaces. Or grow it in a rock garden with excellent drainage and protection from extreme cold. A widespread species native throughout much of South Africa, our collection originates from the highest mountains in the country, the Drakensbergs. Cotyledon orbiculata
is a very xeric succulent plant and is cold hardy to zone 6. Rabbit resistant too!
Tried and True Shrubby Iceplant!
Ruschia pulvinaris is a vigorous evergreen groundcover with succulent, blue-green leaves and an explosion of shimmering fuchsia-pink flowers in late-spring through early summer. Rabbit resistant and drought tolerant plant. Rushia will thrill and intrigue rock gardeners, whetting their appetites for the many new cold hardy South African succulents being introduced. Easily grown in a lean, well-drained rock garden soil, the succulent, evergreen stems and leaves form a tight cushion over which hundreds of shimmering fuchsia-pink flowers come into bloom for three to four weeks in late spring through early summer. This is a great plant! Cold hardy to Zone 6 and is 3" tall x 12" wide.
Tried and True Groundcover Iceplant
Delosperma ashtonii Blut is one of the very best cold hardy Ice Plants. With its vigorous growth habit, durable evergreen foliage and summer-long display of deep magenta-red flowers, it is an invaluable groundcover. Drought resistant/drought tolerant plant (xeric). This groundcover ice plant was discovered by nurseryman Kelly Grummons (owner of Timberland Gardens, Arvada, CO) growing as a volunteer seedling in his gravel driveway. 'Blut' has attractive deep green, slightly flattened leaves that grow to form a nice flat mat of evergreen foliage. Blooming through the summer months, this beauty has the most intensely magenta-red flowers ever seen in the genus. Once established, grow this plant hot and dry to intensify the flower color. Cannot tolerate foot traffic. Good for Firescaping and cold hardy to zone 5.
Bonus Plant from New and Tried and True blog #4
New for 2018!
Granita ® Raspberry Ice Plant (Delosperma Granita Raspberry) is a cold-hardy Ice Plant hybrid with simply stunning color. The large shimmering raspberry-red flowers will be the highlight of your late spring garden when this durable groundcover comes into bloom. Discovered as a volunteer seedling in a Salt Lake City garden, the plant has excellent cold hardiness and tolerates drier Western growing conditions. Like all the Ice Plants, mulching with a layer of small gravel provides the perfect surface to protect the spreading stems from excessive winter moisture. Recommended companion plants include Catmint (Nepeta), African Daisy (Gazania) and smaller-growing Beardtongues (Penstemon).
