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| Manitoba People and Plants News |
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Here's the news for avid gardeners in Manitoba.
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Dear Friend,
November already!
Killarney and surrounding areas have been given a plentiful blanket of the white stuff and it looks like it may be here to stay now! So if you, like me, have some spring tulip, dutch hyacinth, or daffodil bulbs in your hands that never got underground before winter, read on friend. I have detailed instructions on what you can do with them now!
I also have tips on making your outdoor spaces more appealing in all seasons; from decorating your doors in winter to planting repeat blooming perennials for bursts of color in all the other seasons.
Sincerely,
Nancy Heide
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Forcing Tulips
 Those last-minute bulbs were a good deal. But they don't make a good decoration unless you plant them right?
Forcing them to bloom indoors is easier than you might think. All you really need is a calendar, a few clean pots and some potting soil, and a cool dark place to store them for a few weeks.
Plant as many bulbs as you can get in the pot. Don't worry about overcrowding as you would in the garden. More bulbs produce more blooms. The more the merrier here.
Cover them with potting soil, leaving their tips exposed. Water them thoroughly, put them in the cold storage place, and cover loosely with a cloth or paper bag. Check them periodically and don't allow them to become too dry or too wet.
Mark your calendar. For tulips, they should be exposed to the cold for 10-16 weeks before joining you in a warm, sunny place. Planting them later in winter will require a shorter chilling period. If it's Easter blooms you're after, plant the bulbs anytime after Christmas but before January 15. Remove them around March 26 when green shoots begin appearing and roots are forming in the bottom of the pot. They will take two to three weeks to bloom.
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Adorn Your Doors
 Whether you're looking to raise the value of your property or raise your spirits this holiday season, the traditional wreath can do just that.
It's easy to make your own if you can find the materials. Begin with a wood or metal frame and some fine gauge wire or a glue gun to hold it together. Gather spruce, pine, or juniper branches and cut them into 12-18" lengths.
Pick one spot on your frame to begin and arrange the greenery from there. Make sure they are parallel with the frame; don't try to make them stick upward or outward away from the frame. Keep going until you have the frame completely covered with the greenery.
Next step - decorate! Try to use two or more different decorations and keep them visually in the same circle. Don't place them randomly. See in the photo how the pine cones are in the inside circle and the red berries are in another, larger circle? Remember that lesson alone and you will succeed. Other items you might use for the decorations include whole walnuts, oranges, dried apple slices, pomegranates, gourds, crabapples, or fall leaves.
I like this wreath from whiteflowerfarm.com because it doesn't have a bow, but you could add one if you like.
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Repeat Bloomers
 There are a few simple ways to get more out of simple perennial displays. I'll introduce you to them all in future articles, but for now we'll touch on the subject of using repeat bloomers to make a big impact.
Generally, perennials flower for three weeks or less and then spend the rest of the growing season preparing for next year. Repeat bloomers flower more than once each season, and long bloomers... you guessed it... flower longer than three weeks. Include some of these workhorses in your displays for a season-long colorful punch.
Asters. September Ruby and Monch are fall-blooming varieties that are extremely long-blooming.
Chrysanthemum. Fall mums like Morden Gaeity and Morden Garnet deliver blooms for more than two months.
Dianthus. Zing Rose is a great choice and combines well with other sun-loving perennials.
Dicentra. Yes that is bleeding heart. No I am not talking of the ones your grandmother had that bloomed only in June. The shorter fernleaf hybrids like Luxuriant are well worth the extra cost as they bloom from May well into September. They are excellent in shade, too.
Echinacea. Purple Coneflowers are undergoing a rampant change in the plant world with many new varieties being bred each year. Pink Double Delight is my favorite with the showy double blooms of Razzmatazz, yet much sturdier so it doesn't flop over.
Geranium. Perennial Geranium. Rozanne is the perennial plant of the year 2008, and for good reason. She delivers a non-stop carpet of blue in her first year of growth.
Hemerocallis or daylilies. Stella D' Oro was the premier reblooming daylily and still the most popular, but look
for other rebloomers like Summer Wine, Joan Senior, and Purple D'Oro.
Phlox paniculata or garden phlox. This isn't the ground carpet phlox that blooms early in spring. Oh no, I am talking about the ones that form mountains of color almost three feet tall. David, the 2002 perennial plant of the year, is always a good backdrop in a perennial display.
Rudbeckia or black eyed Susan. Mother nature knew what she was doing when she decorated the roadsides with the species Rudbeckia. The hybrids like Goldstrum never disappoint.
Salvia. May Night is my personal favorite perennial. The flower spikes are produced for over two months and they last even longer if you resist the temptation to put them in a vase on your patio table.
Sedum. Autumn Joy has been a staple in perennial displays for many years. The fresh shoots in spring look interesting enough, but blooms take over the show in fall and hold the spotlight all winter.
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Food For Thought
The last question I posed to you was about eco-friendly tips. There were no responses. Which makes me wonder, are you even interested in making subtle (or drastic) changes to lessen your carbon footprint? Are you afraid of the cost of being eco-friendly? Or is it that you think you don't know any eco-friendly tips? Do you want to learn more?
Click here to respond. I would love to have your input and will post the results in the next issue of MPP.
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Thanks for reading!
Sincerely,
Nancy Heide
Perennial Bliss
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PO Box 302
Killarney, Manitoba R0K 1G0
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