More suggestions needed please. You guys are so good at this! I need to plant a shrub in the front of the house, where we uncovered the rose bush....let me see if I have a picture so you know what I'm talking about. Hang on.......... OK, here we go. That little nook behind the rose bush, where the front porch wall meets the window wall...back in there. There's some monkey grass back there which had been all but choked out by the mess that used to be there before Grayson got rid of it all. Hoping it greens back up and comes on strong now that it's been uncovered. Anyway, I want to make a small bed there, some type of bush in the background, with other flowers and ground cover. It's sunny, so that's a plus. OK so I'm looking for an evergreen bush that puts out lots of flowers through the season. I like the look of azaleas, but they flower once and then they're done. I want something a longer bloom than that if possible. Zone 6B Suggestions?
How about a stand of say, three hollyhocks of different colours. Perhaps not white ones because of the colour of the house.
Which direction does the front of the house face? The only continuously blooming shrub in our data base is Borrichia frutescens (Bushy Seaside Tansy, Sea Ox-eye) All the shrub type plants I have in my gardens have a specific flowering time only but are green the rest of the year. Many shrubs are deciduous so you will have to check for that quality too. Your best bet might be to wander through garden centers....real ones, not the big box stores... to see if they offer something native to your area that fits your blooming and size requirements.
I'll definitely be heading to a couple of my favorite nurseries that's for sure! The front of the house faces south, Toni
So, I'm thinking of making that spot a place to do some roses...there's the rose bush there anyway (and anyone's guess whether or not it's going to make it) but I thought maybe a knockout rose bush under the window where those security signs currently are, and maybe a climbing rose on the short wall that's at right angles to the window/shutter wall. What do you think? Part of my reasoning is that I found that pic from a friend from years ago, and I just LOVE the way they look!
I like roses---WESTERLAND is a tangerine-coloured rose that can grow as a bush, or tall over an tellis. Here are some foto's of mine. You can see how rall the rose can grow: Sorry about the poor colour balance-it was in the middle of the day. Then a couple of close-ups to show the flower: Most of the ones that I have see were in bush form, but I needed it for an arch. I will say though, this particular rose has a unique colour in real life as well as a fragrance different than all others--its what pulled me over the line.
I apologize Ronni--I klikked the upload text button instead of upload image. Dumb....... At any rate, I edited and added the pics.
I have a pink Potentilla in my garden, that blooms from June until October. It has the longest lasting blooms of any shrub in my yard. Potentilla fruticosa (Shrubby Cinquefoil)
I love your flowers Netty! And I did a bit of browsing in your garden too....I am in awe! I want to be you when I grow up!
Well Sjoerd I'd go wander in your garden too, but there's some limiter on your profile page...I can't get in! And I don't know any other way to get to your garden.
Birds of a feather then...chuckle BTW I pruned my rose a few weeks ago and it is growing like mad now. Oh, I meant to tell you.... Do you have lots of aphids there during the summer? We do here. Here they just absolutely LURVE young and tender rose bits. They will get on the growing ends of branches and get all over unopened flower buds and their stems. They will ruin your joy by destroying your flowers and stunt the growth of the branches. Now then, I personally do not use chemical sprays in the garden, and because of this I make my life a lot more difficult--ach, but it is a choice, so I live with it. What I did a few years ago to combat the rose aphids was to introduce another plant alongside the rose bush which aphids like--the Lonicera. I was hoping that the aphids would go for this and leave my roses alone. (its a little trick that I use in the veggie patch to keep them off my brassica's and broadies--I use a different plant for this). So then, the trick did work and I just left the Lonicera planted where it was and it worked every year thereafter. Problem solved. I hope that aphids will not attack any roses that you may plant, but if they do, you have a natural technique to use...plus some of the Lonicera will bloom and you will have those sweet-smelling flowers to enjoy to boot! Something to think about, mate.
