5 things to do in the garden this week:
1. If at all possible, do not plant tomatoes in the same spot from one year to the next. They will bear much better if they are planted in an area that has not been home to growing tomatoes for at least a year or two, and preferably more. Rotate tomatoes with corn or sunflowers and then plant cabbage or kale in that spot in the fall. If you insist on planting tomatoes in the same spot from one year to the next, you can get away with it by planting in five-gallon containers that are then sunk into the ground. Containers that are submerged in this way will not require the same watering frequency as when they are situated on a hot patio or wooden deck and, in any case, could still be watered with the same drip system they would utilize if their roots were wandering through the soil below.
2. If you are in search of a plant to border your property that gives an abundance of multi-colored blooms and, once established, needs little, if any, water, consider the butterfly rose (Rosa mutabilis). I have had three of them growing along the edge of my front yard for almost two decades. At full size, they reach eight feet tall and wide. Mine get mildewy every few years whereupon I cut them back almost to the ground. Soon they are growing again and will reach six feet in a year’s time. The butterfly rose has many facets to its beauty. Quite possibly unique among flowering plants, the blooms of the butterfly rose change color from sulfur yellow to apricot to pink to crimson. Imagine looking at all these colors at once against a background of invariably five-leaflet leaves on mahogany red stems. Incidentally, butterfly roses nod on the stem and, at times, resemble the eponymous fluttering lepidopterans although they do not attract butterflies themselves. Blooms may be seen in all four seasons.
3. Butterfly bushes (Buddleia spp.), however, do attract butterflies and are more magnetic in this respect than any other plant. The National Garden Bureau has declared 2024 to be the year of the butterfly bush. The reason for this is the unprecedented interest in the hybridization of this plant. New varieties are appearing all the time, including dwarf species such as those in the Chrysalis series that grow only 30 inches tall and some — such as Blue Chip and Pink Micro Chip — that are are no more than two feet tall by two feet wide and are small enough to be grown in hanging baskets. The Cascade Collection shows off varieties reaching six feet in height with fat, 14-inch-long flower wands that completely obscure the plants’ foliage when in bloom. Butterfly bushes are not water-needy and flower from spring until fall.
4. Last winter, I had my grandchildren plant nasturtium seeds. These are the largest of all flower seeds and are a great way to get kids interested in gardening, not least because of the abundance of blooms they follow. The saying “Be nasty to nasturtiums” reveals the secret to their flower power, which is absolute neglect where fertilization is concerned since applying nitrogen — the main fertilizer constituent — will result in explosive vegetative or foliar growth at the expense of flower production. Not only do kids love to gather Nasturtium flowers, but they are pleasantly surprised by the fact that both flowers and leaves are edible. The peppery flavor of nasturtiums resembles that of watercress, whose botanical name is Nasturtium. In truth, the yellow- and orange-flowered nasturtium — which is closely related to the Brassicas or cole crops, explaining why cabbage moths hover around it — has no botanical relationship to watercress but was given its name due to the similar taste of the different species’ leaves. Plant nasturtium seeds now and you will see flowers in as little as 30 days.
5. Now is the time to plant an olive tree. At one time, the San Fernando Valley was the center of the olive industry in California. In Sylmar, you can still see the remnants of what, in the 1920s, was the world’s largest olive grove, a 2,000-acre spread that yielded thousands of tons of fruit and 50,000 gallons of olive oil annually. Grow your tree in fast-draining soil or plant it in a container or trained up flat against a wall as an espalier. Roots are shallow and must be handled with care when planting. Self-fruitful varieties, not needing another variety to produce a crop, are available but they will produce more fruit with another olive variety planted nearby. The tree needs no water once established and has foliage that shines with a silvery glow from a distance. If you consider its fruit to be a messy nuisance rather than an edible once properly brined and cured, fruitless varieties are available. There is also a dwarf known as Little Ollie that is highly popular as a shrub.
Please send your gardening questions, comments and tips to joshua@perfectplants.com.
