TREES
NEW YORK RESOURCES
|
 |
| Begonias in a well-tended pit with an excellent guard. |
Plant annuals in your pit if you have a young tree less than six inches in diameter. Their root system is small enoungh that they won't compete with the tree for water. These live only one year, and therefore must be replanted each spring.
- Impatiens x wallerana, Impatiens. An everblooming shadelover with red, pink, or white flowers. The 1-foot plants will wilt badly when dry. The best strain is the Super Elfin Strain.
- Begonia x semperflorens - Cultorum, Wax Begonia. Red, pink, or white flowers. The 6- to 8-inch plants can grow in sun or shade and are quite drought tolerant. Some kinds have bronze foliage.
- Lobelia erinus, Dwarf Lobelia. This is a low 6-inch plant that is grown for its intense true-blue flowers that bloom continously throughout the season. It also comes in sky blue, reddish purple, and white, and some have a white eye that allows them to be easily associated with other white-flowering or foliage plants. 'Cambridge Blue' is the most common, with gentian-blue flowers and bronze foliage on compact plants. The cascading types are loose and open and look very nice when allowed to ramble through other plants. Prefers a moist soil rich in humus.
-
Lobularia maritima, Sweet Alyssum.
The longest blooming plant of all. Low,
broad spreading plants
with white (sometimes pale pink or violet) flowers. Occasionally refusing to bloom during the hottest weather, 3-Inch plants flower almost continuously from April to as late as December. Sun or shade.
A deep red coleus in an iron wicket protected pit.
- Coleus Blumei, Coleus. The flowerless coleus has large leaves in bright beautiful colors. It grows 12 to 18 inches tall. Coleus are available in a broad array of rich vivid colors for outstanding and eye-catching displays. Plants will tolerate sun, but produce best color in partial to full shade. An excellent choice for flowerless ground cover in tree pits.
SUN-LOVING ANNUALS
Plant at the base of a street only for the first two seasons after planting the tree, when there is still plenty of sun reaching the tree pit.
- Pelargonium x hortorum, Geranium. 1-foot plants with red, pink, or white flowers. Remove spent flowers.
- Salvia splendens, Scarlet Salvia. Red (sometimes purple) flower spikes on 12- to 15-inch plants. Remove spent flower heads.
- Tagetes spp., Marigold . Long-flowering and easy, with yellow, orange, or white flowers on 8- to 15-inch plants.
SPRING-FLOWERING BULBS
Plant in the fall. In the spring, after the bulbs have flowered, do not remove leaves until they turn yellow.
- Crocus spp., Crocus. They bloom in yellow, purple, and white in March. Plant corms 2-3 inches deep, 1-2 inches apart, in tight groups. Must be lifted and divided every 3-4 years.
- Chionodoxa luciliae, Glory-of-the-Snow. These are lesser known than Crocus but are of an intense royal blue with a white eye, 3-4 inches high. It self-sows and does not need to be lifted and divided. Excellent with daffodils. Same planting directions as Crocus.
- Endymion hispanicum, Spanish Bluebells. Blue, but also comes in a pristine white and a very intense pink. One-foot spikes bloom in May. An excellent performer. Plant in groups of 3-10, 4 inches deep, 3-4 inches apart.
- Narcissus spp., Daffodils and Narcissus . Everyone loves these, which may cause a problem. Passerbys may pick the flowers when they bloom in April. Plant 6 inches deep, 4-6 inches apart. Because their leaves stay green until July, floop over and look unsightly, they may be treated as annuals by pulling them out after flowering, discarding them, and replanting new bulbs in the fall. Bulbs need to be lifted and divided every 3-4 years.
- Scilla siberica, Siberian Squill. Deep blue flowers, but not as showy as Glory-of-the-snow. Same planting directions as Crocus.
- Tulipa spp., Tulips. Available in many flower forms and in most colors execpt true blue and black. Prone to being picked. Plant 6 inches deep, 4-6 inches apart. Unless species tulips are planted, they often do not flower well after the first year. In that case, it is best to treat them like annuals, as with Narcissus.
PERENNIAL GROUNDCOVERS
These herbaceous plants live for many years. Plant only when street tree is well established - at least 6 inches DBH. These plants will compete for water with newly planted trees.
- Hedera helix, English ivy. The old, reliable standby. Able to grow in sun or shade, drought resistant, salt resistant; in other words, very tough. The common variety is 'Thorndale', with deep green leaves, but there are many kinds with different leaf shapes and white, yellow, or gray variegation. This mat-forming evergreen vine can climb up a street tree, but will not harm it.
- Vinca minor, Periwinkle or Myrtle. A 4-inch tall nonclimbing vine with small, oval glossy evergreen leaves with blue (or rarely white) flowers in April.
- Lamium maculatum , Dead Nettle. A low deciduous groundcover with grayish white leaves. 'Beacon Silver' has pink flowers in May and June, 'White Nancy' has white flowers. Lamiastrum galeobdolon is similar but much more rampant.
SHADE-LOVING PERENNIALS
-
Alchemilla mollis, Lady's-Mantle. This 1-foot plant has pleated, kidney-shaped leaves and long lasting chartreuse flowers similar to Baby's-Breath. Takes dry shade well.
A lovely mix of flowering annuals and the taller, broad-leaved perennial Hosta.
- Brunnera macrophylla, Siberian Bugloss. This plant has bold foliage and bright blue Forget-me-not like flowers and grows to a height of 1 foot.
- Hosta spp., Plantain lily or Hosta. A durable, broadleaved plant with weed-smothering bold leaves. There are white-, yellow-, and gray-leaved forms. Flower stalks rise above the foliage in summer.
- Phalaris arundinacea 'Picta', Variegated Ribbon Grass. An indestructible white-variegated grass that is a rampant spreader. Sometimes turns brown later in summer, but cut it back to the ground and it will sprout a fresh batch of foliage.
|
Copyright © 2006, Trees New
York |