News Stories - Page 64

When rebuilding your landscape after storm damage, do it in small, concentrated outdoor rooms or pockets, one area at a time. This method will help homeowners from getting overwhelmed. What took a few hours to bring down may take weeks to clean up.

When I moved into my new house about this time last year, I was quick to notice my neighbor’s flowers across the street. I could see drifts of wonderful, tall, blue flowers coupled with the complementary orange of swirling Gulf fritillary butterflies. I knew immediately that my neighbor was a real gardener, as those showy blooms could be identified as the native blue mistflower known botanically as Conoclinium coelestinum.

For the amount of impact they give, crotons are certainly a good investment for home landscapes. Depending on the size you buy, they will reach 2 feet tall and perhaps a little wider. The heat and humidity prevalent in much of Georgia create the perfect conditions to allow crotons to thrive. Wherever I look, whether grown with elephant ears, hibiscus or the Hawaiian ti plant, crotons look festive and tropical.

There seems to be no plant combination that is not made better by partnering with ‘Everillo,' commonly known as "Japanese sedge." It's an incredible companion with hostas, ferns, pansies and tulips.

Hurricane Hermine was a tropical storm by the time it reached Savannah, Georgia. While it left a wake of plant destruction, it also brought blooms by the dozens. The storm hit on Friday, and by Tuesday morning, when we returned to the Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens at the Historic Bamboo Farm after the Labor Day holiday, we were welcomed by rain lilies.

Growing cape plumbago is like having your own ticket to the butterfly wild kingdom. Not only will you be the proprietor of the daily nectar café, but depending on where you live, you will also celebrate young ones, as this is a host plant for the cassius blue butterfly.