Three Neat Plants

hemerocallis-milk-chocolate-july-8-07

Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra

I’m not a huge fan of daylilies (Hemerocallis) in general, but really, who could resist any plant with the name ‘Milk Chocolate’? And what an intriguing color it is: a very milky hot cocoa with a bit of darker maroon and a yellow throat, creating all kind of exciting possibilites for combinations. I currently have it against ‘Grace’ smokebush (Cotinus), which actually isn’t a great choice, because the colors of the daylily’s flowers and the shrub’s new foliage are very similar. (more…)

Published in: on March 27, 2009 at 9:35 pm Comments (17)
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Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – March 2009

crocus-ancyrensis-2-march-14-09

Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra

Spring has finally arrived in my part of Pennsylvania – hooray! It’s not here in a big way; in fact, we’re several weeks behind where we normally would be. Bless her heart, Erica carnea ‘Golden Starlet’ is still in bloom. (more…)

Published in: on March 15, 2009 at 4:29 am Comments (24)

Nicotianas I’ve Known and Loved

nicotiana-mint-choc-mix-aug-08

Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra

Back on February 10th, Steve Silk announced that the Gardening Gone Wild Plant Pick of the Month was nicotianas (flowering tobaccos). In the spirit of waiting until nearly the last minute to take part, I’m finally getting around to thinking about some of my favorites. (more…)

Published in: on March 6, 2009 at 9:09 pm Comments (16)
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Three Neat Plants

euphorbia-het-yw-8_11_05-b

Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra

Signs of spring are being disappointingly slow to show up in my part of Pennsylvania, but no matter: I still have plenty of archived photos of cool plants to paw through. This edition of Three Neat Plants features three cold-tender foliage beauties. It’s way too early to think about planting them outdoors but not too early to think about ordering them for later planting. All three of these cool plants grow fine for me in full sun and average, well-drained soil.
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Published in: on February 26, 2009 at 6:12 pm Comments (9)
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Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – February 2009

erica-golden-starlet-feb-14-09

Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra

As tempting as it was to once again resort to fake flowers, I figured that even those of you who found it humorous last month wouldn’t be as amused a second time. So this month, I’m going totally legit, and all I have to show for it is two different blooms. One is pictured above: the same Erica ‘Golden Starlet’ I’ve shown for three months now. She’s starting to look a little ragged, but you have to admire her tenacity. And then, there’s a new one making an appearance this month… (more…)

Published in: on February 15, 2009 at 4:14 am Comments (32)
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