Dodge County Master Gardener Association April 2017 Issue 49 Special Edition Digging in Dodge Plant Sale Special Edition Annual Plant Sale May 20th Inside this issue: We’re excited to be moving to the Youth Building at the Dodge County Fairgrounds for our annual plant sale where we’ll have more room and more plants! Geraniums 2 The sale runs from 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m., is open to the public with free admission and parking. Heuchera ‘Purple Palace’ 3 A wide range of plants including succulents, native plants, perennials, house plants, ornamental Night Blooming Cereus 4 grasses, some heirloom vegetables and other edibles will be for sale. We’ll also have our rain barrels available at an incredible value of $50 each. Checks & cash only please. Reblooming White Iris 5 Master Gardener Volunteers will be available to answer any gardening questions and help with Grapes for Wisconsin 6 your plant selections. All proceeds from our plant sales benefit the ongoing educational mission of the Dodge County Master Gardener Association and our community. Come out and meet fellow gardening enthusiasts! For more information Contact: Kimberly Fay [email protected] Think Spring Gardening and Donating! If you or someone you know has a yard full of plants that need to be divided, we can help! The Dodge County Master Gardener Association is looking for healthy plants to sell at our annual fundraiser. Contact us before April 30th and we'll schedule a team of Master Gardener Volunteers to assist you in digging and dividing your plants to be donated. We bring the pots, soils and knowledge needed to get it done right. Contact: Bill Carley at [email protected] (920) 344-6563 Kim Fay at [email protected] (608) 695-3112 Pa ge 2 Digging in Dodge I ssue 49 Special Edition As members of the Plant Sale Committee, we’re excited to be planning the annual fundraiser. We’ve thought about one of our favorite or most unusual plants that we plan to donate to the sale and wrote articles on those plants. We hope that you find them useful! Geraniums Heuchera ‘Palace Purple’ As a child growing up we always planted geraniums for One of my favorite plants color in our flowerbeds. I continue the family tradition. I that I will happily donate to like to plant in clay pots of various sizes so I can move the plant sale is Coral Bells, the pots around the yard for color when other annuals or ‘Palace Purple’. It’s a hardy perennials loose their flowers. I have also found placing perennial that is quite versa- directly into flowerbeds works good helping with mois- tile in the landscape. ture control when being gone on vacation. In the Fall I bring the pots in before the first frost and enjoy their last With its low, mounding habit, blooms all winter. This year I made cuttings from my green-purple, maple or ivy- geraniums and hope to share at the plant sale. like foliage, Heuchera is perfect for mixed borders, rock gardens, containers & walkways. It adds color all season There are four basic kinds of geraniums. The Common long and has interesting pinkish white, bell-shaped flow- Garden Geranium or Zonal Geranium is sold as a bed- ers on thin stems in mid summer. It’s a good companion ding plant. Some have fancy leaves with single or double to Hosta and contrasts nicely in the garden. There are flower clusters of red, pink, salmon or white. Florists sell many colors and varieties of Heuchera such as ‘Lime the Martha Washington Geranium for a potted in-door Marmalade’, ‘Fire Alarm’, ‘Black Taffeta’, and ‘Buttered plant. It is less heat tolerant than other geraniums. You Rum’ to choose from. can also find the Ivy-Leaved Geranium. It can be used in hanging baskets with flower ivy cascading three or more My tips for success are to read the care tags carefully be- feet. The scented Mosquito Geranium was created with a fore purchasing other Heuchera, some will tolerate more citronella fragrance. sunlight than others. Most prefer part shade but some will take full sun in the morning. Foliage should not be Geraniums can be planted after all danger of frost is past trimmed back in the fall, but cleaned up in the spring by and soils are warm in spring. If in a peat pot be sure to removing any dried or tired-looking leaves. In our zone 5, remove sides so none extends above the soil causing a winter mulch applied after the ground freezes will help moisture loss to roots. Plant in soil at the same level they prevent root heaving. Clumps are shallow-rooted and will were growing in their pots. develop woody bases rather quickly. Divide clumps in ~Lynn Stanton spring every 3-4 years. ~Kim Fay Plant Info: Plant Info: Common Name: Garden Geranium- zonal or bedding Common Name: Coral Bells Scientific Name: Pelargonium x hortorum Scientific Name: Heuchera, micrantha var. diversifolia Sun: Full sun, 6 to 8 hours of moderate light Family: Saxifragaceae Water: As often as needed to prevent wilting Sun: Full sun to part shade Soil: Well-drained Water: Medium Zone: 10-11, used as annual Soil: Organically, humus rich, medium moisture, Height: 1–2ft. well-drained soils Spread: 1–2ft. Zone: 4 to 9 Bloom Time: May to September Height: 12 – 24 inches Tolerates: Rabbit, Drought Spread: 12 – 18 inches Bloom Time: June to July Bloom Description: Blush pink-white Foliage: green -purple Tolerates: Rabbit, Deer Pa ge 3 Digging in Dodge I ssue 49 Special Edition Night Blooming Cereus Reblooming White Iris Epiphyllum oxypetalum Iris germanica ‘Immortality’ If patience is a virtue and you have it, this plant will test The Reblooming White Iris will bloom in the spring at you. I inherited a huge pot of the cactus from my sister the same time as other irises do. They have bloomed in who no longer sees its charm! the spring in my Beaver Dam gardens as early as May 18th nd Courtesy of the University of Arkansas Extension office, and as late as June 2 . Spring blooms have lasted 7 to 14 Dr. Gerald Klingaman provided more technical days. The reblooming is not as prolific as the first but information. there is something special about having white iris bloom- ing anytime from late August thru the end of October. “Epiphyllum oxypetalum, also called Dutchman’s Pipe Plant rhizomes 1 inch deep or less, some of mine are visi- cactus because of its curved ble on the soil surface. Give them 6 hours of sun. Ferti- tube, is perhaps the most lize early spring when they emerge, again after first commonly seen of the bloom. Use a 6-10-10 fertilizer. Remove the stems of first “night blooming cereus” blooms as close to ground as possible and water every 2 cacti because it blooms weeks. If the Garden Gods are with you the reblooming will happen as mentioned above. better in smaller pots and makes a somewhat more attractive houseplant when not In the fall cut back and remove all foliage. Clean beds will in bloom. It is a true epiphyte that can be found in the help deter the dreaded Iris Borer. forest canopy from southern Mexico through Central America to Brazil. The cultivated form is apparently a The Iris need to be divided every 3-5 years and should be hybrid, something that has been going on in Europe planted away from other iris due to the amount of water they require. since the late 1700s when the plants were first introduced there. At its base, the plant has round, spineless stems The Reblooming Iris Society has a very informative web that flatten out to round-lobed, spineless branches. The site, which you could visit to learn more. blossoms are produced from the notches along the flat, ~Bill Carley spatula-like portion of the stem.” Plant Info: This plant is slow growing with fragrant, creamy-white flowers measuring up to 6 inches across. The Cereus may Common Name: Tall Bearded Iris not produce flowers for three to five years after propaga- Family: Iradaceae tion and blooms for only one night in mid to late sum- Sun: Full sun mer but is well worth the wait. Night Blooming Cereus is Water: Frequent similar to the orchid in that it likes to be stressed, root- Soil: Well-drained bound and in a well drained medium. Zone: 3-9 Height: 28-30” As I give this plant the special care it needs, I look for- Spread: 18” ward to the flowers as a reward for my patience. Bloom Time: Late spring & again in early to mid fall ~Thuy Tong Flower: Fragrant Tolerates: Deer Plant Info: Common Name: Night Blooming Cereus or Dutchman’s Pipe Cactus Family: Cactaceae Sun: Full sun to part-shade Water: Low Soil: Well-drained sandy soil Zone: 10-11 Height: Up to 12’ Bloom Time: Mid to late summer Photo by Bill Carley Pa ge 4 Digging in Dodge I ssue 49 Special Edition Grapes For Wisconsin As a proponent of edible landscaping, grapes are one of my favorite plants. While typically grown on a wire trellis they can also be trained along a decorative fence or up a wall to shield it from the sun. Grown over an arbor or pergola they create a shady retreat in the garden. Grapes are hardy perennials. Aggressive growers they will require annual pruning to maintain fruit quality and contain them to their available space. Flowers are wind pollinated and fruit ripens Mid-August to Late September.