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Life
Southern, summer beauties Gardens blooming with perennial favorites By Janelle B. Clevinger | Daily Times Correspondent It's summertime in the South - a time when serious gardeners see the fruits (or blooms) of their labor and quite possibly the labor of gardeners several generations before them. Some flowering perennials immediately spring to mind when talking about southern, summer plantings are hydrangeas, crape myrtles, gardenias, sweet Betsy and old-fashioned roses. Jackie Dale, a member of the Garden Department of the Wilson Woman's Club and also the All Season's Garden Club, said plants like the hydrangea, with their large blooms of blue and lavender, are Southern through and through. "Hydrangeas are truly Southern and old-fashioned, like the magnolia tree," Dale said. "They are hearty and perennial and show off your property." "Hydrangeas fight for their visibility," she added. "You often see them blooming outside old abandoned homes." Marianne D. Gross, another member of Wilson's All Season's Garden Club, said many people aren't aware that you can change the color of your hydrangea blooms. "You can change the color of your hydrangea by changing the alkalinity of the soil it's planted in," said Gross, who is also a Life Master Judge, meaning she is certified by the State Board of Federated Garden Clubs to judge flower shows anywhere in America. If your soil contains aluminum and is alkaline, the blooms will tend to be a blue or purple color. To ensure pink blooms, gardeners often grow hydrangeas in large pots with soil-less mixtures to avoid any aluminum content. Like hydrangeas, crape myrtle trees are hearty and are a favorite with Southern gardeners because they require little maintenance yet yield beautiful pink, white or red blooms that last throughout the summer. Crape myrtles are also fast-growing and provide quick shade. Other Southern garden favorites include old-fashioned roses, such as the Rose of Sharon and the Bridal Wreath rose. "People seem to be getting away from hybrid roses," Dale said. "The old-fashioned roses are heartier and keep blooming whether or not you take care of them." "My grandmother had Rose of Sharon plants, and I've had them too," Gross said. "They are upright shrubs just full of blooms, featuring both double and single flowers." Aside from its plentiful, attractive blooms, Rose of Sharon is favored in the South because it can withstand the summer heat and is quite drought-tolerant. The Bridal Wreath is another hearty shrub-like rose that features large spires of blooms and conjures up summer memories at grandmother's house. It is so hearty, in fact, that Bridal Wreath roses are commonly found growing on deserted farmsteads. "In Wilson, I've seen them on Nash Street," said Gross, "and they are spectacular." Aside from their hearty nature, all of the aforementioned plants boast another alluring feature -- they are perennials, blooming year after year. In an economy in which people are holding the reigns of their purses a little tighter, perennial plants make financial sense by eliminating the need to replace them every year. "People are caught up in what they see as 'pretty' blooms when they go shopping for plants and don't worry about whether it's perennial versus annual," said Dale. "But now, for financial reasons, people are beginning to see the benefits of perennials."
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