October Blooms in my Georgia Garden: Asters

Aster 'Raydon's Favorite' in October

If you see me when I come home from pretty much anywhere this time of year, you'll find me unloading at least one mum. I bring one home almost every time I go to the store. But where do they end up? Well, I do plant them of course. But they just don't last very long in my garden here in Georgia. Our summers are very hot and dry. This year, the drought has extended into Fall. This is the driest Fall I can remember. We haven't had any rain at all in over 2 months.

Unlike Chrysanthemums, Asters, will live on for years, in spite of the drought we usually suffer here in Georgia. There are many Fall blooming Aster varieties to choose from, and I intend to add them all to my garden! There are asters for full sun and asters that will bloom well in shade.

Symphyotricum oblongifolium 'Raydon's Favorite' is covered with lavender daisy-like blooms every Fall in September and October. The aromatic foliage reminds me of mint and deer do not like it.

Butterflies and other pollinators love all varieties of aster. In mid-Fall, most other flowers have finished blooming, but the Fall asters are just getting started. Most aster plants are just covered in flowers this time of year. Asters make excellent cut flowers, lasting a long time in a Fall floral arrangement.

Our native asters are much easier to grow than chrysanthemums. Once established they are quite drought tolerant, thriving on sunny hillsides even in the midst of a drought. Asters tolerate just about any soil--dry, clay, or sandy.

This native plant can be grown anywhere in the United States, since it is hardy in USDA Zones 3-8. Most asters like full sun, but there are asters that bloom even in shade.

This year The Garden Club of America named Aster oblongifolius 'Raydon's Favorite' as the 2016 Plant of the year, so it definitely deserves to be in your garden.

The only negative I can think of with Raydon's Favorite is that it will grow quite tall and flop over if it isn't pruned early in the summer. I am bad about forgetting to prune.

March Blooms in my Georgia Garden: Bridal Wreath Spiraea

One of the earliest shrubs to bloom in our Georgia garden is Bridal Wreath Spiraea. The variety we grow is S. cantoniensis ‘Lanceolata’, which is absolutely covered with double blooms that look like tiny white roses. The blooms appear all along the stem, also resembling stems of Baby's Breath, which is common of floral arrangements. I have used Bridal Wreath stems similarly in my floral arrangements when the shrub is in bloom. 

Bridal Wreath Spiraea is very easy to grow. For the showiest bloom, plant in full sun where the large-growing shrub has plenty of room to grow. The arching stems will ultimately reach up to 6 feet tall and just as wide.

This spiraea can be grown in most parts of the United States, as it is hardy in USDA Zones 5-9b. 

Spiraeas are known to be very drought tolerant, and the one in our roadside garden gets no supplemental water at all. The soil in that bed is very hard clay.

What's Blooming in my Georgia Garden in February: Part 2

Well, it's still February, and now there are even more flowers in our Georgia garden. From my point of view, our weather has been horrible. A few beautiful sunny days warm enough to work outdoors have been sandwiched between lots of rainy cold days amidst dark and dreary cloudy days when the dampness just goes to my bones.

Daphne odora, Fragrant Winter Blooms

If I were a shrub, I would not bloom, and if I were a flower, I would not open. Yet camellias and Daphne shrubs continue to bloom despite all this yucky weather.

Lonicera fragrantissima

And when I walked outside yesterday afternoon, I found Lonicera fragrantissima in full bloom. This variety of Lonicera is known as Winter Honeysuckle since it blooms reliably every Winter. This old-fashioned shrub is also known as Kiss Me at the Gate.

Spirea Fujino Pink

Then I remembered that Fujino Pink Spirea had bloomed earlier this month, and I forgot to mention that in my previous post.

 "Are they still blooming?" I wondered. Yes, yes, they are! 

Now I know what I must do. Since our winter weather can sometimes be too cold and wet for me to venture outdoors, I must plant some of these winter bloomers near a window, to be enjoyed from inside where it is warm!