Border Patrol September 29, 2009
of The Seasonal Walk Saga
By Tovah Martin
Hidden Perks
The dahlias are definitely the prima donnas in the bulb arena, but there are a few other perks hidden between the perennial blocks. For example, the nerines are poised to perform. One prime example has opened in the sunniest, warmest section of the border, and others will undoubtedly follow. The begonias are still happening, but are buried beneath taller perennials. And that’s an important issue to consider. When adding summer bulbs to a natural border, it’s important to keep mature heights in mind.
Whereas you want to hide spring bulb foliage that will be browning beneath perennials that have the ability to screen the bulbs as they slip into their dormant stages (ornamental grasses are great for this purpose), you want to synchronize summer bulbs with foliage that lets them peek out and strut their stuff. So, the fact that the calamintha leaves arch over is an open invitation to nerines and other summer bulbs to poke through. Ditto for the sesleria and sporobolus grasses.
That’s just one example of the fund of knowledge gained. Now that the Seasonal Walk is officially slated to continue another year, the heat is turned up. Everyone wants to learn the lessons that this year’s Walk taught, and make it a stronger statement next growing season.
In other words, a whole lot of assessing is going on. We’ve met some real winners – like Incarvillea delavayi, Lilium ‘Pink Twinkle’, Oxalis triangularis, Galtonia candicans, Hymenocallis ‘Sulphur Queen’, Dahlia ‘Marie Schnugg’, Dahlia ‘Fascination, and Dahlia ‘Moonfire’ on the summer bulb front and Astilbe ‘Visions in Pink’, all the echinaceas, Aster frikartii ‘Monch’, and Teucrium hircanum ‘Paradise Delight’ on the perennial team. But we’ve also discovered some growing secrets in the process. In a way, the NYBG Seasonal Walk has ratcheted up our fund of knowledge several notches.
