by Miracle Farms Landscaping - NH | Apr 22, 2018 | landscape design, Landscaping, Perennial of the Year, Perennials, Perennials NH, Spring Planting
The 2018 Perennial of the Year will have both people and pollinators buzzing with joy! Allium ‘Millenium’ is a relative of the common onion and a standout in a late summer garden here in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. Blooming at a time when most of the garden begins to fade, it offers a welcome wave of color. It is a low maintenance, dependable perennial that puts out masses of purple blooms above neat, grass-like green foliage that remains long after the flower passes. Hummingbirds, bees, beneficial insects, and butterflies love the flowers, which are laden with pollen and nectar. They grow best in full sun and have a very drought resistant constitution. ‘Millenium’ will grow foliage around 10-15” tall with each scape producing two or three showy two-inch globes of purple florets that will last as long as four weeks.
‘Millenium’ will live happily in USDA zones 4-9. Once established, about the only maintenance it needs is cutting back foliage in late fall after the plants fade. A large mass of ‘Millenium’ looks amazing on it’s own, but it also plays well with others and looks great paired with numerous perennials. Shorter goldenrods like ‘Little Lemon’ in front and the lacy silver foliage of a Russian Sage behind, would make a lovely show in the garden.
2018 Perennial of the Year Allium ‘Millenium’
No serious pest problems have been reported. Leaf spot may occur in overcrowded growing conditions. Deer and rabbits leave ‘Millenium’ alone. Alliums are sometimes avoided due to their reseeding behavior. Fortunately ‘Millenium’ exhibits 50% reduced seed production, raising less concern for self-sown seedlings.
Allium ‘Millenium’ has a fibrous root structure forming an ornamental herbaceous clump easily propagated by division. Once in the garden, ‘Millenium’ can easily be lifted and divided in either spring or fall.
The Perennial Plant of the Year showcases a perennial that is a standout among its competitors. Perennials chosen are suitable for a wide range of growing climates, require low maintenance, have multiple-season interest, and are relatively pest/disease-free. If you are looking for an excellent perennial for your next landscape project or something reliable for your gardens, make sure to check out the Perennial Plant of the Year™ archive list. At Miracle Farms we often chose plants on the list of past Perennial of the Year winners to be reliable bloomers year after year.
Here is the list we often choose from:
Previous PPA Perennial Plant of the Year winners:
· 2016 Anemone × hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’ (windflower)
· 2015 Geranium ‘Biokova’ (dwarf cranesbill, hardy geranium)
· 2014 Panicum virgatum ‘Northwind’ (tall switch grass)
· 2013 Polygonatum odoratum variegatum (Solomon’s seal)
· 2012 Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’ (Siberian bugloss)
· 2011 Amsonia hubrichtii (blue star)
· 2010 Baptisia australis (blue false indigo)
· 2009 Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ (Japanese forest grass)
· 2008 Geranium ‘Rozanne’ (cranesbill, hardy geranium)
· 2007 Nepeta racemosa ‘Walker’s Low’ (catmint)
· 2006 Dianthus ‘Feuerhexe’ (aka ‘Firewitch’) (cheddar pink)
· 2005 Helleborus x hybridus (hellebore, Lenten rose)
· 2004 Athyrium niponicum pictum (Japanese painted fern)
· 2003 Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Becky’ (shasta daisy)
· 2002 Phlox paniculata ‘David’ (garden phlox)
· 2001 Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’ (feather reed grass)
· 2000 Scabiosa ‘Butterfly Blue’ (pincushion flower)
· 1999 Rudbeckia fulgida sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ (black-eyed Susan)
· 1998 Echinacea purpurea ‘Magnus’ (purple coneflower)
· 1997 Salvia x sylvestris ‘Mainacht’ (aka ‘May Night’ ) (wood sage)
· 1996 Penstemon digitalis ‘Husker Red’ (beardtongue)
· 1995 Perovskia atriplicifolia (Russian sage)
· 1994 Astilbe ‘Sprite’ (dwarf astilbe)
· 1993 Veronica ‘Sunny Border Blue’ (speedwell)
· 1992 Coreopsis verticillata ‘Moonbeam’ (threadleaf coreopsis)
· 1991 Heuchera micrantha diversifolia ‘Palace Purple’ (coral bells)
· 1990 Phlox stolonifera (creeping phlox)
by Miracle Farms Landscaping - NH | Jan 4, 2018 | landscape design, Landscaping, Landscaping Maintenance Lakes Region NH, ornamental grasses, Perennials, Perennials NH, Winter Landscape Care
The garden in winter doesn’t normally get a lot of attention. However, with a little time and energy during the growing season you can add some ornamental grasses that will give life to your wintertime garden as well. We know ornamental grasses accent a garden at any time of year, but they just might be at their best in the dead of the winter. They provide texture and movement in the winter landscape – elements often lacking when the rest of the garden has gone to sleep. When the rest of your landscape is taking a visual rest, the colors, textures and movement of the grasses has a beauty all its own. Many varieties do double duty by attracting birds to your winter garden providing shelter and food. Maintenance is simple – cut back in the spring before new growth appears. Honestly, we think they’re worth growing for their winter interest alone!
Why we love ornamental grasses
- Natural appearance
- Deer resistant—white-tailed deer do not eat most ornamental grasses
- Few insect or disease problems
- Low nutrient requirements
- Little maintenance, except spring cutback
- More than one season of interest
- Fast growth—most are mature size by three years
- Varied texture, from fine fescues to coarse giantMiscanthus
- An array of foliage colors from many shades of green to blue, yellow, bronze, and red, as well as several variegated forms
- Movement with the wind provides visual and audio interest, susurration—a whispering or rustling sound—that is pleasing and unique
- Beautiful effect when planted en masse
Two of our favorites that are super hardy zone 4 grasses are panicum Northwind and calamagrostis Karl Foerster. Try them in your garden this year!
by Miracle Farms Landscaping - NH | Feb 7, 2017 | Perennial of the Year, Perennials NH, Uncategorized, What's New
AND THE WINNER IS… 2017 PERENNIAL OF THE YEAR
The Perfect Perennial for Lakes Region Gardens
Asclepias tuberosa – butterfly weed
With all the ”buzz” about bees and butterflies, BUTTERFLY WEED is an excellent plant choice for the 2017 Perennial of the Year. Known for its ability to support insects and birds and serve as the primary caterpillar food for the beloved North American native Monarch butterfly, it puts out 3 months of tangerine/orange blooms on perfect little upright shrubs 24” tall and wide.
Hummingbirds, bees, beneficial insects, and other butterflies also love the flowers, which are laden with pollen and nectar. They grow best in full sun, are deer resistant, and tolerant of wet or dry soils. They are hardy to zones 3-9, and native throughout almost all of the Eastern states.
Since Asclepias tuberosa is a native prairie plant, butterfly weed is quite comfortable in meadow gardens, native plantings and wildlife sanctuaries but is finding its way into more formal to semi-formal urban gardens. Plant it in large masses, for an unrivaled display of eye-popping orange. Butterfly weed pairs well with summer blooming Phlox, Hemerocallis, Liatris, Echinacea, Salvia, and most of June/July sun-loving perennials.
The Perennial Plant of the Year showcases a perennial that is a standout among its competitors. Perennials chosen are suitable for a wide range of growing climates, require low maintenance, have multiple-season interest, and are relatively pest/disease-free. If you are looking for an excellent perennial for your next landscape project or something reliable for your gardens, make sure to check out the Perennial Plant of the Year™ archive list. At Miracle Farms we often chose plants on the list of past Perennial of the Year winners to be reliable bloomers year after year.
Here is the list we often choose from:
Previous PPA Perennial Plant of the Year winners:
- 2016 Anemone × hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’ (windflower)
- 2015 Geranium ‘Biokova’ (dwarf cranesbill, hardy geranium)
- 2014 Panicum virgatum ‘Northwind’ (tall switch grass)
- 2013 Polygonatum odoratum variegatum (Solomon’s seal)
- 2012 Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’ (Siberian bugloss)
- 2011 Amsonia hubrichtii (blue star)
- 2010 Baptisia australis (blue false indigo)
- 2009 Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ (Japanese forest grass)
- 2008 Geranium ‘Rozanne’ (cranesbill, hardy geranium)
- 2007 Nepeta racemosa ‘Walker’s Low’ (catmint)
- 2006 Dianthus ‘Feuerhexe’ (aka ‘Firewitch’) (cheddar pink)
- 2005 Helleborus x hybridus (hellebore, Lenten rose)
- 2004 Athyrium niponicum pictum (Japanese painted fern)
- 2003 Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Becky’ (shasta daisy)
- 2002 Phlox paniculata ‘David’ (garden phlox)
- 2001 Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’ (feather reed grass)
- 2000 Scabiosa ‘Butterfly Blue’ (pincushion flower)
- 1999 Rudbeckia fulgida sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ (black-eyed Susan)
- 1998 Echinacea purpurea ‘Magnus’ (purple coneflower)
- 1997 Salvia x sylvestris ‘Mainacht’ (aka ‘May Night’ ) (wood sage)
- 1996 Penstemon digitalis ‘Husker Red’ (beardtongue)
- 1995 Perovskia atriplicifolia (Russian sage)
- 1994 Astilbe ‘Sprite’ (dwarf astilbe)
- 1993 Veronica ‘Sunny Border Blue’ (speedwell)
- 1992 Coreopsis verticillata ‘Moonbeam’ (threadleaf coreopsis)
- 1991 Heuchera micrantha diversifolia ‘Palace Purple’ (coral bells)
- 1990 Phlox stolonifera (creeping phlox)
by Miracle Farms Landscaping - NH | Feb 20, 2016 | Perennial of the Year, Perennials NH, Uncategorized
And the winner is … Anemone Honorine Jobert!
Bobbing 3-4 feet above the neat 12-inch mound of foliage, this superb cutflower is also a garden standout, adding a lightness to the perennial border.
They begin blooming in late summer, just when colorful displays of most other perennials have left the landscape, and continue well into fall. Multitudes of big, bold, bright white, yellow centered flowers are beautiful in borders, cottage gardens, woodland gardens and very showy in mass plantings.
Ideal for the garden or the vase, Honorine Jobert performs best in rich organic soil kept consistently moist. A charming and prolific shade or part sun garden performer it is hardy to Zone 4 and is an attractive companion to astilbes and hostas.
The Perennial Plant of the Year showcases a perennial that is a standout among its competitors. Perennials chosen are suitable for a wide range of growing climates, require low maintenance, have multiple-season interest, and are relatively pest/disease-free. If you are looking for an excellent perennial for your next landscape project or something reliable for your gardens, make sure to check out the Perennial Plant of the Year™ archive list. At Miracle Farms we often rely on the list of past Perennial of the Year winners to be reliable bloomers year after year.
Here are some of our favorites:
Rudbeckia ‘goldsturm’
Salvia ‘may night’
Echinacea ‘magnus’
Phlox ‘david’
Leucanthemum ‘becky’
Nepeta ‘walker’s low’
Brunerra ‘jack frost’
Amsonia ‘hubrichtii’
by Miracle Farms Landscaping - NH | Jun 23, 2015 | Perennials NH, Uncategorized
And the winner is! This bright and beautiful perennial is covered in delicate blush pinkish-white flowers in late spring with foliage that turns a lovely shade of reddish-orange in your fall garden. It is lightly scented and grows best in sun to partial shade in well-drained soil. Biokovo is hardy in zones 4 to 8, and relatively deer and rabbit resistant which makes it a perfect selection for the Lakes Region in New Hampshire. It makes a beautiful ground cover and is a great addition to the front of a border garden. Biokovo pairs nicely in a planting with Japanese painted ferns, and late spring blooming penstemons.
The Perennial Plant of the Year™ (POY™) program began in 1990 to showcase a perennial that is a standout among its competitors. Perennials chosen are suitable for a wide range of growing climates, require low maintenance, have multiple-season interest, and are relatively pest/disease-free. If you are looking for an excellent perennial for your next landscape project or something reliable for your gardens, make sure to check out the Perennial Plant of the Year™ archive list.
At Miracle Farms we often rely on the list of past Perennial of the Year winners to be reliable bloomers year after year.
Here are some of our favorites:
Rudbeckia ‘goldsturm’
Salvia ‘may night’
Echinacea ‘magnus’
Phlox ‘david’
Leucanthemum ‘becky’
Nepeta ‘walker’s low’
Brunerra ‘jack frost’
Amsonia ‘hubrichtii’
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