Tuesday, September 18, 2018

September 18, 2018 Kim’s Weekly Garden Blog


Hi Gardeners
Red bed
Spring peeper on dahlia
Let me start by saying to those gardeners who have struggled this week with floods, winds, and explosions that I feel for you and wish I could help.  Gardens and gardeners are resilient, and things will get better. Think of it as a chance to get new plants, although that may be a bit light hearted while the disaster is still fresh.
After natural disasters your environment may be drastically changed. You may need to rebuild your home. Trees that provided shade fall.  Soil washes away or is polluted by flood water. Litter is everywhere. But nature will help you restore your environment. Take a deep breath and go slowly.  You’ll need to make decisions and maybe change some things.
I saw people on line talking about how to evacuate their plants, particularly houseplants.  I hope I never have to do that.  But don’t ever put the safety of your plants above your safety. 
So, on a lighter note, my garden has a few new plants blooming this week.  The colchicum’s popped up and are in full bloom.  They look like large crocus.  Jerusalem artichokes are blooming like crazy.  I keep trying to get rid of them, but they pop up everywhere.  Yes, I know they are good to eat but there can be too much of a good thing.
The trees are starting to color, the sugar maples are maybe at 10%.  Oak leaves are already starting to fall.  Fall color seems a little behind this year.  We had a late spring so that’s ok.
The hosta leaves are starting to tatter and brown.  Many things are looking tired.  I will soon be out and about gathering seeds of some things and picking things to dry.  I have a bunch of Japanese lanterns drying out in a vase on the table now.
Our apples are almost ready to eat. The crop is light and the apples small, but we will get a few.  Maybe enough for a batch of apple butter. The grapes are gone now, what we didn’t pick the birds and deer have gobbled down.
I think the hummingbirds may have left.  I refilled 2 of my feeders last night, battling away the yellow jackets, but I think they may be gone. The orioles and red winged blackbirds left early this year.  I still see a few robins, they usually stick around until the autumn olive berries are gone.
Have you bought those spring flowering bulbs yet?  Better hurry.  Every garden needs spring flowering bulbs and the time to plant them is near.  In cooler weather you can transplant things and plant new trees and shrubs.
While you are out in the garden take some pictures of your beds while everything is mature.  In the winter you can look at the pictures and it will help you decide where you need new plants, or where you can jam some more in.
I have a very long article on salvias this week.  I get interested in a subject and sometimes there is just too much information for one article, but I tried.  Salvias are some of my favorite plants and there are always some in my gardens.
A Granny Smith apple a day may help you lose weight
It’s the beginning of apple season, is there a type of apple you like best? You might want to get some fresh Granny Smith apples. There’s some interesting research that says they may help you lose weight.  A study done at Washington State University and published in the journal Food Chemistry, found that Granny Smith apples had a beneficial effect on weight loss.
The Granny Smith apple was discovered in Australia in 1868 as a chance seedling in Maria Anne Smiths orchard. I guess she was a granny.  Granny Smith apples are a greenish yellow when ripe, sometimes with a faint red blush.  They are tart and sweet at the same time, used in cooking and salads as well as for fresh eating.  They are one of Americas favorite apples and available at most stores.
Apples contain non-digestible fiber and polyphenols.  When these apple fibers reach the human colon they are fermented by bacteria and benefit the good bacteria that regulate healthy metabolism.  We now know that humans who are overweight have a different bacterial colony in their colon than those who remain lean. Those with diabetes and other metabolic disease also had different bacterial colonies than healthy people.  Eating apples, particularly Granny Smith apples, can change the gut colony to bacteria that favor a healthy metabolism and weight loss.
Granny Smith apples were found to be far better at normalizing gut bacteria than other types of apples. Granny Smith apples have less sugar and more indigestible fiber than other apple varieties.  Granny Smith apples are high in antioxidants and they have the highest concentration of phenols among the apple varieties. There may also be other genetic factors that favor good gut colonies.
Research done on mice found that the Granny Smith apples rapidly changed gut bacteria in a beneficial way. Researchers suggest that people eating one Granny Smith apple a day could help change gut bacteria and normalize metabolism so that it would be easier to lose weight. 
Yes, I know, sounds too good to be true. It sure wouldn’t hurt to try though.  Here’s some additional reading on the subject.

Burdock
If you have farm animals or pets you have probably encountered the annoying “burrs” in their coats, which are the seed pods of the common burdock, (Arctium minus). And if you have ever walked in the woods or fields and brushed against these plants you’ve probably had the unfortunate experience of trying to pull these sticky balls off your clothing. The round seed clusters of burdocks will stick to almost anything.  This is an extremely proficient way for the burdock plant to spread its seeds near and far. 

Burdock first year
Burdock is a bi-annual plant.  In the first year it puts down a thick, long taproot and a rosette of large broad leaves.  In the late summer of the second year burdock sends up long flowering stems. The stems may be streaked with purplish red and they have a grooved, rough surface. Burdock has purple tuft-like flowers at the top of a rounded mass of green, hooked bracts.  The bracts turn brown and form the familiar round burr as the seeds ripen and dry.
Left alone in good soil burdock leaves can grow huge - 2 foot long and wide. The leaves have a grayish looking underside because they are covered with fine white hairs.  The hollow flowering stems can reach 5 feet into the air and are thick and tough. 
Burdock usually grows in full sun and prefers rich soil although it can pop up in other places.  You must be vigilant and remove young plants from pastures and other areas as soon as you see them as the older they get the harder they are to remove and letting them go to seed compounds the problem.  Even when kept mowed, burdock will struggle along and produce its burrs on plants a few inches from the ground.  The flowers will continue to ripen and become burrs if cut from the plant while still green and are often found in hay.
Burdock 
Asian species of burdock are cultivated for their roots and American species also have edible roots.  The young leaves of burdock can be eaten as a salad green. The stems can be peeled and cooked also.  Burdock has many medicinal uses, the roots, seeds and dried leaves are used in a variety of home remedies.
If pets, livestock or even you get burdocks in your hair cover the burdocks with gobs of cheap hair conditioner and let it soak in for a few minutes. In a pinch peanut butter will do. The burrs will then easily comb out.  Don’t pick off burrs from your socks and gloves and toss them on the ground near your house unless you want burdock to sprout up there in the spring.

Sorting the Salvias
If you are thinking salvia is those red spiky annual plants you stick in the annual bed you are missing out on a variety of salvias, annuals, perennials and tender perennials that can be wonderful additions to your gardens. There are many species and hybrids of salvia species now available to gardeners.  Salvias come in many colors and sizes, one that will fit in any garden.  They provide a graceful vertical accent to plantings and hummingbirds and bees are very fond of them.
Some of the salvias can provide color in the late summer and early fall when color can be lacking in the garden. Salvia is great in garden beds or even in containers.  There are salvias that grow in sun or partial shade and most gardeners will find salvia easy to grow. They are also deer and rabbit resistant.
Salvia hybrid Wendy's Wish
As members of the mint family salvia has square, ridged stems, often with hairs. The stems may be colored near the tops similar to the flower color.  Salvia leaves vary a bit among species, but most are long ovals with a pointed tip, and a serrated edge.  They range from medium green to gray-green and are sometimes hairy.  Many salvias have a pleasant scent to the leaves and stems when handled.  
The typical salvia flower is hard to describe.  It’s a long tube composed of fused petals splitting near the end into a “hood” on top which is usually longer than the “lip” on the bottom.  The lip can be one large lobe or have two smaller lobes on either side of a large lobe.  The sexual parts of the flower usually are at the top, under the hood.  Flowers may be covered in tiny hairs.
An important part of the flower in salvias is the bract. This is papery, ridged tube that surrounds the base of the flower, split in two so the flower sticks out of it.  It is large and colorful, with the same or a deeper color of the flower. It may be hairy like the flower. Long after the flower drops the bracts retain their color and remain on the plant.  The bract will also hold the seeds after the flower drops, deep inside at it’s base.
Salvia flower
Flowers are produced on long stems in clusters. Species vary as to how large the flowers are and when they are produced.  The salvias have many man- made cultivars that have changed the size, color, and number of flowers produced. Some cultivars have slightly altered flower shape also.  Most salvia flowers aren’t fragrant like the leaves and stems but are still loved by hummingbirds, bees and butterflies for their nectar.
Some gardeners collect salvias and I can see the reason.  There are so many great plants in this family. There are also sages that have culinary uses or are used as religious psychotropics, but I will not be covering them in this article. 
The species
What’s confusing about salvias is that your idea of salvia may not be what I consider salvia.  There are many species of salvia in cultivation and lots of hybrids between species also.  I’ll start with the perennial varieties that are hardy from planting zone 5 south.
Salvia nemorosa is a species of salvia that is common in northern gardens.  Bloom time is normally early summer but there are cultivars that bloom in bursts throughout the summer if kept well-watered and dead headed.  It’s native to Europe and western Asia and hardy in zones 5-9.  The species has flowers of blue and purple shades, but cultivars have been developed in pink, white and various shades of blue.
Salvia nemorosa is a clump forming, slowly increasing plant about 36 inches high, although there are more compact species.  The leaves are rough, wrinkled, oval shaped and toothed.  When leaves and stems are cut or crushed there is an herbal smell.  I don’t like the smell, but many don’t mind it.
This salvia likes full sun in the north and partial shade further south.  It likes moist but well drained gravely soil. It will tolerate other types of soil but doesn’t do well in heavy clay soils.  It can tolerate drought after establishment but will not bloom well if too dry. 
Dead head it after bloom and keep it watered and you may get repeat bloom.  If the plants get floppy after flowering cut them back to about half their height. Salvia nemorosa sometimes get the fungal diseases of rust and powdery mildew, particularly if grown in shade. Deer don’t like the plant.
One of the most common cultivars is ‘East Friesland’ which is blue-purple. ‘Caradonna- is another favorite with dark purple stems and violet flowers.  Other cultivars include 'Sensation Rose'(pink) 'Plumosa', which is purple pink with dense clusters of bloom, ‘Blue Marvel’ which is blue with larger flowers, ‘Bumbleberry’ a wine color, ‘New Dimension Rose’, Crystal Blue, which is pale blue, and Pink Dawn.  Many other cultivars exist.
Salvia x sylvestris is a hybrid salvia very similar to S. nemorosa resulting from crosses between S. nemorosa and S. pratensis.  It’s hardy in zones 5-9. They have a somewhat longer blooming period, through most of the summer, than S.nemorosa. Other than that, care and appearance are similar to S. nemorosa.  'Mainacht' or ‘May Night’ is a purple flowered cultivar very common in gardens.  ‘Tanzerin’ (violet), ‘Snow Hill’ (white), ‘Blue Hill’ (pale blue) are other cultivars.
Salvia microphylla, also called baby sageGraham's sage, or blackcurrant sage.  It is native to the southern US and Mexico and is hardy in zones 7-9.  It has tiny leaves and small flowers and forms a mound like bush 1-3 feet tall.  It’s sometimes used as a ground cover. The leaves are oval and sometimes covered with fine hairs.  They have a mint like scent when bruised.
Flowers of this species are ¼ inch to an inch long and come in all shades of red, pink, rose and magenta. They are arranged in whorls on the stem.  The plants bloom heavily in spring and fall, with occasional blooms in summer.  This salvia was found to hybridize easily with other salvias and since the 1990’s a number of salvia hybrids using it have been produced.
Some common cultivars of Salvia microphylla include 'Hot Lips’, which has a white hood with bright red bottom petals, ‘Red Velvet’, 'Rosita', a good repeat bloomer with candy-pink flowers, ‘La Foux' which has deep crimson flowers with almost black calyces andWild Watermelon' which has large pink flowers with dark calyces.
Salvia greggii is very similar to Salvia microphylla and hybrids between the species occur in the wild. It’s native range is narrow, from southwest Texas, through the Chihuahuan desert and to the Mexican state of San Luis Potosi.  Part of this range is in the mountains, so some cultivars of the plant are hardy to zone 5.  There are dozens of cultivars, some hardy only to zone 7, so check the description before planting.  It’s often sold as an annual in colder zones.
S. greggii is an evergreen semi-shrub (deciduous in colder zones) with a mounding or sprawling habit.  In its native range it can get to 4 feet high, but most cultivars are more compact ranging from 1-2 feet high and wide.  The leaves are small, an inch or less, medium green and have a spicy scent when crushed.
This salvia blooms best in spring and fall with some odd blooms in summer.  Some cultivars bloom for a longer period.  In the wild flowers are small, less than an inch long, and shades of red on short stems.  Larger flowers and a great many color variations have been bred into the plant.  Cultivars have a neat, mounded look with flashy flowers perfect for the garden.
S. greggii likes sandy or gravely, well-drained soil. It does not do well in clay soils. Full sun in the north below zone 7 and partial shade in the south are preferred. It likes a moderate amount of water but can withstand some drought. Do not fertilize this plant for best growth and bloom. Lightly pruning after the spring flowering burst will encourage summer and fall blooms.
This salvia species has the only variegated foliage cultivar that I know of, 'Desert Blaze' has gold edged leaves and scarlet flowers. 'Wild Thing' is a popular variety that produces hot pink flowers. 'Furman's Red' is another well-known variety. 'Big Pink' has a large lower lip and is a lavender pink. 'Purple Pastel' is a light purple, small flowered variety. 'Desert Pastel' has pale apricot flowers with yellow streaks. 'Alba' is a white flowered variety. 'Strawberries and Cream' has yellow and pink tinted flowers.
Salvia sclarea is better known as Clary sage, an old herbal plant that’s also attractive in the flower garden and as a dried flower. In this plant the “flower” color comes from the flower bract, the papery tube at the back of the flower, which in this species is insignificant.
Clary sage is native to the Mediterranean region and central Asia.  It’s been grown for centuries for its essential oil and medicinal uses.  It’s a short-lived perennial, often grown as a bi-annual and hardy to zone 5.  One common cultivar of clary sage is ‘Vatican White’.
In the first year clary sage produces a basal rosette of broad, gray-green leaves.  In the second summer it produces long bloom spikes 3-4 feet tall with flower bracts in white or pink and purple shades.  The tiny flowers inside the bract are white or pale lavender.  The stems are square and feel rough and hairy. The leaves, stems and flowers have a pleasant scent.
Clary sage likes sandy well-drained but moist soil but will tolerate dry conditions.  It is best in full sun. Prune off the flower stalks before the seed is set if you wish to coax more years of bloom from the plant. It doesn’t grow well in hot, humid areas and humid conditions may lead to powdery mildew problems.
Clary sage is considered an invasive plant in some areas and may self-seed abundantly, spreading through the garden and into nearby fields.
Herbal uses include as a flavoring for wines, liquors and other drinks, and as a scent in soaps, perfume and cosmetics. Essential oil is distilled from flowers and leaves of the plant.  A tea of the flowers or seeds is used as an eye wash and is sometimes taken for digestive and menstrual problems, muscle pain and insomnia.  The flower stalks are cut and dried for dry flower arrangements.
Salvia jurisicii is also called Serbian sage. Unlike most salvias it has fine, feathery foliage.  In spring it also has stalks of purple-pink small flowers.  It’s hardy to zone 6 but may be hard to find.
Salvia azurea- or Blue sage is a native of the North American prairies and hardy to zone 4. You may have to look in native plant catalogs to find it.
Salvia pachyphylla is a native sage from California with purple-red clusters of flowers. Its hardy in zones 6-9 but can be hard to find.
Salvia argentea is grown not for its tiny flowers but for its large rounded fuzzy silver leaves.   Its hardy in planting zones 5-8 but is short lived, a couple years in the garden at best. It likes dry, well drained areas in full sun.
Tender perennial or tropical salvias
Salvia farinacea is fairly common in gardens but only hardy to zone 8 and native to Mexico and south Texas. It’s also called mealycup sage because the upper stems and calyx may have a wooly white covering.  It has lance shaped, 3-inch-long irregularly serrated leaves, and has a shrubby habit, growing 1-3 feet tall.
The flowers of S. farinacea are violet blue in the species but many other colors have been developed.  It blooms throughout summer and will bloom in sun or partial shade.  It will grow in almost any soil type but needs evenly moist, well drained planting areas.
There are many cultivars of this salvia on the market.  'Victoria Blue' is an old one that’s still great, ‘Cirrus' is a delicate blue with white, ‘Mystic Spires Blue', Evolution, deep blue,Fairy Queen’, a pink color, Sallyfun Blue Emotion’ is true blue with a touch of white in throat.
Salvia guaranitica is also called blue anise sage. It’s native to South America and hardy only to planting zone 8. The leaves are dark green, lighter underneath, pointed ovals that have a wrinkled appearance and are up to 5 inches long. The plant smells faintly like anise. Plants are considered semi-shrubs and can get up to 6 feet high in warmer areas.
The flowers of S. guaranitica are true blue with a darker calyx produced on long wands that float above the plant. Blooming time is mid-summer until frost in the north where it’s treated as an annual.  It will grow in sun or partial shade and likes rich, loamy well drained soil.
This salvia has produced some of my favorite cultivars, ‘Black and Blue’ has deep blue flowers with an almost black calyx. 'Argentine Skies' has pale blue flowers, 'Purple Splendor' has light purple flowers.[
Salvia coccinea is also called scarlet sage, Texas sage, or tropical sage. It’s native to Mexico and hardy only to zone 8.  It has oval to triangular deep green leaves about 2 inches long that are lightly hairy. The species has long wands of scarlet red flowers, loved by hummingbirds, in summer. Cultivars have been developed with other colors.
This salvia likes well drained, moist soil such as a sandy loam.  It prefers full sun in the north, partial shade in the south.  It may self-seed, even in colder climates.
‘Lady in Red’ and ‘Coral Nymph’ (coral colored) are two better known cultivars.

Salvia Lady in Red
Salvia patens is a true-blue flowered salvia from Mexico, only hardy to zone 8.  It can be grown as an annual in other places.  It prefers full sun.  It grows about 3 feet high and has a long summer bloom period.  This salvia is also known as spreading salvia because in warm areas it will spread by rhizomous roots.  These rhizomes may be dug and stored like dahlias in areas colder than zone 8.  It is also easy to start from seed.
One cultivar of S. patens is ‘Blue Angel’.
Salvia leucophylla is native to California and is often called purple sage.  Leaves are gray-green and look like the wrinkled leaves of culinary sage. It has purple-pink whorls of flowers in spring and summer.  The flowers are said to be very fragrant.  It likes dry sunny areas and is drought tolerant.  It grows as an evergreen shrub, up to 5 feet high and 10 feet wide.  There are several cultivars, 'Bee's Bliss’ is a common one.  Its hardy only to zone 8.
Salvia leucantha is native to Mexico and is often called Mexican bush sage. The foliage is interesting in this species, it’s gray green and velvety.  It’s a winter or fall bloomer in warm areas, putting out dense arching spikes of white flowers with purple-blue bracts all through the cooler season.  Plants are 2-3 feet tall and wide. It can be grown as an annual in cooler areas and looks good in containers.  It’s hardy to zone 8.
Salvia hybrids- from various crosses of the species exist. ‘Wendy’s Wishes’, (magenta pink and burgundy) and ‘Love and Wishes’ (red-purple and deep purple bract) are two popular cultivars developed in Australia.  I am quite fond of these two.  Even grown as an annual they make large 3’x 3’ plants loaded with graceful colorful flower spikes all summer long.  They are sterile and do not produce seeds.  They will bloom in partial shade or full sun and should be kept well-watered.  They are hardy only to Zone 9.
Salvia Black and Blue

The annual salvias
Salvia horminum or Salvia viridis are the blue annual sages.  They are native to the Mediterranean area.  They grow 1-2 feet tall and bloom all summer.  This salvia likes full sun to light shade and regular watering.  There are many cultivars, some now have pink and white flowers. ‘Blue Monday’, and ‘Pink Sunday’ are popular cultivars.
Salvia splendens are the most common salvias in the garden shops. They are native to Brazil.  Once mainly red and tall, this annual salvia now comes in almost every color, bi-colors, and in several sizes.  These are the bedding salvias your grandmother grew.  They are still excellent bedding plants for sunny areas and make excellent container plants.  You’ll find then in every color from white to crimson to orange to apricot to deep purple and more. If your color scheme is an odd one these salvias can probably help you out.
Sun and moderate watering are needed for good flowering.  They bloom from early summer until frost and new varieties don’t need deadheading.  The bracts in various colors make excellent dried flowers.  They aren’t as hummingbird and bee attractive as other salvias but still worth growing.  They grow easily from seed but saved seed will not come true to color or form.  They sometimes reseed themselves in the garden.
Most of these salvias will simply be marked salvia in the garden shop. If you are an older gardener you may remember 'Van Houttei', a tall red salvia, it’s still available.  Some popular cultivars are ‘Salsa’ (red), 'Issanchon', a small plant with white flowers striped with pink or red, ‘Ablazin'® Purple, and ‘Saucy Wine’.
This article does not cover all salvia species.  There are dozens more that aren’t as common in gardens but still might make a good garden plant.  If you like collecting plants the salvia family will give you plenty to choose from.
Using fresh sage in cooking
Since I wrote about salvia this week I decided to write about cooking with it instead of the usual recipe.  There are a couple of types of cooking or culinary sage, white sage Salvia officinalis, is the best one for most recipes.  There are purple and golden leaf varieties.
For more about growing culinary sage go to my herb page at the link below.  The individual herbs are listed in alphabetical order at the end.
Sage can be dried for winter cooking or used fresh.  If you didn’t grow sage in the garden- why not? Well, you can always buy some at the farmers market.  Here are some ways to use sage just as it comes from the garden.
A new, trendy treat is fried sage leaves.  You can batter the leaves or fry them without batter.  Choose larger sage leaves and remove them from the stems.  Wash and dry the leaves. Heat some cooking oil to about 350 degrees.  If you want to batter the sage leaves make a thin batter of water and flour with seasonings like garlic powder, pepper and salt.  Dip the leaves and quickly add them to the hot oil.  To fry sage leaves without batter, add leaves to hot oil.  Let the leaves lightly brown on one side, then flip them and brown the other. This will only take a minute or so.  Work in small batches and don’t crowd the pan.  Remove them to paper towels to drain and eat them hot. You can sprinkle the hot fried leaves with powdered parmesan cheese or use them with a dip also.
Fresh sage leaves can be added to butter in a frying pan and heated just enough to lightly brown the butter.  The leaves are then strained out and the flavored butter is used in soups, sauces or to baste meat.
Here’s how to make an interesting orange sage marinade. Blend together 1/4 cup unsweetened orange juice, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 tablespoon minced fresh sage, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/2 cup Dijon mustard in a large bowl.  Marinade up to 3 pounds of boneless chicken or pork pieces in the mix for 1-3 hours (in the refrigerator) before grilling or broiling them.
You can use fresh sage to season baked chicken or other poultry.  Lightly coat a whole chicken or chicken pieces with oil or melted butter. Sprinkle on chopped fresh sage, rosemary and marjoram with salt and pepper to suit your taste before baking the chicken.
Here’s a recipe for a fresh sage dip.  Combine 1- 8 oz. package of cream cheese, 1/3 cup sour cream, 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese, 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves, and 2 tablespoons fresh chopped celery leaves in a food processor and blend until smooth. Place in a bowl and refrigerate 5-8 hours to blend flavors. Serve at room temperature.
You can dry sage by harvesting fresh stems with leaves and hanging them in a warm, dark place, or in a dehydrator, microwave or oven.  Make sure the sage is completely dried, it may take longer than thin leaved herbs, before storing, or it may mold and taste musty.  Store completely dried leaves in a clean glass container in a cool place.  Sage leaves can also be frozen in water and will taste more like fresh sage when used than dried sage.

Saturday is the first day of fall, enjoy the last bit of summer
Kim Willis
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