picture from buddlejacollection.com
So the wife's tale is that the Robin will get snow on its tail 3 times before spring is here. So is this the third time?
April Fool's on us a day late....we have grass with snow on it...DARN but the good thing the roads are just wet, and today's temperature of 50 degrees will take care of the white grass.
I always get asked what is new this year, so this blog will be about a new perennial varieties available Buddelia which is a Butterfly bush. It grows in zone 5-9 and winters over. We do have a harder time here in North Central Iowa to have them come back. BUT the butterflies love them so much, they are very fragrant and easy to grow, so I would suggest grow as an annual. Here is a species that will grow in a container.
Buzz™ Buddleia "Velvet" (buddleja davidii) - Buzz series Dwarf hybrid butterfly bush reaching only 3' - 4' tall is perfect for large patio containers or the edge of the garden. Loads of fragrant flowers adorn the plant from late Spring until first frost. Attracts butterflies and other pollinators to the garden. Very drought tolerant once established and reported to be deer resistant. Perennial zones 5-11
Plant Patent Applied For
The Butterfly Bush we all have been yearning for, Buzz™ Sky Blue is an ultra-compact variety with full-sized blooms of rich azure. Fragrant and very, very long-blooming, it is a lovely addition to patio containers as well as to the sunny to lightly shaded border.
One of the easiest perennials to grow, Butterfly Bush behaves more like a shrub in the garden, boasting woody stems that can (and should) be pruned right down to the ground in late winter. Normally B. davidii varieties reach 5 to 10 feet tall, but Buzz™ is just 4 feet high and wide, well-branched and bursting with full-sized flowerheads!
The sky-blue blooms on this plant are held in panicles fully 6 inches long. Fragrant and very attractive to butterflies and bees, they begin in early summer and continue throughout summer and well into fall in most climates. You can count of 5 months of bloom from Buzz™!
And the blooms are superb for cutting, lasting well in the vase and perfuming the room with their scent. The foliage is attractive as well, with gray new growth that turns a soft shade of sage green in summer.
Best of all, you can grow Buzz™ in containers on the deck, porch, or patio! So compact, it will continue to set huge blooms even in small confined spaces. Just give it plenty of sunshine and water, and let Buzz™ do the rest!
This perennial is hardy in zones 5-9, and tolerates light shade in the warmer reaches of its hardiness range. Very carefree and indifferent to stress, it will be a long-lived and lovely performer in your garden. Zones 5-9.
•Butterflies like a lot of sunlight, so locate your garden in a sunny area.
•If you live in a windy location, plant your butterfly-attracting plants near a building, fence, or hedge to protect them.
•Plant a variety of nectar-rich plants, as well as shrubs and evergreens for shelter.
•Since many butterflies and native flowering plants have co-evolved, try to put in some that are native to your area. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center provides lists of plants native to states and regions.
•Certain colors are particularly attracting to butterflies – red, yellow, pink, purple, or orange blooms that are clustered or flat-topped, with a short flower tubes are especially attractive to adult butterflies.
•Avoid using pesticides, especially around nectar-producing plants.
•Provide a shallow source of water – try a birdbath with pebbles lining the bowl.
•Place a rock in a sunny spot for butterfly basking and resting.
•Create a "puddling area" by digging a shallow hole filled with compost or manure where rainwater will collect and release essential salts and minerals.
•If you want butterflies to breed in your garden, put in some caterpillar food plants, such as parsley, milkweeds, asters, thistles, violets, clover, grasses, and Queen Anne’s Lace.
•Since butterflies need nectar throughout the entire adult phase of their lives, try to create a design that will allow for a continuous bloom – when one stops blooming, another starts.
taken from https://www.waysidegardens.com/buddleia-buzz-sky-blue
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net
I always get asked what is new this year, so this blog will be about a new perennial varieties available Buddelia which is a Butterfly bush. It grows in zone 5-9 and winters over. We do have a harder time here in North Central Iowa to have them come back. BUT the butterflies love them so much, they are very fragrant and easy to grow, so I would suggest grow as an annual. Here is a species that will grow in a container.
Buzz™ Buddleia "Velvet" (buddleja davidii) - Buzz series Dwarf hybrid butterfly bush reaching only 3' - 4' tall is perfect for large patio containers or the edge of the garden. Loads of fragrant flowers adorn the plant from late Spring until first frost. Attracts butterflies and other pollinators to the garden. Very drought tolerant once established and reported to be deer resistant. Perennial zones 5-11
Plant Patent Applied For
The Butterfly Bush we all have been yearning for, Buzz™ Sky Blue is an ultra-compact variety with full-sized blooms of rich azure. Fragrant and very, very long-blooming, it is a lovely addition to patio containers as well as to the sunny to lightly shaded border.
One of the easiest perennials to grow, Butterfly Bush behaves more like a shrub in the garden, boasting woody stems that can (and should) be pruned right down to the ground in late winter. Normally B. davidii varieties reach 5 to 10 feet tall, but Buzz™ is just 4 feet high and wide, well-branched and bursting with full-sized flowerheads!
The sky-blue blooms on this plant are held in panicles fully 6 inches long. Fragrant and very attractive to butterflies and bees, they begin in early summer and continue throughout summer and well into fall in most climates. You can count of 5 months of bloom from Buzz™!
And the blooms are superb for cutting, lasting well in the vase and perfuming the room with their scent. The foliage is attractive as well, with gray new growth that turns a soft shade of sage green in summer.
Best of all, you can grow Buzz™ in containers on the deck, porch, or patio! So compact, it will continue to set huge blooms even in small confined spaces. Just give it plenty of sunshine and water, and let Buzz™ do the rest!
This perennial is hardy in zones 5-9, and tolerates light shade in the warmer reaches of its hardiness range. Very carefree and indifferent to stress, it will be a long-lived and lovely performer in your garden. Zones 5-9.
•Butterflies like a lot of sunlight, so locate your garden in a sunny area.
•If you live in a windy location, plant your butterfly-attracting plants near a building, fence, or hedge to protect them.
•Plant a variety of nectar-rich plants, as well as shrubs and evergreens for shelter.
•Since many butterflies and native flowering plants have co-evolved, try to put in some that are native to your area. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center provides lists of plants native to states and regions.
•Certain colors are particularly attracting to butterflies – red, yellow, pink, purple, or orange blooms that are clustered or flat-topped, with a short flower tubes are especially attractive to adult butterflies.
•Avoid using pesticides, especially around nectar-producing plants.
•Provide a shallow source of water – try a birdbath with pebbles lining the bowl.
•Place a rock in a sunny spot for butterfly basking and resting.
•Create a "puddling area" by digging a shallow hole filled with compost or manure where rainwater will collect and release essential salts and minerals.
•If you want butterflies to breed in your garden, put in some caterpillar food plants, such as parsley, milkweeds, asters, thistles, violets, clover, grasses, and Queen Anne’s Lace.
•Since butterflies need nectar throughout the entire adult phase of their lives, try to create a design that will allow for a continuous bloom – when one stops blooming, another starts.
taken from https://www.waysidegardens.com/buddleia-buzz-sky-blue
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net
