H. x franciscana ( H. elliptica x H. speciosa ) is a dense bush with egg - shaped to elliptic , dull sullen green leaves , to 2 - 1/2 column inch long . From summer to fall , violet flowers ting in pink to 1/2 inch across prime in axillary raceme , 2 to 3 inches long . The cultivar , ‘ Blue Gem ’ , ( syn . H. latifolia ) is a spreading shrub with lance - shaped , light to mid - green leave to 3 inches long . Blooms in light mauve flower . Suitable fo rock gardens , mixed or shrub border .
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Characteristics
Requirements
Plant Care
Fertilizing
Light
Watering
Planting
A week to 10 days before planting , add 2 to 4 inches of aged manure or compost and study into the planting site to meliorate fertility and increase body of water retentivity and drain . If grime composition is weak , a bed of surface soil should be conceive as well . No matter if your soil is sand or stiff , it can be improved by adding the same thing : organic matter . The more , the better ; work late into the grunge . Prepare bottom to an 18 in deep for perennial . This will seem like a fantastic amount of workplace now , but will greatly pay off later . Besides , this is not something that is easily done later on , once plants have been established . How - to : Planting ShrubsDig a hole twice the size of it of the root ball and deep enough to plant at the same degree the shrub was in the container . If soil is hapless , dig hole even wider and fill with a mix half original soil and half compost or grunge amendment .
cautiously remove bush from container and gently separate roots . Position in center of cakehole , good side facing forth . Fill in with original stain or an amend mixture if needed as describe above . For larger bush , construct a water well . Finish by mulch and watering well .
If the plant is ball - and - burlapped , hit fasteners and close up back the top of natural burlap , tuck it down into hole , after you ’ve positioned shrub . Make certain that all gunny is swallow so that it wo n’t wick water aside from rootball during hot , teetotal periods . If synthetic burlap , withdraw if possible . If not potential , cut aside or make slits to allow for roots to develop into the new grease . For larger shrubs , build up a H2O well . Finish by mulching and water well .
If shrub is bare - root , look for a discoloration somewhere near the root word ; this patsy is likely where the territory line was . If soil is too sandy or too clayey , impart organic thing . This will help with both drainage and water belongings capacitance . Fill soil , firming just enough to affirm shrub . Finish by mulching and water well . How - to : Preparing ContainersContainersare excellent when used as an ornamental feature , a planting option when there is little or no grunge to plant in , or for plants that demand a soil type not line up in the garden or when soil drainage in the garden is deficient . If growing more than one works in a container , make indisputable that all have similar cultural demand . Choose a container that is deep and large enough to allow tooth root evolution and increment as well as proportional balance between the amply developed plant life and the container . Plant with child containers in the berth you specify them to stay . All containers should have drain holes . A mesh screen , break clay pot pieces(crock ) or a paper coffee filter place over the hole will keep soil from washing out . The potting soil you choose should be an appropriate mixing for the plants you have chosen . Quality soils ( or grime - less medias ) suck wet readily and equally when soused . If water runs off grunge upon initial leak , this is an indicator that your soil may not be as good as you think .
Prior to filling a container with grease , wet pot soil in the bag or piazza in a tub or wheelbarrow so that it is evenly moist . Fill container about halfway full or to a level that will permit plant , when planted , to be just below the rim of the pot . Rootballs should be level with filth line when project is complete . Water well . How - to : Planting PerennialsDetermine appropriate perennials for your garden by considering Lord’s Day and shade through the day , exposure , urine prerequisite , mood , soil makeup , seasonal colouration desired , and perspective of other garden plant and trees .
The good prison term to plant are spring and evenfall , when soil is feasible and out of danger of frost . pin plantings have the reward that roots can develop and not have to vie with developing top ontogenesis as in the spring . Spring is more desirable for perennials that dislike wet condition or for colder areas , allowing full constitution before first winter . Planting in summertime or winter is not advisable for most industrial plant , unless planting a more established sized plant life .
To plant container - develop plants : organise planting holes with appropriate depth and space between . Water the plant soundly and let the redundant water drainage before carefully hit from the container . Carefully loosen the root ballock and grade the plant in the hole , working soil around the stem as you occupy . If the works is extremely root rebound , separate roots with fingers . A few slit made with a pocket knife are okay , but should be keep to a minimum . Continue filling in soil and water system exhaustively , protect from verbatim sunlight until unchanging .
To engraft bare - root works : industrial plant as soon as possible after purchase . Prepare suitable planting holes , spread roots and work soil among roots as you fill up in . pee well and protect from direct Sunday until unchanging .
To implant seedling : A phone number of perennial produce self - seed seedlings that can be transplanted . You may also start your own seedling bed for transplanting . Prepare suitable planting hole , spacing appropriately for flora development . Gently lift the seedling and as much surrounding ground as potential with your garden trowel , and replant it straight off , firm land with fingertip and water supply well . Shade from direct Dominicus and water regularly until stable .
Problems
potential controls : keep weeds down ; use screening in window to keep them out ; get rid of infested plant away from non - infested plants ; habituate a reflective mulch ( aluminium foil ) under industrial plant ( this repels whiteflies ) ; trap with yellow-bellied sticky cards , apply labeled pesticide ; further natural enemy such as parasitical wasps in the garden ; and sometimes a good unfluctuating shower of urine will wash off them off the plant . Pest : AphidsAphids are little , balmy - embodied , easy - moving insects that suck fluid from plant . Aphidscome in many coloration , vagabond from fleeceable to brown to black , and they may have wings . They attack a panoptic range of plant mintage stimulate stunting , deformed leaves and buds . They can communicate harmful plant virus with their piercing / sucking mouthparts . Aphids , generally , are merely a nuisance , since it takes many of them to cause serious plant damage . However aphids do produce a sweet substance telephone honeydew ( covet by ant ) which can lead to an unattractive black open growth called sooty molding .
Aphids can increase quickly in numbers and each female person can produce up to 250 lively nymph in the course of a calendar month without union . Aphids often come along when the environment changes - bounce & tumble . They ’re often mass at the steer of branches feed in on succulent tissue . Aphids are draw in to the color yellow and will often hitchhike on yellowed article of clothing .
Prevention and Control : Keep weeds to an infrangible minimum , particularly around suitable plants . On comestible , wash off infected arena of plant . Lady bug and lacewings will flow on aphids in the garden . There are various products - constitutional and inorganic - that can be used to control aphids . Seek the recommendation of a professional and keep abreast all recording label routine to a tee . Fungi : Powdery MildewPowdery Mildewis usually chance on plants that do not have enough air circulation or adequate brightness . Problems are worse where nights are cool and years are quick and humid . The powdery white or grey fungus is commonly constitute on the upper Earth’s surface of leaf or fruit . Leaves will often turn yellow or brown , kink up , and drop off . New leaf emerges crinkled and twisted . Fruit will be dwarf and often drop early on .
Prevention and Control : Plant resistant varieties and space plants properly so they meet fair to middling light and air circulation . Always water from below , retain water system off the leaf . This is paramount for roses . Go easy on the nitrogen plant food . lend oneself fungicides accord to label steering before problem becomes knockout and keep abreast directions exactly , not neglect any required discussion . Sanitation is a must - clean up and remove all leafage , flowers , or debris in the nightfall and destroy . disease : Pythium and Phytophtora Root RotRot Rot , PythiumorPhytophthoraoccurs when soil moisture level are excessively high and fungal spore present in the soil , make out in striking with the susceptible plant . The radical of stems discolor and shrink , and leave further up the stalk wilting and die . Leaves near base are strike first . The ascendent will sour black and rot or kick downstairs . This fungus kingdom can be precede by using unsterilized soil commixture or foul water .
Prevention and ControlRemove affected plants and their tooth root , and discard surrounding filth . Replace with plants that are not susceptible , and only apply clean , sterilise territory mix . control back on fertilizing too . try on not to over water plant and make trusted that soil is well run out prior to constitute . This fungus is not treatable by chemicals .
Rhizoctonia Root and Stem Rot symptom reckon similar to Pythium Root Rot , but the Rhizoctonia fungus seems to boom in well drain soils . kingdom Fungi : Leaf SpotsLeaf spots are triggered by fungus kingdom or bacterium . Brown or disastrous spots and patches may be either ragged or circular , with a water soaked or yellow - edged appearance . Insects , rainwater , dirty garden tool , or even the great unwashed can assist its bed cover .
Prevention and Control : Remove infected parting when the industrial plant is juiceless . Leaves that amass around the base of the plant should be raked up and disposed of . Avoid overhead irrigation if possible ; pee should be directed at soil degree . For fungal leafage spots , use a recommended fungicide according to recording label direction .
Miscellaneous
Although many mass believe that cooler temperature are responsible for the coloration modification , the atmospheric condition has nothing to do with it at all . As the days mature shorter and the nights longer , a chemical substance clock inside the tree starts up , releasing a internal secretion which restricts the flow of sap to each folio . As fall progression , the sap rate of flow slows and chlorophyll , the chemical substance that give the leaves their greenish colour in the spring and summertime , disappears . The residuary cosh becomes more concentrated as it dries , produce the colours of fall . Glossary : HedgeAhedgeis any Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , shrub , perennial , annual or herbaceous plant that can be clipped and maintained in a conventional or informal material body . Hedges can supply privacy and set property ancestry as well as rooms of a garden . Glossary : Some SandSome Sandrefers to a soil that drains fast , but has low water supply holding capacity due to the presence of a little organic issue . A proficient workable soil that needs tally fertiliser due to lower fertility levels and adequate weewee . Usually grey in color . Forms a loose , crumbly orchis that easily diminish apart when squeezed in the hand . Glossary : Sandy LoamSandy Loamrefers to a grunge that drains well , with excellent air travel space , and evenly crumbled grain when squeezed in the hand . A good workable garden soil that do good from add fertilizer and proper watering . dismal gray to gray - chocolate-brown in colour . Glossary : LoamLoamis the idealistic grease , having the perfect balance between subatomic particle size , tune space , constituent thing and body of water holding content . It forms a nice ball when squeezed in the palm of the hand , but crumbles easily when lightly tapped with a finger . Rich people of colour range between gray browned to almost dim . Glossary : EvergreenEvergreenrefers to plants that hold onto their leaves or needles for more than one growing season , shedding them over time . Some plants such as live oak are evergreen , but commonly cast the majority of their older folio around the end of January . gloss : PerennialPerennial : traditionally a non - woody industrial plant that lives for two or more grow time of year . gloss : Seed StartSeed Start : easily propagate from seed . Glossary : ShrubShrub : is a deciduous or evergreen woody perennial that has multiple branches that imprint near its understructure . Glossary : pHpH , means the potential difference of Hydrogen , is the measure of alkalinity or acidity . In horticulture , pH refers to the pH of soil . The shell measures from 0 , most vitriolic , to 14 , most alkaline . Seven is achromatic . Most plants prefer a chain between 5.5 and about 6.7 , an acid cooking stove , but there are plenty of other flora that like stain more alkaline , or above 7 . A pH of 7 is where the flora can most easily absorb the most nutrients in the soil . Some plant choose more or less of sure nutrients , and therefore do better at a certain pH.Glossary : Heat ZoneThe 12 zones of the AHS Heat Zone map indicate the median number of days each yr that a given realm experiences " " rut days " " or temperatures over 86 degrees F(30 degrees Celsius ) . That is the point at which plant life begin ache physiological damage from hotness . The zona range from Zone 1 ( less than one heat solar day ) to Zone 12 ( more than 210 heat days ) . The AHS Heat Zone , which deal with heat tolerance , should not be confused with the USDA Hardiness Zone system which deals with cold tolerance . For lesson : Seattle , Washington has a USDA Hardiness Zone of 8 , the same as Charleston , South Carolina ; however Seattle ’s Heat Zone is 2 where Charleston ’s Heat Zone is 11 . What this says is that winter temperature in the two metropolis may be similar , but because Charleston has significantly warmer weather for a longer full point of time , flora option establish on heat margin is a element to consider . gloss : Plant CharacteristicsPlant characteristics define the plant , enable a search that notice specific types of plants such as bulb , trees , shrubs , skunk , perennials , etc . gloss : little ShrubA small shrub is less than 3 feet tall . gloss : Flower CharacteristicsFlower characteristics can vary greatly and may assist you decide on a " " look or feel " " for your garden . If you ’re attend for fragrance or big , showy flowers , click these box and possibility that fit your ethnical conditions will be show . If you have no taste , depart box unchecked to return a greater numeral of possibilities . gloss : Soil TypesA soil character is fix by granule size , drainage , and amount of organic stuff in the soil . The three main dirt type are backbone , loam and mud . moxie has the orotund atom size of it , no organic matter , little to no fertility , and drains rapidly . Clay , at the opposite end of the spectrum , has the smallest particle size , can be robust in constituent matter , fertility and moisture , but is often impracticable because molecule are held together too tightly , result in poor drainage when pixilated , or is brick - like when ironic . The optimal soil type is loam , which is the happy median between grit and Henry Clay : It is high in constituent thing , nutrient - rich , and has the perfect water retention mental ability .
You will often hear loam bring up to as a sandy loam ( having more guts , yet still hatful of organic matter ) or a clay loam ( heavier on the remains , yet feasible with good drain . ) The addition of organic topic to either sand or clay will result in a loamy soil . Still not certain if your grunge is a sand , the Great Compromiser , or loam ? try out this simple test . Squeeze a handfull of slightly moist , not blind drunk , soil in your hand . If it organize a pie-eyed lump and does not light apart when gently tapped with a finger , your grease is more than likely clay . If soil does not mould a ball or crumbles before it is tapped , it is sand to very sandy loam . If ground forms a orchis , then crumble readily when lightly rap , it ’s a loam . Several prompt , light hydrant could mean a clay loam . Glossary : FertilizeFertilize just before new emergence begins with a gross fertiliser . gloss : PruningNow is the preferred time to prune this flora .
