Meet The Incredible Changing Plants

Plants are naturally dynamic, but some undergo dramatic natural changes in flower color and leaf color through the season. Learn what they are and why they're so amazing. Featured shrub: Simply Scentsational calycanthus.

Episode Transcript

(00:02):
Hello, my friends. You're tunedin to the Gardening Simplified radio podcast and
YouTube show coming to you from StudioA at Proven Winners, Color Choice Shrubs.
It's Stacy Hervella me, Rick weisstand our engineer and producer Adrianna Robinson.
Well, let's talk about plant change. Some plants changed dramatically over the

(00:25):
course of the season. I supposewe could say most plants change from year
to year, but some more dramaticallythan others. Or maybe it's like a
retro pair of designer genes. Theyjust get more interesting when they're stonewashed,
ripped, distressed. We'll find outtoday on the Gardening Simplified Show. When

(00:48):
referring to a change in direction,position, or course of action, many
times people will say we're going tochange tack. Not thac t tactics,
but tac tack. It's a nauticalterm when we come about and we change
course direction. And Stacy, I'vegot to mention right off the top that

(01:11):
when we talk about plants that changecourse direction over the course of a year,
in my mind, hydranges have gotto be the queen. Well,
they definitely are the poster child forchanging color. And I think that that
makes a lot of people think thatother plants have that same ability. But
the fact is that unique ability forsome hei ranges to change their flower color

(01:34):
based on the soil chemistry is prettymuch unique to hyde ranges, to big
leaf heyranges on the top of thelist, but there are many other plants
that go through changes too. Ofcourse, I love the music of Billy
Joel. Don't go changing to tryto please me or something like that.
You never let me down before,But some plants do that. And by

(01:55):
the way, as long as we'rein the music realm Karma Chameleon, remember
that song Oh heck yeah I doYeah Culture Club boy George and boy George
said basically, if you aren't true, if you don't act like you feel,
then you get karma justice. That'snature's way of paying you back.
But some plants just naturally like tochange. And one that I think does

(02:21):
a beautiful job of it is plantsthat have bracked like flowers, like dog
woods. They kind of like hydranges, effortlessly go through the gears over the
course of the change the season andbecome very very interesting. Yeah. Same
with another plant we talk about onthe show, A lot, which is

(02:42):
temple of bloom. Hepticodium. Yes, another plant with bracts that change color
through the season. Good Point Virginiais a perennial that I love that changes
through the season. Autumn fern isanother one. Now, this is a
great plant. It moves from goldorange to green to red orange, multi
hued in fall and then rod Jerseya'sI don't know if you grow those in

(03:06):
your landscape, Stacey. They needwet soil and shade, but the foliage
on those plants are quite interesting andthey can kind of go through a metamorphosis
over the course of the season.Beautiful plant. My garden is way too
sunny, way too dry to evergrow it. But I did see some
fabulous for Jersey a many years agoin Ireland, and we were in this

(03:27):
garden, my husband and I.It's pouring rain. We both have our
hoods up on our raincoat because youknow it's Ireland. And I said,
oh my gosh, look at thatraw Jerseya. And he turned to me
and he goes New Jersey because itGod hear so well because of things.
Oh you can't say with Jersey aboutme thinking New Jersey. I love that
piis Japanica, or some people wouldrefer to it as lily of the valley

(03:50):
shrub, just brilliant red in springand then transitions of course with the flowers
too. That's a plant that changesthroughout the year and goes through changes.
Some of my favorite plants, Stacey, that go through changes during the season,
I believe dramatically. We mentioned thehydranges, and I have to say

(04:10):
oak leaf hydrang is one of myfavorites, very very dynamic plants goes through
a lot of different changes. Andthere's a lot of things mine are about
to bloom and they're looking fabulous,at least the blooms that the deer couldn't
reach. But you're not bitter aboutit. It's pretty good. It's you
know, I'm happy about it.At least I got to that point.
I'll take what I can get.Others for big change it ta father Gia,

(04:34):
viburnums, blueberries, june berry,ornamental kale, sedum flowers. How
they go from a lime green toa green and then red or pink and
then rust and then of course aprogramming note here, I'm not recommending that
you plant this plant, but we'veall heard of the chameleon plant or bowl

(05:00):
plant. Now again, I'm notadvising you to put it in your landscape
because it will become a permanent plantin your landscape. I'm not quite sure
how you pronounce that. I thinkit's Houtiniainia. Yeah, yeah, Hutinya,
hutinya, something like that, namedafter a Dutch naturalist, Martin hutain

(05:20):
I believe it is. Don't plantit, but it's a great plant that
goes through these chameleon changes. That'sa weird smell. You like the smell
of it. No, I don'tparticularly care for it. No me either,
alter Nanthera. That genus has alot of great plants, including a
proven winter's burgundy thread leaf Joseph's Coat. Some people look at that at that

(05:44):
genus, or at least some ofthe plants in that genus with the common
name Joseph's Coat. That tells yousomething about its change. And then a
perennial pullmon area. I love pulmonarea and how the flowers will change color
over the course of the season,and as I understand it, at least
I've read some studies that say thatwith pulmonaria, when it's nectar rich when

(06:10):
the flowers are nectar rich. That'swhen they're that pinkish red hue, and
then they move to a blue huewhen they're going out of business. Yeah,
you know, I've been thinking eversince you said the billy Joel,
don't go changing to try to pleaseme quote. I was thinking you could
have said, don't go changing totry to please bees, because that is
a reason that a lot of flowerschange color. It indicates to pollinators,

(06:32):
no more pollen here. The deedhas been done. I've been pollinated.
It don't bother. But these flowersover here, you know, we could
still use your help with. Sowhen plants make changes in the landscape,
they're trying to tell us something.Maybe they're not talking to the bees,
but they're trying to teach us moreabout them. Stacy. Of course,
you know borage moving from pink toblue four o'clocks, that's a plant that

(06:58):
can change on a daily basis.I remember years ago getting into the gardening
industry the Miracle of Peru. Alot of people used to plant that as
a flowering annual and great for attractingsphinx moths to the landscape. And then
let me mention super Bell's Magic PinkLemonade calibri CoA that is such a neat,

(07:21):
proven Winner's plant, and it shiftsits colorization throughout the season. It
varies based on day length and thelight levels that it's getting, So the
blooms kind of move from lemon yellowand transition to a vibrant pink. That
Superbell's Magic Pink Lemonade calibri CoA alwayssomething interesting happening in the landscape, Stacey,

(07:46):
and the plants that change really adda lot of character to our landscape.
It's true. You know. Oneof my absolute favorites that I just
I fall in love with it anewevery year is Decadence pink lemonade Baptisia.
Yes, and I have a lotof the Decadence Baptisias that are from Riven
Winners. I adore them, butthis particular one does something that the rest
of them don't. It starts offa really pretty pale yellow and then as

(08:09):
the blooms age, they turn pink. So you have this kind of bicolor
look to it. And it justso happens that the yellow and pink go
perfectly with the two yellow and pink. All yellow, all pink, decadence,
baptisia as a combination. It isjust beautiful. One of my absolute
favorites. I love that beautiful.Well, before we go to Plants on

(08:31):
Trial, let me leave you witha limb, a rick home home on
the range, where something's amiss andstrange. My flowers change color. They
were bright, now are duller theirappearance? They rearrange? Is this okay?
Have they gone astray? A leopardmay not change its spots, but
the flowers sure are in my pots. It's a botanical may lay. Let's

(08:54):
see how Stacey ties this all together. Coming up next in Plants on Trial.
Here on the Gardening Simplified Show,proven Winner's Color Choice Shrubs cares about
your success in the garden. That'swhy we trial and test all of our
shrubs for eight to ten years,making sure they outperform everything else on the

(09:16):
market. Look for them and thedistinctive white container at your local garden center.
Greeting's gardening friends, and welcome backto the Gardening Simplified Show, where
the theme of the episode is allabout plants that change. And of course
we all know that plants change.I mean, you know, they start
out small, they become something muchlarger by the end of the season.

(09:37):
But we're not just talking about plantsthat just kind of undergo like an expected
change. We're talking about plants thathave an unexpected change, right, you
know, something that you don't expectto happen. And a lot of times
when we talk about flower color changing, it is due to the flowers aging,
which causes a change to the pHlevel in the flower and that actually
changes the flower color. So it'sdifferent than what you have what will happen

(10:00):
been with big leaf hydranges, wherethe flower color is going to be determined
by the soil chemistry at the timethat they set and open their flower buds.
That's a totally different situation. Sothere's all of these different possible explanations,
and it's a feature that plant breedersoften capitalize on, as you've just
heard us discuss, because it isvery cool to watch that change and to

(10:20):
have that extra element of surprise inthe plant, and we have that in
a number of our plants. Imean, of course, we have a
ton of big leaf hydranges which canchange our color based on flower pH.
We have a ton of panicle hydranges, which the flowers will turn some level
of pink or red as they ageagain through that natural pH change within the
flower. We have plants that changefoliage color, not just in fall.

(10:43):
A great example is a newer plantcalled Midnight sun Waijila, which if you
look at it in our trial gardenright now, it's kind of starting to
turn purple and you're like, Okay, that's cool. But within the next
couple of weeks it's going to turnall sorts of colors. This is an
amazing plant to what we transform.Never a dull moment, but you know,
all of these things I feel likeare expected. And when I was

(11:05):
thinking about what plant to put ontrial for this episode, I thought long
and hard about it at first,and then I said, no, I
just had an amazing experience with thisplant over the last weekend. That will
make it the perfect plant on trialbecause it's not that the flowers change,
it's not that the foliage changes,it's that it's scent changes when it is

(11:28):
in bloom, and that plants,yes, indeed, I'm not going to
keep you in suspense any longer.That is simply sensational. Cali canthus,
also known as sweet shrub, itis sometimes known as Carolina allspice. It
is also sometimes known, quite charminglyas sweet Betsy. It's a native plant,

(11:48):
so like so many native plants,depending on you know, where you
are, they have all these differentregional common names that just have developed over
the year. But whatever you wantto call this, I cannot even I'm
going to try to explain the fragrance, but I really it's it's very difficult
to explain. So as you mighthave guessed by those common names like sweet

(12:11):
trub, it is very very fragrant. And when we wanted to name this
plant originally simply sensational, I wasa bit of a curmudgeon about it.
I was like, you know,everyone says Kelly Canthus sweet trub can be
very very different, and it's fragrance. It smells different. Some people don't
smell it at all. We haveAphrodite, which is a beautiful hybrid Kelly
Canthus not all of our not justour native one, but it's a hybrid

(12:35):
of the American and Asian ones thatdoesn't have really amazing fragrance. I mean,
it has some fragrance. So Isaid, you know, I don't
know if we should stick our neckout on saying, this thing is simply
sensational because it is a scent sceeand t sensational caught there, yes,
And so I was dubious. Andthen my boss dropped a flower on my
desk and that thing did not stopbeing fragrant for like days, even as

(13:00):
it was drying out on my desk. So I fell in love. And
I had to have this plant inmy garden planted at about three years ago,
and it was you know, itflowered and it did okay, but
I was just like, I don'tknow what's going on. I'm not really
getting a lot of fragrance. Wellover the last weekend, my husband and
I were walking around the garden andit was a beautiful sunny day and it

(13:22):
just the fragrance just hit us likea wall. It was so strongly fragrant.
And Adam said, what is that? And I said, oh my
gosh, this thing is finally givingoff fragrance after three years. I think
that it just needed to have theresources to be well enough established. And
as we're looking at the plant andlooking at the flowers, I'm not even
joking you, each flower on thisplant smelled different. We were going around

(13:46):
to each individual flowers. Some smelledlike pineapple, some smell like strawberries,
some smell like citrus. Some peoplewill say bubble gum strawberry. It's like
the Willy Wonka ever flavor changing gumand what. So everything smells really really
different. It's all very sweet.It's all really but like not like a

(14:07):
sickly sweet fragrance, just like abeautiful planty fragrance. So we cut some
stems and we continue to, youknow, sit outside and enjoy the beautiful
day. And every time we wentback to sniff these stems, it gave
off a different scent. Huh,who knows it? It was so wild
it was, you know, Ilove fragrant plants, but honestly, most

(14:28):
favorite plants, Like if I say, what's a lilac smell like? You
can kind of conjure a scent memoryof what a lilac smells like, because
what a lilac smells like is whatthe lilac smells like from the beginning to
of it's bloom until the end.And yes, it might be lighter or
stronger depending on the weather and theage of the flower itself. But I
cannot think of any plant that Ihave personally encountered at least as a common

(14:52):
garden plant here in North America whereits scent changes so much, not just
from day to day, not justthrough the pure of its bloom, but
from minute to minute within a singleflower. Yeah, heliotrope does that to
me, but not to that extent. That's it this year. And that's
also a really, really wonderful fragrance. So the flowers are not what you

(15:16):
would expect. They are burgundy,like a dark kind of brownish burgundy,
beautiful color. I actually have itcombined in my garden with my favorite nine
bark ginger wine nine bark and togetherthat is an absolutely glorious combination, nice
glossy textural foliage. But it's notthe kind of plant where you would look

(15:37):
at it and go, oh,that looks like it's a fragrant plant.
It's kind of like a sleeper hitlike that. But it really is is
just incredible, And I mean Iwas still kind of like beside myself and
how unbelievable this was. Now thefragrance is going to be strongest in the
sun. I tried to bring someinto the studio today so you could smell
it. But our plants here atthe office are in shape. They're in

(15:58):
full shade, so they didn't haveany fragrance kicking around yet. It does,
again tolerate some shade, so ifyou want to grow it in part
shade, but for the best fragrance, if you want that moment where you're
just walking into a wall of fragrance, you're definitely gonna want to make sure
it's getting some full bright sun forat least for ideally six or more hours
every day, which is where mine, of course is planted. Now,

(16:22):
this is a plant that is nativethroughout the United States pretty much the East
Coast, so as far east asNew York and Massachusetts down to say roughly
the Florida Panhandle and over through likeTennessee, so basically the East Coast and
southeast of North America. Understory shrubgrowing you know, sort of at the
edge of woods and that kind ofthing, and that's sort of where it

(16:48):
gets that range of light tolerance,you know, because it's used to sort
of those peaks through in the woods. So at the start of the show,
I talked about changing tech the nauticalterm and primarily done because the wind
has changed direction. What do youthink is the motivation of this plant to

(17:11):
change fragrance. Well, I don'ttry to be more attractive to different types
of pollinator. I don't know,And actually, you know, I meant
to look up specifically what pollinates thisin the wild. I could not tell
you if what's happening is a naturalcharacteristic of the plant or if it's actually

(17:32):
related to our perception. Yeah,it might not be the plant itself,
but it might be the way thatour brains perceive it. And it just
depends on the volatile oils, youknow, within the planet itself. I
mean, it's kind of like ifsomeone wears a perfume, it might smell
wonderful on some one person but smellterrible on another, or through the day
it changes. You know. There'sa lot of like complexity, chemical and

(17:53):
olfactory complexity when it comes to fragrance. So I don't have an answer for
that, but I can tell youit's enjoy It's like when I run a
marathon, I smelled different at theend than I did at the beginning or
the middle too, especially depending onthe weather. If it's full sun and
a hot day, you're definitely goingto be a lot more fragrant. Then
if it was a cloudy and coolday, move along. So that nice

(18:19):
wide native range for this plant meansthat it is cold tolerant down to USDA
Zone four and heat tolerant all theway up to USDA Zone nine. So
a huge number of our listeners andwatchers out there can enjoy this amazing plant.
It's going to be about six feettall by four and a half feet
wide, which is a nice sizefor most landscapes. So that's another thing

(18:40):
that we look for when we areselecting for native shrubs. Can we get
it to a size where it's actuallyuseful in a suburban you know, or
a regular urban lot compared to youknow, a really large wild specimen and
deer resistant, extremely dear resistant,very very dear resistant. Everyone should have
one d now. I will saywhen I was researching it a bit more

(19:02):
to bring it to you on theshow today, one of the North Carolina
State University Extension website said for bestresults baby this plant for the first year
after planting. I can tell youI definitely did not do that. Now
the plant survived, it is establishednow and it's looking amazing. But that
might have a reason as to whyit took three years for me to get

(19:23):
the full fragrance off this planet.It was absolutely worth the weight. So
if you want to try a simplysensational Kelly Canthas in your own yard,
definitely take that advice. Be alittle kinder to it as it's getting established
than I was to mine. Itstill lived, it still looks great,
but really it's worth the weight ifyou do have to wait for that fragrance.
But if you can, you bea little bit more careful than I

(19:45):
was. I would definitely recommend it. I think we should we should change
this segment from plants on Trial tostory time with Stacy. I like that.
I like your stories well, andagain I'm so excited about this plant
because just when you have that experience, it really is amazing. At least
go to your garden center check itout and decide if it's going to earn
a spot in your garden. Youcan see photos on our YouTube channel or
at Gardeningsimplified on air dot com.When we come back, we're opening up

(20:08):
the mailbag, so please stay tunedat proven winner's color choice. We've got
a shrub for every taste and everyspace. Whether you're looking for an easycare
rose and unforgettable hydrangea or something newand unique. You can be confident that
the shrubs and the white containers havebeen trialed and tested for your success.

(20:32):
Look for them at your local gardencenter. Greeting's gardening friends, and welcome
back to the Gardening Simplified Show,where it's time for us to answer your
gardening questions and we are deep ingardening question season. All sorts of crazy
stuff is happening out there, goodstuff, bad stuff, stuff that you
might not know whether it's good orbad or what you should do about it.

(20:52):
Well, we are here to helpyou. So you can reach us
at help HLP at Gardeningsimplified on airdot com, or just go to Gardening
simplif fight on are dot com.We have a contact form there where you
can just send us a message andask us your question. And you know,
I did want to bring up thatwe've been doing a new video on
YouTube called the Plant Panel, andin it we make recommendations for plants for

(21:15):
specific areas for someone specific yard orgarden. If you have something that you
would like to submit for Plant Panel, just check out Proven Winners Color Choice
dot com. We have a specialcontact form just for that, and please
do include a picture and maybe we'llfeature you on a future plants panel.
It's been a huge, huge hitso far and we have a lot of
fun doing it. Outstanding. Ilove it. Maintain your composture. We're

(21:38):
here for you. Question from Terrytoday and a picture, what's wrong with
my tree? Is it salvageable?Well, Terry, we took a look
at the picture and Stacy, thisis something that I see often in neighborhood
developments where the soil is heavy clay. Terry has a maple tree there and

(22:00):
what I see not only southwest diseaseon the trunk, which is not that
big a deal and happened years ago, expansion and contraction of the bark.
But if you look into the topof the tree, it's thinning. The
leaves have dropped here in the monthof June in the upper portion of the
tree. As a matter of fact, the tree is dying at the top,

(22:21):
usually in indication of girdling roots.The tree is choking itself. And
it reminds us that when we planttrees, are put plants in heavy clay
soil, that preparation is so incrediblyimportant. I still contend we work organic
matter into the soil fifty to fiftywith the parent soil as opposed to digging

(22:42):
a hole, throwing some soil init and putting the plant in the ground.
Those roots will start to circle andsomeday down the road you're going to
pay the price. And I thinkthat's what we're finding with Terry's tree here.
You know, there was for avery long time a sort of school
thought where the tree root ball wassacrificing. You can't touch it, you

(23:02):
can't do anything to it. Andreally research over the past couple of years
has shown that people will wash theroots, they will actually wash all the
soil off of the roots and replantit, and that that has been a
good way to find defects in thetree rooting, which you know, it's
not a deliberate thing that happens atnurseries, but it is something that can
happen because that's outside of the naturalcondition. So the tree roots can start

(23:26):
growing around and around itself, andso it's not if you notice a problem
with the roots when you are plantinga tree, fix it. Then don't
you are going to be able tofix it down the line. You know,
when the plant's already starting to struggle. And I thought it was interesting
you talked about the heavy blue clay, because a lot of times when you

(23:47):
have that really really heavy wet clayin addition to you know, just causing
drainage problems, that is what typicallywill encourage disease issues. And I did
wonder if perhaps there was some issuesof verticillia in this maple, because that
sort of you know, whole branchdie back, large branches at the top
is pretty common for verticillium, andvertacilium is a soil fungus that's pretty ubiquitous,

(24:10):
but it's only when it really getsgoing because conditions are just right for
it, that it can start causingreal problems like this. So, you
know, Terry asks, is hertree salvagable. I don't actually think that.
It probably is probably not now ata cost, possibly it would be
salvageable. I know arborists who actuallyuse equipment that is used in finding landmines,

(24:34):
and it's highly compressed air, andthey'll blow all the soil out,
like you mentioned, when the whenthe plant was young, getting a look
at the roots, and that canbe done. But of course that's a
lot of work, and there's alot of expense involved and probably not worth
it. In addition to that,many people are taking the approach as opposed
to digging a round hole when initiallyplanting, digging a square hole, a

(24:59):
large square hole, and then againworking organic matter fifty to fifty into that
clay soil, so when the rootsextend out, they're familiar with the soil
and will penetrate into that soil.So an interesting question and picture. Thanks
Terry, we appreciate it. Shannonasks, thank you guys for a great
show. I look forward to hearingevery episode. I have a rose bush

(25:22):
that has come out beautifully this spring. However, it has one really long
cane that is shooting up like awild hair. Oh I have that too.
Should I prune it now? Notme personally, I have a rose
like that. Should I prune itnow and just shorten it? Or should
I go to the base and cutit off there? Or do I just
let it go until spring? It'sa three year old own root rose.

(25:44):
There are buds on the rest ofthe plant. Thanks for your advice.
Yes, so this is a scenariothat is called dog legging. Well,
at least that's what Judson our newplant development manager calls it. That's what
they call it in the South,and it's an appropriate, oh appropriate name.
And you see it on roses.You will also see it on abelia.
There's some other plants too, andit's just like all you know,

(26:06):
you're growing along, everything looks good, and then all of a sudden,
the shoot just decided to be likean overachiever and pop right out. But
it's not a cause for concern.It really is just a matter of Typically,
what I think happens is that thebud was created a little bit later
in the season, and the plantis just mature enough that it has the
energy, and it just puts aton of energy into that bud, and

(26:27):
so you do get that wild growth. There was absolutely no harm in just
cutting that thing back to within theplant body or cutting it out entirely.
You know, if it's something likean abelia, which kind of naturally grows
as a little mound, just cutit back into the body of the plant,
that's fine. But for a rose, where you're really typically working more

(26:47):
for an overall shape, I wouldprobably take it out to the ground.
But it really is up to eachof you. It's not going to cause
the plant any harm to cut itoff, and it's just again, it's
just something that happens. I don'thave a really really good explanation for it.
It's just the way plants grow.Yeah, I agree, Stacy.
Sometimes we'll see this also on weepingcherries, right at the graft and you'll

(27:10):
see it shoot up. I callthem water sprouts, but he calls them
dog legs. Well, so it'snot like a water sprut because it's not
coming really necessarily from the trunk.It's just like coming from within the body
of the plant. And it's justlike a wild shoot. Like the plants
like all they're a nice little tidytufet and then this one plant, this
one stam or whatever, just decidesto go rogue. Well, and I

(27:30):
appreciate the fact that Shannon told usthat it's an own root rope. Yes
with an older grafted rose potentially couldbe from the wild rootstock down below,
right, And that's what you're seeinglike on the cherry. So anytime you
have a grafted plant, the rootsare going to be much stronger than the
top plant. So the growth,any growth that comes from that bottom stock

(27:52):
or rootstock is naturally going to bemore vigorous than whatever's coming from the top
or desirable part. So that wasa very very useful thing to include,
Channon. So go ahead, cutit off or not, whatever you prefer.
You're not going to hurt the rose. Just make it look so that
you can stand it, and you'renot going darn shoots driving me crazy every
time I look out at it.Thank you very mulch Shannon. We appreciate

(28:12):
it. Great question, Cheryl writes, I'm wondering what to do with a
lilac bush that is channeling its innergiraffe. I know the arbor vite that
it's planted near, shading it toomuch and most likely causing the stretch for
the sun. My question is how, when if to prune it does have
some new shoots coming out of theground, which I'm hoping you can see

(28:33):
in the picture. Should I cutthe big part down and let the energy
go to the shoots. Yeah,we see this often in landscapes, Stacey,
with lilacs or other sun loving plantswhere eventually shade takes over. Yes,
it does, and what you're seeingin Cheryl's photo. If you're watching

(28:53):
this on YouTuber, checking us outat gardening simplified to on air dot com
is a very common thing for lilacs. It is actually the way that a
lilac shrub would naturally expand in nature, having those new shoots, And it's
just the way that the plant isregenerating itself, the way that it is
basically keeping younger, new and moreproductive wood, because older wood typically becomes

(29:15):
less productive in terms of flower overtime. So there's nothing wrong with what's
happening. Lilacs do this. It'snot like it is, I guess essentially
suckering. But I think a lotof people when they think of suckers,
are thinking about like a crab apple, you know, growing all around the
base, or something that grows ata distance from the parent plant. And

(29:36):
that's not exactly what's happening here.It's just the lilac putting out new growth
so it can keep you know,being alive and full and fluoriferous plant.
So you know, when I lookat Cheryl's photo, you can see that
the older stems are leaning forward.I would definitely not personally cut out the
old stems. I like the lookof them. I think I love like
a mature lilac. It just giveseverything a sense of place. Now,

(29:59):
if you want to take those oldstems out, you can, and that
new growth it's coming out will takeover for the whole plant in time,
and you know, twenty some yearsdown the line, it will be that
old growth. But this is reallya matter of your personal preference. If
you want to take the growth out, it really doesn't matter what time of
year it is. It doesn't matterif the plant booms on old or new
wood. If you want that growthout, just take it out, get

(30:21):
your loppers, take it right outat the ground. I would not recommend
cutting them back to encourage like alot of branching and kind of like a
witch's broom type of look. Ifyou want to take them out, I
would take them out all the wayat the base. If you don't want
to take them out, I wouldlet them grow and let them fill in.
Yeah. I call that the littleoff the top method, and I
don't like that method either. Sobe decisive. Prune lilacs, rejuvenate based

(30:44):
on pruning, and if you wantit to throw some blooms next year,
well the optimum time would be toprune right after lilacs are done blooming.
But as Stacy said, if thisjob needs to get done, just get
it done whatever it is. Andyou know the other thing is there is
no urgency. So if you wantto live with it for a little while
and think about it, there isno harm in that. You can always

(31:06):
prune it up later. We're goingto take a little break. When we
come back, we have a specialguest, so please stay tuned. The
Gardening Simplified Show is brought to youby Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs. Our
award winning flowering shrubs in evergreens havebeen trialed and tested for your success so

(31:27):
you enjoy more beauty and less work. Look for Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs
in the distinctive white container at yourlocal garden center. Welcome back to the
Gardening Simplified Show. It's time forbranching news and this week we interview Stephanie
Walker. Stephanie Walker has a beautifulbook out called how to Grow Flowers in

(31:49):
Small Spaces. I know that's somethingthat a lot of folks struggle with and
we're hoping to get some pointers herefrom Stephanie. Again, Stephanie Walker.
If you look for her book,it's called How to Grow Flowers in Small
Spaces. Stephanie, thanks for joiningus on the Gardening Simplified Show. Oh,
thank you so much for having me. I'm happy to be here,

(32:12):
Stephanie. In writing this book,what were your experiences and your inspirations that
were influential in getting you to writethe book How to Grow Flowers in Small
Spaces. Well, it's really interestinghow it came about. I received an
email from someone with as Simon andSchuster email address one day, and they

(32:37):
asked me if i'd be interested inwriting a book. I thought it was
spam. I thought this is notreal. Nobody does that. So I
kind of ignored it. And thenI got a couple more emails and they
realized and I realized they were serious. So I kind of gave it my
attention for a little bit and thoughtabout, you know, what if I
were to write this book, whatwould it be and what would I do?

(32:58):
And so I have always loved gardening, except when I was little because
gardening meant weeding on the weekends,and I hated that. But as I
grew older and just knew that Ilove to have living things around me,
and especially flowers, then I becameexcited about gardening and I had an aunt,
my aunt Camilla, who is anamazing gardener, and she always had

(33:22):
beautiful gardens and I always just kindof aspired to have gardens like she did.
So she really throughout my life asit inspired me in flowers especially,
but in gardening in all aspects.I love that. That's great. There's
always a story behind the story.And to help lay the groundwork here,
Stephanie, we have viewers and listenersall over the place, and so we

(33:45):
want to figure out where are yourgardening. Where are you practicing some small
space gardening? Okay, So Iam in Queen Creek, Arizona, which
is a suburb of Phoenix. It'son the east side of the valley in
Phoenix, and so I am gardeningin one hundred and fifteen degrees temperatures this

(34:06):
summer up to one and twenty.Yeah, and I am able to have
amazing success with flowers and other plantsand even my vegetable garden in full sun,
planting strategically for some things, especiallytomatoes, to make sure that they're
shaded. But if it's going torequire a lot of babysitting, I'm not

(34:27):
going to do it. I'm likepassivelyst resistance gardener. I want to make
sure that I have the most beautifuloutput with the least exertion throughout the summer.
So I'm really strategic in what Iplant. Well, that is great,
So what is the best strategy.What's the best way to set up
for success in a small space.I would guess that soil preparation is just

(34:53):
as important in a small space asit is in a large one. Oh,
absolutely, absolutely the most important.My favorite thing. When I'm teaching
workshops and classes and when I'm doingconsultations with clients, I stress to them,
don't treat your soil like dirt likein other words, make sure that

(35:14):
you are paying as much attention toyour soil as you are to your plants.
Because really, if we feed oursoil, our soil is what feeds
our plants, and we can havethe most healthy plants from the best soil
that we can possibly have. SoI feel like the best way to set
ourselves up for success is to believethat we can. First of all,
I think going into it and knowingthat it's possible, especially in different climates

(35:38):
where there's harsher weather or you know, even whatever. We all have different
environments where we are so just believingthat you can and then following your local
planting calendar that comes from your extensionoffice or you know your zone, checking
with the USDA and seeing what yourgrowing zone is. Those things will really

(36:00):
set you up for success. Andmaking sure, especially in my climate,
that I have an automated watering systembecause I don't want to be out there
hand watering when it's super hot,so I'm making sure that I have something
set up where my irrigation comes onautomatically makes a big difference. Well,
you know, I think what yousaid about believing that you can is so

(36:20):
important, especially for small spaces,because a lot of people, if they're
downsizing or whatever, they're like,oh, I love gardening, but it's
just not worth it with this smallspace. And I think your book really
shows that it's absolutely worth it andthat you can have something really colorful,
really beautiful that really actually expresses yourpersonal style, regardless of how small the
spaces. And in some ways havinga small space can be a real gift.

(36:45):
It really, yeah it can becauseit's less overwhelming, but totally believing
you can and small spaces, it'sso worth it because anything living, any
plant, if we're just in proximityto it, in its presence for twenty
minutes, show that it elevates ourmoods. It can increase serotonin. So
having living things around us, beingable to garden regardless of the space is

(37:07):
so beneficial for us as humans.Yeah, no question about it. So
what are some plants that in yourexperience? And by the way, folks
were chatting with author Stephanie Walker,and her new book came out in April
this year, How to Grow Flowersin Small Spaces An Illustrated Guide to planting,

(37:29):
planting, and caring for your smallspace flower garden. Let's talk about
flowers a moment, Stephanie, whatare some of your favorites for a small
space. Oh, my gosh,my favorite flower is any flower that's blooming,
like whatever is in season that isshowing off. That's my favorite flower
and it brings me joy every timeI see a new plant start to bloom.

(37:52):
But some of my favorite flowers forsmall spaces are anything that has an
upright roast pattern. So think ofVinia's sunflowers cosmos right now for the summer.
In the spring, it's your boldplants, irises, lilies, vernunculous

(38:14):
anemones, hyacinth, daffodils and tulips, those kinds of things. If it's
not going to spread and it doesn'trequire a whole lot of space, it's
going to be optimal for a smallspace. But if you do have something
that's a vining plant, it's alwaysawesome to put something on a trellis.
It just adds interest to bring heightto your garden, to kind of make

(38:36):
something look a little more majestic thanwhat it might in a small space.
So vining plants are always a goodoption. Climbing roses like an ivy or
something, but something that can dryyour eye heavenward, it's always a good
strategy. So in a nutshell,Stephanie, you have found and I would

(38:58):
agree with you, that success inhardening in small spaces is taking advantage of
and using airspace, going up,going vertical, right, Yes, absolutely,
always. Yeah, Now, itseems like a lot of your advice
in the book is about growing flowersfrom seed. Is that do you think
is especially challenging for you in Arizona? Is that is that a money saving

(39:22):
technique? Why is that sort ofone of your approaches on that? Definitely
a money saving technique. I feellike you can optimize your growing power by
buying a seed packet for three dollarsand fifty cents where you can get fifty
plants, versus you know, goingto your garden center or wherever it is

(39:43):
the nursery and buying a six packof plants for four dollars where you just
have six plants. And I havea small flower farm, so I'm also
growing on a larger scale, sousing seeds is money saving for me.
But also here in Arizona, ourclimate is amazing where we're gardening three hundred
and sixty five days of the year, and so germination is not typically a

(40:05):
problem here. So I do tendto grow a lot by seed, but
I also see the value in transplantswhere you have a shorter growing season.
Sometimes maybe that transplant really jump startsyour the length of time to bloom on
a plant or whatever. So transplantsdefinitely are our wonderful option, and I

(40:28):
do grow from transplants a lot,but just money wise, seeds are super
savers in that respect. Sure,absolutely so. I've been watching the national
news, the weather and the temperaturesin Las Vegas and Arizona. My word,
so if gardening's three hundred and sixtyfive days out of the year.

(40:50):
For you guys, maybe you mightwant to take June in July off.
We definitely do, and that's youknow, definitely my vegetable garden slows down
in June and July. I neverstop planting flowers just because they bring me
so much joy. So I'm alwaysalways got flowers going. But like I
said, I am path of leastresistant, so I'm making sure that I'm

(41:13):
growing varieties that don't need a lotof dead heading, don't need a lot
of tending too, so that Ican just enjoy their beauty. I can
kind of and bring them inside myhome and make sure that, you know,
I'm just surrounded by them. Butyeah, definitely definitely slow down in
June in July. So what's reallygoing crazy? What's really going bananas right
now? Despite the extreme climate thatyou're the extreme challenges you guys are dealing

(41:36):
with right now, Like what makesyou go, yeah, I'm glad I
planted that. Oh definitely the zinnias. Zinnias are always that just fun,
beautiful pop of color. I lovesunflowers. Filosia is another one that is
just it brings just a different textureand a different element to my garden.
But one of my favorite summer flowersis lizing at this which is super drought

(42:00):
tolerant, heat resistant. It's sogood so and it has a huge phenomenal
based life. So lizianthis is oneof my very favorites for the summer.
I will never not grow Lisianthus.But yeah, there's there's cosmos, marigolds
we've got going right now. Ofcourse our summer, our spring flowers are

(42:21):
done that we've so you know,we've got the seasons. But making sure
that I plant those flowers that canhandle the heat, that's key, and
I think that's key for any gardener. Making sure that you're not frustrating yourself
by planting the wrong thing at thewrong time. Making sure that you've got
a knowledge of what is what shouldbe growing in your area at this moment
is key. And Stephanie, youmake a great point. If you're gardening

(42:44):
in small spaces, it doesn't meanyou cannot grow cut flowers to bring indoors
and enjoy. And I really appreciateyour perspective on that. Her name is
Stephanie Walker. Her beautiful new bookis called How to Grow flowers in small
spaces. Stephanie, before we letyou go today, wanted to ask you.

(43:05):
We ask most folks this question thatwe interview, give us your favorite
flower, your favorite plant. Weasked that because it's a very unfair question.
So let me ask you that question. If you had to pick one,
what is it? Right now?It is Lizianis for me for the
summer flower. I love lizianas it'sbeautiful. It has kind of like a

(43:27):
shape that's reminiscent of a rose.But it's just it brings so much beauty,
so right now it's that it couldbe something different depending on what's blooming
now. I do have to askyou with eliziandas are you growing that in
your home flower garden or is thatprimarily for your cut flower farm? Because
I have I mean, of courseI know the plant. It is beautiful.
People love it when they see itin an arrangement, but I haven't

(43:50):
really seen it grown as a gardenplant so much. I do both.
I have it in my landscape andI have it in my flower field,
and in the landscape it's beautiful.It's something that in my book I kind
of discussed. There's a table thatkind of shows you positions of plants and
where to put them in your gardenif they're background, metal or foreground.

(44:10):
So with both lisianthas, they're kindof more towards the background because they can
get pretty tall and sometimes they mightneed help standing up. You might need
to stake them or provide some support. But they are a beautiful landscape flower
bed plant, and so yeah,I kind of have those towards the back
of my beds and then kind ofstair stepping down in height depending on what

(44:32):
the flower is. But they area beautiful background flower in a garden well,
and then not one I would thinkof as being particularly heat tolerant.
You know, to look at them, it's really interesting to find out that
they are thriving in your extreme meat. Yeah. Oh, they are so
good. And like I said,for a cut flower, their base life

(44:52):
is like ten to fourteen days.They're phenomenal. That's like the biggest bang
for your buck flower almost they lastforever. Wow, that's interesting. Page
ninety eight and ninety nine, Lizzianthusin Stephanie Walker's beautiful new book How to
Grow Flowers in Small Spaces. Iffolks want to learn more or find the

(45:14):
book. What's your recommendation, Stephanie, So I would say Simon and Schuster
on their website. It's available.It's available through Barnes and Noble. If
your Barnes and Noble is not carryingit, you can request it and they
can order it in for you.Of course, it's on Amazon. It's
pretty much almost everywhere books are soldyou can get it. So, yeah,

(45:37):
it's a great book. I loveit, fantastic. It is a
beautiful book, Stephanie Walker. Howto grow flowers in small spaces. Stephanie,
stay cool there in Arizona and takecare of yourself. And thanks so
much for joining us on the GardeningSimplified Show. Oh you are so welcome.
Thank you for having me, andthank you for looking at my book

(46:00):
and helping to get the word out. It's awesome. Have a great summer.
Thank you you too. Well,I'm not sure that we're going to
be able to complain about the heathere in Michigan every again after talking after
talking, so I am certainly inspired, and I hope all of you are
as well. So thank you toStephanie, thank you Rick, thanks Adriana,
and of course, as always,thanks to all of you for listening.

(46:21):
We really appreciate it. Have agreat week ahead.