It might be a little hard to imagine right that spring is on its way. Weather and soil temperatures will be warming soon and the green thumbs will be itching for color in their yards.
The Southwind Extension District and Emprise Bank hosted the first of a three-part home landscape series for area residents Thursday night.
Dr. Alan Stevens, state floriculture specialist at K-State, gave the presentation, “New and Exciting Flowers for your Home Landscape.”
Kansas weather is a challenge for plants and flowers.
“We are too far south for the cold plants and we are too far north for the warm plants. Kansas makes growing difficult,” Stevens said. “The weather is constantly changing and it creates unique stress here that we don’t see anywhere else.”
Stevens and his team at K-State strive daily to determine what grows well in Kansas and what doesn’t. And, with 24 K-State test sites across Kansas “that’s how I can tell you it will grow,” Stevens said.
Toward the end of the year they revise a list of flowers that will grow and release it online at www.prairiestarflowers.com.
Most people like to decorate their yards with beautiful plants with a lot of color. Studies have shown that when homes and communities are well decorated quality of life is better. Towns and individual residents do it during the Christmas season, which only lasts one month, so why not do it in yards during the six-month growing season?
“Flowers are the throw pillows that provide contrast in nature’s neutral color — green,” Stevens said.
Most people will drive or walk by a home with only grass, trees and green shrubs and never notice the work put into it. Stevens said it is as simple as having one or two pots of colorful flowers near the door or within the yard to add that extra color to a green yard.
The list of flowers provided online or at the local Southwind Extension office all grow in Kansas, but more importantly they pass the “lazy gardener list,” Stevens said.
“If it’s a lot of work we don’t want it,” he said.
DURING THE presentation Stevens pointed out the “best of the best.”
Some of the flowers that made the list were, begonia BIG series (all colors), canna chocolate sunrise or the Rosita, geranium Rocky Mountain series (all colors,) echinecea pow pop wild berry, helenium dakota (gold), pentas northern lights lavender, salvia farinecea, petunia happy dreams and basil boxwood, which is one of the more popular plants for foliage display.
Stevens said the celosia WATCH (hot pink) is the best celosia K-State researchers have found. Any lantana will grow in this area but the better one is the landmark series.
“With lantanas we have better and slightly better,” Stevens said.
Stevens said the petunia bubble gum (pink) is the best petunia he has ever seen and can withstand a lot of heat.
For people with deer problems, Stevens recommends the portulaca pazzazz. Deer won’t touch those flowers because they don’t like the taste.
When it comes to fertilizing annuals Stevens said it is all about nitrogen.
“Phosphorus has nothing to do with flowering,” Stevens said.
He said in a perfect world gardeners would fertilize with a little bit of nitrogen every week, but he said since that’s not usually possible time-release fertilizers will work well.
“Use light and frequent applications, avoid excess,” Stevens said.
For more information or a full list of flowers visit the website at www.prairiestarflowers.com or contact the Southwind Extension office at 365-2242.
Gardening around Kansas weather
