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A few flower suggestions
Sometimes when I am loading my car trunk with yet another batch of these plants, I am a little embarrassed at my lack of imagination. I can't resist these old stalwarts though. They are dependable and readily available and I can't imagine a summer day in my garden without any of them. One does yearn, though, for something different every season or so. Here are some of my less daring departures from the ordinary that can be planted from seed: If your giant cannas or swamp sunflowers have had to hold the line at the back of the border for years, give them a taller companion to lean against. Castor bean (probably the beanstalk that Jack climbed) fits the bill perfectly. It grows to a lush seven or eight feet with huge leaves that change from maroon to green as the season progresses. It blooms, but you won't really care since the flowers aren't all that showy. The seed pods are a dark red clump way up in the clouds…and poisonous. The seeds are big and look alarmingly like an engorged tick. This plant likes full sun and moist, fertile soil.
Purple hyacinth bean is a climber that will bring down any wimpy little wooden fan of a trellis that you plant it around. Purple hyacinth bean is sometimes called "Thomas Jefferson Vine" since he is reputed to have planted it extensively at Monticello. You will love the lavender blossoms which are borne in massive clumps all along the vine. The fruits are a luminous purple and if you can bear to spoil the effect, the beans can be picked and eaten. Chances are, Jefferson did not eat his and neither will we. Any of these plants can be sown directly in the soil. Late May or June after the soil warms is about the earliest you can plant outside, but they can be started now in pots inside. I never bother to plant early since they are all vigorous growers once they come up in the garden and don't really need the head start. All of these plants are annuals, so if you find they don't fit into your garden scheme, you don't have to ever have them around again. I'll just bet you will want them all back next year.
Dora Garrick Fleming lives in Grove Hill. E-mail her at: dorafleming@galaxycable.net .
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