Local Greenhouses Have Responsibility to Make Gardeners Look Good
Healthy, reliable plant varieties are the key to success in Edmonton gardens
Edmonton, May 12, 2010: As new and experienced gardeners head to Edmonton and area greenhouses this May long weekend, the key to a successful garden is less about the latest trends and more about choosing varieties Edmontonians can depend on.
"A good greenhouse has a responsibility to make gardeners look good," says Dieter Kuhlmann, of Kuhlmann's Market Gardens and Greenhouses. "We sell plants that are healthy, with strong root systems and are hardened off so they are ready for life outside the greenhouse. But just as important, we sell plants that are reliable and grow well in our Edmonton climate."
Each year, experienced and new gardeners, young families and new home owners ready to landscape flock to local greenhouses to seek advice on gardening. "It is always important that gardeners introduce a few new plants every year," says Kuhlmann. "This is how you gain experience as a gardener, learning what grows well in our climate and what doesn't. When new and experienced gardeners alike include some of the trustworthy favourites, their gardens are easier to maintain and can remain full of blooms throughout the season."
Here are Kuhlmann's choices for the most reliable plants for Edmonton and area:
For hanging baskets and patio containers in the sun:
Wave petunias: These tried and true Edmonton favourites perform best in large barrels or a hanging basket with a minimum 12" diameter. Wave petunias bloom right until frost and can also be used in flowerbeds or as ground cover.
Giant Snowflake Bacopa: With tiny green leaves and thumbnail size white flowers, Bacopa is an excellent, long blooming, trailing flower great in patio planters and hanging baskets. Bacopa prefers sun but does well in shade.
Superbena Verbena: Verbena blooms in a variety of interesting colors throughout the hot summer months. Verbena does require that the flowers are deadheaded once they are finished blooming.
Ivy leaf geraniums: Ivy geraniums can be used alone as a main plant in hanging baskets or in combination with other trailing flowers. These plants can withstand hot, drier conditions.
Shady Areas:
Tuberous Begonias: Everyone's favourite for the shade, these nonstop, free flowering plants come in a wide variety of colors. Begonias can be used in beds and containers and grow about 15 inches tall with 3- to 4-inch blooms.
Impatiens: Impatiens love the shade and are great for flowerbeds or as fillers in containers. These plants are filled with flowers all summer long and are available in a wide variety of colors.
Lobelia - trailing or upright: Lobelia comes in trailing for containers and upright for flowerbeds. The uprights grow in a mound and are very good for borders in the shade. The trailing variety is a hit in hanging baskets.
Hot Dry Areas:
Portulaca and Alyssum: These plants are lower growing, spreading or mounding and work well as a filler in rock gardens or in hot dry areas. They come in a full range of colors and perform well during our warm summer days.
Full Sun Areas:
Marigolds - Short French or Tall African: Marigolds are an Edmonton gardener favourite. Some like to use them amongst their tomatoes or vegetable gardens because their scent helps to keep insects away.
Petunias: Always a hit for a sunny area as they bloom all summer long. These plants attract butterflies and humming birds with their trumpet shaped flowers. In masses they really put on a show!
Geraniums: These old-school favourites are tall and very showy with their large double blooms. Always feature in front planters when you really want to notice your plants from afar.
Vegetables:
Tumbler Tomatoes: Tumbler tomatoes produce a cherry-sized fruit on a bushy plant. Plants are best grown in tubs or baskets in the warmest and most sheltered area of a yard or deck. Tomatoes need lots of water to produce lots of fruit.
Pot luck cucumbers: This variety of cucumber grows well in containers or in the garden. They need warm summer nights to produce lots of 6- to 8-inch slicing cucumbers. Gardeners always come back for these favourites.
Kuhlmann's Market Gardens and Greenhouses has been growing beautiful and reliable annuals, perennials, trees, shrubs and vegetables for 48 years. The greenhouse is located at 1320 - 167 Avenue in Northeast Edmonton. Kuhlmann's is open Monday to Friday: 9am to 9pm; Saturday, Sunday and holiday 9am to 6pm. Kuhlmann's can also be found every Saturday at the City Market Downtown on 104th starting May 15th.
For more information contact:
Anita McDonald
Kuhlmann's Market Gardens and Greenhouses Ltd.