Heritage Perennials are grown by Valleybrook Gardens, an innovative and leading producer of over 1500 varieties of perennials, hardy ferns and ornamental grasses. Our distinctive blue pots of HERITAGE PERENNIALS are available from independent retailers and dealers in many parts of Canada and the USA. We're passionate about perennials! We hope this newsletter helps you to enjoy your perennial gardening even more.

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Our best-selling book, the Perennial Gardening Guide is a handy reference used by gardeners across North America written by our own Horticulturist, John Valleau.

What to do at this point in the season? If you live in a region where winter will hang on for many more weeks, consider trying to scrounge evergreen boughs (discarded Christmas trees, for example) to cover plants you feel might be particularly sensitive. This includes any perennials that are "pushing" the limits for your zone, especially those with evergreen leaves. Cold winter winds have a tremendous drying or desiccating effect on evergreen perennials, causing potential problems when the ground is frozen and the roots are unable to take up moisture. Snow is the best possible insulation of all, so it might be worth moving or piling a drift right on top of any evergreen perennials or other plants of concern. Even a pile of leaves will help, in a pinch.

If none of these protective techniques are possible for you, don't spend too many sleepless nights fretting about it. The worst damage has probably been done already. Just think of those unexpected vacancies in your garden as an opportunity to try something new! As gardeners, we often like to push the limits and grow things that are really beyond our climate zone. I figure this winter has been that one in ten reminder -- sort of a wake up call to the true long-term weather patterns wherever you happen to live. It's a reality check for those of us that practice Zonal denial.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that your garden suffers minimal losses this year, if you promise to do the same for me!

"I think one of the best perennials is, without a doubt, the Autumn Joy Stonecrop (Sedum 'Herbstfreude'). It does well in spite of all adverse weather conditions, be it rain, drought, heat or cold. This plant looks good for much of the year as well, right from the time it starts to grow in spring, until well into winter." Dianna -- St. Thomas, Ontario

"I have to tell you that the best perennial in my garden was Veronica spicata Red Fox (Spike Speedwell). In my gardening journal for this year I decided to keep track of the bloom period of all my perennials and to my surprise this variety started blooming at the end of June and didn't stop until the first week of October. I have it growing in a partially shaded area and the hit of lovely rose certainly brightened up the garden. I found I wasn't the only one that found it irresistible -- so did the bees!" Sonia -- Red Deer, Alberta

"The best perennial in my garden this summer was my David Phlox (Phlox paniculata 'David'). This Phlox bloomed all summer until late fall when finally a very hard frost finished it off for the season. It was so fragrant and rust resistant. It's planted just below the window of our sun room and every evening we could sit and smell the beautiful fragrance. It is such a low maintenance plant -- it didn't need vast amounts of water and required no spraying for insects. I look forward to its return next spring and hopefully new plants that I can share from it, as well." Jean -- Courtland, Ontario

"My nomination is for the new red Coreopsis (Coreopsis 'Limerock Ruby') -- see photo, above. Not only did it give a nice splash of colour to the garden, it was a rapid-growing, long-blooming plant that withstood the drought conditions well and thrived despite neglect during the hottest part of summer." Patricia -- Windsor, Ontario

"My favorite perennial (or one of them, how could anyone have just one) is Liatris (Blazing Star or Gayfeather), preferably the purple one. I love it because it blooms late and long in my garden when almost everything else is done. Liatris looks great all winter with the spikes standing tall, it is great for drying and adds an unusual, almost exotic flair to any flower arrangements. I love the color and it looks spectacular with annual Lavatera. It withstands almost anything; our hail storms in Alberta are no match for this tough plant, too bad I couldn't say the same for my Hosta! My only wish is that it would bloom earlier so I could enjoy it longer." Gayle -- Okotoks, Alberta

In Part One I discussed various reasons why perennial foliage might suddenly change colour, but flower colour also can sometimes do strange things. My mother has always sworn that certain plants (Gladiolus in particular) are capable of actually changing their flower colour over time. I was skeptical of this being possible until somebody passed along an article to me a number of years ago that verified not only does this phenomenon truly occur, but with a fair degree of frequency. Bearded Iris, Gladiolus and Tulips are particularly prone to changing flower colour. Stress seems to play a big part in the process, somehow causing the production of certain pigments in the flower tissue to be suppressed for a time. With a lack of the "good" pigments, the background colour of the bloom is all we can see (and it was there all along, but overlaid with another shade) so the blooms appear to have "reverted" to, say, a ruddy grey-blue Iris instead of the glowing peach flower we were e xpecting. Once the stress factors that have caused this to happen go away, the plants can actually produce their normal flowers once again. An overgrown and starving clump of Bearded Iris which has mutated might well smarten up in a year or two after being divided and moved to a site with richer soil.

Self-sown seedlings will sometimes appear in the garden, and in the case of a named selection -- say of pink Yarrow (Achillea 'Heidi') -- the seedlings are likely to produce flowers in shades other than the clear pink we see in the mother plant. These might vary from white to soft pink, cream, red or even purple. If you allow the seedheads to develop on the mother plant, there is a good chance self sown offspring will appear right within the parent clump. After a few years it would then appear to have reverted. In fact the original plant is probably just fine, although now terribly mixed up with its own progeny. At our nursery we've also seen this occur with some frequency in Dianthus (Pinks) selections, so now our stock plants are deadheaded as soon as the flowers fade, to eliminate the chances of self-sown seedings polluting our named selections.

Perhaps you've purchased a Delphinium in the past of a certain colour and found when the plant came to bloom that it had some stems of white and others of blue appearing to grow from the same clump. This occurs once in awhile, and the reason can usually be traced back to when the seeds were sown. Growers make use of seeding machines and every once in awhile seeds get stuck in the tiny holes on the steel seeding plates. If several Delphinium varieties are sown one after the other, it would be relatively easy for the odd seed to get stuck in the machine and end up growing in the same pot as another selection in a different shade. So when this happens, usually there are in fact two plants growing together that appear at first glance to generate from the same roots. One way to tell for certain is to divide the clump and see if it can be split into individual plants.

Heat can also be a factor in causing perennial flowers to change. During periods of extreme heat, certain flower pigments seem to break down quickly. A blossom might open in a soft lavender shade, but within a day or two it fades to more of a ghostly white. Once the weather cools down the colour is retained much better -- that is, if the plant is still blooming. Some of the dark-red Daylily selections have a tendency to lose colour or fade out during extreme heat. Growing them with some afternoon shade is often helpful.

Genetic mutations may also occur from time to time. The new Coreopsis rosea 'Sweet Dreams' (see picture, above) suddenly appeared one summer in part of a clump of Coreopsis rosea 'American Dream'. This plant is likely a "sport" -- a genetic mutation of the parent that spontaneously appeared in the garden of Mark Leonard, in Sacramento, California. Thanks to his keen eye, this terrific new selection is now available from coast to coast.

QUESTION: When we first moved into our house, there were a couple of patches of Shasta Daisies. One year I had chosen to eliminate all but two clumps of the daisies that had spread over the years. One morning I got a knock on the door from an Agriculture guy, who said I was in violation of keeping weeds in my bed, and he proceeded to tell me that what I thought was a Shasta Daisy was not, and that though it may have been so when it was planted, it had reverted back to its original form and was now a nuisance weed. I had to either remove it willingly or they would return and I'd be charged for what time it took them to do it. My question is, do Shasta Daisies and other perennials that we so freely plant and enjoy revert back to their mother form? Elaine, Alberta

ANSWER: Your local Agricultural agent is probably right in one sense and wrong in another. Many people enjoy nice white daisies in their gardens and refer to these as Shasta Daisies (Leucanthemum superbum when in fact they are growing the much weedier Ox-eye Daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare). This Ontario Weed Site has photos and a detailed description of the Ox-eye Daisy.

While the flowers are quite similar, the lower leaves of Shasta Daisies have a thick, leathery texture and smooth or very finely toothed edges, while the bottom leaves of Ox-eye Daisy are lobed or deeply toothed and thinner in texture. Shasta Daisies form distinct clumps that get a little larger in diameter each year. Plants only rarely self sow. Ox-eye Daisy quickly spreads to form a patch and also self seeds generously all over the garden. Another clue: Ox-eye Daisies flower early, usually in late May or June. Most Shasta Daisy selections bloom towards late June or into July.

Ox-eye Daisy is now on the nuisance or even noxious weed list in most Canadian provinces and several American states. If allowed to escape into pastures the plants can literally take over and displace up to 50% of the edible grasses.

• February 19 - 23, 2003. Seattle, WA. Vancouver and Seattle area gardeners won't want to miss the Northwest Flower & Garden Show. Loaded with grand garden displays and an awesome marketplace. Great educational program and floral design competitions too! Washington State Convention Center. Check the website for ticket information.

• March 2 - 9, 2003. Philadelphia, PA. Widely known as the granddaddy of all indoor garden shows, legions of people flock to see the Philadelphia Flower Show at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Display gardens are second to none, the marketplace is spectacular and the educational presentations world class!

• March 6 - 9, 2003. Stratford, ON. Stratford Garden Festival at the Stratford Coliseum. Highlights include an educational program, marketplace, display gardens, and special breakfast with garden radio personality Ed Lawrence.

• March 12 - 16, 2003 -- Toronto, ON. Canada Blooms at the South Hall, Metro Toronto Convention Centre. This is Canada's largest garden show, with lavish feature gardens, a huge marketplace and extensive educational lectures and demonstrations. Be sure to allow extra time to view the International floral competitions.

• March 19 - 23, 2003. San Francisco, CA. San Francisco Flower & Garden Show at the Cow Palace. This sister show to the Northwest Flower & Garden Show features over six acres of exhibits and display gardens. Strong educational program and a wonderful Orchid Pavilion.

The Popes are two Canadians, transplanted to England where they have quite astonished the British gardening world with their refreshing and vibrant use of colour. Their gardens at Hadspen House are featured throughout this book, with photos by world-class garden photographer, Clive Nichols.

Chapters are laid out by colour, including blue, green, yellow, orange, red, plum, pink, peach and white. Each section explores how that particular colour is perceived by the eye, how it functions in both large and small garden settings, and how shades or tones of each colour can provide different effects. The Popes have carefully designed each border in their garden to flow from one colour to another gradually, yet this supposedly monochromatic treatment is anything but boring in their capable hands.

For the serious perennial gardener or designer this book is as important to own as Christopher Lloyd's "Color for Adventurous Gardeners", featured in our November 2002 newsletter. Both of these books break all the rules, or rather, create a whole set of new ones to help bring our gardens into a vibrant new century.