Valleybrook Gardens in Abbotsford, British Columbia will be holding their annual Public Open House and Perennial Sale on Friday, September 7th, 2007 from 9am to 2pm. For details about this event (and a link to a MapQuest map) just click here or head to our homepage www.perennials.com.
This one-day event is a must for gardeners across the BC Lower Mainland. Plants will be available at retail prices, others at bargain prices as well as informative gardening talks, tours of our wholesale growing facility and refreshments for purchase.

Back in July I received an e-mail from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture mentioning a new Echinacea pest to be on the lookout for. This University of Illinois Extension fact sheet Diseases of Echinacea is one of the better pages I found listing the Eriophyid mite. The damage in their photos doesn't look quite the same, but I suspect it could be the this critter causing these bizarre flowers with all-cone and no petals. If you find such a novelty in your garden, watch it for a couple of years and see what happens. If it has no petals one year then is normal the next, chances are good this was caused by an insect or disease. The market for such a novelty is fairly limited anyhow, even if it proves to be a stable mutation. In other words, don't quit the day job imagining millions pouring in from your discovery. Now... THAT being said, we always welcome pictures of unusual perennials that appear in your garden. There is every good chance the next "big" plant will be some oddity that appears in a home garden. It has happened many times before!

During August we inevitably get many questions about transplanting or dividing perennials. We always advise to at least wait until the hot summer days are more or less behind you, which in many regions means early to mid September. Once the days are cooler and hopefully some soil moisture has returned, the chances of success are much better. There is a basic rule-of-thumb so far as which perennials to move or divide, and when:

• Perennials that bloom from early spring to early summer (i.e. early June in most northern areas) are best moved or divided in early to mid autumn. Allow at least 6 weeks for them to settle in before the ground freezes hard in your region. If you're not sure what date that is, your local Heritage Perennials® will certainly know and be glad to tell you. Once you know the approximate hard freeze date, work backwards six weeks to find a good timeframe for your climate.
• Perennials that flower from midsummer onwards are generally best moved or divided only in the spring. This is a rule you can get away with breaking, but if you divide late bloomers in the autumn just be prepared to do some serious cutting back for anything over about two feet in height. This might mean sacrificing blooms on Rudbeckia or Summer Phlox for instance, but it will help to balance the now-smaller root system with the top growth to prevent or reduce wilting. Cut taller plants back by at least half if you move or divide them in the autumn.

Bearded Iris are best divided in July or early August, but you can usually get away with doing this task in early September. There is excellent Iris growing information at the American Iris Society website.

Peonies are an early summer bloomer that should only be moved or divided during the autumn, since the plants will sulk and pout if disturbed at any other time. Truthfully, they really resent being divided at any time, and if you get too greedy and make really small divisions it could be several years before they recover and get large enough to flower once again. Try to keep peony divisions large, with a generous amount of woody root and at least 3 to 5 "eyes" or growing points where the stems emerge. Pictured above is a gorgeous Peony selection, 'Pink Hawaiian Coral'.

True Lilies (including Asiatic, Oriental, Trumpet and other hybrids) move beautifully during mid autumn. Just carefully dig up the clumps, separate the bulbs and replant them. Planting groups of Lilies is always more effective than dotting them singly around the garden. A large clump will give you more bulbs than you could ever want, but friends are always grateful to receive a gift of Lily bulbs.

Hostas and Daylilies are easily moved or divided either in the fall or in the spring. If the foliage is particularly lush in the autumn, just cut it back by 1/3 to 1/2.

There are certain perennials we advise against moving or dividing during the autumn except maybe in really mild winter regions (Zone 8 and higher). Avoid disturbing Japanese Anemone, any fall-flowering ornamental grasses taller than three feet, Butterfly Bush (Buddleia), Blue Spirea (Caryopteris) and English Lavender (Lavandula). In cold winter regions you will have better success doing this in the spring.

You can ask a perennial gardening question of your own by clicking the "Ask an Expert" link on the top of this newsletter. Due to time constraints, please — no questions on flowering shrubs, trees, evergreens, lawns, hydrangeas, roses, etc.

QUESTION: "What are the steps to getting a Hibiscus to grow from seeds?" Rhoda — Lebanon, Tennesee

ANSWER: I'm assuming you mean one of the perennial Hibiscus (the ones flowering now in gardens with the enormous pink, red or white flowers) rather than the indoor type or the shrubby Rose-of-Sharon.

If so, what you want to do is wait until late winter to start the seeds early indoors. This website gives excellent germination advice on a wide range of perennials. Head to the letter H and look for Hibiscus moscheutos.

You will be amazed how those little seeds germinate and grow into flowering-sized plants in the same growing season, with an early start indoors. Back on our website our How To article #11 "Saving and Starting Perennial Seeds" will also come in handy.

QUESTION: "I planted three Hollyhocks [Alcea] in the spring. The foliage is a nice green, with very big leaves. The height so far is about 4 feet but no sign of flowers yet. Could the planting in spring mean I won't get flowers until next year?" Julie — Sarnia, Ontario

ANSWER: What your Hollyhocks are doing is perfectly normal. These are biennial or short-lived perennials, and during the first season in your garden they make a large mound of leaves, called a rosette. Typically these are big leaves growing fairly low to the ground (around 18 to 24 inches) though yours sound particularly robust. In the second year they are triggered by the winter to begin blooming, and they then produce upright stems that bear flowers. So... no doubt that is exactly what they will do for you in the summer of 2008. Depending on the weather this autumn you might see a few flowers being produced but even if this happens chances are good the plants will be back next spring and flowering at the proper time of year, beginning in early to mid summer.

• choose a garden mum with burgundy blooms to provide a colour echo to the red stems of the Sedum. A bronze, gold or orange mum would provide a good contrast to the salmon tones of the Sedum flower heads. Lavender could also work, but bright yellow is one to avoid in this instance.
• the greyish Sedum leaves look smashing with other silver, grey or blue-leaved companions. A frosty-blue kale, for instance. Or consider Blue Oat Grass, Festuca 'Elijah Blue' or Stachys 'Big Ears'.
• Any bronze, silver, burgundy or black-leaved Heuchera selection would look smashing.

Our best-selling book, the Perennial Gardening Guide (4th edition, March 2003) is a handy reference used by gardeners across North America — written by John Valleau, horticulturist for Heritage Perennials®. Available at your local Heritage Perennials® Dealer.