its foliage is ferny. It has great fall color, with reds, or- 

 anges, and yellows all on one plant. Its a good plant for 

 retail sales or landscape use because its hardy, reliable, 

 and almost maintenance-free. 



Allium senescens glaucum is an unusual allium which has 

 been introduced into New Hampshire by van Berkum 

 Nursery in Deerfield. Its grown and sold as a perennial 

 rather than as a bulb , although it does have a dense 

 mat of bulbous roots. It is excellent in a rock garden or 

 cracks and crevices because it does well in full sun and 

 well-drained soil. It's called Circle Chives' or 'Twisted 

 Onion' because its 4-to-6-inch blue-green leaves twist 

 and it grows in a circular form. I have it in a small area 

 between a rock outcropping and my walk and it works 

 well there because it's a slow grower. It's also valuable 

 for its late-blooming lilac-pink flowers in August and 

 September. Not spectacular, they re delicate and long- 

 lasting. 



The Astilbe simpkifolias are also notable. Astilbe simpicifolia 

 'Sprite was the Perennial Plant Association's 1994 Plant 

 of the Year — and for good reasons; a 12-15-inch compact 

 growth habit, bronze foliage, and pale pink flower 

 spikes. "William Buchanan' was one of my first simpicifolias 

 and — with glossy foliage and 8-inch growth habit — one of 

 my favorites. It's good for a small garden or close-up 

 viewing and its white flowers help brighten up a shady 

 spot. 



There are many compact geraniums worth growing — 

 two of these are P. cinereum 'Ballerina' and P. dalmaticum. 

 Aquilegia flabellata 'Mini Star' is an excellent six-to-eight- 

 inch violet columbine; Arabis sturri i Dwarf watercress), 

 with its tight green foliage and white flowers in May. is a 

 rock garden staple ..the list goes on and on... 



Leo Blanchette has one of the best selections of 

 these plants nearby and it's very worthwhile to go down 

 and see his gardens. And van Berkum Nursery has many 

 compact plant varieties and some great display gardens. 



Trying some of these compact plants is worthwhile — 

 both as items in a retail garden center and in landscape 

 use. Retail customers think they are "cute" and they 

 make good finish plants for landscape jobs. Happy plant 

 hunting. 



Dana Sansom is an associate professor of horticulture at the Ifi- 

 ompson School of Applied Science at UNH. Durham. She can be 

 reached at 603-862-1036 Anyone who is interested in rock gar- 

 dens or rock garden plants should consider joining :he American 

 Rock Garden Society. PO Box 67. Mil/woo*/. NT 10546. 



THERE S BEEN MUCH SAID RECENTLY ABOUT the 

 merits of compost in a soil mix. The primary pur- 

 poses of a mix for container-grown plants are air 

 and support. Virtually any media — bark. sand, old 

 tires — will support a plant; air becomes the limit- 

 ing factor. 



The most desirable amount of air space for root 

 development is 13-18 percent. Anything less than 

 this severely restricts growth. Not only does root 

 development suffer; so does the actual plant. 



Compost — like soil — has a very high water-hold- 

 ing capacity. It can fill the air pockets the same 

 way field soil does in a container. 



A rooted cutting or seedling will actually de- 

 velop more slowly — and may never compare — to 

 one planted in a conventional soilless mix. Also, if 

 the plant remains in the container for more than a 

 few months, the mix in which it s growing may be- 

 gin to collapse or degrade. This is why sphagnum 

 peat. bark. sand, vermiculite. and perlite are pri- 

 mary amendments; they are very stable. 



There can be other problems. When porosity 

 decreases water-holding capacity increases, mak- 

 ing a perfect environment for disease. Some com- 

 posts, because they are not sterile, contain patho- 

 gens or weed seed. Some composts — especially 

 those containing grass clippings — have a pH too 

 high for most needs. The most serious problem 

 can be the high levels of micronutrients. Some- 

 times these are toxic; sometimes, they create an 

 imbalance that affects other nutrients needed for 

 plant growth. 



The problem is that compost can be unreliable. 



The fewer variables one has in production, the 

 easier it is to produce a consistent product. What- 

 ever benefits compost has can be overshadowed 

 by the risks. If yon decide to pursue plans to use 

 compost as a major component in your mix. Id 

 recommend trying it out over a period of time and 

 in a variety of situations in order to get a realistic 

 evalaation. 



]im Zablocki. Territory Manager. The Scotls ComptHif. 

 Northeast, can be reached at 603-224-5583 



Laughton's nxt^sery stock • annt.us 



Garden Caiter Inc perenxl^i^ 



Kjuriu:n \^t:nit:t inc. fertilizers • lxsecticides 



Col Laughton, florist 



Distributors ofyurszery Overwintering Blankets 



WHOLESALE AND RETAIL NURSERY 



Tel I -800-633-01 59 



155-165 Princeton Blvd. 



No. Chdmsford, .\LA 01863 



Oaober £- November 1995 



