Pollinators love verbena! Hummingbirds, butterflies, and moths are all frequent visitors. Bees of all types love verbena, too. Known for withstanding the pressure of hot, dry conditions, Verbena is a member of the Verbenaceae family, which is comprised of 800 species in 32 genera, many of them native to the Americas and Asia. This family is characterized by clumps or spikes of flowers on heat-loving herbs, shrubs, trees, or vines. There are many varied types and habits, including upright and tall, as well as mounded and trailing. Some verbena make great ground covers as well.

Hybrid varieties generally have larger flowers, brighter and more saturated colors, and larger, more weather-tolerant leaves than their species relatives.  bred to be more heat, water-stress, and disease tolerant (especially powdery mildew).

Leaves and foliage are often dense and, in many species, “hairy.” Its flowers are small with five petals, arranged in dense clusters. Typical colors include shades of blue and purple, but they can also be found in white and pink shades. Others are bred to withstand heat and humidity with flowers and bulky growth non-stop through the growing season.

While verbena seed is available, many of the newer varieties that have the desirable traits are vegetatively propagated and can be found as young plants at your local garden retailer in the spring.

Verbena looks their best when their soil is kept moist, but not wet as they do not like soggy feet. If the growing medium dries down too much, it can cause flushing, commonly known as cycling-out-of-color where the plant loses blooms but remains green and leafy.

Verbena plants should be placed in sunny locations, aiming for 6+ hours of direct light. Most species perform well in the ground, landscape, hanging baskets and patio containers. For the compact-growing verbena, those work best in pots and do not have the root vigor for garden bed applications. For prolonged flowering, deadhead verbena by removing spent flower heads.

Powdery Mildew (PM) is an unfortunate occurrence on some verbena. The best practice is to look for newer varieties that have a built-in resistance. If PM does appear (it will present as white patches of fluffy fungus on leaves or stem) treat with a neem spray or your favorite fungicide.  Catching PM early is the best solution, as this disease can spread quickly, and its fungus blocks sunlight to the plant’s nutrition system, making the plant unable to produce food, which will ultimately cause the plant to perish.

Gardening with verbenas can elevate your landscape design and add texture and color to your patio containers. You’ll appreciate their colorful branches and how well they play with other flowers in your garden.
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Credit to https://ngb.org/year-of-the-verbena/
​Contributed by:  Vicki Gee-Treft, Master Gardener Volunteer

​If having a pollinator garden is something you’ve often thought about, maybe this is the year to give it a try! Not only do these gardens attract pollinators, such as butterflies and bees, they include flowers that provide nectar throughout the seasons. And, as the season ends, the reward is your own “living birdseed” feeders. So, how do you get started?
 
Although a pollinator garden can be any size – even as small as a balcony or a tiny yard, key to success is reviewing the preferences of pollinators. As a general rule, pollinators prefer gardens that:

1. Include native plants; 
2. Bloom from early spring into late fall providing nectar all garden season long; 
3. Have plants that vary in flower shapes and sizes; and 
4. Include different colors--bees tend to be attracted to purples, yellows and white; hummingbirds and butterflies to red flowers.

 
When designing the garden, analyze the property for things such as water drainage, soil types, sun light exposure and wind patterns. Pollinator gardens can create their own microclimate—areas with good southeastern exposure and spaces that are protected from prevailing winds. If your garden is going to be a border or up against a structure, arrange the tallest plants in the back, mid-size in the middle and short plants in the front of the bed.  If you are planting an island style, set your taller plants in the middle, medium heights around the center and shorter plants at the edges.
 
If not planting an informal, open field garden, consider plant placement.  It is often best to use groupings of at least three of the same plant together. Odd numbers (1, 3, 5, etc.) tend to look better than even numbers.  In addition, bee pollinators prefer to collect nectar/pollen from a single species of flower during each outing, so planting in masses ensures pollinators can practice “flower constancy.”  Consider designing and planting your garden so that over time it will consist of a grouping of 3 to 7 plants of the same species.  
 
Now that the garden space has been designed, loosen the soil and amend with organic matter.  Do not let your plants dry out! Water regularly until your bed becomes established. Other considerations for your Pollinator Garden include enhancing nesting opportunities for the pollinators and their families: preserve areas of bare or sparsely vegetated, well-drained soil; preserve dead or dying trees and shrubs; minimize mulch; consider nesting boxes; and maintain a nearby water source, such as a water garden or birdbath.
 
Curious about which plants have proven to be a good fit in northwest Wisconsin? Download this fact sheet for more information about Lupinus perennis—Wild Lupin,  Asclepias tuberosa —Butterfly Weed, Asclepias incarnata —Swamp Milkweed, Liatris spicata—Blazing Star Liatris, Rudbeckia hirta—Black-eyed Susan and Aster novae-angliae —New England Asters and more!  

Author:  Kimberly Kayler

​by Melinda Myers
 
For many of us, winter is the start of the gardening season. We are busy browsing catalogs, reading garden articles, and looking for sources of new plants. As the planning process continues, the plant wish list keeps expanding. Once your list is complete and before placing any order online, be sure to check your list for any invasive plants that are prohibited or restricted in Wisconsin.
 
According to the Invasive Species Rule NR40, prohibited plants are those that are not currently found or occur in isolated areas in the state. If introduced into the state, these plants are likely to cause significant economic or environmental harm or harm to human health.  Restricted plants according to NR40 are already established in the state causing harm or have the potential to cause significant harm.
 

The ability to spread and vigorous growth habit of the yellow flag Iris (Iris pseudacorus) make this invasive plant a threat to our waterways.  Photo credit:  photo courtesy of Zach Stewart

The pre-order form is available on our website at www.northcountrymgv.org/plant-sale and at the Spooner Memorial Library, Shell Lake Public Library, and other local organizations.

Tomatoes, Peppers, and our popular 6 Packs of Pollinators and Herbs 

• Specific Tomato varieties are Beef Steak, Cherokee Purple, Early Girl, German Johnson, Sungold, and Sweet Valentine Container. (ALL VARIETIES ARE SOLD OUT)
•   Specific Pepper varieties are Early Jalapeno (Heirloom), Giant Marconi (2001 AAS Winner), King of the North (SOLD OUT), New Ace, Ruby King (Heirloom), and Wisconsin Lakes.
• The Pollinator Collection has Native Perennial Plants; Wild Lupine, Butterfly Weed, Black-eyed Susan, New England Asters, Swamp Milkweed, and Blazing Star Liatris.  (SOLD OUT)
• The Herb Collection has Six Herbs for the Senses: Thyme, Rosemary, Giant from Italy Parsley, Genovese Basic, Garlic Chives, and Bouquet Dill.  (SOLD OUT)

The proceeds go toward supporting the Teaching and Display Garden that is open to the public on Orchard Lane, just east of the Ag Research Station; for garden-related grants; for promoting horticulture outreach and education in Sawyer, Washburn, and Burnett counties; and other horticultural projects. According to Kevin Schoessow, Area UW-Extension Agriculture Development Educator, “Master Gardener volunteers come together from many backgrounds. They find common ground in their appreciation for growing plants, whether edible or ornamental. They are trained horticulture volunteers who help people in the community better understand horticulture and the environment, and they donate thousands of hours’ worth of their time each year toward that end.”
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Further information about the sale is available at www.northcountrymgv.org/plant-sale or e-mail ncmgva@gmail.com.

​Kevin Schoessow, Area Agricultural Development Agent with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension, takes you through the Teaching & Display Garden at the Spooner Ag Research Station in July 2021.

This week I encountered two instances of name confusion.  One was Goats beard and the other Loosestrife.  I was  reminded to pay attention to botanical names because common names can be misleading.  That would be the case in both these instances.  And the consequences of confusing an invasive for a native plant can be dramatic. ​

 (For more information on these plants go to the websites below.
Fringed Yellow Loosestrife (Lysmachia ciliata) (wildflower.org)
Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) (UW Horticulture)
Garden Yellow Loosestrife (Lysimachia vulgaris) (DNR)

The annuals and vegetables are showing growth and the Monarch and Pollinator Sanctuary Garden (natives and perennials) is in full bloom.  The gallery below shows what is in bloom as of July 1 and there were plenty of buds that will be blooming in the next few days.  Please stop by when you are in the area for inspiration.  

I’m usually frustrated when I find that something has eaten a plant in my garden.  Not so this week when I discovered Parsleyworms on my parsley.  Adults are known as Black Swallowtail, one of our larger butterflies. 

According to Jeffrey Glassberg’s Butterflies of North America, you can recognize a swallowtail when you see a large butterfly that is not orange and has a tail.  His book goes on to say that most butterflies are small to medium-sized and most large non-swallowtails are orange-colored with no tails.   ​

If you like daisies, this variety of perennial Shasta Daisy will wow you. A 2021 All-American Selections winner, the  Sweet Daisy Birdy with 5-inch blooms of feathery pure white petals and golden centers, blooms earlier that other varieties and is a pollinator favorite. Use this medium height (18-24 inches) plant in planter containers, or in the garden as tall background or a garden highlight. Sturdy stems and contrasting dark green foliage make for a great cut flower as well!

The Sweet Daisy Birdy is available only as plants as yet. It is low maintenance, zone 3 hearty and is cold and heat tolerant.  Plant in full sun, in well drained soil.  Water as needed.

• For more information: https://all-americaselections.org/product/leucanthemum-sweet-daisy-birdy/
• To order: https://www.perennials.com/plants/leucanthemum-superbum-sweet-daisy-birdy.html
• Find at a garden store https://www.monrovia.com/sweet-daisy-birdy-daisy.html
• or call your local garden store and request this plant.
  

Article by Pam Davies MGV
Photo Credit:  All-America Selections