Chocolate Plants! A New Trend in Gardening
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner — if you haven’t seen the numerous red and white colored flyers, ads, billboards for the last month you’ve been out of the country!
I know one of the go-to Valentine’s Day presents is chocolate. I, however, do not need any more real estate on my thighs so I’ve been looking to get my chocolate “fix” in a low-cal way — and I think I found it! Using “chocolate” plants is one of the newest trends and I have jumped on board. Plants can smell like chocolate, have foliage or flowers that look like chocolate, and even sound like chocolate.
Imagine coming home after a long day and being greeted with the fragrance of chocolate as you walk through the gate. You might think there’s some Toblerone left in your purse but no, it’s the climbing akebia, aka chocolate vine, scrambling over the arbor. The chocolate smell is indescribable. I had an akebia in my old house and since moving last fall I have been looking for a place to plant one on my new property. This vine not only smells delicious, it’s beautiful (see the picture above). Before you get to the back door you might stop to smell the chocolate cosmos, their maroon-brown daisy shaped flowers swaying in the breeze. Sure they’re only annuals, but easy to replace and they self sow. The chocolate mint in a pot by the back door is begging to be added to your afternoon tea. It’s kind of like a junior mint without the calories.
Other chocolate plants will appeal to your eye: Dahlia ‘Chocolate Sundae’, nicotiana ‘Chocolate Smoke’, foxglove ‘Milk Chocolate’ and columbine ‘Chocolate Soldier’ remind me of varying shades of melted Hershey bars. Brown is a complimentary color in the garden; it can glam up pink or tone down blues. Of course, it is very much at home with other earth tones.
Finally, there are the plants that sound like chocolate. Chocolate chip bugleweed, dark chocolate coleus, chocolate mint coleus. Yummm …
This Valentine’s day why not try a chocolate that will not melt, go bad or make you hate your scale! You order the chocolate plants I’ve mentioned or get a gift certificate for the plants at online nurseries such as Chocolate Flower Farm and Plant Delights Nursery.
This article was originally written for Pine Straw, an apparel and home goods store in Wellesley, MA.
“Pockets” Make Easy Fall Containers
This time of year I feel like that kid from the movie The Sixth Sense. Remember the one who saw dead people? That’s me. Only I see dead windowboxes. Containers. Urns.
Ghosts of gardens that were undoubtedly the pride of their owners now left to die.
I can’t help but wonder why the people who delight in designing their summer containers don’t keep the beauty going into fall. After all, fall windowboxes are not difficult to create. The key is planting “pockets”.
Start by planting evergreens in the container to act as the “bones” of the design. Boxwood and dwarf arborvitae are great choices for bones. In between the evergreens, the “pockets”, plant seasonal material. Even if you choose to plant only in summer your evergreen “bones” mean you have a decent looking container during the other three seasons. You can make a great looking fall windowbox without planting a thing, just add simple embellishments. For instance, gather some interesting gourds or seed heads and use branches for height. Just make sure you NEVER use bittersweet vine as it is highly invasive. A simple combination for your fall container could incorporate an ornamental grass, a cabbage or kale, and some pansies. Even though the days are colder don’t forget to water your container. Until the soil freezes the plants still require moisture.
If you are not planting anything in your winter boxes remove fall material before it becomes frozen in place. Cutting off plant material at soil level is a good option if Jack Frost catches you unawares and helps you avoid the “ghosts of containers past” syndrome.
Fall in New England is a beautiful season with spectacular colors and interesting details. It’s the perfect opportunity to plant something in your containers that will take your breath away – before winter does.
This article was originally written for Pine Straw, an apparel and home goods store in Wellesley, MA.
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