Verbena explosion
It turns out a 6-foot-tall stand of Verbena bonariensis is all you need to dispel traces of coronafunk. For years I’ve grown tall verbena in a halfhearted, one-plant-in-part-shade way. Not bad. But now — shazam! — a mass of it in the Circle Garden delights me whenever I step outside.
I didn’t expect it to get so tall and rambly. When I pulled out the stock-tank pond a few months ago, I chose a mix of native and adapted pollinator plants to encircle a potted whale’s tongue agave in the center of the new planting bed. Turquoise and purple, my favorite summer combo.
The verbena soared skyward, though with a pronounced lean to the left, where there’s more sun. Now it towers over the focal-point agave, creating a flowery scrim. I kind of love it, even though it tests my tidying instincts. The small round shrubs around the perimeter of the circle are ‘Micron’ hollies.
The verbena is a butterfly magnet. I’ve observed monarchs, red admirals, skippers, and swallowtails this spring.
It looks beautiful against the cloud-like, chartreuse foliage (with straw-colored inflorescence) of bamboo muhly grass.
A few yellow columbines still bloom on the shady side of the circle, but I think I will pull those out when they’re done. I want only purple or pink flowers here, I think, and the yellow is distracting. I have a few ‘Fireworks’ gomphrena coming up now, and a purple coneflower or two. I’m sure I’ll be adding more and tweaking this bed for seasons to come. And what’s more fun than that — a new place to experiment!
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Digging Deeper
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Very Seuss-like, and I love their airy randomness! I tried these a few years back and had an Epic Fail so you have made me quite jealous.
Be well and safe, all.
You have similar conditions to mine, Linda: lots of live oak cover. It makes growing sun-loving flowers challenging, although we won’t complain about summer shade, will we? Springtime live oak clean-up though? I do nothing but complain – ha!
I love my verbena too and had failed to successfully grow it in the past due to shade. Now that they have sun they are spectacular. Just be prepared for lots of seedlings.
I’m ready!
I hope you really like them-of course you do-because next year you will have many more! And I think the rain and early heat this year made them grow too tall too quickly.I have the same experience with many of my plants including monster snap dragons. I am constantly swatting my way through them.
Flowers I have to swat my way through are a novelty in my garden. Good thing your snapdragons can’t actually snap!
I love the Verbena explosion. I sought a similar effect years ago but failed to achieve it. Verbena is supposed to self-seed freely but mine apparently never got the message.
Mine won’t either. I always use shredded bark mulch around my plants to reduce water loss in summer, and it prevents most re-seeding. But the verbena might come back from the roots if we have a mild winter.
Here in my Tulsa garden I have (lots) of this plant. I love it’s randomness and see-thru-ness. Years ago Southern Living did an article on them, and called it the see-through plant. My only complaint is that they always get mildew, same as my zinnias.
I’ll be on the lookout. Summer humidity causes lots of problems like that, doesn’t it?