WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.680 --> 00:00:07.639 Coming to you from Beautiful Studio a here at proven winners Color Choice Shrubs. 2 00:00:07.919 --> 00:00:13.160 It's time for the Gardening Simplified Show with Stacy Hervella, me, Rick vis 3 00:00:13.199 --> 00:00:17.640 To, and our engineer and producer Adrianna Robinson. All Right, Stacy, 4 00:00:17.719 --> 00:00:20.960 today we're gonna sing the blues. We're gonna celebrate the color blue, one 5 00:00:20.960 --> 00:00:24.920 of my favorite colors. Blue. As a matter of fact, I think 6 00:00:24.960 --> 00:00:28.719 most of my clothes are either blue or black. I think that those who 7 00:00:28.760 --> 00:00:32.560 watch us on YouTube might know that. Yeah, exactly so. Now, 8 00:00:32.640 --> 00:00:37.560 of the multitude of known flowering plant species in the world, less than ten 9 00:00:37.679 --> 00:00:42.759 percent produce blue flowers. I can't prove that that's just what I read, 10 00:00:43.359 --> 00:00:48.439 but blue is a little rare in plants, even rarer in the animal world. 11 00:00:48.479 --> 00:00:54.840 Although if you think about it, bluebirds, blue jay's indigo buntings, 12 00:00:54.840 --> 00:00:57.880 even the eggs of a robin are blue. Right, Yes, and blue 13 00:00:57.920 --> 00:01:03.880 jays are very abundant around here. Exactly. We experienced blue hues as cool 14 00:01:03.000 --> 00:01:08.120 and find them calming, soothing and relaxing. And in the garden, blue 15 00:01:08.120 --> 00:01:15.040 flowers have another interesting quality. They seem to recede from us. Now, 16 00:01:15.040 --> 00:01:21.799 not recede as an seed but ceed I knew that because so many blue flowers 17 00:01:21.799 --> 00:01:23.519 are very hard to grow, and if they were to be able to recede, 18 00:01:23.599 --> 00:01:29.239 people would be altier exactly. Now. I love this quote from my 19 00:01:29.280 --> 00:01:33.920 friend Alan Armitage. He's a professor at the University of Georgia in Athens. 20 00:01:34.480 --> 00:01:38.519 When he talks about blue, he says, blue is genetically a difficult color 21 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:44.200 to find. When it's dark, it's purple, when it's light, it's 22 00:01:44.319 --> 00:01:49.319 lavender. So the perfect blue is the apex. Blue is the most elusive, 23 00:01:49.439 --> 00:01:53.560 most coveted color in gardening. Stacy. Do you agree, I'd say, 24 00:01:53.640 --> 00:01:57.159 yeah, that's probably true. I mean, speaking from, of course 25 00:01:57.200 --> 00:02:00.840 a hydrangea perspective, then yes. But you know, when you think about 26 00:02:00.879 --> 00:02:04.920 all of the other truly just you know, breathtaking blue flowers, the one 27 00:02:04.959 --> 00:02:08.479 that leaps to mind for me is uh Mecanopsis, the Himalayan poppy, a 28 00:02:08.560 --> 00:02:13.280 plant that everybody wants to grow, but very few people can. Delphinium as 29 00:02:13.319 --> 00:02:15.879 another great example. People love them the color. You know, when you 30 00:02:15.919 --> 00:02:20.280 look closely at a delphinium, it really is breathtaking. It is stunt, 31 00:02:20.439 --> 00:02:23.520 but it doesn't They don't really do super well and really hot clements. Of 32 00:02:23.560 --> 00:02:25.120 course, there's been some breeding that's changed that. But you know, I 33 00:02:25.240 --> 00:02:30.680 think that blue hydrangels, Mecanopsis, and Delphinium are probably three plants that people 34 00:02:30.919 --> 00:02:36.319 really really really wish they could grow well and very often cannot. So yeah, 35 00:02:36.319 --> 00:02:38.439 I would, I would say that's true. But then there are some 36 00:02:38.479 --> 00:02:43.039 other great ones like, um, you know, Brunera has beautiful blue flowers, 37 00:02:43.240 --> 00:02:46.479 gorgeous and a lot of beautiful blue foliage too with hostas. I think 38 00:02:46.479 --> 00:02:52.400 what we'll do is we're gonna give you a list at Gardening Simplified OnAir dot 39 00:02:52.439 --> 00:02:57.400 com. We'd love to have you visit our website some of these favorites. 40 00:02:57.919 --> 00:03:02.960 Of course, interestingly enough, blue does have some negative connotations feeling blue, 41 00:03:04.199 --> 00:03:07.879 blue with cold, and in some cultures it's the color of mourning, and 42 00:03:08.000 --> 00:03:15.080 yet I don't know those references. Notwithstanding, it's arguably the most popular color 43 00:03:15.120 --> 00:03:17.919 in the United States and the United Kingdom, as I understand it, at 44 00:03:19.000 --> 00:03:22.360 least they have my vote. Yeah, problem, I would say that that 45 00:03:22.479 --> 00:03:24.319 makes sense cars, you know, yeah, clothes, all that kind of 46 00:03:24.360 --> 00:03:29.159 stuff. Yeah, exactly, So using blue in the garden is great. 47 00:03:29.199 --> 00:03:31.560 And of course we've talked about what a hot summer. It's been for some 48 00:03:31.639 --> 00:03:36.039 folks too, and when you put blue in the garden, it kind of 49 00:03:36.039 --> 00:03:43.400 gives you an oasis cooling effect. And I'll tell you what I guess tops 50 00:03:43.439 --> 00:03:46.400 on our list has to be right off the bat. Hydrange has to be 51 00:03:46.800 --> 00:03:51.560 has to be yes, of course, but not all hydranges, just hydrange 52 00:03:51.560 --> 00:03:54.479 of Macrophylla or the big leaf hight range. Also to a lesser extent hydrange 53 00:03:54.520 --> 00:03:59.639 of Serrata, which is closely related. But when as we'll discuss in plants 54 00:03:59.680 --> 00:04:03.319 on track, which I'm guessing spoiler alert for our listeners out there is going 55 00:04:03.360 --> 00:04:08.680 to be a hydrangea um, you know other types like panica hydrange of smooth 56 00:04:08.719 --> 00:04:11.719 hydrange as those cannot change color. So it's well, we'll talk a lot 57 00:04:11.719 --> 00:04:14.240 more about color and plants on travel sounds good. Now, I know you 58 00:04:14.280 --> 00:04:19.319 have a favorite perennial stacy at least I think you've mentioned this am Sonia love 59 00:04:19.360 --> 00:04:25.720 Amnia y am sonia. There's a storm cloud blue star and oh, you 60 00:04:25.759 --> 00:04:29.759 want to talk about a stunning blue in the landscape. Now, I like 61 00:04:29.879 --> 00:04:33.399 something as simple as Festuca glauco, which is just a little short blue grass. 62 00:04:33.519 --> 00:04:35.800 I like that too. I don't know if you know this, but 63 00:04:35.959 --> 00:04:41.319 for a number of years I was mister green Thumb on the ABC affiliate here 64 00:04:41.360 --> 00:04:45.800 in West Michigan, and that was my TV name for Stuca Glauca. It 65 00:04:45.920 --> 00:04:48.480 was that was my TV name and people could pronounce it, yeah, for 66 00:04:48.600 --> 00:04:54.120 Stuca Glauca. That was my name, mister green Thumb for Stuca Glauca. 67 00:04:54.279 --> 00:04:57.959 It's a very nice plant, very very durable, very pretty. Now a 68 00:04:57.959 --> 00:05:00.720 plant that I don't have a lot of experience with, but I have real 69 00:05:00.800 --> 00:05:09.040 interest in. Is sea holly erheenium I believe is how it's pronounced. Perfect 70 00:05:09.040 --> 00:05:13.560 for cut flower gardens. There's a variety called steel blue. I can't believe 71 00:05:13.680 --> 00:05:17.560 the color blue for that plant, sea holly. And then Stacy, we 72 00:05:17.680 --> 00:05:21.759 would be a miss if we did not bring up chiriopters. Oh, of 73 00:05:21.759 --> 00:05:25.800 course, blue Beard. It's right in the name Blue Miss Spyrheo if you 74 00:05:25.879 --> 00:05:30.079 prefer that name. Is charriopters relatively easy for folks to grow, extremely easy 75 00:05:30.120 --> 00:05:34.399 to grow as long as you have sun in well drained soil, very durable, 76 00:05:34.519 --> 00:05:38.800 very easy to grow. If you're successful with butterfly bush, chances are 77 00:05:38.800 --> 00:05:43.240 you're going to be successful with Chariopterus as well, and you know it's great 78 00:05:43.240 --> 00:05:45.560 because it blooms so much later in the season. A lot of these other 79 00:05:45.600 --> 00:05:47.920 blue flowers we've talked about our more early season, you know, like the 80 00:05:48.519 --> 00:05:54.680 blue Himalayan poppy, the am Sonia. Those bloom earlier in spring, whereas 81 00:05:54.720 --> 00:05:58.839 chariopters really starts to come into its own in September here in Michigan. Fantastic 82 00:05:59.240 --> 00:06:02.199 Vitex. I love that plant? Is it? Blue Diddley? Blue Diddley 83 00:06:02.360 --> 00:06:05.399 is the variety that we offer through proven winters. Yeah, all right, 84 00:06:05.600 --> 00:06:10.680 I love vitech In the heat of summer, that plant still to me smells 85 00:06:10.720 --> 00:06:15.399 like vix vapor rubb. I can't help it. It just does annual salvia 86 00:06:15.519 --> 00:06:19.439 like playing the blues rock and blue suede shoes. Fabulous. Draw all kinds 87 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:25.480 of hummingbirds to my garden on Cape cod Yes, I saw a lot of 88 00:06:25.519 --> 00:06:30.319 Delphinium and campanula in bloom. Of course, with bulbs you've got muscarrie, 89 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:36.519 grape, hyacinth, Siberian squill, of course, hyacinths. That color is 90 00:06:36.560 --> 00:06:42.959 amazing. Pansies you have some pansies with unbelievable beautiful blues. Yeah, yeah, 91 00:06:43.240 --> 00:06:48.000 classic blueberries of course, Agapanthus, lily of the nile. Love that 92 00:06:48.160 --> 00:06:56.240 plant, Streptocarpella. And I'm amazed at the number of varieties like above the 93 00:06:56.279 --> 00:07:00.920 clouds or water slide as it relates to hosta blue hostas like blue hostas. 94 00:07:00.000 --> 00:07:02.839 I think they're lovely. I mean I can't grow them. I did hear 95 00:07:02.879 --> 00:07:09.680 someone say that they thought that deer had more difficulty seeing the blue hostas at 96 00:07:09.759 --> 00:07:13.680 night, and so they were less likely to be eaten. I definitely did 97 00:07:13.680 --> 00:07:15.560 not find that to be the case myself. But your mileage may vary. 98 00:07:15.560 --> 00:07:21.600 As they say, I'm gonna test that theory. I love that. I'm 99 00:07:21.639 --> 00:07:26.680 not endorsing it, just say from my experience, but I'm putting it out 100 00:07:26.680 --> 00:07:31.000 there. I have a favorite flowering annual and hanging baskets at Scavola. Oh. 101 00:07:31.199 --> 00:07:38.199 Scaevola native to Australia can really handle the heat. Did you know that 102 00:07:38.199 --> 00:07:41.639 that is the plant that lunched the Provenmentner's brand No idea, Yes, so 103 00:07:41.720 --> 00:07:46.160 they were trying to they Yeah, they found the scavola in Australia. It 104 00:07:46.199 --> 00:07:48.319 was used as hanging basket because it's very drought tolerant, very heat tolerant. 105 00:07:48.800 --> 00:07:51.560 Very easy to grow. But um, you know, they were like, 106 00:07:51.639 --> 00:07:55.759 how are we going to introduce this plant that no one in the US has 107 00:07:55.800 --> 00:07:58.199 ever heard of? How are we going to build up their trust that this 108 00:07:58.279 --> 00:08:01.720 is a good plant. And so some growers got together to propagate and market 109 00:08:01.759 --> 00:08:07.000 it and that was the birth of Proven Winners annuals that is intrust So that 110 00:08:07.079 --> 00:08:09.480 was Whirlwind Blue. I like that, which is not really around so much 111 00:08:09.480 --> 00:08:13.439 anymore. But I am growing a blue and a white scavola. And this 112 00:08:13.519 --> 00:08:16.120 is the first time I think I've had him in my garden. And I 113 00:08:16.240 --> 00:08:20.360 we're talking about blue flowers, but I am absolutely in love with them, 114 00:08:20.639 --> 00:08:24.839 so vigorous. It just covered in flowers, just a fantastic lip. Each 115 00:08:24.839 --> 00:08:28.800 of the flowers looks like a hand, an outstretched hand. You had mentioned 116 00:08:28.839 --> 00:08:35.399 Brunera, of course, Agastanchi beautiful blue color, and of course a favorite 117 00:08:35.399 --> 00:08:43.120 of both Stacy and mine, Baptisia, the decadence blueberry Sunday you gotta grow. 118 00:08:43.279 --> 00:08:50.600 Yeah, so pretty Veronica or Speedwell, and we had we had talked 119 00:08:50.600 --> 00:08:54.879 about perennial geranium last week. You can get some pretty color there too. 120 00:08:54.960 --> 00:08:58.240 Add geratum, of course, Russian sage, proven winners Denim and Lace. 121 00:09:00.159 --> 00:09:05.200 Lavender has got to be on the list proven winners Sweet Romance. There's another 122 00:09:05.200 --> 00:09:09.559 one on the list, some of the supertunias. I'm amazed at the blue 123 00:09:09.559 --> 00:09:16.039 color, and of course morning glories, Angelonia and Pulmonaria is another one in 124 00:09:16.080 --> 00:09:22.000 the media. The list goes on and on. So you know what I'm 125 00:09:22.039 --> 00:09:26.080 going this year. That's a blue annual? Is blew my mind? Oh 126 00:09:26.240 --> 00:09:31.879 yes, and that is a truly gorgeous blue the only thing. And I 127 00:09:31.879 --> 00:09:37.440 do love it, except that I realized this weekend as I was admiring it, 128 00:09:37.519 --> 00:09:39.960 I'm like, wow, I haven't really been like admiring this plant much 129 00:09:39.960 --> 00:09:43.200 like what's wrong with me? And I realize it's only open during the day. 130 00:09:43.799 --> 00:09:46.320 The flowers are only open during the day and then they close at night. 131 00:09:46.399 --> 00:09:50.879 So by the time I'm coming home from work and enjoying the garden and 132 00:09:50.919 --> 00:09:52.960 so on a beautiful Saturday, I'm like, oh, yeah, well that 133 00:09:54.000 --> 00:09:56.240 makes sense. So that's a plan to enjoy, you know, when you're 134 00:09:56.240 --> 00:09:58.720 home. But such a beautiful blue color. And you know, one of 135 00:09:58.759 --> 00:10:05.960 my other favorites is um the crystal blue salvia from Provenmentners. The color Riot 136 00:10:05.000 --> 00:10:09.480 Crystal blue. That is such an incredible color. I mean, it's one 137 00:10:09.480 --> 00:10:11.440 of those clores most blues are, but you have to see it to believe 138 00:10:11.480 --> 00:10:16.279 it, because it's just so hard to actually believe it's such a beautiful true 139 00:10:16.279 --> 00:10:22.480 blue. You of course have the Nopetta's Cats Meow Cats pajamas. Again, 140 00:10:22.559 --> 00:10:24.960 the list goes on and out. We'll put the list at Gardening Simplified on 141 00:10:26.159 --> 00:10:31.840 aair dot Com. I love combining the color pink or silver with the color 142 00:10:31.879 --> 00:10:37.679 blue. You know, I think we may have just contradicted ourselves. How 143 00:10:37.720 --> 00:10:39.720 did we do that well? Because we were talking about how rare blue is, 144 00:10:39.960 --> 00:10:45.120 and we spent the last five minutes listing off our favorite blue flowers, 145 00:10:45.600 --> 00:10:52.120 saying not only that we love them, but that we grow them so But 146 00:10:52.279 --> 00:10:54.480 that said, you know, there is something to be said. There is 147 00:10:54.879 --> 00:10:58.799 a little thing that the industry is guilty of, and that is horticultural blue. 148 00:11:00.120 --> 00:11:05.279 A lot of times the industry will call something blue that is blue adjacents, 149 00:11:05.919 --> 00:11:09.399 not a true true blue. But color is very subjective. But in 150 00:11:09.440 --> 00:11:13.600 any case, you can find something on the blue spectrum to grow. It 151 00:11:13.720 --> 00:11:18.200 might not be your dream blue, it might not be that amazing Meknopsis himila 152 00:11:18.279 --> 00:11:22.240 and blue poppy. But you can find something close enough to blue to satisfy 153 00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:26.480 that blue craving. Exactly, blue tulips, blue tulips. I love blue 154 00:11:26.480 --> 00:11:28.759 tulips. They have blue tulips. Blue tulips. Well, actually they're not 155 00:11:28.879 --> 00:11:33.200 blue, yeah, exactly, they call them blue. We've got a blue 156 00:11:33.200 --> 00:11:37.919 tulip. No blue tulips. It's just like I'm waiting for it. Yeah, 157 00:11:37.919 --> 00:11:39.240 And there's no blue roses either. And this all has to do with 158 00:11:39.279 --> 00:11:43.279 the uh, you know, pigments that those plants produced. They can't actually 159 00:11:43.279 --> 00:11:48.320 get to that color because they don't have the pigment genetically, you know, 160 00:11:48.399 --> 00:11:52.320 within them. I'm still waiting. Well, you know there's in the case 161 00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:56.200 of both roses and tulips, there's plenty of other fabulous colors to choose from. 162 00:11:56.240 --> 00:12:01.080 Son. If you have a favorite blue, you your two lips and 163 00:12:01.159 --> 00:12:05.440 speak to us and let us know at Gardening Simplified OnAir dot com. Plants 164 00:12:05.480 --> 00:12:15.679 on trial coming up next here on the Gardening Simplified check proven Winners. Colored 165 00:12:15.759 --> 00:12:18.720 Choice Shrubs cares about your success in the garden. That's why we trial and 166 00:12:18.759 --> 00:12:24.080 test all of our shrubs for eight to ten years making sure they outperform everything 167 00:12:24.120 --> 00:12:26.519 else on the market. Look for them in the distinctive white container at your 168 00:12:26.559 --> 00:12:33.559 local garden center. Creatings Gardening Friends, and welcome back to the Gardening Simplified 169 00:12:33.799 --> 00:12:39.240 Show where we do not have the blues, but we're talking about blue all 170 00:12:39.360 --> 00:12:43.320 day long here. And you know, when it comes to plants on Trial, 171 00:12:43.639 --> 00:12:46.519 if blue is in the conversation, there's even though we have the chariopterus, 172 00:12:46.600 --> 00:12:50.480 even though we have the Vitex that Rick mentioned before, there's one clear 173 00:12:50.600 --> 00:12:54.440 choice here and I'll bet you predicted it when you thought of the Blue show, 174 00:12:54.919 --> 00:12:58.360 no question. I'm gonna have to be a blue big leaf hyderanja. 175 00:12:58.559 --> 00:13:05.000 And my pick for today's plant on Trial is brand new Let's Dance sky View 176 00:13:05.480 --> 00:13:09.360 hydranget. Wasn't that the winner of Shrub Madness this year? Yes it was. 177 00:13:09.440 --> 00:13:13.480 As a matter of fact, it was. Yeah, So big leaf 178 00:13:13.559 --> 00:13:18.919 hydrangees are the ones that turn blue, and not all hydranges can change color 179 00:13:18.960 --> 00:13:22.159 based on their soil chemistry, but it's the big leaf hydrange is, like 180 00:13:22.240 --> 00:13:26.879 Let's Dance Skyview that can. And so let's just clear this upright off the 181 00:13:26.919 --> 00:13:31.600 bats. Yes, you need to have a cidic soil for a hydrangea that 182 00:13:31.600 --> 00:13:35.159 can turn blue like Let's Dance sky View to actually turn blue. But that's 183 00:13:35.200 --> 00:13:39.639 not the whole equation. You also are going to need to have aluminum in 184 00:13:39.679 --> 00:13:41.840 the soil. And we talked about this a few weeks ago, but it's 185 00:13:41.840 --> 00:13:46.279 always good to refresh everyone's memory about it. So you need to have a 186 00:13:46.279 --> 00:13:48.159 cidic soil and there needs to be aluminum in it. And if those two 187 00:13:48.200 --> 00:13:52.039 things are true and you have a hydrangeer that can turn blue, then it 188 00:13:52.080 --> 00:14:00.600 will be blue. And just which blue it turns does somewhat depend on your 189 00:14:00.639 --> 00:14:03.240 pH but it's primarily genetic. You know a lot of people think, oh, 190 00:14:03.240 --> 00:14:07.080 I saw the most beautiful blue hydrangea, and I can just approximate these 191 00:14:07.159 --> 00:14:11.799 conditions and my hydrangel will be that same blue, and that's not the case. 192 00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:15.600 They are individuals and they do differ from plant to plant, So not 193 00:14:15.799 --> 00:14:22.600 every hydrangea that's capable of turning blue is going to be equally as blue. 194 00:14:22.840 --> 00:14:24.840 And Let's dand Skyview is one of those that lives up to its name because 195 00:14:24.879 --> 00:14:31.159 it is a beautiful sky blue. So it's not that like deep, deep, 196 00:14:31.639 --> 00:14:37.919 purply blue that some people call blurple. It sounded very funny blurple because 197 00:14:37.960 --> 00:14:43.039 it's a combination of blue and purple. But Let's dand Skyview is just that 198 00:14:43.240 --> 00:14:50.240 gorgeous like summer sky color, provided that you have those conditions acidic soil and 199 00:14:50.440 --> 00:14:54.240 aluminum present in the soil for it to turn blue. Now, a lot 200 00:14:54.279 --> 00:14:56.519 of times people will buy and I'm sure you heard this all a lot working 201 00:14:56.519 --> 00:15:01.039 in the garden center, they'll say, you know, whether it's an old 202 00:15:01.120 --> 00:15:05.279 fashion variety like Nico Blue or one of our varieties like Let's Dance Blue Jangles 203 00:15:05.320 --> 00:15:07.840 or Let's dand sky View. They'll say, hey, blue is right here 204 00:15:07.840 --> 00:15:11.279 in the name. Why isn't it blue? And the simple fact is that 205 00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:18.480 under regular growing conditions at a nursery or garden center, that potting mix does 206 00:15:18.519 --> 00:15:24.039 not favor blue the color the development of blue flowers. It can be ascetic, 207 00:15:24.120 --> 00:15:26.600 but it does not have any illuminum in it. So you are not 208 00:15:26.639 --> 00:15:31.360 going to be buying a blue hydrange unless it has been specifically treated by the 209 00:15:31.480 --> 00:15:35.240 grower to have blue flowers. But that doesn't mean that it won't change, 210 00:15:35.360 --> 00:15:39.960 of course, once it's in your garden, and either you're treating it or 211 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:46.080 your conditions are favoring the development of that blue color. I'm still thinking about 212 00:15:46.200 --> 00:15:50.960 blurpool sounds like a Sesame Street character. I like somebody the cookie Monster was 213 00:15:52.039 --> 00:15:54.080 blue, wasn't he? Yes? He wasn't it was? You proceed. 214 00:15:54.200 --> 00:15:56.519 You know, that's a good name for a hydrange. I like it. 215 00:15:56.559 --> 00:16:00.759 No, I'm going to keep that at my list for a hydrange name. 216 00:16:00.879 --> 00:16:07.159 Yeah, I like it. Uh, the royalties, we will make sure 217 00:16:07.159 --> 00:16:11.759 you get some for your garden at least. So let's dand sky View is 218 00:16:11.759 --> 00:16:15.639 a special hydrange, not just because it is capable of turning this you know, 219 00:16:15.679 --> 00:16:18.919 beautiful sky blue. And I do want to mention that whether or not 220 00:16:19.039 --> 00:16:22.039 you have the conditions that favor, you know, the development of blue. 221 00:16:22.360 --> 00:16:26.600 Hydranges are really beautiful as pink. So you know, it's like a lot 222 00:16:26.639 --> 00:16:30.799 of people say, oh, it's not blue, it's I'm so disappointed. 223 00:16:30.840 --> 00:16:33.039 Well, I mean they're pretty great when they're pink as well, So you 224 00:16:33.039 --> 00:16:36.440 know, it's not one of those things I think you need to, you 225 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:38.039 know, break your neck trying to turn your soil blue. And it's going 226 00:16:38.080 --> 00:16:42.279 to be so fabulous when it's in the pink or you know, lavender range 227 00:16:42.720 --> 00:16:48.320 as well. So that's just But what makes Let's dand sky View special is 228 00:16:48.759 --> 00:16:52.720 it is one of the newer Let's Dance reblooming hydrange of varieties. Uh that 229 00:16:52.879 --> 00:16:59.480 is hardy to USDA Zone four and we only give that designation to a lot 230 00:16:59.519 --> 00:17:03.240 of hyder To macrophilla or big leaf hydranges can survive in USDA Zone four, 231 00:17:03.319 --> 00:17:07.599 but they can't thrive. So they're not really going to do very well the 232 00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:10.880 live. They're never gonna bloom and they're not going to do much for you. 233 00:17:11.400 --> 00:17:15.720 But in these few hydrangees that include so Let's dand sky View and Let's 234 00:17:15.759 --> 00:17:22.720 Dance can do. They have the ability to set their flower buds on the 235 00:17:22.920 --> 00:17:26.759 entire length of their stem. So old fashioned types of hydrange is like the 236 00:17:26.839 --> 00:17:30.640 Nico blue that I mentioned, They primarily set their flower buds just at the 237 00:17:30.720 --> 00:17:34.960 terminals, just the tips of the stems. Yeah, and so if it 238 00:17:36.000 --> 00:17:37.759 gets pruned by someone who doesn't know what they're doing, if it gets hit 239 00:17:37.799 --> 00:17:41.359 by frost, if it gets browsed by deer, if it gets you know, 240 00:17:41.519 --> 00:17:47.279 slid into by a softball game run awry, it's gonna you know, 241 00:17:47.319 --> 00:17:51.160 all these things are possible. I've heard it all in my time here exactly. 242 00:17:52.440 --> 00:17:56.759 So if you lose those tips of the branches anytime from you know, 243 00:17:56.799 --> 00:18:02.000 basically September until it starts to flower the following season, there go the flowers. 244 00:18:02.559 --> 00:18:04.480 Let's Dance sky View has the ability to set those flower buds down the 245 00:18:04.599 --> 00:18:07.960 entire length of the stem, so if it does get pruned accidentally, if 246 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:12.400 it does get winter damage, you know, you still have flower buds down 247 00:18:12.440 --> 00:18:15.319 there, close to the ground instead of just way up at the top. 248 00:18:15.480 --> 00:18:19.359 And so you know, no matter what happens, you have a better chance 249 00:18:19.400 --> 00:18:26.519 at getting flowers than you had with more conventional types of big leaf hydranges. 250 00:18:26.880 --> 00:18:30.200 So that's something that really is you really will see the difference with that. 251 00:18:30.319 --> 00:18:33.759 And Let's Dance can do hydrangea. And on top of all of that, 252 00:18:33.839 --> 00:18:37.759 so we were selecting for this trait which can really help people, especially in 253 00:18:37.799 --> 00:18:41.960 colder climates, you know, be successful with it. We also want faster 254 00:18:42.200 --> 00:18:47.680 reblooming, and you know, big leaf hydrangeas are great. People get really 255 00:18:47.680 --> 00:18:51.400 excited because oh it's going to keep blooming, but not all of them can 256 00:18:51.519 --> 00:18:56.119 rebloom quickly. A lot of them will need a lot of different varieties will 257 00:18:56.160 --> 00:19:00.160 need to put on say six to eight sets of leaves before they can create 258 00:19:00.200 --> 00:19:06.000 that flower bud, the new wood flower bud, and it's going to need 259 00:19:06.039 --> 00:19:07.359 you know, once those leaves are created, it's going to need extra time 260 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:10.400 to create that. So a lot of times, you know, those new 261 00:19:10.400 --> 00:19:14.400 wood flowers, you weren't seeing them until later. So with let's Dance Skyview, 262 00:19:14.480 --> 00:19:18.440 we were looking to decrease that time to rebloom. And so you're getting 263 00:19:18.680 --> 00:19:25.920 better preservation of the old wood flowers and better rebloom on the new wood flowers, 264 00:19:25.920 --> 00:19:29.160 and all in all, that is going to make a pretty darn attractive 265 00:19:29.200 --> 00:19:33.759 package for big leaf hydranges. So, you know, this is a newer 266 00:19:33.839 --> 00:19:37.640 variety, but I think it should have pretty good availability on the market and 267 00:19:37.720 --> 00:19:41.119 a lot of garden centers right now, even though it's late July. I 268 00:19:41.200 --> 00:19:45.200 know, we have listeners from all over the country and some of them are 269 00:19:45.240 --> 00:19:47.880 like the garden center hah yeah, right. It's one hundred and twenty degrees 270 00:19:47.920 --> 00:19:49.960 out here today. But if you do live in a cooler climate, it's 271 00:19:49.960 --> 00:19:52.279 not too late to go to your garden center as long as you'll be around, 272 00:19:52.400 --> 00:19:56.480 you know, for the next two months to water it. It's a 273 00:19:56.480 --> 00:19:59.880 really great choice. Now, you know, I do recommend for most people 274 00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:03.640 you're going to want like partial shade, some sun, you know, and 275 00:20:03.000 --> 00:20:07.119 so many people we've talked about this almost every time we've talked about hydrange as. 276 00:20:07.119 --> 00:20:11.160 People just naturally think they're a shade plant and they want some shade. 277 00:20:11.160 --> 00:20:14.200 And the hotter your climate, the more shade they are going to require. 278 00:20:14.680 --> 00:20:18.559 But some sun, ideally in the morning, is really going to give you 279 00:20:18.319 --> 00:20:25.640 stronger stems, better resistance to diseases like powdery mildew and other leaf spots, 280 00:20:26.240 --> 00:20:29.480 better flower color. That's, you know, really important because if it's in 281 00:20:29.519 --> 00:20:32.799 too much shade again, it's going to take on those muddy kind of undertones 282 00:20:33.359 --> 00:20:37.680 and not that bright color. And you know, hydrange of foliage can obviously 283 00:20:37.759 --> 00:20:40.319 a lot of people resent it because that's all they see because they're not growing 284 00:20:40.319 --> 00:20:42.160 the right kind of hydranges and they're not getting the flowers. But it is 285 00:20:42.200 --> 00:20:47.359 quite attractive. So you want to do everything you can to make that plant 286 00:20:47.400 --> 00:20:51.680 as attractive as possible by giving it the right amount of light. Yes, 287 00:20:51.720 --> 00:20:53.799 they want a lot of water. You can help mitigate that with multi Hydrangea 288 00:20:53.880 --> 00:20:57.599 is one of those must mulch kind of plants. In my opinion, they 289 00:20:57.720 --> 00:21:02.480 naturally have shallow roots, so they're going to lose the water that they have 290 00:21:02.559 --> 00:21:06.319 really quickly. And because this is a big leaf hydrangea, you know what 291 00:21:06.359 --> 00:21:10.799 that means, no pruning, low maintenance. Even though you can prune it, 292 00:21:10.839 --> 00:21:14.559 even though it has this ability to set those flower buds down the entire 293 00:21:14.640 --> 00:21:18.759 length of its stem, we still don't recommend that you prune it because if 294 00:21:18.799 --> 00:21:22.359 you do, you still are reducing the potential for flower buds to warm on 295 00:21:22.440 --> 00:21:26.640 it. There's few or flower buds. And when it comes to hydrangeas, 296 00:21:26.680 --> 00:21:30.000 I think we can all agree that more flowers is what we want. You 297 00:21:30.039 --> 00:21:34.759 sold me based on all those functional aspects of the plant. If you're keeping 298 00:21:34.799 --> 00:21:40.240 score at home, we're talking about let's dance sky view big leaf Hydrangea in 299 00:21:40.279 --> 00:21:45.160 the garden center, Stacy, I just simply aside from the functional aspects, 300 00:21:45.519 --> 00:21:51.400 it is just plain gorgeous. And you mentioned garden centers. Yes, in 301 00:21:51.440 --> 00:21:55.680 the garden centers. Many people may not know this, but in garden centers 302 00:21:55.720 --> 00:22:00.240 many times they'll just dress somebody up to look like a shopper and put some 303 00:22:00.279 --> 00:22:07.160 plants on their cart and roll them around the garden center because people experience something 304 00:22:07.240 --> 00:22:12.240 called kart envy. And in the garden center, I have seen people look 305 00:22:12.240 --> 00:22:18.039 at sky View Let's Dance Hydrangea and wow, what is that? Where'd you 306 00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:22.599 get it? I want one for me. So understand that in a garden 307 00:22:22.680 --> 00:22:26.960 center there's something that goes on called kurt envy. Oh I like that. 308 00:22:27.519 --> 00:22:30.880 You know that happens to the grocery store too. Yeah, exactly. Oh 309 00:22:30.920 --> 00:22:34.279 that looks good. Where'd you get that? Exactly? Yeah? That sounds 310 00:22:34.279 --> 00:22:38.400 like a good idea for dinner. So I hope you've got a fabulous picture 311 00:22:38.480 --> 00:22:42.000 of what Let's Dance sky View Hydrangel looks like in your mind. But you 312 00:22:42.000 --> 00:22:48.160 can check that out against the real thing at Gardening Simplified on air dot com. 313 00:22:48.200 --> 00:22:51.240 You can check out our show notes. We'll have pictures all the information 314 00:22:51.359 --> 00:22:53.799 you need to know about what makes Let's Dance sky View special and how you 315 00:22:53.799 --> 00:22:56.519 can grow it successfully. We're going to take a little break and when we 316 00:22:56.559 --> 00:22:59.920 come back, we're going to open up that mailbag and answer your question. 317 00:23:00.079 --> 00:23:10.599 So please stay tuned. At proven Winner's Color Choice, we've got a shrub 318 00:23:10.680 --> 00:23:14.920 for every taste and every space. Whether you're looking for an easycare rose, 319 00:23:15.119 --> 00:23:18.240 an unforgettable hydrangea, or something new and unique. You can be confident that 320 00:23:18.279 --> 00:23:22.920 the shrubs and the white containers have been trialed and tested for your success. 321 00:23:22.160 --> 00:23:27.960 Look for them at your local garden center. Greetings, gardening friends, and 322 00:23:29.119 --> 00:23:33.559 welcome back to the Gardening Simplified Show. It is one of my absolute favorite 323 00:23:33.599 --> 00:23:37.319 times of the entire week because on the Gardening Simplified Show, one of the 324 00:23:37.319 --> 00:23:41.440 things that we do to help simplify gardening for you is answer your gardening questions. 325 00:23:41.559 --> 00:23:45.400 And being the height of the season, I know there's lots of stuff 326 00:23:45.440 --> 00:23:48.960 on everyone's mind, so let's open up the mailbag and see what's out there. 327 00:23:48.200 --> 00:23:51.839 I like it too, I have lots of questions. How did I 328 00:23:51.920 --> 00:23:56.079 get here? What am I doing here? Okay, Margot writes to us, 329 00:23:56.359 --> 00:24:00.680 I love your show. Rick is so funny and Stacy is so smart. 330 00:24:00.720 --> 00:24:03.839 Now I agree with that, Margo. Thank you. Stacy is one 331 00:24:03.839 --> 00:24:10.279 of the smartest people I know. And thank you for recognizing that I have 332 00:24:10.359 --> 00:24:14.240 a sense of humus. That's just the way I wrote. That's very nice 333 00:24:14.279 --> 00:24:18.400 for you and Margo to say, But I do have to just qualify this 334 00:24:18.480 --> 00:24:22.400 a little bit. You know, gardening is one of those things that is 335 00:24:22.440 --> 00:24:26.160 really about experience. Yes, there's a lot of things that you can memorize, 336 00:24:26.240 --> 00:24:30.480 plant names, you know. I am humbly good at plants identification because 337 00:24:30.519 --> 00:24:33.279 I've internalized a lot of that. But like a lot of the advice that 338 00:24:33.359 --> 00:24:37.799 I give and things that both you and I say, they come from experience. 339 00:24:37.880 --> 00:24:41.279 And in that way, everybody can become a better gardener because it is 340 00:24:41.319 --> 00:24:47.640 based on what you observe an experience, and that's why it's so important to 341 00:24:47.880 --> 00:24:51.960 you know, be engaged and to observe what happens no matter what the weather. 342 00:24:52.039 --> 00:24:53.680 But Margo, I appreciate you saying so, yeah, and I appreciate 343 00:24:53.720 --> 00:24:57.640 that, and it is true. I mean, all joking aside, you 344 00:24:57.680 --> 00:25:00.559 know, I think that's part of what makes this show work too. I 345 00:25:00.640 --> 00:25:07.240 have many years of experience in the garden center industry, and so this combination, 346 00:25:07.519 --> 00:25:11.960 Stacy, you are the true horticulturist, and I mean that you're one 347 00:25:11.960 --> 00:25:15.599 of the smartest people I know. And so you combine someone like me who's 348 00:25:15.640 --> 00:25:19.839 a plant enthusiast with you, a true horticulturist, I think it works. 349 00:25:21.039 --> 00:25:22.079 Oh, thank you, that's so kind of you. To say, so 350 00:25:22.640 --> 00:25:26.559 it's fun. I love doing the show all right too. So let's get 351 00:25:26.599 --> 00:25:30.799 to Margo's question. Now that we've got that out of the way. I 352 00:25:30.839 --> 00:25:34.799 am an entremneur. Okay. My question is I live in the p NW, 353 00:25:36.160 --> 00:25:41.119 where it can be very damp Pacific Northwest. Yes, I just caught 354 00:25:41.160 --> 00:25:45.559 that many of my trees and shrubs have been neglected for over fifteen to twenty 355 00:25:45.640 --> 00:25:51.279 years. Now I'm discovering a lot of moss and lichens covering the branches, 356 00:25:51.359 --> 00:25:56.960 and I'm really not liking it. Well done, Margo good Sense did specifically 357 00:25:56.039 --> 00:26:00.960 right liking l h ns. Love it. She knew who she was sent 358 00:26:00.079 --> 00:26:03.839 in this message. Yeah, I like Margo. How do I get rid? 359 00:26:03.960 --> 00:26:07.720 How do I rid my garden of this? And I'm going to say, 360 00:26:07.799 --> 00:26:14.279 right off the tap, don't I agree? I like moss, I 361 00:26:14.319 --> 00:26:19.559 like lichens. I also like moss and lichens, and I think that m 362 00:26:19.799 --> 00:26:25.920 branches, you know, encrusted with different species of moss and lichens, are 363 00:26:26.079 --> 00:26:32.000 truly truly beautiful and um interesting. And you know, I love going to 364 00:26:32.119 --> 00:26:34.599 like more coastal areas. You know that that humidity in the errors where they 365 00:26:34.599 --> 00:26:40.279 can really thrive, and it's like a little garden of its own on a 366 00:26:40.359 --> 00:26:42.519 branch. And you know, margot Rick and I aren't just telling you this 367 00:26:42.599 --> 00:26:47.359 to try to persuade you to come to our side and like it. Um, 368 00:26:47.920 --> 00:26:52.359 we're telling you this because there's pretty much nothing you can do. I 369 00:26:52.400 --> 00:26:55.519 mean not to be discouraging. I never would want to just discourage people. 370 00:26:56.079 --> 00:26:59.720 But moss is one of those and lichens as well, and a moss is 371 00:26:59.759 --> 00:27:04.720 a combination of a lichen and an algae, so very similar. But you 372 00:27:04.720 --> 00:27:10.279 know, if conditions are right for moss to grow, it will, plain 373 00:27:10.359 --> 00:27:14.640 and simple, that's just how it works. Soil compaction, shade, moisture 374 00:27:14.720 --> 00:27:17.240 way, Yeah, there's a whole lot of you know, humidity and all 375 00:27:17.240 --> 00:27:21.279 of those factors that go into it. And this is why people can't just 376 00:27:21.319 --> 00:27:22.480 say, oh, I want a moss lawn. I'm going to have a 377 00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:26.200 moss lawn. Mosses is definitely one of those plants. If it can grow 378 00:27:26.200 --> 00:27:30.599 it well, and if it can't, it won't. You can't really force 379 00:27:30.640 --> 00:27:36.119 it unless you radically change your conditions. And so there's really nothing that you 380 00:27:36.160 --> 00:27:41.160 can do. There's no pesticides, even if you were inclined to spray, 381 00:27:41.200 --> 00:27:44.640 that are going to discourage the growth of moss and lichens. You can spray, 382 00:27:44.680 --> 00:27:48.720 but they're simply band aids. If the conditions are right, it's simply 383 00:27:48.759 --> 00:27:52.359 going to regrow. Yeah. Yeah, And you know it's just like you 384 00:27:52.359 --> 00:27:56.160 said, Margot, with the humidity in the Pacific Northwest, the moisture in 385 00:27:56.200 --> 00:27:59.720 the air, the coolness, those are all conditions that are right for that 386 00:27:59.759 --> 00:28:03.839 to grow. So you know, the spores that these things put out to 387 00:28:03.880 --> 00:28:07.160 reproduce are so tiny and so microscopic that there's really nothing you can do to 388 00:28:07.200 --> 00:28:11.160 stop them. The good news is that it's rarely a problem. You know, 389 00:28:11.279 --> 00:28:15.279 even if you don't necessarily like it from aesthetic standpoint, it's not going 390 00:28:15.319 --> 00:28:19.880 to harm the plant's health, you know, especially like the small mosson like, 391 00:28:21.000 --> 00:28:23.000 and it's not going to get really heavy and break branches or anything like 392 00:28:23.039 --> 00:28:29.480 that. Margo, I would accept compliments on its robust growth. Get out 393 00:28:29.519 --> 00:28:33.759 there and flex your moscles. Well, you know what Marco did include a 394 00:28:33.759 --> 00:28:37.880 photo of it, and I felt a little guilty when they opened next. 395 00:28:37.960 --> 00:28:42.039 I was like, that's gorgeous. So sorry, Margo. I you know, 396 00:28:42.079 --> 00:28:45.680 again, don't want to discourage you, but it will put the photo 397 00:28:45.680 --> 00:28:48.880 on the show notes and the audience can wait in as well. But I'm 398 00:28:48.920 --> 00:28:53.960 afraid that the best thing here is is to just live with it and try 399 00:28:53.960 --> 00:28:57.920 to see the beauty and interest in it. Thanks for the email, Margo, 400 00:28:57.960 --> 00:29:00.759 appreciate it. Christopher her Rights, Hi, Stacey and Rick. My 401 00:29:00.880 --> 00:29:06.559 husband and I are huge hydrangel lovers, especially proven winners varieties. Can you 402 00:29:06.599 --> 00:29:11.960 talk a little about the difference between the Invincibles Ruby, Mini, Mavette Garnetta 403 00:29:14.440 --> 00:29:17.079 is what's the other one? Spirit? Is it an Invincible Spirit too, 404 00:29:17.319 --> 00:29:19.599 Invincible Spirit too? Yes? Okay? Is it just size or are there 405 00:29:19.599 --> 00:29:26.039 other differences? Of course there are also the Green Blooms, Sublime Ricky, 406 00:29:26.200 --> 00:29:32.039 Yes, Sublime and Lime Ricky so yeah. So the Invincible series is we 407 00:29:32.240 --> 00:29:37.480 introduced it about twelve years ago with Invincible Spirit. And Invincible Spirit was the 408 00:29:37.559 --> 00:29:42.480 first pink hydrangea arborescence or the first pink annabel type hydrangea, and at the 409 00:29:42.559 --> 00:29:47.119 time it was really quite a breeding breakthrough. It was developed by doctor Tom 410 00:29:47.200 --> 00:29:49.680 Rainey at North Carolina State University, who we've talked about on the show many 411 00:29:49.680 --> 00:29:55.960 many times, and like so many breeding breakthroughs, once you've kind of you 412 00:29:56.319 --> 00:30:00.720 cleared that first hurdle of getting a pink flowering plant. The floodgates are open. 413 00:30:00.799 --> 00:30:04.880 And so what has happened is that as Tom has continued to develop new 414 00:30:04.960 --> 00:30:10.720 varieties, he has a field at his research station in North Carolina with literally 415 00:30:11.400 --> 00:30:15.440 hundreds and hundreds of different potential varieties. And with the Invincible series, when 416 00:30:15.440 --> 00:30:19.640 it comes to us selecting them, we're selecting for a range of sizes. 417 00:30:21.000 --> 00:30:22.640 So we do want, you know, some very very small ones like in 418 00:30:22.720 --> 00:30:26.720 Vincabele we white, and we do want more of the conventional full size one 419 00:30:26.799 --> 00:30:30.279 like they mentioned Invincible Sublime, which gets to be about five feet tall and 420 00:30:30.319 --> 00:30:34.759 wide. So we're going for a wide range of sizes and to some extent, 421 00:30:34.839 --> 00:30:38.240 a wide range of bloom times, because some of them will bloom much 422 00:30:38.240 --> 00:30:41.119 earlier and some of them will bloom a little bit later in the season. 423 00:30:41.359 --> 00:30:48.160 Even though everything in the Invincible series has some ability to rebloom, particularly if 424 00:30:48.160 --> 00:30:51.519 you deadhead it. It's not necessary, but if you want a deadhead it, 425 00:30:51.519 --> 00:30:55.759 it will put out fresh flowers. You know, you can really extend 426 00:30:55.759 --> 00:31:00.319 that season so you always have fresh flowers through the garden. By combining these, 427 00:31:00.359 --> 00:31:03.359 and of course the obvious difference is the flower color, which is usually 428 00:31:03.440 --> 00:31:07.200 right there in the name, So you know, what we're trying to do 429 00:31:07.240 --> 00:31:11.799 again is just to create that sort of palette of a plant that is really 430 00:31:11.839 --> 00:31:14.720 familiar to people, that they're comfortable with growing, that they know they can 431 00:31:14.759 --> 00:31:18.880 be successful with, but in a wide range of you know, sizes and 432 00:31:18.960 --> 00:31:22.319 styles, so that no matter what's your taste, no matter how much space 433 00:31:22.359 --> 00:31:26.279 you have, no matter what color palette you're working with, there is an 434 00:31:26.319 --> 00:31:30.799 option. But since they pretty much all derive from the same breeding program, 435 00:31:32.599 --> 00:31:37.599 you know, they're all similar in terms of their needs and ultimately their performance, 436 00:31:37.640 --> 00:31:40.720 how long they bloom and that kind of thing. So they're great plants. 437 00:31:40.759 --> 00:31:42.480 And if you you know, we talked a lot about let's dand skybew 438 00:31:42.920 --> 00:31:47.400 in plants on trial, So that's going to be like a zone four hardy 439 00:31:47.799 --> 00:31:51.680 if you live in a colder climate or you just love the animal type hydrangeas, 440 00:31:51.799 --> 00:31:55.039 these are going to be hardy to USDA Zone three and heat tolerant to 441 00:31:55.200 --> 00:31:57.720 USDA Zone eight. So a good portion of the country can be successful with 442 00:31:57.759 --> 00:32:01.559 them. Fabulous plants people keeping score at home, Stacy. These are what 443 00:32:01.599 --> 00:32:07.119 we would consider the arborescence or smooth hydraane. Correct, right, Yes, 444 00:32:07.200 --> 00:32:09.480 all right, Pat asks us, I would like to know what thistle plant 445 00:32:09.480 --> 00:32:14.039 I can grow in my flower garden that would not be invasive, but yet 446 00:32:14.039 --> 00:32:17.319 the goldfinches would eat the seed and use the fluffy material from the thistle flower 447 00:32:17.440 --> 00:32:22.000 for nesting. Great question, Pat, That's one of my favorite things about 448 00:32:22.039 --> 00:32:27.200 globe thistle is watching the finches all over it. And when we interviewed the 449 00:32:27.200 --> 00:32:31.160 birdman a few months ago, he of course reminded us that finches are late 450 00:32:31.240 --> 00:32:34.799 nesters and we'll take advantage of it. Yeah. And I was really glad 451 00:32:34.839 --> 00:32:37.559 passed this question too, because I think it's a great one. And she 452 00:32:37.680 --> 00:32:40.839 has a really good point, because there are a number of invasive weedy thistles 453 00:32:42.359 --> 00:32:45.000 in the US that you certainly would not want to plant in your garden in 454 00:32:45.039 --> 00:32:51.519 the attempt to attract goldfinches. But I think you really made a great point 455 00:32:51.559 --> 00:32:54.359 by mentioning the globe thistle. And so the simple answer here, Pat, 456 00:32:54.400 --> 00:33:00.480 is that any plant in the daisy family and the astacy, almost all of 457 00:33:00.480 --> 00:33:05.960 them make some fluff on their seed heads, and those are great choices. 458 00:33:06.119 --> 00:33:09.160 You know, goldfinches are not limited to thistle. They also love milkweed, 459 00:33:09.839 --> 00:33:15.920 and milkweed has tons of fluffed incredible and it's coming out at this time of 460 00:33:15.920 --> 00:33:20.359 the year. So all of these options, you know from whether they are 461 00:33:20.400 --> 00:33:22.839 you know, out in the wild or in your garden, provide a lot 462 00:33:22.880 --> 00:33:28.119 of nesting material. And I've talked about one of the I think you could 463 00:33:28.160 --> 00:33:31.960 say signature plants in my garden Selfium, porfoliateum or cup plant just starting going 464 00:33:31.960 --> 00:33:37.960 in my garden over the weekend last weekend covered in goldfinches outstand. Yeah, 465 00:33:37.000 --> 00:33:40.079 and so anything that has seed at this time of the year, the goldfinches 466 00:33:40.119 --> 00:33:43.640 will be all too happy to take off your hands. Yeah. Add some 467 00:33:44.839 --> 00:33:49.559 in your garden flowers and a cozens also, I've found finches like zenias. 468 00:33:50.079 --> 00:33:53.400 You can't beat that color combination. All right, So thank everyone so much 469 00:33:53.440 --> 00:33:57.200 for your questions. If you have a question for us, just visit Gardening 470 00:33:57.279 --> 00:34:00.480 Simplified on air dot com. You'll find the show outs as well as a 471 00:34:00.559 --> 00:34:02.279 contact form. We're going to take a little break. When we come back. 472 00:34:02.279 --> 00:34:10.840 You know what time it is branching news, so stay tuned. The 473 00:34:10.920 --> 00:34:15.519 Gardening Simplified Show is brought to you by proven winners Color Choice Shrubs, our 474 00:34:15.639 --> 00:34:21.239 award winning flowering shrubs and evergreens have been trialed and tested for your success, 475 00:34:21.599 --> 00:34:24.880 so you enjoy more beauty and less work. Look for proven winners color choice 476 00:34:24.880 --> 00:34:31.559 shrubs in the distinctive white container at your local garden center. Welcome back to 477 00:34:31.599 --> 00:34:36.920 the Gardening Simplified Show. It's time for branching news. Here's some breaking news. 478 00:34:36.960 --> 00:34:42.119 We were chatting during the break and our amazing engineer and producer Adriana Robinson 479 00:34:42.159 --> 00:34:45.960 made a point about the finches, because we're always looking for some fluff for 480 00:34:46.039 --> 00:34:50.639 their nesting. You had an idea, yeah, hot tips. So I 481 00:34:50.760 --> 00:34:55.639 have a Siberian husky who sheds all the time, all year, and I 482 00:34:55.719 --> 00:35:00.880 like to brush him outside because I've noticed that a lot of the goldfinches love 483 00:35:00.920 --> 00:35:05.199 to scoop up a lot of that fluffy hair he leaves behind and they take 484 00:35:05.239 --> 00:35:07.159 it for their nests. So you don't have to clean up inside, and 485 00:35:07.199 --> 00:35:12.760 you're helping the birds out and they probably don't even know the difference between milkweed 486 00:35:12.760 --> 00:35:16.400 fluff and atlas fluff. So it works for me. Absolutely. That can't 487 00:35:16.400 --> 00:35:20.920 beat that, all right. You're struggling to feel healthy. A new study 488 00:35:20.960 --> 00:35:24.000 revealed how the weather and sunlight played a significant role in US feeling better in 489 00:35:24.000 --> 00:35:29.800 the summer than any other time of the year. So two thousand US adults 490 00:35:29.880 --> 00:35:35.760 revealed seventy five percent feel more encouraged and healthy if the weather is perfect and 491 00:35:35.960 --> 00:35:42.280 the skies are sunny. I'm kind of like, duh, yeah, So 492 00:35:42.360 --> 00:35:45.679 I don't even know why I'm bringing this up, other than again, you 493 00:35:45.719 --> 00:35:51.199 know, weak garden during the summer season. Don't give up. Keep gardening 494 00:35:51.800 --> 00:35:57.000 and enjoy the sunshine. It's not a fig leaf of your imagination. When 495 00:35:57.000 --> 00:36:00.880 you're out there in the sunshine working in your garden, you're feeling good, 496 00:36:00.119 --> 00:36:04.480 yeah, and you know, it's good just to see all of the life. 497 00:36:05.079 --> 00:36:07.079 And that's what I really realized recently as I was like, you know, 498 00:36:07.119 --> 00:36:12.119 in the winter, things are just so like stagnant. You don't get 499 00:36:12.159 --> 00:36:15.320 all the change. And you know, if you're sitting outside for even ten 500 00:36:15.360 --> 00:36:19.719 minutes, so much happens, birds and bugs and plants, and that is 501 00:36:19.760 --> 00:36:22.000 good for your mood. It's stimulating, it's stimulating. It's all sun and 502 00:36:22.159 --> 00:36:25.920 games till you run out of light, and which reminds me Stacy. Soon 503 00:36:25.960 --> 00:36:34.119 we'll be talking about our favorite subject, no daylight saving time all right, 504 00:36:34.159 --> 00:36:38.440 the National Weather Service said this past week it wasn't a large swarm of grasshoppers. 505 00:36:38.880 --> 00:36:45.239 It's radar imaging caught moving into northwest Utah after all. A week after 506 00:36:45.320 --> 00:36:51.960 announcing the alarming discovery, the Weather Service reported that further analysis showed that the 507 00:36:52.159 --> 00:36:57.559 unusual blip on the radar was most likely caused by material released from a US 508 00:36:57.639 --> 00:37:05.039 Air Force base in Vada. Now that's interesting. The chaff or yeah, 509 00:37:05.199 --> 00:37:09.280 chaff, they call it chaff a radar, a substance called chaff, a 510 00:37:09.400 --> 00:37:16.599 reflective substance deployed by the military to confuse radars or guided missiles. So it 511 00:37:16.679 --> 00:37:23.639 wasn't grasshoppers after all, It was this chaff. Interesting, but peanut people 512 00:37:23.840 --> 00:37:30.039 just panic for a little while, thinking there was this huge mass of grasshoppers 513 00:37:30.039 --> 00:37:36.880 on radar moving into the area. Well, that's scary. Thought. Gives 514 00:37:36.920 --> 00:37:43.400 me the weekly opportunity to share with you a dad joke a grasshopper. Grasshopper 515 00:37:43.480 --> 00:37:46.840 walks into a bar and the bartender says, hey, do you know we 516 00:37:46.920 --> 00:37:51.199 have a drink named after you? And the grasshopper says, you have a 517 00:37:51.280 --> 00:37:59.880 drink named Fred Johnson. Okay. Drought stricken Arizona is baking in the sear 518 00:38:00.239 --> 00:38:04.280 heat. We've all heard the news of the heat in Arizona. The Scottsdale 519 00:38:04.280 --> 00:38:09.679 City Council unanimously agreed this past week to ban natural grass in front of future 520 00:38:10.280 --> 00:38:19.559 single family homes in an effort to conserve water. So they're they're banning lawns 521 00:38:20.000 --> 00:38:23.920 there in Scottsdale. You know, that's um, that's a a heavy step, 522 00:38:24.079 --> 00:38:29.079 but especially in I mean, lawns are very water intensive here in Michigan, 523 00:38:29.239 --> 00:38:32.239 even in the summer, even in a normal summer when we don't have 524 00:38:32.440 --> 00:38:36.840 you knows as little rain as we've had this year. So in a climate 525 00:38:36.880 --> 00:38:38.840 like Arizona, which is a natural desert, that's going to be even more 526 00:38:38.880 --> 00:38:43.000 water where water is scarce. So, um, you know, I think 527 00:38:43.000 --> 00:38:46.039 it's really just a matter of just getting people's eyes used to seeing something else 528 00:38:46.119 --> 00:38:50.639 and then it will sort of become a lot less weird to people who are 529 00:38:50.679 --> 00:38:53.079 just accustomed to lawns as being the default choice. Yeah. I think so 530 00:38:53.159 --> 00:38:59.000 too, and Stacy. According to this this news story, this is the 531 00:38:59.039 --> 00:39:04.239 part that I found interesting. According to Scottsdale City Council, feedback gathered from 532 00:39:04.320 --> 00:39:12.519 Scottsdale water customers in June found eighty six percent of those who responded supported the 533 00:39:12.639 --> 00:39:15.199 ordinance. Oh wow, that's good. Glad to hear that. So I 534 00:39:15.239 --> 00:39:20.559 guess not a lot of crankiness going on it, and no longer cranky people 535 00:39:20.679 --> 00:39:23.480 saying get off my lawn. Right, Well, people aren't going to go 536 00:39:23.519 --> 00:39:29.239 on their lawn because instead of grass is the people lancing tactus. Very good 537 00:39:29.239 --> 00:39:32.960 deterrent. And some people aren't necessarily into lawn. I mean, some people 538 00:39:34.159 --> 00:39:37.920 very much into their lawns, but some people just just not into their lawns 539 00:39:38.159 --> 00:39:43.719 and the maintenance. I remember once I had an old more I put out 540 00:39:43.800 --> 00:39:47.880 by the road and put a sign next to it that said free. Someone 541 00:39:47.960 --> 00:39:53.039 came by and took the sign left them ower. True true story. So 542 00:39:53.519 --> 00:40:00.280 anyhow, all right, I probably should have been more specific with that to 543 00:40:00.519 --> 00:40:05.519 sign. A woman in Massachusetts decided to buy herself something she's always wanted for 544 00:40:05.599 --> 00:40:10.760 her ninety seventh birthday, a top of the line John Dear tractor. Ah, 545 00:40:12.159 --> 00:40:15.519 now that's interesting. What's she gonna do with it? She just likes 546 00:40:15.559 --> 00:40:22.440 to take her tractor out for a ride for fun. She says, whether 547 00:40:22.480 --> 00:40:25.840 the grass needs cutting or not, I go around, I check and drive 548 00:40:25.920 --> 00:40:30.159 around. Her home sits on a beautiful two point five acres of land. 549 00:40:30.599 --> 00:40:36.559 She says, it keeps me busy. And she said, even before her 550 00:40:36.639 --> 00:40:40.519 husband passed away, the four foot eight inch firecracker, that's what they're calling 551 00:40:40.519 --> 00:40:45.320 her, always had a love of landscaping. She had a pushmower when she 552 00:40:45.400 --> 00:40:50.039 was a younger girl. But she said, now forget it, I can't 553 00:40:50.079 --> 00:40:54.519 push the lawnmowers. So she got herself a John Dear tractor. Wow. 554 00:40:54.599 --> 00:40:58.960 Well, you know, two point two acres is a lot for a pushmower. 555 00:40:59.039 --> 00:41:01.400 So, like, I think she should have treated herself a little earlier. 556 00:41:01.519 --> 00:41:05.519 Frankly, I think so too. I think so too. She's now 557 00:41:05.519 --> 00:41:12.119 a media sensation. They tracked her down. Recently published research. It indicates 558 00:41:12.159 --> 00:41:16.920 that monarch butterflies live year round in South Carolina. What did you catch that? 559 00:41:17.199 --> 00:41:20.880 That's wild? No, I didn't. We're gonna put the story the 560 00:41:21.039 --> 00:41:25.880 length there at Gardening Simplified OnAir dot Com. Please visit our website Gardening Simplified 561 00:41:25.960 --> 00:41:30.800 OnAir dot Com. Of course, you can send us questions also and take 562 00:41:30.840 --> 00:41:32.639 a look at the show notes and we'll put it there. Yes, recently 563 00:41:32.679 --> 00:41:38.039 published research indicates that monarch butterflies live year round in South Carolina, relying on 564 00:41:38.119 --> 00:41:43.920 swamps in spring, summer and fall, and sea islands in the winter. 565 00:41:44.639 --> 00:41:50.840 While these monarchs rely heavily on aquatic milkweed as a host plant for their eggs 566 00:41:50.840 --> 00:41:55.400 and caterpillars, they were also found to use swallow wart, a viny relative 567 00:41:55.440 --> 00:42:01.719 of milkweed that grows near salt marshes and was previously recognized as an important host 568 00:42:01.880 --> 00:42:09.320 plant for monarch. So this is pretty interesting. Their establishing monarchs are overwintering 569 00:42:09.360 --> 00:42:15.960 in South Carolina rather than migrating to the well known sites in Mexico. That's 570 00:42:15.000 --> 00:42:19.679 fascinating. I had no idea. Yeah, so very interesting. Now, 571 00:42:19.679 --> 00:42:23.360 of course, the monarchs in this study were more concentrated in maritime habitats, 572 00:42:23.400 --> 00:42:30.119 so barrier islands that are directly on the ocean in winter, but pretty wide 573 00:42:30.360 --> 00:42:36.119 widely disperse, So there you go. Finally, in branching news, this 574 00:42:36.239 --> 00:42:42.039 was interesting. A fallen tree blocking a nearby road trapped more than one hundred 575 00:42:42.039 --> 00:42:45.800 people this past week at the home of Agatha Christie, the late crime writer 576 00:42:46.039 --> 00:42:51.880 regarded as the best selling novelist of all time. One visitor to Christie's Greenway 577 00:42:51.920 --> 00:42:54.719 House in England said she arrived at eleven thirty in the morning and was stuck 578 00:42:54.760 --> 00:42:59.880 there for hours because there's only one road in and out of the air. 579 00:43:00.320 --> 00:43:06.360 It sounds like a mystery in the making. Exactly, exactly, so fantastic 580 00:43:07.360 --> 00:43:10.480 story. Yes, it's gonna require some detective work to figure out why and 581 00:43:10.639 --> 00:43:16.039 how this happened. But at the home of Agatha Christie, a fallen tree 582 00:43:16.480 --> 00:43:21.840 and your I guess there's worse places to be stuck. Sure, yeah, 583 00:43:21.880 --> 00:43:24.719 I mean she probably she was a very avid gardener in fact, so I'm 584 00:43:24.760 --> 00:43:30.639 sure her home there in England has pretty fabulous gardens. And you know, 585 00:43:30.679 --> 00:43:32.039 if there's a place that you're going to be stuck, a garden is a 586 00:43:32.199 --> 00:43:37.199 pretty good place for it. Thank you so much for watching us on YouTube 587 00:43:37.239 --> 00:43:42.880 of course, looking for the podcast, share it with friends and neighbors listening 588 00:43:42.920 --> 00:43:45.519 to us on the radio and Stacy, thank you very mulch Thank you, 589 00:43:45.599 --> 00:43:49.320 Rick, and thank you Adrianna, you bet you, and thank you to 590 00:43:49.360 --> 00:43:52.599 our listeners. Oh yes, exactly big, thank you, very mulchos all 591 00:43:52.639 --> 00:43:55.320 around. Thanks Adrianna, have yourself a great week.