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lary1047

Building new Perennials Beds and fountain care need suggestions??

lary1047
18 years ago

Good Morning everyone from SE Michigan!!

We are building a new Perennial bed Hurray Hurray!! This bed will get in some areas 5 to 6 hours of sun light facing south and then 3 to 4 in the other area because it is next to a house facing east. We have also installed a small fountain.

A few of the plant ideas we have been looking at are: Coreopsis (not sure what types),Becky Daisy,Phlox (Starfire or up for suggestions),Lobelia (either cardinal flower or Queen Victoria purple leaves not sure which one), jupiters Beard,Shamrock,Loraine Sunshine Sunflower(Ox Eye), and maybe some type of Hardy astor (nice color not sure what type). We put in the area last fall Lord Baltimore Hibiscus however no signs of either plant coming back as of yet!!

There are so many flowers it is hard to know the hardy ones that will be good in our Zone 5 in the Detroit/ Ann Arbor Michigan area.

We are looking for a nice display of color and from Spring till Fall. So there could be a number of small patches that we can build. Height wise it could go from border area to 3 to 4 feet in height. We tried crocosmia in one area and it did not winter over at all.

As for the fountain, it is a small pre cast concrete fountain. What is the care and feeding of a small fountain??? Do we leave it on all the time even while we are gone during the day? Or do we shut it off and start it up when we will be there to enjoy it. I was told to put bleach in to cut the chance of green or black alga. Neeed suggestions on how to take care of it! Also if we leave it on and it runs out of water because we did not watch it carefully will the motor burn out?

Thanks for your time and suggestion, Happy Summer to come to everyone.

The Happy Gardeners

Comments (2)

  • sheryl_ontario
    18 years ago

    I wouldn't leave it running 24/7 because of the chance that it will run dry. A little algicide or tiny amt of bleach is a good idea to prevent algae, if you're not growing things or have wildlife using it. Keep checking the water level to make sure it has enough water as the water will evaporate and you will lose a little from spashing as it runs.

    Sounds lovely!

  • Louise
    18 years ago

    I have about a dozen Phlox's but have never been able to keep Starfire alive - you might have better luck with David (pure white) or Bright Eyes (pink with a darker pink eye) instead. Also the lobelias need shade and moist conditions (the cardinal more than the blue). Becky has been the best shasta for me. Coreopsis is bullet proof and will bloom for a long time but the new red one, Mahogany something, is not hardy here. I personally don't like gaudy bright gold-yellow but wouldn't be without Coreopsis Moonbeam, a softer sulfur yellow. Be sure to add in some early and late bloomers too. Good luck.

    Louise