Wall Germander

(Teucrium chamaedrys)

Appearance
Bees, hummingbirds, butterflies, and gardeners all appreciate the lovely purple-pink flowers of Wall Germander. Imported from the mountains of southwest Asia and Europe, this woody herb resembles a diminutive, flowering boxwood, growing about one to two feet high and wide. Germander has small, oval shaped leaves of glossy green. The short flower spikes appear in mid-summer and continue until fall. Their minty scent perfumes the air (and may attract the neighborhood cat).

 

Calibrachoa

Appearance
Imagine a petite petunia with intensely-colored, trumpet-shaped blossoms in shades such as magenta, violet, or copper. Flowers smother the slightly fuzzy, gray-green leaves from late spring until the first hard frost. Prolific flowering means that new flowers quickly replace those damaged by hail, a major asset in our area. Mature plants reach about eighteen inches in width and are less than a foot high. A relative newcomer on the garden scene, Calibrachoa has already gained a place of honor among annual flowers.

 

Upside-down Tomatoes?

We’ve probably all seen the ads for growing upside down tomatoes. They’re the Big New Idea in gardening. The question everyone is asking is, do they work here in Colorado?

Carol O’Meara is the horticultural extension agent in Boulder county. She has decided to find out for herself if growing tomatoes upside-down works in our climate, and is sharing the ongoing results of her experiment on her blog, Gardening After Five. She brings up a number of important issues; reading her article is a good place to start.