Grab That Bag of M&M’s®

February 8th, 2010 Vicki

Master gardener, Judy Moskoff, shares her favorite “chocolate idea” for your February garden.

With Valentine’s Day quickly approaching I’m thinking chocolate—ok, so I always think chocolate. In this case, I’m thinking chocolate plants.

This year I’m trying a couple of new ones, but I also have some old favorites to share.

New: Black Peony Breadseed Poppy It is still in seed form from Chocolate Flower Farm and I will sow the seeds outside around April 15^th (two weeks before the average last killer frost). According to Maria at the Chocolate Flower Farm, poppies don’t always transplant well, so if you decide to start them from seed inside be sure to start them in peat pots and plant them directly into the ground.

New: Hollyhock ‘Nigra’ (Alcea rosea) These seeds need to be planted in ground in early summer. Maria writes that plants started in early spring or started indoors early tend to loose their perennial habit and are more susceptible to disease. Hollyhocks were a favorite of my dad, so I was thrilled to see this unusual dark chocolate colored flower.

Old Favorite: Ajuga We have it in our gardens and pots. Easy to grow is‘Chocolate Chip’ Ajuga. Leaves are about the size of your little finger and it makes a wonderful groundcover in an area your dog or children might play. For even larger, showier foliage choose Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’. It has glossy, scalloped, dark burgundy to almost black foliage. I’ve had great luck growing it in part sun.

Old Favorite: Huechera common name Coral Bells There are too many to list, but these are also readily available at local nurseries. For chocolate varieties try‘Brownies’, ‘Chocolate Ruffles’, ‘Mocha’, and ‘Melting Fire’. I like to mix them with one called ‘Caramel’ –it just sounds good. ‘Caramel’ has copper, apricot and gold leaves with a rosy underside that blends well with the deep brown and burgundy of the chocolate varieties.

Old Favorite: Hydrangea macrophylla Now in its second year in our garden is“Lady in Red”. Just like its name, it doesn’t disappoint! The red stems and the foliage are just as wonderful as the lacecap flower. You can control the flower color by adjusting the ph in your soil, but this one is really about the reddish-purple foliage in the fall!

Grab that bag of M&M’s® and daydream of your own chocolate garden! Happy gardening!
~ Judy Moskoff at agardenershome.blogspot.com

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