What To Plant/Transplant (Part One)
By C. Rae Hozer, Cumberland County Master Gardener
The first step in making plant recommendations for any landscape is to clarify the needs, likes and dislikes of the property owner and to learn about conditions at the site.
A homeowner request for a list of plants that would survive at one of the highest elevations in the county (about 3,000 feet above sea level) was received by our local University of Tennessee Extension office. The message was waiting when I came in one morning for Ask-a-Master-Gardener work. Someone had scribbled “Rae ?” at the top.
Gathering so much information wouldn’t be easy or quick. A phone call to narrow the search scope was a necessity. Tennessee supports a rich diversity of plant and animal life. Listing just plants native to middle and east Tennessee could fill a very large book. Beyond native species, many ornamentals which originated in similar climates in other parts of the world (“exotics”) would be hardy here, as would a lot of hybrid plants and cultivated varieties. What plant categories should be considered—trees, shrubs, and/or herbaceous perennials? flowering and/or foliage plants? evergreens and/or deciduous trees and shrubs? Were there particular “must have” plants? Knowing roses or a ground cover were desired, I could suggest plants in either category that should perform well in our area.
Then the office telephone started ringing. That diverted my time and attention. Home gardener phone-in questions, walk-ins and call-backs left no time to work on a plant list. Wet, humid weather has caused yard and garden problems from flower beds to the vegetable patch. Lawns are being overrun by weedy grasses. Poor soil drainage is showing up in places that never had those troubles before. We’re advising homeowners whose needle evergreens develop dead branches but show no sign of bugs, to dig down and check for dark or slimy roots (root rot) before spraying insecticides. One caller described creeping phlox plants that had been growing so well they needed thinning and were transplanted to new areas every year. This spring and summer those same plants turned gray from fungus and died. Tomatoes are showing leaf spot disease and every kind of blight imaginable.
I also took calls from two (new) vegetable gardeners whose tomato plants were tall, healthy-looking and a nice green color– but had no fruit. I suspected an overdose of nitrogen fertilizer. That pushes plants to make lots of leaf and stem growth rather than producing flowers and fruit. Too little sunlight hurts tomato production, too. Clouds blocking the sun during June and July have delayed fruit development on some tomato varieties. These gardeners were using organics- one chicken manure, the other horse manure. Vegetable growers using synthetic fertilizers may find it easier to measure the amount of nitrogen being applied. With more experience, organic gardeners usually develop a better feel for how much is too much.
I telephoned. A lady (the adult daughter of the gardener who asked for the hardy plant list) answered. I explained the need to narrow the focus to the types of plants her father wished to grow. Her accent indicated the family might be from the British Isles, Australia or New Zealand and not familiar with USDA Hardiness Zones. I suggested they visit Discovery Gardens, demonstration gardens planned and planted by Cumberland County Master Gardeners during their initial training. These gardens are open to the public daily during daylight hours.
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