The Wonders of "Plant Select"

Any chance you're interested in perennials that are colorful, but still Colorado tough? Trees and shrubs that look right at home with a Rocky Mountains backdrop, but still have enough eye appeal to turn heads? How about ornamental grasses that seem exotic, but perform like veterans in this challenging climate? Details of these gardening temptations and dozens more are the focus of Plant Select.

What is Plant Select?

Plant Select is a remarkable program run jointly by Colorado State University and Denver Botanic Gardens along with in-put from landscape and gardening professionals, like our experts here at Tagawa Gardens.

Plant Select's goal is to find plants that thrive from the High Plains to the intermountain regions. The program is now in its fourteenth year of promoting plants that are under-used, under-appreciated, and in some cases, virtually undiscovered until they enter the Plant Select evaluation process.

Most of the Plant Select winners need only moderate to very little watering, once they're "established." That generally means they need a couple of seasons of growth to develop the robust rootsystem that will help them become drought-tolerant. The Plant Select varieties are largely low-maintenance and fairly pest-free.

For example....

Okay, let's talk specifics. One of the 2011 Plant Select winners that's on the top of my "must have" list is "Grand Mesa" beardtongue. Here is the official Plant Selection description: "Stunning cobalt blue spikes in early spring last for nearly two months. Dense mat of evergreen rosettes turn a lovely orange-red in winter." I mean really. Who wouldn't want a few of these in their garden?

Like all Plant Select winners, Grand Mesa beardtongue had to survive a three- to five-year testing and review trial before it could even be nominated for inclusion. If the plants don't make the mark, they don't make the list.

Another 2011 winner that will find its way home to my garden: "Blonde Ambition" blue gramma grass. Plant Select calls it "An impressive highly ornamental form of Western native grass with tall, upright stems. Showy chartreuse, aging-to- blonde seed heads hold their straight shape and are displayed high above the foliage through the winter." Need I say more?

A Mix of Old and New

Some of the Plant Select winners have been around for a while, but simply haven't received the attention they deserve. One of this year's winners is Partridge Feather. It's soft and silvery, but tough as nails. My 110-pound black lab, ("Jake," just for the record) used it for years as a bed during his afternoon nap. Jake is gone now, but the Partridge Feather has never missed a beat. It's still big and thriving, and sends up tiny yellow flowers which you can keep or snip off, depending on your preference.

Let's not overlook Plant Select's great list of trees and shrubs. One of my favorites (now growing happily in my back yard) is "Hot Wings" Tatarian maple. What a stunner! It has brilliant red samaras. We called this sort of winged seed "helicopters" as kids. The Plant Select description says "Hot Wings' scarlet red samaras contrasting with the rich green foliage gives it a "Christmas in July" appearance. Slow-growing, but worth the wait.

Need design help?

You're in luck! Plant Select offers beautiful pictures of a variety of free, downloadable landscape plans and ideas. The illustrations help you see what plants play well with eachother, and show exactly how to contrast colors and textures for a lush, natural-looking garden.

Where to next?

Your next stop should be at the Plant Select website, http://www.plantselect.org/
Pictures of all of the winners, their latin names, their mature size and growing conditions and several landscape plans are laid out in a very user-friendly way.

Or just come see us at Tagawa's. We have dozens of the Plant Select winners, with plenty of advice and encouragement to help you get up and running on your own impressive Plant Select garden.

What's a "Pack Trial?" Glad you asked!

If you've never heard the term "pack trial," no problem. The veteran plant experts and Tagawa Gardens know all about them, and they use that knowledge every spring to help make your Colorado garden the best it can be. Pack trials are special displays of thousands of new and improved plants... mostly annuals, but some perennials. The pack trials that are of the greatest interest to Tagawa's are held every spring in California. And what a show it is! This event is officially called the Spring Trials by the gardening association that organizes it. This year's trials have just wrapped up. Kris and Jere, Tagawa's Annuals and Production Managers, are now back in Colorado... their heads spinning with the names and images of "must have" plants for Tagawa's customers. More than forty plant breeders and growers hosted fellow members of the green industry this year. Jere and Kris picked the crem de la crem to visit during their week-long stay to see which new plants and planting ideas showed the most promise for Colorado gardens. Here are some things to look for, either this growing season or next. Both of our experts were impressed with a new tomato called "Tomaccio." Kris says it's a sweet raisin tomato with an intense sugary flavor. It can be picked fresh or left to dry on the vine. Wow! Even if the plants aren't available for this summer's garden, Kris hopes to have some samples of the fruit for "show and tell" during Tagawa's "Tomatopalooza" in late summer. I can't wait! Also impressive: a new pink poinsettia. "Big deal" you say? Well listen to this. The grower offering this poinsettia is hoping to see these pretty pink plants used at baby showers, wedding showers and in mixed containers. Stay tuned! Both Jere and Kris give a "hats off" to Proven Winners, an on-going favorite of Tagawa customers. Proven Winners is working on some new colors for their Callibrachoa Superbells, including a plant called "Cherry Star." The flowers are a dark cherry-pink with yellow stars at their center. And more Callie Superbells with names like "Sweet Tart" and "Tequila Sunrise" are in the works. A product you'll definitely be seeing at Tagawa's this spring is called "Wooly Pockets." It's vertical or up-right gardening as you've never seen it before. Wooly Pockets won the "Best of Show" award at last year's Independent Garden Center convention. Tagawa's staff will be happy to show you Wooly Pockets, then it's up to you to let your imagination run wild! Tagawa Gardens works closely with Ball Horticulture, one of the most innovative plant breeders in the country. Ball is always a favorite stop for our crew on their Spring Trials visit. Kris and Jere were both grabbing for their cameras when they saw Ball's garden bed of Osteospermum "3-D." Kris says these African Daisies do, indeed, look three-dimensional! They come in lilac, white and blue, and have large centers with double petals that don't close at night or on cloudy days. These will definitely be a "must have" for African daisy fans. Also this season or next, watch for a new Echinacea or coneflower called "Double Scoop Raspberry." They should be a perennial in Zone 5, which covers much of the front range. The list of great new plants on display at the Spring Trials goes on and on.. a bush-type portulaca or moss rose called "Happy Hour," a new gazania that is a perfect Bronco orange, a large begonia called "The Big Whopper," and a new petunia called "Pink Lemonade." Some of these plants may be available this season. For others, we'll have to wait 'til next year. But rest assured: Jere and Kris and many more plant experts at Tagawa's are always "out there," doing their homework, to make sure our customers can choose from the best and brightest ideas in the world sof gardening.

Tagawa's "Enchanted Gardens"

Those of us who work at Tagawa Gardens routinely think of this as a magical place. But there's even more magic here than you might suspect! One section of our huge garden center holds the stuff of tiny fairies and gnomes and woodland spirits that can capture the imagination of kids... and kids-at-heart. I'm talking about Fairy Gardens.... miniature landscapes that require little more than a few plants, a few props and a sense of fun. Tagawa's has the plants and props. You bring your sense of fun and adventure, and you'll be amazed at what you can make. The tiny worlds we know as Fairy Gardens have been around for a while in up-scale settings and professionally-managed landscapes, but they've never been more accessible to home gardeners (and their children) than they are now. In fact, a Fairy Garden birthday party is a great way to celebrate your child's special day in a unique way. (Contact Tagawa's Outreach Department for details.) Tagawa's sells Fairy Garden kits that are ready to assemble, or you can pick and choose your own container and decorate it with accessories from our extensive display. Like any container garden, your Fairy Garden will need to have adequate drainage so the soil doesn't retain too much water. Shallow containers a few inches deep work best to keep the plants' root systems a little confined. That helps keep the plants from growing so big they're hard to manage. Make sure to use a top-quality soil. Tagawa's experienced staff can recommend brands of container soils that we know and trust. A variety of plants that fit the proportions of your container will make all the difference in creating a tiny garden that truly looks like a landscape in miniature. Choose plants with different leaf color and texture. A twelve-inch-square garden might have three plants.... one to give height and serve as your "tree," and maybe two or three more shorter plants to help fill things in and give your fairy hideout its personality: woodland garden, country garden, seaside garden.... whatever you like. Just make sure the plants you choose have similar requirements for light and water. In other words, don't put a cactus next to a fern. They won't play well together. Fairy Garden plants might be small houseplants or herbs.... low-growing groundcovers,,,, even moss. Our staff will be happy to help you with your selection. Remember that most Fairy Gardens will appreciate some bright light, though probably not strong afternoon sun, to be their best. Before you take your plants out of their tiny pots, arrange them this way and that until you find just the design that suits you. Remember not to put in too many plants. You'll want to save plenty of room for accessories that create just the right setting to please even the fussiest gnomes and fairies. Tagawa's has a delightful selection of charming fairy-sized tables and chairs, arbors, gazebos and gateways, fences, birdhouses and beehives. I promise: you'll have a hard time choosing! And by all means, don't forget the fairies and gnomes. Big... small.... simple... elaborate. Perch them on a little bench or next to a small "pond." Fairy-sized pets are welcome too. Tagawa's has tiny dogs and cats, frogs and turtles.... dragons and unicorns... a whole zoo of Fairy Garden critters. You can also add finishing touches from Mother Nature: tiny pinecones that look like trees, or rocks that appear to be boulders. Sticks and dried foliage from your "real" garden can look right at home in a fairy landscape,too. Your Fairy Garden plants will need watering whenever the top inch or so of soil dries out. Any watering can with a soft, gentle spray will work nicely. Avoid fertilizing your fairy plants. You want them to stay small and in proportion. Frequent trimming of the foliage will help keep them in check, too. As a finishing touch, how about a little "fairy dust," (also known as glitter...). Come see Tagawa's big Fairy Garden, complete with a castle and walkways tiny plants of every shape and size. And browse through our Fairy Garden display. Listen carefully, and you might hear some tiny voices, asking for a garden of their own in your home.

Make Your Own Porch Pots. It's Easy!

If you're looking for something a little different to spice up your holiday decorating, "porch pots" could be the answer. They're fun and easy and Tagawa Gardens is here to give you all of the help and supplies you need.

What's a "porch pot," anyway?
A porch pot is a bit like a big flower arrangement. But instead of using flowers and ferns, you use fresh-cut evergreen stems and branches. The star of the porch pot cast of characters is usually a few "spruce tops." These are two- to four-foot tall sections of white spruce specially-grown for this type of decorative use. Harvesting the spruce tops doesn't harm the tree. The entire crop is sustainable, or you can be sure Tagawa's wouldn't recommend it.

The spruce tops look like slender little Christmas trees. Pop a few of them into the ceramic containers, whiskey barrels or whatever you have... containers that already spent the growing season on your deck or patio. Get this far, and you're well on your way to making your first porch pot. (And you're not looking at an empty container all winter!)

Porch pots can also be planted in fiberpots, and dropped down into your existing containers. Windowboxes can make beautiful porch pots, too.

What other materials do I need?
You won't need a thing we don't have at Tagawa's. By late-November, the bins in our Christmas tree area fill up with fresh, fragrant greenery from throughout the country. Incense cedar with its beautful draping branches, just right for cascading over the edge of your pot. Berried juniper, loaded with dozens of grey-blue clusters of tiny berries. Princess pine and shore pine and so much more.

Picking a variety of needle lengths and textures will add interest to your porch pot, and give it a professional touch. Tagawa's sells the greenery by the pound, so you can buy as much or as little as you like.

Ready. Set. GO!
Give all of your greenery a fresh angled cut with a sharp pair of pruners as you plant. Select a spruce top (or other striking piece of greenery, if you prefer), for the center of your pot. Water the soil first, so it's slightly compressed, and holds the branches in the position you want.

If this is your first porch pot, one very easy design calls for your tallest piece of greenery to be in the center, much as the tallest plants in summertime mixed containers often take center stage.

One by one, fill in the pot with a variety of greenery, creating a kind of roundish "bush" effect. If you don't like something, move it. Rearrange it. Mix and match. You're the boss!

Depending on your personal taste, you might want to add some dried materials.... maybe some of that ornamental grass that's still looking so good in your yard. Branches of red twig dogwood or curly willow look great too.

Or you can go glitzy with some artificial greenery and accessories. Aspen leaves with a coating of crystalline "frost." Stems with dark red berries for a warm touch of holiday color.

Add pine cones... dried flowers... or tiny ornaments that reflect your family's favorite sport or activity. Maybe a wiggly yard ornament like a snowman or elf would make a nice accent. The only rule is to have fun! As the New Year approaches, you can swap out some of the accents and decorations, and go with more of a winter theme reflecting ice and snow and fireworks.

Are porch pots hard to keep?
Porch pots last longer if they're not in areas that get lots of sun or strong wind. But even in more difficult locations, with a little T.L.C., porch pots can look fresh for several weeks.

Spraying with an anti-dessicant like "Wilf Pruf" will help the needles hold moisture and add life to your arrangment. You can spray the greenery (both sides) either before you plant, or once your stems and branches are in place. Just try to keep the preservative spray off the any accents that could lose some of their shine and luster.

Obviously, the greenery doesn't have roots, but the freshly-cut stems can take up water on a mild day when the soil isn't frozen. I have good luck watering my porch pots with a bucketful of warm water once a week, if possible.

So what are you waiting for?
Porch pots are fun and easy and anyone can make them!

Come see us at Tagawa's. We have lots of samples of porch pots on display, and plenty of friendly advice to get you started.

Be bold! Impress your family and friends with design skills you didn't even know you have.

And Happy Holidays from all of us at Tagawa's!

The Magic of Fairy Gardens

Picture a very tiny landscape, complete with small, dainty plants..... miniature tables and chairs.... pebbles creating a cobbled pathway and softball-sized rocks looking for all the world like boulders and mountains. Can you see it? If you can, you've just imagined the beginning of what could be your own fairy garden.


Fairy gardens are capturing the fancy of gardeners of all ages. At Tagawa Gardens, we often see grandmothers sitting down with their grandchildren-- girls and boys-- to create their own fairy worlds. The only requirement: a sense of whimsy, and a belief in fairies, of course. If you're willing to try to think like a fairy or gnome, you can make a world that's just right for a tiny woodland, seaside or mountaintop home.


Fairy gardens start with a tray or box, complete with drainage, and big enough to hold the potting soil that will give the garden its foundation. Tagawa's has pre-assembled kits that are just right for the fairy garden you might have in mind.


Tagawa's will gladly suggest plants that will be right at home in this miniature landscape. Not any plant will do. Small-leafed houseplants can be a great fit, and will keep the "greenery" in just the right proportion to its surroundings. Many herbs are well-suited for fairy gardens, too. Trim a lavender plant just so, and you'd swear it was a tiny tree... the perfect spot for a fairy picnic. Tagawa's carries small herbs year 'round, for fairy gardens and windowsills.

It's hard to say which is more fun: selecting the plants or the accessories. Tagawa's carries a wonderful selection of tiny metal gates and gazebos..... picket fences and cafe tables.... birdhouses and beehives. Everything you need to give the special touches that fairies and gnomes appreciate.

And then, of course, there are the figurines themselves. Colorful little fairies just right for tiny hands to set into the garden, and move from one corner of the landscape to another, whenever the mood strikes. Tagawa's also has larger, more elegant fairies.... sitting on a beautiful glass bubble or swinging from a crescent moon. The choice is your's.

Don't forget the dragons!! Dragons in every color and every pose.... adding a sense of adventure to any fairy setting. Are the dragons friend or foe? Only the fairies can say.

While Tagawa's has all the fairy accessories you could want, we also encourage our fairy gardeners to gather trinkets from nature to give their garden a personal touch.... sticks and small bits of wood, pine cones, dried flowers... even acorns. You're limited only by your imagination.

Once your fairy garden is ready, it will need good light, proper watering, and a trim now and then to keep the plants in check.

Come see us at Tagawa's. Check out our big fairy garden, complete with a castle, fairies and their pets... and maybe a dragon or two lurking in the background. And get some gift ideas for yourself, or for the "inner fairy" of someone near and dear.

Fairy gardens are a great way to introduce kids to gardening, and have adults come along for the ride!

Putting the Garden to Bed

A lot of people who love to garden in Colorado especially like the fact that we have fairly well-defined seasons... a beginning, a middle and an end, of sorts, to the busiest, hands-on growing of things we care about.

But just because the most active part of the season is shutting down, that doesn't mean we as gardeners and homeowners have the next several months off. There are a lot of things we can be doing now to help the plants in our landscape come into spring strong and healthy. And there are even a few mid-winter gardening chores that are well worth our time and effort. Let's take a look.

It's clean-up time!!

While the soil is still loose and fairly warm, grab your cart or wheelbarrow and yank out all that dead plant debris. Dead leaves and stalks from flowers and vegetables are a great place for bugs and diseases to hang out over the winter, ready to jump back into the game next season.

If you put bedding plants in and amongst your perennials, those dead plants should come out too. Trim down the the top growth on your perennials to within a few inches of the soil line. Four or five inches of old stems left in place over the winter can actually help hold an extra bit of snow, or keep mulch in place, protecting the crowns of the plants in the process. The stems can be cut back to the ground at the first sign of new growth in the spring.

It's a great time to till!

Fall is the perfect time to amend our garden soil by tilling or digging in leaves or aged manure.... whatever disease-free organic material you have handy. Working the amendments in now gives the soil time to break that material down over the winter. Your beds will be ready to rock 'n roll next spring. And if we have significant rain or snow in April and May, you won't have to wait (impatiently?) for the soil to dry out before you can start your garden. As long as your work doesn't compact the soil, (which you never, ever want to do), you'll be good to go.

Turning the soil after a few nights of freezing weather is also a great way to fight back against the bugs that want to over-winter in our gardens. Disrupting the bugs' winter sleep can be a very good thing.

Say "hi" to "La Nina."

The weather folks say we're setting up for a winter-long "La Nina" pattern. As much as you may hate shoveling snow, La Nina is not a gardener's friend. The sytem tends to mean drier conditions for much of the Front Range. Bottom line: don't skimp on some supplemental moisture now, while the ground is still open and able to soak up some extra water.

"Winter watering" you say?

You may have shut down your automatic sprinklers for the season, but don't put the garden hose too far away. In addition to giving your trees, shrubs and perennials a nice deep drink now, be ready to do some winter watering. Every month when we haven't had a good wet storm pass through, drag out the hose and the sprinkler of your choice. Water on a warm winter morning when the ground isn't likely to freeze before the water can soak in.

Be especially careful with plants on the south and west side of your yard. Dry windy weather, even when it's cold, can be very damaging..... damage that may not become obvious until next spring. Why risk it?

Don't neglect your lawn. If it's still green, and you haven't fertilized within the past six weeks, it's not too late. A deep core aeration first will be an added bonus. But no de-thatching! Not now. Not ever! De-thatching damages the crowns of the grass plants, and can create far more problems than it solves. Core aeration is the way to go.

T.L.C. for trees

Nothing in our landscape is more valuble, or more time-consuming and expensive to replace, than healthy trees. So why not invest in a little T.L.C. to protect them?

Young trees... especially newly-planted trees... can be hard-hit by
the challenges that winter brings. Five minutes of your time and a roll of tree wrap can make a huge difference.

Tagawa's carries tree wrap. Our expert staff will be happy to show you how easy it is to use. The wrap should go on around Thanksgiving, and stay in place until about Easter. Wrapping your trees can prevent sunscald, where the tender bark on the south and southwest sides of the trees freezes and splits. Sunscald can stunt, and over time even the precious trees that give our yards so much character. Don't let it happen!

Easy-does-it with the pruners.

Avoid too much heavy pruning this time of year. Broken, dead or dying branches, or plants that are in the way of clearing snow from walks and driveways, can certainly be pruned as needed. But major pruning to shape a tree or shrub should wait until late winter or early spring, if possible.

The general rule of thumb on roses is to remove long, lanky stems that might be in the way or be broken by the wind over the winter months. But otherwise, protect the base of the plants by mounding them with mulch, or using rose collars, once we've had a few nights of temperatures down into the low 20's. (Tagawa's has rose collars, too, of course....) Hold off until spring to cut back your roses. The green growth that survived the cold will tell you just how much to prune away.

Invest now for benefits next spring.

Attention to these few "to do's" during the coming months
is nothing less than a full-fledged investment in the health and well-being of your landscape next spring and summer. A little time and effort now = fewer headaches down the road.

Grow Your Own Garlic!

So many people I know who love garlic never think of growing it themselves. What's up with that, when growing your own garlic is so easy?

Fortunately, now is the perfect time to plant garlic. Early-fall planting gives the cloves the four to six weeks of warm soil they need to get a head start on next year's harvest. And early October is Garlic Festival time at Tagawa's, so you'll have plenty of varieties to choose from, while supplies last. Not to mention lots of expert advice to get you goin'.

There are two main types of garlic you can choose from. "Softneck" garlic includes the strain available in most grocery stores, and plenty more! The cloves can be white or purplish white, and range in flavor from mild to very bold. Softnecks are used to make garlic braids, and have a storage life of up to six months.

"Hardneck" garlic doesn't store as long as softneck, but comes in a beautiful variety of whites, reds and purples, with wonderful names like Chesnok Red and Metechi. The hardnecks seem to do especially well in Colorado.

Your garlic bed should be located in full sun, in a well-drained location. Garlic plants need to stay moist, but never soggy. Garlic loves soil that's rich in organic matter, so dig in plenty of compost or well-aged manure before you plant.

Separate the garlic bulb into individual cloves just before you plant. Press each clove down into the loose soil about two to three inches, pointy side up. (Okay, so I planted all of my cloves upside-down one year. Silly me. All of the shoots found "up" just fine. Still, I wouldn't recommend it.)

The cloves should be spaced about four inches apart. Firm the soil gently over the clove and then water them in well.

Plan on mulching your garlic bed heavily. I've used straw, pine needles, shredded leaves.... and a combination of those things, because that's what I had on hand. As long as the mulch stays on the airy side, and doesn't pack down or smother the bed, you should be fine. That four- to six-inch layer of organic material will help keep the soil's temperature and moisture content more even, and hold weeds to a minimum. Garlic doesn't like to compete with other plants, especially weeds.

Don't be surprised if your garlic cloves send up perky little green shoots during the first month or two. Those tender-looking leaves have a remarkable ability to ignore the snow and cold, and will be just fine.

If we have a dry winter, as the weather folks are predicting, you may need to give your garlic bed some water once or twice a month when the soil isn't frozen. Come next March or thereabouts, the shoots will kick into high gear. Keep up the watering, so the plants never dry out. Again, the soil should be moist, but never soggy. As your plants begin actively growing, feed them with some high nitrogern fertilizer to give them a welcome boost. The staff at Tagawa's can recommend fetilizers that will help produce big, plump garlic bulbs.

If you're growing the hardneck varieties, the plants will send up a flower stalk. called a "scape." Removing the scape when it's about a foot tall will send more energy into the bulb. But I must admit, sometimes I let the scapes go. They twist and curl and make me smile. It's not the purist's way, but a smile is worth something. It's your choice to keep the scapes or take them off. No decision needed with softneck varieties, since they don't produce scapes.

Back off the watering and feeding around the end of May. The garlic is usually ready to harvest in late June into July. When you see the lower one-third of the leaves dry up, it's time! If you're slow to harvest, the bulbs will often shatter into individual cloves when you dig them up.

Lift the bulbs gently so you don't damage them. It doesn't work to pull on the leaves. The stalk will just break, and then you'll have to go searching for the bulb. Remove the clumps of soil around the garlic, and let the bulbs air dry in a breezy place away from direct sunlight. After a few weeks of "curing," you can cut away the roots and most of the stalk.

The garlic will store best in a mesh bag in a cool, well-ventilated area. Never keep the garlic in the refrigerator. You'll trick it into thinking it's been through a winter, and it will sprout.

Come see us at Tagawa's and let us inspire you to plant a garlic bed of your own. If you look at garlic as one of the basic food groups (dark chocolate being another....), you'll be very glad you did.