Transition Color from Summer into Fall

Rudbeckia ‘TigerEye™ Gold’

As you refresh summer displays, take into consideration the colors you choose because fall is right around the corner. Shades of gold, orange, red, and purple transition easily from one season into the next so use them wherever you can. A little forethought now means a design can quickly be updated with some strategically placed mums and autumn accents later. 

‘Senorita Rosalita’ 

We’re fans of cleome—we’ve talked about this eye-catching plant a few times here in Field Notes. Well, since it’s a favorite, we decided to go ahead and feature it in one of our Display Gardens for Field Day. 

‘Senorita Rosalita’ from Proven Winners is the variety we’ve planted—it’s a strong one, a pretty light purple. If you’re familiar with spider plant you know it’s a thriller that we use to add height to a design. Normally we expect it to grow chin high but this variety will only get as high as your chest. 

Stout, not floppy

That’s a bit short for a cleome—it’s stout and not floppy. Some newer varieties like this one are bred to be a bit more sterile, so they won’t pop up all over the garden next year; however, with that feature the height comes down a little. We’ll see what it does in the display bed we planted. You can have a look for yourself when we tour the Display Gardens during this year’s Field Day.

‘Senorita Rosalita’ is available in the 8-inch pot.

Display Gardens on the grow

We’re pleased to announce that Field Day 2016 will take place on Tuesday, August 23rd. This is an event we look forward to with great anticipation—the day we set aside to gather with our peers in the plant industry and talk shop.

For this year’s meeting of the minds we’re doing things a little differently—the entire day will be spent on-site here at Diefenbacher. Our focus will be on touring our Display Gardens with an extended discussion, led by yours truly, of the material we’ve planted in each bed. 

Another important slot on the Field Day agenda: lunch. We’ll have a food truck here with lunch available between our morning and afternoon sessions. You know, it’s amazing how many innovative ideas we come up with while sharing the midday meal. 

Remember to mark your calendar and stay tuned to Field Notes over the next few weeks for exact times and other details.