My Favourite Plants this July at the Garden Pavilion
We are now in the middle of summer and able to clearly see where we need to fill up holes and add certain accents of colour here and there in our gardens. It is also a good time to look ahead and plant for a bit of autumn colour.
Today I will talk about a few of the plants in the Pavilion that I really, really appreciate. This is very difficult to choose because of the variety of plants here.
Let’s start with Scabiosa, also known as pincushion flower (because of the pin like stamens sticking out of the cushion like centre). This plant is almost as attractive to butterflies as Budleja. We carry the Butterfly Blue and the Pink Diamonds. The flowers are around 30 to 60cm high and the foliage is a grey green. This is an excellent addition to your herbaceous border but also works well in containers. Scabiosa requirements are full sun and good drainage because - they really dislike being over watered and require little if any, feeding. Keep deadheading to lengthen flowering and prune to bottom leaves in fall.
Weigela Monet is a deciduous bushy shrub which requires full sun to partial shade. This plant is usually used as a foliage plant because of its bright variegated pink cream and green foliage but you can count on usual late spring, early summer burst of flower colour. This is a great plant for all apect gardens, with most exposures and soils. Perfect for borders, beds and all styles of gardens and courtyards, it grows about a metre high and wide.
Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Tom Thumb', a small (half metre) slow growing ever green shrub, has purple mature leaves complimented with light green new growth. Like the Weigela, this shrub is used for its foliage but has usually fragrant flowers. This is a great shrub to add depth and interest or as an informal hedge or screen in all styles of gardens and does well coastally.
Choisya ternata ‘Sundance’ is a new love of mine. I really started noticing it during the darkness of last winter. It adds such a bright focal point and is so sunny on dark days. You really want to plant this where you can see it from the inside of the house. This evergreen shrub shines with glossy bright yellow leaves and fragrant star shaped white flowers in autumn and spring and grows to around two metres. Pruning is easy as it has a naturally bushy habit and a delight because the leaves give off the best scent.
My last choice at the moment would have to be the hydrangeas. We have such a large variety of colours and styles, it’s a bit hard to choose. Although the mop heads and lace cap colours are useful, my favourite style at this time has to be the paniculata. I find it to be more elegant, graceful and I really like the colours. We are currently holding Annabelle which is white, Limelight which has a strong lime colour, Bobo – a perfect mix of the last two – white tinged with lime and lastly, Vanille Fraise , a creamy white that turns pink and eventually red in autumn.
I hope you are enjoying your gardens this summer. Don’t forget to think about autumn colour. Come in and ask our advice!
See you soon at the Pavilion
Mary, horticulturalist at Powerscourt Garden Pavilion
Weigela Monet is a deciduous bushy shrub which requires full sun to partial shade. This plant is usually used as a foliage plant because of its bright variegated pink cream and green foliage but you can count on usual late spring, early summer burst of flower colour. This is a great plant for all apect gardens, with most exposures and soils. Perfect for borders, beds and all styles of gardens and courtyards, it grows about a metre high and wide.
Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Tom Thumb', a small (half metre) slow growing ever green shrub, has purple mature leaves complimented with light green new growth. Like the Weigela, this shrub is used for its foliage but has usually fragrant flowers. This is a great shrub to add depth and interest or as an informal hedge or screen in all styles of gardens and does well coastally.
My last choice at the moment would have to be the hydrangeas. We have such a large variety of colours and styles, it’s a bit hard to choose. Although the mop heads and lace cap colours are useful, my favourite style at this time has to be the paniculata. I find it to be more elegant, graceful and I really like the colours. We are currently holding Annabelle which is white, Limelight which has a strong lime colour, Bobo – a perfect mix of the last two – white tinged with lime and lastly, Vanille Fraise , a creamy white that turns pink and eventually red in autumn.
I hope you are enjoying your gardens this summer. Don’t forget to think about autumn colour. Come in and ask our advice!
See you soon at the Pavilion
Mary, horticulturalist at Powerscourt Garden Pavilion 
