The Obsessive Neurotic Gardener

Category Archives: Plant combo

Fountain Grass and Joe Pye Weed

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Ladies and gents, how would you like a fool-proof plant combo that requires virtually no upkeep and comes back bigger and better each and every year?

I give you Fountain Grass and Joe Pye Weed.

Or for those of you who dabble in plant snobbery like I do, I give you Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Hameln’ and Eupatorium maculatum ‘Gateway’.

If you’ve been here before, you know that I’ve written about Joe Pye Weed like 3,218 times in the past because it is that phenomenal. If you’d like to read up on the specifics of this perennial, check out the following before proceeding.

Joe Pye Weed

And know I love it most for this.

Now that we got that out of the way, let’s talk some Fountain Grass:

  • Size: 2.5 x 2.5
  • Zone : 5-9
  • Bloom: August – October
  • Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
  • Moisture: Medium to wet

Like almost all other ornamental grasses, Pennisetum is deer resistant.

It’s a warm season grass meaning it won’t start putting out new growth until the soil temps warm up in mid to late spring.

‘Hameln’ is a smaller Pennisetum cultivar maxing out at no more than 3′ high and 3′ wide. It can easily fit into any-sized garden.

The beauty of both ‘Hameln’ and ‘Gateway’ is that they can both be easily found at almost any nursery or garden center.

When these two are first blooming in August, they look tremendous together.

And still great a month later in September.

Maybe it’s an acquired taste, but I still love this combo in November.

The bottlebrush-like blooms of Pennisetum contrast nicely with the Joe Pye Weed flowers.

The only maintenance required for both is to cut them to the ground in late winter each year.

That’s it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amsonia ‘Blue Ice’ and Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’

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After the first hard frost hit earlier this week, “color” in the garden is at a premium.

The one spot that stands out right now is this combination of Amsonia ‘Blue Ice’ and Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’.

 

This Amsonia is absolutely on fire right now in terms of fall color. And it looks even better with the almost black foliage of the Ajuga at its feet.

 

Shockingly, I didn’t plan this combo (sarcasm alert).

I originally planted the Ajuga as a means to control the weeds around the stepping stones that lead from my back deck. And of course I also dug the dark, chocolate-like foliage.

 

Soon after I purchased 6 ‘Blue Ice’ plants and needed to find them a home. Planted among the Ajuga seemed to fit the bill and so, I did just that.

After a few years of living with this combo, I can safely say that just as the Ajuga blooms start to fade, the Amsonia ‘Blue Ice’ flowers emerge.

 

 

From there, the Amsonia is covered in blue star-like flowers for weeks on end.

 

 

 

Once the blooms disappear, both of these plants provide clean and contrasting foliage up until the fall color arrives, which typically starts in mid-September.

This spot in the garden is in full sun, frequented by deer and rabbits and the soil remains wet most of the year.

To date, these two plants have thrived in these conditions.

 

Plant combo of the week: Bee balm and ‘Karl Foerster’ grass

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You knew it wouldn’t be long before I featured an ornamental grass in a “Plant Combo of the Week” post and you would be correct. This one is brutally simple with the two plants available at every garden center around.

I give you Monarda (Bee Balm) and Calamagrostis acutiflora (Feather Reed Grass) ‘Karl Foerster’.

This combo peeks in early summer when the Bee Balm is in full bloom and smelling deliciously minty and ‘Karl Foerster’ blooms have settled into their long lasting buff color.

Take a step back in my garden and you’ll see that I also have them matched up with Joe Pye Weed which blooms the latest of the three.

But we’ll keep it simple for now and keep Joe Pye Weed and my exquisite design skills out of it.

I’d love to tell you that I masterminded this pairing from the beginning but of course I didn’t. The Karl Foerster grasses have been in this location for years with the only upkeep being a quick trim to the ground in late winter. By that time, new signs of growth are already evident since Karl is a cool season grass.

I should add one more piece of maintenance. Every three years I divide these grasses and as a result, have a ton throughout my garden. It couldn’t be an easier task and the divided sections are so quick to establish, with the only requirement being supplemental watering if divided during a dry time.

The Karl Foerster grasses look great spring, summer and even into fall, when the blooms shine when back lit by the late afternoon sun.

The Bee Balm started as three tiny little plugs that I shoved in an open spot at the end of the gardening season and in three year’s time, they have exploded.

Are they invasive? I would say they are “aggressive spreaders” but I have no issue pulling those that jump out of bounds and planting the piece in another spot or gulp, tossing them into the compost pile.

In case you weren’t already aware, Bee Balm attracts visitors like mad and provides endless hours of entertainment and photo opportunities all summer.

 

 

 

Even after the blooms fully fade in late summer, they still look  great with their brown seed heads.

 

And all the way into winter.

Both plants thrive in my clay soil, don’t mind some wet feet from time to time and are 100% ignored by the deer and rabbits.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Plant combo of the week: Ninebark ‘Diablo’ and Astilbe ‘Deutschland’

Posted on by Posted in Perennials, Plant combo, Shrubs .

I know that the plant combo of Ninebark ‘Diablo’ and Astilbe ‘Deutschland’ is fantastic.

Want to know why?

Because Nan Ondra told me so.

The author of one of my favorite gardening books, “The Perennial Matchmaker” featured this combo on page 46 of her book and used one of my photos.

That is some serious validation.

The combination of the dark foliage of the Ninebark and the bright white blooms of the Astilbe personifies the use of color contrast in the garden.

I’ve previously dedicated an individual post to both Astilbe ‘Deutchsland’ and to Ninebark ‘Diablo’ so if you want to read up on either of those plants, now would be a great time to do so.

I’ll wait.

Ninebark ‘Diablo’ typically blooms (here in zone 6B) near the end of May and into early June.

Those blooms quickly devolve into red seed heads that add a different ornamental dimension to this deciduous shrub. At that same time, the Astilbe blooms first emerge.

Personally, I prefer the look of the white blooms with only the dark foliage as the backdrop, after the seed heads have disappeared, or after I, gulp, have removed them by hand.

My combo currently resides in a partial shade location that stays consistently moist and both the Ninebark and Astilbe seem to love it. As you may know, the Astilbe will fry if kept in too much sun or without consistent moisture.

In late winter, I heavily prune the Ninebark ‘Diablo’ by removing about 1/3 of the old branches to the ground in order to keep it in bounds. The Astilbe are all cut to the ground in late winter as well with new foliage emerging in April.

I wouldn’t consider this combo low maintenance yet the one time pruning and water maintenance is well worth it.