Gardening is communal by nature. When you plant a sweet smelling rose, everyone can indulge in its fragrant beauty. Generous of spirit is the gardener with the willingness and determination to transform a patch of dirt into a place of paradise. Energized by a winter fueled with researching the most appropriate plants for a site, longtime Capitol Hill gardener, Pat Hanrehan has developed a vision for the gardens of the Sasha Bruce Youthwork Independent Living Program located in the 1300 block of East Capitol.

Pat, a member of the Capitol Hill Garden Club, has carefully selected a variety of hardy plants which require minimal maintenance, bloom at different times of the year and are perennial so once planted will continue to come back year after year. Pat was kind enough to share a list of some of the plants she’ll be installing in the months to come. You can benefit from her intensive research on why certain plants were chosen so you can consider them for your own garden. 

PERENNIALS

English Lavender. Focusing on a color palette of whites, yellows, blues and pinks, the silver foliage of the fragrant English lavender ‘Hidcote’ was included because it gets bushy without getting scraggly. Growing 15-20 inches tall with tall spikes of deep blue-purple flowers, ‘Hidcote’ is a one of the hardiest English lavenders. Plant lavender in full sun and as a hedge or edging, you can enjoy an abundant harvest in late spring through summer.

Russian Sage. Continuing with gray foliage plants, Russian Sage otherwise known as ‘Perovskia’ was selected to provide coverage at the base of some climbing roses. Like lavender, Russian Sage is a shrubby perennial that can eventually get to be 3 to 4 feet tall and wide with lavender flowers in the summer. Russian Sage is a reliable performer in DC gardens, immune to humidity, excessive heat or drought. 

Asters. Aster frikartii ‘Monch’ is another lavender flower chosen for its blooms from mid-summer to fall when other flowers have begun to fade. I cannot say enough good things about this plant. I’ve used it planted en masse in front of an apartment building where it continued to thrive despite neglect. It consistently re-blooms until frost when you deadhead spent flowers, growing about 2-3 feet high and wide.

Phlox. A stand of tall garden phlox is beautiful to behold. Phlox maculata ‘Rosalind’ is a disease resistant variety selected for its deep rose pink flowers which bloom all summer growing about 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide. Washington’s humidity tend to make phlox susceptible to powdery mildew. I would be a hypocrite to say don’t try them because my community garden includes phlox ‘David’ a white variety which is said to be more mildew resistant than others. You can also try ‘Eva Cullum’ in pink or ‘Franz Shubert’ in lavender. For best success, make sure plants are properly spaced for good air circulation and you can periodically do a preventative spraying of fungicide to help prevent powdery mildew.

Other perennials. Artemesia ‘Powis Castle’ or ‘Silvermound’ is being considered for their gray, airy foliage. Reliable performers such as a white Echinacea, Iris and the showy spikes of Liatris will come from Pat’s own garden. One of the best things about perennial gardening is that you can easily divide favorites in the spring or fall to expand your garden or to give plants to friends. In doing so, according to Tracy DiSabata-Aust, author of “The Well-Tended Perennial Garden,” divided plants will reward you with an increase in vigor and flowering.

SHRUBS

Herbaceous shrubs are shrubs which die back to the ground and in the case of peonies and hydrangeas their beautiful blossoms and large leaves are especially appealing. In late spring, peonies or paeonia provide a burst of flowers big enough to fit in the palm of your hand amid a 3-4 foot tall shrub with gorgeous green leaves. White makes a refined, stately elegance to any garden and Pat has selected the single white Paeonia ‘a la Mode’ along with the showy smooth hydrangea aborescens ‘Annabelle’ with its prolific larger blooms which will take over around June.

Climbing roses. Under consideration among climbing roses is the coral-salmon-pink blossoms of America, and the fragrant yellow Golden Showers. New Dawn is also one of the top contenders, previously voted as one of the most popular roses in the world. Among its fans is local realtor and dedicated gardener, Kitty Kaupp who touts its hardiness, reliability and resistance to disease and its abundant flowering of pale, pink blossoms.

Other shrubs include the evergreen, low growing cotoneaster, the flowering Viburnum burkwoodii with its fragrant white flowers and the deciduous red twig dogwood with red stems to provide winter interest.

PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE

Perennial gardens when properly planted can take several years before they look their best. Thanks to Pat’s research, this is a practical landscape plan that is rooted in economy and patient in its vision. Smaller plants will be utilized whenever possible and properly spaced to grow into place so at maturity they will not have to be relocated. If you would like to assist Pat in any way, contact her at 202.544.5718.

UPCOMING GARDENING EVENTS

Southeast Library Garden Groundbreaking Ceremony & Book Sale. Saturday, May 6. the book sale is from 10 –4 with the Garden Groundbreaking Ceremony at 1 PM. The Libary is at 407 7th St SE directly across from Eastern Market metro.Landscape plans for two outdoor reading rooms surrounded by a four-season garden will be presented by Friends of the SE Library & Garden Friends.  SE Library is located at 403 7th Street, S.E.

Adrienne Jenkins is the manager of the lawn & garden department at Frager’s Hardware located at 1115 Pennsylvania Avenue SE. Adrienne can be contacted by phone at 202.543.6157 or by e-mail at adriennejenkins@verizon.net.