QUIZ- Perennials of Redwoodshire- Spring

Over the past few years, our love of plants has increased, and we've grown in our identification of different plants through gardening and landscaping.  Whether you are a seasoned gardener or simply desire to improve the look of your yard;  knowing a little bit about different plants is a great place to start in your journey.  Every year, the Laird and I enjoy visiting plant sales at garden stores and festivals.  We usually buy 1 or 2 different plants to add to our yard; but we mostly enjoy identifying plants we already have and learning their names.

Can you guess what common perennials these are? (answer below photo)

PEONIES-  

As this is our first year living at Redwoodshire, we are excited to see what color flowers this Peony will produce.  They are quite easy to identify because of their reddish color as they sprout through the dirt.  The flowers will bloom in late Spring.  They grow best in full sun, but can also be placed in partial sun locations.  Peonies make a great cut flower for vases and are soon to be a favorite.  Due to the size and heaviness of the beautiful peony flowers, it is important to use a cage to support the plant in full bloom.  Insert cage in early Spring before the plant gets too large.  They have special peony cages, but a cut tomato cage works as well.

TRILLIUM-

These flowers grew in the woods near the college where the Laird and I attended, and was the first flower he gave me while we dated.  A beautiful woodland plant that does well in full to partial shade.  A great option for shade gardens.  There are 40 different kinds.  In our region, they bloom in early May.  The pointy plant behind the trillium is a newly emerging hosta- also a shade plant.  We were delighted to discover these trillium growing here at Redwoodshire, as they are part of our history.

PRIMROSE-

We first found this plant at a garden store, and purchased a few for our yard.  We were amazed by how many flowers it produces in one season.  They are one of the first perennials to bloom, and some even bloom in late winter.  The primrose thrives is partial shade.  This is one of the Laird's favorite spring perennials.

SEDUM AUTUMN FIRE-

There are over 600 varieties of sedum.  This particular kind has nice foliage in early spring.  In the Fall it produces fuzzy reddish blooms.  They do best in full sun to partial shade.

DAFFODILS-

One of the early Spring perennials to bloom, the daffodil adds a burst of color before other flowers have bloomed.  They can be planted anywhere, but will bloom sooner if exposed to more sun.  They make a great cut flower for vases.  There are many varieties and colors of daffodils.

The Fall is generally the best time to plant new Spring perennial plants.  Perennials are a wonderful thing because they come back year after year, with little work to be done.  After a few years of establishment, perennial plants are usually able to be split, which allows you to expand your current area or plant your perennial in a whole new location.