No beating around the bush on best screening shrubs
Create a naturally colorful screen with low-maintenance shrubs
Q: We are looking for a good screening shrub that grows 3½-4 feet to screen our outdoor AC units. This is required by our HOA. The previous red leaf shrubs died out after getting disease and bugs.
The screening shrubs will be on the western side of our townhouse where there’s direct afternoon sun. I am looking for a shrub, possibly flowering, that would be full or could be trained to be from about a foot above ground to 3 ½ to 4 feet up in order to screen the units from view. The more maintenance free, the better. Jeff Deans, Houston
A: Below are some low-maintenance options for your conditions. If possible, plant at a distance from the units that will allow the shrubs to grow as full as possible.
Abelia (Abelia grandiflora) is a graceful evergreen forms a 3- to 6-foot hedge of glossy leaves that are bronze when new, dark green in summer and bronze again in fall. Newer, shorter cultivars have handsome variegated foliage. Bell-shaped, pinkish-white blooms linger spring to fall. This easy-to-grow shrub tolerates pruning and varies in height by cultivar.
Chinese fringe flower (Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum) remains
popular thanks to its burgundy foliage and fringy, fuchsia-pink blooms. Original cultivars grow to 12 feet or more, but mediumheight and dwarf types are available that might work for you. They tolerate pruning.
Japanese yew (Podocarpus macrophyllus) is not a true yew, but this evergreen serves well as a dense fence with blue-gray fruit. It can reach 15 or more feet, but shorter cultivars are available that might suit your needs.
Japanese boxwood (Buxus microphylla japonica) is a dense evergreen and favorite for low-tomedium hedges. I like to clip the foliage for holiday wreaths and arrangements.
Dwarf oleanders provide billowy mounds of low-care color.
‘Caldwell Pink’ rose is the best summer bloomer in our garden. This old rose, found in Caldwell, carries clusters of double lilac-pink blooms on a plant 4 feet tall and wide. It’s black-spot resistant and immune to powdery mildew.
Dwarf Barbados cherry (Malpighia glabra) produces small, slightly fragrant pink and white blooms and showy red fruit that’s a treat for birds. Mature height is 4 or so feet on this non-picky plant that tolerates pruning.
Q: Would it be a good thing to cut back amaryllis and agapanthus after they have expired? If so, would August be a good time to do it? Can amaryllis be
A: You can remove any yellow or dead foliage on amaryllis and agapanthus at any time. I’d leave heathy green foliage as it will continue to feed the roots.
Unless you like the look of the spent agapanthus blooms, you can remove their stalks near the base of the plant. This tidies the look of the plant and stops the plant from diverting energy into producing seed.
Many gardeners have found that agapanthus bloom best when the plants are slightly crowded in a bed or slightly potbound, but agapanthus flower poorly when truly overcrowded. Divide every four or so years. Dig the clumps in spring or fall. Carefully separate divisions with roots, cut the foliage by half and replant. Water well during the spring growing season, especially while the plants are developing flower scapes. Water moderately in fall and winter. Fertilize in early spring. After they bloom, water well and fertilize.
Flowering may be sparse the year after division/
transplanting. General bloom time is May through July.
Many gardeners remove the large stalks of amaryllis blooms once the flowers are spent so the plant will spend its energy growing rather than making seed. Should you wish to try growing new amaryllis from seed, leave the flower stalks and allow the seed pods to form and mature.
Amaryllis seeds are planted when fresh, as soon as possible after harvest. Float the seeds in water for a few days to encourage germination. Then sow in pots, just covering the seeds.
Once the seeds germinate, keep the small plants in a warm, bright spot. If you fertilize them and protect them from cold weather, they may mature enough to flower within two years. However, they may not bloom for several years. And flowers on your seed-grown plants may not resemble those of the mother plant. Amaryllis don’t always come true from seed.
Q: My esperanza was fine when I planted it about three years ago. Then it froze down, but I trimmed the dead wood, and it came back. Since then I have fertilized it several times, and it has grown very tall; but there have been blooms only once a year. It has produced seed pods after the blooms. I removed the pods. These plants are all over my neighborhood blooming beautifully in the heat all summer. What is wrong with mine? Jo King, Houston A: Each summer some gardeners are frustrated by
poorly flowering esperanza or yellow bells, Tacoma stans. Full sun and welldraining soil are key elements to better blooms. It seems your plant is growing and growing at the expense of flowers. Hold off on the nitrogen fertilizer, as this low-care plant needs little to encourage good growth.
Sprinkle Epsom salt around the plant, and water in to boost magnesium and sulfur in the soil, which in turn helps the plant absorb phosphorus and encourages better blooms. You also could apply bone meal to promote flowers.
Avoid keeping the soil too moist. Let conditions dry some between waterings.
Most plants sold in nurseries are special selections/ cultivars that are grown for better flowering. However, some may be seed-grown plants that can take a long time to mature enough to bloom.
Also, some esperanzas are just slow to bloom, not producing flowers until August or September. Similarily, this can be the case following a winter with hard freezes. The plants grow for a long time, then finally flower. ‘Gold Star,’ a Texas Superstar, is one of the earliest bloomers.
Remove the beanlike seed pods as soon as they develop to encourage more blooms. abelia
Garden tip: Weekly soakings at least 18 inches deep will benefit trees that are showing signs of stress due to hot, dry conditions. Roots 12-18 deep dry quickly in this weather. Water slowly and deeply.