Wildflowers can replace your losses.
Snapdragons, stocks, calendula and even pansies were killed by the Valentine’s week freeze. My recommendation was to encourage wildflowers and other naturalized flowers, such as the larkspur, to replace them.
Many of those wildflowers, including verbena, blue curl, poppies, evening primrose and rain lilies, are adding color and providing nectar for pollinators in many landscapes. The blue curl, Phacelia congesta, is especially useful as a long-term nectar producer and colorful bloomer in sun or shade.
But it turns out that mistflower and many milkweeds were not killed by the freeze as I feared, and so the blue curl will have some help in meeting the needs of butterflies. If you can, get blue curl seeds from a neighbor or purchase seeds from Native American Seed at seedsource.com.
While it is good news that many milkweeds survived the freeze, there is still a question of whether the plants will recover fast enough to produce nectar and foliage for the migrating monarchs. They have already started visiting San Antonio and require milkweed as that is the only exclusive place they lay their eggs.
It has helped that many gardeners purchased milkweed transplants from area nurseries. The related, nonmigratory queen butterflies will take advantage of the nesting sites even if it is too late for the migrating spring monarchs.
In addition to noting the potential of wildflowers to fill
part of the gap for blooms after the freeze damage, I recommended planting lots of zinnias, begonias, vincas, moss roses, cosmos, mistflower, sunflowers and purslane.
Zinnias are especially useful for color and cut flowers, and as a nectar source. I recommended obtaining transplants of the Dreamland selection, which is usually the most available zinnia at area nurseries. Dreamland is a disease-resistant selection that produces large, compact blooms of bright colors that are very showy in the garden and as part of cut-flower arrangements.
Zinnias, in addition to being an attractive addition to the flower garden, are one of the best nectar sources for pollinators in the landscape. Both the butterflies and hummingbirds will seek out zinnia blooms.
In addition to transplants, you have the option of planting zinnias with seeds. If the competition from gardeners for Dreamland transplants gets tight, obtain California Giant, Cactus, Dahlia or one of the many seed varieties available from your favorite nursery. The germination rate is high, and they move into bloom in a short time.
For an interesting experiment, let the Dreamland transplants go to seed. Dreamland is a hybrid, and the parent plants
show lots of variation, all of which attract pollinators.
In addition to zinnias as a
replacement for the frozen cool-weather annuals, try begonias and penta in the shade,
and use vinca, cosmos, moss roses and purslane in the sun. The Whopper begonia is especially interesting with large flowers, large leaves and several color options. If you have the space, also seed a sunflower patch.
Prepare the soil for summer flower plantings with 10 cups of slow-release lawn fertilizer (19-5-9) per 100 square feet of bed. Use Osmocote and soluble fertilizer for container plants.