garden compositions - gardening is a way of showing you believe in tomorrow

In all my 15+ years of living in the Nashville area, this has been the loveliest spring yet. Tulips lasting for weeks, Japanese magnolias so loaded with blooms that they resembled pinkish-purple behemoths guarding our yards, azalea bushes ablaze with blossoms, and the dogwood trees were laden with white petals that eventually fell thicker than any of this year’s snow.

The many cool, overcast days and temperate sunny weather motivated a plethora of both city and country folk to get their hands busy in their gardens—eager to embellish or prolong nature’s beauty around them. Many of these eager potential gardeners headed off to the garden centers to claim their conquest, only to cross the threshold and be overwhelmed with the choices. While I’ve heard others say that there are no gardening mistakes, only experiments, a budding plant-person might be quick to find another hobby if the choices they make at the garden center habitually fail to meet their expectations. Few of us have the tenacity of Thomas Edison to greet failure as another opportunity to try again.

So from where does the confidence come; what can guide the fledgling gardener to success? Thankfully, several plant companies have made it their objective to bring to local nurseries plants that have been developed with the week-end gardener in mind. I recently spoke with Christian Varga from Monrovia and Mike Sikes from McCorkle Nursery to find out what new plants they recommended. Christian mentioned a clumping, non-invasive bamboo called Sunset Glow Bamboo Fargesia rufa which is evergreen and slow growing. Bamboo has become a popular plant over the last few years, and this is the only one that I would trust to grow in my yard. Many other bamboo plants are highly aggressive and will quickly consume a landscape. Monrovia plants have long been a trusted friend of the new gardener, worth the little extra cost and are most often found at nurseries with knowledgeable plant personnel. You can research plants at http://www.monrovia.com.

McCorkle Nurseries has developed its own program called Gardener’s Confidence (Monrovia carries some of their products), offering plants that bring an abundance of color and durability to the garden. Mike Sikes spoke of the Razzle Dazzle Crapemyrtle, the Glowing Horizon’s Loropetulum, and the Mini Penny Hydrangea. I saw the Cherry Dazzle as a hedge row in the Windstone development in Brentwood last summer and it nearly took my breath away! Mini Penny is a great shade shrub with a wonderful story behind it that you can read at www.gardenersconfidence.com. Gardener’s Confidence plants can be found at local nurseries and at Lowe’s and Home Depot.

Another source for building confidence is to frequent local established nurseries. Most of the independent garden centers were started by people passionate about plants and who are eager to help you find the right plant for the right place. My friends at Riverbend Nursery, for years open only for wholesale, have opened a charming new retail shop in the Thompson Station area on Lewisburg Pike. I’m a huge fan of Proven Winner annuals and they’ve helped provide those for me for several years. Look for the plant tags with a big PW on them—these have been trialed and tested enough to help you find success with your gardening projects.

Good quality plant material is a great way to start your garden. But careful watering, fertilizing, and soil preparation are equally important. Get to know your plants and the plants that grow well in this area. Visit Cheekwood and the many garden tours that occur this time of the year—including the Westhaven Garden Tour in Franklin on May 15-17 (http://www.westhaventn.com).

The economy, politics, or world crisis may be getting folks down, but the beauty around us this spring was screaming for us to lift our eyes up and see the hope for tomorrow. I’m quite confident that a little work in the garden will do as much to improve your outlook as it will improve the outdoors.

Editor’s Note: Barbara Wise, a horticulturist with Southern Land Company, brings her gardening expertise and experience to readers of House & Home & Garden™. E-mail your questions to her at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .