Plant of the Month
The plants listed on this page were selected by the members of the Allen Garden Club at their monthly meetings. Look for these plants at your local nurseries to grow in your own home gardens.
February 2024: Pansy Viola
Pansies are considered a cool season annual. They should be planted in the fall and protected from hard freezes. The smaller flowering violas are very prolific and will recover from freezing temperatures quicker than its larger flowering cousin, the pansy. Plant them in the ground or in containers. Fertilize your pansies every two to three weeks with bloodmeal. The bloodmeal will help deter rabbits.
March 2024: Daffodil Narcissus
Daffodils are a sign that spring is here. They are very easy to grow if you follow a few tips when planting. Plant with the pointy side up in a sunny to partly sunny location or under deciduous trees. Plant approximately 1.5 times as deep as the size of the bulb. Leave the leaves until they are mostly yellowed after the flowers have faded. This might be towards the end of May or into June. The leaves are the source of energy that feeds the bulb for next season. Plant your daffodils in groupings rather than lined up like soldiers so they look more natural.
There are many varieties of daffodils available in the fall in local nurseries and online. The best time to plant them is when they are available, but they can be planted as late as December.
The daffodils in the photo (left) are Thalia. These are an almost all white daffodil that are very fragrant. They bloom with their cups angled down.
Other types of daffodils that do well here are Earlicheer, Tete-a-Tete, Ice Follies, Quail, Grand Primo, Pipet, Geranium, Cheerfulness, Yellow Cheerfulness. Minnow, Winston Churchill and more.
April 2024: Iris Iris
Iris is the toughest and most dependable spring blooming plant you can grow. The most commonly grown iris is the bearded or Dutch iris. It grows best in full sun (at least 6 hours of direct sunlight) and has low to medium water demand. They can grow to 3 feet tall and spread about 2 feet. You can find iris in lavender/purple, yellow, white pink, burgundy, peach, and many other color combinations. Their bloom period starts in March and continues into May. It is an adapted plant and the leaves are evergreen so adds a nice vertical interest in your garden throughout the year. The best time to divide your iris is in the summer or fall.
Plant your iris in well-drained soil amended with compost. Plant them far enough apart to give them room for good air circulation. Do not mulch and keep the tops of their rhizomes slightly exposed with the roots below the soil. Cut the bloom stalks off after they have faded.
May 2024: Oakleaf Hydrangea Hydrangea quercifolia
This is a shrub-type hydrangea that works wonderfully in shade. It has large, oak-shaped leaves that are 4-12 inches long. It has beautiful, cone-shaped clusters of bright white flowers, and the color doesn’t vary with our pH. It’s native to the southeastern U.S. in woodsy areas. It’s quite a large shrub with multiple stems, and it can get 6-10 feet tall, and equally as wide. Morning sun is best for flowering, but it will take full shade, though the leaves will be the main interest in full shade. In dense shade, the leaves will be much larger and deeper green, the plant will be taller and it won’t have as many flowers. It’s a deciduous plant. In fall, the leaves that turn bronze remain on the plant into the early winter. It’s hardy to below zero, but it also tolerates our heat. But in the extreme heat that we had two summers ago and this last August, if it was planted in full sun, it would have suffered. It doesn’t like wet feet, so plant it where you have good drainage. But be sure to water it when we do have a drought situation.
Source: https://www.centraltexasgardener.org/resource/oakleaf-hydrangea/
June 2024: Zinnia Zinnia angustifolia
Narrow-leaf zinnia is very easy to grow from seed or use transplants. It is great in full sun in a container, for bedding, or as a border plant. It is commonly available in orange, yellow, white, red or bi-color. The flowers will hold their color unlike the common zinnia (Z. elegans). Plant zinnias in soil that has been amended with organic matter such as compost. The plants will bloom all summer until frost. They will reseed from year to year.
August 2024: Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta (pictured) or Rudbeckia fulgida
Depending on growing conditions, this species may act as n annual, biennial or as a short-lived perennial. Bright-yellow, 2-3 in. wide, daisy-like flowers with dark centers are its claim-to-fame. They occur singly atop 1-2+ ft. stems. The stems and scattered, oval leaves are covered with bristly hairs. Coarse, rough-stemmed plant with daisy-like flower heads made up of showy golden-yellow ray flowers, with disc flowers forming a brown central cone. (https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=ruhi2)
Grow your Black-eyed Susans in full sun. Deadhead your plants to encourage more blooms throughout the growing season. They prefer to grow in soil amended with plenty of compost so there is good drainage. They will bloom the first year from seed that is sown the previous fall/summer.
September 2024: Spider Lily I Lycoris radiata
Along the coast, it is often referred to as a "hurricane lily" because it often blooms after the first fall hurricane. Many people call this a "naked lady" because it blooms on a naked stalk. Others simply call it a "surprise" lily because it shows up out of nowhere and surprises you one day with a flower. These lilies are dormant in the summer. The flowers suddenly appear with the first later summer or early fall rains. One day there is nothing growing and then suddenly you have a surprise, a fully blooming flower! Yellow spider lilies act very similarly to red spider lilies, schoolhouse lilies, and naked ladies. Simply put, they bloom in the fall and then have foliage for the winter. Plant your spider lilies two to three times deep as the height of the bulb in a sunny location.
October 2024: Chrysanthemum Chrysanthemum
You can see chrysanthemums at just about every garden center, local nursery, and even at grocery stores ready to add a pop of color in your garden or containers. They are a beautiful plant to decorate your front entryway for fall. Look for plants starting at the end of September with most of the flower buds still closed since this will provide a longer blooming period before the flowers turn brown.
Mums can be grown in the ground as perennials in soil that has been amended with organic matter so they have good drainage. Or, treat them as annuals in containers to brighten up your entryway with fall colors. Plant them where they will receive full to part sun.
Mums come in a variety of colors - yellow, burgundy, lavender, and orange.
Read more about chrysanthemums at this link: https://bexar-tx.tamu.edu/homehort/archives-of-weekly-articles-davids-plant-of-the-week/fall-garden-mums-chrysanthemums/
November 2024: Turk's Cap Malvaviscus arboreus Dill. ex Cav. var. drummondii
Turk's cap, also called wax mallow, Drummond's Turk's cap, Drummond's wax mallow, red mallow, Texas mallow, Mexican apple, sleeping hibiscus, bleeding hearts, or manzanilla (Spanish for little apple) is a Texas native plant that is becoming more commonly used in landscapes. It can grow in full sun to part shade and blooms start in mid-summer and continue into November. It grows to about 5 or 6 feet tall and wide when planted in full sun. When planted in shady garden areas, it reaches a height and width of about 3-4 feet. It produces bright red, pendant, hibiscus-like flowers that never fully open. Their petals overlap to form a loose tube with the staminal column protruding. The red flowers attract hummingbirds and butterflies. Red fruits that resemble a small apple are produced in the fall and are edible. Songbirds enjoy the fruit. The most common flower color is red, but it is also available in pink and white (but why bother with those colors when the red is stunning!)
December 2024
Previous Years Plants of the Month
2023 Plants of the Month:
February: Lenten Rose Hellebores orientalis
March: Redbud Cersis canadensis
April: Bluebonnet Lupinis texensis
May: Salvia "Henry Duelberg" Salvia farinacea
June: Daylily Hemerocallis
August: Lantana Lantana urticoides (L. horrida)
September: Butterfly Weed Asclepsias tuberosa
October: American Beautyberry Callicarpa americana L.
November: Fall Aster Symphyotrichum cordifolium
December: Tillandsia Tillandsia
2022 Plant of the Month:
February: Lenten Rose Hellebores orientalis
March: Daffodil Narcissus
April: Texas Gold Columbine Aquilegia chrysantha ‘Hinckleyana’
May: Iris Iris
June: Plumeria Plumeria
August: Turk's Cap Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii
September: Plant of Barbados Caesalpinia pulcherrima
October: Autumn Sage Salvia greggii
November: Fall Aster Symphyotrichum cordifolium
December: Kalanchoe Kalanchoe blossfeldiana
2021 Plants of the Month:
February: Ornamental Kale/Cabbage
March: Daffodil Narcissus
April: Texas Gold Columbine Aquilegia chrysantha ‘Hinckleyana’
May & June: Lance-leaf Tickseed Coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolata
August: Shasta Daisy Leucanthemum × superbum
September: Turk's Cap Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii
October: Autumn Sage Salvia greggii
November: Chrysanthemum Chrysanthemum