Q: My garden looks so bare and unkempt that I'm pulling out perennials and want to plant evergreen hedges. Can you suggest what kind of plants might work best for waist-high hedges as well as tall background hedges? Are there easy hedging plants that bloom?
A: It sounds like you're ready to join the trend away from naturalistic gardens toward more structured design. Now, when the herbaceous layer of the garden has died down, it's all too apparent where we need more architectural, evergreen plants to carry the garden through the seasons.
There are a great many plants that can be used for hedges. When you're choosing your hedging plants, consider whether you want to let the hedge grow naturally and loosely, or you plan to keep it formally clipped. Also, be realistic about how much space you have, for hedges can grow wide over time and eat more garden space than ever intended.
Here are a few suggestions, from short hedging ideal for outlining garden beds, to hedges that will grow into walls over time.
Low-growing and usually kept clipped: Boxwood, Japanese holly (Ilex crenata), boxleaf honeysuckle (Lonicera nitida), lavender, Osmanthus delevayi.
Both lavender and the osmanthus have fragrant flowers.
Also low-growing, but more textural and less formal: Brown's yew (Taxus x media 'Brownii'), Indian hawthorne (Rhaphiolepsis indica) or upright rosemary like 'Tuscan Blue,' Escallonia 'Apple Blossom' — all of these but the yew have pretty flowers as well as evergreen foliage.
Plants for tall privacy hedges: Canada hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), Pacific wax myrtle (Myrica californica), or the fragrant, winter-flowering Viburnum tinus 'Spring Bouquet.'
Q: I brought my scented-leaved geraniums indoors for the winter in pots and they were doing OK, just a few yellow leaves. But now they have bugs on them. What should I do? Do I need to throw them out?
A: No, don't throw them out, you're already halfway to spring. It is hard to keep plants healthy in the house, where the warm environment encourages insects. So cut your geraniums way back to only a couple of inches, put the pot in the sink and thoroughly spray the stub that is left to get rid of any infestation left behind.
Then move the potted geraniums into a cooler environment less hospitable to bugs, like an unheated garage or shed where they'll go dormant. Water sparingly. When the weather warms, you can move them back into the light and begin to water them. After danger of frost is past, your geraniums will be ready to go outdoors, where they'll again grow bushy and fragrant.
Valerie Easton also answers questions in Wednesday's Plant Talk on the back of Northwest Life. Write to her at P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111 or e-mail planttalk@seattletimes.com with your questions. Sorry, no personal replies.
