On bees and flowers

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Via Not Always Right:

At a nursery

Customer: “Excuse me, but do you have anything I can spray on my flowers to keep the bees off them?”

Me: “You want to keep the bees off your flowers?”

Customer: “Yes. Do you sell that?”

Me: “Do you understand how flowers work?”



Bumblebee on Salvia nemerosa 'Rhapsody in Blue'

Fortunately there are some customers who actually ask what flowers attract bees. Thanks to Greensparrow Gardens I'll now have a better answer for people who don't like them.

New Perennials in blue

All Andrew's Plants has moved to AllAndrewsPlants.wordpress.com

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While my long time absolute and unrivaled favourite perennial Salvia has been Salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’ I had to have ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ when I saw it today. It lacks the dark purple stems of ‘Caradonna’ but has absolutely massive (for the species, anyway) flowers in a nice blue colour.



Salvia nemorosa ‘Rhapsody in Blue’

I expect (and hope for) similar performance to ‘Caradonna’ - low maintenance, low water needs, long flowering time (including a second round of flowering in the fall).

I also picked up a few more Sedum species (I might have a problem).



Sedum pachyclados


Sedum hispanicum var. minus 'Blue Carpet'

The first of these (Sedum pachyclados) forms attractive rosettes with white flowers in spring and again later in the summer.

The second (Sedum hispanicum var. minus 'Blue Carpet') forms a low mound of blue-green leaves with white or pale pink flowers. Seems to have a purple/pink winter colour as well.

One of these Sedum will be going between/around a Hosta 'June' and the Salvia above where it will also be allowed to spill out onto the patio.