Tomato Tornado---The Recipes

Way back in May, we had an event named Tomato Tornado. We added 30 heirlooms to our already extensive list, bringing our total to 70 tomato varieties offered in our greenhouse. At the time, we asked friend and chef extraordinaire, Tom Schwarzweller, for some heirloom tomato recipes. Tom is an avid gardener and an award winning executive chef. He hand -wrote the following recipes for us to share with you. Please tell us what you think and add your own favorite tomato recipes to our facebook page. Click the text to towards the bottom of each recipe card to enlarge recipe for easy reading.

Water Wonders

This time of year, our water gardens are in full bloom. Water lilies are flowering and the mysterious lotus is showing buds, open flowers and small lotus pods.



 

 

We need to look a little closer for some other interesting plants, including floating and marginal plants that grow in the pond as well.

This year, we were able to get Mosaic plants, also known as Ludwigia sedioides. What a cool plant! The Mosaic plant is a floater. Stems can be potted in an aquatic soil and placed 4-8 inches deep. The floating rosettes, with their red and green leaves, will make their way to the surface, eventually covering an area about 2 feet in circumference.

Mosaic rosette

 By doing so, the Mosaic plant is able to protect Koi and other fish from predators and help keep algae levels down in the pond.

Ludwigia sedioides is a tropical plant, native to Venezuela and Brazil. It is  hardy in USDA zones 9-11. Here in zone 7, we treat Mosaic plant as an annual. It will get a small yellow cup-shaped flower during the summer months.

Dainty yellow cup-shaped flowers

Plant in half-day to full sun.
Mosaic plants are at home in a pond, but can also be floated in a large container water feature.

The water gardens, and the butterfly gardens that surround the ponds, are looking good. Stop in; relax, browse, and be inspired.

Baltimore Hosts The Perennial Plant Association Symposium

Yes, we are very excited to be a part of the 33rd Perennial Plant Symposium being held in Baltimore this year. Our perennial staff will be networking and learning from the country's best about plants, gardens, plant breeding, growers, landscape designs and marketing as they take part in tours, workshops and lectures. 

Janet Draper, Alex Bluemel, our own Andy Shelley, Stephanie Peer and Tim Babikow are ready to show off Baltimore's best perennials!

Andy Shelley, our perennial department manager (40 years in the business) and Robert Scott (25 years in the business), have been able to take part in the annual symposiums in various parts of the country over many years. Marian, Pat, Ashley, and Jane will get a chance to experience the event this year, acting as bus tour captains and hosts here at Valley View Farms.  This is Baltimore's chance to show off our perennial heritage by taking over 500 perennial experts on tours of area gardens, retail markets and wholesale nurseries. We are proud to be on the tour and prouder yet to be recognized by the Perennial Plant Association as their Perennial Retailer of the Year! 

Thank you to our local site committee

PPA's Board of Directors

Thank you to the local planning committee and the board of directors for the honor of having the symposium here in Baltimore. And, thank you to Executive Director Steven Still for all you do for this organization since hosting the 1st symposium in Columbus, OH, all those years ago. 

See you in Baltimore!

PLANT OF THE WEEK: Quickfire™ Hydrangea

Hydrangeas are looking particularly beautiful this year, on our nursery lot and in gardens throughout our area. It seems like the perfect time to talk about these wonderful shrubs. John Collins and I just returned from filming several Sunday Gardener episodes that we were able to do on location at a property in Parkton, MD. The owners, Andy and Kristen, have planted over 50 hydrangeas along the perimeter of their wooded areas.

A perfect setting for hydrangeas

 They are blooming in all their glory right now! Lacecaps, mopheads, oakleaf types; you name it, they are spectacular. We brought a Quickfire™ hydrangea with us for the shoot to talk about planting, pruning, and to show how blooms can age gracefully providing color for several seasons. Upon returning to the store, we spotted this beauty, potted in a large container at our driveway's entrance.

One of the planted large containers at Valley View's entrance

You can see how the bloom ages from a bright white to a pink color. By fall, the bloom will be rosy-red, providing just the right hue for the season.

White deepens to pink and eventually a rosy red

Quickfire™ Hydrangea is a Proven Winners shrub

Give hydrangeas plenty of space. The Quickfire™ can grow over 8 feet tall and wide. They can be grown in hedges, but I prefer to see these shapely shrubs set apart from one another. Prune this variety in late winter to early spring as it blooms on new wood. Provide at least a half day of sun; Quickfire™ will thrive in full sun as well. This hydrangea is adaptable to various soil conditions and will grow as well in urban areas as it has in Andy's rural landscape.
Maybe one will find a new home in my yard!

PLANT OF THE WEEK: Hay-scented Fern

Hay-scented ferns greeted us as we headed down Andy's driveway to film this week's segment of The Sunday Gardener for WBAL. The forest setting was a lush green; the ferns set in an open glade dappled by the morning sun. The hay-scented ferns have colonized in an open area surrounded by other plants and trees in this beautiful setting in northern Baltimore County.

A colony of Hay-scented ferns

Dennstaedtia punctilobula, (Eastern hay-scented fern), is a native fern that grows to 1-2 feet in height and spreads to 2-3 feet. When planting a new bed, leave a space of 2 feet or so between plants. The hay-scented ferns grow and reproduce rapidly, indicating that they would like a large area to colonize and may be too large for a smaller garden space. The fronds are a yellowish-green, and very fine textured with a slightly 'hairy' surface. They can also be used singly in the right area.

Stumped for what to plant? Here's an idea!

 The common name comes from the scent of newly mown hay when the fronds are crushed beneath ones feet or between fingers.
Hay-scented ferns are deer resistant. The ferns are attractive when used as a groundcover, requiring light to medium shade. They are also a valuable plant for erosion control along shady slopes or hillsides.
The wooded property had many areas where other varieties of ferns were thriving in the landscape. Look for the tremendous variety of ferns available in the shady aisles of our perennial department.

PLANT OF THE WEEK: Vietnamese Water Jasmine

Native to the tropical regions of Africa, Asia and Australia, Wrightia religiosa can also be grown successfully in the southern US, It is most often seen in bonsai form. Though not related to jasmine, the flowers produce a sweet honey scent that can easily fill a room. Clusters of white flowers hang beneath the leaves of the tree and can last for weeks at a time.

Sweetly scented flowers

While the name suggests that this plant would love water, it is very easy to over-water. If you cannot keep the soil evenly moist, I recommend letting the plant dry out. My personal Wrightia goes into full wilt before I water. Full to part sun and regular fertilizing during the growing season are essential.

Vietnamese Water Jasmine trained as bonsai

Though I love this plant for its graceful structure and the fragrance, the stories that I have heard, and the little hint of mystery surrounding it, make it my favorite. Also known as Sacred Buddhist, throughout my research, I never found the reason it was given this name. Instead I was told that the name, water jasmine, came from the plant’s natural habit of growing out over water. When the plant bloomed, the flowers would reflect from the surface of the water into the sky. During my research I also found a quick note about this plant flowering when it rained. Yet another reason it is called water jasmine? I’m not entirely sure, but after all the rain we had in June, my bonsai is blooming.

Wrightia religiosa is available as a starter plant in our greenhouse

Guest blogger Jen Kostick is a Maryland Master Gardener and bonsai enthusiast. She has worked at Valley View Farms for about 5 years, in our greenhouse in the spring and our International Christmas Shop in the fall. Jen has been assisting our bonsai grower, Martha Meehan, with our monthly meetings and workshops for the last few years.

PLANT OF THE WEEK: Gomphrena Pink Zazzle ™

Gomphrena Pink Zazzle in a mixed container

Mid to late summer blooming flowers need to be tough. They have to go through periods of drought, play well with others in mixed borders and containers and look good for the occasional summer barbecue when guests arrive. Gomphrena Pink Dazzle does not disappoint.

Gomphrena Pink Zazzle is a Proven Winners branded plant

Grow gomphrena in full to part sun. Pink Zazzle is a bit of a sprawler, so give it about 16" of space in a garden bed or plant it towards the edge of pots. The stiff, bristly bloom holds up for a very long time. The plant itself is drought tolerant and attractive to pollinators, including butterflies and hummingbirds.

Pink Zazzle in a pot at the edge of a garden bed greeted guests at a party held at Billy and Kay's house

We first saw this gomphrena in 2013 and decided to plant some up in pots for Breast Cancer Awareness that fall. We have the Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure in our area. The Pink Zazzle bloomed very well through September and October, enjoying the cooler fall months. Expect reliable bloom from June through October in Zone 7.