Plants
Where to begin? There are
so MANY different plants to choose from, whether you're looking for
tons of color all summer that you can change from year to year with
annuals, permanent displays that change
thru the seasons with perennials or the
growing trend of growing your own food with the many
vegetables, herbs and fruits available.
I'd like to cover some of my
favorites in the section, which are the really care free, tolerant
of neglect.
Dragon Wing Begonias
For those of you who have tried
Dragon Wings, you've found a plant that can grown just about
anywhere and will survive a lot of abuse. I recommend them a
lot since I've personally found them extremely easy and beautiful.
They can be used in shade or sun (they will be a little less
vigorous in full sun) and work great in hanging baskets or
containers of all shapes and sizes. Dragon Wings come in Red
or Pink (still waiting for a white) and compliment most color
schemes.
Parasol Mandevilla (Dipladenia)
If you're looking for something
that will survive extreme heat, sun and wind abuse, there's really
nothing better than the Parasol Mandevilla. Traditionally
Mandevillas are extremely vigorous tropical vines that don't cascade
as much as their crawl over everything, while their cousin the
Dipladenia is a little more controlled. The Parasol is really
a cross of the two with more the look of a Dipladenia, even though
they call it a Mandevilla. What's more important is that
Parasol comes in RED (rich red, not as scarlet as the photo appears), where Mandevillas are typically shades of pink
or rose. They work great in hanging baskets or put them in a
pot with a trellis or obelisk.
