For a bright pop of color late-season, tall garden phlox fit the bill. Not only do these come in a plethora of hues, they are hardy, native perennials that pollinators love, too.
These are different than creeping phlox, and they bloom towards August, with colors ranging from pure white to pink, orange, deep burgundy, even blue.
Tall garden phlox grow in clumps that get bigger over time. After a few seasons, you can divide them to form smaller clumps and spread them around the landscape.
Tall garden phlox grow mostly care-free, but they do encounter powdery mildew, if the conditions are right.
The plants start getting powdery mildew around this time of year when we get cool, dewy nights and sunny days. The fungus can turn the leaves yellow and they start to drop.
Avoid it as best you can by growing disease-resistant varieties, like "Bright Eyes" and "Glamour Girl."
Some of the newer varieties, like "Candy Store" and "Red Caribbean" as well as the "Flame" series are also disease-resistant.
If your tall garden phlox show signs of powdery mildew, you can take some action to help them along. When they first start coming up in spring, thin out the number of stems in each clump by leaving five or six of the larger stems.
Also, when they first grow to about 6 inches tall, take off the top. At that point in their growth cycle, this will force the plants to branch.
You'll end up with phlox that grow tall, branch out and produce lots of flowers. And this thinning out will create plants with better air flow and less chance that powdery mildew can thrive.
When considering location, try to plant tall garden phlox away from the house, garage, wall or solid fence, as those conditions could reduce airflow, too.
And even though the mantra of "chop-and-drop" enthusiasts is generally to not clean up your garden in the fall, this calls for a different practice.
Leaving garden matter has positive benefits — as it overwinters, it creates fertilizer as plant matter breaks down. Plus leaving garden debris provides habitat for beneficial insects to overwinter.
In the case of powdery mildew, it's best to clean up. Removing any garden phlox plant matter with powdery mildew helps lessen the chance it will be a nuisance next year.
Lots of lush greenery but not much beanery
Q: Harvested many heads of broccoli, cooked and froze and not a single green
broccoli worm! My rattlesnake pole beans are lush and green — up to 8 feet
tall and not a single blossom! What gives? - Dick, in North River, NY
A: Pole beans prefer average or even low-fertility soil. If you added compost or fertilizer with nitrogen in it, the plant will, indeed, grow thick, lush, and green but will lack flowering and fruits.
Nitrogen is very volatile, though, and soon enough, it'll evaporate into the atmosphere. The pole bean plants will flower a bit later than normal, but you'll eventually get some beans.
How to keep critters from nibbling beet and chard seedlings
Q: A friend gave me your email address when I told her that my beet and chard seedlings all disappear overnight. Floating row cover had preserved a third planting of beets, but when I thought they were a past threat. I took it off and now they’re gone. I’ve kept a vegetable garden in Vermont for nearly 50 years and the issues keep changing with the climate. Any suggestions about this particular problem? - Kathleen, via email
A: Slugs could be the culprit here, as they're still out in abundance. But the fact that you pulled the row cover off and something ate the bigger seedlings sounds more like the handy work of a rabbit or mouse.
All is not lost, as it's not too late to plant another crop of beets and chard. You can start the seedlings indoors then transplant them. And sprinkle some slug bait that contains iron phosphate to combat any slugs.
If rabbits ate the greens, then go ahead and put your floating row cover back on. This can help keep larger critters from treating your garden like a salad bar!
All Things Gardening is powered by you, our audience! Send us your toughest conundrums and join the fun. Submit your written question via email, or better yet, leave a voicemail with your gardening question so we can use your voice on the air! Call Vermont Public at 1-800-639-2192.
Listen to All Things Gardening on Friday evenings at 5:44 p.m., and Sunday mornings at 9:35 a.m., and subscribe to the podcast to listen any time.
