BUY IT
Let kids watch a spider, feed butterflies
Don’t forget to include children in your gardening projects this year. And to get them excited about bees and the bugs, introduce them to products from Insect Lore. The Garden Spider Web Farme is a conversation piece and spider condo all in one. The wooden frame is a perfect place for a spider to weave a web and for children to witness the work. There’s also a hideaway to keep the spider safe. The Butterfly Feeder helps feed the colorful creatures in your yard their favorite meal: nectar. Mix up a batch, then hang the feeder from a tree or place it on the ground. Butterflies won’t be able to resist. Insect Lore also sells creative gardening tools for youngsters so they can help with yard duties. For more information, visit insectlore.com or call 800-213-6124.
READ IT
Fragrant, unfussy shrubs
Whether you want to buy your first daphne or buddleja (also spelled buddleia,) or your 30th, two books offer wisdom on growing these fragrant, profuse-blooming plants. “Daphnes: A Practical Guide for Gardeners” by Robin White (Timber Press, $34.95) dispenses with the myth that daphnes are moody divas that require lots of care. In fact, says White, most are easy to grow in ordinary soil with the same attention given to other shrubs. While butterflies have long been associated with buddlejas, they also attract hummingbirds and moths. “Buddlejas” by David D. Stuart (Timber Press, $34.95) chronicles the species, discusses care and cultivation, and offers dos and don’ts for growing these tenacious shrubs. Most buddlejas grow at high elevations, and hardy ones don’t mind drought.
READER TIP
Skewers mark the bulbs’ spot
Mark clusters of bulbs in flower beds with wood skewers. Once the leaves of plants such as tulips are gone, the skewers allow you to plant around the bulbs without digging them up. The tiny wooden sticks can be painted to blend in with surroundings.
– Jackie Durbin, Northglenn
Have a gardening tip to share with others? Send it to GROW, c/o Cynthia Pasquale, The Denver Post, 1560 Broadway, Denver, CO 80202, or cpasquale@denverpost.com. Include name, address and phone number. If we use your tip, we’ll send you a gardening book as a thank-you.
PLANT IT
Pasque Flower says spring
Nothing announces spring like the delicate crocus-like flowers of the Mountain Pasque Flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris). The velvety flowers appear in April and May in blue, lavender, purple, deep red or white. At only 6-8 inches high and wide, Pasque Flower is ideal for the rock garden or border. It is drought-tolerant and is a perfect companion for creeping phlox “Liane” (Phlox subulata) with her hot pink flowers. Our native foothills Pasque Flower is Pulsatilla patens, a pale lavender color.
– Kelly Grummons, Timberline Gardens
