Monthly Tips

August - Plant of the Month

Lobelia tupa - Devil's Tobacco

Hummingbirds love Lobelia tupa. I saw three in about 5 minutes the other morning. Of course when I ran to get the camera for a photo, they'd headed off to some other plant on their circuit. I sat around for a while hoping they'd come back but eventually my son needed lunch and that put an end to my vigil. Nevertheless, Lobelia tupa is the place to set up if you're looking for a hummingbird shot.

Lobelia tupa looks nothing like the little intensely blue annuals you put in hanging baskets. The flowers are bright brick red and tubular. The plants have large, felted gray-green leaves and reach 5-6' wide x 3-4'tall. It's supposed to only be hardy to Zone 8 but mine came through this past winter when many other marginals died off.

Lobelia tupa is native to Chile. According to the website chileflora.com. Lobelia tupa grows in two environments - "somewhat dry areas where the drought may last 3-5 months" (Wow! what qualifies as really dry?) and "humid areas with almost constant rainfall." How's that for versatile? The native Andeans smoked it - it has narcotic and analgesic properties but I definitely wouldn't experiment - the whole plant is poisonous.

My L. tupa has bloomed in July/August but it is reputed to keep blooming (or to rebloom) late into the fall. We'll see what happens this year.

If you're looking for a tough, cheerful plant that will invite hummingbirds into your yard, consider Lobelia tupa. I'll keep my ears open for the whirr of hummingbird wings and my camera handy. Who knows, maybe I'll get lucky. If I do, I'll post the shot on the website. Happy hummingbird hunting.

August - Tip of the Month

Some thoughts on bulbs

The bulb catalogs have been arriving for a while so it's time to start thinking about next spring. I always order bulbs online. Prices are generally good and the choices abundant. Plus the format works well for me. You can pull up all the single early tulips and see them side by side. At the Van Bourgondien website you can even browse by color. Websites that I often go to are McClure & Zimmerman website and Van Bourgondien website and Brent and Becky's Bulbs .

A few things to keep in mind when picking and siting bulbs:

• You have to let the leaves "ripen'. They are making food to be stored in the bulb for next year's growth. Remove the leaves and you starve the bulbs.
• Most of the non-species tulips don't return from year to year. In fact, my species tulips have all disappeared. (Squirrels? Wetness? I don't know.) Since you're generally not expecting tulips back the following year, you might as well pull the leaves as soon as they get unsightly.
  
• Daffodil leaves seem to be the most unsightly for the longest period of time. You may be able to hide them amongst other foliage (the books are always saying to grow them with daylilies for this purpose). I've decided instead to exile daffodils to the lower yard where I seldom go during the wet times. I can see the cheerful yellow from the house but not the ugly leaves.
• Bulbs (or corms or tubers) that have held up well for me are crocuses, hyacinths, daffodils, muscari (grape hyacinth), scilla, anemone nemorosa and cyclamen.
• I always plant bulbs a bit close and at uneven distances, never in rows, so they look more natural.

That's about all folks. Consider planting some bulbs to light up your spring. The bright, saturated colors of many bulbs are a great relief on a cold, spring morning.

Copyright © 2008 Paige Embry

Updated 1 April 2008