Plant Knock Out roses against your porch to add eye-popping color to your home.

(ARA) – Stroll your neighborhood and chances are you’ll spot landscape shrub roses decorating someone’s garden or backyard. Take a drive into town, and you’ll see them planted at your favorite shopping center.

If you haven’t noticed, landscape shrub roses have taken the country by storm. In home gardens, in containers and along highways, these low-maintenance roses bloom continuously from spring until frost with little to no effort.

“Anybody can grow these hard-working roses, no matter where they live. If you can grow grass, you can grow landscape shrub roses,” says James A. Baggett, editor of Country Gardens Magazine. He likes Knock Out roses for their drought tolerance and disease resistance, especially against black spot.

When designing with shrub roses, think of them as you would any flowering shrub, only this one will bloom continuously all season and do all the work for you!

Here are some tips on using landscape shrub roses in the garden and throughout the landscape.

1. Problem Solvers in Your Landscape
Whether you live in a city or the ‘burbs, have a small garden plot or large acreage, the gardening and decorating possibilities with shrub roses are endless. Plant them individually among other shrubs, annuals and perennials, in mixed beds and borders.

2. Pot up a Container
Renowned garden designer Jon Carloftis prefers to plant shrub roses in containers. “I like to give them perfect planting conditions such as good drainage, rich soil and the addition of regular fertilizer that won’t be an overdose to neighboring plants,” he says. “The results are outstanding when roses are planted in formal urns or combinations of rustic pots.”

From small apartments to grand homes, containers filled with shrub roses bring an understated sophistication to any sized deck, porch and patio. Pot them up in large and small containers, around a gazebo, poolside, or your entranceway for the perfect plant for all seasons.

3. Close to Home
Nothing says simple elegance like the original Knock Out rose. Try planting them “en masse” against your front porch or home. The large clusters of cherry-red blooms say “welcome” with a generous bloom cycle of every five to six weeks. Against your house, porch or deck, the rich, eye-popping red color is a sure winner.

Group several Knock Out roses together to hide unsightly utility units.

4. Second Look Curbside Appeal
Looking for plants with great curbside appeal that add year-round beauty? Cluster shrub roses around a mailbox or blend with perennials to create visual curb appeal. Plant the award-winning Rainbow Knock Out along with perennials. This lovely coral pink rose complements any color scheme and the blooms almost look hand-painted with rich yellow at the base. The plant adds height and color for maximum curbside appeal.

5. Now You See it – Now You Don’t
Do you have an unsightly utility unit, shed, trash can, or pool pump you want to hide? How about a slope or a hazardous spot to fill? Group hardy and attractive roses for a showy “cover-up.” Try planting Pink Double Knock Out with double flowers in a cheerful bubble gum hue. Unfazed by heat, this hardy shrub rose will cover up those unsightly spots with a pink profusion of color.

6. Borders and More
Want to create a natural privacy fence in your backyard? Shrub roses will keep wandering children, pedestrians or stray dogs out of the landscape with a colorful “living wall” hedge.

7. Create an English Garden
You don’t need to dream anymore about having a showcase formal garden. Stake and trim your favorite shrub roses to grow as small rose trees for the look and feel of an English garden. Mix in old-fashioned favorites such as spiraea and hydrangea to create an enviable cottage garden.

It’s no wonder that these roses are the number one choice for folks looking for a carefree landscape shrub rose that looks great and performs beautifully. For more information visit: TheKnockOutRose.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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In these times of severe drought in many parts of the country, consumers are desperate for plants that will make their gardens shine, in spite of water restrictions. The secret is selecting plants that are naturally not thirsty.

Many of our own native plants, water-storing cactus and succulents for example, have evolved over time to tolerate dry conditions. Typically such plants are found in areas with strong light, good air circulation, and poor soil such as parts of the Southwest. Often they display one or more adaptations, including deep taproots or shallow but wide-reaching root systems to maximize the chance of finding water, gray green waxy or hairy leaf coverings, or reduced leaf surface to cut down on water loss through transpiration.

Prudent gardeners select companion plants with similar water needs, both in the landscape and in containers. In either location, avoid rich soil and fertilizer that encourages soft, water-thirsty growth. The trick is to keep young plants watered during the first two to four weeks while they become established, and after that they will be fine. After planting, spreading a layer of gravel or organic mulch on top of the soil will help reduce surface water loss through evaporation.

To try low-water planting in your own garden, here are a few suggestions:

* Top your list with “Diamond Frost” euphorbia, an easy-care, deer-resistant plant from Proven Winners. Its 10- to 12-inch-tall, mounded plants can reach up to 2 feet across. Even in extreme heat they sparkle with clouds of airy self-cleaning flowers all season long; in frost-free climes they are evergreen. In containers water “Diamond Frost” as little as once a week, but when planted in the ground it seldom needs additional water, even during very dry spells.

* Self-cleaning Cuphea llavea “Totally Tempted” displays a profusion of 1-inch wide, lavender-throated, fiery red blooms that attract hummingbirds throughout the season.

* Chrysocephalum apiculatum, “Flambe Yellow” and “Flambe Orange” are Australian shrubs that sport clusters of brilliant yellow or orange knobs of flowers at the end of silver-hairy trailing stems.

Try a large container with shrubby shiny-leaved ”Petit Bleu” Caryopteris as the “thriller,” surrounded with ”Diamond Frost” and ”Flambe Yellow” or ”Flambe Orange” spilling over the edges.

* Another good trailer for containers or as a ground cover is Lantana, “Luscious Grape.” The new low-water, heat tolerant selection with heads of large bright purple flowers attracts butterflies and hummingbirds. The leaves have a strong fragrance or odor, depending on your nose. Their rough-to-the-touch surface cuts water evaporation. Pair this with 2- to 4-inch tall lavender pink Cleome “Senorita Rosalita” and ”Diamond Frost” for a long-blooming designer-look.

While periods of dry weather are nothing new, the frequency and degree of drought that certain regions are experiencing are critical. We may need to confine our old favorite annuals to containers where they can be babied, possibly with recycled household water. Change is always unsettling, but gardeners must adapt their mindset and search for plants that laugh at the sun. The palette is broader than we think.

For more information on plants for low-water gardening, visit www.provenwinners.com/idea27.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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1. How to Add Roses to Your Spring Garden
2. Garden Superstars for Spring 2008
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New Plants and Garden Accessories Take a Starring Role in Outdoor Rooms this Spring

(ARA) – From show-stopping roses to containers rich in history, Spring 2008 promises to be an exciting year for garden lovers.

“Gardening this year will be easier than ever before, and a lot more fun, thanks to exciting new plants and smart new garden products scheduled for release this spring,” says Susan McCoy, owner of the Garden Media Group, a lawn and garden public relations agency.

As spring approaches, McCoy reveals a few of her favorite garden superstars for spring 2008.

New Stars in the Garden are no Divas
Looking for a great low-maintenance flowering shrub for your garden? Try the new Drift series of landscape groundcover roses for year round color with little to no effort. A cross between full-size groundcover roses and miniature roses, Drift Roses have a low, spreading habit that makes them perfect for container gardening, hanging baskets and small gardens. Highly disease resistant, they require no spraying except in the most black spot prone areas of the Deep South. Bred to be “chemical-free”, Drifts resist rust, mildew, Japanese beetles and black spot, while blooming for months on end. To find out more about these and other fine Star Roses, visit www.starroses.com.

Outdoor Living Takes on New Rooms
As we expand outdoors to entertain, cook and just relax, more of us are taking refuge in custom built gazebos to add an extra “room” in the backyard. New from Amish Country Gazebos (www.amishgazebos.com), the nation’s leading retailer of custom crafted Amish structures, is the 2008 Lancaster Collection. Named after prominent Pennsylvania cities, this series features three stunning handcrafted models: The Manheim, Carlisle, and Devon. Headquartered in Lancaster County Pennsylvania, this family-owned business uses only the finest materials for each and every special order and offers a lifetime guarantee on every gazebo they produce. For more information or to order a catalog, visit www.amishgazebos.com or call (800) 700-1777.

Garden Tropics for a Great Escape
Gone are the days when gardening in colder climates meant using only boxwoods, hostas and cold-hardy perennials. Thanks to advances in breeding, tropical beauties like the Bahama Bay Hibiscus collection can be successfully grown in gardens situated well above the Mason-Dixon Line.

Nearly two dozen hibiscuses with enormous bi- and tri-colored blooms accented with lush, dark green foliage are in the collection. With names like ‘Goin Steady’, ‘Heartbeat’ and ‘Big Bird,’ the plants have personalities all their own, and are a perfect fit for gardeners who have caught on to the tropical explosion. Gardeners in tropical climates, zones 7 to 9, can enjoy the hibiscus’ massive, multi-colored blooms almost year round. For those gardening in cooler climates, Bahama Bay will bloom abundantly during the summer months when grown in a container. For more information, visit www.bahamabay-hibiscus.com.

Garden Accents Inspired By American History
A touch of class for any garden can be found in the new Williamsburg Collection from Campania International (www.campaniainternational.com). The collection features an extensive range of garden containers, including cast-stone replicas of urns in the Governor’s Palace gardens, part of Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Area. Birdbaths, an elegant window box, and a stepping stone round out the product line.

This historical collection features the rich designs of Colonial Williamsburg, offering today’s gardener an exceptional array of historical American garden accents. Try one of these elegant accents inside or outside your home to achieve the latest “designer” look from Campania.

Healthy Gardens from the Ground Up
Start your container garden off right this season with high-quality planting soil that feeds the plants and keeps the soil moist longer. The new organic potting soil, called Organic Mechanics (www.organicmechanicsoil.com), is an all-purpose, peat-free, potting soil that is 100 percent organic and promises to improve plant performance. Gardeners can pick up Organic Mechanics potting soil at Whole Foods, Wegmans and Wild Oats or the new 1.5 cubic foot bag at fine garden centers.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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Getting Started

The first step is to start with a cleanup of the lawn from winter. You want to wait until the grass is no longer sopping wet and your planting beds are no longer a sea of mud, so that it will not be too difficult. Rake your lawn to get rid of the dead leaves, and let light and air get to the ground underneath, encouraging soil and grass to grow.

You are going to want to re-seed all the damaged patches of lawn, scratching up the soil with a rake first and then you want to mix a shovel of soil with a couple scoops of grass seed and spread this in the areas that you are fixing. Removing any tree guards and burlap winter protection from young trees and shrubs is also important, and you also want to transplant any existing shrubs that you want to move before they begin to leaf out.

Remember

There are certain things that you want to remember when it comes to your spring gardening, such as that you never want to be in a rush to remove winter mulch or to cut back your evergreen plants, such as lavender, until the temperatures are warm enough, because otherwise they could be destroyed.

You also want to resist the urge to start digging in your flower beds too early, because this can result in damaging the structure of the soil. You want to take note of the soil’s structure when you pick it up – if you pick up a handful of soil it should fall apart and not stick together, and then when it is noticeably dry enough this is when you are able to start digging beds and adding in compost or manure in preparation for planting.

Doing as much research on spring gardening and learning as much as you can is really going to be beneficial to your results overall, as the more you know and the more knowledgeable you are, the better results you will obviously be able to produce. Just remember to always have fun while you are gardening, and although you should take it seriously, you should always make sure to enjoy yourself.

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