Jewels of
Opar (Talinum paniculatum) is an annual flowering plant
that is also known as Fame Flower.
The foliage is light-green and succulent-like. It is
related to Purslane and the leaves are edible. The taste and texture is
comparable to Malabar Spinach.
The flowers are light pink and bloom along long wands
similar to Baby’s Breath. The flowers dry to beautiful jewel-like seedheads
that look great in cut-flower arrangements.
This plant is
native to parts of the South and the Caribbean.
They are hardy to USDA Zones 8 and higher.
The plants grow from 2-3 feet tall.
Jewels of
Opar is a pollinator favorite.
Available cultivars include 'Kingwood Gold', 'Limón', and
'Variegatum'.
Plant the seeds in late spring or early summer in a full
sun spot with good drainage.
They self-sow easily and may naturalize if you are in a
tropical climate. Be sure to save some seeds from this year’s flowers to plant
next year.
Jewels of Opar: You Can Grow That!
The video was produced
by Washington Gardener Magazine.
Audio, Videos, and Text by Kathy Jentz
Editing by Ellen Isaacson
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“Love is like a precious plant. You can't just accept it and leave it in the cupboard or just think it's going to get on by itself. You've got to keep on watering it.” ~ John Lennon
I’m thrilled to share that my book, Groundcover Revolution, has been nominated for a GardenComm 2025 People's Choice Horti Award! This recognition means so much, and now I need your help. Please take a moment to vote for me before October 15. Every vote counts! Cast your vote here: https://vote.gardencomm.org/2025-horti-awards-ballot
In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we talk with Dan Boelman of Zanfel Laboratories, all about poison ivy. The plant profile is on Pumpkins and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out with the Last Word on Goodbye to Cruel Tomatoes by Christy Page of GreenPrints.
If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:
And be sure to leave us a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform plus share us on social media with #GardenDC, so other gardeners can find us too!
The Cilantro seedlings are up (see pic above) and will soon need thinning. The Lettuce greens next to them are taking a bit longer, if they are not up by next Wednesday, we will re-seed those rows with a different variety.
We also planted 4 'Romanesco' Cauliflower seedlings that I bought from Homestead Gardens. I had wanted to buy Broccoli, but they were sold out, so I figured we'd try this cool-loking cauliflower variety that I'd not grown before. I put a covercloth over them (pictured above) to keep the cabbage moths out. We shall see if that helps. It is so hard to grow Brassica family plants in our area!
I got word from Barbara Melera and Harvesting History that the 'Pyongyang' Garlic I ordered would not be coming as the grower had an entire crop failure. She is substituting in another variety and I'm eager to plant it when it arrives in a few weeks.
If you saw our last Fenton Friday post, you know we have a garden vandal. Whomever it is wasn't done with one visit, they struck again each morning and then I would reset everything. (It was like the movie Groundhog Day -- only a lot less funny!) On Wednesday, I went over to the garden at about 10:30am with the interns and saw that once again the metal garden sign was bent over at the pollinator garden strip -- also, this time ALL the red plant label sticks were missing (not just pulled out and thrown to the side as had happened on the previous several days) -- instead, they had all been yanked out and were totally missing. So on a hunch I went and checked the nearby park trash can and sure enough they were all in there. I pulled them out and reset most of them.
The park police, local police, and others are now involved. They are going to see if they can pull footage from the traffic cameras trained on the corner. The neighbors are all keeping an eye out too. Since Wednesday, the vandal has stopped, but it has also been raining and I'm not going to let down my guard on this yet.
This week, I pulled out the Cucumber vines. I harvested a handful of Sweet Peppers, a Zucchini, some Cherry Tomatoes, and cut more Dahlia flowers.
Next week, we plan to clear out a bed and sow a cover crop in that open spot.
What are you growing and harvesting in your edible garden this week?
About Fenton Friday: Every Friday during the growing season, I'll be giving you an update on my community garden plot at the Fenton Street Community Garden just across the street from my house in zone 7 Mid-Atlantic MD/DC border. I'm plot #16. It is a 10 ft x 20 ft space and this is our 14th year in the garden. (It opened in May 2011.) See past posts about our edible garden by putting "Fenton" into the Search box above (at the top, left on this blog.)
Blue Mist Shrub (Caryopteris
sp.), also known as Bluebeard or Blue Spirea is a small shrub that flowers
from late summer to early fall for several weeks. It typically blooms in shades
of blue.
It is usually between 2- to 3-feet tall. Most Caryopteris
are hardy from to USDA Zone 9 down to Zone 5 and some to Zone 4.
It blooms best in full sun and needs average garden soil
that is not heavily enriched with fertilizer or it can flop.
Carypoteris is a low-maintenance plant. In the spring,
cut it back to about 8 to 12 inches tall. It blooms on new wood so the old part
will not flower.
Caryopteris is a deciduous shrub and its flowers, leaves,
and stems give off a faint, pleasant scent that make it deer-resistant. It is
fairly heat- and drought-tolerant as well. It has no major pest or diseases.
Best of all, pollinators love it as much as you do.
The tried-and-true cultivars are ‘Dark Knight’ with
deep-blue flowers, and ‘Longwood Blue,’ which has sky-blue flowers. There are
newer, compact cultivars such ‘Petit Bleu’ and ‘First Choice’. There are also
forms with yellow or chartreuse foliage such as ‘Sunshine Blue’, ‘Worcester
Gold’, and ‘Almost Gold’
Caryopteris:You
Can Grow That!
The
video was produced by Washington Gardener Magazine as part of our Plant
Profile series for Mid-Atlantic USA gardeners.
Audio and text by Kathy Jentz
Video and editing by Eileen
Isaacson
➤ If you
enjoy this video, please give it a thumbs up and subscribe to our
Youtube channel (thank you!)
➤Remember
to TURN ON notifications to know when our new videos are out
In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we talk with horticulturist Matt Mattus, all about perennials. The plant profile is on Hummingbird Mint and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out with the Last Word on Carrot Tops by Christy Page of GreenPrints.
If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:
~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 168: Favorite Fall Perennials
01:27 Introducing Matt Mattus
02:00 Matt’s been gardening since birth
04:43 Matt: “I consider myself a lazy gardener.”
05:28 Matt talks about flower shows and vegetable competitions in his youth
06:28 “Gardening became my sport.”
08:23 Matt talks about his career with Hasbro
10:41 Understanding the business side of gardening (and how toys are like plants)
13:00 Replacing the lawn with groundcovers
13:47 Do you think cold exposure might be killing plants? It could be something else
15:10 Discussing all things perennials
20:21 Propagating plants: Know your climate
24:54 Need something 2-3 feet tall and blooms around Mother’s Day?
26:34 Kathy and Matt share some secrets of perennial gardening
30:22 What’s inside American Horticultural Society’s Essential Guide to Perennial Gardening
35:10 Monitoring shade, moisture, and what plants fit in your garden
37:31 Emulating that tropical look
39:56 Low-maintenance perennials
43:21 Where did all the great primroses go?
45:11 Finding effective seed-starters
48:12 Four-legged friends
50:40 Advice for new gardeners.
54:10 Hummingbird Mint Plant Profile.
55:55 What’s new in the garden this week?
57:58 Local gardening events and workshops.
59:21 The Last Word by Christy Page: Carrot Top Tips
1:02:55 Support the Garden DC Podcast!
You can order a copy of the American Horticultural Society Essential Guide to Perennial Gardening at https://amzn.to/4pHytUb (note that this is an affiliate link).
And be sure to leave us a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform plus share us on social media with #GardenDC, so other gardeners can find us too!
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