My only anxiety last Friday morning was the possibility of traffic on I-20 heading for the Master in Augusta, Ga.

Tom and I spent the morning in nurseries buying for customers, at the farm store, then the afternoon with Momma preparing our own nursery for Open House on May 9. Dinner, then around midnight, an F-3 tornado slammed down in our field. Everything changed.

200 yards from my bed, the majestic Deodora Cedars planted in the 1930s at Redclliff Plantation were twisted and snapped like twigs. But our house had no damage and garden had not a rose petal out of place. Half a mile away, acres of pines and homes were leveled. The destruction along Highway 278 closed that major highway for 12 hours. We spent Saturday and Sunday chain-sawing paths to people’s homes.

Mother Nature has a way of reminding us who is in charge. Sometimes, she is tough.

What’s Looking Good

Phlox Pilosa (downy phlox) Can grow to 2 feet high on stems covered with fine white hairs. Its 5 lobe flower may be white, pink or lavender and usually has a mild but pleasant fragrance. Attracts hummingbirds and butterflies my gardens.

Sisyrinchium Suwanee (blue star grass) At Moore Farms, we have some discrepancy about this. I love it. Ethan Kauffman says it blows its load in ten days and is gone for 50 weeks. Madison Turnblad, propagator says to divide in July or just wait for it to seed in and youll have a mass..

Bulbine Fruticosa a succulent e perennial ground cover has onion-like fleshy green leaves and its star-shaped orange or yellow flowers, these beauties are held on stalks that can reach 2 or 3 feet above the foliage. Full sun and well-drained soil are best, but sometimes poor, dry soil is OK, too! Mine look reasonably good through the winter in protected pots.

Many of my Crinum Bulbispermum are starting to flower, although some are setting seeds now.–and what magical things those seeds are! Gather them by the dozens and bury them halfway in the soil to germinate! Remember that most Crinums love at least 5 hours of sun and love to be fed!

I’ve really come to love Stokesia, but they are a bit hard to use sometimes. The secret is to divide them and spread them around among opther perennials that have lots of foliage NOT mix them in with daylilies or white top sedge. I love the purple parasols of the tall Georgia selection Omega Skyrocket and also Mike Creels South Carolina selection Mary Gregory that is a beautiful yellow.

Mid-April Garden Checklist

Of course, we should have done most of our buying and planting in the winter, but nurserymen know that flowers sell. If you’re buying now:

– Look for smaller pots rather than larger. I’d rather start with a good quart than a gallon. The exception is if you’re buying subtropicals gingers, summer bulbs, things with bulky root stock. Go for the gallons or bigger as those roots take years to form.
– DON’T BUY FLOWERS. If you want flowers, go to the florist. Buy the plant that is not there yet. It is far less stressed.
– Wherever you buy, take the pot off and look at the roots. If anyone complains, go somewhere else. Buying without seeing the roots is like buying shoes without trying them on.