SUMMER CARE
Annuals take the same kind of care you give perennials, except that most of them require less of it. Few need, or even thrive in, especially fertile soil. Fertilize lightly, if at all. Many annuals get along with less moisture and mulching than perennials. And of course, none need be prepared for winter. During their one big season, simply pinch or prune those that grow straggly, and remove fading flowers before they set seeds. That usually prolongs the blooming season. After frost strikes, burn the dead tops, which helps control the spread of insects and disease.
As you study miniatures you will realize how many of the old regular annuals of the garden, plants that usually top two or three feet, can also be had in five-to eight-inch sizes. You have but to look through your seed catalogues. The tiny ones are usually listed at the end of each category, though in the affections of miniature-lovers they should come first and take precedence over the “new giant-size,” “bigger-than-ever” varieties.
In searching for miniatures I’ve culled through my large collection of catalogues from Burpee to Vaughn and have compiled a list of small annuals I have either grown, or expect to grow the coming season. Not all of them are compact versions of their larger relatives. Many by nature are on the diminutive side. So many of them are old friends, let’s call them by their first names—the ones by which they are listed in most seed booklets. The plants I have in mind are mostly eight inches in height or less, though some of the longer-stemmed charmers may slip in simply because they are too lovely to be left out. We’ll give colors for those who have color schemes in mind for their gardens.
Ageratum
This annual, a great garden favorite, is also known as the floss flower. In general it is a profuse bloomer that is fine for borders, edgings, rock gardens, small flower beds, and even as a house plant. It comes in several colors but usually in the same sizes, two to six inches.
‘Blue Ball’—This name is especially descriptive. The plants shape up as round as a ball and then cover themselves with dark-blue flowers. Who can expect more of one so small?
‘Blue Mink’—My friends who write seed catalogues, and so see many beautiful plants, rave about this one as being true blue, the real ageratum color. Its blooms, pretty as they are, grow surprisingly large for a bush so small.
‘Imperial White Dwarf’—For its contrast I love this one, a pattern of white surrounded by the blues, pinks, and reds of other annuals.
‘Midget Blue’—This is my real pet, a really tiny one of uniform shape, never over three inches tall and with the most delicate blue ageratum flowers.
Alyssum (Sweet)
This is just about the nicest thing that can happen to your garden be it annual, miniature, or otherwise. Although some members of this family may reach twelve inches, most of them run from three to five inches.
‘Carpet of Snow’—Much like ‘Royal Carpet’ for spreading, but has white flowers instead of purple.
‘Little Gem’—This one is about six inches tall, but atones for its height by being a more profuse bloomer, with small white flowers.
‘Pink Heather’—The blooms open in a delicate pink and slowly darken. It has vigor and scent, and seems to want to bloom constantly.
‘Rosie O’Day’—The pride and joy of the family, and the winner of an award comparable to being chosen Miss America. The blooms are a deep pink, even more so when the weather is a bit cool. It is quick to bloom, easy to grow, and nicely fragrant.
‘Royal Carpet’—This one is only about two inches high. With its purple flowers it fills in vacant spots most beautifully. A single plant may spread out ten inches.
‘Violet King’—Somewhat shorter than ‘Violet Queen,’ but has a deeper color and more compact shape.
‘Violet Queen’—Averages about five inches, and is as its name says a rich violet color. Delightfully scented, it is wonderful for edging, borders, and flower beds.
Alyssum has long been one of my garden favorites, whether for a ground cover, for rock gardens, as an edging for walks and beds, or just for its own sweet alyssum self.
Balsam
In my concept of miniature plants I had always thought of balsam as a towering giant of at least two feet or more. Then one night while going through seed catalogues I discovered an entire column listing ‘Tom Thumb Double Flowered Dwarf,’ ‘Tom Thumb Purple,’ ‘Tom Thumb Scarlet,’ ‘Tom Thumb Shell Pink,’ ‘Tom Thumb Pure White,’ ‘Tom Thumb Rose.’
According to growing directions, Balsam likes a rich soil, well-drained but slightly moist, and full sun.
Coreopsis
It was love at first sight when I saw a clump of this delightful annual. I was even more delighted to learn that the plant can be grown as a miniature. In the smaller form the cute little fellows spread out into low mounds of six or eight inches and cover themselves with blooms that last all summer. As an edging, for rock gardens, and as a cover for otherwise bare spots, they are truly charming.
‘Golden Ray’—Yellow with crimson touches.
‘Petite Purple’—Rich purple covering the small mounds.
‘Tiger Star’—Rich-crimson-striped and splashed with yellow. Plants stay at about six to eight inches and become mounds of color.
Cornflowers
Here is another of the taller plants which fortunately has some small relatives. There are:
‘Jubilee Gem’—Has a vivid blue flower on a compact bush.
‘Lilac Lady’—Purplish blooms on a neat bush.
‘Little Snow Man’—Pure-white blooms.
‘Rose Gem’—Red blooms, double.
Most of these plants will stay under eight inches. They are ideal for rock gardens.
Marigolds
Marigolds are very well represented in the gallery of miniatures. Loving the large ones as I do, I love the tiny ones even more. In one of my favorite catalogues I find an entire group with “Petite” as a first name:
‘Petite Gold’—About seven inches tall and golden yellow.
‘Petite Harmony’—Mahogany in tone, with a gold crest.
‘Petite Orange’—About the same size, only tending to be more orange in color.
‘Petite Yellow’—Another variation on the popular marigold color. In another catalogue I find the small ones called “Pygmies”; all of them are just a little short of nine inches in height.
‘Fireglow’—Mahogany-scarlet with gold centers.
‘Helen Chapman’—Rich gold in color with flecks of red.
‘Primrose Pygmy’—Primrose-yellow flowers with a red base.
‘Yellow Pygmy’—Lemon-yellow pompon-type flowers.
There are other miniature marigolds, from the double dwarf French part of the family, within my idea of how small a small one should be.
‘Brownie Scout’—Golden little flowers with a base flecked with red.
‘Butterball’—Canary-yellow blooms and plenty of them until frost time.
‘Fireball’—A few inches taller than some varieties, but with flame-like markings flashing up through the otherwise orange petals.
‘Gold Laced’—Basically mahogany in color but with each petal edged in gold.
‘Rusty Red’—The brightest of red, extra-large flowers for a small plant.
Nasturtiums
I love this plant so much I hate to leave it out of my listing even though it might be a few inches taller than my other miniatures. I always am careful to plant it toward the rear of flower beds where it will not overpower the smaller plants. There are several dwarfs, but the one I know best is ‘Cherry Rose.’
Nemophila
This is a very beautiful little dwarf, each plant spreading out into a shapely clump, and covering itself with pretty cup-shaped blossoms. When sown in the spring it blooms all summer. When sown in the autumn it is an early spring-bloomer. It is at its best when used in a semishaded spot for a ground cover, for a border, or in a rock garden. Its more usual name is baby blue eyes.
‘Insignis Blue’—The best-known variety; covers itself with lovely, cup-shaped, sky-blue flowers with white centers.
Petunias
Petunias, being favorite annuals, belong in just about every garden, but it is difficult to find the small ones for the miniature garden. But they are available despite the fact that most hybridizers try to develop a larger and larger plant. Here is a list of smaller ones; few of them are taller than eight inches.
‘Blue Star’—Velvety blue with a sharp white star.
‘Bright Eyes’—Rosy-pink blooms with white throats.
‘Heavenly Blue’—Light sky-blue, a heavenly color.
‘Igloo’—Compact and pure white.
‘Rosy Morn’—Brilliant rose with white throat.
‘Salmon Gem’—Bright salmon color.
‘Twinkles’—Brilliant rose-starred white.
Phlox
This is another garden favorite that may give you problems when you try to find seed for the small ones. Again, the tall varieties are being developed, but concessions have been made to those who like the diminutive. I find five varieties listed as the ‘New Dwarf Compact.’
‘Cinnabar Red’—Scarlet vermilion.
‘Fireball’—Rich fiery crimson scarlet.
‘Isabellina’—Primrose yellow.
‘Pink’—Bright chamois-pink.
‘Snowball’—Flowers of purest white.
Another source lists:
‘Dwarf Globe’—A plump-shaped plant with flowers of various colors.
nana compacta—Not six inches high and a constant bloomer with large radiant flowers.
‘Twinkle’—Various colors with fluted, fringed petals.
Portulaca
Seemingly this is an insignificant little plant, though I don’t know how one so charming could be classified as such. I had never raised it until the editor of one of my favorite magazines asked me to make some photographs of it. Of course, I had to grow it first. I planted a bed and waited for results. They were not long in coming. Plants barely out of the ground started blooming a few days later, and started spreading about the same time. The blooms, when single, were cup-shaped; the doubles looked like roses. The plants had a sunny exposure, a sandy soil, not much nutriment, and an inordinate attraction for our dogs (like catnip for cats). One day I took a photograph of my husband’s Labrador-retriever pup looking over a short picket fence at my portulaca. I promptly put in a higher fence, but the puppy grew faster than the fence. Eventually, I got my photographs, but it was a dog-gone struggle. If you do not have dogs, or if your dogs are not portulaca-minded, I offer you a listing of a few varieties.
‘Alba’—Pure white.
‘Aurea’—Lovely yellow.
‘Coccinea’—Scarlet.
‘Red Foundling’—A little larger than some of the others, but semidouble, carmine-red, and most lovely.
‘Rosea’—Rose.
‘Salmon’—Salmon-colored and delightful.
Snapdragons
I didn’t think it possible that the lovely tall snapdragons, the ones that are waist high or taller, could be reduced to a mere six or eight inches. But it is possible. I offer two varieties in substantiation.
‘Miniature Magic Carpet’—Four to six inches. Colors are mixed and very dainty. As a carpet plant it is a creeper when given a chance.
‘Tom Thumb’—A plant that varies from six to eight inches tall, very free-flowering, good for window boxes, rock gardens, porch boxes, and flower pots for the window. Colors are in all of the brilliant shades.
Sweet Peas
One seed company came right to the point when listing the small varieties of sweet peas, calling them ‘Little Sweethearts,’ which they are. Eight varieties were listed in one booklet.
‘Boy Blue’—Clear mid-blue and delightful.
‘Caprice’—Red-maroon.
‘Coquette’—A rose-red variety.
‘Heidi’—Another red bloomer.
Those are varieties we have grown. Others which I hope to meet are ‘Fantasy-Face,’ ‘Pollyanna,’ ‘Sinbad,’ and ‘Snow-White.’
Another source lists ‘Cupid,’ ‘Little Sweetheart,’ and ‘Color Carpet.’ These three are bushy, not viny, make six-inch mounds of small-scale pea-type leaves, are slightly fragrant, and are usually sold in mixtures of colors.
Verbena
Actually this is a perennial, but it is usually grown as an annual. It is rampant both as a bloomer and as a creeper. The flowers are tubular with flat heads and show up in many colors—pink, lavender, scarlet, white. Our sources list Verbena bipinnatifida, the most hardy; and V. hortensis, many colors with white eyes, and a low compact shape. Another, ‘Dwarf Compact’ is white.
Zinnias
In running down my alphabet of annuals, from alyssum to zinnias, I find it a bit difficult to fit the latter into what I consider the miniature category, eight inches or thereabout. But zinnias are so effective in a garden I’ll forgive them if they are a few inches above eight. I’ll plant them in the back rows of my beds and pinch out the tops if they get too rambunctious. In the Lilliput class, those delightful little plants which cover themselves with the pompon type of bloom, I offer the following list.
‘Canary Yellow’—Clear yellow.
‘Peach Blossom’—Soft light pink.
‘Rose Gem’—Deep clear rose pink.
‘Scarlet Gem’—Bright fiery scarlet.
‘White Gem’—Pearl-like white.
Sorry I can’t offer more varieties, but all growers seem to be devoted to growing giants in the zinnia class. I happen to love the little ones, those cute pompons that look so charming in the buttonhole of a man’s jacket.
CHAPTER 17
MINIATURE GARDEN BULBS
Ring-around-a-rosying at the foot of a gray birch, twenty dazzling-white spring snowflakes nodding at the turn of a path, a company of bright-eyed kaufmanniana tulips; perching lightly in a rocky crevice, a flock of tiny canary daffodils that seem ready to wing away.... There’s something about the miniature bulbs that’s more fauna than flora, more fairy tale than real. Each one has its own elfin character and a happy-go-lucky way of stamping your garden “personally yours.”
In the rock garden, at the edge of a border, with evergreen ground covers, clustered wherever there’s a stone or stump to back them up, used by the hundreds as drifts in the lawn, miniature bulbs more than anything else give you that spring feeling. Potted and forced into flower indoors, they’re winsome window-garden items, delicate decorations for coffee table or what-not, delightful dish-garden inhabitants. They’re indispensable for sink gardens, precious in the small greenhouse.
Perhaps part of their charm lies in their unfamiliarity. So few are well known and widely grown. So many more are easy to find, easy to grow, and especially easy to pay for. And they’re such beguiling plants, I don’t see how any garden could be without them, miniature or not.
All of the bulbs included here hold their flowers no more than six inches high. They’re not small versions of better-known, larger plants, but mostly completely different, with their own individual characteristics—and with bulbs, foliage, and flowers in miniature proportions. The word bulb is used in its generalized sense, and includes true bulbs, corms, and tubers. To be botanically accurate, a few plants such as tuberous-rooted dahlias, rhizomatous iris, and bulbous erythroniums should also be included; but to be consistent in such matters as culture and decorative use, they’re grouped with plants that grow similarly, in the chapters on annuals, perennials, and wild flowers.
Some of these miniature bulbs are available from nurseries and other local suppliers. But the majority, and particularly the most unusual, are offered by mail by bulb importers and specialist growers. Reading some of the catalogues is like taking a quick trip to exotic parts of the world. And for me, ordering no more than I can find time to plant and care for is a severe exercise in self-restraint. There are always a few more that would look well in some special spot, others that are intriguing simply because I’ve never grown or seen them.
Most bulb catalogues give specific cultural recommendations that are helpful in selecting varieties that will adapt to your climate, and to the sun, soil, and moisture in the spot where you want to plant them. In general, bulbs are either hardy or not; they will survive a deep winter freeze, or they must be lifted and stored before the ground freezes at all. There are some natural borderline exceptions, like many fascinating varieties native to the West that are not so touchy about cold as they are about other climatic and cultural conditions.