Coral Honeysuckle

Pics taken on the North side of El Presidio

My feature plant this month is the Coral Honeysuckle.  Tucsonans LOVE this vine for the colorful blooms during our spring season. A slow growing plant for me at El Presidio, but one that has recently produced several flowers off the vine. This Coral Honeysuckle has been slow to grow on the North side of our building.  It receives some sun but not the scalding hot temps of the Western side.

I'm not crazy about the vine as it doesn't perform well over the entire year and I like plants that will produce either green leaves or flowers all year round.  A resident wanted to try this vine out and so we did.  It needs excellent morning sun with some shade from the intense summer sun.  But during the summer it looks ragged and I wasn't crazy about it all.  However with spring here, the vine has grown some and the flowers provide some welcome color.

There are better Honeysuckles out there for our Tucson area and they are important as they attract a lot of hummingbirds and butterflies to our gardens. Mexican Honeysuckle is your best choice for the Tucson area and enjoys full sun.   It's not fussy about soil and is fairly drought tolerant.  Make sure the soil has good drainage. If you're interested more about this type of vine, check out Hall's Honeysuckle.This is your best bet but there are other choices out there.  Ask your local gardener and you'll find a variety of Honeysuckle as a vine or bush to suite your needs.  More tomorrow....

Pentas

Taking a little break from the busy summer activities.  Here is a plant that does very well here in Tucson during our summer months.  It does not like our winter at all so I'd keep this plant in a pot or planter.  Butterflies love it and the blooms stay on the plant forever! It needs regular watering and will take a lot of morning and early afternoon sun. I have this plant on the northern exposure of El Presidio Gardens.  Do not place this in shade as it will not grow to its full potential.  It comes in a variety of colors as seen in this pic. Our reds and pinks are doing very well here.  The white variety is a bit stunted.

Treat this plant as an annual.  If you have a greenhouse, place pentas there during the cold winter months of January and February.  A great choice for our Tucson heat and morning sun!  Plus in combo with other butterfly plants in the garden, this makes a wonderful addition!  Choose the reds, purples, and pinks to attract hummers! Plant with good gardening soil.

Here is some basic info....
LIGHT: full sun
SPACE: 10 - 20 inches apart
HEIGHT: 10-18 inches tall
BLOOM TIME: spring, summer, and fall
FEED: plant food
PLANT WITH: Salvia and Coneflower
Water:  With 95+ degrees, regular watering is required.  Less if in more shade.

A great plant for your Tucson garden! Pentas is one of the easier plants to grow if you're good with the watering:)  Until tomorrow!