Indianapolis: A world away from South Carolina but a brother from another mother. Indiana gardens look similar to what I’m used to: lawns, trees, colorful borders.

The people are wonderfully similar too. Since I’m basically a vagabond visitor, I didn’t know what to expect up here, in the north.

What I’ve found are people seeking new perennials, testing and pushing limits, asking me to see their gardens, driving me around town, their friends opening bottles of wine and sharing seeds.

Plants differ drastically, though in Indiana gardens. A few too many hosta, I have to say. And tons of annual color. Petunias and Morning Glory vine everywhere. Cannas, used as annuals here, in giant pots, perfect, in full flower—but only about 5 feet high.

At the Garden Writer’s Conference there was a lot of talk about Canna and Elephant Ears and Crinum that will tolerate the cold. And lot of talk about Coneflower and roses and sub tropical Hosta that will one day make those things thrive in the South.

I understand people want to make more money selling to plant hungry gardeners everywhere. I do, I’d love to sell crinums to my Indianan brothers, but sometimes, honestly, I love the differences.

Perennials In Flower in South Carolina for Labor Day:

Zephyrantehs reginae – Yellow Rain Lily
Lycoris albiflora – White Spider Lily
Crinum Pink Trumpet
Hedychium Pink V
Salvia leucanthemum
Lespedeza Little Buddy
Mirabalis jalapa

It’s the best time of year for plants that seed themselves in! Looking forward to giving a lecture on these plants coming up soon for Guilford County Horticulture Society in Greensboro, NC! Topic – Gardening with the Rowdy Guest – Plants that Seed themselves in.