Flowerless gardens offer beauty without allergy worries

You can have a colorful garden with nary a flower to be seen. No kidding.

Coleus, fern, and hosta offer many textures, shades of green, bursts of color and few flowers, which is good news for people with pollen allergies.

Coleus

Plants are supplied in colors that might resemble watercolors drizzled over green leaves. Coleus is a plant that offers pale to deep color shades including chartreuse, lemon/lime, yellow and dark reds to a maroon that's almost black. One variety has multiple colors in each leaf.

The leaves offer texture and movement in the garden and coleus is happy in a flower bed, trailing in a hanging pot and in pots on a patio or deck.

"Coleus is really one of the hot new trends in gardening. It used to be just considered for shade," says Ray Greenstreet, owner of Greenstreet Gardens in Lothian. "It comes in a lot of fun colors in the Sun Collection, that love the heat, the sun and our hot summer nights."

Check the label for planting instructions as to how much sun or shade the plant needs or will tolerate. As a rule, says Mr. Greenstreet, the more sun that the Sun Collection varieties receive the more intense the colors become.

While coleus does produce a flower, but it's not necessary for it to bloom. Pinching it off means the flower can't go to seed and will encourage the plant to grow more densely and fuller. Mr. Greenstreet recommends the ducks feet variety of coleus for a trailing effect in a pot or window box. It has small leaves and trails nicely, which looks especially nice hanging over a deck rail.

Other varieties have larger leaves that can be 3 to 5 feet tall.

The 'kong coleus' has huge leaves and appreciates morning sun and late afternoon shade. Pinch it back to encourage bushier growth.

Mr. Greenstreet says, "Don't be afraid to feed and pinch a little bit."

You can cut coleus and place it in a vase with a few flowers to create a very interesting centerpiece, he adds. The coleus will grow back.

While coleus is treated like an annual, in that it doesn't overwinter in the ground, plants can be brought inside if space and light permit.

Whether in a multi-plant coleus bed or tucked in among flowers, coleus color offers a nice punch of color.

Fern

Most people are familiar with the Boston fern, usually seen hanging in pots, with palm-like fronds draping gracefully over the edge.

But there are many different kinds of fern in many shades of green. An enitre garden bed can be devoted to fern and still look interesting with subtle colors and lots of texture.

"I think (fern is) under utilized in the landscape. You can include fern into any landscape project. They're really tough! People think they're delicate," said Mr. Greenstreet.

In a grouping containing a variety of ferns, they can hold their own interest. Or, Mr. Greenstreet suggests planting in a shady area along with caladium or impatiens behind it.

Mr. Greenstreet says to buy a 10- or 12-inch Boston fern, for example, and cut it up into quarters or thirds. Placed in containers, in will cascade nicely over a deck.

If fern has too much shade, the fronds will become longer while reaching for the sun, but offering a different look.

If you bring the fern inside for the fall and winter, give it a shower weekly to remove any bugs and dust and provide the humidity ferns enjoy.

"People think ferns shed a lot, but it's only when they dry out," says Mr. Greenstreet.

He suggests the 'Kimberly queen' variety as a full sun, upright fern that's very tight and reaches up to 1 ½ feet and has a bright green color.

Nurseries can advise you on perennial ferns, the kind usually associated with growing wild in the woods. They work great as an understory planting.

Staghorn fern is an interesting variety in that it grows only on decaying material such as a fallen tree. It can be purposely grown on a piece of wood left untreated. It's shaped, as the name suggests, like stag's horns.

Hosta

While most hostas are for shade, there is a wide range of colors in solids and variegated leaves. They leaves are quite large and hosta fills in an empty area very quickly. They are a very good choice for foundation plants, under trees, around a mailbox or along a driveway or walk.

"Hostas come back every year and they're relatively safe regarding pests and disease," advises Mr. Greenstreet.

They would do well planted with ferns and coleus for a colorful mix.

Visit Greenstreet Gardens.com or at 391 West Bay Front Road, Lothian or call 410-867-9500.

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