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By: Garden Design
Who wants to take a quick trip to the tropics? This week, we take a look at some hardy & tropical beauties, visit a lush garden that features foliage over flowers, and get ready to celebrate Summerific Week. We also challenge you to learn how to create your best containers ever—and we’ll show you how. Get out your flip-flops, make yourself an umbrella drink, and let’s get started!
Tropical Rose of Sharon & Hardy Hibiscus
Bring a tropical-island feeling to your garden with rose of Sharon and other cold-hardy hibiscus varieties, many suitable for planting down to Zone 5. Learn more about these tropical beauties.
Tropical Makeover
Step into the tropics in this garden designed by Lauren Hall-Behrens. See how she created a lush retreat in her own backyard and find out why she chose to emphasize foliage over flowers.
5-Day Container Challenge
How would you like to learn more about creating beautiful containers? Sign up for our 5-day container challenge, and in just 3 to 5 minutes a day, we’ll walk you through the entire process. You’ll get helpful hints and tips along with instructions to get you planting your best containers yet.
- Day 1: Choosing the Right Container\
- Day 2: Choosing the Perfect Plants
- Day 3: Planting Your Container
- Day 4: Container Care & Maintenance
- Day 5: Container Display & Design
Celebrate Summerific® Week (August 3–9)
Not many flowers can say they have a whole week named after them, but these ones can—and they’ve earned it! Join us in celebrating these native perennials during Summerific® Week, August 3 through 9. Summerific® hibiscus have massive 8-inch-wide flowers that bloom from late summer to early fall, providing an important late-season food source for native bees. These amazing plants give you top-to-bottom flower coverage along their stems, and all they ask for in return is plenty of sun and water, and a little elbow room—even though most only grow 3.5 to 4 feet tall.
See all 10 Summerific® Hibiscus Varieties
5 Tips for Growing Summerific® Hibiscus
10 Companion Plants for Summerific® Hibiscus
Do you have any Summerific® hibiscus varieties in your garden? Share a photo on Instagram with the hashtag #summerificweek, and you could win a Proven Winners cooler.
August: What To Do in the Garden
Gardening in the mid-summer heat can mean shuffling containers into shadier spots on extreme days and keeping an eye out for wilted plants. It’s also time to plan ahead and order bulbs and peonies for fall planting, as well as get your fall veggies started. If you’re wondering what else you could (and should) be doing in the garden in August, check out our regional guides below:
Pacific Northwest
Northern California
Southern California
Midwest
Southwest
Northeast
South