LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Portulaca

One of my favorite summer flowers is the moss rose (portulaca grandiflora). Available in many colors, this beautiful spreading plant loves the sun; full sun all day long. It has a high drought tolerance, and unlike impatiens and petunias seems to thrive even if you forget to water.

Although it is often used as a ground cover, it is perfect for hanging baskets exposed to a lot of sun. I use portulaca for my "hummingbird" basket. The basket has three hummingbird feeders which are not only pleasing to the eye, the hummers love them and often come here to feed. I have two colors of portulaca in the basket.

The flowers in this basket will continue to bloom all summer. They are very forgiving, don't need to be dead-headed and do well in heat and sun.

5 comments:

Kerri Farley said...

These are beautiful and great info! I need some more plants that are good in Full sun!

Mary said...

I had them last year and have been wanting to get them in the ground this year. They spread beautifully, too - one of my Mom's favorite summer flowers. I hesitate to plant anything right now, however, although they are drought resistant.

Nice photos and great idea to include the nectar feeders in the basket!

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

I love old moss roses too. I bought them in a basket for the first time this year. I took the hanger off and put the pot on rusty old a three-legged plant stand. It's my favorite!

Cicero Sings said...

Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a comment.

I've just been perusing your blog (fortunately you are relatively new on the blog scene) to catch up on your world ... and a very interesting and beautiful one it is.

I love your dogs. Golden Retrievers are my kind of dog ... if one is to have a big dog. We don't have a dog ... just babysit the sister-in-laws. Our lives are not quite settled enough yet as we need to make the journey to "the coast" to visit my Mom in the home every 5-6 weeks or so (she is 94 July 3rd ... one day short of being a fire cracker).

I loved the chick-a-dee nest too. Disappointing they didn't stick around. Those Siskins are pesky. We have two that remained and they sit on the feeder most of the day!!

Anyway, happy blogging!

Jayne said...

Hmmm... maybe this is just what I need for my hot deck. The mini petunias are about shot.