Friday, July 11, 2008

PLANT OF THE MOMENT-AGASTACHE 'SANGRIA'


Today at work the owner John called me into his office to show me something on the computer. He was looking for information on a specific plant and happened across a website that not only described hundreds of different plants but also provided gorgeous pictures of each one. One of the first pictures he showed me was Agastache 'Sangria'. He casually mentioned that we had a bunch in the greenhouse. They were started late and brought into the selling greenhouses late so we still had them in four packs which explains why I wasn't growing them since I knew that I had already purchased all the agastache that we had in four packs early in the season. I got out of the office as quickly as I could and made a beeline to the herb greenhouses where I found said four packs. I was very impressed with the plants. All were growing strongly upright, looking very healthy and vigorous.

Agastache 'Sangria' is an agastache mexicana and is hardy to zone 7. It actually likes and THRIVES in dry soils which I have no trouble providing in my gardens of sand. Its leaves are lemon scented and can be used in teas and the flowers are edible. Its also a first-year-flowering perennial so I will get plenty of blooms from the four plants in my four pack this season. They do best when pinched back early in the season to keep them compact and branching. They will eventually grow to around 48 inches tall.

It just goes to show you that at any time, even when you least expect it, you might just by chance run across or have pointed out to you...a plant of the moment and for this reason Agastache 'Sangria' is my plant of the moment.

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