What to plant now

We're heading into the second week of May, prime planting season! If you're like me, you step out into the warmish weather, noting the balmy breeze nudging the buds on nearby tree branches, and feel a heady sensation of renewal and endless landscape possibilities. Others may look around sparse spaces with a rising sense of panic, wondering what to plant in the yards of barren soil spread before them. Whether you view the Spring season with anticipation or dread, it's comforting to know there are literally hundreds of plants ready, willing and able to adapt to your outdoor spaces.

Where to start? By asking the experts, of course. It's always about this time of year that I put a call in to my favorite local wholesaler to ask him what's growing really well this year. This week's telephone conversation yielded the following: pulmonaria (AKA lungwort) is strutting its stuff in the shady spaces of his garden. Its deep green leaves, speckled with white polka dots, makes a perfect foil to the deep purple and magenta flowers. The hosta have popped as well, and reside next to the oakleaf hydrangea, happily taking cover under sprouting tree leaves.

Of course tulips, daffodils and crocus are winding down, as are the snowball white blooms on the viburnum, but lilacs are on the upswing just now, along with some varieties of magnolia and dogwood. Lavender is popping up, and The redbud tree isn't far behind.

For sunny spots, catmint, yarrow, hibiscus and hydrangea (paniculata--the white flowers, not the macrophylla, the blue- or pink-blossomed variety that prefers shade) are all sending out leafy shoots, like arms laden in heavy green sleeves reaching toward the sun. It will be a while before their blooms pop, but you can plant them now. Also making a great show of things are, daylily leaves, daisy greenery,  the hopeful red shoots of peony, bachelor button (an early bloomer, just a few weeks away), and garden anchors like artemesia, heuchera (coral bells), carex (sedge), allium (ornamental onion), alchemilla mollis (lady's mantle) and grasses and ferns of all varieties. Get them all going now since there's very little chance of a cold snap snuffing their effort to grow and flourish.

For garden shaping, line the perimeter of flowerbeds with evergreens now. Boxwood, yew, and arborvitae (to name just a few) provide the canvas for the splash of festive bloomers all around them. If you don't know where to plant them, check out magazines (I like Veranda) and the web for design ideas. Drive around your neighborhood and look at other people's landscapes. Don't let your pride keep you from going with a garden design that looks similar to a neighbor's: if certain plantings look great in other beds around the region, chances are they'll look fabulous in your spaces too. Remember, imitation is the highest form of flattery. And the planting process will spark your own imagination and creativity, helping you plant a garden that is all your own.