Time for planning and dreaming

I received a back issue of Horticulture magazine this week and it's got me thinking of more native plants to include in my garden this season. As I mentioned in my last post, that first break in winter came early this year and began my annual impatience for spring. Lucky for me, the arrival of this fun magazine reminded me of how much planning I have to do and now I'm thankful for a little down time.

Horticulture's December 2009/January 2010 issue is the one that arrived yesterday. You might be asking, why now, since I've already received the February/March edition? Well, there was a subscription snafu because I moved. Now I am up-to-date.

This issue includes a fine article on native plants from all US states, plus Washington, DC. Plant habitats don't honor state boundaries, so many of the selections are also suitable for my zone 5 garden in suburban Kansas City. I will be looking for these plants on the private open areas around the lake, as well as in my local nurseries, to see if there are specimens I could collect. Take a look at the magazine's website www.hortmag.com. There you'll find suggestions in a tab called "Plants We Love" along with photos.

Another great reference I use to learn about plants that are suitable for gardens I'll be creating is the Missouri Botanical Garden's Plants of Merit webpage: www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Merit.
It's a great place to browse. The entries for specific plants explain whether the plant is a Missouri native and provide a lot of information about the plant's environmental requirements. I like the Plants of Merit in particular because these plants have performed well. The "emeritus" list is very long and provides hours of entertainment - great for those days when weather makes going outside a dreadful chore.

I've also just purchased my first landscape design software: Punch Home & Landscape Design Studio for Mac. It's the most inexpensive program I could find for my Mac. Since mine won't be a money-making endeavor (at least not for a long while), I don't want to spend a lot. I've never actually created visuals of my garden plans. It's all been in my head prior to it's existence in reality. So I'm looking forward to being able to see a preview of my ideas before actually implementing them.

Hopefully in next week's post I can show you my first plan. :-)