Snapdragon Admiral Crimson 

Snapdragon Admiral Pink 

Snapdragon Admiral Pink Bicolor 

Snapdragon Admiral White 

Snapdragon Admiral Yellow 

Snapdragon Calima Red 

Snapdragon Calima Ivory White 

Snapdragon Calima Pink 

Snapdragon Calima Pure White 

Snapdragon Calima Yellow 

Snapdragon Maryland Red	Snapdragon Monaco Red	Snapdragon Monaco Yellow	Snapdragon Potomac Appleblossom	Snapdragon Potomac Dark Orange
Snapdragon Potomac Early Pink	Snapdragon Potomac Plumblossom	Snapdragon Potomac White	Snapdragon Potomac Yellow	Snapdragon Trumpet Hot Pink

Snapdragon Trumpet Tangerine

Snapdragon Trumpet Teracota

Snapdragon Trumpet Tangerine

Snapdragon Trumpet Teracota

   Gardeners ready to share ‘secrets’

By FRANCES JAQUES Staff Writer

Annapolis is a town for walkers. It’s also a place where backyards are filled with flower-bordered patios, sparkling fish ponds and conversational settings underneath century old trees.

Peggy Waggoner, who has lived for more than 20 years on Green Street, has had plenty of seasons to watch how the sun and the shade hit her small rear yard.

“I would stand at my kitchen window and study the sunlight across the garden,” she said.

From these observations, she was able to arrange plants that like sun and those that prefer shade in locations favorable for all.

Each year, she picks a special flowering annual plant for color. This year her flower of choice is the snapdragon. Last year it was zinnias.

Her colorful snapdragons are planted in the few sunny spots around her small fish pond, just outside the rear door bordering a patio.

A second larger patio is at the end of the garden, bordered by the yard of the Ridout house, a historic house that fronts on Duke of Gloucester Street.

“When I moved in there were two patios and some grass in between,” said Mrs. Waggoner.

She quickly decided to get rid of the grass and did so by adding the pond and a winding brick walkway connecting the two patio areas.

“I sponsor midshipmen and they helped put in the pond and the walks,” she said.

Roses like the dampness of her garden and bloom on the fence that manages to get some sunlight.

Mrs. Waggoner originally planted roses for everyone in her family of five children. But as her grandchildren count, now 15, continued to grow, she decided instead to dedicate a rose bush to each family unit.

Across Green Street from the Waggoner home is a larger garden behind the home of Barbara and John Dugan.

For 10 years the Dugans operated their home as a bed and breakfast known as The Doll House. Now retired from running that business, Mrs. Dugan has more time for gardening.

Her yard is heavily shaded with century old trees, including a deodar cedar which has been designated by horticulturists as a “specimen tree.”

More commonly found in warmer climates, the cedar has long thin needles on sweeping branches that form a lacy canopy above several white-painted wrought iron tables and chairs set for easy conversation or a cool spot for a afternoon cup of tea.

The Dugan’s yard is grass free with the ground covered by small reddish stones.

An extensive back porch and deck area attached to the rear of the house adds to the enjoyment of the outdoors during the warmer weather.

The Dugans are limited with flowers because of the heavy shade but have found that impatiens and hydrangea bring a bit of color to the large expanse of greenery.

For additional interest, they installed a three-tiered fountain at one corner of the yard.

“It’s been a trial and error experience, trying to find out what would grow in the heavy shade,” said Mrs. Dugan. “We also found that nothing grows by the book.”

Tomorrow’s tour also includes the mother-daughter gardens of Carol Safir and Jennifer Christensen who live next door to each other on Charles Street and share backyards and gardens.

When Carol and Harold Safir bought their 1770-era home, it came with a garden of tangled old indigenous bushes, trees and plants.

The Safirs have cleared out the undergrowth and trimmed the trees while retaining the integrity of the old plantings.

With an abundance of sunlight at some areas, the gardens can accommodate roses and flowering annuals.

For added interest. the Safirs have placed curved garden benches, a bird bath, sculptured pieces and a three-tiered fountain.

They have also added the popular Knock Out roses which have become the most talked about flower this summer.

The back yard of the home of Jennifer and Tor Christensen has play areas for the couple’s two young children. There is also a garden house at the rear of the yard which is part of a two-car garage. The house has been refinished to accommodate a study and small kitchen and can function as an adult get-away spot.

Most of the city gardens make use of hanging plants and since they are usually fenced, there is space along the fence wall for placing more plants. This mobility of placing plants at different places not only can change the look of gardens throughout the summer months, it may also add to the health of the plant.

http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2007/06_02-33/HOM

Rust infects snapdragons       

05:39 PM PDT on Friday, April 27, 2007

Ottillia “Toots” Bier

Q: I just noticed that some of my snapdragons have bright orange bumps on the underside of the leaves. Should I be concerned?

A: What you have spotted is a fungal disease that affects snapdragons and many other plants such as roses and hollyhocks. It is characterized by yellow spots on the upper sides of the leaves and orange pustules (spores) on the undersides of the leaves. The spores are carried by the wind and may infect susceptible leaves on which they land.

Moisture and moderate temperatures typical of spring weather are necessary for spore germination.

Rust control is a year-round chore. You can reduce the incidence of spore germination by avoiding overhead watering and by watering early in the day so the leaves dry quickly.  

In the fall and winter, gather and destroy all infected leaves, both those on the ground and those still on the plants. While the weather remains favorable to the disease, you can spray your plants every seven to 14 days with a fungicide specifically labeled for rust. As always, the manufacturer’s directions must be followed carefully to ensure effective protection.

A final tactic for the future is to select one of the newer cultivars that have been bred specifically to resist rust infections. Although their degree of resistance may not be 100 percent, their performance will be a significant improvement over older cultivars.   

http://www.pe.com/columns/toots/stories/PE_Fea_Daily_D_master0428.29a8dc1.html

      Growing Snapdragons    

One of nature’s most stunning examples of color and beauty is the snapdragon.

Rows of perfectly formed, beautifully painted flowers adorn many stems. These well-favored annuals come in a wide assortment of colors and varieties. The website “Annuals A-Z: Choosing and Growing Antirrhinums”, written and published by Graham Rice in 1999, says most annuals are not available in as many colors as the snapdragon. Various shades of white, scarlet, yellow, purple, pink, and peach are available. Two-toned snapdragons are particularly showy.

This softly scented flower comes in various sizes as well, ranging from dwarf varieties to varieties that can reach a height of four feet, according to the same article. Taller varieties make beautiful backdrops for shorter plants, and shorter to medium height varieties make nice borders. “Annuals A-Z: Choosing and Growing Antirrhinums” recommends “Lampion” for hanging baskets, which is a lovely cascading variety. Recommended for window boxes is a dwarf variety called “Kim”. It boosts dazzling orange and yellow flowers. “Burpee: Complete Gardener” published in 1995 by Macmillan, suggests planting low-growing varieties as ground cover. One such variety is “Floral Carpet Hybrid”. It also makes a nice flower for a border or window box.

Snapdragons produce more blooms when temperatures are cool, according to “Burpee: Complete Gardener”. Snapdragons are often sold in garden centers and greenhouses, and they can be purchased as fully developed plants. If starting snapdragons from seed, they should be planted indoors approximately two to three months before spring planting.

The same book says snapdragons require light to begin sprouting, so the seeds should be sprinkled on top of the soil in peat pots, trays, or containers. Covering the peat pots, trays, or containers with clear plastic will help retain valuable moisture during germination adds “Burpee: Complete Gardener”. Also, pinching off the tops of snapdragons that are about four inches tall will encourage the plant to branch out. Before you transfer your snapdragons to the outdoors, check the plant hardiness zone for your particular location. The same article says light frost will not adversely affect snapdragons, but heavy frost can be damaging. In addition, they should slowly be introduced to the outdoors before transplanting. Setting them outside for a few hours each day will strengthen and prepare them for outdoor conditions.

“Burpee: Complete Gardener” recommends planting snapdragons while temperatures are still cool in spring or early in the summer. They will do best in a sunny location with soil that drains well. The same book says the first blooms on snapdragons are usually the largest, but a greater quantity of flowers will bloom after the first ones are finished. It goes on to say that flowering will slow down during hot weather and will resume again when the temperature drops. Also, dead flower stalks should be removed to promote new growth. “Burpee: Complete Gardener” recommends supporting taller varieties with stakes.

Snapdragons are a spectacular addition to any flower bed or garden. They are easy to grow, are very versatile, and you will appreciate the touch of color and beauty they add to your property.      

April 2007                                                

By Norman Winter
Special to The Clarion-Ledger

Each year, I enjoy helping announce the Mississippi Medallion award winners, but 2007 will be extra special because it includes the first angelonia to win the award: the Serena series.

  Angelonias, also sold as summer snapdragons, have been in the Mississippi marketplace since 1997. MSU began planting them in trials at different locations to see how they performed and how unique they were for the summer landscape.

There are a lot of great angelonias in the market, but the Serena series holds special favor. It is the first seed-produced angelonia in the market. Sure, you’ll buy it as a transplant, but the seed gives the grower that option if he chooses.

The Serena series is among the shortest of the angelonias, reaching 12 to 15 inches tall and spreading almost as wide. Choose a site in full sun for best blooming. Please do not stick this wonderful plant in tight, cement-like soil.  Before planting, work 2 to 3 inches of organic matter into your bed. While preparing the bed, take the opportunity to incorporate 2 pounds of a slow-release fertilizer with a 2-1-2 ratio. Plant at the same depth they are growing in the container, and then apply a good layer of mulch.

Beginning in the spring, they will bloom and bloom and bloom – incredibly long for a plant called summer snapdragon. The angelonia is from Mexico and the West Indies and can take anything Mississippi’s summers can dish out.

Serena angelonias are available in several colors: lavender, lavender-pink, purple, white and a mix. Since they are such heat- and drought-tolerant plants, you will want to plant them in mass with other rock-solid performers such as melampodium, Profusion zinnias, Titan periwinkles or rudbeckias. Their spiky texture is most welcome in the garden world dominated by round flowers.

Pay attention though, because if they should go through a prolonged dry spell, supplemental irrigation will pay dividends with a healthier, more productive plant.

A light, monthly application of the 2-1-2-ratio fertilizer, such as a 10-5-10 with minor nutrients, is all this plant needs to keep blooming. The bloom period is really long, and when it does want to cycle, it responds well to trimming with a pair of pruning shears.

There have been virtually no disease or insect pressures on the Serena angelonia making it a great choice for the novice gardener as well as the more experienced.

Serena angelonias are being promoted as annuals and are a terrific buy. From Hattiesburg southward, keep your eyes open next spring for a repeat performance, especially with good bed preparation where winter drainage will not be an issue.

Look for Serena angelonias to arrive at garden centers this month. Serena is the 43rd Mississippi Medallion award winner since the program began in 1996. The program is sponsored by the Mississippi State University Extension Service, Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, The Mississippi Plant Selections Committee and the Mississippi Nursery and Landscape Association. 

Norman Winter is a horticulturist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service. Contact him at the Central Mississippi Research and Extension Center, 1320 Seven Springs Road, Raymond MS 39154. He can be heard weekdays at 7:19 a.m. on Public Radio in Mississippi.

http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070406/COL0703/704060309

 Snapdragons are easy to grow, colorful

By Joan Cobb Washington County Master Gardener

I think every garden should have snapdragons (botanical name: Antirrhinum majus). They are easy to grow, colorful and make nice cut flowers. For grandparents, when you want to act like a child again for a “good” senior moment, and no one is looking, you can pick off the little snapdragon blossom and gently squeeze the sides of the top and bottom bloom and make that dragon roar! When little ones come to your garden you can choose your color of dragon and share in wildly imaginative adventures of dragon wars for a moment or two!

As a rule, snapdragons don’t favor hot conditions, however, my snapdragons do well in my garden. They are treated as annuals, but often self-sow. The seeds can be planted directly in flower beds as soon as the soil is workable, or you can buy nursery-grown hardened-off snapdragons for spring planting. They bloom from summer to fall, and if hot weather temporarily halts blooming, just prune the plants and they will bloom again in the fall. Their colors are white, pink, red, purple, orange, yellow and some hybrids are bi-colored. The flowers are spikes of ruffled, tubular blooms, they prefer moist, well-drained soil and are partial to full sun. There are 30 to 40 species of snapdragon, their height can be 6 inches to 4 feet, their spread 6 inches to 2 feet.

Well-liked cultivars include the low-growing Floral Showers series that reach 6 to 8 inches tall, and Bells, another dwarf variety that provides long-lasting blooms in solid and bi-colored shades. The “Madame Butterfly” variety grows to 36 inches and features rich, double blooms that resemble azaleas. The “Sonnet” and “Liberty” series are two prime, medium-height selections. Both make nice cut flowers for bouquets. The “Rocket” cultivar reaches 48 inches tall and can handle heat, but to avoid toppling over will need to be staked. Deadheading regularly before seedpods form will encourage any size snapdragon to keep on blooming.

Snapdragons are an old-time favorite – they can stir up happy childhood memories and also be the beginning of some happy memories.

As I said, every garden should have snapdragons in it!

Morning Sentinel                   

      Snapdragons Plant Them and  Your       

                             Garden Will Ignite With Color

Over the years I have enjoyed watching children squeeze this flower’s cheeks to see the dragon open wide, exposing its brightly colored throat, and then snap closed. This childish act has entertained generations of youngsters, but it’s not the only thing that makes this plant special.

When people ask me what to plant in the fall other than pansies, snapdragons quickly come to mind. They give you more height than groundhugging pansies and work well in the middle or back of borders. They also work great in containers. These cheery plants come in a wide array of colors, ranging from the brightest reds and yellows to the softest pastel pinks. Many of the flowers are bicolored. Some selections have blooms that look like open butterfly wings. An All-America Selections winner Madame Butterfly sports large, azalealike flowers.

Snapdragons are tender perennials but are typically grown as annuals. I wait until late October or early November, after the chrysanthemums stop blooming, to plant them at my home. In the Lower South snaps will bloom throughout the winter. But in the Middle South spring is the time they really put on a show. If you live in the Upper South, where the ground freezes solid, plant snaps in the spring and they’ll bloom until fall.

The last three autumns, I have planted Liberty snaps that grow 18 to 24 inches tall. Towering selections such as Rocket shoot up to 36 inches. These two are not only tall but also winter hardy. If you prefer dwarf snaps, try Little Darling-a mere 10 to 12 inches tall.

Lucinda Mays of Callaway Gardens likes the sturdystemmed Sonnet Series. She was also impressed with the way Black Prince held up during the cold last winter.

If you have full sun to partial shade with rich, welldrained soil, you’ll have no problem growing snaps. Pinch off the first buds to create a bushy plant. If you leave the first buds you will have early blooms and tall, spiky plants. Once your snaps begin to bloom out and turn brown, cut them back below the spent flowers. This will encourage new growth and a second bloom. Snaps can get top-heavy and topple over; try using small dogwood branches to prop them up. Taller selections such as Rocket may need to be staked to a single piece of bamboo.

If you think snaps look good in your garden, you’ll love them in the house. They make wonderful, long-lasting cut flowers. So this fall, in addition to planting pansies and bulbs, try snapdragons. They’re guaranteed to make you and the children happy.

Pages 94-95: Black Prince, Liberty, Madame Butterfly, and Little Darling, available from Thompson & Morgan (MO), 1-800-274-7333, no minimum order, catalog free; Rocket available from Park Seed (MO), 1-800-845-3369, no minimum order, catalog free; Madame Butterfly available from Ferry-Morse Seeds (MO), 1-800-283-3400, no minimum order, catalog free.   

Find Articles – Originally from Southern Living    

Serena Lavender

Top–Visions of sugarplums take on a new meaning when people see this snapdragon variety called Sugarplum. A part of the Luminaire series, Sugarplum is vigorous and ideally suited in hanging baskets.

Bottom–Halloween has passed, but Candy Corn snapdragons are colorful options in cool-season landscapes. This variety from the Crown series reaches 15 to 18 inches in height and looks good enough to eat.

By Norman Winter                                     

MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

As exciting as the new pansies have been, 2005 was also a great year for new snapdragons. Our growers hit the target with the highest quality snaps I have ever seen. Garden centers tell me the snapdragons seemed earlier and created steady sales to enthusiastic customers.

Pan American Seed introduced the new Snapshot series this year. These are considered dwarf size reaching 6 to 10 inches tall, but they also spread outward 10 to 14 inches. The Snapshot snapdragons are available in eight colors and two mixes and have some of the most vibrant colors you will ever see in the cool-season landscape.