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| Scent-sation Honeysuckle |
I have wearied the readers with my praise of Joe Pye Weed, so I switched to honeysuckle, which will be happy to grow, using Joe Pye for most of its support.
I planted two starts of honeysuckle in the fall last year, protecting them with a plastic collars. They came up in the spring and looked ambitious. The small patch on the south side of the garage was already filled with Little Joe Pye and little else. I left the autumn leaves on top to serve as mulch.
The west gardening area has been a test bed for things-gone-wrong in the garden. In the meantime I have grown two giant Joe Pye bushes there and one Chaste Tree. The honeysuckle planted last fall emerged there. I protected it with a plastic collar and a bamboo stick. The vine will crawl up the stick and work its way into the Joe Pye.
A pollinator garden has many enticements for bees, birds, hummingbirds, and butterflies. Everything seems to exude fragrances, so those four groups gather whenever the weather permits.
The bee balm and butterfly plants grow right up to the patio, so we can closely observe them as easily as they observe us.
