What’s Going On In John’s Garden

By John Ferguson

I was in the garden this morning and enjoying the flowers when I noticed bees visiting my Spigelia’s. I do not want Brenda to have all the fun showing photos of beautiful flowers so I grabbed my camera.

SPIGELIA marilanica – “Indian Pink” or “Pink Root”, member of the logania family, southeastern native and to much of Texas, red and gold blooms for 5-6 weeks in the spring, herbaceous perennial, some varieties hardy in Zones 5-10, abundant red and yellow flowers in part shade to full shade and moist well drained acid soils. It often grows at the edge of woodlands where there is bright light but no full sun, pointed dark green leaves, 18-36 inches tall, attracts hummingbirds, bees, and other pollinators, likes a thick aged native mulch. Removing spent spikes prolongs the blooming period. Note: The original soil is our alkaline black gumbo clay that has been amended with compost and aged native mulch and they have been quite happy.

The photos below are of Spigelia marilanica often know as “Indian Pink”. This patch has been growing in my yard for over 20 years through floods and droughts and has never had any disease or pest problems. It receives a few hours of morning sun then filtered shade the rest of the day.