You can enjoy much more than plants in your garden every evening and into the night, and in fact the right accessories can beautifully enhance your garden even as twilight falls. Consider these stunning accessories and accents to turn your daytime garden into a nighttime paradise.

Wind Chimes

Let gentle evening summer breezes play soothing sounds in your garden or patio. Choose from Bamboo styles or traditional wind chimes, and try different sizes and styles to find the tinkling tones you like best. Avoid using too many wind chimes, however, as different styles can have contrasting tones that may clash with one another rather than create a soothing melody.

Candleholders, Lanterns & Torches

Light up the night with lovely candleholders, lanterns and decorative torches to keep your summer evenings long and bright. Place appropriate lighting along pathways, deck edges and stairs to safely illuminate gathering areas, or use spotlights to create dramatically uplit trees and shrubs. For a whimsical touch, try kitschy strings of themed lights for a fun accent, or add elegance with multiple lanterns suspended from a large tree.

Tabletop Fountains

Erase your daily pressures by bringing the soothing, relaxing sounds of water to your patio or deck. A handcrafted tabletop fountain will add a soft, natural sound in harmony with your evening of relaxation. Consider fountains that may double as bird baths or centerpieces to do double duty during the daytime as well.

Tinkling Toadstools

Add enchantment to your garden with magical Tinkling Toadstools. When placed in groups, colorful glazed caps create a tinkling sound when the wind blows. Position them under a shrub or in a large, rustic container to add a fairy garden ambiance to your evening landscape, and be sure there is subtle light nearby to highlight their color and beauty.

 Ponds or Other Water Features

When the moonlight, candles and twinkle lights reflect on the water’s surface, there is an added glow and iridescence to the garden. Running water from a re-circulating pump powering a small spray fountain or waterfall provides a relaxing background sounds to the summer evening. Accent your water feature with floating lights, stunning water lilies or other creative options.

Egglites

Add nighttime beauty to ponds, fountains, statuary, landscaping and more with Cal Pump’s Egglite. These assorted colored, 10-watt lights are compact spot lights that can be used in or out of the water and are suitable for fresh, salt or chlorinated water. Position them unobtrusively and select colors that can magically enhance your nighttime landscaping.

With the right evening accents, you don’t have to stop enjoying your garden when the sun sets – just as temperatures cool off, the beauty of your garden can be heating up.

Plants don’t have to be hidden away at night, and there are many different plants that can be dramatic in the evening or well after dark. While the most obvious way to enhance the darkness is to use flowers that are light or white in color, you can also add plants with fragrant flowers or foliage. And, typically, evening bloomers often have a strong fragrance to attract night flying moth pollinators. Popular plants that thrive in evening gardens include…

Annuals and Tropicals

• Allysum (Lobularia maritime): This fragrant, sweet-smelling annual grows easily to form a mat of small, white, light pink or purple flowers and grows 2-6″. Plant or sow seeds in full sun.
• Heliotrope (Heliotropium arborescens): Look for the white-flowered form for the best evening visibility. It is not as showy as the popular dark violet version, but it’s more fragrant and will be more visible in darker lighting.
• Licorice Plant (Helichrysum petiolare): Small, round, woolly leaves in silvery grey drape well in hanging baskets and can be very showy at night.
• Jasmine (Jasmine officinale): This white-flowered jasmine is a vigorous twining shrub producing very fragrant flowers, attracting moths and glowing under moonlight.
• Moonflower (lpomoea alba): Easy to grow, this annual has large, white, pink or purple fragrant blooms that open in early evening and last all night. Heart-shaped leaves make this a great vine to cover a trellis or fence. This fast-grower loves full sun.
• Stock (Matthiola incana): Many kinds bear fragrant flowers that can add a delicious sensory experience to an evening garden.
• Tobacco Flower (Nicotiana sylvestris): Long, tubular white flowers are intensely fragrant and dramatically visible even in near-darkness.

Perennials

• Hosta (Hosta ‘Sum and Substance’): The bright, glossy chartreuse/gold large leaves (10″ across) of this hosta form a mound of brightness in the moonlight.
• Lamium (Lamium maculatum selections): An excellent ground cover for shade, this plant has leaves of silvery white and green with white, pink or purple blooms.
• Lavender (Lavandula): Fragrant English lavender (L. angustifolia), French lavender (L. dentata), ‘Provence’ and similar types (L. x intermedia) are the best bets for evening beauty.
• Evening Primrose (Oenothera fruticosa): Night-flying insects are attracted to the delicate fragrance of this pretty flower. Remaining closed during the day, its petals uncurl at dusk. These drought-tolerant plants are ideal in full sun.
• Pinks (Dianthus): Many hybrids have lost their delightful clove scent, but others are reliably fragrant. These include cheddar pinks (D. gratianopolitanus); cottage pinks (D. plumarius) and maiden pinks (D. deltoides).
• Verbena (Verbena bonariensis): Tall, erect stems with clusters of small, purple flowers attract moths at night as well as bees and butterflies during the day. Grow in a sunny spot in moist, well-drained soil.

Bulbs

• Lilies: Madonna lily (L. candidum), ‘Stargazer’, ‘Casablanca’ and other Oriental hybrids are extremely fragrant and beautiful, even in darker conditions.
• Tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa): This bulb, treated as an annual, produces exotic, sweet-smelling white flowers.

 Shrubs/Vines

• Butterfly Bush (Buddleja davidii ‘White Profusion’): This luminous plant has fragrant flowers that make it irresistible to moths. Also try the deep purple ‘Black Knight’ for a dramatic contrast. Plant in a sunny, well-drained location.
• Daphne (Daphne burkwoodii): ‘Carol Mackie’ has variegated foliage with star-shaped, richly fragrant, pale pink flowers that can glow in moonlight.
• Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica): Either evergreen or deciduous varieties can be a suitable choice for evening interest.
• Mock Orange (Philadelphus): Most kinds are fragrant, especially sweet mock orange (P. coronarius).
• Roses (Rosa): Many old roses are fragrant, including the damasks, Bourbons, hybrid perpetuals, Chinas and rugosas, as are many David Austin shrub roses. Choose varieties with white or pale blooms for more evening or nighttime glamour.
• Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia): This handsome, well-foliaged shrub has a summertime display of fragrant, pinkish-white flower spikes lasting for up to six weeks. It is well-suited for use near water and a good bee plant.
• Viburnum (Viburnum species): Three selections are especially fragrant and ideal for evening flair: ‘Burkwood Viburnum’ – An upright 8-10’, multi-stemmed shrub that produces a white flower. ‘Korenspice Viburnum’ – With a mature height of 5′ to 8′, the Korenspice has pink to reddish buds that open to fragrant, white flowers. ‘Mohawk Viburnum’ – A cross between Burkwood and Korenspice, the Mohawk displays dark red buds which open to white with red blotched reverse flowers. The flowers have a strong clove fragrance to them.

Herbs

• Lemon Verbena (Aloysia triphylla): With an oh-so-lemony delightful fragrance, lemon verbena has fragrant, narrow leaves and small white flowers. Leaves are strongest in scent and flavor while the shrub is in bloom, but can be harvested at any time. Plant in a moist sunny location. Unlike many herbs, lemon verbena retains its scent for years when dried.
• Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Rosemary’s fragrant flavor is spicy, warm and pungent, reminiscent of pine, balsam and ocean air. There are so many uses for rosemary that no garden should be without this herb. Along a path, rosemary releases its fresh, clean scent when brushed against at any time of day or night. Rosemary can take the heat, and does well against a brick or stone wall or in a pot on a sunny patio or terrace.
• Scented Geraniums (Pelargonium): Of the many varieties, those with scents of rose, lemon and peppermint are the most fragrant.
• Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans): This 3’ evergreen shrub has bright scarlet flowers in late summer and fall.

Adding plants specifically for evening enjoyment can enhance your garden for many hours, and with so many nighttime beauties to choose from, no garden should be without some after-dark drama.

Hydrangeas and are widely acclaimed for their large, showy blossoms that lend fabulous color to gardens from mid- to late summer. Their luxuriant dark green foliage offers a striking background to their large round or smooth blossoms. All hydrangeas are deciduous, and it’s a sure sign of spring when their tender green leaves begin to appear. Hydrangeas are spectacular when grown as single specimens and are equally fabulous when planted in mixed shrub borders. Some of our favorites…

• Climbing Hydrangea – An excellent deciduous vine with glossy leaves and cinnamon colored exfoliating stems. White flowers bloom in early July. Easily climbs on masonry, reaching 10-20’ tall.
• Oakleaf Hydrangea – An upright, irregular shrub that grows 4-6’ tall. Large leaves have excellent fall color. Creamy white flowers in July. Tolerates shade well.
• Bigleaf (macrophylla) Hydrangea – Blue or pink flower clusters (5-10” across) appear in August. Flower color depends on the pH of the soil. Acid soils produce blue flowers, whereas alkaline soils produce pink blossoms. In garden settings, their colors can be changed by adding either sulfur or lime, depending on the color you want to achieve. Blossoms are produced on last year’s growth, so prune just after blooming.
• Pee Gee Hydrangea – A small, low-branched tree that grows 10-15’ and arches under the weight of large flower clusters. White flowers bloom in July, turning pink and then brown with the first frost, holding on through winter. Flowers appear on previous year’s growth, so prune right after flowers start to turn pink.

Mopheads and Lacecaps – Which is Which?

Before you get the urge to dash out and buy the first hydrangeas that catch your eye, it’s wise to learn the difference between “mopheads” and “lacecaps.” As peculiar as these names sound, they truly are the names designated to two cultivar groups of macrophylla hydrangeas, and understanding the difference between them can help you choose the flowers you prefer.

• Mopheads
  Garden hydrangeas, also known as ‘mopheads,’ feature large round flowerheads resembling pom-poms and bloom from mid- to late summer. Mopheads bloom in solid masses, their clusters often so heavy that they cause their stems to droop and bend with elegant arches.
• Lacecaps
  Lacecap hydrangeas bear flat round flowerheads with centers of fertile flowers surrounded by outer rings of sterile flowers. The fascinating flowerheads of lacecap hydrangeas are also somewhat reminiscent of pinwheels.

You will be delighted with the versatility of these lovely shrubs, so relax and enjoy their beauty!

So, you’ve just installed a water garden and you’re wondering how to landscape around it without looking like the pond was a mistake or haphazard addition to your yard. A pond looks best if it appears to “belong” in your landscape. Whether your garden has a natural look or a formal style, the secret is to use plants that look right at home at the water’s edge and blend well with your existing landscape.

Getting Started

Lining the margins of the pond with small rocks disguises pond liner edges and gives an informal look to the water garden. A larger boulder actually overhanging the pond is an ideal spot for kids (or you!) to watch fish, frogs and dragonflies. Continue the theme in the surrounding landscape with some groupings of larger rocks, creating additional shelves or niches for an uneven, natural look.

Trees

In general, trees should not overhang the pond, as a water garden needs 5 to 6 hours of sun for aquatic plants to thrive and intrusive roots could damage the liner as trees grow. However, a small specimen tree will give your water garden scale and is a good starting point to the planting surround. Select smaller growing trees such as Japanese Maple, River Birch or low-growing flowering trees like Star Magnolia, Crepe Myrtle or Snowbell (Styrax). Position them slightly back from the pond’s edge in a suitable space for their own growth needs.

Shrubs

Shrubs give the landscape substance as well as flower and foliage interest at different times of the year. For winter color, select some evergreen shrubs like pines, spruces or junipers. A water garden located in the corner of your yard might have a backdrop of taller shrubs and smaller growing ones in the foreground. A more centrally-located water garden should have lower-growing shrubs all around so the pond can be viewed from all sides. Azaleas are a favorite for early spring color.

Perennials & Grasses

Perennials and ornamental grasses form the final layer of landscape. Select perennials that bloom at different times or with interesting foliage for color and texture all season long. Some favorites include Siberian iris, coneflower, rudbeckia and daylilies for sunny areas, with astilbe, hosta and ferns for more shaded locations. Plant perennials in large clumps or flowing drifts for the most impact.

Ornamental grasses are a spectacular addition to the water garden. Where a tall-growing grass is needed, use varieties of Miscanthus, Erianthus and Molinia. Graceful Fountain Grass is attractive planted in large groupings, while vibrantly-colored Japanese Blood Grass forms a dense low-growing mass for foreground plantings.

Finishing Touches

Be sure to create a place in your pond landscape where you can sit and enjoy your water garden – an overhanging rock or strategically placed garden bench can be ideal. Lighting, too, is important to bring your water garden to life at night. Create dramatic effects both by spotlights around the pond and submerged lighting if possible.

With thoughtful landscaping, your pond can be an integral, beautiful part of your landscape and a focal point for stunning landscaping design.

Do you work all day in an office, on the road or even in the garden, but never have the time to enjoy the beautiful plants you spend time nurturing? Evening gardens are meant to help us relax, encourage savoring a refreshing evening and wrap us in their brilliance, and one of the best ways to enhance your nighttime garden is with the right lighting to make it shine even in the darkness.

Natural Light in a Nighttime Garden

Extending the pleasure of your garden immensely, moonlight and star shine will illuminate flowers and foliage making the garden at night a different experience, almost surreal and magical. It can be especially enchanting when fireflies gently meander through the air, adding their ethereal glow to the landscape.

At nighttime, the garden develops hidden depths as the colors fade in the dusk. Red takes on a deep mysterious glow until it is lost into darkness when only the palest flowers begin to glimmer. Foliage casts shadows that soften the harsh corners of decks, sheds and structures. Scents are more apparent after a warm day as well as a calm, soothing feeling descends, and pesky biting insects retire as well – this is truly a wonderful time to enjoy your garden.

Artificial Light in the Night Garden

Enhancing the moonlight is a great way to create a spectacular night-time garden. Artificial light, besides serving a practical function, can add more interest to the evening garden, illuminating pathways and highlighting specific features.

Accent lighting creates a dramatic effect. Uplight trees, sculptures, pergolas, arbors, or large shrubs with recessed, understated lighting features to create a luminous glow. Create down-light from above to ‘moonlight’ paths or patios with either tall light fixtures or smaller pathway fixtures.

Add portable light with lanterns, torches and simple staked candles. This is great for barbeque areas, decks and entertainment areas, helping increase illumination for better visibility and evening energy. Candles are also nice because their flames flicker in the breeze and create shadows and reflections, but if it is too windy, be sure the flames are protected from vigorous breezes that will blow them out.

For the most dramatic nighttime lighting in your garden, consider specific features that will become showstoppers after dark. An elegant fire pit can be an evening gathering place and just the right spot for roasting marshmallows and chatting with friends. A waterfall or fountain can also be carefully lit to create an elegant, mystical mood with eye-catching sparkles as the light catches every splash.

To make the most of your garden lighting, position lights so they do not shine directly in your eyes as you move through the garden. If you are near a street, make sure your lighting won’t be canceled by streetlights, overwhelmed by passing traffic or distracting to drivers.

You don’t need to stop enjoying your garden when the sun goes down. With the right illumination – making the most of natural nighttime light and enhancing it with carefully chosen lighting – after dark can be when your garden really shines its brightest.

An undeniably beautiful shrub in any season, mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) explodes into bloom in late spring to early summer. One of our nation’s greatest contributions to the botanical world, mountain laurels possesses beautiful, shiny, deep green foliage. They boast legendary clusters of star-like buds opening to delicate cup-shaped flowers with frilly edges. The flower buds emerge red, open pink or white and reveal purple dappled markings inside the flower, giving this shrub its nickname “calico bush.”

A native from Maine to Florida, these broadleaf evergreens intrigue but also sometimes frustrate the home gardener. With so many magnificent specimens growing wild in the eastern forests, why is it sometimes difficult to grow mountain laurel in the landscape?

Location

First, you will need to choose the right site. Mountain laurel will tolerate sun if there is adequate moisture and the root area is cool, but partial shade is preferable and shade will do if there is some morning sun available. Plant your mountain laurel where it has plenty of room to grow to maturity; it should not need to be pruned except to remove dead or damaged wood. Mountain laurels are slow-growing, reaching 4-8 feet over 10 years. This contributes to their irregular habit, creating an elegant specimen.

Planting

As a member of the heath family, which includes rhododendron, mountain laurel requires well-drained, rich, acidic soil. Replicate these conditions and your plant should thrive. Your soil pH should be 5.0-5.5, but if your pH is higher than 6.5 your mountain laurel may not survive and certainly will not thrive. Laurels seem to perform best in raised beds, heavily amended with sphagnum peat moss or finely ground pine bark. To plant, dig a hole three times as wide as the root ball. Set the plant at or above the depth as it was growing in its container or the size of the root ball. Do not plant it more deeply. Mix a handful of superphosphate to the amended planting soil, then backfill the hole and water thoroughly. Add a 3-inch layer of pine bark mulch to keep the roots cool in hot weather and to retain soil moisture. Check plant often throughout the season and water before soil dries out. Fertilize twice yearly with Holly-tone; once in the spring and half strength in the autumn to provide adequate nourishment.

Selections

There are many different mountain laurels to choose from, and the most popular varieties include…

• Alpine Pink – Rich pink buds open to medium pink with a white throat.
• Carousel – Starburst pattern inside the corolla. Good growth.
• Hearts of Fire – Red buds open to a deep pink flower.
• Nipmuck – Intense red buds open cream white to light pink while the back of the corolla is dark pink.
• Olympic Fire – Large deep red buds open to pink flowers.
• Pinwheel – Maroon flowers edged in white with a cinnamon-maroon band that almost fills the center of the corolla.
• Snowdrift – Compact, mounded plant with pure white flowers.
• Elf – White flowers on a dwarf plant.

* All plants subject to availability

Mountain laurels can be magnificent specimens to add to your landscape, try one today!

Many gardeners assume that the brightest flowers are only seen in spring, but there are many stunning shrubs that have great color all through the summer. Some feature outstanding blooms while others have equally showy foliage and can brighten up any yard. But which will look best in your yard?

Top Summer Color Shrubs

There are a number of tried-and-true summer-flowering shrubs that never fail to be impressive. Consider these favorites to enhance your landscape all summer long.

• Hydrangea
  This very popular mounding shrub is an old-fashioned favorite, but it doesn’t have to be just your grandmother’s shrub – there are hydrangeas for every situation and taste. Flowers appear in early summer and can last for several weeks. Choose from pink, blue (use an acidic fertilizer to maintain this unusual color) or white blooms. Large flower heads great for drying or make outstanding arrangements and bouquets when cut. These shrubs do best in light shade or sun. One of the easiest hydrangeas to grow is the native American oak-leafed hydrangea has lobed leaves with fragrant, conical-shaped flower heads.
• Butterfly Bush (Buddleia)
  This dramatic shrub is truly a butterfly magnet, and hummingbirds love it as well. One of the most fragrant flowering shrubs, butterfly bush blooms from early summer to autumn frost, and different varieties can thrive in a wide range of growing zones. The flowers can be pink, purple, blue, yellow or white, and often feature elegant spiked panicles, arching branches and interesting foliage. These shrubs do best in full sun and come in different sizes to suit different landscaping areas.
• Spirea
  A generally low-maintenance choice, this shrub features golden yellow to lime-colored foliage all summer with pink or lavender blooms in late spring through summer. Goldmound, Gold Flame and Anthony Waterer are all great cultivars and easy care shrubs growing to about 2-4’ by 3-5’. This truly is the perfect shrub to use anywhere in the landscape, and it can tolerate sun to part shade growing conditions.
• Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus)
  This is one of the showiest plants of the summer, and Rose of Sharon is also one of the easiest to grow. Dense growing and upright when young these shrubs will spread with age, so take care to plant them in appropriate spaces to avoid overcrowding. The dark green foliage contrasts nicely with large, showy flowers that can be up to 4” across. Flowers open in July and will continue blooming through late summer and into fall. Flowers are sterile, eliminating seed problems. This shrub is ideal to plant as a screen, hedge or focal point in full sun.
• Blue Mist Spirea (Caryopteris)
  This shrub is a great plant for late summer color with bursts of purple-blue flowers just when many other plants are growing dull. Its low-growing, mounding habit reaches 2-3’ wide by 2-3’ tall. Blue Mist Spirea is easy to grow and can tolerate some neglect. It should be planted in full sun, and will bloom from summer to fall.

With any of these shrubs in your yard, your summer landscape can be just as colorful and eye-catching as any spring flowers or autumn foliage.