Here Comes the SunPatien… and I Say It’s Alright!
The anticipation and energy of sunshine, longer days, and tending to the garden is growing.
Isn’t it funny how amazingly appreciative we Pittsburghers are of the sunshine? Especially after the real winter we just had! Our family enjoys the wintertime actually being cold and snowy, and had a great time playing outside. It was so beautiful! But we are so ready for warmer days, and for me personally, for planting and watching my garden grow.
I’ve been on a real SunPatien kick these last several years, probably 4 or 5 year now. I plant about 70 or so of them in a circle bed around our lamppost, tucked in groupings of 3-6 amongst my perennials and shrubs, and then in most of my patio pots. I love how the colors greet you all the way from the bottom of our driveway. I love them because they really are one of the brightest pops of all-summer color that you can get, next to geraniums. They are versatile with sun conditions; I plant them in both part sun and full sun, some under trees and some on the pool deck. And dare I say, the deer haven’t bothered them, and we have plenty of deer in our yard daily. That doesn’t mean that they are 100% deer proof, because nothing really is, let’s be real. But they haven’t been interested in my SunPatiens so far.
I absolutely LOVE mass plantings of annual color, and had to share this with you. This video comes from Sakata, the company that developed the SunPatien in Japan. An amazing sea of Sunpatiens was planted on Chausuyama, a mountain in Japan. Imagine that ride up the ski slope! Just gorgeous!
Hopefully I didn’t lose you to the vortex of Instagram by sending you off to that cool video. I wanted to be sure to tell you about something else I’m really excited about—our tri-color SunPatiens pre-order sale! These 3-in-1 mixes are available this spring by pre-order only, (single colors will be available in-store). These have taken my large SunPatien plantings to the next level. I change up my annual color scheme each year, and have really enjoyed the Hawaiian Sunset and Summer Salsa Mix. There is something for everyone in the four options available.
With all of this talk about sun, I hope that you’ll enjoy a listen to the Beatles song, as I did while writing this. Listen Now The Beatles – Here Comes the Sun
Enjoy!
Melanie has been with the family garden center business since 1999, gaining hands-on experience in nearly every aspect–from cashiering and greenhouse production to bookkeeping, perennial buying, marketing, and store management. Now serving as Finance and Marketing Director, she combines her expertise with a passion for growing the business. She and her husband, Russ, have loved seeing how plants, gardening, and beautiful landscapes bring joy to our community.
