Allen D. Owings Sun Garden Walking Tour

Put on your mud boots, apply your sunscreen and grab a wide-brimmed hat as you embark on your walking tour of the best-known trial garden at the Hammond Research Station! This area was designed to capture the perfect sauna-like conditions of Louisiana’s long growing season – high humidity, heavy rainfall (ridiculously heavy this year), extreme sun exposure, and high daytime (and even nighttime) temperatures. Annual and perennial bedding plants occupy most of the bed space here as you start on the east end, with the west end housing some woody ornamental shrubs and root-hardy tropical plants. Some selections sent by our trialing partners are intended to be short-lived shoulder crops or color designed to be planted more than once during the growing season. Other selections are expected to get better as the summer gets hotter (tropicals) or beautifully endure the entirety of the growing season (like pentas). In contrast, some of our perennial bedding plants tend to wait until their second year of growth to really pop in the landscape. Trial plants are evaluated in a typical raised landscape bed setting and are irrigated regularly during establishment. After that, supplemental irrigation is given only during dry periods.

Sun Garden Beds:

Bed 3 - Sweet Caroline Upside Key Lime and Black Coffee ornamental climbing sweet potatoes

- Illusion Penny Lace ornamental sweet potato

- Treasure Island series ornamental edible sweet potatoes (planted very late)

- A very nice collection of rust-resistant daylily cultivars from Westfarms Nursery

Bed 4 - Redhead Coleus

- ColorBlaze Newly Noir, Royale Pineapple Brandy and Royale Cherry Brandy Plectranthus (Coleus)

- Campfire Coleus

- Magilla Perilla

- Variegated Beach Hibiscus

- Pink Muhly Grass

Bed 5 - Soiree Kawaii Light Purple, Lavender and Coral Catharanthus (Vinca)

- Soiree Double Orchid Catharanthus (Vinca)

- Color Blast Watermelon Punch and Mango Mojito Purslane

Bed 6 - Mojave Yellow Portulaca

- Cupcake Upright Magenta Touch

- Dwarf Tibouchina (Tibouchina lepidota)

Bed 6.1- A nice collection of some Super Plants in this bed:

- Lemon Coral® Sedum

- Drift® Rose series

- Little Ruby Alternanthera

- Super Plant Summer of Salvias - Roman Red, Mystic Spires, White Flame, Evolution White, Orange Skyscraper, Henry Duelberg, Augusta Duelberg

- Flutterby Petite Tutti Fruitti Pink Buddleia

- Senorita Rosalita Cleome

Other plants:

- Royal Star Dolly Hydrangea paniculata

Bed 7 - Angelissa White and Rose Angelonia

- Zesty Yellow, Purple and Orange Zinnias

Bed 8 - Flamethrower Coleus Collection

- Henna Coleus

Bed 9 - Good collection of older Switchgrass Panicum virgatum nativars/selections

Newly acquired native grasses (local genetics):

- Short Sassy Switchgrass

- Goodbee Switchgrass

- Little Bluestem Grass

Bed 11 - Good collection of older Switchgrass Panicum virgatum nativars/selections

- Some Muhly Grass Muhlenbergia capillaris nativars/selections

Bed 14 - Surdiva White Improved and Purple Scaevola

- Sungelonia Deep Pink and Blue Angelonia

Bed 15 - Main Street Coleus Series – Yonge Street, Chartres Street, Venice Boulevard

- Hummingbird’s Lunch Cuphea

- Confetti Garden Cupcake Night Portulaca

- Watermelon Crossandra

- Dog’s Gone Coleus

Bed 16 - Jazz Hands® Variegated Loropetalum

- Rebel Child Salvia

- Virginia Saltmarsh Mallow Kosteletzkya virginica

Bed 17 - Starcluster Appleblossom and Rose Pentas

Bed 18 - Ladybird Sunglow Calylophus (Primrose) (Returned for 2nd year)

- Blue Chill Salvia

- Goldblitz Rudbeckia

- Angel Dance Violet Bicolor and Fuchsia Bicolor

- Trailblazer Glory Road and Road Trip Coleus

- Peach Frizzle Coleus

- Premium Sun Ruby Heart Coleus

- Artisan Yellow Ombre Echinacea

- Fairy White and Fairy Pink Scaevola

Bed 19 - Canna collection loving the heat and humidity (mostly from the Canova series)

Bed 20 - Queen Tut (Graceful Grasses series) Cyperus prolifer

- Prince Tut (Graceful Grasses series) Cyperus papyrus

- Blue Mohawk Juncus

- Heart of the Jungle Colocasia

- Suncredible Saturn Sunflower

- ColorBlaze Torchlight and Pineapple Brandy Royale Plectranthus (Coleus)

Bed 21 - Purple Diamond Loropetalum

- Cerise Charm Loropetalum

Bed 22 - Highlights of full sun container trials

- Brazilian Buttons

- First Knight and Princess Caroline Napier Grasses

- Butterfly Milkweed Asclepias tuberosa

- Orange Sceptre Buddleia

- Vermillionaire Cuphea

- Morning Glory Bush (Lavender and White)

Bed 23 - An interesting collection of basils, including African Blue, Cinnamon, Blueberry

Wild Magic and Bellpepper

- Hilltop Oregano

- Mandarina Lemon Balm

- Chrysalis Series Buddleias

Bed 24 - Bee Mine Monarda Series, including Red, Pink and Lavender (spectacular bloom in spring!)

- Yellow Diamonds Sedum

- Ka-Pow Soft Pink Phlox and Super Ka-Pow Coral Phlox

- Prelude Purple Nepeta (Catmint)

Bed 25 – Rebuilding our lantana collection!

Bed 26 - Rebuilding our perennial collection in this bed!

- Early Bird Gold Rudbeckia

- Echibeckia Series including Summerina Orange, Sizzling Sunset, Sunchaser and Sunreef

Bed 27 - This is the pollinator bed!

- Dwarf Joe Pye Weed

- Butterfly Milkweed Asclepias tuberosa

- John Fanick Phlox

- A nice collection of porterweed species and cultivars, including Henlea’s Hummingbird

Heaven, Nectarwand Red, Maw Maw Magenta, Ruby Throat Red, Dwarf Light Blue,

Dwarf Dark Blue, Dwarf Red, Purple and Coral

- Older, larger pentas cultivars, including Stars & Stripes, Pioneer Pink, Plum, Pink Remembrance and Ruby Red

- Pink Cuphea

- Giant Milkweed Calotropis gigantea

Bed 28 - Little Trumpet Angel Trumpet

- Frostproof Gardenias

Bed 29 - Rockin’® Blue Suede Shoes™ Salvia

- Salvia Purple & Bloom

Bed 30 - A very nice collection of rust-resistant daylily cultivars from Westfarms Nursery,

including Westfarms Bold Bouquet, Westfarms The Late Show (still blooming!), Fireworks and Pink Empress

Bed 31 - Fire Chief™ Thuja

- Delta Jazz® Crapemyrtle (mature specimen)

- Buttons Gardenia

- Jubilation Gardenia

- A nice collection of Turk’s Caps cultivars including Red Hot, Big Momma, Pam Puryear’s Pink, Missy Puryear’s Pink and White Lightning

- A nice collection of salvia cultivars

- Giant Tropical Salvia

Bed 33 - Check out some of the perennial salvias, including Bodacious Rhythm and Blues,

Big Blue, Blue Ensign and Rebel Child

- Forever Goldy® Arborvitae

Bed 36 - Elaeagnus ‘Olive Martini’

- Golden Oakland™ Holly

Bed 38 - Gembox Inkberry Holly

- Sklybox Japanese Holly

- Tater Tot Arborvitae

- Anna’s Magic Ball Arborvitae

- Infinitini Purple Crape Myrtle

Bed 39 - Flip Side® Vitex

- Galactic Pink Vitex

- A nice group of buddleia cultivars, including Pugster Amethyst and Royal Razz

- Apple Perfection Abelia

- Narrow Leaf Mountain Mint

- Orange Firebush (Hamelia)

Bed 40 - Purple Bolo Bolo and White Bolo Bolo

- Pink Jatropha

- Orange Peel Cestrum

- Summer Carnival Hibiscus

- Red Castor Bean

- Red Hot Hibiscus

- Lavender Morning Glory Bush

Bed 41 - Walker’s Low Catmint

- Peach Perfection Abelia

- Bella Donna Abelia

Bed 42 - Sweet Almond Verbena Aloysia virgata

- Sapphire Showers Duranta

- Coral Honeysuckle

- Devil’s Cotton

Bed 44 - Monarda punctata seedlings from Dan Cooke’s selection

- Uruguayan Firecracker Plant

- Mexican Honesuckle

Bed 45 - Check out some of the newer plants from Proven Winners/Spring Meadow Nursery,

Including Limelight Prime Hydrangea paniculata and Pugster Pinker Buddleia

Bed 46 - Check out some of the newer plants from Proven Winners/Spring Meadow Nursery

including Sunjoy Mini Maroon Barberry, Sunjoy Todo Barberry, Paraplu Violet Hibiscus (Althea) and Legend of the Small Fothergilla

Bed 47 – Bellini Raspberry Crape Myrtle

Bed 50 - Linebacker Distylium

- Cinnamon Girl Distylium

- Opening Day Doublefile Viburnum

- Hot Pink Bottlebrush

Bed 52 - Lemon-Lime Heavenly Bamboo Nandina domestica

- Purple Pixie® Dwarf Weeping Loropetalum

- ScentAmazingTM Gardenia

- Orange Rocket Barberry

- Poquito Ornamental Banana

Bed 53 – Limelight Hydrangea

Shade House Bed 1 (just north of the blacktop road near the main entrance)

- Bidwill’s Hybrid Coral Bean

- Orange India Head Spiral Ginger

- Giant Tropical Salvia

- Thryallis

Head House Bed 1 (just north of the blacktop road across from Sun Garden Bed 6.1)

- Lynn Lowrey Agave

- Coffee Cups Elephant Ear

- Lime Zinger Elephant Ear Xanthosoma aurea

Shade Garden Walking Tour

After baking in the Sun Garden, take some time to cool off in the Shade Garden! This is the smallest garden at the station, and it houses numerous shade-loving plants. We conduct most of our shade, part shade, or part sun trials here.

SHADE CONTAINER TRIALS

Bed 2 - Electric Blue Gecko Elephant Ear

- Yellow Elephant Ear – Colocasia ‘Lutea’

- Barbara Rogers Begonia

- Surefire Series Begonias

- Beacon Impatiens

- SunFern Olympia and SunFern Arcadia Artemisia

Bed 2 – Container Trials:

- Glimmer Series Double Impatiens

- Microblaze Matchsticks Coleus

Bed 3 - Scarlet Fever Ginger

- Ban Rai Red Ginger

- White Lava Elephant Ear

- Variegated Abutilon

- Shangri La Split Leaf Philodendron

- Variegated Shampoo Ginger

- Sanchezia

- Dwarf Yellow Mussaenda

Bed 4 - Summer Wave Series Torenia

- Lemon Sorbet Shrimp Plant

Bed 7 - Royal Hawaiian Aloha Elephant Ear

Bed 8 - Dawn Redwood