Ground Breaking Banter - Rick
In addition to the Proven Winners Shrubs of the Year, industry experts also select Proven Winners Annuals of the Year, which for 2025 is Supertunia Mini Vista Yellow petunia; the Caladium of the Year – which many gardeners treat as an annual – is Heart to Heart Blushing Bride caladium.
Join us at the YouTube link above or on your favorite podcast platform to learn more about the 2025 Proven Winners Annual and Caladium of the Year – they will be waiting for you at your local garden center this spring!
I know I have mentioned this on previous episodes, but I LOVE yellow in the garden. It’s bright, it’s cheerful and looks vivid and eye-catching without seeming unnatural. Plus, yellow is a virtually seasonless color in the garden: you have the yellows of daffodils and forsythia in spring, the yellows of the dozens of daisies and daisy relatives like black eyed susan, heliopsis, coreopsis, daylilies, and yarrow, to name but a few. Come fall, of course, yellow is everywhere, as plants store their green chlorophyll pigments and unmask the yellow or red pigments that were there all along. And then of course, there’s yellow foliage – heuchera, hosta, carex, sedum, and of course, all sorts of woody plants with yellow foliage, like diervilla, yellow foliaged evergreens like Anna’s Magic Ball arborvitae, and then there are a few shrubs with yellow foliage that you never really think of as foliage plants. That’s like today’s plant on trial, Sky Dew Gold blueberry. Yep, it’s a yellow-leafed blueberry plant and makes this edible plant a truly garden-worthy addition with four season interest. Not something you see every day!
The show on Sky Dew Gold ornamental blueberry begins in spring when the new growth emerges green with a tinge of red on the foliage. As that expands and matures, it takes on a vivid gold color that persists through summer. And when I say vivid, I mean vivid – even though I have seen this plant dozens of times, whenever I’m walking through the trial garden in summer, it’s one that stands out even from a far distance and I’m always like, what is THAT? Only to walk over to it and discover that once again, it is indeed Sky Dew Gold. That bright golden foliage persists into fall, when the foliage begins to take on red tones before the whole thing blazes red and yellow at its peak in fall.
We use the term “ornamental blueberry” in referring to Sky Dew Gold because even though it does flower and produce fruit, it was selected primarily for these aesthetic qualities, not its fruit. So with this one, it is best to consider the fruit a bonus and grow it primarily for these aesthetic contributions. As an added bonus with this approach, you needn’t worry about pruning for maximum fruit production – you can treat it like a truly low maintenance landscape plant and just enjoy any berries that do form (or let the birds and so forth have them).
Blueberries are generally considered to be a high maintenance plant, but pruning aside, I think that’s largely due to siting. As you may know, blueberries strictly require acidic soil and planting them in anything but is definitely going to make Sky Dew Gold, or any blueberry, a very high maintenance plant indeed. Good soil moisture is also crucial: is this plant gets stressed, it will be quite unhappy and suffer damage and slow growth. It reaches 2-4’ tall and 3-4’ wide, so this smaller plant won’t need pruning to maintain a useful size, either. Finally, it’s hardy down to USDA zone 4 and heat tolerant through USDA zone 8, and though it is a full sun plant, the hotter your climate, the more it will benefit from some shade, particularly during the hottest part of the day. Deer resistance on blueberries is a tricky subject – the plants are overall resistant, but they particularly like the new growth in spring which is also when the flowers form, so it would be a good idea to protect the plant, especially for its first couple of years after planting.
If you’d like to add Sky Dew Gold ornamental blueberry – or any of the 320+ Proven Winners ColorChoice Shrubs – to your garden or landscape, you’ll find a list of local retailers here.
Gardening Mail Bag - Stacey
First, a few comments:
Listener Jackie writes: Hi Rick and Stacey!
I LOVE my superbena. I will always have it in my garden and all the pollinators love it too. They are always filled with butterflies and the hummingbird moths visit regularly. I thought you might enjoy these!
We also got an interesting comment from listener Tom:
Hardiness Zone is great but with the environmental changes occurring today I feel a strong need for Heat Zone information on plants as well. I have had too many plants rated for my zone fail due to their intolerance to my heat conditions. I won’t purchase a new to me plant without heat zone information or a recommendation from a successful local gardener who is growing it successfully for at least 3 years.
This is a really great point, Tom, and is a huge pain point for gardeners in hot climates – and even to gardeners in cold climates where summers are disproportionally hot compared to winters. The USDA hardiness zone map only deals with how much cold a plant can withstand and does nothing to address how much heat it can take. Several years ago, the American Horticultural Society created the AHS heat zone map, which classified the country into heat zones based on how many days above 86°F an area experienced. Unfortunately, they pulled this map from the internet because it needed updating and they didn’t have the labor or funds to do so. Heat tolerance is sure to become an even bigger issue in the coming years, so something must be done for sure. If anyone wants to get in touch with an idea or proposal on it, just use the contact us tab above!
I have soil that was used in a pot for two years and now the plant is gone. Can I reuse the potting soil? There's a lot of broken up roots and in parts of the pot the soil is a light brown color instead of darker black like. Should I just add organic matter to amend it? Not sure if the root bits are a problem. - May
Both Rick and I are huge proponents of saving and re-using potting soil. The main component of most potting soils is peat moss, which is considered a slowly renewable resource, so it is crucial to conserve it. Besides, who doesn’t want to save money, especially when it can still readily fulfill its main roles in plant growth: to serve as a rooting matrix and hold on to water for the plant to take up. Any bits of leaves, old plant parts, and roots that you can easily remove, do so, but don’t worry if some roots are still in it, they will just add organic matter. And since most potting soils do contain organic matter, like manure or compost, when they are new, you can easily mix in fresh compost and recharge it.
Some people get concerned about disease when they reuse potting mix, but unless something really serious has happened, it’s not usually an issue. Most fungal root diseases occur in situations where the soil is poorly drained and stays wet for long periods, which is not an issue with potting mix in a container with good drainage, so it’s highly unlikely to harbor any pathogens that could harm future plants, especially if it has dried out.
I'd like to know how to cut a corn plant off, grow new roots and replant in fresh soil. It is now hitting a 9 foot ceiling. I have a large redwood pot which will be good, I think, but it is filled with very old soil and I want to remove it and fill with fresh. But what kind? Please discuss if this is possible and how to do it. I've been listening a long time. Love your program. - Fay
The popular houseplant known as corn plant is Dracaena fragrans. Though it isn’t remotely related to corn, it does look quite a bit like a corn stalk, with rings of long, strappy green leaves that are often variegated. It’s not uncommon for these easy care, long-lived plants to reach some pretty stunning heights, though 9′ tall is really something! Fortunately, it’s easy to bring your plant back down to size by propagating it. All you have to do is cut out a good 10-15″ (roughly) long section of the plant. Peel away the bottom layer of leaves, if present, to reveal fresh white tissue at the bottom. If you have rooting hormone, put some on the cut end – if not, don’t sweat it. Then put this cutting into an appropriately sized container with moist potting soil to the depth of that white section, firm the soil around it, and perhaps cover with a large clear plastic bag to increase humidity. Avoid letting the leaves touch the bag, and keep out of strong sunlight which will cause excessive condensation. In perhaps 6-10 weeks or so (it depends on conditions and the health of the plant), it should start to put on roots and the bag can be removed. Avoid letting the soil become too dry or too wet and the plant should be well on its way to another 9′ tall! You can actually repeat this as needed down the length of the remaining plant, provided it has leaves. Whatever is remaining in the original container can continue to be watered and will eventually put out a new leader and begin growing from that.
Do you have a question for us? We’re happy to help! E-mail us or use the contact tab above. Due to high volume, we may not get to your question, so if you need an answer quickly, please reach out via the Proven Winners website.
Branching News - Rick
In the final segment, we’re joined by Noah Derohanian, product development for Proven Winners Annuals. He shares his thoughts on the annual of the year, as well as the new for 2025 Proven Winners annuals.
Join us on your favorite podcast platform or at the YouTube link above to hear our whole conversation with Cayla.
