By this time in the growing season even the annuals have started to wind down. From a distance my flowerbeds still have some life in them, but up close they’re a big ol’ mess.
I still have a few plants that look spectacular. ‘Kong Rose’ Coleus just never disappoints. These beauties are absolutely stunning in pots. My pots are 14 inches in diameter and I grow 3 plants in each.
They get about 22 inches tall and the leaves are huge!
In August ‘Kong Rose’ sends up purple salvia-like flower spikes that are prized by bumblebees. I usually cut most of them off because it’s all about the foliage, but I do leave a few here and there for the bees.
The other plants that still look as fresh as a day in June are my ‘Santa Cruz Sunset’ begonias. There are 5 plants in this window-box-type planter, and they just keep getting bushier and bushier with more and more flowers. After blooming solidly for almost 3 months these plants should be exhausted, but they show no signs of slowing down, and I’m pretty sure I only fertilized them once.
‘Santa Cruz Sunset’ and ‘Kong Rose’ Coleus are both on the pricey side. You’ll spend almost 50 cents per seed, but you certainly get your money’s worth. Both cultivars look fantastic for months on end. They’re disease-resistant, pest-resistant and they need little care other than an occasional drink of water.