could never imagine: reds and oranges and yellows; pinks, whites, violet-blues, and purples so intense as to appear black – even greens – petals with subtle shadings of pink and yellow; petals with sharply contrasting borders of white or green around magenta; we’re talking about petunias, the beautiful, versatile garden staple of today. The variations are endless. Blossoms can


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be six inches wide or as small as an inch as in the miniature varieties (including the lit- tle Calibrachoa, which are a genus of their own, but separated only by a chromosome from petunias). The flowers can be single or double, smooth or pebbled and sometimes have ruffled edges. They can be striped or mottled, have yellow and white throats, or dark or red. They come single, semi-double or double. Petunias smell heavenly before pollina-


tion. Your whole yard can be infused with their perfume. They can take several degrees of frost. And today, you don’t even have to deadhead them unless they are an old fashioned variety; the new ones are mostly self cleaning. There probably never was a more versatile, uncomplaining, cheery little flower that rewards all summer long and will bounce back with enthusiasm after a hard pruning – it only makes them bloom more profusely. Petunias are perennial in southern climes,


and they will also self sow (even as far north as zone 3) for a lucky gardener, if the seed falls in a protected spot. If you think you want to try overwinter- ing a petunia, cut it back when you bring


Amazing ‘Mango’ petunia. Petunia ‘Picotee Purple’. Petunia ‘Pink Lemonade’, new this year. Yellow Supertunia (double) with an unknown calibrachoa.


elicate petals, some iridescent in the sun, catching colour and send- ing it back to our eyes in ways we


it in and give it plenty of sunlight. Petunias are challenging to overwinter, but what the heck; the challenge is half the fun. There are roughly four categories of pe-


tunia: grandiflora (large blooms up to four inches in diameter which includes supercas- cade, Merlin Blue Morn and Ultra series); hedgiflora (spreading petunias which can grow up to four feet wide, and includes the


tidal wave series); multiflora (flowers are up to two inches in diameter This includes the carpet and surfinia series); and milliflora with tiny flowers about one inch in diameter. These are the most frost and harsh weather tolerant. Mostly, though, petunias hate rain. Their


delicate petals droop and fall off and they look miserable for awhile. But, true to their


Summer 2012 • 13


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