It's a sad day, as we say goodbye to garden impatiens. If you have a shade garden, you've probably heard of or experienced the issues that Garden Impatiens are having in our area. Did you have a patch of impatiens that wilted and died no matter what you did? Powdery Mildew is most likely the culprit.

First, Powdery Mildew causes the leaves to yellow. Then the flowers drop, and soon there's nothing but sickly stems where your beautiful impatien was growing and blooming.

Powdery Mildew was first spotted in Minnesota in 2011, and has since been found in 32 states, including New York. It spreads through the soil, water, and it will even travel hundreds of miles through the air. Once your garden or plants are infected, there's no way to get rid of it. A similar downy mildew that effects Sunflowers remains in the soil 8-10 years after infection.

This is the first year that we completely removed garden impatiens from our roster.

It was hard to let go of a plant that brought so much color to shady areas! Last year we had a fraction of our usual numbers for those that were still able to grow them in the area. But after seeing how far the mildew has advanced, and how devastated gardens were by the infection, we realized it was time to try something new and say goodbye to regular impatiens.

The good news is, there are replacements available.

New Guinea Impatiens are the closest match. They have a similar height and growth habit, with a good selection of colors. They prefer some sun, but will tolerate full shade fairly well.

The best solution might be to select a mix of annuals for your shady garden beds. Visit the shade aisle in our greenhouse for a good selection. We have Torenia, a shade-loving plant that produces beautiful flowers, and attracts hummingbirds. Ajuga is a perennial ground cover for shade, with colorful foliage. Annual foliage plants like Coleus will provide color as well as some height. These are just a few examples. Ask one of our helpers in the greenhouse and we'll assist you in finding the right plants for your garden!

Hostas Perennial Manager Jaime Brennan tells us about a plant with leaves of endless variety, Hostas, the July perennial of the month here at Kirby's:

"What is a shade garden without a Hosta or two? They come in so many shapes, sizes and colors. My biggest challenge every year is selecting just a few new varieties.

One of our new varieties this year includes possibly the largest known Hosta, 'Empress Wu', growing up to three to four feet high and wide with leaves measuring more than 1 ½ feet wide and long.

It has a strong upright habit with pale reddish violet flowers starting in early summer.I only wish we had more shade to plant one. At the other end of the scale we have 'Love Pat' a 14” Hosta with intense blue, deeply cupped and puckered leaves. White trumpet shaped flowers bloom from mid to late summer.

When I first started gardening I used to challenge myself to design shade gardens without any Hostas. They were too common for me at the time, but now I have come to appreciate the gracefulness of their leaves, the texture and variety of color that help to brighten any shade garden. It is also a joy to watch the hummingbirds dance from blossom to blossom.

We carry 24 varieties of Hostas: Hosta plantaginea; 'Blue Angel'; 'Blue Mammoth'; 'Dancing in the Rain'; 'Elegans'; 'Empress Wu'; 'Francee'; 'Frances Williams'; 'Ginkgo Craig'; 'Gold Standard'; 'Hadspen Blue'; 'Honeybells'; 'Love Pat'; 'Niagara Falls'; 'Northern Exposure'; 'Pauls Glory'; 'Peanut'; 'Remember Me'; 'Robert Frost'; 'Sagae'; 'Sum and Substance'; 'Thunderbolt'; 'Tokudama Flavocircinalis'; and 'Wolverine'.