High Elevation Gardening Web Log "Blog"

With hundreds of varieties, pansies and violas come in different colors from bright orange and yellow to soft blue and pink, antique shades of pinks and yellow, some with dark blotches in the center, others with whiskers in the center, and some are just plain. An eye-catcher, the ruffled pansy with blotches and whiskers, looks like the old fashion flowers that my grandmother, Viola, had in her garden.

There is a color and style of pansy that could catch nearly everyone's fancy. They are easily coordinated with other plants in a garden and with different style of gardens. Each year there are new and fresh faces of pensées, those thoughtful plants for thoughtful gardens loved by thoughtful gardeners.

Pansies love cooler weather, blooming most of the year, except
when it's hot in the middle of the summer. Pansies don't like it hot. Since they enjoy the cooler weather, the time to plant them is early in the spring, filling beds with bright colors that will survive even during Flagstaff's leafless cold nights. Looking frozen in the morning, after it warms up they look as fresh as fresh can be. A few cold snaps tend to turn the leaves a purple hue, but that is nothing to worry about. The newer leaves will be green.

Pansies usually last until about the end of June when more tender annuals can be planted. In the perfect spot, such as a cool shady place, they may last through the summer. In the heat of the summer, they get leggy and start turning yellow. Then they can be cut them back, letting them hang out among other flowers, waiting to be revived in the cool of the fall.

If planted in the fall, they will extend the flower season through the winter and into spring with flowers all over a yard. When the snow melts, one or two of their blooms pop open. Pansies work well here in the winter if they aren't covered with snow all during the winter. With our sun melting the snow more than other climates, it makes it inviting for pansies to survive here through the winter. So it's best to plant them where the snows don't pile up in the yard.

Pansies are a very fragrant flower, especially in the morning and at dusk. They do well by the walkways and doorways. When planted in mass, their fragrance can't be missed. The most fragrant ones are yellow and blue or purple ones. Their aroma is a treat when walking by them.

Pansies are also edible. Hard to believe, but they're a delight when served in salads and as a garnish on desserts. With a mild minty taste they're rich in vitamin A and C. Planted among your veggies, they add great color to a vegetable bed and can be conveniently harvested with the greens for a salad.

Irresistible, pansies are a triple threat, cute, fragrant, and edible. Tough, they come in all colors and faces. Cold tolerant, they can be planted first and last with the promise of lots of color when everything else seems a little bleak. Truth be told, the pansy is no sissy.

Robyn Walters is the co-owner of Viola's Flower Garden. Dana Prom Smith, a Master Gardener volunteer and coordinating editor of the Master Gardener Column for Coconino County Cooperative Extension, can be contacted at stpauls@npgcable.com. For more information about the Master Gardener Program, call Hattie Braun, Coordinator of the Master Gardener Program, at 774-1868 ext.17 or visit our Web Site: highelevationgardening.arizona.edu