Perennial Stars

Siberian iris

Paul's first challenge is to fill a large bare spot where soil doesn't drain well. To fill the void, he chooses a Siberian iris, a perennial that thrives in moist conditions. Hardy to USDA Zone 3, its foliage is more slender and its flowers smaller than the more common Dutch iris.

The variety he selects is 'Caesar's Brother'; deep purplish-blue flowers bloom in late spring to early summer. After the flowers fade, the foliage looks good until the first hard frost. If planted about 18 inches apart, they'll knit together in about three years. The Siberian iris is resistant to the iris borer.

A fan of figs, Paul next plants a small fig tree, 'Peter's Honey'. Because the tree is only marginally hardy in his climate, he pots it in a container. "If temperatures drop below 10 degrees or so," he says, "I can move it into the garage for safe keeping."

Since 'Peter's Honey' is a self-pollinating fig tree, Paul plants only one. Figs need full sun and a fair amount of room to grow because they'll slowly reach a height of 15 to 25 feet tall with a nearly equal spread. Fig trees aren't bothered much by disease or pests, but birds will strip a fig tree of ripe fruit; Paul suggests putting bird netting over the tree once the fruit starts to ripen.