By Margaret Haapoja With a short growing season-the first frost-free date in northern Minnesota is usually around Memorial Day-Cheryl Gangl, owner of "The Postage Stamp Garden" (May, 2008), has a palette of plants that is somewhat limited. She's found many hardy perennials, however, including her favorite astilbes along with peonies, hostas, ligularias, gloriosa daisies, Asiatic and Oriental lilies, yarrow, poppies, purple coneflower, hollyhocks, 'Annabelle' hydrangea, and tiger lilies. Although she doesn't often mulch plants for the winter, this year Gangl will experiment with a straw mulch on her 'Endless Summer' hydrangea. She's had difficulty growing Jupiter's beard, turtlehead, and cardinal flower, but she still takes a chance on Zone 4 or Zone 5 plants from time to time. For the most part, Gangl concentrates on familiar flowers that are tough enough to endure northern Minnesota's cold winters. Last year, the couple lost all the large koi in their pond when they covered it so tightly during a cold snap in March that the pond froze over, completely eliminating any gas exchange for the fish. This winter, Gangl will use a floating de-icer to keep a small area of open water so harmful gases can be safely released.
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