IN THE GARDEN GIVE NEW PLANTS A CHANCE.

Byline: JOSHUA SISKIN

The first time I saw the Hawaiian snow bush I was in Netanya, an Israeli sea coast town north of Tel Aviv. It was growing in a long hedge in front of an apartment building, and I am reminded of it every summer when snow bushes are displayed for a brief period of time in local nurseries.

Although native to tropical Melanesia in the Pacific Ocean, the snow bush grows well in subtropical climates all over the world, from the eastern Mediterranean to the San Fernando Valley.

Recently I planted a snow bush in my front yard. It is the perfect perennial to plant amid pink-flowered, green-leaf bedding begonias. This is due to the fact that pink, green and white are the colors of snow bush foliage. New leaves are tipped with pink and splashed with white and green.

As leaves age, first they lose their pink tips and later their white blotches so that the oldest leaves, farthest down on the plant, are completely green. Although snow bush (Breynia nivosa ``Roseopicta'') can grow in partial sun, full sun is required to maximize the pink and white variegation.

A note of caution: Snow bush is sensitive to cold and, unless planted under a tree, should be dug up in the Valley around Nov. 1 and transplanted to a container. Place the container on a patio under a roof or next to a wall where it will be protected from cold. Of course, you could keep your snow bush in a container year round, give it full sun exposure from early spring to midfall, and move it to a sheltered location after that.

Golden trumpet is another plant of tropical origin that I could not resist planting, even though - like the snow bush - it is sensitive to frost. Golden trumpet (Allamanda cathartica) has large, incomparable clear yellow flowers and a vining growth habit.

Speaking of subtropicals, Crocosmia - with classic six-petaled, dangling, campanulate flowers - is a delightful summer-blooming herbaceous perennial from Central America. I happened to come across Crocosmia ``George Johnson''; at the nursery the other day. Just when I was wondering what to plant with my orange ``Profusion'' zinnias, this uncanny yellow orange ``George Johnson'' appears.

Crocosmia - in the manner of gladiolus, another summer-blooming perennial - grows from corms, which are bulblike underground stems that propagate themselves vegetatively. Unlike gladiolus, however, which does not persist in Valley gardens, Crocosmia is a strong performer, developing into large clumps from one year to the next as it naturalizes in high- and low-maintenance gardens alike.

Q: I live in Lancaster and planted an African mallow in the northeast corner of my yard. It did very well after planting and bloomed a lot. This year, however, the blooms died before opening. I tried to see if there were insects eating them, but I don't see any. It does get sprinkler water every morning, and I am wondering if that is too much. Can you advise?

Liz Broskoff

A: The African or cape mallow (Anisodontea hypomandarum) is highly temperamental. It is susceptible to root fungi that will quickly kill whole parts of the plant, stunt its overall growth or inhibit flower development. It is a South African plant, which means it is native to a climate similar to our own. Such dry-climate plants should not be watered more than once a week (if even that) in hot weather, preferably with a garden hose or soaker hose saturating the soil underneath. Excessive overhead watering of dry-climate plants can lead to stem cankers and other diseases. Incidentally, some of our most popular ground covers - gazania, ivy geranium and ice plant - are also native to South Africa and are also prone to disease when watered too often via overhead sprinkler irrigation.