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Snapdragons
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Posted by donnabaskets 7b-8 MS (My Page) on Fri, Oct 30, 09 at 9:26
The Southern Living Garden Book says: "If snapdragons set out in early fall reach bud stage before night temperatures drop below 50, they will start blooming in winter in mild areas and continue until weather gets hot."
I have evidently never had them at the right stage early enough before. Has anyone ever had Snaps bloom all winter? If so, how large do the plants have to be in the fall, and when do you think I would need to start seed to get there? It would be well worth the effort to me, since the six pack sizes don't start blooming until the roses and irises do here. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Snapdragons
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- Posted by tapla z5b-6a MI (My Page) on
Fri, Oct 30, 09 at 13:44
| It probably doesn't count, but I have grown several as bonsai ..... have a couple now, and they bloom indoors all winter. I usually disbud them to ensure that foliage is the main energy sink, rather than blooms, because the tree (tree, to me) will definitely funnel energy to blooms while foliage gets short schrift. It's not the size of the plant, it's whether or not they are ontologically old enough (sexually mature) that determines the ability to bloom. You probably need 2-4 weeks (from seed) before your 50* night temp target to bloom, assuming the info you have is reliable. Cuttings from sexually mature stems would be capable of blooming as soon as their roots are established. Al |
RE: Snapdragons
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| I bought some gallon sized ones and planted this week-end. All their stems have buds on them. I decided to treat it as an experiment and see how they do. If indeed, they do bloom all winter, I will be starting them from seed next year. Thanks for the input, Al. I'd love to see pictures of the bonsai. That sounds very interesting. |
RE: Snapdragons
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- Posted by tapla z5b-6a MI (My Page) on
Mon, Nov 2, 09 at 18:38
| I really don't have any good pics of a highly refined snapdragon, but here's a plant I had done some formative branch work on before pruning: 
and here's the framework of the same plant a few minutes later: 
Al |
RE: Snapdragons
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| Al, that's a stunner with the flowers. Gorgeous photo. Donnabaskets, I just ordered some snap seeds from Diane's Seeds. They're 'Choice O.P. Mix' but being in this zone there won't be any fall sowing or planting of them. Strange thing I encountered was so many sites saying snaps are perennial in zones 4-9. Not sure what they mean but I'll be going through slug killer like water to protect snaps...LOL. Just had a yen to see those little blossoms I used to jam my fingers into and do the puppet thing. My mother loved me messing up her flower arrangements...LOL. Good luck with your experiment. |
RE: Snapdragons
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- Posted by tapla z5b-6a MI (My Page) on
Tue, Nov 3, 09 at 9:46
| You can't change a perennial to an annual by changing where you grow it, geographically. Technically speaking, perennials are plants that are capable of living 3 years or more, with the key word here being 'capable'. If you grow a snap, Coleus, Impatiens ..... in MI where it won't survive the winter, that doesn't change the plant to an annual. It's still a perennial, albeit a tender perennial, we choose to TREAT as an annual. Doh! Sorry for the large photo. :-( My bad. Al |
RE: Snapdragons
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| Are you kidding? I love the large photo! Wow! I am just in awe of this, Al. I love bonsai, but would never have thought of a snapdragon! I assume you grow this inside? How long can you reasonably expect it to live (and thrive)? Re: annual vs. perennial. They have no problem going through our winters, but only MIGHT survive our hot summers. Honestly, they look so dreadfully ratty by the fourth of July that few gardeners would tolerate them. It's just too easy and inexpensive to replace them every year. |
RE: Snapdragons
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- Posted by tapla z5b-6a MI (My Page) on
Tue, Nov 3, 09 at 22:23
| Lol - I have 2 right now that are about 5-6 years old and still outdoors on the (grow) bench, though they'll need to come in soon. Oh - in fact, one of them is the one in the photo. I have Coleus as bonsai, Santolina (lavender cotton), I've grown several types of Impatiens, too. They're fun because you needn't wait 10 years like you do with most trees for a good one, and I've never seen anyone else use these 'flowers' as bonsai, so they always get a lot of attention at shoes because they're a novelty. I don't often let the bonsai bloom, because it weakens them. The blooms are a stronger energy sink, and the plant will direct energy to blooms I'd rather see go to foliage. The same is true when we keep them in containers or our garden. If you keep them deadheaded or cut them back regularly after they bloom (so they don't put all their energy into making fruit) the foliage will look much better & you'll get flush after flush of blooms. You might not be quite so fortunate there, though, because I'm sure it's hotter in the summers there than here, which will take its toll. A geranium (Pelargonium)  Al |
RE: Snapdragons
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| These are just beautiful. I am amazed and so impressed with your skill. I like the pelargonium too. When we lived in New Orleans, I used to grow pelargoniums as winter annuals, and then they would die in the heat of summer. Climate is everything, isn't it? Thanks for sharing, Al. |
RE: Snapdragons
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| On a regular basis tapla (Al) causes me to reconsider what is possible in the plant world. We all owe him for opening new doors. Al |
RE: Snapdragons
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- Posted by tapla z5b-6a MI (My Page) on
Sat, Nov 7, 09 at 9:09
| I hope Donna doesn't mind if I thank Al on her dime, but Al, that's one of the nicest things anyone has said about me on these forums. Thank you so much for the thought. Take good care, all. Al 
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RE: Snapdragons
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| Mind? I wholeheartedly agree! |
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