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| Just got this "Sunset Mix" and ready to plant. http://www.burpee.com/perennials/wallflowers/wallflower-sunset-mix-prod001616.html?_requestid=1262931 But most pics I've googled just show blooms... whereas I want to see how mature ones play nice with other plants. Was planning on using them around daylilies but right now the stems look weak, like they will flop over and get lost under lily foilage...see pic:
So would love to see any pics of yours as well as any advice, pointers or pros & cons about this plant. PS - sorry you have to copy/paste link to plant...not working as actual link??? Bonnie Also, what does F1 hybrid mean (was in description) and do they REALLY grow flower all winter like pansies???? |
This post was edited by brit5467 on Sat, Mar 30, 13 at 11:00
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| Wall flowers are considered spring bedding here. They are planted out in the autumn, often underplanted with tulips, and pulled up when the tulips are over and the wallflowers are looking ratty. They certainly survive all winter but don't usually bloom in our climate. The scent is wonderfully evocative to me. Sometimes they will self sow in odd nooks and crannies, including old walls, hence the name. I don't grow them myself because I don't do any bedding out to speak of except a few containers. I can't be bothered I'm afraid. Your plants need hardening off and planting out asap, I believe. F1 hybrid is explained here: |
Here is a link that might be useful: F1 hybrid
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| Thanks for the info and link, Flora. Wondered where the name came from...lol. Yep, have had them outside for almost a week now hardening off. Wanted to plant them today (finally have 60 degree weather/windey and feels more like 50 tho) but they fell out of their little pots during shipping so no rootball to speak of. I just 'repotted' em and will let them settle down a bit. I've found that if I let plants like that stay in their little pots a bit so they can get stronger roots I have better luck with them surviving (since I often forget to water and they dry out...lol). Any particular reason you suggest planting ASAP?
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| Mmmm, I treat my wallflowers as perennials (which, like much spring and summer bedding plants, they are) - rather than pulling them out in the spring, I cut them back and let the foliage grow back in late summer. Not only do they return reliably, they make strong shrub-like plants which will do well under the shade of a hedge or in other neglected areas. Keeping them as short lived perennials also solves the problem of rotation since, like all brassica members, they are vulnerable to clubroot. The so-called 'perennial' wall flowers such as Bowles Mauve will actually flower sporadically much of the year, certainly going on till Xmas and returning around now with a good show of purple brassica-like flowers (I rather enjoy these four-petalled flowers such as honesty, crambe, dame's rocket). |
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| Campanula, these are supposed to grow the way you said, too. Here's pic and description from where I got them:
Wallflower, Sunset Mix A breeding breakthrough. This mixture provides a Product Details: lifecycle: Perennial What plants do you plant yours with? I didn't realize my first post ran over into the margin (gee, I wish they'd fix that...only happens if you post a pic) but basically my concern was -- Do they grow upright like the pic shows and are they 'sturdy' enough to grow around daylilies, meaning will the daylily foliage overtake them/cover them up? I ask because the stems of mine look 'snakelike' and not very sturdy, like they're gonna fall over. I don't have massive amounts of daylilies. They will be in a narrow raised bed that borders my walkway so the lilies are staggered here and there. I wanted something to fill in between them. Are the ones you named at the end (honesty, crambe, dame's rocket) different varieties (colors) of it? Oh, and I guess one more question. It says spread of 6-8", but will they multiply in years to come and fill in a larger area? Trying to figure out how close to plants from a 6-pk....?? Thanks, |
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| OK, I grow wallflowers with spring bulbs, especially tulips (which I plant deeply and leave in my sandy soil from one year to the next so they are fairly reliable at returning. In the UK, they are in bloom around May, so I also partner mine with early hardy geraniums (I really like primrose wallflowers with the common cranesbill, Geranium pratensis and G.sylvaticum). I have a few clumps of them growing with common primroses too. The other plants I mentioned are not wallflowers but are flowering in mid spring with similar 4-petalled flowers and will make good companions. I could easily imagine growing them with little clumps of violas, forget-me-nots, short campanulas, and, my favourite, overwintered love-in-the-mist. Yes, they do have a tendency to flop about a bit - you can cut them back hard after the first flowering - it looks quite improbable because the stems are silvery and bare.....but leafage will follow, along with a later flush of flowers (some autumns). If they do well for you, you could try growing single colours from seeds sown in May. The little plants will grow over the summer, ready to be planted in autumn, where they will overwinter and burst into fragrant growth the following spring. A lovely clove scent, warm and very welcoming. You could plant your packs about 8 inches apart - they will spread out but not much - they continue to grow from a woody base clump, branching higher up the stem - I never bother to stake mine as they rarely get taller than 16inches or so and even if they flop, the flowers will still stretch upright to the light. Wallflowers have always been a traditional cottage garden favourite and, as such, they will look well with scrambling, rambling aubretias, arabis, nemophila, limnanthes and annual flax - not a tidy or formal plant. |
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| Thanks so much for the info Campanula !! That's just what I needed to know. I have not yet been able to get them planted (health issues) so now I have another question. Some of the leaves on just some of the plants are getting dark. At first I thought they were just turning a deeper shade, like burgandy, but I think they it's leaning towards black. Does that mean they got too cold? We haven't had any extremely cold nites since I got them. I can take pic if necessary but didn't want to bother if not. And still hoping for any pics of these in someone's garden !! |
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