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Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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Posted by
terrene 5b MA (
My Page) on
Mon, May 7, 12 at 12:20
| I ordered some Perovskia atriplicifolia from Santa Rosa gardens last September. They are barely showing green growth from the tiny plants. The plants do not seem well rooted either. Is Russian sage late to emerge? I thought this was a vigorous perennial and am wondering if I need to get replacements (along with the Sedum Xenox which is a no show this Spring). |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| It definitely is late emerging here - one of my last save for platycodon. I think there are other reasons with perovskia, but once established it's always a good idea not to cut down the foliage in the fall just so you know exactly where it is come spring. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| I always leave it up all winter and then I prune it back when I start to see new growth at the bottom of the stems. It's been at least 3 weeks since I pruned them and I have small bushes at this point. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Perovskia is a subshrub, like lavender, and resents severe fall pruning. Some have considered it a plant with winter interest. I personally don't love the way it looks in the winter, but I still wait until it has begun to grow in the spring to cut it back to about 8 inches. Make sure that you give it a place that will not stay wet in the winter, if you can. Enjoy that lovely blue, deer-proof plant! |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Thanks for the replies! So it sounds like Perovskia is like Buddleia also, and should be cut down in the spring. The plants were so small last fall, there really isn't anything to cut down. Sounds like it might be a plant that is better planted in the Spring and letting it get well-established before it goes through the winter (although we had such a mild winter). I just went out and took another look, and both plants are alive, but they have 1 shoot each that is literally less than 1 inch tall. Guess I'll give them some more time. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Glad they came back for you. They are worth the wait and more heat and sun should speed things up. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| I've been wondering the same thing this spring. I love Russian sage and have quite a few plants, but they are only beginning to leaf out. It makes me feel better to know that somebody else in a zone 5 is experiencing the same thing with their Russian sage. BTW, mine are 5 yr old, well-established, large plants. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Yes, it is like Caryopteris and Buddleia and resents fall pruning. Even though I am zone 8, I have very cloudy, wet, cool springs and all three are very late to emerge here. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Just today I discovered how late Perovskia emerges. I love Perovskia and grew one from seed few years ago and have not yet got it well established. I tried growing it a few different places and finally last year it thrived enough to put out a few blooms on the east side of the house (fairly shady there). I left it there over winter and dug it early in the spring and have been keeping it in a pot until I got a good place for it. I felt that it had died until this morning when I saw a few shoots coming from the remaining twigs, so it is certainly late to emerge. I am still waiting for my Buddleias to emerge. I wonder if I killed them. I cut them back when we had very early spring weather (more like summer really) and then it got cold again (we even hd snow). I have not seen one shoot so far and the same goes for my Chrysanthemum Sheffield Pink. I keep hoping. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| yep, late for me too and it can be slow to establish (takes a few years to get really good clumps). Still, it is faster than hibiscus which is still ghostly white and naked. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| It's definitely a slow-growing perennial but well worth the wait. Mine emerge late and I also wait until spring to cut back the prior year's growth. I've grown them from seed as well as purchased nursery-grown plants and all prefer well-drained soil in full sun. A few of my plants are 4+ years old and still only get about 3 ft. tall every growing season. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Well I'm not sure, but it's been a week and these tiny plants don't seem to be growing at all. They look pretty pathetic. I feel like buying some big pots of Perovskia at the nursery so there will be a flower or two this year. I'm not feeling patient about seeing those pretty feathery purple flowers in the xeric garden, or I would have started them from seed myself. Am I being too impatient with this plant? Northerner sorry to hear about your Buddleia - mine are alive but growing kind of slow and weird with short bushy shoots and wrinkly foliage. I've had to thin out the extra shoots. Perhaps that crazy warm weather in March might have stimulated tender growth on them which later got nipped by a freeze? So far there hasn't been any growth whatsoever on the one year old Hibiscus moscheutos plants I winter-sowed last year. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| terrene, I'm only a 1/2 zone warmer than you and I will take a photo of mine for you tomorrow when it's not raining, so you can see how far they have grown this season so far. I've had mine for years, but moved them about 3 years ago, so the size they are is after 3 years in that position. I thought they were not as full as I wanted them last year so I hope this is the year. I have hardy Hibiscus 'Kopper King' and that is just starting to show shoots. And I'm 1/2 zone warmer so maybe another week or two for you? |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| The tiny sprout you described sounds exactly like a place where mine are trying to spread out to with an underground runner. It may be that your original plant didn't make it, but a new plant is coming up from a surviving piece of root. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Terrene, this is the amount of growth on Perovskia here today.... 
It is at least 3 yrs old in that position and was probably a good size when I moved it. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Bah! mine looks nothing like that - still a puny few inches although our summer has, so far, gone missing. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| How old is yours, campanula? We have had an unusually warm spring and my garden is 3 weeks ahead of schedule. Then it became cold and we had 10 days of frost warnings every night and I am amazed we managed to get to May with most of the garden intact. Right now, the weather is making up for an 8 inch rain deficit and has been raining off and on for about a week and a half with a few sunny breaks. The garden is only just starting to look good with all the rain. I hope yours catches up and your weather normalizes! |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Well PM2, yours look great. I would be happy if mine had a few nice shoots the size of yours. All the other perennials in the xeric garden are doing great and up about 1 foot, even those that got mostly chomped by voles during the horrible winter of 2010-11, and are now rebounding. Think I'll go out and take a picture tomorrow, and maybe send it to Santa Rosa. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| terrene, I sometimes think nurseries put everything on sale in the fall but there are certain plants that really prefer being planted in the spring. Since Perovskia is like Buddleia and Lavender in that it doesn't like to be pruned back in the fall, maybe it doesn't like being planted in the fall? I think it's a good idea to send them a photo and maybe they will send you a replacement. Just to clarify for anyone reading this thread, my perovskia is located in full sun in loamy clay that was mounded for drainage. Once those two conditions are met, they seem to need just a trim in the spring and maybe a little watering during dry spells and that's about it. And that photo is just one of the plants. |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Okay, I am bumping this because I finally got a photo of my Perovskia taken, edited, and uploaded to the web server. Here is what my puny little plants look like - this pic was taken 3 days ago, but it basically looks the same and they both pretty much look like this (this is the more "robust" one) Complete with measuring stick! Haha Do you think this plant is going to do anything? All the perennials around it are now over 1 foot tall.
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RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Gee, terrene....there is green there, but the plant does not look healthy. I wonder why? I hope you are requesting a new plant or refund from Santa Rosa. You need a new large gorgeous plant! |
RE: Is Perovskia late to emerge?
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| Thanks PM2, for the 2nd opinion. I thought they were pretty pathetic, and will email them, as the Sedum died over the winter too. Small plants of Perovskia might be better planted in the Spring in the cold zones. I would not plant a Buddleia in the fall either, not enough time to get well-established for the winter. |
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