|
| I know this probably kind of impossible, but I still thought it might be worth a shot. I hate having unidentified plants. Usually I'm really good about keeping track of them, but I lost the ID on this astilbe years ago.
Some clues: It's an older variety. I think I've had this one for at least 10 or more years. About 15 inches tall in bloom. I will probably recognize the name if someone mentions it since I've never grown all that many varieties. It hasn't been a really heavy or reliable bloomer for me. In fact this year it didn't bloom at all, but it may need division. A guess? Thanks Kevin
|
Follow-Up Postings:
|
- Posted by harleylady PNW/USDA 8b/Sunset 6 (My Page) on Mon, Sep 12, 11 at 15:56
| Astilbe...are you wanting a cultivar name? |
|
| Astilbe chinensis Pumila |
|
| Nope it's not Pumila. I have lots of that one and the foliage is much more ground hugging. Kevin |
|
- Posted by gardenweed_z6a 5b/6a N CT (My Page) on Mon, Sep 12, 11 at 16:18
| Wieslaw beat me to it but Astilbe chinensis Pumila is correct. I have a few of these that are divisions from my original plant which I bought 6 years ago from O'Brien Hostas in Granby, CT. |
|
| I'm sorry, but it's not Pumila. The one in the picture blooms in the spring. Pumila doesn't bloom until late summer around here. In fact it just finished about a week ago.
|
|
| var davidii? |
|
| or Superba? |
|
| Superba could be it. I remember having that one at some point in time. Also.. I think the height was more like 20 inches, not 15 inches. Kevin |
|
| On second thought, probably not Superba. According to some quick research, Superba reaches 40 inches. This one has never come close to that. K |
|
| There is some confusion with heights of Astilbe chinensis cultivars on the Internet. It can't be taquetii, as it is supposed to go up to 6 feet according to some sources. |
|
- Posted by gardenweed_z6a 5b/6a N CT (My Page) on Mon, Sep 12, 11 at 16:58
| My pumila chinensis was labeled when I bought it altho' it wouldn't surprise me if it was mislabeled. Those things happen. Now I really hope someone IDs the one you have because mine is identical and it blooms late spring/early summer. I don't have any astilbe that bloom late in the season. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Bluestone Perennials astilbe pumila
|
| Do not get me started on mislabelled plants. It would take me all night. |
|
| Well, I bought Astilbe Visions from local box store that looks like that, but you know how the box stores are. It could easily be mislabeled, but I love the looks of it. |
|
| I'm not questioning anyone's suggestions, but trying to learn something about IDing astilbe. What in the picture is causing everyone to avoid any suggestions in the arendsii group, many of which are the right height, right color, and have the correct bloom time? |
|
| It was said that it was an old plant, Visions series is relatively new on the market. Mytime, because it looks like A.chinensis-the shape and color of the inflorescence, the 'thickness' of it. Is there any particular variety you're thinking of? |
|
| Thank you all for the suggestions. I knew this would be kind of a frustrating task, but this is a good discussion anyway. I agree with wieslaw in regards to the chinensis suggestion and the "thickness" remark, but what is still throwing me off is the bloom time and height. I've done some more searching and still - every reference I've found puts Superba at the 48+ inches in height range. Just for the heck of it I took an actual reference book off my shelf - The American Horticultural Society - A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants and took a look at their Astible section. They had a reference to Superba and again listed the height as 48 inches. Their photo of Superba was however a dead ringer for my plant. Maybe I need to find a complete listing of all the Astilbe cultivars available and see if any of the names ring a bell and go from their. Kevin |
|
- Posted by coolplantsguy z6 Ontario (My Page) on Tue, Sep 13, 11 at 7:56
| Foliage and flower looks like 'Visions' to me. |
|
| 'Visions' is a real possibility. It appears there is a series of 'Visions' astilbe? I also found a reference to Astilbe 'Vision in Pink', but I'm assuming 'Visions' was the first introduction? The described height, color and bloom time of 'Visions' fits perfectly. I checked when I took that photo and the date was June 29, which puts it a bit later than I remember. Funny how that happens.... Kevin |
|
| The Vision series (Visions, Vision in Pink, Vision in Red, Vision in White) was recently developed for better 'drought' tolerance and I do not think they are older than 4-6 years on the market here in Europe. I'm not sure about Visions itself though. |
|
- Posted by coolplantsguy z6 Ontario (My Page) on Tue, Sep 13, 11 at 11:05
| 'Visions' is easily 10 years old. My guess is mid- to late 1990s for commercial production. The other varieties within the series are indeed more recent. |
|
| I can attest to the fact the plant I have is not very drought tolerant. We're now in our 5th week with no rain, temps have been high, but I have been watering. Within the last week, this one went totally crispy. None of my other astilbe have done that. I know it's not dead, but it sure is ugly right now. Kevin |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Perennials Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.