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| I was going to plant pentas behind drift roses, but the more I read I just don't think the pentas will be tall enough. I would love something that is tall, with kind of spikey flowers that are purple. Preferably something that blooms all sunmmer, must love sun and heat. I would prefer it to be about 3 feet tall. Any suggestions? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Buddleia Nanho Blue? |
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| What taller Salvias are good where you are? Would something like an Alyogene work? http://www.hibiscus.org/species/ahuegelii.php Or, perhaps perfect, Leucophyllum, Texas Ranger? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leucophyllum Those danged things flower continuously here as long as it's HOT and they receive SOME water. They'll stop flowering if you stop watering, but with the barest minimum applied regularly, they just keep blooming until either the water or heat runs out. Kim |
Here is a link that might be useful: Texas Ranger
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| I was possibly thinking of walkers low catnip. Does anyone have experience with it? I'm really wanting something that will provide a mass of color the entire summer. That's why I originally wanted pentas. I thought about angelonia as well, but I don't think it will get tall enough. I should have mentioned that the foundation plants I have are azaleas, but they are still small. So, there will be a row of azaleas, then a row of whatever I choose, then the drift roses in the front. |
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- Posted by plantloverkat 9a north Houston (My Page) on Thu, Mar 1, 12 at 14:37
| Salvia Mystic Spires comes to mind. It is supposed to be a smaller version of Indigo Spires, but can easily get to 4 foot tall here. Mine is blooming right now. It will require cutting back a couple of times a year to keep it in bounds, but is a prolific bloomer with half a day of sun. It is part of the Texas Superstar plants collection. By the way, I have always found the purple pentas to be much shorter than the white or pink ones myself. I don't know if the purple always is shorter growing, or it is just my yard. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Mystic Spires salvia
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| How about one of the skullcaps (scutellaria)? http://www.wildflower.org/plants/search.php?search_field=scutellaria&n
ewsearch=true&family=Acanthaceae Scutellaria baicalensis: I grow 2 skullcaps in my garden, both like the heat, and one is purple (hummingbirds love it!), 'Violet Cloud'. However, the ones I have are shorter than you want. Maybe a penstemon? There are some gorgeous purple ones. Penstemons often like even less water than supplied in the average garden. Purple Ozark Penstemon: Summer snapdragon, aka angelonia blooms all summer and loves heat. I have several white ones and a pink (with a blue on order). Mine aren't 3 feet tall however. Here's a purple, http://www.highcountrygardens.com/index/page/product/product_id/4489 False indigo, aka baptisia come in multiple colors, often a purplish blue or purple, http://www.ag3inc.com/PlantDetails.asp?ID=165 http://www.plantplaces.com/perl/viewplantdetails.pl?filter=plant&plant _ID=932&fullname=Baptisia %27Purple Smoke%27 Purple Smoke%2 0Baptisia or Purple Smoke Wild Indigo Or try here for purple flower shopping (Annie's Annuals has neat stuff!), lots of info on the plants, see what might work well in your garden, maybe agastache, it's showy and spikey: Melissa
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- Posted by jardineratx 9tx (My Page) on Sat, Mar 3, 12 at 8:43
| I second the Mystic Spires suggestion. It is a healthy, non-stop blooming salvia that will provide a nice back-drop to your drift roses. Another plant that I enjoy in my garden (and containers) is Lavandula Pinnata, aka, fern-leaf lavendar. Unlike other lavenders, this plant is not overly sensitive to over-watering and its tall airy bloom spikes are a really nice contrast to the rigidity of the rose and azalea shrubs. Molly |
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| verbena rigida, much taller V.boariensis, veronica longifolia or V.spicata, lobelia syphilitica, common toadflax L.purpurea, dierama 'Merlin' Penstemon 'Raven' or 'Blackbird', heliotrope. |
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| Aggierose, Walkers Low rocks. At least in my climate (dry). All summer color, bulletproof, great form. I'm not sure how it would handle humidity. I've found it superior to salvias. Mine get about 30"x36". YMMV. |
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- Posted by harborrose 8a-PNW (My Page) on Sun, Mar 4, 12 at 2:22
| I grow Walker's Low up here in spongeland, and it doesn't have a a problem with our low temperatures and humidity. I grew it in Alabama, hot temperatures and humidity, and it did fine there also. Mine doesn't get three feet tall, but maybe 18 inches but has probably a 3 foot spread. Something you might like is 'Black and Blue Salvia' or Salvia guaranitica. It's about the height you want and has dark cobalt blue colors. It can be kinda invasive, so be careful with it, but it is really beautiful and loves the heat. So the purple plants and the roses go in front of the azaleas? |
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| Thank you for all of the suggestions! I'm still considering walkers low as well as Henry sage Salvia. I love salvias and I have several (including black and blue)but none of them bloomed during the summer here in Dallas where it was 100+ for most of the summer last year. I've read that henry sage salvia as well as mystic spires will bloom through the heat though. I'm concerned that both of these may get too much water though since they will be in between rows of plants that will be getting lots of water with soaker hoses (roses and azaleas). Harborrose, yes, the plants will be in front of the azaleas. My azaleas are the fermosas which get 6-8 feet tall. The drift roses will be at the front edge. |
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- Posted by plantloverkat 9a north Houston (My Page) on Sun, Mar 4, 12 at 22:17
| I can't speak to the other plants, but I don't believe Mystic Spires sage will mind the water. My plant is about 5 years old and grows in a raised bed in my vegetable garden, so it gets the same amount of water as my pepper and tomato plants. It has never looked stressed when we have had a month (or two) of high rainfall in the past. |
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- Posted by harborrose 8a-PNW (My Page) on Mon, Mar 5, 12 at 17:44
| Just wondering - when it was that hot and dry last summer in Dallas, what did you see around town that was blooming? I lived in the McKinney area north of Dallas for many years and remember how hot summer can be! Good luck with your garden this year. |
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