13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
I've winter-sown Heuchera twice - several years ago I sowed 'Firefly' and this year 'Ruby Bells' (seeds were from Swallowtail). I love the deep red flowers on Heuchera.
The Firefly germinated abundantly and I planted out 8-9 plants which are hanging on okay. In general the Heuchera seems to do best in highly cultivated beds, such as around the foundation of the house, and sorta hang on in the more naturalized beds where they have more competition from weeds and less watering.
Got zero germination with Ruby Bells, but I had mixed success with the spring sowing this year. I will try prob. try them again.
The pack of seeds I have are mixed so it will be interesting what they will look like if any decide to grow. We had plenty of rain this season for the most part. I only watered flower beds probably 4 times. My issue with heuchera is location. They seem to only like one certain flower bed and now most live there instead of with the hosta where I thought they looked so nice together but they wanted more light and drier soil.
I have a couple of limoniums which have never outgrown their area....in fact, they stay small and compact until blooming, when they throw out lilac stems of airy blossom. I am going to dig mine up and have a go at root cuttings since there is never enough of a crown to divide and I actually cannot really see how I could take stem cuttings since mine have no stems as such, just leaves which grow from a low central rosette (I have perezzii and platyphyllum). I have never really considered collecting seed but having grown the easy annual statice from seed, this seems a definite possibility....but too late for this year.
I like taking root cuttings - a fairly foolproof method of propagation.
AND our own lady bugs don't bite. The Asian variety do and it hurts. We have our house on the market right now and I have to vacuum the garage, basement and guest house where they are somehow able to get in right before people show up so they are flying all over my prospective buyers.
What specific plants do you plant to attract native species?
I personally didn't do the research yet as I wasn't ready to purchase but I read some interesting points about ladybird harvesting.
Sounds like green lacewings are a better route to go or simply plant to attract native populations.
I wish there was a shortlist of top performing perennials and shrubs to plant for "good" native insect populations.
I found this crazy looking ladybird yesterday. It was double the size of the typical and had a deep metallic burgundy color. By the time I got back with phone it was gone.
Yes, but finding them next season is like a bonus harvest....although there is a perennial debate (in my mind) between carbon or blue steel (best edge in the world) or stainless (survives a damp English winter).....plastic - ugly but immortal....or wood (hmmm), although have been conscientiously oiling mine all season.
mums root very easily ....
root some pieces .. grow them as well as you can ... and when and if they get ugly ... root new pieces.. and throw out the uglies ...
you ought to be able to have as many plants as you wish.. come spring planting time ...
i would bet my shiny nickle.. it will be a struggle.. to keep large plants going all winter.. indoors ....
no idea how your hydro system changes all that ... and i dont know if i would give up the veg.. for some mums... lol .. and i dont like vegs...
no one ever learned anything .. without trying something new .... dont you think????
it would be nice to know where you are... to comment on whether your presumption that they wont winter over outside is proper ....
go for it
ken
i bought one ... it was a prized plant ..
the next year.. i had 100 ... it was no longer prized ... lol ..
the third year.. i started round upping them all ...
10 years later.. i am still RUing late germinating seed ..
i hate this plant with the passion of a million burning suns.. lol
ken
ps: i am pretty sure.. mine was an aggressive reseeding ANNUAL ... not a perennial ... maybe i am confused about mine compared to this one ... but i still hate mine ...
One of my fav plants- the variegated. HD had them at $4 this fall and we got maybe 40, using them in shady spots for edging /brightening pathways and neatening bed edges. 'Workhorse' is the operative word here. 2 Yrs ago, we noticed a slated- for- demo building with outside planters filled with a lot of dead plants and a number of living variegated liriope. They had survived a year or more in hot hot sun w/ no watering or any care. Tough little buggers. Unlike carex -yellow or variegated equivalents- which seem to be very needy of moisture. Know not of deer, but a wise nurserywoman told me her trick of collecting discarded cut hair from hair salon floors- and putting wads around her hostas, which i can imagine working w/ liriope or other plants....
best,
mindy
I've never grown wormwood so I don't know how it behaves, I know its invasive in some parts. What I meant was the other artemisia's I have experience with which spread underground pull out easily, its not like something you can't get rid of if you decide to either, they are very easy to dig out completely.
This post was edited by TexasRanger10 on Wed, Oct 22, 14 at 23:33
Thank you, All!
I have Ghizou Group--had it long ago, I remember the name 'Humpty Dumpty' being associated with it. That plant died out and I just planted a new one this Summer--fingers crossed! It's awesome!
I'll be researching all your suggestions and taking into consideration your personal experiences with certain plants.
char, we may be headed for a late Nov art museum trip to TX (Dallas/Ft Worth, Austin, Houston,+ a coast spot if whooping cranes have arrived.) When we visited over Xmas years ago, Tx was grey and bleak; no tree leaves left on, no green grass. Might it be better in Nov , do you think?
thx, mindy
Mindy, I wish I had better news, but according to the Farmers Almanac, your trip may be dotted with rain and cool weather. They say your best bet is Nov 24-26 for sunny and nice. Not much of a window. October is the month to visit for nice weather. At least you will be indoors for your museum visits.
A visit to Port Aransas or Matagorda might provide views of the whooping crane, but bring a warm jacket and umbrella. Who knows maybe the weather will be great when you are here. I hope so.
A lot of the Dahlias could do with deadheading - that would help. Then the soggy dying flowers wouldn't be weighing down the stems. Cut back to a junction rather than just removing the spent bloom. Otherwise you'll end up with empty stems poking up.
I agree with ken about the heavy green shrubs on the end because of how narrow the space is. I imagine those shrubs will take up the width and then some, eventually creating a visually heavy green block that needs trimming or else it will be larger than the space. What is the mature size of the shrubs?
In a space that narrow, either plant a perennials/annuals bed or do a shrub border with more plants that are compact in habit or which compliment each other with foliage textures so they will blend rather than contrast in such a jarring way. As is, you are mixing plants that clash in habit, texture and colors with no theme making it look as if you haphazardly purchased " one of each" plants based only on liking them individually in the store without considering the way they would grow together or the final result. That usually results in a messy look even when they aren't flopping. Repeats to form groupings would be better than planting one of each type.
I thought I'd replace with a lowes Kobalt shovel. Well it's pretty dull and I went back to my craftsman . Didn't realize there would be such a difference! :)
==>>> ummmm ... sharpen the new shovel ...???
ever gardener should own a file ... or a grinding wheel ... maybe a cheap vice ...
my shovels.. and other garden tools.. get sharpened.. when the lawnmower blades get sharpened ... at a min.. first thing in spring ...
i bet a good hardware store would do it for a buck or two ...
it makes sense.. they ship them dull ... rather than a crate of battle axes.. lol ... [dear???... why is the shovel in the bedroom closet???]
ken
crikey ... almost forgot ... OP ... original poster ... do one bed at a time ... if you cant handle it all at once ... say the east part ... and next summer.. work on the north part .... and use the east as a nursery ... and then in fall.. move the plants out into the north ... while also starting the west bed ...
your plan MIGHT be one way you get discouraged ... if you HOPE to do the whole plan.. in one season ... a garden plan.. should be a 5 or 10 year plan ... presuming you are NOT doing this.. checkbook style... but if you can.. go for it.. i cant review the facts.. as i already hit review ... so i dont know if this has been addressed ,,...
to rephrase... perfect a nursery bed right now ... buy plants and insert in spring, planting almost farmer style [one foot on square, or some such] .. rather than design ... start second bed .... by fall ... move plants from nursery .. and start applying the design .... etc ... rarely is it recommended.. to move plants in july and august.. what i call the heat of summer.. depending on where you are ...
and never forget.. you arent a gardener.. a green thumb .... until you have killed every type of plant.. 3 times ... its all part of the learning curve ...
ken, again
Ken's last point:
Totally agree that the key component of successful gardening (as recognized by yourself/other people) is learning through experience.
Nobody knows your precise growing conditions but you working in them. So advice should be given for you to test.
I was pleased to see my cut price Coronilla valentina subsp. glauca 'Citrina' rescued from the reduced shelf at my local garden centre has burst into flower. And the Chaenomeles has put out a few early flowers. Not so much the last flowers to bloom but the first.
My pink mums are in full bloom now. These were actually 3 small scraggly plants I put in the soil in spring... now they kind of fused into one big plant:
