13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
I hope I don't confuse you, summerstar. Just because the tag did not mention that one or both of your irises is a rebloomer does not mean anything.
German seems to be just another name for a "bearded" iris.
I just did a little on line research for you. BOTH of your irises are Intermediate Bearded Irises meaning that they are shorter then the Tall Bearded Irises. They should top out at about 20 to 22 inches tall. In the spring, they may also bloom a bit earlier than their taller cousins and after the dwarf varieties. I grow all three kinds.
Halston is listed as a rebloomer so you should see it rebloom in the fall if the growing conditions are right. I don't think the weather has much to do with it, only that Halston has the genes to rebloom and has produced enough growth to rebloom.
Strawberry Love is not a reblooming iris.
Hope this is some help to you,
Linda
They are in their 4th year. Thanks for the information! I like their size and look and smell, and they are my biggest bee attractor. I will look for more; however, do you have suggestions for a similar plant in relation to the previous information? Part to full sun, clayish soil.
Hi Adidas yes I have collected pods when the seeds were not fully brown and they have browned up during the drying process. But generally it's best not to open the pod while it's drying, so it's hard to tell the condition of the seeds sometimes!
As for your A. exaltata, the purple color is probably normal. Some of my A syriaca seedpods are purplish (pretty). The pods that are lowest on the plant should be most mature. If you notice a fading of the green coloration, I would go ahead and collect a few. Then I dry out between several days and 2 weeks and test them daily by squeezing them gently. They will start to pop open when they're ready.
As for the milkweed beetles, they will nibble on the pods, so when I'm checking the plants I'm not very nice and squish the beetles!
shadyplace - monarchs go mad over heptacodium here! 2010 was our best monarch year so these are pictures from late September 2010 that I've posted here before...
We are on the migration route for the monarchs. So far, there haven't been many around but I'm hoping the report from southamptonite might mean there will be a good show this year!
we have had 2 heptacodiums for many years, since they were brought back from China by the Arnold Arboretum here in Boston, and first deceminated by them to their members fifteen or 20 yrs ago. I have never seen Monarchs on them. Darn!! Ours have recently begun their annual bloom and they do reliably get their pink calyxes here, which is the only real reason that I grow that tree (shreddy bark is neat too.)
piti, it is so great that you are satisfied this year; a great place to be, for sure! thx for the i.d.s; i am very un-savvy w/ PCs; is that a MAC program--the yellow circles and numbers overlaid over the photos? I don't have a MAC and i have Picassa for a photo program.
Thx much and big congrats. it's the June H. that made me gasp!
mindy
Nolina microcarpa-- hardy down to zone 6. I like the way the ends of the leaves curl. Mine is still not full grown but its coming along. I planted several from seed that are smaller. Its a 3ft tall evergreen and has white blooms. So far mine hasn't bloomed yet but its a very easy plant.
its time to stop fertilizing .... its almost winter ...
and you can run into a lot of trouble.. having perennials and conifers on the same watering system ... they have very different needs ....
you can get IDs on anything.. in the appropriate forum .. including the name that plant forum.. by posting pix of things ...
its near impossible to answer your questions.. w/o really knowing what plants you have .. as i read your facts.. as saying there were more than astilbe
ken
Yes, it sounds too acidic to me. I would probably add some lime or dolomitic lime to bring the pH up.
We have alkaline soil so I use peat moss all the time to bring the pH down and to help with texture. In terms of mixing and wetting, as long as it's all mixed together it's just great. For me it all blends together really nicely to make a fluffy, appealing mixture.
If you want the same effect but without the acid, use coconut coir. You buy it in a small, compressed brick, put it in a big rubbermaid tub, add water and come back the next day, only to be shocked at how much it expands. Then you use it like peat moss. It is also much more sustainable than peat moss since it is a byproduct of coconuts.
Good luck, happy planting!
Thank you all for your help!
I dug out much of the bed, hosing it all as I shoveled it back in while adding a bit of wood ash and a little dish soapy water with a watering can. It looks pretty good but time will tell!
Love the coconut voir idea. Will check that out!
Thanks again and Happy Gardening!
Finally got rid of the stuff. Houttuynia was sold around here as an aquatic. It ran under a 3 ft wide sidewalk & into my bed of shrubs. Scared I'd kill the shrubs with Roundup, I used 2,4D since the label said it was good for broad leaf weeds. I sprayed each leaf top & bottom. It did the trick & didn't harm my Gold Flame spirea. I only had 2 sprouts this spring & got out the 2,4D to take care of them. It's Sept & haven't had any more this season. You might try it. In the meantime, I won't be bringing anything "Japanese" to my southern garden. Think "kudzu"
By chance I had a Persicaria "Painter's Palette" side by side with a "Chameleon" in very trying conditions ie under a tree with generally very dry conditions and lean soil. Within two seasons the "Chameleon" had disappeared with the PP just holding its own.
Great info, karin_mt.
I have been passing them along to friends and neighbors, taking them to plant swaps and posting them on freecycles.
I will post them on freecycles again next spring. Posting on craigslists resulted in only one taker who did not show up at the last minute. I suppose a car full of plants for $15 was still too expensive for people.
Maybe I will post an offer on freecycles again then add that I want potting soil so I can use it for winter sowing.
A poster here used to hold plant sales. I wanted to follow her foot steps, but never had the grumption to pot up the plants and be organized enough in spring.
Like Flora, they get the heel of my shoe here. This year they have been worse than ever. 10 years ago we just had slugs to contend with, then the snails started moving in. This year my Sum and Substance hosta looks like someone aimed a shotgun at it and let fly.
I covered one of the benches in the greenhouse with copper mesh this spring, the snails here must be on steroids because when I went out in the morning the snail trails were very evident, so at night I got in the habit of putting domes over my flats of seedling. Yes I use Slug and Snail pellets in the greenhouse, I'm beginning to think they just consider them the appetizer :(.
Annette
I feel for the gardeners. I heard on NPR that Britain is infested with slugs many inches long. I have seen those banana slugs in the Pacific NW. They are huge and long. Ours in the Midwest are puny by comparison.
I used to spray them with salty water or ammonia - I can't remember which. They dissolved before my eyes. They are slimy for sure and made my hosta unsightly. But I felt guilty killing them. :-( Slug go works until it rains. But I have not applied any for several years.
I suppose that doesn't answer your question very well. Though Debbie has a rather good idea. Since the ones I grow aren't extremely hardy, I keep them potted & during severe winter spells, bring inside (don't have a cool garage to put them in, to overwinter, anymore.)
If you are simply using them like expensive annuals, then do as she suggested, with the benefit of maintain them easily, over winter stored in a garage & cutting back. Bring out, after it warms up & you should have the same ones , to use all over again. Unless, as I mentioned, you locate the hardy variety & place them between your tomato plants & see if they survive the winter, as it appears it may be the southern exposure, against the house, which helps the chances of survival, a great deal
I'm in zone 5 in Maine, but don't have the patience to over-winter the annual mums they sell potted around here. They'd never look as good as when I buy them in the fall.
Since you're asking if they'd look better in your decorative pots or planted, do you have photos of your pots? I assume that everything you show for your tomatoes comes down, so you have the blank garage wall and the mulched strip? If your pots are on the taller side, they may added some desired height. If you're buying the large potted ones ( I see everything here from quart to bushel size!) you wouldn't needed the added height.
My weather conditions are different but I've moved perennials by digging them and then packing them side by side in shallow crates or boxes. They won't be growing over winter so roots don't tangle. Much quicker than potting them individually, quicker and easier to move and there's a greater volume of earth to even out the temperature. Then I'd treat as SunnyBorders suggests for pots.
Useful suggestion, Floral.
I use pots.
(1) for labelling purposes
(2) weight considerations
(3) because I give most of the plants away
(4) (just me!) I get rid of excess soil that way.
Think it's still reasonable weed-free
(and invasive spring bulb-free) garden
soil, but am always upgrading our soil as I
divide and replant through the growing
season.
They say "a pearl is not had for the asking".
I have to admit, Floral, that there's more (likely yours) and there's less (mine) efficient ways to obtain one.