13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
Very interesting.
Although I was very familiar with Waddington's epigenetics and with (paleontological) provenance (graduate school), further development and application of the concepts, in botany/horticulture, is quite new on me.
I don't deliberately grow perennials from seed and, if fact, prefer to use cultivars raised by vegetal means.
At the same time, the information above raises a number of questions. For instance, we apparently often get perennials raised in the Carolinas, in part so they'll be in bloom when they're sold here (up north, to them). Is what seed they use a relevant issue, or, seeds aside, is it the cultivars environmental adaptability/plasticity much more important?
As to location/microclimates: it's an old gardeners' adage: if you want to know where to place a plant, buy three and plant them in different places and the plant will tell you where.
The superficially fortuitous survival of some perennial plants always amazes me.
The most extreme case I've come across is one of around 15 painted daisies (Tanacetum coccineum (Robinson's series)), which survived ten years in one garden, while all of the rest died within two or three years of planting.
They were all purchased as plants from the same place. It's hard to see seed provenance (re the grower) being the simplest explanation for this odd situation.
That one super-survivor painted daisy: I kept it and it's continuing to grow happily in our own garden.
I'm sure provenance is very important in regards to exactly how the plant looks and what it's genetics are..... But I think in many cases it's not a safe bet as far as hardiness.
There are several cases I can think of where plants were collected from colder locations to find hardier strains, but there are also a lot of cases where the historic range of a plant really doesnt match the cold tolerance.
Needle palm is an example, it's found in the sub tropical southeast, but when you actually check hardiness it's one of the most cold tolerant palms, capable of zone 6 and maybe lower.
Still your best bet for a hardier strain would likely be at the coldest end of its range or highest altitude.
The sharp point of the typical hand pruner is probably a marriage of the best overall pruning features, because homeowners generally do not purchase more than one hand prunner/type. The point allows for close positioning of the pruners to the trunk for cuts, allows better precision for delicate flower trimming, but the sturdy bypass can handle the small branches.
Maybe you would be happier just buying one of the many pruners that do not have sharp points on the tip. :) They are not as common as the typically-seen bypass, but they are out there and readily available online. If the pruner you are talking about are hand pruners (rather than loppers, although loppers are available in different blade styles too), you may want to check out Ratchet Pruner 3/4-inch (RP-3230), anvil pruner (AP-3110), or one of my favorites, a form of grape shear (AG-5030). Snips and grape shears resemble oversized needle-nosed pliers and have rounded tips. The grape shears are great for quick trim work, but not the thick branches. Other gardening tool companies have their own similarly-styled tools.
â¢Posted by Gyr_Falcon
For those curious about the impaled cricket, his final thought was probably "Shrike!"
I figured the cricket had been impaled intentionally, but had completely forgotten about shrikes' habit of doing so. Thanks for the reminder!
Nope- I do it all on the computer. Think I mentioned my obsessive garden-related list making on this other thread... link below ;-)
CMK
Here is a link that might be useful: Do you keep a JOURNAL?
Beautiful Monch. I had one years ago and loved it. It got paired with 'Chocolate' Joe Pye and it made for an interesting color combo. Unfortunately, the claims of it being short lived were all too true for me. Think mine made it to four years. ;-(
Ps. I also really like your pathway Doug ;-)
CMK
Very pretty plant! I don't grow 'Monch' but have been curious about it. I love asters, for both late season spectacular color and their attractiveness to pollinators. But I do agree they can (do?) look weedy and rangy before blooming, even when trimmed back during the summer.
Perhaps the worst asters for me in terms of unattractive pre-bloom growth is Aster cordifolius and its cultivars. Rangy and lanky would be charitable words to describe them. But when the pale lavender or mauve blooms open in a shady setting, all is forgiven.
For me, asters with overall best shape include Aster divaricatus and cultivars of Aster oblongifolius. This latter species responds very well to pruning and shaping.
David,
Did your liatris bloom? Mine is about one week into what will probably be 4-6 weeks of bloom. It started at the tip and the bloom moves down the stalk. The first day there was a bloom open, I returned home from work to find a Monarch nectaring intensely. I could walk right up to it and it barely noticed me. That was the second Monarch I've seen all summer.
I hope you enjoy your liatris as much as I'm enjoying mine.
Martha
Hi Martha - Well... kind of embarrassing... it's not liatris at all. I received it from a plant exchange and it was labeled as liatris but its actually liriope. I got a little suspicious after I saw a neighbor's blooming profusely and growing tall (compared what mine looked like). After a little more digging... liriope it is. Ugh. Its the second plant that I got that was blatantly mislabeled that, only due to my inexperience, I fell for. But the liriope isn't bad, just not quite what I was hoping for. I'll probably look into getting some seeds or a plant on the exchange forum because I do still want one, especially knowing the butterflies love it. I've started reworking a small bed into a small butterfly garden, which is where the liatirs (oops... liriope) is so I'll probably move that and get some real liatris there.
Glad yours is attracting monarchs! Just more incentive to get some!
Hey Christin, they were and un-named sedum. I bought them last fall (i think 6 of them) because they were only about 1 foot tall, so I figured that was pretty close to what they would be in the garden. They're more like 2-3' tall but they don't flop and have a thinner leaf. Haven't tried to get an id on them. Might cut them back next summer to see if they'll be a bit shorted upon blooming. I like the stem color with the physocarpus.
-Susan, my thoughts exactly with the stem color and Ninebark! The flowers looked like sedum but then I was totally thrown by the elongated leaves. Very cool. If you ever get an ID on it LMK!
Let me just add that so far I have not had luck with my V. crinata. I got it three or four years ago and the dern thing is barely over a foot tall. Only thing I can think of is that the soil pH here is off for it. Either that or it needs supremely moist conditions.
CMK
Lacey, you might try Googling a particular heuchera by name, then click on "images" -- this would give an expanded view of the color variations beyond the catalog/online photo from the seller. I just did that to see if it works, and saw a fair bit of variation, enough perhaps to make a decision whether you purchase or not! Give it a try... and good luck.
That's pretty late for a coneflower to bloom but whatever the reason, be glad they bloomed. Might be the watering issue--they're prairie plants and tend to thrive on whatever moisture Ma Nature doles or doesn't dole out. I've never watered mine and they're thriving 3 years down the road. My neighbor has had a butterfly garden filled with them for more years than I've lived here and she's never watered it. The coneflowers have thrived.
Yes we're a zone warmer than you but Echinacea/coneflower is mostly rated to Z6 so you should be okay unless you plant some of the fancy hybrid cultivars.
I recommend you do your research on the perennials you plant and get acquainted with their needs. Chances are you'll be surprised. They honestly need quite a bit less help from you than you might think.
Happy gardening!
Mine (both spectabilis varieties, one white and the other pink, planted in mid June of this year) turned yellow before they went dormant. The one in a slightly drier position with more sun did this first. But neither got any brown tips in the process. Just a slow yellowing.
According to what I found on Google, the cultivar you're asking about is a cultivar of the spectabilis type so I'm guessing at this time of year in Zone 5 it's either dormant or soon will be. D. spectabilis is a reliable spring blooming perennial in my zone that goes yellow & dormant not long after flowering. If the roots were well-established when you planted it, I'd expect it to show up again next spring. It's been a tough old bird in my garden beds for many years.
I doubt it will survive winter if you're growing it in a container altho' the WFF website says it's hardy to Z3. A plant needs to be hardy to at least two zones colder than its range in order to come through winter in a container. You can sink the container into the ground to increase your chance of seeing it survive the winter.
An added note--I've never fertilized or fed any of my bleeding hearts over the past 30 years. As with most perennials, they simply don't need it if they're growing in healthy soil. If your soil is healthy & rich in organic material, your perennials will thrive without fertilizer, especially chemicals.
Below is a link I found to information on your plant at White Flower Farms.
Here is a link that might be useful: D. spectabilis Valentine at White Flower Farm
I used to grow Emilia every year and it really was a nice accent scattered throughout the garden. On my monitor your photo is showing much more orange, so I didn't recognize it till you said the name. Hmm, I had forgotten about this little gem - been awhile since I grew it and I kind of forgot about it. Since I'm making a red/yellow/orange bed, I'll have to think about adding Emilia to it. Thanks for the reminder!
Dee
I have no idea. Was it purchased as a perennial? I guess that's hard to say if the nursery didn't even know what it was. Looks like you either bought multiple plants or it already spread a bit.... This might be a good time to check out the 'name this plant' forum
Thanks for all the responses......the plant has been identified as a Brazilian Bachelor's Button.