13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials

In answer to your question, v1rtu0s1ty, plumbago does sucker. In Colorado, it has to be planted in the spring. Otherwise, it won't have enough time to establish adequate roots before winter comes. Also, it's very slow to leaf out in the spring. The first spring after I planted mine, I thought it had died. But a few weeks later, it came up.

2nd the cardboard layer
top with wood chips from arborist or tree trimmer or your own
no weed seeds in that

Great pics guys.

I grew KJ a couple years ago. It started declining rapidly and never recovered even after moving it to a better location (one that didn't get as much water). Never did replace it. Loved the flowers, but the overall plant was rather floppy for me.

I must say Doug, your plants look very nice and compact and not leggy at all. Yes?? May have to give Stokesia another go someday...
CMK

Thanks for that picture a2zmom. I had not heard of "KJ".

These many "Peachie's" were upright. (Now I think I recall that these asters are often floppy?)

I like how compact it is. The flowers appear smaller than Goldsturm too, but there sure are a lot of them.

I seem to be one of those few people who has absolutely no problems with Goldsturm however. It still remains one of my most dependable, end of summer bloomers. Funny how that works.

Kevin

I seem to be one of those few people who has absolutely no problems with Goldsturm however. It still remains one of my most dependable, end of summer bloomers.

I was at a university today and I thought of you Kevin when I saw this stand of "Goldsturm". A mass planting of G is impressive.

Alternatively, if you have a lot of seed pods, you can cut down the entire set of leaves down to the next leaf node. In a few weeks, you will get a whole new flush of blooms.

Ryse, if the Monarch was a female, there is a good chance she was laying eggs if she was "fluttering" around the milkweed plants, especially if she seemed more interested in the foliage than the flowers. If you observe closely you can actually see her deposit eggs (oviposit) on the underside of the leaves. You can then check the leaves for eggs - tiny white dots that resemble an oval pearl.

I haven't seen any Monarchs yet, but when I do see a female ovipositing I try to collect the eggs as soon as possible, because chances are the numerous predators in the garden will make a meal of them - they might not last a day.

If the egg survives and hatches, the caterpillars are tiny at first and not always easy to find. They are also susceptible to predation and may not make it to the larger caterpillar stages. Because of the predators, I take many eggs and a few caterpillars inside to raise.

You can cut down your milkweed if there are no eggs or caterpillars on them. About a month ago, I cut back (by half or so) a lot of my the common milkweed and pinched the tropical, so they will send up fresh shoots. These shoots are very desirable to the Monarch females, because the foliage quality is superior and they're easier for small caterpillars to eat.

If you decide to let some pods go to seed, you could collect some and scatter the seed yourself in your pasture before they reseed in your garden. Win-win. (I do this a lot in wild areas.)

fivefootmenace - Leucanthemum superbum/Shasta daisy is generally a hardy perennial that consistently blooms in July and the species doesn't grow more than 3 ft. tall. Like most perennials, they rarely need fertilizer, either organic or chemical, so it's possible you over-fertilizing them may have contributed to their excessive height, altho' I've never seen or heard any references to it from other gardeners. In general, a perennial garden shouldn't need extra help to flourish. In healthy, organic soil, it should maintain itself without the help of fertilizer.

Shasta daisies flourish in full sun so in my opinion moving them to a more shady location isn't the answer to your specific question. Planting them in full sun & organically-balanced sandy loam should be all they require to thrive & perform since, in my experience, those are the conditions in which they thrive & perform as expected.

I'm sorry you've had a negative experience with them but wish you the best of luck resolving it. My best guess would be a soil issue rather than a plant issue. Feel free to ask additional questions.

fivefoot, you can try cutting back the plant by half in early June next year. That should help with the height.

I've never tried doing that with Shastas, but it works for many different species.

I would be a day lily, loyal and dependable, but with faults. Criticize me too far, though, and I may only live at your friends house (remember when we were divided?) Or, I may cause you a lot of hassle by getting in your way and having my offspring and their offspring etc. come to live with us and you'd have a difficult time getting rid of us. Got it?

Thanks for the post, Karin

...I'd be a Hellebore/Lenten rose, just beginning to bloom as the winter snows began melting and Spring was a much-anticipated bright hope. Not too showy but impressive for being the first thing to bloom when the rest of the garden had yet to awaken. Elegant, tidy & carefree, enjoying both the lingering cold of late winter and the gradual warming of longer hours of sun + warming temperatures. A sturdy, hardy feature in the perennial bed, taking center stage when most of the garden is still sleeping. A source of elation that once again the winter season was giving way to the joy & anticipation of spring.

That picture is a riot.

It's a mud puppy!

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This post was edited by GreatPlains1 on Wed, Sep 4, 13 at 2:13

There you have it, advice straight from England!
You could cheat a bit and put in a few dahlias. I think they would fit well into an English style border.

Hmmm...

Zinnia, even though they're annuals they tend to self seed.

Butterfly Bushes, mine are all calling hummers and butterflies by the hordes.

Agastache as well as bee balm (at least my red ones) are both flowering.

Phlox.

Rose Of Sharon if you want a shrub.

Hibiscus are just starting for me.

Yarrow.

Russian Sage, my Little Spires are full of happy bees right now.

Heleopsis.

Blanket flower.

Rudbeckia, like Cherry Brandy or Cherokee Sunset rather than the "black eye susans".

I don't know which fit your idea of "cottage garden" plants, but I've got them all in what I condsider my cottage style garden.

I'm also getting a few second flushes of Lavender, not sure if they will do that every year or not.

My husband decided to just dig out the blackened part around the bush and then sprayed with fungicide. We think it may have been the shade. Almost never water this area, so it must be the weather if it is too moist. Now my husband is going to take out more around other bushes it is in front of along the line we have planted it. Hope it comes back to make a nice border.

Thanks for your suggestions, especially your picture, Rhonda.

Does that here, but it always recovers.

Ken: Planting direct should be on my list! While I am learning I might as well try several approaches. And yes it is amazing how many plants we put in the garden are toxic so assuming everything COULD be isn't a bad idea. Keelo doesn't chew, so I have never used bitter apple.

Sammywilt: Oh they come in pink as well? Fun!! I don't know anyone with sheep but horse manure is easy to find locally. Hadn't thought about seed set affecting lifespan.... But since I am mostly working at cutting flowers right now deadheading shouldn't be a problem.

Generic thoughts on longevity: Personally I try not to hold it against a plant that "only" lasts "x" years. I just assume operator error, and keep putting seeds in the ground. While I certainly don't mind buying plants, I do get a thrill out of that small speck of dry matter going into the soil and watching the living plant that emerges. I guess that is why I focus mainly on vegetables.

The middle tends to collapse if plant is not fed .If it does this , I just cut it to about 3 " .It regrows pretty fast . Mine have never gotten taller then 12 " .They bloom from early June untill Mid/ late July . I do have a white one blooming right now . There are 3 diff. shades of blue ( to my wife's eyes they are purple ) a white a pink and I havn't seen it but Im told there is a rose . Its a toss up on them or lupines being my favorite plant :)

I killed an Echinacea last fall with what I think was a too late transplant. I would try and do it while it's still green and growing (not too late)... I do tend to push the fall season with planting ad transplanting whenever the ground's not frozen solid.
I don't think you can kill the black eyed susan.... if you want even more just sprinkle the seed heads around and you'll soon have it everywhere!

I am in Chicago area. Fall (September to early Oct) is my favorite time to divide and transplant and plant for reasons other already stated. Black eyed susan and cone flowers are the more durable plants. You can not kill them (except rabbits this year have been eating some of them to the ground so I lost flowers but plants will come back next spring).

A few plants that have shallow root are better divided or planted in spring: mums, Shasta Daisy, Asters, etcs

Wow! From the looks of all those pots I would guess you have four jobs! You really have done a lot there and it looks like your hard work has paid off.

I'm not sure how this topic became a disagreement but I just want to say that if "winter sowing" is patented (which I really doubt... maybe there's some copyrighting on something, but a patent!?)... if it's patented then I'm offended that there's a whole forum promoting someone's "product".
I'm guessing the OP has gone over to the winter sowing forum to find out her own answer, but I just want to re-state that there's nothing new about sowing seed in the winter. Just like Terrene said, you can do it all year, and like Ken said whenever perennials drop their seed that's a fine time to sow the seed.... sorry if I put words in anyone's mouth....

I have plenty of leftover pots so don't bother with milk cartons, and usually just use a regular pot topped with a fine gravel to protect it from the weather. For fine seed I'll put a clear plastic tote over the pots for protection. I have cyclamen sprouting this week from seed planted in March, and I just planted some crocus and snowdrop seed that will sit through the fall and winter outside before sprouting in the spring (I hope). It's hard NOT to work with nature when you're starting seeds.
Starting seeds in itself can be a great way to get tons (too many?) of plants cheaply, just don't think you have to wait until some specific winter date to get started.

If you want to really get into sprouting trickier seeds google the Deno method for germination or look for it on youtube. Dr Deno researched about 5000 different species of plants (mostly as a retirement hobby) and self published (ie used his own money) to put out a booklet on what worked and what didn't. He later gave that research and a second edition to the USDA and allowed them to put it up on their website for free access for anyone.

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This post was edited by GreatPlains1 on Wed, Sep 4, 13 at 3:49