13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
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.
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.
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.
Miclino, don't get upset! I really don't think it's aster yellows. Google "pictures of aster yellows" and you'll see. I believe it's mites.
Read the message from me that's right above your own post. Nevermore44 has treated her or his cone flowers this way and has had good results, so cheer up and don't panic. Folks posting here pass on lots of good experience. Just read what they suggest and Google pictures of aster yellows. It's appearance is not at all like your flowers.
My problem has always been that it looks empty forever until one day I see, overnight, it's TOO full, then I make 'new' spots for the extras and go back to lamenting how empty it all looks. If I ever stay in one place long enough, there would eventually be no grass at all.
They always say a great garden is constantly about change, it's the only art form that's never finished.... Too bad mine looks more like a child's fingerpainting!
I'm always seeing new things and getting new ideas. Plus all that stuff grows, so unless you go with plastic plants you'll need to adapt at some point anyway.
Campanula, for some reason the majority of the tall heleniums is yellow or orange , and the red ones are medium tall. I have one red that is taller than the others, unfortunately NOID. Of the red ones whose names are known the tallest with me is Indianersommer, and it is only slightly above 1 m with me. I like that one. I started with Moerheim Beauty, which had very beautiful flowers, unfortunately the stems are very thin and can't take our wind+rain combination
In the link below you can see Dauerbrenner, which is listed as more than 1.5 m tall, but I do not know its sturdiness.
You may also see the catalogues on this address:
http://www.zur-linden-stauden.de/shop/index.html
The catalogues are old but as far as I understand they are still valid(but in German). This nursery produces a lot of their own Heleniums and Phloxes.
Here is a link that might be useful: All Heleniums
It's deer. What other animal in CT could reach that high?lol
I really don't think animals destroyed my beebalm...they just got kinda sickly looking and...and they died just like that! maybe if I inspected them more closely there might have been a bug problem that I didn't see any ....i didn't look too closely cuz I just wasn't that excited to go on a bug hunt tonight....maybe in the morning.