13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials

Thank you coolplantsguy. I may have to remove the plant if it is Aster Yellows.

Thanks, coolplantsguy--- I pulled mine out early this morning.

We were posting at the same time... Yes, that looks like Silver Mound.... Shear it regularly and it's a nice, neat plant.

clip it that low.. sniff sniff :( But yes I believe you..
Thanks

Even harder this year, because that Euphorbia didn't come back this spring.

Any of you planting things now for fall blooms?

===>>> it is very hard.. to plant things NOW ... for fall bloom ...

especially in the midwest on july/august ... and i am talking about in a method that is rather care free.. if you are there 24/7 to TLC things.. maybe you can succeed.. where peeps who want a more care free garden cant ... its all about transplant shock ....

and that.. if you can find decent stock for sale ....

the trick.. is to start making a list in sept.. of what you see that interests you.. so you plant the things in the proper planting season ... spring.. for the fall show ...

if you have a lot of vertical space.. the autumn sweet clematis can be stunning ...

ken

I would love to have a division of the goatsbeard. I am not good at dividing plants normally (except daylilies), I always feel like IâÂÂm mutilating them: but if itâÂÂs out of the ground anyway, IâÂÂll look and see if there is enough there to divide in half. I wanted one on the opposite side of the (symmetrical, more or less) bed anyway. I think since IâÂÂd like another, that tips the scale in favor of moving the goatsbeard.

Troves of trilliumsâ¦.I assume you did not have to cut back the leaves, since you moved it in spring? IâÂÂm just not sure how IâÂÂd move it in the fall if I kept all the stems intact. When I want to move some tall plants, like asters, I just chop them off halfway. They never miss a beat. But I donâÂÂt know enough about goatsbeard. IâÂÂd say IâÂÂll wait til next spring, but this last spring I DID plan to move it, and the season got away from me and soon it was too big.

Yes, I used KenâÂÂs hosta moving tips a few years ago! I was having a front patio installed in late July. It was a very hot July, too. My husband thought it looked like too much trouble to do. But the patio installation guys were definitely taking notes. They were moved to a holding bed, then moved back to the front yard again a month later. They took the move well.

Hi there,
I reduced some Goatsbeard (Aruncus dioicus) in spring on sandy soil. The original clump was just too big, so I hacked off smallish bits ( about3-4inches across) with a spade and replanted. The owners did some watering afterwards and it started ok, the biggest risk it dying in the summer draught.
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It is a European species, so it can produce roots as long as the soil is warm-ish. (in contrast to warm season plants like some prairie grasses).

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I wold transplant in early fall (is that late August/ September in your region?). And in general when transplanting perennials in summer it is best to cut off most of the stems almost to ground level, the roots growing on and the next years buds as well. Unpruned you risk that the chopped off roots can`t supply the foliage with enough water so it could die of dehydration.

Add some leaf mulch or something for winter and it should be fine.

Hope that helps. bye, lin

Do you have a way to keep them very moist until their older. Illinois does have a moist sandy subsoil. Many moisture loving plants can survive once they get their roots down in this thick gooey sand. You will probably need to water for a few years. I read that this sand layer was left behind by the last ice age. Good for growing corn. Any way since I'm a bit nuts and was bored one day I tried to dig thru this sandy substrate. I got three feet down and no end in site. Filled in hole and concluded it goes to China. Just kidding

Thanks!

I can actually wait til fall to do most of them. I might try one, which is where I want to plant a new hosta. I have enough seedlings to play with.

The transplants will be growing in the same bed as the parent, with the same conditions. I just want to put some on the opposite side of the bed. The parent plant was obtained in a swapâ¦and was smaller than most of these seedlings are now. So I guess maybe it was luck that it survived in dry shade.

This area is former farmland. ThereâÂÂs 6 to 8 inches of black topsoil, then clay underneath. So I donâÂÂt consider it to be well draining. I never noticed any sand in the soil.

Yes it looks like ligularia dentata. Gorgeous colored leaves!

This post was edited by pam_whitbyon on Tue, Jul 2, 13 at 12:30

The fringed edge makes it look like Ligularia to me. A plant that enjoys moisture.

I don't know what the sedum-like yellow blooms are, but I have a very similar volunteer all over my dry, shady, sandy front yard. I think they are quite beautiful , but they don't fit in with my pink-purple-white themed bed. I guess I'll change the theme. LOL

Martha

The St John's Wort is one of many St Johns Worts ie Hypericum. There are a lot ranging from tiny alpines to large shrubs.

Neither of the succulents is a Euphorbia. They are both Sedums. The white looks like Sedum album.

It will also self-seed, at least mine has, and it grows very well.
Also, it is pretty late to come out of the ground in spring. Mine is currently covered with honey bees.

In my experience the tuberous rooted, perennial species of milkweeds are slow growing for the first few years. Your plant probably won't be a large bushy plant for about 2-3 seasons. Although it's hard, you'll need to have patience for this one.

In all honesty, 15 years is the longest I have had a garden in any one place, so I can't be totally sure that any plant will be OK for 20 years. I'll assume that you will choose plants appropriate for soil and temperature conditions since I am not familiar with what grows in NC.

Hellebore was my first thought as well. Can you use groundcovers that might need cutting back, but would not need dividing per se? Can you use short woody plants? Are any of the evergreen daylilies slow enough to spread to make them work here?

If you can use groundcovers, some of the thymes might work well to weave in and out of other plants.

If you can use woodies, some of the small conifers derived from witch's brooms might well work or some of the really small rhododendrons. I've had a Rhododendron 'Checkmate' for somewhere close to 10 years and it is still under 3 feet and is as easy as all the other PJM family plants. Would any of the easy care roses work for you here?

For deciduous plants, peonies are the classic plant that never needs dividing. Baptisia is another one that is happiest left in one spot. There are some fairly short clematis with long bloom periods that might suit the situation as well.

Yours is an interesting question! I'm curious about the size and topography of this garden and also about the plants you're already considering for your zone. Posting a photo or two of the plot could help us visualize your workspace.

You asked for perennials that won't need dividing for about 20 years. In my years of gardening (two homes), I've found that when planted in optimal conditions of great soil, sun and watering, many perennials will go nuts! For example, I have several Pine Knot hellebores. After 7 years these have formed huge clumps that do not die back in the winter. And yes, the leaves do get ratty as Gardenweed said. The clumps are now 3' by 2'6", and I've had to remove many things near them.

I wonder if this garden will have some of the "woodies" that nhbabs suggested? If not, I'd suggest plants with interesting foliage -- like variegated Liriope, Sedum ('Vera Jameson', etc.), Artemisia, Agastache or Sage. Except for the Agastache, which I've only had for one year, I've found most of these to be well behaved.

Another vote for 'Zagreb'--I have two patches of it that enlarge in size each year. I wouldn't call it invasive but it definitely expands each growing season.

'Moonbeam' has much lighter, paler blooms but hasn't been particularly robust where I am. Since most everything else thrives in my soil conditions, I prefer to blame it on the cultivar rather than where I plant it.

Unlike 'Moonbeam,' 'Zagreb' is reliable, needs little in the way of supplemental moisture or attention from me other than to enjoy it & the pollinators love it.

I agree ---- Zagreb. Enjoy!

This is an interesting thread for me. Many of you have helped me throughout the years and I appreciate it. I'm interested in hearing from Wieslaw and all you others!

Thanks

Thanks to all with input. Interesting to say the least. It's a far cry from the eight geraniums and fourteen marigolds that most of us grew up with. I've found that size and sight lines come into play.. Then there is the size of the garden as well.

A small garden needs harmony and a setting - to create an ambience. A larger area can have various focal points but also needs a flow.

Endless possibilities, limited resources.

We've had an absence of sun and 12 inches of rain in June and even my tomato and pepper plants are stalled and not growing much at all. So it would not surprise me that Dahlias are behind because they like similar conditions I thought.

Mmmm, dahlias - nothing much doing here, but to be expected, especially after this cool delayed spring. Tbf, one of them does have a puny bud, but I am going to whip that off because the plant still needs to bulk up. I lost half a dozen but, those which have come through (I leave them in the ground over winter) have enormous tubers with many growth buds. They vary between30-50cm high but would expect them to double that and flower some time in early August. Tomatos (yep, they seem to run in tandem) are fattening up and a few of them even have tiny little green tomatoes on the lowest tress (especially the cherry types). The earliest tomato in the UK is ready by the 2nd week in July (although that would be a potato leaf early)along with a couple of waterlily dahlias (Arabian Knight. various 'Bishops'). We are between 3-4 weeks behind.
I wouldn't be worried by yours Bluebird - they are the sort of plants which grow in 'surges' (sweet peas are another). Yours look healthy and ready to take off - plenty of time yet. Don't be stingy with the fertilizer. For me, August is a blur of feeding, watering, deadheading and tying in, trudging remorselessly between the tomatoes, dahlias and beans and sweet peas - I am usually quite OK with the first killer frosts because I am knackered.