13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials

The strangest losses I've ever had was Monarda 'Raspberry Wine' and 'Fireball' plus one of two Persicaria Polymorpha due to large snow cover. Go figure.

I only whimper occasionally on pulling all the Echinaciea last summer infected by diseased plants from garden centers.

I lost more plants than I care to consider to the voles, including several hosta and clematis and a 5 year old Baptisia. Happily the Baptisia had a few seedlings and I am now planting in wire cages and watering in with a mix that includes castor oil. I'm also planning to start setting traps to reduce the number of voles.

for me here in MI ... we have basically 3 waves of weeds ...

of which this purslane IS A WEED ...

in march.. we have the perennial weeds.. that wintered over ... pull them out ...

then there is the early crop of annual weeds ... these would be the ones that sprout in warm soil.. and enjoy cool nights ...pull them out ...

and then come the heat of the summer weeds ... that need hot soil to sprout .. and thrive in hot nights.. relatively speaking... so here come the purslanes.. and the crabgrass ... you would swear they double in size.. every warm night ...

to forestall all of them.. and reduce your weeding ... you need a mulch ... most of these things germinate on the soil surface .. and if you cover the surface.. you reduce germination by 90% or so ... also.. you bury the 50 billion dormant seeds on the soil surface ... and finally. the mulch will make it easier to pull out what does grow.. as it will keep the soil more friable.. loose ...

so there you go.. pull them out.. add some mulch ... and you should be well on your way ..

ken

I have portulaca seedlings and they don't look like this. I do have that particular weed and I didn't realize it was purslane. Which is actually supposed to be a very nutritious green to eat.

Agree, mulch keeps the weeding down. :-)

Aster Blue Autumn, in the three years I've had it has stayed very short and heathy with pretty flowers. All thou I don't know what experiences others have had with it. So far Royal Candles has been taller.

Yellows? Someone say yellows? Check out Heliopsis 'Tuscan Sun' Should comply with your wish in the sunny spot.

Hemlock's leaves are shiny, cow parsley not so much. And both can have purple speckling on the stem, although the poison hemlock's tends to be very pronounced. Could also be Cicuta maculata or water hemlock....as toxic (maybe even more so) and almost identical to the Conium in appearance except for its preference for wet sites and tuberous root structure.

ALL are weeds - best to get rid of anything with this appearance.

Thanks everyone for all the good information. It did have shiny leaves and was growing in a moist spot. Glad it's gone.

I have the short variegated Sol. Seal and find it looks good with so many plants. I have it growing with Geranium phaeum, G.phaeum album, Mertensia virginica, Short's aster, Erythronium Pagoda, Bottlebrush grass, Heuchera villosa, etc. Both the Mertensia and Erythronium bloom early, before the Sol. Seal really gets going in the spring. The leaves of these first two wither away as the Sol. Seal gets to its full height. The aster has arched branches that curve over the Sol.Seal in Sept-Oct, in a pretty lav.blue colour.

In a dry neglected spot.

Got my order today. Everything looked good and it was a BIG order except for the Rudbeckia Goldsturm and they were small and really trimmed and some of the leaves were mushy from travelling wet. Kind of holy, too, looks like something has been munching on them. I think they will recover, but could have been a little healthier on those. Otherwise, though, a great order and certainly can't beat the prices, regardless! I would definitely order from them again.

Mine came yesterday and most if the plants looked excellent. The coreopsis look the worse but still ok--comparable to local plants on summer sales but more interesting choices.

I have a couple of invasive plants growing in chimney tiles, the square fired clay type. The bottom is sunk 8"-12" down, and the plant is planted in soil in the tile that is about 1 1/2 feet above the rest of the garden. In the 6 or more years of using this raised planter technique none of the plants have escaped. I got my tiles as cutoffs or damaged pieces from a mason.

I also have used regular planters, but have raised the planter up on thick pavers so that the roots can't escape through the drainage holes. Perhaps one of these techniques will work for you.

Just FYO about trying a non-invasive variety of the white gooseneck loosestrife. I tried one of these new hybrids several years ago. It was nice enough, but did not have the charm of the old original. The flowers were sort of chubby and bunched on the stems. I grew it for a few years and then discarded it.

Thanks for your kind words, Lin.
I actually prefer this white variant over the regular "blue" ones. Any idea if the white flowered type will come true from seed? The plant in question is isolated from the others.

that depends on their pollination habit/technique, I once had volunteers of a white Centranthus ruber, all of them white as well; clueless about Dianthus though, self-pollination would make that happen,

bye, Lin.

They also love fallen leaves keeps soil cool and moist. Happy worms giving nutrients to plants and airy soil The beauty awaits.

I love them.

Looks like Patty meant to say Coreopsis Galaxy, not Mercury Rising. Love the combo of those together, though. Beautiful!

Your correct Galaxy, duh