13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
Maybe with just one plant I will be able to deadhead it before the seed spreads.
==>> i have proceeded forward under that delusion before .. lol ..
the result of my efforts .. is to suggest you kill it NOW .. lol ...
in other words.. i forgot about it.. and 10 years later. i still have seedlings popping up ...
anyway.. enjoy it.. its going to be hard to keep it alive.. flowering.. indoors all winter.. if it dies.. do not mourn its loss.. there are better things for your small garden ...
ken
That flower is darker than most from that plant -- in the summer they had more white in them. Not sure if that is because the flower just opened or the cold. I know some varieties have deeper purple flowers.
It reseeds like crazy, but you can easily pull the seedlings you don't want. Also, if you deadhead before it sets seed, it is much more manageable (and helps prevent the plant from becoming an annual or biennial as it wants to be). I don't find controlling it any less manageable than typical weed control, which I do anyway (by hand). I call it a "worthwhile annoyance" because I find it worth the trouble for this long-flowering plant.
I usually leave mine standing over winter, but I don't know if it's necessary. I have L. muscari, which stays relatively green for me over winter (though a snow dump wrecks the foliage, of course...). One of DH's chores in the spring is cutting down all the ornamental grasses, so I just leave the liriope for him to cut down while he's working on the grasses.
If you cut it down in Fall, you take away its "evergreen" attractiveness, but otherwise you won't harm it (unless you are in a zone in which it is marginally hardy, then you may help it survive by leaving the foliage as winter protection). It comes down to your personal preference; if it starts looking hideous during the winter, it may be better to get rid of the ugly. A lot of times people wait too long into Spring and cut the new growth which then makes for a hideous looking plant all season long.
Crepe Myrtles may be the most abused trees in the U.S.! They should be pruned in late Winter/Early Spring before emerging from dormancy and never cut back to the trunks, only to 4-6" up the flowering branch from the junction of last year's flowering branch and its supporting branch. Of course, you should also clean up suckers, rubbing branches, dead branches, and the like as well.
Mum shearing/pinching: Some do it because their mums would bloom in August otherwise and they are typically associated with Fall not Summer (some un-pinched mums will bloom in Spring in very warm climates where they put out vigorous Spring growth and get tricked by the longer nights!). Others do it to prevent flopping. Others do it to encourage branching and hence a denser bloom. I think overall, it is beneficial but there is no harm in letting them go natural either.
As for cutting down the perennials in Fall vs. Spring, I think most people do a little of both. Some absolutely must be cleaned up (black soggy hosta leaves are snail egg heaven). Some can wait. I only remove what must be removed to prevent disease, pests, etc.
I don't get to uptight about having everything pinched, staked, cut back etc. I leave most things standing through the winter, only cutting back/cleaning up any things that were diseased or had bug issues. We live on 8 acres, of that 4 has been restored to prairie, the other 4 is yard and gardens including a very large veggie garden. Time to be anal about my gardens is not available. That's not to say I don't do some deadheading and cutting back throughout the growing season. I just don't get myself stressed out if it's not perfection.
i did not mean to use 'invasive' within its horticultural definition ...
i simply meant.. that it spread wildly thru MY garden beds ...
the problem with such ... is that it is hard to eradicate ... bulbs ... do not react to roundup.. the way other things do ... in my garden ...
regardless.. the OP is on the right track as far as making sure she learns about such.. BEFORE simply planting them.. and as to using them as bug prevention in a pot ... or in the garden
knowledge is power.. as they say ..
BTW .. when i 'did' roses ... i had upwards of 125 hybrid T's ... and they required a monthly regimen of sprays [disease and bugs, including systemics] .. and fertilizing ... for maximum performance ... there was no way around it ... you may do the organic thing.. on a couple.. but when you decide to get carried away ... [hmmm, who would that be.. lol] .... warfare must begin ...
ken
oh.. and one other thing ... in z5 .. MAYBE only half of mums sold.. are actually zone 5 hardy ...
they are basically produced and sold as ANNUALS ... in our zone..
so without an actual ID what mum it is .... there is a shot.. that no matter what you do ... it will die.. in z5 ...
back in the 90's.. i used to mail order rootlings at about a buck or two a piece in early spring.. and being a DINK ... i would buy 20 to 50 different ones .. and most died over winter in z5 ... and after a few years .. i lost interest .. and over a few more years.. what ended up remaining .. lol .. was the standard 2 or 3 plants.. i saw all over the neighborhood .... most likely.. the ones i asked neighbors for a piece of ... lol ... so much for beating the system ...
ken
From the looks of that plant, it's be in that spot for a few years (the poster made a comment about its need of division), so it's been through a few winters already and has most likely proven its winter hardiness. Of course there's always the chance of some unusual winter weather which could knock it dead, but that's the way it goes with everything.
Trim it back a bit and have faith.
Kevin
and mind you ....
i KNOW these two .. know the z5 issue..
they just forget to phrase it in terms we z5'ers understand ...
in other words.. its a furnace issue.. not a greenhouse issue ...
ken
ps: enough words.. i better quit before gal starts counting words again .. lol ...
I can't disagree with any of the above comments, but one more thing you may want to check: Those leaves look very much like leaves on a plant infested with spider mites. Just for the heck of it, check the undersides of the leaves for these nasties. Also check for any webbing on the leaves or stems. Mites can be a huge problem this time of the year on indoor plants, especially any plant stressed by less then ideal growing conditions.
Kevin
I and my back are looking forward to garden withdrawal.
I spent a few hours today doing cleanup and storing canna tubers in large pots filled with peat in the garage. The last (it's gotta be the last) potted plant was brought in. Only 10-20 hours of additional trimming/mulching/cleanup left and I can relax a few minutes until seed-starting begins.
True - others might be reading and interested in the info. Bear with me, I'm cranky lately and prone to taking things the wrong way (dealing with death does that to people...)
Well, if DH doesn't notice the tree before I haul it in the garage for the winter, I can use the old "I've had that a while" line LOL!
While I am an old pro at wintering plants in my garage and try to get them back out before they break dormancy I agree that there may be readers that need that information.
Also my garage is well insulated and stays cool even on hot summer days and does not have extreme temps in the spring. I already winter a small maple (one that may or may not be a J.Maple started from a mix of seeds given to me several years ago) which is growing well but smaller than expected as was pruned by critters last spring. Also several potted clematis, roses, and not quite hardy in MN perennials.
I appreciate others experiences as it might add another aspect to my thinking and may result in a tweaking or change in my practices.
It reseeds heavily but I wouldn't call it a nuisance.
It tends to reseed only under the previous year's plants, not all over my yard. It doesn't spread by runners. It blooms a very long time. It attracts butterflies. Faults forgiven. : )
Sconticut - my great aunt was a gardener and worked in her garden until she was 100. I think it kept her young. Planting perennials gives a person something to look forward to the next summer. Gotta have something to get us through the blah winter.
Doesn't fit most of your criteria, but one of my favourite plants, for our area, is culver's root.
The picture is the cultivar Veronicastrum virginicum 'Fascination', that shows fasciation (flower spikes growing along a line rather than to a point).
One of the several things I like about this plant is the fact that the flower spikes (shape) apparently appeals to bees. Trimming off the central spike, after flowering, puts me right in the middle of the bees. They just do their thing and I do mine.
My favorites to grow from seed are digitalis, shasta,
primula,alcea (hollyhock),budlia and aquilegia...all are easy and hardy.
If any of you don't like hostas, check out Liberty, montana aureomarginata or Guardian Angel, you'll change your mind
Heather
Oh no Woody!! At least it's not gardening season! Take care....Can youy do walkies with the chair? Please let us know how you're dong - often.
Cheers,
Julie
Oh Woody ! So sorry about your accident... I think Saucy used an older list-I asked her to send out an e-mail for me because all my contact lists are on my old computer which is unplugged. I will see what we can do to amend the list.
A week of rain is on the way here--fungus corners !
Kathy in Napa