13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
The 3 foot is a problem for a classic perennial bed. The latter, whether it's surrounded by grass or along a side of a garden, needs to be deep enough to get in enough plants for colour throughout the growing season.
Related, is having taller plants towards the centre, or back.
If a bed is too small, or too narrow, to accomodate enough plants, I use a combination of perennials and annuals.
I'm like Wieslaw59, I fill a bed (certainly over-plant a bed for three years down the road) and move or dispose of plants subsequently.
I too like the 'overstuffed' look and ususally ignore spacing rules EXCEPT for perennials that approach shrub size when established and need proper spacing to achieve full effect. With those I am careful to consider adult size. Perennials for me that fall in that category are: Baptisia, polymorpha persicaria, euporbia palustris, lespedeza and big grasses.
Looking Glass is a mutation from Jack Frost alright, but the difference is not minute. Just google Jack Frost pictures and then Looking Glass pictures. It is impossible to confuse the one with the other(except where the pictures are downright wrong- happens a lot, people really do not know what they have)
All mine do beautifully and self-seed shamelessly throughout the gardens.
Why are they so expensive? Because growing plants is an expensive proposition.
The first variegated Brunnera I ever bought (12 years ago at $32.00) is still alive. That works out to less than $3.00 per year. I have bought many more since then, and the average price for a new, variegated brunnera is now about $15.00.
I will submit than anytime you go out to lunch at a restaurant, or treat yourself to a movie and popcorn, you have spent more than you would have for a new, fancy, well-grown brunnera.
Like Brunnera an use it extensively.
We have clay soil, upgraded with organic matter, and water as needed.
I stopped using the species Brunnera macrophylla because it seeds around way too much. Found ' 'Langtrees' does seed a bit, but not much.
Have used (and divided) Jack Frost a lot. Great plant.
Have had 'King's Ransom' and 'Dawson's White' for several years. No problems.
I read that you can't divide 'Dawson's White' (nice plant) and have it grow true.
Find Brunnera does well shaded by the tall perennials in summer.
Clear out spent plant material in fall, so light gets down to the low spring plants.
I own a nursery in Canada which specializes in perennials. I often compare our prices to that of Canadian mail order companies and our prices are always much less expensive on the same items. The difference? No shipping costs, no soiless mix as a growing medium and much, much larger plants, with extensive, healthy root systems ready to take off in the garden.
Even our small, starter first-year plants are much larger and much less expensive than anything I have ever bought online.
I continue to wonder how I can grow a plant and sell it for a profit at a much, much lower price than anything on offer from mail order companies. The difference, I believe, is the glossy catalogue. Instead of a pretty catalogue with pictures of what to expect when the plant matures, we offer instead mature gardens- about 20 of them- for customers to walk and browse.
We also offer a much more extensive variety.
And in general, when I buy plants, I still like to use my eye. We make several purchases each year from various wholesale nurseries and the quality is always higher when I can afford the time to shop myself for the nursery.
I am a strong advocate for supporting local nurseries. And I wonder why, if you want particular hard-to-find plants that you don't work with a local nursery? They can't stock what you want if you are not a customer and do not tell them what you are interested in.
I don't intend any of this as an advertisement for our nursery. We do not do mail order.
Ninamarie, so glad to see you encourage people to work with their locally owned (not big box) nurseries. I have rarely been turned away by the owner or manager of a good nursery regarding special orders of a particular plants, gadget, or the only brand of potting mix that I will use.
lolainthecola, I am not real familiar with your growing conditions all I can suggest is what I remember seeing when I was in your area on business trips.
You could get a lot of color going with foliage
I saw a plant called....Stromanthe sanguinea 'Tricolor'
Gingers flower and they are fragrant
crotons
oyster plant
Flowers that I remember seeing was
Hibiscus
roses
A definitive favourite in my garden ontnative!
The flowers are long lasting like other PHLOX but unlike other variegated PHLOX I find the flower colour of "Shockwave" does not clash with the foliage...and I think this foliage is outstanding...especially prior to flowering.
Here is a picture of my stand of two plants taken a week ago.
(There is another thread I had started a few weeks back extolling the virtues of this plant. Do a search.)
Nice picture, rouge21.
Have quite a few garden phlox, but just saw and bought 'Shockwave' last week.
Already planted.
Going to be interesting to see how these do; whether they like the locations and treatment.
As a perennial gardener, have not been a big fan of perennials with variegated leaves, but have now been converted.
Have had 'Norah Leigh' in our garden for about ten years. Strong, but not aggressive, latter maybe a feature of variegated leaf perennials.
Also just got 'Becky Towe'. Had it for at least five years, but it died.
Very happy to have just got a replacement.
Thanks for the input. 4 p.m. is the hottest time of the day here in the summer, so it's a blast of sun and heat. It's otherwise a pretty dark garden. I have a couple of sedums where the sun hits just a bit earlier and they are in bloom, altho they are definitely reaching forward towards the light.
This garden has the street on the right--woods on the other side of the street. Straight back, you might be able to see a very steep hill. This is my southern (non) exposure. To the left is woods again. There are two large trees behind the photographer on an otherwise open lawn (my northern exposure). So, all in all, it's pretty dark. This is an older picture, so maybe my troubles this year have to do more with drought than light.
The hydrangeas get a decent amount of light. The hakone grass in the back is pretty much in the dark all day---what a great plant--I should just put it everywhere, I guess!
Thank you both! I have seen the lillies with peonies many times and apparently doing well but I wasn't aware that peonies needed more alkaline soil. I think i will give it a try and hope for the best! But thanks for the warning! :)
I plan on having two different bloom times for the peonies to extend it a little, eventhough it is still not a lot. I am hoping for constant bloom and the colors are the ones you mentioned. I definitely prefer the cottage garden look.
As for the space... The bed is approx. 26 feet long but only like 4 feet wide. So, once i put the big shrubs there might not be a lot of room. But i can still change the amount of plants. I have never seen Thalictrum personally. I just saw a close-up of peonies with it and fell in love. I researched it and thought the Hewitt's Double was lo prettiest. I love the contrast.
But since i have never seen it, i don't know how it looks better. Also, i read somewhere that it spreads a lot. Is it true?
And about the columbine, i just didn't know if it would go well having the Thalictrum too. I would prefer to have them all because of the different colors and blooming seasons.
Stargazer is not an Orienpet, it is a pure Oriental= acidic. Orienpets can grow anywhere, and will most probably push the orientals out of existence really soon. They already come in many colours which were reserved for pure Orientals until recently.
I planted two dwarf Kniphofia primarily because the plants were listed as deer resistant. Well, like so many other favorites, the deer don't eat the foilage, but nip off the blooms just as they begin to look good. waahh!
I still enjoy their foilage, and low maintenance in a well drained spot.
Which Dicentra alba? Dicentra spectabilis alba is the larger one and will die back in late summer, so you might want something next to it that will fill in around it or plan to plop down a pot of something if you want a full look. Dicentra eximia alba is shorter and has fernier leaves and won't die back.
Oh darn. I thought it was Dicentra eximia alba but it is Dicentra spectabilis alba. I'm going to take it back to the garden center. Ugh. Can you recommend a place I can order Dicentra eximia alba. And again, any help you can give on spacing is much appreciated.
What does the L stand for? I could sure use a good fall bloomer.
Helianthus 'Lemon Queen'