13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials

I tend to dead head most of the seedheads on Columbine, except for a few stalks that I might want to collect seed. This seems to encourage subsequent foliage and root growth, and increase the likelihood that the plants will make it through the winter.

Sometimes plants can exhaust themselves making tons of seed.

Since this would be the time - some time ago even - that the columbine seeds were falling naturally from the dried pods, you might scatter some now where you want them. They need light to germinate, so you can press them in lightly but don't cover with soil.

I only have A. Canadensis which self seed everywhere, so I don't know much about the modern hybrids. Although I suspect the seeding techniques are the same. Any new seedlings take a season or two to be of blooming size.

I've had a dozen or two cats over almost 3 decades, and they have ALL liked catnip, so they must all have had the catnip gene. (I like that word "nepetalactones").

Haha Campanula, that is spot on, my son goes off to college in a few short days and I just paid my first tuition bill. Boy if a parent thinks they were expensive before, just wait till they go to a university!

"I've had a dozen or two cats over almost 3 decades, and they have ALL liked catnip, so they must all have had the catnip gene."

I have too and I remember just one not really impressed by it, yet his sister loved the stuff. We currently have 4 bratties, not related, that go crazy for it. Our neighbor just adopted a shelter cat and he sniffs the catnip and walks away(I have a bunch of it growing near the front door). Ours will chew on the leaves for a while and lay down next to the plants and take a nap. One of them likes the nip and the Asian honeysuckle growing nearby.
Aachenelf, sorry to veer off course. I would definitely not plant the stuff since it depends on the individual cats and you never know who's in the neighborhood(there is a large turnover of strays in this rural town anyway).

although there is a digitalis/isoplexus hybrid out - not that I am going for it though.

Well, from what I understand, it IS possible to cross two totally different genera as long as they are in the same family. Think it is called bi-generic or intergeneric hybrids. X Fatshedera and X Solidaster are good examples.

Digitalis and Campanula are not even in the same family, so I don't think such a cross is likely. Sometimes you will see a species (or even cultivar) name that is the same or very similar to the name of a genus, like Inula helenium. It's not a cross between the two genera, but the species name "helenium" is used as a sort of description. I've seen the species name "campanulata" or "campanuloides" before, presumably indicating that the plant has bell-like flowers or other qualities associated with a Campanula. Maybe something got misconstrued somewhere along the way with regards to this Digitalis x Campanula??? I dunno, just guessing here, lol ;-)

From what I have read, the Digitalis x Isoplexis hybrid (the result a cultivar called 'Illumination') actually provoked botanists to reclassify Isoplexis canariensis AS a Digitalis. The story behind it is pretty interesting: Here at Graham Rice's Blog
CMK

FWIW, scroll down to the last post in this thread as there is a picture of my "TT" in bloom from this past May. With the flower stalks it does grow tall and although this past winter was quite moderate even so it stayed evergreen the whole time.

Here is a link that might be useful: Totally Tangerine in bloom

UPDATE:

FWIW I moved my TT just last day.

I did give lots of flowers this past May but it never rebloomed after that first flush. I am not sure if it should but I am just putting it out there just in case others experienced differently.

I agree with Flora. The roots would be much cooler in the ground.

If you don't want to take it out of the pot, plant the pot completely in the ground. I have done this many times to save the plant. When I dig up the pot later some have rooted into the soil, and you will sacrifice those roots, but save the plant. Al

Yes, you can cut back before bloom - they will be shorter, bloom a little later, and flower clusters will be smaller, but perhaps more of them.

I have too much experience with the deer choosing to 'cut back' for me - they sometimes chomp off the top tender growth before buds form... maybe sometime in June?
they're in full, glorious bloom now... can't help with the 'how much to cut back'... think you can make many things work - ditto with the timing... just keep them 'happy' with some watering, and fertilize if needed...

Beth Z5 Northern Michigan

I got this advice from my daughter who lives in Wy. I had given her a clump of White Admiral-which I consider the best phlox I've ever grown. She told me not to deadhead as the flowerhead would bloom again!! I was amazed when it did. I never deadhead this one anymore.

You may also wish to consider that lavender are most comfortable when slightly root-bound. Planting them in such a large container increases water retention around the roots. I would start them in a much smaller container (only a couple inches larger than the root ball), then gradually move them up to those pictured as the plant grows. It does not necessarily indicate overwatering if water runs out of the bottom -- in fact, it should do so pretty quickly if the soil is well-drained.

As you may have gathered, lavender are somewhat fussy plants. However, the PNW climate (as I understand it, though I know there is a lot of variation from the west to east) has some Mediterranean characteristics (namely, relatively dry summers) so you may have more luck than us poor souls who deal with ridiculous humidity on the east coast.

If I have to transplant anything in mid summer I cut down all flowers. Right now the plant is putting energy into bloom & seed instead of establishing roots.

& yes, you are watering it too much.

If anyone thinks lavenders are fussy then you've never grown Munsteads. They are pretty much bulletproof.

I dig the entire plant, evaluate how large it is and what the root system looks like and then cut into sections. I rarely cut a plant into more than 4 divisions unless it's really huge.

Kevin

For some reason I have never had luck in dividing or moving this grass. I have one plant that I know has been in the same spot well over 10 years. Do tell...what is the secret.

Thoroughly enjoyed my virtual visit, thanks so much!

An old tale from Quarryhill: (quote) The first time that I collected seed of Magnolia wilsonii was in the fall of 1992 on Niba Shan in western Sichuan. Hans Fliegner and Martin Staniforth from Kew, and Charles Howick and I were on our way to Muli in southwestern Sichuan. Our guide from the Chengdu Institute of Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences had told us that it occurred on Niba Shan, so we stopped on our way to take a look. We hunted for hours through dense forest and finally came upon one good sized 10 meter high tree. After a thorough search of the tree, we found only one fruit with six good seeds. We divided these three ways and found out later that Kew successfully germinated one seed, Howick one, and Quarryhill only one. I went over the same mountain two years later in the fall of 1994, this time with Charles Erskine and Hans Fliegner from Kew, and Charles Howick. We were all shocked to see the area where we had found the magnolia two years previously completely denuded and being planted with a monoculture of spruce. We did manage to make a seed collection of Magnolia wilsonii later during that expedition in 1994. On our return to Chengdu, we decided to stop at Luoji Shan. Unlike my recent visit there, this time we were on the other side of the picturesque range. This was long before Luoji Shan was made a Nature Reserve. Now there is a cable car and stone steps bringing thousands of tourists up into this botanical paradise. I first visited Luoji Shan with Charles Howick in 1990 and hadn't noticed any magnolias then. On that first visit we had started from a small Yi village and climbed for days with porters and horses carrying our gear over the rugged steep mountains. However, on our second visit, despite torrential rain, we spotted an area that we had overlooked before just above the village. Here, there were several Magnolia wilsonii, though few had seed. Our frustration with the lack of seeds was further exacerbated by their failure afterward to germinate. That one seed that germinated from our 1992 expedition is now a healthy three meter high tree at Quarryhill, as wide as it is tall. Growing in Sonoma Valley in our rocky acidic soil, in mostly sun with a little light shade from a Toona sinensis, it flowers heavily and consistently year after year. I frequently bring visitors to see it, not just for its beauty and delightful fragrance, but more importantly to tell the story of how it is disappearing from the wild.

For the life of me I cannot figure out how to put pictures into my message. Other than the one I can upload using the browse button on the message form here. I took some pictures of my affected coneflowers. I really hope I don't have to destroy them, as it seems that ALL my coneflowers are affected.
Why is it that my friend about 20 miles away has coneflowers in abundance, she is constantly thinning them out and giving them away. While I have to struggle and fight to keep mine alive, THEN when I finally have some nice looking plants, all of a sudden they look like this.....
I added a link to my flicker site showing the pictures I took.

Jenny p

Here is a link that might be useful: Echinecea photos

The tell-tell sign your plant has asters yellow is the deformed double flower. You are best to take the plant out immediately.