13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
I saw matchstick last fall and really liked it. Sometimes I think mums are too full with blooms and you lose the grace of individual flowers, they are great big globs of color (which is nice on your doorstep) but those quilled blooms just look better imo when you can appreciate them individually.
Varieties do matter. Some are more cushion like.
You could try cutting back by 1/2 water & mulch to encourage the plant to recover more quickly. Also your choice of complete fertilizer in 1/2 dosage every 2 weeks, so as not to over do it.
Here is a link that might be useful: The Well-Tended Perennial Garden: Planting and Pruning Techniques
Thanks! Yes, I'm prone to bold colors this year after such a drab display I had last year. I love how this particular color looks en masse. So I either have to spend $$ and fill it out or wait for it to spread. I'm tempted to buy a couple more.
@rouge21, I'm not sure why I thought that. I remember reading about someone else here who was sceptical and asked the question, but I've read in some places that it's hardy to zone 4. My tag says zone 5. Regardless I think I will be ok, although I lost my beloved Harvest Moon - it never came back this year.
Here it is, it was a small plant that never really grew as big as the pink ones but it stood out so gracefully from everything around it. RIP, Harvest Moon.
Update, they seem to have recovered frm deaths door and perked up. Some crispy leaves and maybe damaged stems but not fatal. Would have been so annoyed if I lost them because they were not discounted but were surrounded by discounted plants in pots on same pavers that were not affected.
I have put Plants in this spot before with no problems but this heat wave is unprecedented. I do plan on planting later this week, not in fall.
You know, it's already been 10 days since your original post. After this long, anything that is alive is going to live, anything dead is already dead. I would just trim off anything that is obviously dead, and leave any live tissue to help feed the root system for next year.
Each fall I run the mower over the top of my daylilies so they will get a total clean out then. A few weeks ago or more I sprayed them with ammonia solution and it seemed to stop the spread. I am sure it was just coincidence/timing but I too believe what ever it was is no longer spreading. I did read what you quoted, after I posted. Now we wait and see I guess. I really do not need something new to fight in my gardens!!
I love box elder bugs. My wedding day in October was unusually warm and the side of the church was covered!
Hmmmm. I just bought Nicky a couple hours ago, It's dark and I hope the fading isn't as bad as what you are seeing. Actually it was 90F when I bought it, full sun and the blooms are really nice. I had a weak moment and took it with me. I want to rip up most of my other plants and just plant phlox.
This is Phlox Border Gem, better than Nicky(it can stand on its own). Can you see the flower on the right side of the Helianthus? They all get like this on Nicky in full sun, that was one of the reasons why I sent it to the Big Garden in the skies(the other reason was flopping around all over the place after strong rain/wind).
I had many lovely Foxgloves this spring, and they have all either been pulled or are cut down to about 6-12 inches and completely deadheaded. I leave only a few seedpods to collect seed from certain plants. I'm hoping a few will come back for a 3rd year, but they are pretty rusty and crappy looking. I start new plants from seed every year and plant the seedlings in a few gardens to hopefully get some good plants the next Spring.
Sometimes when they are flowering I remove the lower seedpods while they are still green, so the plant will put it's energy into flowering.
When they get real tall and lanky they look weird, and I would cut them down even sooner, but the bumblebees just love the blooms! Here's one patch starting to bloom -
weekendweeder, to be absolutely sure of your sun/shade situation, you should make a 'sun map'. Using a piece of graph paper draw a roung sketch of your bed. Then, one sunny day, go out every hour on the hour, starting from early in the morning until the sun sets and mark down exactly what parts of the bed are in sun, shade and in-between. You'll probably be surprised.
Last year I planted a 30 foot long bed. The far end of it is next to a mature Japanese maple. To my surprise, the end was not in constant shade and actually got afternoon sun for a good two - three hours per day. It definitely impacted my plant choices.
I think I will relocate this BW come the fall and replace it with nothing as the surrounding plants really could use the free space.
I wish I was that disciplined. If I see an inch of space, I plant something. Currently I have a bunch of plants that are being overrun and need to be moved as a result.
a2zmom you selectively quoted me i.e. I said "as much as it pains me"!
I so enjoy researching my plant purchases and the act of planting but as of right now, as of this day I have no more room for any additional plants. I am sad, as what in part keeps me going through the winter is mulling over any plants 'to be'.
First of all, where are you? Are you in a climate where they overwinter, or somewhere you need to dig. Zone 6 and warmer they generally make it with good mulching in well-drained soil.
They multiply, but they' don't really "spread" since they don't have a mechanism to move by seeding, etc. as some bulbs do (at least never have for me). So you will need to dig and redistribute if you want more clumps.
You'll get lots of little "cormlets" from each old corm, but it'll be some years before they get to blooming size.
If you're below zone 6 and have to dig and store, you can save the bigger (or all of them if you're so inclined) of the cormlets along with the new corm - but, again, it'll be years before the little ones bloom for you.
I don't always grow glads, but when I do, I never bother to save them once I dig them up in the fall. They get composted.
If you do dig - cut the fans down to 5-6", dry them well on a piece of newspaper spread on the garage floor or just upright in a clean flower pot. If you store them damp, you'll get mold for sure. When dry, a light twist of the wrist will separate the old spent corm from the new one.
I've had relatively poor results getting a second year's bloom out of a stored corm despite having perfect storage conditions. Glads are quite inexpensive and readily available so when I want them I just start over. Gives me a chance to periodically change color schemes.
Others have fine success with storage - seems to be an "it depends" situation. Maybe some luck, too.