13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
Thanks a2zmom - things are a little disjointed this year with bloom times being all over the board. You can really tell what likes heat and what likes sun. Some flowers are blooming 3 weeks ahead of time.
I had tip in Garden Gate about 6 months ago about a spread sheet I keep for bloom times. Many things are blooming a month early this year.
Lost some daylilies for some unknown reason - I thought those were indestructible. Only one kind, the ones right next to them are great! Weird.
My observation of Osteospermum is that it doesn't bloom well in the heat of summer under good conditions, more of a cool weather plant that goes green in summer and will bloom again towards fall. However, I haven't really messed with them for a few years, some of the newer ones may be better in the heat and longer days. Dahlias, as you already know, are for the most part short-day plants, although it varies and some will bloom better in the summer than others.
About all I can suggest is using a fertilizer with moderate N and higher in P and K to help promote flowers, there are a lot of these "bloom booster" type fertilizers on the market.
At the end of my post david883, I said that I think you might already have L periclymenum. If it flowers only at the ends of the shoots and not along their length, then that is what you have. Did you check to see if it does indeed have flower buds like I thought I could see?
Since you didn't state how or where you're growing these, the one thing they do need is full sun. Less than that would affect blooming. We've had a ton of rain and my Alma is doing great this year.
I don't know what the deal is with Alert and Prof K, but I did yank both the past year. I was just so tired of the crappy blooms late in the season. For some reason they just didn't open properly year after year and I got tired of 'em. A very long time ago, I never had problems with these, but in recent years they just don't work for me. Maybe because our summers and falls seem to be getting hotter??
For me, a much easier and more reliable alternative has been Aster Woods Pink and Woods Blue. They never disappoint. Alma has also continued to do very well as does Purple Dome.
Kevin
The wood is just decoration and doesn't stop the grass.
I respectfully disagree, based on many years of experience in different states, with different grasses. When I lived in OH, I had "nice" grass, non-rhizomatous, mostly, like it looks like bgaviator has. Bricks or timbers laying on the ground will stop about 95% of the grass permanently, especially when the bed is well mulched such as this. Wherever there's a low spot, or seam between pieces, the grass may creep under/through. Easy to fix in a few minutes about every-other month. As the timber settles, it will sink a bit and then it's even less of a problem, something to check maybe once in the spring, once in the fall.
Even here, with a yard of St. Augustine or Bermuda or whatever type of vine-grass this is in my yard in AL, with Bahia invading that, something like this timber is enough of a barrier to easily achieve control. Agree it's not a type of border that is completely certain, but certainly worth doing, especially compared to the effort and expense required for a completely reliable border.
I prefer this type of border because it's easy to pick up the timber and definitely remove any invading grass by the roots. I spend very little time on out-of-bounds grass.
Often grass is let to make seeds before it's mowed, then not enough care is taken to direct the outflow away from the bed, or it drops in the bed before mowing. When the seeds sprout, the border gets blamed for not doing its' job.
It doesn't look like Lunaria to me either. But it could be because it is shriveled up. I have tons of it. It reseeds VERY prolifically. Started out by breaking up a few "silver dollars" and scattering a few seeds in one of the woodland beds. That resulted in a few plants, and then those few increased rapidly.
This year I have taken to pulling up most of the plants before they go to seed so that it will only make a few hundred seedlings instead of a few thousand! Haha
Very pretty in the Spring.
I think it might be Lobelia siphilitica.
Not knowing where you are, or what zone, makes it more of a mystery. If you're interested in doing so, you can find your zone here. By including it in your profile info, it will show up next to your name when you post. It's also helpful to include your 2-letter state abbreviation since the same zone can be quite different in different states.
I don't have a problem with violets either. They're pretty in bloom, green the rest of the time, and if they are in my way I rip a handful out and carry on.
One year, I had Freckles EVERYWHERE. It was breathtaking and a bit scary too, at the same time, lol. But the funny thing is, after that year, they declined and now I don't seem to have any. I still have the purple, and I have some white, but Freckles seems to have disappeared from my lawn and beds all together.
Of course, this is coming from someone whose "lawn" includes violets, wild strawberry (I think), bluets, buttercups, white clover, red clover, hair cap moss (LOVE that stuff!), other mosses, dandelions, canadian mayapple, bits of ajuga, lichen (I love the lichen ON the moss), and oh yeah, some grass of some sort.
Dee
That looks like Viola sororia, which is a common violet. I have lots of them, in both purple and white, as well as Viola pubescens, which is downy yellow violet. Lovely plants, although they are a little weedy. I let them grow to their heart's content back in the wilder areas, but do weed a lot of them (but not all) out of the garden beds.
Very pretty in the Spring, provide early nectar for insects, and they are host plants for the Fritillary butterflies. Last year I watched a Great Spangled fritillary lay eggs in the violets!
Nothing compact about 'Grosso' - in fact, it is a larger growing hybrid and is often used as a hedging plant. And won't be as hardy for you as any of the English lavenders (Lavandula angustifolia).
Some of the best dwarf/compact lavenders are some of the oldest selections - 'Hidcote' and 'Munstead'. Other good choices are 'Blue Cushion', 'Twickle Purple', 'Folgate' and 'Sachet'.
April, your best bet would be an organized plant swap. I know over on the New England forum, groups of us plan them once or twice a year, according to region.
I took a quick look at the list of forums here and don't see an Indiana one, and I'm not really sure where to refer you to on GW. Sorry!
But try joining your local freecycle. Then you can post on there both looking for other plants and offering yours, and you can arrange individual swaps.
Also, contact any local garden clubs or maybe check at the local garden center to see if they can refer you to a group.
Kevin's suggestion of the Plant Exchange Forum is a good one too. You may be able to find others near you to swap with.
Sounds like you have a lovely garden full of great memories and associations. How nice!
Dee
I don't know if the main stem always dies. All I do is diligently deadhead and give them some compost approx. once per year. You can leave a stalk or 2 if you want to have seed, because it makes a zillion tiny seeds in each pod (similar to Foxglove). Actually, I do the very same thing with Digitalis purpurea, and sometimes get a 3rd year out of that biennial.
That lasagne bed was made with a layer of cardboard, an inch or two of coffee grounds, a layer of leaves, and a bit of other misc. organic matter. It was not very deep - maybe 3-4 inches. I created it over the summer and fall, mostly to kill the Vinca and weeds underneath, and started planting the next Spring. The bed got even better the next year or two as the organic matter continued to decompose!
Everything in that bed grows really well - except for Foxglove - one year I had HUGE beautiful clumps started from seed and the crowns just rotted over the winter. Too rich and moist I am guessing?
I just love Cardinal flower and it is also the hummer's favorite, at least in my garden!
Thanks for the suggestions, folks. :)
They give me some food for thought.