13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials

If I could only have one plant, it would be my salvia greggii "navajo". It blooms all summer with successive shearing, is a butterfly and hummingbird magnet, is fragrant, drought tolerant and mostly evergreen in my zone. I received this plant from a trader on the plant exchange several years ago. Since then I have rooted it successfully several times to increase its presence in my garden and to share with other gardeners.

I'm thrilled with whatever is growing well this year. That seems to change from one year to the next. When you say 'Favorite' that seems a little different to me than 'Best'. Only because sometimes my favorites don't grow as well as I would like and my best plants are those that do grow the best with the least amount of attention and fuss. I can't imagine narrowing it down to a single plant. I love so many, but these plants are the most dependable performers for me that I enjoy very much.

Right now, it would be Dicentra the pink, but especially the white. And I love it paired with Lunaria which blooms at the same time. Those come back every year and get bigger and better and look lovely together and NO fuss at all. Then they disappear into the background while others start blooming.

I love Japanese Painted ferns with Epimediums. Easy, dependable, lovely together and I don't seem to feel I ever can have too many. And after the Epimedium bloom, the pair looks great all the rest of the season.

Later in the summer, Perovskia, Pennisetum 'Hamelin', and Echinacea are three of my favorites that really perform again without attention and they also look good all season.

If it's shaded by a maple, I am surprise that it's moist. Perhaps because it's raised. How dim is the shade?

How long did you give for the hosta to be established. Small hostas are very slow growing and may take a while. You mentioned slugs, what's causing the current plant to fail?

Paul

I've learned that tree roots will grow up into things like compost piles and raised beds. Maybe tree roots are strangling the hostas?

Ferns will grow in heavy shade.

Deanna

I have those, they're pretty trouble-free and easy to grow. Bulbs of the common species are available in the fall from the larger bulb vendors, such as Van Engelen.

http://vanengelen.com/catview.cgi?_fn=Product&_category=Best:Camassia

Here is a link that might be useful: You can eat them, too:

Starts with an 'A', and has blue flowers. Sounds like an amsonia. Perhaps amsonia hubrichtii or amsonia ciliata. Would have to see some pictures.

Ah yes, some plants are such fleeting beauties - Peonies, Amelanchier, Filipendula, my Miss Kim lilac (SPECTACULAR and fragrant blooms for like 2.5 days), etc. I solve this problem by planting so many flowering things in succession that that there is always something to enjoy! :)

And I agree with Ken, that plant is spectacular! Ken your post is rare form...I have an image of your tree peony floating down the river in a basket like Moses and being rescued Mxk3.

Ok - I agree that my tree peony is pretty spectacular right now, and we haven't had a storm to take it down this year. And it does look healthy all year and demands absolutely no care except a bit of pruning of some of the old woody branches. I've had it since about 1980, so I guess I take it a bit for granted. Thanks for the new perspectives. But I'm using my space for hostas these days, so I'm not planning any more - not even Ken's free one!
Jan

Obviously, dmoore' is trying to figure out why they're not flowering or not yet showing signs that they will flower.

Could you please provide more information? How long ago did the foliage emerge? Have they flowered in the past? What kind of soil/sun/moisture conditions are they planted in?

And are these Dicentra spectabilis (the old-fashioned bleeding hearts) or one of the newer D. eximia hybrids?

Wow! Thanks for the invite! One of my favorite plants, even though not all of them live.

I think the heuchera forum is getting more traffic right now than the perennials forum.

Karen

thought a lot of them were sterile although I do know there are seed grown petunias.

"Laura Bush" reseeded a bit here.

I suspect that at least some petunia varieties are only temporary annuals in Houston and start petering out when consistent summer heat arrives (late May on average), so letting them go to seed when the decline becomes obvious sounds like a good idea.

yep, cut it back, not just the blooms. This is known as the 'Chelsea Chop' because it is done in late May, the time of the Chelsea Flower show (ranting as usual on the antiques rose forum, I loathe Chelsea) and is often used to cut back tall, late blooming perennials such as heleniums, asters, rudbeckias. The plants will grow bushier, flower a bit later (they WILL flower again) and not grow so tall that they need staking.

Unless the vegetative growth is sparse or looking unhealthy, I'd enjoy the flowers and cut the flowering stems off when they're spent to prevent seeding.

The plant will probably bloom at the normal time next year.

This thread has reminded me I need to pot on a bunch of Helenium seedlings I started a couple of months ago.

dig a foundation footing , fill with a 6:1 mix of sand to cement and lay the first layer of top of the wet concrete - Pond liner (butyl rubber) will work a bit but grass will creep underneath for a surprisingly long way. You need to get down to a decent depth (30cm) as rhizomatous grasses will simply go undergroun and emerge in the light but they are relatively shallow rooted, unlike bindweed). Main downside is the permanence of such structures.

At my old house I had a common lawn with a neighbor and had to put a barrier down 18 inches to keep her grass out of my property. Al

When you trap them and more appear, do you think it's new ground hogs moving in or babies of the ones that you've trapped? If new groundhogs keep being attracted to your yard, maybe you can try to reduce hiding places for them like tall grass/weeds, brush piles, etc. that they're said to like hiding in.
Did you see the recent thread about the systemic repellant that has been newly developed? It might be another option.

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread about new systemic pellets

I have a shed that they live under, also a forsythia hedge that despite my cutting it back, grows prolifically and I think it lives in there. There is also a vacant, overgrown lot next to us where I think a lot of them live. Also, bordering the back of the property, a protected woodlands. So, lots of nice places for them to live. I've resigned myself to the fact that every year there will be more but it is still frustrating. Eventually, they do venture into the trap, but it takes some time and in the meantime, they are gobbling up everything in sight. My veggie garden is fine, due to a 6 foot chain link fence. But my flower beds are not fenced. I prefer them unfenced, but I am beginning to see this is not practical. I do have several digitalis, planted just because they are poisonous and they haven't been touched. They just walk right by the digitalis and head for the delphs. I would like to get some monkshood, but haven't seen it locally or in any of the websites I usually purchase from. In past years, I've planted flowers that I know for sure they won't eat, but the list is limited and I got tired of my choices being dictated by a rodent!

I'd let it bloom. I've had mums do the same thing and I've tried to both ways. Every time I try to pinch it the plant just keeps trying to bloom until I leave it alone. The ones I have left alone will bloom and look nice and then often bloom again (although not as much) in the fall. Either way, it won't act normally until next year so I figure you might as well see what blooms you can get.

One question, two conflicting answers!! My inclination is to remove the blooms and maybe some of the stems primarily because the flowers are looking kind of shabby after a few days of rain. I have never seen Mums forced, but now I guess it must be for the Mother's Day sales. I will trim it, let it recover for a little while and then put it in the ground and see what happens. I am still waiting for my Sheffield Pink to 'awake'. Thank you both.