13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
I will make sure that when I dig up the gob of mums that I also take a GOB OF SOIL with them. I will then take the GOB OF SOIL from the place I am going to transplant the gob of mums and put it where the original GOB OF SOIL came from. This way I won't be missing any GOBs OF SOIL in my flower bed. GOBless spots in my flower may create erosion, and I certainly don't want that.
Wow, ken, that was hard to say and write. I'm all GOBed out.
there is a pretty active western mi hosta club out that way ...
they usually sponsor some type of garden walk in summer.. and if for nothing else.. the fee to join [if any] .. is worth the gardens you can walk thru ... great peeps too ....
ken
Here is a link that might be useful: link
I guess I'll go ahead and plant them in their own spot this spring so I won't lose it in the other plants. My annual bed is probably too small for them, anyway. My eyes were bigger than my shovel when I was buying my seeds this year;). Thanks for answering, everybody.
The plant in the photo germinated in the spring. I've started them from seed in mid summer and spring. They like warm soil. My limited experience with starting this plant from seed is that the first year the top growth is VERY small and weak looking. After watching the same plant come back and perform beautifully the second year, my guess is that the first year it concentrates on root development. Good luck with your planting. Once this plant is established, it seems to be quite hardy and drought tolerant. ... Mary
Here it is in it's second growing season. This plant bloomed and bloomed over a long period of time and many types of butterflies nectared on the blooms. You can judge the size of the plant by comparing the plant markers next to it. They are made from cut pieces of plastic mini-blinds.
It was new for me last year and I think I recall it being mostly green in the summer with some light green marbling with darker purplish-green veins. So far this spring it has more purple in the leaves, but hasn't really started growing yet.
Karen
The pink ones look like Pentas or something else to me. Verbena petals are usually less pointy and more overlapping. Verbena foliage is much more serrated at the edges than what little I can see of the foliage in this pic.
The bulbs behind look like Agapanthus.
there is an iris forum.. should you wish to visit such ... nice pix over there .. in season ...
and yes.. you have to start with an ID of what kinds of eye-rye
this happens in hosta ... we call it fairy ring..
and the other option.. is to take a hand trowel.. dig out the rotting center.. down a few inches.. and simply refill with some fresh soil ...
but i will defer to real iris peeps ...
as a general rule... since you are on the newbie learning curve.. is to ALWAYS safest to dig/cut up a plant.. AFTER THEY FLOWER ... if you can ... and that would go for annuals.. perennials .. flowering shrubs ....
it is usually best to do it in dormancy.. but once actively growing.. wait until after flower ... which in some cases.. may even mean.. waiting until fall ...
ken
If you are talking about the pink flowering mimosa tree that is so common in the south, it is actually Albizia julibrissin, not native to North American but actually an exotic from Asia. It's hardy to -20F but sometimes the top can be killed even though the root is hardy, and will come back from the roots.It has become invasive in some states. I love the fluffy pink, sweetly scented flowers in summer.
Sometimes you can find it in a nursery, but more often it has to be "passed along" by someone who has one growing and doesn't mind sharing a seedling. They grow very quickly, and can be 20' tall in three or 4 years. There is a burgundy-leaved variety that has become available at nurseries and garden centers in the past few years. Hummingbrds love mimosa flowers.
There are true mimosas which are native to the tropics but I don't know of any that will survive north of zone 9, except for the trailing mimosa pudica, or sensitive plant, which has thorny stems, pink fuzzy ball-shaped flowers, and leaves that fold up when you touch them. I have that on my ditch bank in my zone 6 garden.
Sandy
if this is buddleja davidii, the general recommendation is to prune them really hard, leave about 3 pairs of leaves. The framework of branches tends to be brittle if left too long, and the flowers are larger and not too high above your head.
Well then, bye, Lin
I just cut mine down today. The voles ate the roots on over half the big 'Black Knight', and those stalks were blown out of the ground (it's in a very windy spot). I cut the remaining half down to the usual height, about 12 inches. I want it to balance out with the new growth. Also this one gets pretty tall, about 6-7 feet, and I deadhead it regularly so I've got to reach the flowers heads.
The Pink Delight is much less vigorous, but has lots of green shoots and a better form, so I cut that one down to about 2 feet, so it will hopefully grow taller this season.
Thanks to the previous owner, I have a big Silver maple in the front yard too. Its roots are unbelievable. They have heaved the sidewalk growing towards the gutters, grown into the septic tank, and grow right into the roots of the perennials and grasses in the nearby "Xeric" garden. This garden became a xeric one partly because of that Silver maple! It sucks the moisture out of its entire root zone. Vinca minor grows under mine as well. Orange ditch lilies manage to do okay too.
Acer saccharinum is naturally a very thirsty tree; its native habitat is usually wetlands. I love Silver maples, they are fabulous wildlife trees, but I would never plant one anywhere near a structure, garden, pipes, etc.
I have seen it on the web and in a nursery, but I can't recognize your description. Some pictures are VERY FAKE. It's eyes are not more visible than any in this colour range. One I know that has light purple eyes (for a short period , as it's changing with time) is Eden's Smile.
Link: http://www.helenium-phlox.de/phlox/edens-smile
There is a cultivar with very distinctive eyes, but in pink. It's called Bright Eyes.
Here is a link that might be useful: Blue Ice
It's funny, the one called "Blue Ice" from the link looks like one I already have that was growing in my garden naturally. That is, I think it was a cross that developed from different varieties of phlox I had planted in a new bed. It definitely wasn't from the previous owner, since they only had one stand of traditional lavender/pink tall garden phlox and that was at the opposite side of yard, about 100' away. I absolutely love the distinctive cross-bred phlox that I discovered in my garden. It's very pretty. I moved it last year to a more sunnier spot so that it could grow bigger. I will divide it in a couple years to have more of these gems.
I have a collection of Phlox that look very similar to "Bright Eyes," some brighter than others, some I often mistake for "David's Lavender." These bright pink-eyed Phlox too just occurred from natural cross-breeding. I didn't do a thing. In fact, 2 Springtime's ago, I recall that I noticed many new baby Phlox growing all over my big perennial bed out in frontyard. Of course, I let them grow to see what colors they would be and I was pleasantly surprised.
Well, thank you so much for your help. I'm satisfied now that I have a good variety of phlox in colors that are very pleasing. Of course, the fragrance is wonderful as always. I am through with my desperate search for "Blue Ice" Phlox!
By the way, I have a picture (yes, probably fake) of the Blue Ice Phlox that I saved from the nursery website, if you'd like to see it. Just let me know.