13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials

lol! Too late for me - already clicked. I will add more E.'s

Like gardengal there are times when I just want to explore an entire genus. It is Sanguisorba obtusa albiflora. There are so many beauties in this genus, I grow many of them and there are plenty of new intros coming onto the market.

The hosta is 'El Nino'. It is a favorite for many of us who grow a lot of hostas.

Thanks, P. I have Sanguisorba 'Pink Elephant' that was planted last Fall. It's leafing out now! Looks nothing like yours, of course! Need to get more foliage plants.
El Nino is sweet!

Nice to see more people are finally getting some spring weather. Ours started early so the crocus and first daffodils are over already. Of course, we're getting snow tonight. :-/
American Robin having a drink.

Hellebore

Very pretty SS.

I'm a bit diffident about Robins with their focus on worms.

Still they do start by eating mountain ash berries in spring here and I suppose with all that organic matter we do have lots of worms.

Sorie6, I bet the type you have where you are , if they are tall is L. pycnostchya , or L. squarousa ( more segmented), I find this site good for learning about the species that are natural to your area and its conditions. Seams like there is a Liatris for anywhere in the states.

http://www.wildflower.org/plants/search.php?start=0&pagecount=10

Yes, years ago I didn't realize how widespread tthe genus is, within North America.

I LIKE that cardboard box idea. I am going to steel it for my oak. I also have used tire Planters under my oak. I plant Phlox pilosa under my oak. It spreads., But the light is not an intense shade.

if the goo is labeled for this as a proper use.. knock yourself out ... dont take any guilt trip over such ...

IMHO .. a few inches of dirt is NOT going to kill nor harm this tree ... crikey.. 95% of its roots are probably way beyond the spot you are working ..

but that said.. ITS A TOTAL WASTE OF MONEY ... to buy the dirt ... as i swear.. within minutes.. the maple will have grown feeder roots into it.. to re-establish its dominance... you are not going to fool this bat turd with a little paper or card board ...

if you want to TRY ... just dig out small holes.. in native soil .. bare root your plants.. insert.. and water the devil out of them until they have a chance to compete with the monster ... ALWAYS broadcast water.. and NEVER fert just the babe ... else guess where the tree will grow new feeder roots .. which will choke out your plants ...

the idea is that you are trying to fool the tree.. into not knowing you are trying to plant other stuff under it ... and with the experience of growing 1650 hosts under trees ... i kinda have some experience with such ...

since i have the generic RU ... i would spray now... wait a few weeks.. to see what i missed ... [mostly because the grass isnt even greening yet in MI] ... then respray.. and just cover with 3 or 4 inches of good bark chunks ... the extra inch.. so that when it settles .. i will have the requisite 2 to 3 ... you can.. immediately.. plant in the dead grass .. [do try not to walk thru your killer.. get your shoes all wet with such.. and then walk across lawn you want to keep.. been there done that ... and with a garden tractor .. weeks later.. wondering what the heck all those lines in the lawn were.. lol]

and anything that pokes thru i would spot spray with a windex type hand spraying during the growing season ...

again .. the added soil.. is a waste of time and money.. and will only stimulate the tree to attacking whatever you plant in it ...

ken

Thanks, peren.all! I'll try it this year-- I'm always afraid of hacking into it and committing myself to another three months of ugly.

I found this thread through a Google search for Junior Walker. I planted it last year, and it didn't do much then, but it is looking beautiful now. I wonder how well it will hold up to our sometimes scorching summers. Didn't flop last year and not flopping now. Nice lavendar colored flowers, not muddy, but not neon. I was googling for some advice about care. I'm thinking that I should shear it back after the spring flush; does that sound right to those of you with experience with Nepeta?

Mine come out at different times, the time depends on the type. I wouldn't dig them up this early. Just cut it back to the ground & clean out debris so you don't have to look at a mess of stuff around dead stems if thats the problem. You can always buy new ones but the bigger more established ones seem to me like they will survive next winter better. Some of mine sprouted from the stems, others from below ground and some are still not showing signs but probably will, one year the yellow ground cover kinds that are commonly sold here waited until mid May. Sorry I can't name mine, they are from several sources and Farmers Market just sells them labeled as 'hardy lantana'.

samnsarah: I love your sprout pics! How exciting! I knew the pic of the blooming ones was from last year, as I remember seeing it last year and admired them then too. :-)

Transplant shock is all that is. Once you plant it in the ground give it a nice haircut and I'm sure it will take off nicely! Also try to take all the new soil with it so as not to disturb the roots. Good luck :)

I must say that the one in the blue pot looks better than the one in the grey. Please let every one know if the gaura in the grey pot gets better. The grey one doesn't look like transplant shock to me. But still could be something else and grow well for this point on.

I've only had to viruses that I know of in my plants. Aster Yellows and Tobacco Mosaic Virus that wiped out my ligularias. I'd just always rather err on the side of caution.

Tex, You have your vision of the CA Bay Area right- it can be nice and warm and foggy up there in San Francisco in the winter and very cold and windy in the SUMMER. Bring a warm jacket! Really! It's the ocean influence causing that.

We are in the South Bay, 50 miles down the coast from S.F. in a wide valley and we roast in summer and we also worry about fires and where will we get enough water?

At the same time, half an hour away over the low western mountain range by the ocean, everyone is cooler and enjoying the beaches so we can escape the heat there. Problem is, we eventually have to come back.

This year we had ZERO rain in December and finally a few days of good downpours but its been sunny 70s and 80s since and I will soon have to begin watering again. Very strange weather. Min

I leave a lot of my perennials dead stems intact over the winter to create some interest. I do this with my sedums, mums, and lantanas. Speaking of lantanas, how are use doing? All of my Sonset Lantanas have returned.

if the area is wet, you need plants that like/tolerate wet soil--there are a fair number of them, both shrubs and perennials.

Here is a page from the Missouri Botanical Garden on problems with yews including a few that are root related.

Yea well, you live and learn,

in an average summer the temperatures rise to 100 F and slightly more, just not last August....

And I think it slowed down some plants.

So now we have durable, sturdy black stuff in place, areas around the apple tree or which are too stony get covered with cardbord/ newspaper, which I started collecting last winter.

Now I am pondering to buy some thermometer gimick thingy to really clock maximum soil temperatures (there is a sciences nerd slumbering inside me...).

We planed to keep it covered till September, could check occasionally and play with lay out ideas in the meantime. One surprisingly annoying weed or wildflower is pilewort (Ranunculus ficaria) which IME can smother freshly planted perennials and is a nightmare in a veggie plot. Hope we get that stuff removed, well or resort to plan B and plant really tall perennials. :-)

Well than thanks for your comments, bye Lin

I went out this weekend and began clearing last year's plant debris from garden that had been under the black plastic. I was pleasantly surprised that there were almost no weeds, even though it has been uncovered since winter, due to the plastic becoming brittle. All my other beds have a fair number of weeds popping up so I really think the black plastic helped.

The few perennials that I did not remove from the bed due to the bindweed infestation were peeking out - Daylillies, yarrow and a peony. I think this method would have been great if I could have kept the plastic on longer. In any case, I dug out what was left and plan to plant the grass seed tonight.

Good luck with the new method Lin!

Lupins will not grow well in alkaline soil - I can always get one decent year out of them but they just go chlorotic and fade away.

Slugs eat the emerging foliage to the ground if I don't bait them--reminds me to get some beer!
Beautiful Derek!

Thanks for coming back and updating, CMK.

Red Satin is coming back here as well. Now if she can stay healthy this well be great. Star Clusters are back for the fourth year now.

Yes catkin. The outer edges have shallow roots. The main root is much deeper but is easy to remove also, if necessary.

Thanks (although late) Peren!

In case anyone is interested the program i use is called Realtime Landscape Architect by Ideaspectrum I gave a link to their page where you can download the fully functional (yes you can save) trial version. Only difference between it and the full version is the amount of plants and materials available to you and its says trial all across it other than that its a pretty great program and you can import your own materials into the program and also googlesketchup files

Here is a link that might be useful: Realtime Landscape Architect Free Trial

I'm a bit stuck with Realtime Landscape and I can't find a dedicated forum. How do you create those raised flower beds? If I use Terrain / Area Grader I can't go any narrower than 1.52m. If I use Add / Landscape / Region then I get a hump with rounded sides attached to the base even with Height Taper at 100.
Thanks