13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
"Working around cactus and agaves" is guaranteed to trigger a lot of bad language as I impale soft body parts on spikes and needles.
I mentioned needing body armor to plant agaves when I was at the nursery recently. The cashier told me that homeowners didn't buy or plant these, they hired landscapers to do it. Now she tells me....
Cheryl
This post was edited by jadeite on Thu, Sep 4, 14 at 21:55
"The Fan Sheng-chih Shu (the first agricultural extension book) describes the use of buried clay pot irrigation in China more than 2,000 years ago. It is likely buried clay pot irrigation had been used for many decades or centuries before this description was published. Current practices remain much the same."http://works.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1043&context=david_a_bainbridge
This paper has some interesting information on starting seedlings in the desert. (p 7) Ollas work nicely to start trees but you would probably need to blast a hole to get the olla into the caliche. I hope you were able to get some things established while we had some rain this Winter. Praying for more...
AM, thanks for that! The drainage may be an issue but I'm willing to try. So many plants I'd like to have but can never find.
Wanton--LOL! Yes, it's a double-edged sword! I save them to remember WTH I bought/planted and also to remind myself not to go on a Fall mail-order frenzy if the majority of the plants I planted don't reappear this Spring. I'm not going to be happy if that happens. I see the Penstemons are toast...I'm now officially done with them. Too wet, I spose.
The campanula with astrantia; very nice AM.
I've found Campanula 'Kent Belle' a flopper too. Among the tall Campanulas, I've found Campanula latifolia 'Brantwood' (below: June 23, 2014) a much better choice from that point of view. Nevertheless, even then, I still do some staking to keep a clump compact (usually one stake and twine put once around the whole plant).
The hollow metal stakes with a green plastic covering are so much nicer than the bamboo stakes. Apart from not rotting, if strategically placed, they can even be difficult to see.
A little OT but...I don't pay the big bucks for fancy plant supports anymore, I went and bought a roll of wire and some rebar, cut the rebar and wire to whatever lengths needed, cut and twist the wire around the rebar and make a hook on each end. Push the rebar in at the back of the plant, circle the wire around the plant and hook the ends together. The whole thing disappears into the foliage, you'll never know it's there.
If you make the loop around the rebar a little looser you can slide it up and down to whatever height needed, use whatever's handy to hold it in place, I've even used a clothespin ;).
Annette
Many of these bulbs are rotted from planting in the garden without roots before the soil has warmed. mxk3 has given excellent advice, roots make all the difference. I don't suggest planting an unrooted bulb in the ground until the soil is warm enough to plant your beans. Al
Ugh! The very idea gives me the creeps. Not being a dog person however, don't go by me and this puts me into yet another tiny minority because I think I am the only person in this whole state that doesn't have one or several of them. Can't you just see a dog in my landscape? I guess fake grass beats a dog run or a backyard that is packed down mud. Now if I had a prairie, I'd love having a Prairie Dog Town.
Butting in from NM where drought is a normal condition. Have you considered planting buffalo grass? We replaced the bluegrass lawn with buffalo grass 3 years ago. It's native to the arid west, has roots that supposedly go up to 20 feet down, and will lie dormant in periods of extreme drought, only to start growing again when it rains. It needs 10" rain a year to grow, unlike the 40" needed for bluegrass.
After putting in the plugs, we have done absolutely nothing. We don't get rain until June so the lawn stays brown like all the natural landscape here. You can water it and make it green up - one of my friends does this. We never have to cut it because natural height is about 3" max. It will stand up to light foot traffic, though you should stay off it the first year.
Cheryl, who is still trying to get used to houzz
BINGO! Pavonia looks exactly like mine. WHEW! Nice to know it's name and now I guess I need to know what to do to corral it. It seems to want to take up too much room. We cut it down to the ground last spring as we'd had a severe ice storm. It came back with a vengeance.
If anyone's interested, there's a website (and a book) called *Fine Foliage* that specializes in photos of plant combinations. Most vignettes are drop-dead gorgeous, IMO! For those that venture ont Facebook, they also have a page. As you more than likely know if you do FB, just click on the *Photos* button at the top of the page and click through the images to your heart's content! Many are stunning.
Thanks everyone for your contributions on this subject!
I cut my Sonset lantanas back to the ground last night. Only a couple of the main trunk stems had any green and I think that was because they were buried under 5 inches of leaves. The main stem of the plant isn't too wiggly though, so maybe that's a good sign. Only time will tell.
Mine have been in part sun all summer and no leaf damage. One year I had them in a large pot under a maple tree but when the afternoon sun hit them the leaves would get crisp around the edges. Think they also needed more water.
I would like to try them in a pot inside a pot of water but the mosquitoes are so bad here that I haven't yet. Perhaps I could add one of those floating mosquitoe thingys (sorely, lost the correct word).
In the fall I cut them back and let them go dormant for the winter, stick them in my cool dark crawl space and don't do anything until I pull them out in the spring. If they are in a pot that's not to big I just leave them in the pot. If they are in the ground I dig them up and let the tuber dry before putting in a paper bag and placing the paper bag in the crawl space.
I live in new york rite on lake ontario, ive had colocasias for years, my pride and joy.. and theres alot of controversy about them, how to grow them, over winter them and so on and through trial and errror this is wut ive learned if it can help any one..1st they love food and not the liquid kind..but horse cow or goat manure..(must be seasoned a year or 2) soil is the most important aspect in growing these badboys...i make my own dirt for all my plants,,try merical grow potting soil (1/3) with manure (1/3) and ne kind of regular dirt or sand (1/3),,and i sift it useing a regular strainer to get the finest loosest n fluffiest dirt n i mix it all together and my plants thrive,, always remember to water weekly depending on climate ect,,the bigger the plant the more food and water they need,,(use rain water or distilled..tap water has to many chemicals and clorine which will damage ne plant over time) i also never put mine in the ground they are all in pots,, they make an awsome house plant,, they go outside in the summer and come indoors in the winter they never go dormant on me..i do not c the point in over wintering them if they r still healthy, and growing fine unless they r in the ground and u dont wanna risk loseing them from winter or u dnt hve the room to bring them indoors.. they will let u no if there going dorment if thats the case i wouldnt cut them back let them die off on threre own as long as they hve foliage they r absorbing nutrients to store for next years growth.. ive also learned (and this may sound nuts) they r like children with thier own personal prefrenses and personalities,,yes i said it..a plant adjusting to a new home..? sometimes and certain plants i no for a fact drecenea is 1..but when u hve a healthy colocasia..a new home dosent matter to them..idk this is wut ive learned over tha past 15yrs of having these n i can take it to the bank..i could rite all day about these plants so i hope this can help ne 1 thats looking for advise.. it is a science and with enough research (weighing out the opinions and answers) ull figure it out be paitient and proactive.. and good luck
So cheery to see these pics. I am so ready for spring!
This Primula is one of the Pacific Giant Mix that has been in my garden for over 15 yrs. It still puts on a really good show in spring and a more modest rebloom in fall. Really fond of them.
No, it's quite well behaved actually. And I prefer having mine grow in light shade--although it can take full sun, it tends to brown out and look bad by the height of summer. But in light shade, it still blooms well, and stays greener and more presentable the rest of the year.
I started to write that I had never lost hellebore blooms...then I *did* remember a time when all the open blossoms looked like hot water was poured on them. Good luck.
Also lost a couple of daffodil varieties!