can you summer sow joe pye or ornamental grasses?

sadie2005

14 years ago

My first attempt at summer sowing since I found some Irish Eyes rudbekia at Target this morning! In reading about Joe pye, I read online it needs cold strat, but I saw it listed on the FAQ page as suitable for summer sowing. What about ornamental grasses? thank you!

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Comments (7)

gardencrazy
14 years ago
I would like to know if you can SS Joe Pye also. I had never even seen this plant until yesterday I ran across a pic of it on park seeds. Now I have to have it. I love tall plants. I would love to see pic if any of you are growing it. How did I not know of this flower? Or is it not as wonderful as it sounds? Does anyone have a discount code for Park seed? ;o) I have already put in 3 seed orders. All from seed sales you all have been posting. Thank you for the info. I hate to make another order but I really think I want this Joe Pye Weed. and the Margurite Daisy...I didnt realize it was perennial until I saw the post. Very nice.
sadie2005
Original Author
14 years ago
gardencrazy- I got the idea for Joe Pye for the back of my beds from another post I made a few days ago. got rave reviews. there are many varieties, some taller than others. I love the chocolate variety but it only gets to about 3 feet I think. I also bought the marguerite daisy seeds after seeing Vera's post! anyway, I may try to sow it now since it is listed under the summer sowing FAQ as a vareity that will work.
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If you ever get one to survive or know someone who has one, make more plants by rooting cuttings. I've had very good luck with pinching out a growing tip and rooting it. My first Choc Joe Pye was purchased at a local nursery late last summer. Just to experiment, I tried a cutting last fall. That plant is now growing alongside it's parent. I took a cutting earlier this spring (I've read the spring cuttings are stronger and root easier) and it is now rooting. My experience indicates the cuttings of this plant are very easy to root. Mary
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Betty, With the Choc Joe Pye weed, I just take a growing stem tip and cut it off maybe 6 inches down. I then remove the bottom two sets of leaves, pinch them off right up near the stem. Then I pinch out the growing tip. Dampen a very light potting mix, and if you have it on hand, add a little extra damp perlite. The extra perlite is just a precaution to maintain a well aerated rooting medium. I stick the stem end that's going into the potting mix into root tone or clonex and then into the little pot of potting soil. If it's hot or dry outside, I stick a cover over the pot made from a clear 2 liter plastic cola bottle with the bottom cut out and the cap removed. This helps maintain the moisture. Keep a check on the potting mix, as you don't want it to dry out. Mist the leaves along if you think of it. If the leaves that are remaining on the stem are very large, I cut each leaf in half. Usually I only have four leaves left on the stem above the soil line. I keep the little pot in the shade until I see new growth at the leaf nodes. This is how I do it but this is not absolute; try with what you have. Sometimes we improvise. I've had every cutting of this plant I've tried, root, so I think these plants must be very easy and hardy. I think the key is to begin with a growing tip. I've read this is the best because the plant cells contain strong hormones, as opposed to trying to take a tip cutting late in the summer when plants are beginning to slow their growth. If it were me, I'd give it a try. There's nothing to lose and a lot to gain if you want to try and grow the native variety. I wish I had room for the native variety but my garden area is small so I have to try plants that don't need a lot of room. If you're going to take cuttings from the roadside, carry along a jug of water, where you can stick the cutting as soon as you remove it from the plant. I think I'd also try to take my cuttings early in the day, before the heat of the day saps their strength. It's always fun to try something new. I was encouraged by others on these forums and I've found that most plants root quite easily from tip cuttings. Good luck. Mary
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Invasive species do environmental harm by aggressively growing to the point that they significantly decrease diversity in habitats or ecosystems. An invasive species can take over a habitat, like a wetland or woodland, and degrade it to a point such that it can no longer support the wildlife that relied on that ecosystem. You can do a web search on the following plants and you should find plenty of information about the environmental damage that they do... purple loosestrife(lythrum salicaria) hydrilla (hydrilla verticillata Royle) eurasion milfiol (Myriophyllum spicatum) garlic mustard (alliaria potiolata) kudzu (pueraria lobata) There are plenty more species that qualify as invasive, those are just some of the notoriously famous ones. joepye is not invasive. Lawns are a monocultural turf that require mowing and additional inputs like fertilizers and extra water to be maintained in most of parts of this country. Lawns provide little habitat value compared to the inputs that they need to be maintained. A lawn, is more environmentally friendly than bare dirt; however, all in all, a traditional turf grass lawn is not the most environmentally vegetation that one can cultivate on their property.
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gardencrazy
14 years ago
you mean it comes in other colors too? wow. and rave reviews. Now I must have some. The pic I saw was a medium pink looking. Where did you buy your seeds? I am wondering how much Park seed charges for shipping because I have already ordered so much stuff that I would hate to pay a large shipping price for 1 or 2 packs of seeds. Surely I can find some others I need. lol
sadie2005
Original Author
14 years ago
I have seen white flowers and pink flowers. At the garden center I saw some with vareigated leaves too, plus the chocolate brown leaves I mentioned. I ordered some seeds from Swallowtail Gardens, but they had only one variety, pink flowers and very tall, maybe 6 feet. i think i saw some seeds on ebay but there were other things I wanted so I went with swallowtail.
tiffy_z5_6_can
14 years ago
Not the best photo of Joe Pye since it was taken after a tropical storm last fall, but you can see that the plant does have standing power. Some blooms reach beyond our livingroom window so it's nice to see the butterflies and the birds which visit.

{{gwi:376336}}

The same one just a few days ago. Oh, and yes, this plant was winter sown. The blooms are lavender and the leaves run from a deep green to burgundy along the edges.

{{gwi:406621}}

I also have a 'Baby Joe' which reaches 4 feet as opposed to the one above which can reach 8 feet.

In my gardens you will also find Chocolate Joe Pye which is the one with burgundy leaves and white flowers. It grows to about 4 to 5 feet.

If I were you, and I had enough seeds, yes, I would try to SS some and then keep others for WSing. :O)
mnwsgal
14 years ago
I love the deep red stems on my Joe Pye. They make it a striking plant even before blooming. I prune mine in June to keep it shorter and to encourage it to bush out.
drippy
14 years ago
The JP I had in MA I wintersowed - on a whim, I started some down here (SC) after I got here in May. It has germinated fine, so I would say yes, it can be summer sown.

can you summer sow joe pye or ornamental grasses?

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gardencrazy

sadie2005
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can you summer sow joe pye or ornamental grasses?

Comments (7)

gardencrazy

sadie2005Original Author

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gardencrazy

sadie2005Original Author

tiffy_z5_6_can

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drippy

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sadie2005
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sadie2005
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