pink coreopsis - I've tried every year, and they live through the summer, but they never come back next year, even though they're supposed to be zone 5 hardy.

poppies and delphiniums both!

Delphiniums and Peonys

Campanula Carpatica "Blue Clips"! I never met another soul who couldn't grow this one.
I'm hoping my new sandy-ish soil will give me success this year.

PattiOh

Delphiniums seem to be a trend. I've tried about three times and they always die. I'm not sure if it's the soil, placement, or just lack of know-how, but they don't like me. I'm not really sure if I'll try again this year. They are such quintessential cottage plants, though! ugh

Delphiniums, foxglove and lanvender...sigh.

MeMo

Yep...Delphiniums and Lupins. I too want Delphiniums sooo bad. I heard that they like good drainage. This year I am starting some in my greenhouse. That way if they don't make it I won't feel like so much money has gone down the drain...just time! LOL!! I'm not ready to give up yet...But Almost!!

Patti - I tried campanula carpatica blue chips, too, and they never did anything for me, either! I had high hopes, but they just stayed tiny and finally died out...

Btw, I got some Limerock Ruby coreopsis one year, they bloomed their hearts out, and didn't come back the next year. I got them from Burpee, and noticed they didn't offer them the next year - that may have been why.

However, I somehow have a couple of delphiniums that have been hanging on from my original plantings 7 years ago! I really haven't done anything special with them either, but I'm not sure if I'm willing to risk it in the new garden. I tried some dwarf pink ones a couple of years ago, but they didn't survive - but that was also the year we had a horrible drought and I lost a lot of stuff that wasn't already established.

I didnt use to be able to grow delphiniums either I am in Florida after all. But I found if I fill my bed with cow manure and mushroom compost they love it.I now have a bed full of delphiniums,larkspur and foxglove are just openig up. But I am still trying to get Bachelor buttons to grow!
And do not even try lilacs. That is Ok as I get to enjoy others that northerners cannotHere are some pictures of my Florida Cottage Garden{{gwi:641796}}
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A real disappointment for me has been not being able to grow our beautiful native Blue Lobelia or Cardinal Flower brilliant red color)- they need consistently moist soil to fluorish plus they're short-lived even in ideal conditions.

Also, no success with dianthus (they rot in our winters here) but the garden centers continue to sell them. In fact most of the rock garden type plants like creeping phlox, sea pinks, cerastium etc become winter kill here in the Midwest because of the wet, cold conditions.

It really makes me mad (sorry) because there's so many other really great plants that I can't find at all except through specialized nurseries, which are far to drive to or through mail order.

And finally, Rhododendrens & Azaleas (with a few notable exceptions like the PJMs). I call these expensive annuals here. Not enough acidity in the soil for them to do well, along with harsh summers, heavy soil.

I've been killing lavender for years. Just couldn't keep one alive. But I think I've finally got three or four to survive by neglect :-)

Anne

Delphiniums, clematis, gardenia and forget-me-nots.

Anne, lavender is a no fuss plant. It thrives on very little water and as you said, neglect.

Great thread.

Edna

Do I have to pick just one?

salvia leucantha -- gorgeous, then I can't overwinter it (marginal for my zone) in the garden.

verbena 'Homestead Purple' and achillea -- duh. Those should be easy. After all, I can grow lavender! It must be the mulch. DH loves to mulch and I go behind him uncovering plants!

My biggest challenge is potted plants because we're passive solar. We have a hot front porch in winter on SUNNY days, but we have cold nights. I'm going through trial-and-error after frying pansies this winter and ivy last winter.

Cameron

Lilies-of-the-Valley----but I am trying again this year and it looks like some are coming up. I will see how long they last, though!

Its nice to see that I'm not alone in my plant frustations! I forgot to add one more plant and that's larkspur. I buy the same batch of seeds every year - Giant Larkspurs seed packet. I'll try it again. Wish me luck!

Monkshood and Jacob's Ladder. JL will grow, but then not come back the next year. Although, I have other places I can try putting them-maybe it was just a bad location....? Last year, I started Delphs, Lupine, and poppies from seed. I hope they come back!

I have sat shiva with more Gardenia plants than I care to count. The ability to grow beautiful gardenia is the only reason I would consider moving to Los Angeles (no offense LA).

Another heartbreak for me has been dicentra. I love Bleeding Hearts and I plant them faithfully every year. They're supposed to be able to grow here! I get nothing.

I keep seeing delphinium on the list. Me too. I have to admit to buying them in 6 inch containers at Home Depot and sticking them in the bare spots just for the quicky thrill.

The grass is always greener on the other side :)

DELPHINIUMS!! why, oh why do so many of us knuckleheads keep throwing our money away?????

i HAVE been getting some good advice over on the midwest forum, ... so i guess i will try ONE MORE TIME!!! one more time ... one more time ...

phyl

p.s. our snow is FINALLY beginning to melt, can see my januray w.s. containers for the 1st time since putting them out ....

Larkspur, Love in a Mist, Stocks... yet across the field at my granmother's, they were weeds!!

Delphiniums - we keep trying because we love them!

They are very easy if you have full sun, rich soil, good drainage, adequate rainfall. That combination is the hard part. I think drainage is the factor most commonly at fault when delphs don't thrive.
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Lupines, I think that is the same story.
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Click on any photo for a larger image.

Gottagarden,
Beautiful pictures! What is the name of the delphinum in the second picture? Also, how do you sow your lupines? Thanks for sharing.

Peonies, and I love them!

oriental poppies! I can grow any other type of poppy, but this one. It's maddening. I'm trying again this year -- bought six, six packs and planted them this weekend. Wish me luck!

Now gottagarden, that is just mean! :) Do you have to rub in that you can grow EVERYTHING?? :)Gorgeous photos!
Delphiniums definitely, although sadly, the list could go on and on! I've given up on delphs, now just grow larkspur which is the annual alternative. I think it is those photos of the cottage gardens in England with the miles of delphinium that have us all thinking about them!

I have learned over the years to accept the fact that some plants won't grown in my climate/soil so I just admire them in your gardens from all over the country. BUT......that being said - for me it is Dames Rocket, fore-get-me-nots and poppies - easy self seeders for many but not for me. Other annual self seeders do good like larkspur, zinnias, petunias, ect so I am pretty sure it is not a matter of too much mulch or soil condition - they just don't like me ~~pouting in a corner~~......

Lynne

The delphiniums I have are "magic fountains", a 'shorter' kind about 3-4 feet tall. Except that particular purple doesn't look like the rest of my delphs, so perhaps it was mislabeled.

Lupins self seed here. A friend gave me some that self seeded in her garden. I had some come up on their own, so I guess I would say winter chill, sown on the surface.

And there are all kinds of things I can't grow, like anything for zone 6 and higher! I miss gardenias, salvias, calla lilies and much much more.

Peonies. I have an expensive tree peony, and it just gets overshadowed by all the rampant evergreens that surround it, plus it hates our dry summers. It's still alive, putting out maybe 4-6 leaves during the year, but it's probably never going to really grow up.

Shrub bougainvillea 'Raspberry Ice'. I've tried three times, and that's it! No more!

I can't grow phlox. Not even the annual type. The perennial type in my garden just won't flower.....it lives and get tall with green leaves and that is it. I have tried several types...doesn't seem to matter. A friend that lives around the corner from me, grows big beautiful white phlox....she gave me some.....and not a single flower in my garden. I tried some annual types from seed. The germination rate, was not great, and the plants stayed small and looked scraggley. I don't know, LOL guess it just not a plant that is meant for in my garden.

Sierra

I guess I hadn't checked this post in awhile cause boy did I miss those beautiful pic's gottagarden! I am soo jealous! I wonder if I make my beds a bit higher if that would help. I also can't grow lavender. I love it and would love a nice clump of lavender but it dies. Phlox ya that's another I think it's too humid here. So I guess the biggest things I can't seem to grow but wish I could are Del's, peony, lavender, phlox, oh and I wish I could grow lilacs!

For me it's not a plant it's a technique. I can sow seeds outside and some of them will come up, I can do just fine with bulbs and already-started plants, but I cannot seem to do well with seeds started in flats or pots. I'm giving it one more try this year by wintersowing, which is a new technique for me, but it does make seed catalogs very very frustrating every winter [sigh].

In my garden larkspurs sprout in cold weather, like in November. The little plants survive lots of cold, then take off in the spring if you thin them out. So I bet whoever had trouble with them might have better luck sowing them in the fall.

There's some kind of delphinium seeds from New Zealand that are suppossed to be more heat tolerant. Someone gave me a few plants of those and they bloomed a long time in the spring but ended up being annuals. STill, they were pretty. The freshness of the seeds is important in delphiniums, and this company in NZ says theirs are fresh.

For me campanulas are hard. I had a freak year when I had luck with some Canterbury Bells. It was like a dream come true. But usually no luck with Campanulas. Same with lupines. I grow a false lupine, thermopsis, which is bright yellow and very tough when established. Takes the heat.
Linda

For me it is also Delphiniums and lupine.I try every yr and get nothing.I did buy a plant from HD last yr.planted it and it never grew much...o'well.I have wsed some more,maybe this will be my lucky yr.I am sure gonna try the cow manure and mushroom compost that golden pond recomends.I have found that Larkspur is a good sub.Gottagarden you are an inspiration.I love seeing your photos.
moonphase

Marigolds. Honest!

Delphiniums and Lupines, I would LOVE to have them, but they laugh in my face :) I know it's because it is so hot here. I'm intrigued by the poster from Florida who gets them to grow.

For those who love poppies and larkspur, the wintersowing method is perfect for them. They will be one of your first sprouts. I had given up on poppies until I ran across Trudi's first essay on Winter Sowing (a gazillion years ago). I still grow them using that method because I don't have a great deal of luck hoping for self seeding. Larkspur on the other hand is almost a weed now :)

Did someone else mention nigella? It's also very easy with WS.

Lynne: Would you like me to save you some forget me not seeds, dames rocket and poppies this spring? I usually have an abundance of seeds from those.

Lisa

I have done nothing special, but I have a delphinium which is actually doing pretty good. I got it at Target a couple of years ago, and it's up about 2 feet tall already this year. I'm a container gardener, so that may work with the drainage situation-- I have to water every day in the summer, and at least 3 times a week other times of the year. But for me, my impossible plants are: (no laughing)
1) gardenia
2) tulips
3) morning glories from seed. They never make it to adulthood. Something eats them every dang time. It's maddening. If I buy them from a nursery, already growing, they're fine. But that means all I get is heavenly blue or crimson rambler. I've lost dozens of hard to get japanese morning glories, including 'grey lady' and 'wisteria rose tie dye'. I won't repeat the words that came out of my mouth.

Amanda 'romando'

Romando, try neem oil on your seedlings. That seems to keep bugs off my morning glories. I have grandpa ott's self-sowing so rampantly in my garden they ar ealmost a weed. Something munches them right down, but the neem oil seems to keep whatever it is at bay. I don't use any pesticides but the neem oil is certainly effective. I can send you some seeds if you want!

LIsa, do you do annual and perennial poppies or just annual? I have winter sown some red oriental poppies this year which I hope do well. I am worried as the seedlings are soooooo tiny. I hope I can transplant them.

Roses, particularily hybrid teas. I started off with about 8 in the garden. All purple and beautiful. The next Spring six were dead. One bit the bullet this Spring and the last one doesn't look so hot, but I see some growth on it. The only rose I've had any luck with so far is my climbing Cecile Brunner. I've decided not to invest in any more hybrid teas for a while.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed on the lavender and Lobelia "The Rocket" plants until after Spring is over.

Heather

I'm afraid there's more than one I can't grow, The one that comes to mind right now is Pulsatilla. I plant them, they come back once and that's it game over. I see them in other peoples gardens so I must be doing something wrong. Can anybody out there give me some tips. Thanks in advance.

A......

ThreeOrangeBoys: I only do annual poppies.

Congratulations on the new babies :) They will do fine, I am very sure! I always plant out using the "hunk" method.

Lisa

I'm afraid there's more than one I can't grow, The one that comes to mind right now is Pulsatilla. I plant them, they come back once and that's it game over. I see them in other peoples gardens so I must be doing something wrong. Can anybody out there give me some tips. Thanks in advance.

A......

Sorry about the double posting, I'm blaming it on the computer having the hickups.

A......

It's hard to pick just one thing (sigh). But I do have this beautiful large cement pot that has given me endless grief. I manage to kill whatever I try to grow in it. I've emptied it out, checked the drainage, cleaned it, replaced soil, but to no avail.

Right now a straggly blackberry is trying to hold its own in it. That's pretty bad when a blackberry won't grow. I'm thinking the problem is not the pot at all, but it's location. It's in a corner between a wood fence and a block wall. Too much shade. I think if I move it, I might have more luck, so I'm going to ditch the blackberry, move the pot, and try a sweet bay in it.

Hi, y'all. I'm new to this forum, altho I've been on the Butterfly Forum and Oklahoma Gardening forum for years.

This is such a heartbreaking topic, though. Yes, I grew Larkspur by winter sowing and they did fine, but I have no reseeding whatsoever. This was my third attempt so they're out.

Perennial salvias, believe it or not, are short-lived for me.

I tried several different lavendars before I finally found one that would work for me in a location it liked - 'Provence', and it is humongous. But, it took several years of heartbreak before I found one that would do well here.

Tithonia just will not grow for me. Don't know why because it should.

'Heavenly Blue' morning glory is another. I see beautiful vines all around me in neighbor's yards, but nope, not I. I can grow other MGs happily, even the Japanese!

It's pretty sad, huh?

Susan

Here I am in Georgia, and I can't grow Verbena Homestead Purple, which was discovered here. I am glad someone else here can't, because for most people this plant is even too exuberant! I am about to try again, I don't know why.

Mignonette. I keep trying, because the idea of a sweet smelling flower sounds so nice. But I have never had any luck with it at all.

Annual poppies! I would've given up years ago except that I hate to be beaten, so I grimly scatter seed at every imaginable time of the year, just in case there's a magic window of potential that I've missed previously. (If we could list more than one, I'd mention that no "just scatter seed on the ground" form of annual flower has ever grown for me. Period. Even in pots. Even the ones that every other person on the planet thinks are vigorous to the point of being aggressive. Perennials, no problem.)

Parsley from seed. Every year I buy 2-3 packets, but nothing ever comes up. I have no problem keeping established plants going, but can't make it sprout! Maybe this year...

Just passing through, but had to post about this.

I can't grow Nicotiana sylvestris or sanderae (from direct sown seed). Have tried for eight years now and it just won't grow. It used to be dill that wouldn't take, but that seems to have corrected itself.

Very sad, but:

Pieris Japonica bush. Lovely pearl like flower clusters in spring with all new growth being brilliant red. Totally beautiful and every Pieris I plant dies.....
yet if I buy one for someone else.....it lives to perfection. Sigh...

Lupines and delphiniums...they dont like me.

Heather (Sandl) blue aka purple roses are the most fussy roses out there. They are very very prone to disease and failure to thrive. Don't kick yourself, try something else. In the link below you will find the roses I grow. I wont fuss over my roses or spray for fungus so the list might be a good starting place for you. There should be photos of most of these roses at this site as well. You will have to check to make sure the roses are hardy for you as I am in zone 7a but its worth another shot!!

Here is a link that might be useful: My list of roses -- no fussing required

Well I could never pick just ONE plant! There are tons of things that give me trouble. How about Bells of Ireland... I can't get them to sprout for love nor money and I'm Irish!!! Then there is Galliardia which grows like crazy for everyone else but me... one year is all I ever get out of it! I mean what gives??? Then there is that Red Coreopsis Limerock Ruby that lasts only one summer and then disappears never to be seen again and those gorgeous Oriental Poppies that last like 35 seconds and then that's IT???? and then there were my supine lupine and I could go on and on. It's really very sad. I'll have to go get a tissue. This is making me tearful!

I guess it's human nature to want what we don't have. I can't grow delphiniums either. It dawned on me, reading this thread, that I can't seem to grow a lot of plants that are tall and delicate looking - which of course, I crave. Hollyhocks, foxgloves, lupines, oriental poppies all seem to wither away before my eyes or last one season and disappear. These types of plants add an elegant touch to a cottage garden, IMHO.

One of my first times on GW I stumbled across a thread that seemed to go forever about trouble growing gardenias. It got pretty funny with the woes and frustrations. Of course, gardenias are not a problem for me. I have one that blooms so prolifically that it looks like it's been snowing. Yet it's not in my top five favorite plants. What's up with that?

bloominganne