Modern Roses Veronica "Sunny Border Blue" Nepeta Russian Sage Verbena Bon. Coreopsis Vert. "Moonbeam" *** Dianthus Int. "Ideal" or "Bouquet" *** Gaura "Siskuyu Pink" Only the first category are really perennials. The Dianthus hybrids are theoretically annuals, but keep coming back for me. But then the Gaura is supposed to be a perennial, but blooms like an annual - and dies out in winter like on too! I only buy it if it's priced like an annual.

I thought people grew ligs for foliage, not blooms, though they are prettyl I really like the bright yellow blooms which very much brighten up a shady locale. This season has been exceptional for Ligs with all the wet weather and cooler temps.

my shishigashiras have reached "favorite" status since i got them for christmas last year. they've been covered in bloom here in NC7a since just before thanksgiving, and buds continue to form. they're in large containers on my full morning-sun porch - it gets very warm there and the sun is direct - in spite of what the nursery said of shishi's great sun tolerance, i was expecting to move them to shade before the summer was over. to my amazement, they're still happily containered by the front door, blooming their rich pink heads off :) my point - they're rugged & vigorous & will take some sun (at least in Z7) and not the best of attention. it's my fastest grower & most prolific bloomer. the photos above are marvelous representations. the info that came with the shishis indicated they'd ultimately be 6' tall and 6' wide. from the great photo above of an old shishi, it looks like the 6x6 would be a good size to anticipate. the uniform size & open/airy branching will be fabulous en masse as hedging/screening or as specimens/accents. ten shishis! this should be fun :) marsha

Hmmm, I thought that bella was one of those that lost the peduncle after blooming, it looks so frail...but now I'll keep an eye on it and send it good wishes! Ha! @ Mike thanks for the warning! I got my lacunosa as a few stems of rooted cuttings last summer and it's been leafing out beautifully under the grow lights, no peduncles yet. Now that it's spring, I'm going to start dosing everyone with foliage pro. The slowest growers over the winter have been compacta and krimson queen, so hopefully this gives them a nice jump start. I need more blooms!