Qs on Jacob's Ladder, Great Blue Lobelia, Echinacea Butterfly Kiss

7 years ago

Hi everyone. I got a few new perennial plants this year, and one last year, and have some Qs....

Note that all my plants are IN POTS, as I only have a balcony.

First off on the Jacob's ladder. I got a small plant around April perhaps. It did develop a few really small purple flowers, and then there was evidence of other new flower buds but they sort of remained stagnant...never grew anymore or opened up (and they remain as you can see in pix below). And then in the meantime, I did get lots of new leaf growth. Is this typical?...Maybe this plant flowers more in the Spring, and since it didn't have enough of a headstart to get established in its new larger pot (the pot I have it in now is about 12-14"), maybe that's why flowers never really developed....maybe it will be better next year?

On my Great Blue Lobelia. Also bought a small plant around May of this year. It's growing really well and now actually appears a bit 'leggy'. I am now also starting to see some purple flowers, which is nice. With a leggy plant like this, normally my instinct would be to prune the stems just above a set of leaves, in order to promote new bushy growth. However in looking at online photos it appears this is the normal growth habit of this plant....tall individual stalks...and perhaps are more leaves and flowers develop, that in and of itself will solve the 'legginess' issue and help the plant look fuller and self-support the stalks. Would you agree?

On both of the above plants I do also notice a slight yellow/green tinge to some of the leaves. I do take care to water them everyday however, esp. with the hot NYC temps we've been having. I also periodically add fish fertilizer to my watering. Do you think from the pix that the yellow/green tinge looks problematic at this point?

Lastly on my Echinacea Butterfly Kisses. I got this plant last Summer and it grew a flower or two, but then my cat got to it and at them. ;-) After that the plant didn't really thrive. However, this year in that same pot (which also houses some purple heuchera), I now see evidence of some new green leafy growth, which doesn't look like any of the usual 'weeds' my pots get. Do any of you with Echinacea think this looks like it could indeed be my EBK making a comeback?

Thanks very much all!

(will have to try posting pix later...often times for some reason the post photo function doesn't work here....and then later it works just fine... ;-(

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Comments (7)

Lynn Nevins
Original Author
7 years ago
had to post pix on my FB page...photo option simply not working here

https://www.facebook.com/lynn.nevins/posts/10157448367530294
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dbarron
7 years ago
Nope, that's a weed, most likely some form of ranunculus :)
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Lynn Nevins
Original Author
7 years ago
not sure what you are trying to say...are you making a joke? what is a 'weed ranunculus'?
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NHBabs z4b-5a NH
7 years ago
No, not a joke. Some Ranunculus species can be weeds while others are planted as ornamentals. It doesn't look particularly like a Ranunculus to me, but I only know a few species.

Try uploading to Houzz Photos via Your Houzz in the upper right corner and then link from there or try uploading directly here from a different browser - some forms of Internet Explorer doesn't do well with Houzz. many folks here aren't on FB.

With perennials, they often need a year before performing to their best, so if they are happy with their growing situation they should perform better next season. Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium) is a spring bloomer that in my garden prefers part shade, but Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) prefers a lot of light and is dense in full sun. It doesn't like to dry out. Echinacea is another full sun plant.

Also, you could ask on the Container Forum to see if you have chosen a good soil mix for the plants you are growing - often commercial potting mix doesn't work long-term since it breaks down over time.
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Lynn Nevins
Original Author
7 years ago
thanks...will also try the Container forum.

So on Ranunculus weed, I'd imagine it's not that common, especially say up on a 3rd floor balcony with potted plants? ;-) I'd imagine that any 'weeds' that pop-up in my pots got there by way of floating seeds, no? Do Ranunculii(?) release seeds into the air?
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sunnyborders
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Re great blue lobelia: a tall, robust perennial lobelia. The single stem may occasionally be branched. It can also be a very prolific seeder.

Due to the seeding, clumps can form. Below is with both a sprinkler system and lots of sun. Individual plants don't usually live more the a couple of years, but self-seeding maintains the clump. I wouldn't normally have left this much, but it was quite restricted to where it could move. Required maintenance included reducing the number of seedlings every fall and occasionally a minimal staking was necessary.

August 20, 2011

And looking beyond. Nice to get some reliable but cheap blue in August.
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Lynn Nevins
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks...so sounds like it's self-sowing, but that with mine being in a planter, that should keep it in check... I also noticed today after writing my initial post here that...there are actually other flower buds all up and down the sides of the main stems. So excited!
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Qs on Jacob's Ladder, Great Blue Lobelia, Echinacea Butterfly Kiss

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Lynn Nevins
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Qs on Jacob's Ladder, Great Blue Lobelia, Echinacea Butterfly Kiss

Comments (7)

Lynn NevinsOriginal Author

dbarron

Related Discussions

Lynn NevinsOriginal Author

NHBabs z4b-5a NH

Lynn NevinsOriginal Author

sunnyborders

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GET HELP

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Lynn Nevins
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