Agapanthus is calling to me: I've seen several that claim to be "hardy". I'm hesitating, wondering whether they can tolerate my heavy clay that remains waterlogged for about a third of the year.

The call of the Agapanthus can be strong eh @cecily 7A? :).

What is the cause of the "waterlogging".....a significantly low area? Is it extra noticeable in the spring?

It waterlogs because that's just what Virginia clay does. When it eventually dries out, it's as hard as a brick. Amending one planting bed doesn't give relief when the whole area is soggy. My agapanthus may need to live in a pot.

I guess it is the spring when the wetness is most noticeable?

Hmmm, I don’t know if this counts but I have a bunch of new salvias and penstemon going in. When Joy Creek announced they were closing I just threw a bunch in my cart and clicked buy

So Joy Creek is in operation for 2022?

@rouge21_gw (CDN Z5b/6a) no they are done. They sent my litte baby starts who all got shoved into a pot in November together and once spring gets here they will go out into the garden

I bought a pot of hardy agapanthus two years ago. It bloomed ok in the pot the first year, it survived winter fine. In early spring I planted it, I managed to get one bloom from the 4-5 crowns that had been in pot when planted in ground. I bet it's withered away from excess water by now.

What I have to say about the hardy agapanthus, will not tolerate poor drainage and will not compete with other plants as they're close to ground rosettes (or mine were), so easily shaded out. Will not attempt them again, they don't fit my climate or my planting style. This is the fourth attempt to grow these things....

Thank you dbarron! That was a splash of cold water on my agapanthus dream but it's something I needed to hear. I have several pots that over winter in the garage but a one car garage limits that option.

It's still only January, and way too early to be making rational decisions about plant purchases! Of course agapanthus will do amazing for you, they'll practically grow like a weed... just do it... put it in the cart but just don't click 'buy' yet ;)

I had a cart full of vegetable seed picked out and it wasn't until a few days later that I finally admitted to myself I just won't have the time to plant vegetable seeds nor the room to space them appropriately. Last fall someone planted bulbs all over the vegetable garden so I'll be lucky if I can fit in a few tomatoes.

There are several new clematis that I haven't clicked 'buy' for because I never give them the support they need and a bunch of sedges which I picked out but also have on hold. For some reason I'm also looking for nonsense like hardy coneflowers (centaurea) which will probably rot in my soil but of course in January I think there's a well-draining spot for them which isn't already planted.

Not to reawaken the agapanthus dream, but I've had very good luck with 'Blue Yonder' and a few seedlings from here and there. No winter protection, heavier soil but not really soggy, winter lows to about 0F but no other special care.

Blue Yonder is a nice dark color but a little 'stout' which some people like.

This is a lighter seedling with looser growth. Some fool saved all the seeds from this one and now has a pot full of even more seedlings sprouting under lights.

Oh and I really want a 5 1/2 foot tall red hot poker (kniphofia). Just think of what a subtle effect that will bring to my garden beds.

...It's still only January, and way too early to be making rational decisions about plant purchases!...

I don't understand.....too early...????

And... are we supposed to be rational about plant purchases?....

LOL. I just placed my seed orders so I got that done. Now I'm turning my attention toward plants and shrubs. Don't have anything specific in mind yet, but I do have the front of my house to plant (having finally removed the waaaaayyyyy overgrown shrubs there) so that will be my focus, along with adding winter interest around the garden. But at this point I'm still just browsing websites and catalogs and getting ideas.

That Blue Yonder is a gorgeous color!

:)

Dee

Ok. Maybe some people do and can make rational decisions right now about new plants, but I really don't trust myself at all right now. This is the kind of weather that makes me think 'oh, a collection of six apple trees grafted with antique apple varieties which are excellent for fresh eating and baking. I bet I could plant them in the front yard and make a little orchard and underplant it with daffodils and leave it as a meadow for the summer and maybe have a few native asters for the fall'.... all while a rational thought should be telling me that i can't even fit a peony out there.

Maybe I placed two seed orders. They were seed exchange orders and I was forced to make quick decisions so it's not my fault if I end up with waterlily seeds even if I don't have a pond.

Well, I anticipated you kabob, and started kniphofia northiaea seeds in 2019. So I got you covered for giant red hot poker. I hope they bloom this year, but I fear they will need at least another to reach blooming size.

The rose colored glasses that you speak of seem to have fallen off early. I ordered a fair amount of seed in the late fall, but not a site has enticed me to risk paying large amounts of postage for the hope of plants actually arriving here safely (note that my seeds reached within 20 miles of me, then hopped a plane for a week in Florida, I don't know what they did there...they aren't telling).

Oh and I really want a 5 1/2 foot tall red hot poker (kniphofia).

Another plant which I so want to have in my garden but I have tried a couple of times with no success surviving more than a couple of seasons :(.

Well this is the first time I've had a red hot poker since I planted one while in college at my parent's house. But that one at my parents (unsure of species) existed with no care for about 20 years or more and became a 3 foot wide clump. They seem to do well in my climate (kinda surprising because it wouldn't seem much like South Africa?).

We have a friend who lives on the coast of BC and she sends me pics each year of her very established and vigorous patch of "pokers"...sigh.

I can't think of anything off the top of my head, other than I ordered a "Stella" sweet cherry tree because I can't find that one locally and the other sweet cherries I have (Black Tartarian and Lapins) got so damaged, first by deer then by an onslaught of Japanese beetles, that I question if they're going to make it.

Oh, also some new tomato varieties because I just can't seem to find a good slicing tomato that wows me. I always start tomatoes from seed but this year I'm just going to buy starts of a couple different varieties, with the price of seed as it is it'll be less expensive to do that as the hunt goes on.

I ordered a "Stella" sweet cherry tree

@mxk3 z5b_MI, sorry for the probably way simple Q but how does one keep the birds away when the cherries are ripe and ready for harvest?

"...how does one keep the birds away when the cherries are ripe and ready for harvest?"

I haven't gotten that far yet -- the trees were newly planted last summer. I do have bird net on hand, the good stuff: Knitted Bird Netting | American Nettings and Fabric Worked great on the strawberries.

The bigger problem before bearing age is those darn Japanese beetles! I don't know if they descended in a swarm because the trees were already damaged and they sent out some sort of distress hormone or whether the beasts love cherry foliage or what. I need to buy some insect netting to protect them in early summer -- if those trees make it, I don't know if they can withstand another attack like the one last summer, it was bad and like I said I question if they're even going to make it after the double-whammy. If they do, it just goes to show that above all, plants want to live and will do everything in their own power to do so.

Omg, kato, you made me laugh out loud! As did you, dbarron, with your Florida-tourist seeds lol.

Rereading this thread I guess I do actually have plans for something new. I'm planning on buying an eastern redbud to replace a beautiful, old, triple-trunk oak that I lost. I know a redbud isn't the same as an oak, but a) I have about 40 oaks and thought I'd try a more ornamental tree, and b) I want to live to see it at least NEAR maturity. My oak was over 200 years old, so I don't think I'd live to see another like that one!

:)

Dee

"My oak was over 200 years old,"

THAT is a truly irreplacable loss....

Despite katob's fetching photos, I've moved on from hardy agapanthus. It's a new day and I now covet allium Summer Beauty. I've never grown Millenium because the reddish purple color grates on my nerves. I don't grow stachys Hummelo or dalea for the same reason. But Summer Beauty is a lovely pastel with pink/lavender tones. Also it's sterile so I won't live to regret the choice.

Dee, please accept my condolences over the loss of your oak. I'd be devastated by that.

Well, you can certainly replant an oak. Not all grow that slowly. I planted a 5 gallon willow oak in 2001 or so, and by 2011 (ten years), it was 35 feet high. I moved, but I'm sure it was mature and fruiting by 2015. It might not reach 100 foot in your lifetime, but it's still an admirable and worthy tree.
Redbuds are lovely, but rather short lived.

Oh yes, I know. I actually had someone come and give me an estimate for planting an oak in that spot, and was all set to go ahead when my dad died and I got sidetracked. Then life got in the way and in the meantime I thought it would be a good opportunity to plant an ornamental tree. I have such a wooded lot that there's not a lot of space or sun, so this gives me the chance to plant something different. I have 40 other oaks, lol. I was looking at weeping cherries (which is what I REALLY wanted), redbuds and dogwoods, in particular as well as a few others, and decided on the redbud. I had actually originally considered a maple - I love the color of maples in the fall - but since there's an established garden here I thought the maple might wreak havoc on it. So I went the ornamental route!

:)

Dee

Maples are notorious for thirsty surface roots. In that, you made a good choice with a redbud :)

Dee, the lovely trees and contour of the land is what sold me on this place ... oh, the awesome soft silty soil had sealed the deal! I live in a birch tree grove, they despise drought and some have lost their tops and thinned overall. Through fertilizer and additional water, I'm attempting to give them a bit of a boost. Some have nicely responded in the past two years to the additional bit of TLC. Indeed, that oak of yours had been a true beauty!!

Rouge, other than maybe trying some different types of grasses, I'm not yet eyeing a heck of a lot.

I love oaks, I think they might be my favorite tree. Last fall I planted a few 'Crimson Spire' acorns and it will be interesting (for me at least lol) to see what form they take on. I don't think I'll be around to see them mature but whatever! I'll see them grow and can let someone else question why there are so many trees growing in bad spots ;)

Today I'm looking at oriental poppies and an astilbe. I would add two lupines to the order just because... as long as you're ordering... which I am not...

FB that's an amazing, glowing scenery. Wow!

FB, that is absolutely glorious!

Kato I keep putting poppy seeds in my cart and keep removing them as I pare down my list. I mean, like for the last three or four years, lol. Last week when I placed my order I finally, FINALLY, bought some. I got Princess Victoria Louise. Which was a hard decision out of the half dozen or more that I had on my original list, but I'm looking forward to them!

:)

Dee

Just place an order for

• Spigelia marilandica 'Ragin Cajun'
• Iberis sempervirens 'Snowsurfer'
• Kniphofia hirsuta 'Fire Dance'
• Agastache 'Golden Jubilee'

Not sure if they’ll be available because their online catalog is not up-to-date, but I ordered these from Hortico:

Thalictrum Splendide

Thalictrum Hewitt’s Double

Stachys Helen von Stein

Amsonia Blue Ice

Lupinus Popsicle Yellow

Achillea The Pearl

I've been wanting to order some Deinanthe for years since I saw it several years ago at a PPA event. Maybe I'll actually do it this year.

Among plants of which I've never grown any variety, Veronica 'Blue Skywalker' is the most likely. But I'll be doing much less new planting, and no starting from seed, because as in 2018 I plan to be away during part of May.