Your first perennial(s) planted in 2024?
rouge21_gw (CDN Z5b/6a)
13 days ago
last modified: 9 days ago
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rob333 (zone 7b)
13 days agolast modified: 13 days agorouge21_gw (CDN Z5b/6a) thanked rob333 (zone 7b)Related Discussions
Need design advice - covering perennial(s) beside lilac
Comments (13)I'll bow to laceyvail's greater knowledge, but having spent 30 some years in Maryland where dogwood did (pre blight)/does abound, it does have the potential to reach some size. On our wooded lot, in the forest-like setting, the native dogwood tended to have tall slender trunks with a lacey canopy. However, a lovely one in the open on the front lawn was a sizeable tree, both height and width-wise. I'm just saying the potential for some growth is there and the OP's is planted close to the foundation. Daylilies (hemerocallis) are different from lilies (lilium) and without putting your nose right in the throat of a daylily - like Stella d'Oro which is yellow flowered - you'd get no hint of a scent. Some other groundcovers to consider: Phlox subulata (moss phlox) Moss pink, moss phlox or creeping phlox is a pretty common rock garden plant, but it also makes a good ground cover on poor, bare soils. It does do better when not competing with other things, though. It'll form a dense mat of foliage, which is covered in spring with masses of flowers in pink, purple, or white. Mine will often get a light reblooming throughout the summer and into the fall. Sedum (Stonecrop). Many different kinds ranging from tiny mats only a few inches high to plants 2 feet tall. They're used as ground covers, in rock gardens, on slopes, between stepping stones, etc. Most sedums are spreading or creeping plants that will root from broken branches or fallen leaves. Very easy, undemanding plants. From "How Stuff Works" - How to grow leadwort: Plant in well-drained soil that is rich in organic matter. Leadwort likes full sun or part shade. It will rot if the soil stays too wet, especially in winter. In most of growing Zones 5 and 6 plants die to the ground in winter. Apply a light winter mulch, and wait until growth resumes in mid-spring to cut stems back to the ground. Plant only in the spring: Leadwort needs a full growing season to get roots established. Uses for leadwort: Plant as a ground cover under shrubs and small trees and interplant spring-blooming bulbs such as crocus and daffodils." Late to come up means literally that - other plants may be well up before a "late" breaks ground in the spring. I experience that with platycodon which is the last to break ground here. Having gardened a long time, I know where the patches of it are so I know not to dig or plant over them. It's always good to put a marker over late breakers to alert you. And most information on any kind of plants will show you pictures of them at their peak of magnificence -rarely their fall die-back or spring emergence looks. You're kind of left to figure that out on your own. It's all fun and it's all a learning process no matter how long you've been at it. Despite any degree of gardening expertise, no one's immune from unintended consequences - something that just doesn't look right, failure to thrive or survive a winter even though it's supposed to, doesn't make the neighbors stop dead in their tracks. A good local garden center can be a wealth of information....See MoreFirst plant swap, new perennial bed, kinda confused
Comments (9)I worry about the weeds and am thinking about putting cardboard down and then mulch on top. You go with that idea but expect to replace it a year or two down the road. It's worked for me for the most part but it isn't the be-all and end-all of gardening--there are some weeds that will grow right up through the cardboard and mulch (ask me how I know this to be true). Still, it's been effective more than it hasn't in several of my garden beds. I understand putting the taller ones in back and making sure that everything is spaced properly. Don't lose sight of the truth that whatever you're going for is right for you but may not be right for another gardener (or what you're planting). I like the look of space between my perennials because that's the look that pleases my eye. What pleases your eye is what pleases your eye & you get to decide that on your own but the plants themselves will ultimately determine the look of your garden. Generally speaking, garden designs adhere to certain standard designs or patterns but they're not guidelines that are carved in stone. I took a huge, rectangular garden that existed before I moved here, divided it in half diagonally, stuck a granite garden bench in the center, curved the edges and laid a granite patio in front of the bench. Not the look the bed had prior to me having my way with it but to my eye it looks a lot more appealing than it did before. Did I buy a garden design book? Yep--bought several and while they gave me ideas, none of the formal gardens worked for my property. I ended up with what worked for me so I'll suggest you sit down with a drawing pad & sketch what you see in your mind. I don't regret doing that and am vastly satisfied with what I've achieved. Don't forget you'll have failures along with the successes. It's been the lesson I've had the most difficulty learning but the successes have mitigated the failures. There's SO much enjoyment when things return reliably year after year I'm reassured the plants I've worked to set in the ground truly are perennials and those that have disappeared are few and far between....See MoreYour *first* perennial planting of 2018?
Comments (20)That lupine is cool! Don't have luck with lupines over here. Oh well. The only perennials so far this year have been "Disco Belle" hibiscus. Had to have them shipped from some nursery I never heard of, but the plants were in great shape and good size - was the shipping cost that was a bear!. I have hunted high and low for "Disco Belle" series for years to no avail, so I didn't even care about the cost. Used to be the standard for hibiscus, has been replaced by "Luna" series, which I've moaned about before - nowhere near as good as the good ol' Disco Belles. I'm still trying to figure out where I planted all the stuff I threw in the beds last fall - I've been looking for the Japanese painted ferns I brought from my other house and spotted a few of them, but the rest of them have gone missing somewhere back there. The reason I've been looking for them is I stumbled upon some really nice specimens at not too high of a price at a local nursery, but I did plant quite a few of them -- if I can only find them. Well, if the fronds don't start poking up somewhere out there by end of the month, I guess they're goners (ferns are pretty tough, though, so I'd be surprised if I lost any but who knows)....See MoreBest new plant(s) in your garden (2018)
Comments (35)RE: BLUE CHIFFON My experience is that it is not sterile, but it seeds much much less than other ones. I had a pink one that left hundreds and hundreds of seedlings. I think Blue Chiffon is so pretty it's worth the risk of a couple dozen seedlings. You can reduce the # seedlings by deadheading before the seedpods form. If you are late, you lose....See Moregardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
13 days agolast modified: 13 days agorouge21_gw (CDN Z5b/6a) thanked gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)LaLennoxa 6a/b Hamilton ON
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10 days agoprairiemoon2 z6b MA
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9 days agogardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
9 days agoprairiemoon2 z6b MA
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8 days agolast modified: 8 days ago
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