Tag: felicia
Fall blues
My last two plant purchases about a month ago involved two asters, a Days Aster and a mum-like button-headed aster that I still haven’t identified (possibly an annual type). All three asters in the blue bed have subsequently dropped their blooms, and as of this week look very scraggly. I suspect lack of watering and poor soil may have killed the aster centered in the bed; meanwhile the Days aster has retained its green foliage, perhaps because it has remained in the shadow of the angelonias still blooming rampantly in the bed. I also had to trim back the Wood’s Blue aster next to the fence since most of its foliage browned, leaving behind basal leaves.
I must mention that the scabiosa are long gone, as well as the white plumbago that must have died during the summer drought. Any traces of the phlox and dianthus planted in this bed have also disappeared, as well as the catmint that were huge disappointments. The surviving inhabitants of the blue bed include the two Oertel yarrows, the 2 clusters of Serena Whites and Blues (still blooming heavily now in mid-November), 2 Oxalis triangularis which have endured all summer, the imperial dark blue plumbago and the Wood’s Blue aster.
I have contemplated moving the Felicia daisy from its plant stand to take up central residence in the bed. I’m also considering moving my Tropical Breeze purple/white verbena also to the same bed in hopes that it will survive through the cold months with some proper mulching.
I do miss putting bulbs into the ground this time of year; I dream of the early perennial bloomers such as muscari and irises and lately have been serious considering purchasing some bulbs to drop into the blue bed. The bed of course will need amending before I proceed with this plan…luckily, I have a large bag of Miracle-Gro garden soil just waiting to be used. As soon as the weather becomes a bit milder, I plan on taking a shovel to the bed and dig out some good spots.
Reminder to self: take plumbago cuttings, bring the Diana blueberry dianthus indoors.
Hunting for summer blues
I rearranged the blue garden this past weekend, moving the Oertel’s Rose Common Yarrow and the 2 straggling Nepeta faassenii (catmints), to make room for some new tenants. I had found a white plumbago at the local Home Depot so I had to snatch it up to pair with the Imperial Dark Blue. Also I picked up two purple leafed Oxalis triangularis to add some drama to the bed, 4 Serena Angelonia (2 purple, 2 white) to give the bed some vertical lift. I had some leftover dianthus that hadn’t gotten planted from the last flat I bought; 3 picoteed purple dianthus for some contrast. I’m hard pressed however to find any blue flowered summer plants within the 1-2 foot range. I’m less inclined to plant annuals, but it seems that is all that manages to flourish in the heat right now. I’d like to find more Felicia daisies and/or these Tropical Breeze verbena.
We finally got around to visiting North Haven Gardens and discovered that it deserved its reputation for being a fantastic source of unusual and uncommon plants. They had a vast selection of plants, trees and shrubs, many of which I desired to take home. One particular eye-catcher that immediately made my wishlist was a dwarf variegated bamboo, Pleioblastus fortunei, which unfortunately they were out of stock on. Aside from the Angelonia that we purchased, we also picked up 2 Golden oregano and 1 Hot and Spicy Oregano, which was truly a surprising tongue-tickler.
6 more bulbs to go, more seeds, and the search for more flowers
I counted 9 lily bulbs out of the 15 asiatics have sprouted. Only the lollypops are not in evidence. The flower bed is almost in full shade now. The tallest of the lilies (almost a foot tall) has begun its lean toward the sun. Of the azaleas in the same bed, only Hot Shot and Delaware Valley White have bloomed. Note: overhead watering should be avoided for these plants. I’m just not convinced that it is the preferred method. I always had better results using a soaker hose.
The lone astilbe in this bed continues to leaf out, but I don’t think it will bloom this year. We will have to see. The pansies are rapidly declining as the heat ramps up, but the dianthus are taking over, putting out masses of red and white blooms. Speaking of dianthus, my seedlings are raking the top of the starter tray. I plan to transfer them to pots soon to finish their growth outdoors. I love these vigorous little plants so much that I’m considering investing in another packet of seeds.
The 200 impatiens are crowding their tray pockets, but I’m a little leery of transplanting them. They seem to be more delicate than the dianthus. However I’ve popped the tray off to see how well they do with better circulation. Of this tray system, only 7 cells remain empty. It appears that the seeds in these perished due to mold or contamination. I am uncertain that I will purchase cell replacements since they are only available online. I imagine this system is beneficial for the types of seeds that require more starting maintenance than others.
I’ve noticed that with the daylilies receiving more sun they have put on a few inches and new strap leaves. It appears that they have settled into their new homes and have begun their journey to summer blooms. The free Hyperion that I received with the Dallas Stars has shown the most progress. Also, regarding fast starts, it only took a little more than 48 hours for the basil I sowed to germinate. I almost missed seeing the Red Rubin basil germinate (because of their rich dark leaves against the soil) but apparently basil are fast-growing. All of the seedlings have their cotyledons, whereas the catmint did not make an entrance until the 3rd-4th day, of which I’ve seen only 2-3 starts so far. I’m not sure if this is typical of catmint or if they dislike the starter soil I’m using. It’s also taking some time to convince the salvia cuttings to enjoy their controlled environment, but I think the secret is water, water, water…until they take root.
With so many plants under our grow lights, I’m hooked into starting more plants from seed. Right now I’m pondering snapdragons, more dianthus and felicia, and maybe even petunias. I also would like to get a hold of some ornamental pepper plants too. And more natural bug repelling plants, such as catmints, lavenders, and marigolds.
Plants, more plants and hard pruning the salvia
Yesterday’s shopping trip yielded 3 Ideal Select White dianthus from Strong’s Nursery. The felicia from Home Depot now resides in a planter with an Ideal White dianthus, the last Picasso calla bulb, and a Silver Dragon Liriope which has begun to show some leafing.
I discovered to my dismay that my maple had begun to yellow…so back outdoors it went. I’ve plucked the yellow leaves off to stave off any further stress on the maple. I think the extra sun helped sustain the heavy foliage this year. I did notice one or two leaves displaying pink variegation…so I’m hoping the rest will follow suit.
The remaining 2 Ideal White dianthus have been planted in the courtyard fence bed, along with the Hot Lips. I’ve also decided to put Hosta Eternal Flame in the back corner behind the crepe myrtle, where I hope it gets enough shade during summer.
The front fence bed received the flat of Coleus wizard mix that I picked up from Christina’s this past week. They grew quickly in the flats and I feared they would dry out the longer they sat out of the ground…so into the bed they went!
Finally this morning I had the radical notion of pruning back my red salvia greggii. They had grown so gangly and woody during the 2 years in their pots that I felt it was time to cut them down to the ground and let them start from scratch. I’m hoping that they will shoot back from the crown and fill up in time for summer. (I left some softwood on the main trunks to allow for a new flush of growth.) The following blog entry gives me some hope that these salvia will rebound with even greater vigor than before.