Here in New York I rarely get mums to survive.
There are 2 that have and of course they arent in the color grouping I have there the rest of the year.
Good thing those flowers are gone by now.The standard yellow mums will winter over but the hybred colors I love just never re appear.
New Garden Projects This Year #4
I have 4 mums that came back this year, not sure what colors yet, planted yellow and purple.
photo from last year... I have a patch of mums that come up every year.. yellow, purple and that copper colors seem to do best
the copper ones
I have found that planting them in the spring as small plants works best. Starting with small plants, pinching until the 4th of July and making sure they do not dry out too much over the summer(no problem this year) is very helpful in getting them to come back again. Also don't cut them back shorter than a foot or so after they go dormant until the new growth starts in the spring and mulch. I have also discovered this year with the huge slug invasion that they can destroy a small plant overnight. Yuck. Bluestone has a nice spring selection of mums.
yes they do... I started looking at them this spring... and REALLY had to talk myself out of buying them
meredith i planted 4 mum's last fall and all survived and blooming now
I have a yellow that comes back every year----bred in Nebraska, I believe---but I do like the pink daisy mums that return ---they have spread just a little, & always look cheerful.
Pretty mums, Allison. I just love taking pics of them. And I love the scent of mums. Such a distinctive smell.
Karen
next year I am sneaking over to my neighbors and stealing some cuttings from hers... they are huge!!
Wow Wha that's great! I'm sure certain varieties are better than others for hardiness. Guess I've never planted the right ones in the right spot. I can't wait to see my new Sheffield's bloom this year. I know they are hardy here because I see them come up every year in other peoples yards. I actually prefer the daisy type flowers because I think the late butterflies might be able to get some nectar from them. Although I did see a Monarch on the white double ones I got last fall. I think that's what made me decid ethey were coming home with me. : )
I've seen only about 2 Monarchs this summer---more Swallowtails, & some pretty orange & black small ones---not too many around---that concerns me.
We have one yellow that has been here for 2 years, and the strange thing is that it is very big and full, but I went to pinch the flowers in July and there still are none! I'm tempted to put a bit of super phosphate around it, but now that it's so hot, I think putting any fertilizer down is dumb. I never fertilize after July at the latest. I had a purple mum that hung around for years, and a couple of the dark reds have come back, but the construction around the house last year did a lot of things in. It is hard for us to get mums established in the fall, because we leave mid-October.
I'm thinking the photos will work best! LOL
Allison - how do you do cuttings from mums? I've never tried that.
ROBINDOG, I have only seen a Monarch twice too! I am now officially worried. Usually I have about 20full grown Monarch caterpillars by this time and I haven't seen one. I even went for a walk in some wild milkweed stands and still couldn't find one. That was when I saw one of my two Monarch sightings. I have plenty of other butterflies - just no Monarchs. Just in the last week I've seen a Black Swallowtail, Spicebush Swallowtail, Red Spotted Purple, Viceroy and the Fritillaries are in the yard all day long. Some of them are the size of a Monarch. Oh and I can't forget the Cabbage Whites and Sulphers and various skippers.The little guys are fun to watch two. : )
We take mum cuttings by just cutting a branch back to leave 4 leaves and set in the ground if its early in the season or set in a pot of soil mix.
Some varieties dont take well.
that's good to know Ge.... I think I am not pinching back enough.. I would just cut off enough to make a cutting... I thought I read somewhere to cut back the top 1/3.... thanks!
1/3 sounds about right.
I take cuttings as soon as I can get a piece thats4-5 inches.
I keep cutting until july 4
this year I forgot to cut again before the 4th... and wasn't sure if I should a week after or not.. I just left them
Last year I "raised" 30 Monarchs, and only 5 so far this year. I hope it's just the crazy weather, and next year is better. I'm starting to see more now, but still not as many as usual.
Morning Debilu
I have a ew monarcs on the butterfly bush
Hi JoAnn, glad you are seeing some.
I finally saw a Monarch in my yard yesterday. I was about ready to jump up and down with joy! : )
Saw the most unusal butterfly ever as I walked the Irondiquoit Hike & Bike Trail with my niece---it was by Lake Ontario, & I cannot find it in my field guide---very large horizontal wings, black with orange horizontal stripes---
Oh, that sounds pretty!
Karen
The only butterflies close in the guide were the longwings----& they're tropical.
here is a good site
http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/gallery
Thanks, Allison---great site! The butterfly we saw still looks like a tropical one---don't know if one would have migrated to Lake Ontario!
Any botanical butterfly gardens out that way? Maybe one made a run for it. :)
I was thinking the same thing! : )
Gee, I don't know---my niece has never mentioned one---maybe Jo Ann or Debi would know...
I wonder if it was a Red Admiral? They can be very varied - there is another called a Red Spotted Purple that is a hybrid of them and another type. I usually only see one Red Admiral a season, but I have lots of Red Spotted Purples which are considered a hybrid of them and another butterfly (which I can't remember off the top of my head). MY point is they are highly variable because they can hybridize so maybe it was one of them? I am pretty sure those are found in your area too.
The odd things about this butterfly were size---about the size of a chipping sparrow, & the long horizontal shape of the wings---plus my niece & I had never seen one like that.
Not sure what a chipping sparrow is but I am sure it is much larger than any butterfy found around my way! lol : )
Chipping sparrow
You're good, Jen!
^_^
The closest butterfly place that I know of is in Niagara Falls.
Okay so it has in recent weeks been way too hot and humid to spend much time in the garden so that of course leads to dreaming and planning. DH has now been informed of the certain demise of more of his grass(it's all gone crabby grass in this area at this point anyway).I have hatched a plan to extend the blue/yellow bed out into said lawn. This sticky out bit is what bugged him at first. Then I explained I wanted grapes, the white eating kind, on the back against poles and fencing like the clems are on now. He said he would help cement the poles this fall, he likes grapes. :)
Here is a shot of proposed extension which will contain some new yellow and orange echinacea, two tones of small lavender for edging, sib. iris and a few more agastache 'Black Adder'. At least that is the plan for next spring. I hope to get newspapers and about a foot of compost down after posts are in and let it do the grass removal over winter for me. This is a pretty small area so not much work and is subject to change without notice over the long cold winter months.
Awesome, can't wait to see it!
How nice to have a new project to dream over in the cold months---smart planning! Debi---my niece said there's an indoor butterfly garden at Strong Memorial---that would be close.