Robin, so good to hear from you I was beginning to think you dropped off the ends of the earth lol Sorry to hear the economy has put a damper on your business!
Your Locust tree really looks like it is going to be a nice tree! But gotta tell ya they say you can pull the sprouts coming up they grow like mad dogs around here and it’s hard to keep up with them but then I have the black locust I think around here if I let them go for even a week they are about eight inches high and already getting thorns on them does yours have thorns it didn’t look like it from the pictures.
I’m planting my contorted shrub in my side yard since I finally got my tree down and I have a man neighbor that moved in around spring and he has a teenage son so I’m hoping to get them to help me get the shrub out of the pot lol I bet that thing has grown two feet more with all this rain we have been having this year! I’m just hoping the roots to it can be saved!
Sorry you lost a bunch of plants to the aphids! The ones that have survived sure are pretty :)
La the seeds to the Kiwi Blues are very small maybe I was just misunderstanding about you letting them drop to the ground then collecting them is there another plant near by them they could be coming from? You need to collect them off of the plant :)
http://www.theseedsite.co.uk/db19.html
I hope this shows up on the right page but if it doesn't just go under the S's and look for Salpiglossis sinuata, it's the first one on the S page.
Cottage Garden Seed Swap & Chat #38
Hey Lea!! I grilled Jean about that locust before I let her get one for me - at the very least it doesn't have the thorns that a regular one does. The one I have is just a puppy (it's about 4' tall right now) and didn't cost much, so if it looks like it's going to be throwing out a lot of sprouts it will get dug up and replaced with something else. She got it from this place (you probably already know about it):
http://www.nurseryoverstock.com/
No I didn't know about that place but I put it in my favorites and will talk this girl into going there with me soon lol You'll have to let me know when you are visiting your sister and maybe we can get together to go check it out sounds like they are getting more plants all the time :) Besides it would be nice to see you again!
Lea I think we're talking about 2 different animals here. The Kiwi Blue I have is Cerinthe (see my photo above or you can check it out at http://www.veseys.com/ca/en/store/annuals/cerinthe/kiwiblue.) It has quite large seeds, similar to 4'Oclocks. Salpiglossis (or Painted Tongue) has tiny seeds similar to petunias.
ah! that thing is beautiful I didn't realize there were two different Kiwi Blues :) My bad lol
I just wanted to pop in and say that my guppy plant is still growing beautifully. I am worried that it might cross pollinate with another type of salvia (I think?) I have growing.
I have all kinds of 4 O'clocks growing around here. I don't worry about the cross pollination with them. They seem to be a never ending source of constant surprises for me. It's okay if the seed doesn't come/breed true, because out in my yard somewhere, there is another one just like the one that didn't breed true. I love 4 O'clocks, and am collecting for my friends here in CA, who inexplicably seem to have overlooked them in the past. They are drought hardy, and I've found it's best to water them lightly here. Otherwise they get long and leggy and fall over. You can whack them back which I do a lot, especially in front of my son's window where they are trying to hide the rose. I feel bad, but I have them growing in lots of places.
I hope your 4 O'clocks breed true, that is one of my favorite varieties. Have to do some aphid eradication myself. Ants were killed off, still got to get rid of that huge wasp nest, and the aphids. I even found a few slugs. Yuck! Snails go to the chickens and make them very happy! : )
Got to go!
WIB!
SW
Good Morning Everyone! I finally have some pictures to share. I will start with the Glads that surprised me by overwintering. There are some other colors in there now too, maybe I'll get a new pic soon. : )
Forgive me for not looking up who I got these from but I love them and thank you!
African Foxgloves - First Bloom - Can't wait for the rest. : )
I have one Dahlia blooming - again have to look up who gave them to me but I think it was Lala! This one is a beauty. : )
Out of the Lantana I got - I only ended up with one seedling. These ones are tough to germinate but It ended up being perfect for this container I made.
Not sure if you can see the Lantana well enough in that last one. Here it is closer up.
Although I still have a ways before I am eating yummy ripe tomatoes I have some toms on my plants from Star's seeds and the others I tried.Thanks Star! : )
Now these aren't from the swap but I think I will finally have seeds to collect from my Scarlet Runner beans... It only took me three attempts to get them to thrive this well. Lol : )
Sorry for the bad pic but these are in my new garden I had help from my cottage garden friends in designing. The Hollyhocks took a turn for the worse once they started blooming! Is this normal? Sorry as much as I liked them without the horrible leaves - don't think these are a good choice for NE. I know people in drier climates do well with them though.
Here is my Maple Flowering Aubutilon? Very pretty! Again this one was a tough germinater - I only got one but it was worth it. Look how pretty it is! I think this one was also from Lala? Thanks : )
Here is one from two swaps ago - a first bloom on my Marshmallow Plants. : )
Here are the Coleus from Critter! :) Thanks
Here are Stachys from two swaps ago... Last one. : )
Good job, Meredith! I'm loving those African Foxglove too! How tall is that Dahlia? The large decorative mix I started look kinda like that, and I'm getting lots of nice colors. Mine are about 3' tall. I was thinking it was you I sent some of those to.
Oh yes they were from you! Thank you so much! They aren't very tall but it is probably because I sunk them in their pots and haven't actually planted them yet! I need to amend the soul there and with everything I've been planting it got forgotten. They are probably happily rooted out the bottom of their pots though. : )
So glad to hear they're performing well for you too! I've really enjoyed them, and had some pleasant surprises among the mix. Last year I only ended up with a couple that made it to blooming with the drought and bugs, and they were yellow. But this year I'm seeing some large blooms in rich shades of burgundy, plum, and crimson as well as some pretty pastels. How big is the pot yours is in? That may be a really good way to yank it up in fall and store the whole root dry in the pot for winter if you want to save it.
Great pics Meridith. Holyl hocks if ya have problesm with folige do good with a milk bath have the formula aroudn somewhere to keep it lookign nice and bugs off it and such.
That marshmellow plant is cute. That a ne w name and plant I havent heard of. LOL Make s ya wish for a smores. : )
Those are gorgeous Meredith! I LOVE living vicariously through everyone's gardens :-)
Lea, you're on! For various reasons I'm spending more time at Jean's this year than previously, and she loves her garden as much as we love ours, so I'm willing to be that not only would we be able to swing by and get you, but there would probably be more than one nursery on our trip - LOL! I gave her some canna's from a co-op last year, and she didn't get them dug up for winter, resulting in a bit of a pout from me - but she'd put them so close to her house that they overwintered fine and are just now blooming. She promised to get seeds for me :-)
As for the hollyhocks - well, I've gotta admit I always try to have at least one in the garden as a Sacrificial Plant for the japanese beetles. The leaves end up decimated, but they always bloom, and for the most part the JB's leave everything else alone.
Robin, my neighbor keeps her cannas close to the house and they bloom I gave her a yellow one when Suzy and I split some and come to think of it I haven't seen it yet I'll have to go down there and see if it made it I think the yellow ones are the ones I lost and this one coming up is a pink one I think lol
Rubbing hands together lol More nurseries to visit are ya hear yet LOL I'm ordering from Star now she has an add in the classifieds :) I figgured I put that in there she probably won't lol I know one thing I'd better not lose this house it would take me years to move all of these plants and I keep planting more lol
I'm having a heck of a time trying to collect some seeds this year with all of this rain! By the time I remember which ones I want it's raining again but I have some seeds in the back of the truck does that count lol I have some silver speedwell I think it is that I really want to get the seeds to and missed them but I read they may bloom until fall I've never dead headed them before so I'm going out to do it now :)
Merdith your flowers are really pretty! My hollyhocks aren't as large as they usually are this year but I didn't have time to put compost around them like I usually do this year the leaves always look bad for me too but like Robin said those June bugs aren't bothering much else in my bed so they can have the HH's leaves as long as I get the blooms lol
Neal, I've been a bad mommy some how and just lost my last Ostrich aster that I grew do they not last until fall or should I have planted them in the ground I had them in a pot and they were doing great then all of a sudden they all started turning brown what did I do wrong :( They were so beautiful! I hope you can save me some more seeds I had been dead heading them and what I have left doesn't look like any good seeds.
Lea, those Asters were commercial seed, and last year I had no luck with them either. This year I have a few budding, and they look healthy, but not as tall as I was expecting. If they do anything, and look worthy, I'll save some seed. But I'm not too excited about them- I think I'm over trying with them, LOL.
Thanks for the comps everyone. :)
In case you couldn't find any info on 'Marshmallow Plants' here they are in the PF http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1077/
I agree the hollyhocks are a great trap crop for the Japanese Beetles, they have been loving them. The only problem is I don't think I've ever had this many, before growing them. The leaves have major rust but our cool rainy weather we've been experiencing this summer is not helping. I want to rip them out but being so addicted to our seed swaps- I won't -until I get those seeds! Lol : )
I really need to get the Dahlias out of the pots - they are only 3.5" ones! : O They seem to be doing very well considering. I would say they are almost 2' tall. : )
Neal, every time I grow annual asters I have problems with them for some reason and I really hate it I love the annual asters! I sure wish I knew the secret to growing those darn flowers lol Maybe I just try too hard with them too :)
Lea, I used to grow annual Asters without issue, but the last few years haven't had much luck. I think I need to quit trying the more recent hybrids and go back to the 10cent packs of seed from Walmart- I never had problems with those.
Great pics Meredith and I'm especially tickled to see you had luck (albeit limited) with the Abutilon. I had some gifted abutilon seed that germinated OK but then I lost the seedlings. Not lost them as in they died, I lost them physically after they germinated. I never did figure out what happened to them. Anyway, the seeds I collected myself never germinated at all so I'm glad to see that at least one in the bunch made it.
thanks for sharing the pics meredith!! i am envious you got the lantana to germinate......i tried and tried. finally gave up and bought a plant that i will overwinter in the garage. love it!! congrats on all your successess....gives me hope for next year. :-)
Have a Happy Birthday SingingWolf! Hope its filled with joy, laughter, and blooms :-)
I've got several Sunflowers blooming nicely now, the Italian Whites being the first to start and the most prolific. I'm curious what kind luck those of you I sent seeds to have had with them?
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SINGING WOLF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hope ya have many years of love, fun, prosperity and joy!
I have some small Abutilon out ther eblooming now, and I tryign to decide if I shoudl step them up if they goan over winter here or not. they cute with their little pinkblooms all over them. heheh they have mor eblooms almost than leaves.
Happy Birthday SingingWolf :)) Hope you have a wonderful day and lots of blooms to celebrate with!
Neal, I got some sunflowers from you but I didn't get them planted I will next year if I get to keep the house I promise :)
Chele, I have some lantana that reseeded from last year believe it or not I don't lol It's starting to bloom now and I bought the same kind this year and have two plants of it out there so I'm saving some seeds to WS to see if I can get them to germinate that way I have no luck with them either.
Happy Happy Birthday singingWolf , Hope this yar is full of love and beauty for you and yours!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Carolyn
Happy Birthday Singing Wolf!!!!
The Indian corn I got from you is doing great. I'll post a picture later. Thank you.
Happy Birthday RatherB! Have a wonderful day hope it's cool where you are just walking out the door is like pouring a bucket of water all over yourself here LOL
I'm trying to collect seeds today and empty all of my water buckets and rain barrel trying to get ready for more rain coming in this week I've been feeding my perennials for the last time this year :( Just can't believe it's August already!
Whoooooohooooooooo another birthday person. : )
HAPPY BIRTHDAY RATHERBDigging!!!!!!!!!!!
Hope yoru day is a happy one and filled with joy and laughter! may you have many many more! : )
Happy Belated Birthday!!
Lea that's so funny! I started sollecting seeds too. I have some Transylvanian Salvia and Zizia seeds so far. Could of had some Red Columbine but I didn't get them in time.
This is the time of year I'm so glad for all the seed starting in spring- those annuals steal the spotlight in late summer! Sunflowers, Zinnias, Datura, Morning Glories, Lion's Tail, Balsam, KMOGG, Cosmos, Nicotiana, Cleome, Vinca and others that aren't coming to mind are cranking out the blooms! Oh, and the Dahlias- I've be very happy with those I started from seed this year.
LaLaJane, I found a bloom among the species Dahlias that had the prettiest coloring, shading from yellow to pink, and totally different from how they appeared in previous years. I'd only ever had solid lavender and wine blooms before, so I do think some cross pollination must have happened. I recall having some coral-orange-yellow blend border Dahlias growing near them last year that I would bet provided the errant pollen.
Yes Neal the annuals are just beautiful this time of year and with all this rain, this is the time of year that I always wish I had planted more no matter how many annuals that I had planted earlier!
Also Neal I got some seeds off of the neighbor's Ostrich asters that I gave her so no need to try and save me some like you I just hope they are good they look to be nice and fat :)
What happened to the Birthday list on the home page?? I miss it!
I finally got some seeds off of my Jester's Jacket geranium yesterday as they were turning black and in the middle of the night I kept hearing this popping sound and got up couldn't figure out what it was lol I love this geranium it's so cool and pretty little flowers not quite an inch maybe a half inch but the foliage is variegated. I didn't deadhead so I would get seeds this year this is it's second year. I had two planted side by side well about a foot a part and only one came back this year but the one is pretty big :)
Meredith I had Firecracker columbine planted from T&M and they turned out to be purple and short spurred I was so upset :( I haven't figured out what I'm going to do with them yet but I'm not keeping them in the spot they are in. Last year I cleaned all of my short spurred columbines out and gave them away.
I collected some of the orange profusion seeds yesterday I just love that one!
Tunik, if you are there...my orange bells are blooming with my purple lisianthus and they look wonderful together! I just wish these trees would grow where we are!
Star, my purple and white lisianthus is from you :) I gave some purple lisianthus to one of my neighbors and she has a big seed on hers I had no idea there was time for them to seed here I've been watching it to grab it when it's finished lol I guess I dead head mine too much to get seeds this neighbor is never at home so she doesn't deadhead so much the last time I was up there I was deadheading her plants and found the seed looks like they are big enough for a bunch of seeds! I hope it is I left one to reseed on mine I just hate to lose any blooms on them by not deadheading they are so beautiful!