Can anyone offer some advice, please? (In HOUSTON) How long can i reliably expect my petunias to last? i am trying to decide (despite the fact that they are still flowering) if i should go ahead and cut my losses and replace them or not. They are in a fairly protected spot where they get about three hours of morning sun and then stay shaded for the rest of the day.... Any advice/??
Petunias
With the amount of sun they're getting they might make it all the way to winter. Mine usually get ripped out by July, but that's because they're in full sun and in a bed by the walk, so if they look scraggly they are really noticeable. I think it also depends to some extent to which petunias you have. The newer Wave varieties are more heat tolerant than most. I had some of those in a back bed that spread like ground cover over a large area and stayed there for several years. The blooms got smaller in the worst of the heat, but then in the fall they started right back up with solid color over the whole plant.
Hope this helps.
Crow
The petunias are the standard variety. i planted them in november and they grew green during the winter and then started to burst for the early spring. now they are long and leggy and i don't know if should cut them back and fertize and see if i can get another flush out of them or not. what do you think?
I'd go for it. I mean, if it doesn't work out, you can always pull them up. All you'll have lost is a couple weeks time and a tablespoon of fertilizer :)
I use to live in Texas and grew from seed a petunia called "Laura Bush Petunia" It only came in 2 colors I know of, a bright dark pink, and purple. Very easy to grow from seed and they recommended you cut it by 1/3 every month once it started flowering.
It was the best petunia I ever grew that could handle the heat and keep blooming. I looked it up and I got the seeds from wildseedfarms.com. (Located in Fredericksburg, TX). The botanical name is Petunia X violacea (Solanacae) They say it blooms from April until 1st frost. I would pretty much have to say that is true.
I grow it here in Redding, CA and we get very hot 110+ during the summer but with very little humidity. It does just fine.
If you like the color you'll love this one. Shame it doesn't come in more colors.
Dee