Becky's garden - Summer 2010

Hey Becky, I use coffee grounds in all my pots and gardens. It is a good slug.snail killer and rich in nutrients. Thhose leaves remind me of some of mine, on several plants, which had mites and lack of iron. Once I got rid of the mites and gave them Multi B with Iron water, they straightened right out. B vitamins the multi kind with Iron, one tab in a jug of water. Is like a super thrive, only cheaper. I get my vitamins at the dollar general. I use Kens mix and a little soap for the mites.
I use the cheapest potting soil on sale, add pine mulch pieces ( just a few) , compost, perlite, coffee grounds, sand and a little Kansas Clay, and a dolap of neem oil, for my potting mix, and now I add some mosquito dunk ground up to the soil, since I am getting ready to bring them into the house. There is a soap spray at DG that is organic and safe and five bucks, to spray the surface of the pots with, and there is a granular DG brand of osmotecote I add in too.Bloom Buster is too strong in Posphates for my brugs, so I use a general even number for the fertilizer. It is too hard for me to make a special mix for each type plant I grow. I like bugs that I can see, just not the ones in the ground, that eat up the roots and things.

well here are some pictures I took this morning

Thats a pretty one James...;)

Nice Blue Flaked I. purpurea bloom, James! Glad to see it blooming for you!

Well, thought I would post the 4 vines of the Blue Speckles (F2) that came from my summer vine. Out of 15 seeds, only 4 germinated. I also tried to start some indoors recently and neither of them germinated either. So ... I won't be sharing seeds of this mutant this year it appears. :-(

But I thought I would show you what the 4 seedlings look like. They had dropped all their leaves (except the cactus gene plant) and as you can now see, have regrown new leaves and are starting to bloom again. One has a bloom today. It was white with blue speckles on the outer edge of the flower. The bloom didn't open all the way because of the rain, so I didn't bother to take a photo.

These all came from the same parent vine. I did not cross any of the blooms on that vine either. This has been the most difficult seeds to germinate, but it has almost been the most interesting F2 seeds I've ever grown. Take a look at how different the vines and/or the blooms are. Two of the vines look very similar, but the blooms are quite different. One has the speckles on the bloom and the other produces an off-white solid color bloom. The cactus has the speckles too. The one with the densely variegated leaves has not bloomed yet. I am interested to see what the blooms look like on that one! They all look so different that it is hard to believe they all came from the same parents! LOL! Sorta like me and my siblings. We look like a Heinz 57 ... mutts! A little of everything, but none matching! LOL!

I do a lot of MG seed trading and also share for postage. Not sure how many folks have found a love for MG vines over the years who I have traded with. I know some species of MGs can be a bit fussy. In cooler regions of the country (and the world), they may take forever to bloom. Often they don't last long enough to produce ripe seeds. In warmer climates they bloom quickly and often produce seeds as well. But the warmer regions also have the bugs and diseases that can quickly destroy a MG vine. I know many folks who have tried I. nils and I. purpureas. They prefer I. purpureas because they often come back (volunteers) if they manage to make seeds. I. nils tend to be the vines that require more effort and are even a little more expensive to grow since they need good soil and fertilizer to bloom. They are also more expensive to purchase. I know folks who give away baggies of I. purpurea seeds that would be enough to grow out for the rest of my life! LOL! Whereas, I. nil seeds seem to produce less seeds and often don't come back as volunteers like the I. purpureas do.

I suppose I. nils are good business for some seed companies. I wonder how much competition there is between the different seed selling companies and small seed businesses? As far as I. nils go, it seems the Japanese still have the best selections of true cultivars. I know a lot of folks here in the USA make crosses, but how often do they come true? I know it can take years to stabilize a cross to create a new cultivar. Are MGs really in demand these days? Or are we just a few gardeners who happen to like MGs? I know a LOT of folks that love clematis or roses or daylilies or orchids, but how big is the demand for MG cultivars and species? Are MG vines a growing movement or will they play second or third fiddle or none at all in most people's gardens? Anyone care to guess or give your opinion?

It's ironic ... when I talk to folks these days, they are more interested in veggie and fruit seeds instead of ornamental flowering plants of any kind. Maybe a sign of the current economy? Most the gardeners I know locally have "maybe" grown MG vines but most never at all. Some are interested, others just laugh when I mention MGs. I wonder if MGs will ever become a focal point in most gardens in the future? What do you think? I know I really enjoy them, but I have discovered here in humid Florida that I now have to grow them seasonally or indoors. Between the rust fungus and the beetles, the I. nil vines don't last very long unless it is Spring, dry, and cool enough to keep the bugs & fungus away. What do you think? Will MGs become well known and grown in gardens across the USA or even around the world? Or are they unlikely to gain popularity? Are there many newbies out there who are truly interested in growing MGs? I've had a lot of newbies request seeds for postage and then never heard from them again. I wonder whether they grew the seeds, whether they enjoyed the vines or not, and if they are still growing them every year or for some reason gave up on growing them?

This message was edited Oct 30, 2010 9:51 AM

Mgs are a very popular choice for the Japanese you see them in every street. They are often grown as a sun screen in front of the main windows of houses, even our local fire station puts on a superb display with vines reaching 30 feet at the front of the building. All my neighbors grow some in their gardens to create shade and privacy, a very useful plant indeed! One newbie that grows them, loves them and will continue growing them!

Jon - I agree with you whole-heartedly about MGs probably being grown in just about every garden in Japan. They are far from common here in the USA. They haven't seemed to have caught on here. Which is too bad. I think most people believe they are invasive vines and therefore keep their distance from them or avoid growing them. I. purpureas do have that reputation for producing lots of volunteers.

I grew Sweet Autumn Clematis this year in the ground for the first time. My two vines had always grown in pots. They seem to like climbing the mini pergola. And they bloomed like crazy for me earlier in late summer. Apparently the pollinators liked the blooms this year because they are now loaded with fluffy seeds. I hope I don't wind up with a ton of volunteers! LOL!

Looks like this thread is getting a tad bit too long, so join us here for Becky's Garden - Fall 2010:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1138327/

Here is my co-op climbing rose "Old Blush" that I have growing on each end of the cattle panel arbor. These roses were tiny when I bought them.



This message was edited Oct 30, 2010 11:00 PM

Becky, I think some people have the misconception of growing MGs would be invasive and some haven't tried the i nils, so they are missing out.

Nicole, you got that right!

I just wanted to tell everyone how much I enjoy seeing everyone's blooms and gardens each year! And I appreciate all the seed trades whether I grow them right away or later. So many seeds, so little space and time...

I am NO expert when it comes to knowing all about MGs, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate growing them and enjoying them! Does anyone have to be an "expert" to grow MGs? No. Most of us grow them because we love them. What can I say? They are beautiful plants!

I've shared seeds with so many people over the years! And many people here have generously shared with me. Antoinette, Dany, and Collin have shared some really unique and rare MG seeds with me and I really appreciate that! (As do the people who I share the seeds with from my first grow-outs of those vines.) Helena, Jackie, Darren, Karen2005, and Ronnie have shared many seeds that I was looking for. Debra has shared some awesome plants and so many neat seeds! There are so many others here, too ... I appreciate everything each and every one of you have sent me in trades and just sharing with me! IMHO, all of the crosses have been outstanding! This group of gardeners are some of the most generous and kind folks I've met online! Thanks to each and every one of you! :-)

Here's to future vines and blooms ... and this wonderful community of gardeners!!! You are each glorious in your own special way! :-)

This message was edited Feb 17, 2011 9:40 PM

We love you too, Becky. How is your newest "grow out" grandbaby doing?

Becky, Thanks for your kind words, we appreciate you too. Thanks for all the wonderful sds you've shared so generously.

Debra - Thank you! My granddaughter is getting big! She is adorable as most babies are! :-)

Jackie - Thank you!

Y'all are great folks! ♥

Hi guys! Nice sentiment Becky, I have an awful lot to thank you for too!

Me too, I agree, love growing your mg's Becky!!

Hey y'all, long time, no hear, this is a very interesting thread with discussion about stablizing hybrids. I'm very excited about my F2 grow-out that I want to try this season, The F2 of my 3 way cross, (early call pink x early call blue) x pink and white speckled NOID. I cannot wait to see all the variation I come across with this F2. I also want to do an F2 grow-out of Akatsuki no Umi x Early call pink. May have lots of suprises!

-Becky, I just love your silver wolf, what a piece of eye candy:-)

Beckygardener, fell in love with double jishi and kikyo lace, can you direct me to where I can purchase some seed? Thank you much, would love to see them growing on my fence.

Thanks Jon, Helena, Tony, and dem2rd!

dem2rd - Sent you an email.

oooh, Kikyo Lace. What does that one look like? The Kikyo are very pretty.

Nicole, dmAIL ME i HAVE SOME KIKYO SEEDS FROM kAREN LEFT..oops caps lock, new lap top and new fake nails.. ugh

Becky, you and several others here have been so generous to me also, I don't know how to thank you all. Jackie, Helena, several others, thank you all. I don't trade that much anymore, but love growing these beautiful flowers. Hopefully I'll have more crosses to trade at the end of this coming season. It is mind boggling to think of the possibilities in creating these crosses, you never know what you will get, you can only imagine.

I have a feeling this is going to be a great year for all of us.

A..

Hope we all get breathtaking, beautiful flowers this yr A. Fun to contemplate. :-)

All your blooms are beautiful! I have a question, I have a morning glory I need identified and so far no 1 on Dave's has been able to help me so maybe you can.
The blooms are lavender with 5 pink rays, blooms range from 2 inches to 2 1/2 inches and it climbed about 5-6 feet and it came up from last years seeds. The leaves are heart shaped. I pulled up some vines from a friends house and they did great.
I love the color of this bloom.

Boopsie, unfortunately Becky no longer post here but what you have is an Ipomoea purpurea, most likely a cross so no real name. It's a beauty for sure!

Thanks for your info. I may just half to find a name for it myself.