BLOOMS 2011 CONTINUES......

Another NOID double daffodil that came from my grandmother's yard a long time ago.

Nice blooms. That "Miss Saigon" Hyacinth is an awesome color. Love it love it. I know how you're feeling Annette. The lawn guy here has been much better in the past year. I had a discussion with him last year about weed whacking my flowers, especially the seed grown stuff that you can't just go out an replace. Have also learned not to plant anything too close to the edges. I recall reading an article, not too long ago, about winter pansies in Georgia. I guess it's a common thing. The pansies here have just a couple more weeks left. They're starting to die back a bit. Annual types of vinca are very popular for summer color down here.

Miss Saigon is a gorgeous color......the color is actually a bit darker than in the photo. I will add more this fall!

Iris, I love that double NOID daff. How tall is it? It reminds me of Golden Ducat, but yours has more green in the perianth. Jon I've got a variegated vinca minor, that came in a potted plant that I recieved for my birthday 2 years ago. It grew out of the pot, into the ground of my rose bed and took off. It makes a nice understory plant now for my knockout roses, and I pull it out wherever I don't want it grow and plant is where it's needed to fill in the bed more evenly. It's evergreen here.

I planted 100 Dutch irises last fall that should have been Oriental Beauty, but turned out to be the usual purple. Today I found 1 out of the 100 that is Oriental Beauty. I will be emailing Van Englen to let them know about the wrong bulbs being sent. Oriental Beauty has such a pretty combo of colors.

This is not a bulb, but I just had to share. It's my first blooming rose of 2011, that opened today, and the scent is amazing.

Hi Cem9165 -- the small blue blooms next to the tulips are Chionodoxa -- I put them in 2 years ago with the hope that they will spread and eventually become a 'springtime lawn' :-D

I planted some Chionodoxa several years ago, but didn't have much success with them. Only a few bloomed, and none this year. I wonder if the chipmunks or squirrels got to them. My garden is like a banquet for them to feast at their leisure.

'Oriental Beauty' I don't remember planting them. :)

Cem: Those NOID double daffs are about 8-10" tall. They are pretty old as they came from my grandmother's yard. She passed away in 1981 @ age 71. She loved her daffs and tulips!

couple of daff varieties

early tulip

more daffs

Cem: I feel your pain about bulb-munching critters. Squirrels rampage through my garden digging and feasting as they go -- but they don't touch the chionodoxa -- so I'll bet its chipmunks getting at yours

Irisluvr, what a great way to honor your grandmother by continuing to grow the same daffodils that she once had. Jmorth, nice pictures. I love the leaves on that tulip. A good contrast with the orange bloom. Jxmas, I've resorted to putting down Repell All to see if it would lessen the munching critters. I just have to stay on top of it. The rabbts will show up pretty soon for their meal. They ate the tops off of some of my Asiatic lilies last year and I never got to see them bloom.

Daffodils, tulips, snowdrops, and violets...

tulip

irisluvr0252
Post #8481138

Looks like the Historic VAN SION, 1620 also known as Narcissus ‘Telamonius Plenus’ Patti

Sorry I've wondered off the bulbs for a minute.The vinca we buy or grow from seed down here for summer color must only like real a hot humid summer climate. It's just an easy to grow from seed annual variety. When I'm visiting the North in the summer I've seen very little/none of it so I'm assuming perhaps the climate isn't quite right. It grows real fast down here and with some pinching every few weeks just a few plants will fill a large space quite nicely. This is Vinca "Pacifica Really Red". It only took 6 plants to fill in the section underneath the palm tree. The nurseries sell tons of these plants down here in the late spring and summer.

Hi Jon, I have the variegated Vinca Major, that's perennial, with bluish/purple bloom. It has a vining habit, kept it's leaves, and didn't not seem bothered by our cold winter.

Cem - I aboslutely love the vining habit of Vinca Major. I bought a few vines many years ago as a filler for some container plantings, not knowing they would bloom. I ended up planting the vines, and all their many off shoot runners, in the ground after the container plantings were long spent, and I still have the vinca growing and blooming to this day! For some reason, the variegated variety grows much faster than the non-variegated, but the blooms are very similar.

My parents have that kind of vinca up North in the woods behind their house. It is pretty. It comes back and spreads from year to year. I don't believe that kind is an option down here.

I agree Natasha, I really do like it, I just have to keep it in check so that it doesn't take over the other plants in the same bed. Jon, I'll be happy to send you some if you want to experiment in Florida. My gardening motto is never say never to any plants. Annette

Here's proof that some plants survive despite their owners. This plant sat in my basement for months without water since September of last year. I noticed the green leaves emerging several weeks ago gave it water twice. It's not been repotted, and no fertilizer. Here's what greeted me today.

I agree Annette. I'll try something out of zone perhaps by one zone, and maybe two if I gotta try it. I'm alright with the annual vinca for now. Comes in many colors and is very colorful and showy in our summer heat. Thanks for the offer Annette. I really appreciate it.

I brought it upstairs to the realm on the living and gave it more water this evening. The bloom stalks are the tallest I've seen on an amaryllis indoor. The two amaryllis bulbs that have been planted outside in the ground with the Hawaiian gingers are also up and out. Those tend to bloom in the summer.

Jon, we crossed posts. You're welcome. Annette

Arnette, did the Hawaiian gingers survive the winter there where you're? I love those Amaryllis. I've one 'Apple Blossom' and just love them. Back to the gingers. I haul those indoor to the basement every fall.

They do survive and come back every year. I've had some since 1999, that I brought back from Hawaii in the form of 2 roots/tubers. They spread like wildfire at my old house and I'd even given some to my neighbor. When I moved I didn't take any with me, but when she sold her home she had me come reclaim some of the plants. This particular variety is hardy to zone 7, and blooms in September until frost when it's killed to the ground. It multiplies well and has an amazing scent. The cannas also survive here left in the ground as well. Annette

I'm guessing your indoor Amaryllis did not bloom last fall Annette? It would be unusual for it to bloom last fall and then gather enough plant energy for it to bloom again so quickly this spring. I'm pretty sure its my "Appleblossom" Amaryllis that bloomed as a double this year after not blooming for two years. Never bought any "doubles" so assuming two years of storing plant energy may be why it bloomed as a double this year. Stalks two and three are now growing oit of the same bulb and they're looking like they will be doubles as well. That's gonna be one tired bulb by the time it stops blooming this spring!!!

Yes, Jon, I sow the annual vinca (Catharanthus roseus) every year, well actually starting last year...LOL!! They are easy to start from seed, and you can get more interesting varieties. Mine will not live over winter here.

I also have the perennial vinca minor - a variegated one up front by the road under an oak. I don't have much luck with anything else planted there as it is in a (somewhat)neglected area. The ones by the road are not pampered in any way, though an occasional watering during the heat of summer is in order.

Jon, your amaryllis will need a Spring Break after all that blooming,LOL. The amaryllis that's blooming now actually bloomed last spring. I let it grow all summer to store energy, then let it go dormant in the fall with intentions of repotting it, and try to get it blooming around Christmas. Well good intentions were put aside and I just neglected it. The plant has done fine despite that.

Ah, ok Annette. Now it all makes perfect sense to me. My double Amaryllis will definitely need an energy break after the blooming. Had to stake the original stalk. It had grown to over 3 feet in height and had flopped over.

I hear ya Evelyn. The annual vinca is extremely easy to grow from seed and usually produces first blooms in 50-60 days. They're annuals here also but you can get a good 9 months of blooms out of them in our climate. Have tried quite a few varieties/colors/different series over the years and have like the "Pacifica Series" the best for its large sized flowers and great branching habit. My favorite one so far has been Vinca "Pacifica Burgundy Halo". When you grow it you can see why it was a 2007 All American Selections award winner. Used it as a border in 2009 and here's a picture of a small section of it. Last years "Pacifica Really Red" was nice, but nothing special/unique. Thinking of perhaps Vinca "Pacifica Apricot" this summer.

Jon

New bloom on Amaryllis 'Blossom Peacock'. This is the second bloom stalk for this one since I planted them in the pot sometime in March (I think).

Love this one! Thanks Bleek!

This message was edited Apr 11, 2011 8:19 PM

Wow wow wow. That is super neat and that color is so uncommon for Amaryllis. Gotta love it.

I like that Pacifica Burgundy Halo. How big are the blooms across? If they can survive south FL, surely they can survive our GA heat. I like to put in something that blooms all summer till our first frost then pansies go in. The last few years I've used the dragon wing begonias. They tolerate the sun and heat really well.

Honest bloom size is 1 1/2 - 2" across. There's still plenty of time to hunt down some seeds and get them started Annette. They grow so quickly from seed whether direct sewn or started in containers. They like full sun and like it hot and humid. Funny you should mention pansies. I have pansies where last summers vinca was. Some reseeded vinca has grown and begun to bloom so there's an unintentional vinca/pansy combination under the palm tree at the moment.

That's great, an interesting combo. The pansies will shut down once it warms up. At least you have somthing there to fill in the spot when they start to look crazy.

I do have a Park Seed 2010 seed pack of "Jaio Dark Red" Vinca you're welcome to Annette. Haven't grown this series of Vinca, but the color combination is quite similar to "Pacifica Burgundy Halo". If you would like to try them d-mail me and I will mail them to you tomorrow.

It seems that the difference is the white colored "eye" is a bit smaller sized on the "Jaio Dark Red".