Fall Swap at Sallys- DISCUSSION about your haves and wants

This seems like the place to post this erratum. Prior to the Spring Plant Swap I offered what I thought I had sown as Digitalis ‘Candy Mountain’. Soon I realized that the ID was incorrect and thought I might have mixed my label with a Penstemon. Then it became evident that the seedlings were Snapdragons, and since the only such seeds I had on hand were ‘Night and Day’, I offered the plants as such. After the swap they began blooming and displayed an unexpected color, pink not deep red. I contacted Park Seeds where I purchased the seeds and sent them a photo of the resulting blooms. Their response was

“The Snapdragon seeds are labeled when they come from the supplier, but we do not have a way to know which one you received as we do not offer this particular one. We apologize for the error.”

Offering these particular plants has become an unending comedy of errors. I am unable to provide the correct ID and apologize to those received these plants expecting the more intense ‘Night and Day’. :-o

Well if splitting the clump would kill it than I only have the one to offer which SS has asked for. I want the space for other plants - I will dig it up, leaving dirt on it and pot it for her within the next month. Would it be ok doing that, do you think?

I split a bunch of smaller purchased clumps of grasses this summer... so far, so good, I think I've only lost a couple of little divisions (they got too dry). You might be able to take a couple of small starts from around the edges, leaving the main clump intact (with some dirt on the roots). Better, maybe, when it starts coming up in spring SSG could cut a few starts from around the edges if it's looking vigorous. That way, you won't be hacking at the roots before heading into winter.

Greenthumb, I hope Parkseed sent you a replacement packet or gave you a credit/refund for those seeds. They're usually pretty good about that sort of thing, although it's been a few years since I've ordered from them.

Yippie!!!!! And the fun has begun. So glad to see Terp getting in to the feel of it. Believe me, you will have more plants than you know what to do with after one of these swaps. I haven't visited the have to offer page, but will get there and see what folks are offering. Haven't had a chance to do inventory here either, so it will be a bit before I can send my offer list.

Do want to say that the planning that goes on before the swaps is loads of fun too. Love each and every one of you. At least twice a year I can count on having something very enjoyable to be involved in. Kudos to whoever started these swaps.

Ruby

Re bulb ordering- I'm not in a position to spend money on bulbs, but I was looking at this one
http://www.daffodildepot.com/Daffs-For-Naturalizing/W.P.-Milner/62396e39ada88a292c77f4fe1d697bf9
because someone said you can plant small narcissus like these throughout your beds, they are not too obtrusive after bloom, leaves go away pretty quick and they REPEL VOLES. I think you eventually need a lot of them.
Price seems good here too but they wouldn't ship till November, or way after swap anyway.

Sally---
I will have a lot of bulbs from the usual small daffs that we all have--everywhere.
Part of the digging up I did.

Mix of regular Daffs as well. I will keep a few--just in case I need to fill in somewhere.

Gita

I love little daffs! You know, I haven't had nearly as much trouble with voles as the years have gone on... Maybe my gardens just have too many daffodils (of all sizes) for their liking?

We can hope!
I have one clump of daffs in my shady bed that's generally chock ful of voles too.

This says if you want to dig out daffodils , do it about now amd let they dry right on the soil wehre they lived
http://www.daffodildepot.com/FingerSpitzenGefuhl/
From a bulb seller, who wants them to dry before shipping. I guess it's still good advice for us.

Hmmmm I guess I could add paperwhites to my haves then. They've been drying all summer...LOL...but still look in good shape...

I have 3 Paperwhite bulbs as well--"drying" since Th-Giving?

Has anyone planted them out in garden? Do they survive like all other bulbs?
When do they bloom--au naturelle?

Thanks--Gita

paperwhites are tender narcissus (tazettas, I think), so they won't overwinter outside.

Thanks for the link, Sally, but I don't think we want to do extra digging in the heat if it's not necessary! I think as long as we put the dug bulbs into boxes or paper bags (not plastic), they'll be fine until they're planted.

I can't imaging buying daffs in August. I'm more likely to lag behind the "season" so I can take advantage of the late sales. LOL

Paper whites have lived through two winters of my probably near zone eight if not close to nine sunny side bed. But they have not bloomed at all. I have read surprising things about their cold tolerance. Then again they are daffodils. Some people get rebloom.

sally - did you force your paper whites originally? When forced they are so depleted that it may take multiple years in garden conditions to rebuild their stores sufficiently to rebloom.

Ugh, David...good to know....I bought them clearanced when the blooms were about spent. I'm sure they were forced....sheesh

SO---
The 3 bulbs I have saved--from being 'forced" in the Holiday Season" (NOT in water--but in soil in a pot)
and that have languished outside, somewhere, in an empty pot since--will not grow and bloom next year???

I was planing to plant them in a bed--or in a pot. Hoping they will sprout and bloom next year....HMMM...
I only have 3 bulbs--and they are still OK.

WHAT should I do with them? Gita

"Forced" bulbs use up an awful lot of themselves, but if they were grown on for a while (green leaves after flowering), the bulb might have enough substance to it to come back. I'm not sure how being "stored" outside will have affected them. I think some people grow them on after blooming like an amaryllis and plant them out in the summer (or keep them in their pots with water & an occasional dose of fertilizer). Then you can dig them up, let them go dormant, and pot them up to bloom for the holidays, at least in theory -- again, like an amaryllis.

I'm more willing to go through all that for an amaryllis than for a paperwhite bulb, but nothing ventured, nothing gained. In my yard, my sunniest bed by the patio or by a big rock "heat sink" is still maybe zone 7, not nearly warm enough to keep a tender bulb from freezing.

I will trade the following hornworm (should I be able to locate where I transplanted him to) for any worm of a darker color. I have been startled TWICE today by lime green 'insects' on my plants. First when making pesto and a 'leaf' clearly jumped straight at my face and then while watering I came across America's least Wanted below on my LILAC bush. Hello!?! Didn't he realize the tomatoes were in the back on the deck? He's got the nerve to rear up like a stallion because I moved him - giving me the 'mean mug' all the while....sheesh. BTW our Critter did an article, I believe, on this lovely (tongue in cheek) creature.

This message was edited Jul 29, 2012 10:35 PM

Chantell, your photos are super fine. I believe you have a Waved Sphinx Moth caterpillar that actually needs to feed on lilac (ash, privet, fringe tree) and not tomatoes. The sphinx moth helps pollinate many fragrant flowers and is also called a hummingbird moth.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/152231

There are lots of different Sphinx moth/hornworms

http://www.uky.edu/Ag/CritterFiles/casefile/insects/butterflies/sphinx/sphinx.htm

Maybe you can get some pics of yours when it becomes a moth!

http://www.cirrusimage.com/moths_hummingbird_clearwing.htm

He's much prettier than the tobacco / tomato hornworms! Still has that "mean mug" though. Here's the article (with a lot of great photos from talented DGers): http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/1270/

Sally- I would love a hardy geranium what color? Pink?
And I love daffy bulbs to fill in spot s i will take any kind. ESP the new vole repellents.

Donner - the brunnera would be great complimentary plant
They are extremely easy right? I think I recall reading a dg article about them.I


Chantell - the plumeria im interested in that as well
I don't know much about the plant though is it an easy bloomer?

David, yes my paperwhites were forced.
I'd say plant them the best you can with fertile soil underneath, not worrying too much about the cold, and just see what ya get. Feedback threads from my article have a few testimonials.

Great.

Terp, brunneras are very easy to grow. The foliage looks nice throughout the season even when they are not blooming. a great plant for the shade garden. I will bring you some.

I would love to have some daffodil bulbs too if anybody still has some to spare.

This message was edited Jul 30, 2012 12:54 PM

Donner - sounds great, exactly what I expected.

Who doesn't like daffodils!?!

Sally---
I will have enough daff. bulbs to share. Both big and small ones.
Should make up individual "care packages"......;o)

Coleup - thanks for the info on my ET wanna-be....sadly I think I moved him to a community pine tree. I will dutifully check tomorrow but I doubt he hung around there. I actually saw the hummingbird moth last summer around my PB shrub...hmmm, I should find those pics. Thank you Jill for posting for sharing the link.

Terp - the plumerias are very easy plants but will not tolerate temps dipping below 50 F for any length of time. Once the night time temps go down consistently to 50 - my plumies get brought indoors. I used to tell everyone to decrease their watering till they went semi-dormant. You can do this but stand less of a chance to enjoy their blooms. Once temps warm up - they go back outside and they should be provided a regular good dose of 'food' and soaked frequently. Their flowers are beautiful....course I can't for the life of me remember the color of these...LOL. I'll check the pot - might have something still legible written on the side.

Chantell, am I supposed to bring your PB shrub inside this fall or put it into the ground? It's in a big pot now, looking very nice! I will pot up my plumie this fall and find it a sunny window or at least a place with the amaryllises downstairs. It would be nice to actually get a bloom from it! Did your nephew's banana corm resprout as I hoped it would? Or are we putting in an order from Wellspring? (Hmm, should we put in a Wellspring order before the swap anyway?)

PB shrub is hardy....throw her in the ground!! ^_^ Plumie - good plan...keep her going thru the winter...lots of food and water while warm - just like with your others....hopefully you'll have an inflo popping up. Mine don't bloom each year but they may have been a 'my bad' for the winter 'care' I previously provided (or lack thereof) Nanner never did show life...I'm sorry. I found him one at lowes w/o a price tag...they sold it to me for $3...can't beat that. He was SO excited...I loved it. Have you ever heard/bought from this site: http://www.bananaplants.net/bananaplants.html watchdog's page on them http://davesgarden.com/products/gwd/c/3542/

Chantell- sounds good. we will figure out the color sooner or later.

Oh, so sorry about that big banana corm! I had such hopes for it! I'm glad you found one for him, and such a bargain, too.

I haven't ordered from (or heard of) that site, before, but I'm more interested in some of the other goodies at Wellspring. One of these days, I have to get an allspice tree to survive to toddlerhood at least!

Jill - you silly...no need to for you apologize!! You were kind enough to share with me! I actually went out and checked it again tonight - there's no growth. I kept it out front so it would get mostly sun and I could keep it watered with my other tropicals, Maybe I did something wrong????

Just added Hardy Hibiscus (1 available) and Acorus 'ogon' (LOADS) to my HAVE list.

Since I don't know what Acorus is I probably HAVE to have some.

teee hee, I just looked it up and yes I would like some...
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/54899/

Will dig up some for you, Sally. A 'fan' of Acorus (something like this http://www.hugheswatergardens.com/acorusogonlg.jpg) will grow into a very neat circle in a couple of years. That's when it is at its best. Mine have not been divided in years and they are now circles on top of circles :-). Will need a pickax or dynamite to divide them :-).

goody goody goody thank you for your hard work!

Adding these items to my "Haves":

Agastache ‘Honey Bee Blue’ – Perennial. Couple of gallon pots currently in bloom.

Anemone virginiana – Thimbleweed - Native perennial wildflower that can take a good bit of shade. Winter sown seedlings that should bloom early next summer.

Campanula ‘Bellringers’ – Perennial. These were potted up after blooming a few weeks ago so I am sure they bloom white rather than being C. ‘Elizabeth’. Does well in shady areas

Campanula ‘Elizabeth’ – Perennial familiar to most of this group. Finished blooming for the season. Does well in shady areas.

Dryopteris filix-mas ‘Linearis Polydactyla’ – Rather bizarre variation of Male Fern.

More additions:

Geranium macrorrhizum ‘Bevan's Variety’ – Quite hardy perennial. Does ok in part shade. Offsets that bloomed this year.

Platycodon ‘Astra Semi-Double Lavender’- Perennial. Lovely flowers. Short, rather recumbent cultivar of Platycodon. Currently flowering.

Saxifraga virginiana – Perennial native wildflower. Blooms in March/April, giving early color.

Scutellaria integrifolia – Hyssop-Leaved Skullcap – Perennial native wildflower. Blooms in late May/early June in sun or partial shade. Reseeds readily to form a drift.

Tricyrtis hirta ‘Moonlight’ – Perennial. Chartreuse foliage, pale blue flowers with purple speckles in late summer/fall. Sorry, no photo.