Hello, I'm brand new to brugs and to Dave's Garden!
I hadn't even heard of brugs a week or so ago.... then I found a nursery that was moving and having a big auction. I came home Saturday with a giant Frosty Pink, a good sized Mrs. Chambers1 and Amarillo Paja, and six small Dr. Seuss. I also now have a bunch of Frosty Pink cuttings from damage done to the Pink while moving it (it's in a 1/2 whisky barrell container and just massive plant.)
This morning I found 3 large blooms on the Amarillo just about ready to open. I hope the stress of moving it doesn't make it drop them. They will be my first blooms.
I'm looking forward to learning all about brugs here and maybe trading some brugs as well. I've already found some spider mites on one of the brugs so I've been busy washing them off. I'm sure I'll be looking for tips on getting rid of those little monsters as well.
Catherine (Firegoat) USDA 6b Oklahoma, USA
Hello - brand new to brugs and to dave's garden
Welcome to the crazy world of BRUGS, and I can see you have already got a good start on being as crazy as we are, you managed to get some very good brugs right away, most of us had to start with cuttings from members, you will soon find out that there are an awful lot of us addicted to these plants, and when you think you have enough there will pop up another one that you just "gotta have" just remember that when winter comes you will have to find a place to keep them. GOOD LUCK
Doris
Crazy world it is.... I walked out of the greenhouse at the auction where my boyfriend was patiently waiting for me (thinking I would get bored at the auction soon and he could leave) Instead I told him.... go get the horse trailer, and the dolly..... bless his heart... he didn't even blink.... he did curse quite a bit trying to move that monster frosty pink tho.
I'm already spreading the brug bug. Two coworkers are in line for cuttings, and I've been reading the advice on mailing cuttings... I plan to send my mother in Kansas a couple to try.
The lady who had the nursery where I got them said she is overwintering them outside by cutting them back, covering them with a plastic trash can lid, and then mulching deep. I may experiment with a few that way. Right now they are all in containers.
I've been reading as many of the posts as I can.... boy do I have a lot to learn. If the amarillo blooms this week I'll post a pic.
Catherine
Catherine,
Welcome to our crazy world! This is my first year with brugs, and I have learned a lot here. I'll be looking forward to your pictures :-)
Sharon
Thanks Doris and Sharon. I guess if I can't be a good example I'll be a horrible warning to future new brugsters.
Finding the blooms about to open was a bonus tho.... I'm pretty excited about that.
Now a related newby question..... those are the four varieties that I ended up with. Are those particularly good varieties to start with? Difficult? easy? common? rare?
Thanks for the help. And please excuse my enthusiasm in advance.....
(I've already contaminated my bf..... he has already started calling my cuttings the baby brugs and asking how they are doing)
Catherine
Hi Catherine! Welcome to DG and the Brug Forum! I hope you'll post pics for us to enjoy!
Mounds, OK? Is that NE Oklahoma?
Yes, a bit southwest of Tulsa!
Of the four your got, I have Dr. Seuss and Frosty Pink, and I think they are fairly common. Both of those have been easy to root and grow (so far). I have some others that seem a little more fussy, I guess you'd say. They lose leaves easier, etc. I am sure some of the folks who have been brug crazy for a longer while will help with advice :-)
I'm new here too and am also getting hooked on Brugs. I had one last year but didn't take proper care of it and it's gone. Last week I bought a nice sized one at the greenhouse where I buy all my perennials. Then I started searching online and have three more small rooted cuttings. I received these through the mail and these people sure know how to pack them! They are in small pots and the roots are coming out of the bottom. I need to know what type of soil I need and what is the best size pot to transplant them into. Can I just go into a 6 in plastic for now? Any help is appreciated!
Welcome Catherine lucky you.. i think she maybe a lady sells them from Jenks or bixby did she tell you at auction? gosh you are lucky never heard about one with brugs.. you will be addicted to them want more and more.. we all are.. i hope to have blooms this yr myself.
Welcome to DG...
While I am technically a newbie myself (only started here last year), I can tell you....we certainly are a bunch of enablers when it comes to 'helping' you out with all the addictions you can find here. :)
Dee
I use the MG potting soil for established seedlings, and seed starter for the seeds, a 6" pot would be fine, then as it gets bigger, go to bigger pot, or pot in the ground, I plant mine NOW but will have to dig them up in the fall or cut the tops off and grow new roots for next year.
One thing about DG you will get lots of good advice, and there is always someone offering cuttings, the best place to get them, the members are very generouse.
Doris
I've already learned a lot just reading through the threads!
Hope, the place I got these was near Glenpool, the McCulloch nursery. I think their website is www.brugs.us
I'm glad to find someone in Tulsa close by.... extra easy to swap cuttings. LOL
I'm going to obviously keep the giant frosty in its big ol' container, and probably the amarillo as well. Haven't decided on Mrs. Chambers1 yet. I am pretty sure i'm going to try to plant the group of Dr. Suess in the ground.
I have lots of good aged horse manure compost here.... is that something the brugs might enjoy?
I hope to have some pictures as soon as the blooms on the Amarillo Paja open. Of course, that is its label...... I hope that is what it is!
Thanks everyone for the welcome and good advice!
Catherine
Well....another one caught up in the ADDICTION (muhaha)
Welcome to both DG & the WWB (wonderful world of Brugs) I still consider myself as new to Brugs tho, this is my 3rd year & I have probably near 100 plants. A lot of seed I'm growing out. This site is the most helpful I have found about any plants & just a darn good group of people!
I live in Z-7 & the ones I trialed in the ground over winter did not make it. I put some in the garage & brought cuttings in the house & I have a small green house. (That will be your next investment, a green house, to over winter these things in)
I use 50/50 MG potting mix & a good garden or ground soil. I just dig the holes where I'm planting the pots & use part of that soil out of the hole. I do have river loam here tho.
You will find plenty to trade with this fall, when all the cutting is going on. Welcome & enjoy!
Thanks for the advice about the soil and pot size. These will have to come in for winter here in Zone 5 but I'll deal with that when the time comes!
Oh no.... in it for 3 years and 100 plants???????
Firegoat...It's a myth about putting small plants in small pots & working up to bigger pots as the plant grows, I use 25 gal pots for new cuttings & don't have to keep changing them & taking a chance of making a mastake & losing them . When you plant them in the ground do people think the plant knows if is a pot?? Big or small, If thats the case them the ground is one big pot.
Some people think the plant look funny in such a big pot but if you plant it in the ground then the ground is the biggest pot you will ever find. (Just a thought)
This is my second year into brugs but have raised roses for 35 years & have several cutting & about 200 seedlings that I am setting out. Good luck with your brugs!! You have a very good start & it sounds like you did your homswork on brug info.
Jerry.
Firegoat I beat Bjs. I had over 125 at the end of my first year, I just could not say no to any free cutting or plant for sale, every time a new name came up I wanted it. I just finished planting 87 outside, and I still have 15 in pots, but I am cutting down for next winter it was so much work with the watering, cleaning up leaves, and the BUGS, but I still love them.
Doris
Caution:
Mrs. Chambers is a renamed brug. The lady that received it as a trade (from her friend Mrs. Chambers) in the late 90's-2000 didn't know the real name so she renamed it. This brug is really Frosty Pink, or Isabella or insignis Pink , (edited to add) or USL Special which were the only suaveolens type pinks available in the USA at that time. Hope this helps you Firegoat to make your decision on whether to buy it or not. ... v
This message was edited May 5, 2006 8:30 AM
Roseman, I'm glad I'm not the only one who sticks a little rooted cutting in a 20-25 gallon pot! They do sooooooooo much better and I've not killed any by planting them in huge pots. I will admit to killing some 4 inch pots though, they died of thirst, lol.
Thanks for the advice on planting. I'll watch my alleged "Mrs. Chambers" and see what she blooms like.
And now...... my very first Brug Blooms! Just today on what was labeled as an Amarillo Paja.
Here's a different view
And now I've smelled my first Brug bloom! Delicious! I am a loyal group of hummingbirds here.... I wonder if they'll try it out?
Firegoat there are many brugs floating around that look alike to the naked eye. You will never be able to properly id Mrs. Chambers by comparing it to anything else you ever grow or ever see in pictures that resembles it. Unfortunately the true id of your Mrs. Chambers will never be known without DNA testing. The major problem that comes with renaming existing brugs is that collectors wind up buying or trading for something they already have under a different name.
Pretty flower in your pictures! They do smell incredible don't they? Just wait until your yard is filled with that scent in the evenings. You are in for a real treat! :)
Normally hummingbirds are not attracted to brugmansia
Well, bummer about the hummingbirds... but I'm enjoying my first brug blooms. I've found some tiny buds on the Dr. Suess too, so looks like I'll have a few flowering this month. They are addictive!!!!
Roseman2, I am a bit confused as to the need to plant brugs. in 25 gal. pots. In the classic threads, I read how Monica keeps her sisters beautiful brugs. confined to 5 gal. pots when she trims and replants each spring. Here is the text. Have you ever tried to trim and replant in smaller pots? I'm completely new to brugs. so forgive me if I have misunderstood.
monika
Herbstein, Germany
Zone 5a
Dec 19, 2003
9:47 AM
rutholive, the plants were dug out and the rootball was resized to fit in a 5 gallon pot.
Catherine,
Welcome, welcome, welcome! I see you've met our Oklahoma neighbor;
Brinda, we'll all have to get together one day. :-)
Coincidentally, I happened to order a collection of cuttings from
the very person you bought your plants from. Though I did know about the
auction, I was unable to go, so when I found their website, I was thrilled
to buy the collection.
Alas, my order was cancelled because of the auction.
I assumed the owner would shut down the website to not allow orders, but
I'm sure they were busy with moving, the auction, etc. and just forgot. My
order was refunded and I sat in tears. Well, okay, not tears, just disappointed.
LOL.
Thus I was back at square one looking for Brugs, when along came several
wonderful Dave's Garden members to trade plants with me. I'm so excited!
Mine are going to live on the south side of the house next to the fish pond, so
I've been revamping the area to include a walkway around the ponds. I
can't wait until next summer, when I can walk directly out my little greenhouse door
onto the new walkway, smelling and looking at the Brugs which I hope will be
blooming by then.
:-) Karen
In between Hulbert and Wagoner, Oklahoma
This is my 1st year with burgs also. Mine are just growing good. But I saw some in Georgia and just had to have a few. I have 4 . Maybe before the summer is out I can show you blooms, since mine are cuttings they haven't gotten big yet.
Welcome to our world.
Lavina
i didn't want to be the only newbie left out; so hi! i can't wait to get started with brugs. i feel an addiction coming on and don't even have one yet! however i do have 2 on the way and if i'm successful, i know i'll want hundreds more. i am going to continue learning all the needs of my new babies on the way, but living in south louisiana, do you think i will be able to keep my in the ground over the winter (with heavy mulching)? also, i'd like to have a trail of brugs along part of the sidewalk. i want to get the ground ready for them...any tips would be greatly appreciated.
to all the experts, thanks for all your patience and knowledge. there are plenty of us new-to-brug people out there are so grateful to you...and so are our helpless plants........ashley
WELCOME WELCOME to all newbies!
Catherine, you have jumped in with both feet and already see the big downside of brugs too....MITES!! Without mites, brugs would be a walk in the park they are so easy to grow. They do not need much of anything special to thrive. Just water and feed well.
I would caution planting a cutting in a huge pot that is not rooted if you are new to them. The only time that I have trouble with rot are cuttings, other than that they are hard to kill no matter what you do to them. When I over pot, I compensate by less water. I am all for less work though. My problem is I want mine to stay small for as long as possible, I have no room for all of mine to be huge trees. My tendency is think how small can I keep the pot for this brug and still get good flowering. I try to keep my seedlings in 5 gallon to bloom though some I keep in 1 gallon so long they bloom in that size. Only my special ones get to live in a 25 gallon, most keepers having to live in 15 gallon. I then rootprune and repot every spring so they have new soil every year.
With mention of all of the bugs, could any of you
share which brand you use? I realize some have
different preferences, but perhaps something standard
which is easliy found at Wal Mart?
Many thanks!
Another newbie here... Welcome to the addiction!
This is my first year. I went crazy and now I've got over 100 too... mostly seedlings I thought wouldn't come up. I've been a slave to them for the last few months, and now that I finally experienced a bloom, it's all worth it. I learned the hard way that moderation is such a good thing.
I've learned so much here, it's amazing. I read and read and read all winter.. took notes, asked questions.. and it is awesome how many people here help out, I feel forever grateful for my newfound joy. I hope you get that out of this too. Good Luck!
5 gallon pots work well for putting the pot and all in the ground. Having a big brug in a five gallon pot just sitting in the yard doesn't do as well because the least little bit of wind will blow them over. Big plants take more water too, and if in the ground, the roots that escape the pot take in moisture from the surrounding area. In a pot alone, on top of the ground, they don't usually make it through the day with only one watering...at least not in Iowa. I have young brugs in 3 gallon pots that I water two or three times a day. I have big brugs in 20 gallon pots and when it is hot, they still require watering more than once a day.
A late welcome to the brug forum and Daves!
I'm new to Brugs too. My mother just gave me two ... the tags just say Angel Trumpet White and Angel Trumpet Yellow. The one she kept (she ordered a set of three) said Charles Grimaldi (sp?). Are these Brugs? Each is about a foot tall. What size pot should I put them in. Is there a particular potting soil mixture that is best? Should they be in full sun? How long does it take for them to reach maturity and bloom? How tall will they get?
Brugie, I'm in Kirksville, MO, so I'm assuming that I will have to treat mine the same as you because of our bitter winters. Do you cut them down before you bring them in? Do you keep them in the basement or in the house?
I'm so excited to have these plants. I've been wanting them for years but have been a little scared to try them ...
Thank you for being here to help.
Audrey
Hi Audrey. First of all, my X brother and sister-in-law live in Kirksville. They are probably retired now, but she was a teacher and he a prof. at the college.
I would plant them into 15 gallon pots or larger for the summer. I'm sure they are pretty well rooted. You should get bloom by around August and will probably get at least three flushes of bloom. Put them into a soilless mix or a good draining potting soil. Set them where they get morning sun and afternoon shade. I've lived in K'Ville and it gets pretty hot in the afternoons there. Fertilize them with a good water soluable fertilizer a couple of times a week. That will get them growing and moving toward bloom pretty quickly. Watch them closely for mites and caterpillars that like to munch. If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask here or email me.
I bring part of my big plants into a garage that doesn't freeze. Gets close tho. Just don't water them more than two or three times during the winter when they are cold and only a couple of cups of water at that time. Cold temps and wet roots cause root rot. The others that I keep, I take cuttings in early Sept., when I remember, and get them rooted before the cold comes. I keep those in the house. If you cut big plants down, they have to start all over. If you only trim them enough to get them through the door and to the basement, you will have nice plants soon, the next summer. If it is warm in your basement, you will have to water more and probably even give them added light. Hey, it's fun to have a bloom now and then during the winter anyway. In any case....try to keep a cutting from each one you don't want to lose, for insurance. Sometimes strange things happen and we lose one or two. Then you have plants ready to give to friends in the spring if you don't need them yourself. If you keep your plants warm, be prepared to watch for aphids and spider mites. In the cold garage, I don't have a problem with them. Welcome to the brug forum. I hope I have helped some.
Shirley
PS. I originally came back to post and say welcome to Firegoat. I see that I neglected to do that earlier. Welcome to you too, Firegoat. I hope you are enjoying Daves Garden.
This message was edited May 25, 2006 9:08 AM
Shirley, you are so very thoughtful and spend a lot of time answering questions. As you know, I am a newbie and with all the reading I have done on brugs. I still feel very unsure of myself. I just wanted to say thank you for the advise you give, and also my thanks to many others. This is a must site for gardeners.
Almost forgot, do you have lights or windows going in your garage for the stored brugs. through the winter?
Tusse
Thanks Tusse. I try to help when I can.
I have two small garage windows on the north. They barely let light in because of the big over-hang. Jim goes out every morning and turns on one light bulb. 60 watts, I think. Then at night, he turns it off. They do quite well. He worried about the brugs this winter and turned an electric heater on low for them at night. I decided if he wanted to pay the light bill, I wouldn't say a thing, but this is the first winter they have had heat. I doubt it raised the temp more than a couple of degrees. It's a big garage. LOL!
Brugie, what is a soilless mix? Is that like the seed starter mix?
Who are your X brother and sister-in-law.
Audrey
I'll send you a D-mail.
Soilless mix is generally made of spaghnum, perlite, bark, etc. Just no real dirt in it. ProMix, Fafard, and Ball soilless mixes are the three that I've used. I think some of the stuff they sell at WalMart might be soilless too.