Gardening with Texas Native Plants & Wildflowers, part 11.

Thank You all for bringing it up, I probably wouldn't have checked it out otherwise.

I used to have Monarda too, but it gradually disappeared. It probably wasn't in a good spot. It got only 2 -3 hours morning sun and no afternoon sun at all. It was also in a spot that I don't water.

Josephine, my red zinger has red stems too, but it's not variegated. I don't know why yours is. Is it growing OK?

I have monarda!!! I have been trying and trying to get the native purple to grow in my gardens but nothing - now there are two wonderful blooms out there on plants I thought I should pull out.... never know.

Frostweed, do you know what kind of sunflowers those are? I think they're the same kind I see all over Austin, but I don't know what they are. I keep hoping some will volunteer in my yard. :)

Mitch--I hope my monarda blooms soon. I grew 'Croftway Pink' seeds over the winter here so it may be next year for bloom on them. Regardless, they look really good in a pot with native columbine ('hinckley's Yellow'). The texture differences are very nice together in a large pot.

One thing that is doing very well is my Pavonia lasiopetala--Rock Rose. I have had terrible luck growing this from seed even though I can usually get rocks to sprout. I was really worried about it in this pot when we had all the rain--I ran out there between downpours and basically tipped the pot on its side to get water out because it wasn't draining well. Tonight I hope to get out there and mulch the top of the pot. I'm hoping it produces viable seeds so I can get enough of thses plants for the garden beds.

Another plant that's doing well is Scutellaria--Pink Texas Skullcap. I'm thinking when this plant gets a bit fuller, herbaceous cuttings should easily root.

Would like to get alot more of this plant into garden beds too.

This message was edited Jun 8, 2006 11:11 AM

Hey Debbie--I like your skullcap and would like to incorporate it more into my hot and dry landscape also. Have you tried propagating it from cuttings before? I am curious as to how well it roots. The skullcap is not easy to find in my area for some reason (even though it seems to be the ideal environment for it); it only appears here and there in local nurseries occasionally and to come across it means you and the plant happened to be in the same place at the same time when the stars and planets were in the correct alignment for that to happen, LOL.

In other news, the gaillardia that I teased everyone with a pic of earlier is now in full bloom. :-))

Hill-where is Stephanville? The reason I'm asking is I've seen skullcap in several nurseries. There are a couple of parts of Texas I need to travel to real soon. ;)

Yes--I do a lot of propagating of plants. Sometimes I'm better at propagating them than growing them....

It looks really easy--has the 'scrubby' consistancy of like Autumn Sage so it should do really good. Can you let one of those Gallardia's go to seed later? Shamelessly begging for seeds here again...lol

I was out looking for things that were doing good right now--thought about starting a thread since the one about things dying was kinda depressing for this early in the summer--but thought better of it. Anyways, most of the things doing well are the natives...duh...this turk's cap is really doing pretty well in early season sun. It will have more shade by august. They really can handle a lot of sun, they just get real 'leggy' and need something to lean against. Easy to root too.

Hello Idiopath, that was a good question about the Sunflowers.
As a matter of fact I found this list of the Genus helianthus at USDA that listed 170 varieties of them, here is the link.

http://plants.usda.gov/java/nameSearch

The one type osf Sunflower I have that I know for sure, is the common Texas Sunflower, Helianthus annus, this sunflower is rather small and the plant will bear many blooms, instead of just one big flower.
Here is the picture of Common Sunflower, Helianthus annus. Notice that it has a brown center, and the center is rather small.

Josephine...it's as nice as any hybrid. Save seed for fall RU.

The volunteer Sunflowers that I posted before have a yellow center and a double row of petals and the center is a little bigger. I am pretty sure that it is a cross between a lot of different varieties. Do the ones you have been seeing have a brown or yellow center? Here is the picture of the volunteers for comparison.

Both of them are nice looking flowers--one before last looks like it has thinner stems--I like thiose to mix in with the Louisiana iris as they go dormant. Kinda 2 seasons of interest. Were you talking to me Josephine?

O.K. Debbie I will save some seed of the Common sunflower, and the volunteer also.
By the way, that rock rose is looking really nice and so is the skullcap. I beleive that the skullcap is an annual though, but may be in your zone it is perennial since you have warmer weather, anyway the reason I mention it is I didn't want you to be disappointed if it didn't make it after all the work of propagating.

http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/51664/index.html

says skullcap is an annual up to zone 7 - is this the right one?

Hill, that Gaillardia is amazing, how large is it?
I had never seen one like that.
Josephine.

Mitch I think you have the right plant, but the details on the plant files say it is perennial, maybe the annual is only the Scutellaria drummomdii, which is the native, could be that the pink is a cultivar and is hardier, I am not sure.

That's the one Mitch--well maybe I can bring it into the garage under my plant lights if it gets too cold. Have to do that with cigar plants I'm rooting for people. Sometimes they get knocked back real hard by freeze and if I don't root them over winter--none ready to trade in spring.

Thanks Josephine--seeds are always easier than plants.

Here is a snipet of the wildflower slope showing coneflowers.

Nice! What's the fuzzy purple flower in the upper right corner?

That is a rather small Texas Thistle, Cirsium texanum, those usually volunteer.

One of those who knows.. maybe I will keep looking for the info on the web and see what is on their.

Summer has already kept me constantly busy so I'm skimming but want to join in ...love the Gaillardia! Everyone else does it, so I'll shamelessly beg for seeds too. :) (but I'll probably forget)

Love skullcap but mine was apparently an annual...found a lone Turk's Cap (yay!) when I cut down a hollyhock...thought they needed shade tho so I haven't tried more...

I have 3 huge sunflowers that are gifts from birds. They have small flowers on them so I think they are like Josephine's with the brown center. One is over 6ft already. The undersides of the leaves are covered in aphids and other crawlies but the ladybugs LOVE these plants so I've left them for them too.

Josephine, I am cutting back some of my Queen Anne's Lace that has finally stopped producing large flowers and have noticed powdery mildew on them. They are definitely not overwatered, so they must be a plant that gets it if underwatered? The purple salvias will do that. I do have to overheard water a lot tho which doesn't help them. Got the soaker hoses going now because for them do water enough to make a difference I have to let them go for hours. I don't want to see my water bill but don't want my plants to die either!

It's a little blurry (am having a battle with my macro) but isn't she a beautiful ladybug!

Debbie--Stephenville is a little over an hour southwest of Fort Worth. So that would put me about five plus hours northwest of you.

Josephine--That Gaillardia is pretty neat isn't it? I picked the seeds up this past winter at Wmart for 97 cents and got them started in late Feb. The seed package simply calls the plant a Gaillardia bicolor. I started some burgundy Gaillardia too, but they are proving to be a little slower to bloom. Anyway, I ran back outside and took another pic for you to get an idea of the size of the G. bicolor bloom.

konkreteblond--I'd be happy to send you seeds of the Gaillardia. Since I got them at Wmart though, the next time I visit (which will be any day now) I will check what's left of their seed display and see if there are any packages of them left that I can pick up for you. Edited to add--yes, your ladybug is lovely!

This message was edited Jun 8, 2006 3:46 PM

I have to thank you for sending me back out for that additional pic Josephine because this is what I found visiting my lantana:

Those are great pictures Hill, thank you for putting them up, that gaillardia is precious.
Gardening is such a great adventure, do you agree?
Josephine.

Paige, it is so good to hear from you, it looks like you are having quite an adventure yourself, with all your garden discoveries.
You can just cut off all of the Queen Anne's foliage after it is done blooming, since it is done, and you don,t want to spread the mildew.
Be sure to save seed to plant this fall. I hope you can make it to the r.u.
Josephine.

I agree completely and you're welcome for the pics!! Today has proven to be a good day in the garden for me. In fact, here's another view of my visiting swallowtail friend:

Debbie, I'm not any good at collecting seeds, but I have rock rose coming up in a lot of places and would be happy to give you some when you come up to get the daturas. It is a wonderful plant.

Btw I also have some scullcap and it gets only neglect in my yard and seems to like it. Doesn't get much sun, but also no hose water. It's been there atleast 7 years. I'm thinking I need to try it under my pecan tree. It's very dry there too.:)

I got a large area out front I'd like to fill with skullcap--I was under the impression it was perennial. And I'll take as many rock rose as you want to be rid off. :) They will be loved...

Debbie, If you let me know ahead of time when you'll be coming I'll try to dig up the rock rosefor you. I don't have any skullcap babies. I don't know if it reseeds for others, but it hasn't for me. I wish it would.

I meant I would do cuttings of the skullcap here. I thought we were saying last week in June.

Ok, I guess I forgot. I'll put it on my calendar this time. I never thought of taking cuttings off my skullcap to plant under the pecan. Duh. Do they root easily?

We shall find out...

Josephine, I went and took a close look at some of those sunflowers. I usually see them roadside where there's nowhere to safely pull over, but I saw some in a vacant lot next to a shopping center, so I parked and walked over there. They do have yellow centers, like your volunteers. I didn't see any that were ready to harvest for seeds yet, but now that I know where there are some I can easily get to, I'll keep an eye out. That way I won't have to wait for volunteers. But I've never harvested sunflower seeds before, so I may be posting some questions. :)

Hill5422, love that Tiger! I will look for those seeds at WM on my next visit since they are so cheap. If I can't find some I'll let you know. I did pretty well with plants from seeds this year. Throwing them out and letting them do their own thing is so much easier than starting them inside!

Josephine, love those coneflowers! I have a ton of them and just can't get enough. I did cut down most of my QAL this evening. I have enjoyed them SO much! Now I'm waiting for the berries on my Elderberry bush/tree. It's grown SO much. What do you do to yours? Do you cut it back like the others?

I hope to make the RU (although I know nothing about it) and the Oct. swap. It's so early for me to start thinking about it tho because I just don't have anywhere to put little pots of cuttings etc. With all my own plants on my porch I only have a little space and every time I have 4" pots out there the big 'ole toads insist on living in them. Oh well, love my toads!

This is one of my toads declaring his "turf" with 2 plastic ducks my husband brought home for my son.

I thought I'd show my latest blooming plant, I believe it's called Cory's Dutchman's Pipe, Aristolochia coryi. The plant isn't very big yet, so I try to keep it caged to keep the Pipevine Swallowtail off (it's a host plant) untill it gets a bit bigger. I was fortunate to find this plant recently!

What lind of Cage? Neat dutchman Linda.

That's cool Linda! I'm still hoping to get my own pipevine someday! If I had been able to make it to the RU I might have some. Hopefully Mary will bring me a cutting in Oct. (hint hint Maggiemoo!) :)
I'm interested in knowing how fast it grows.

I have a bunch of seeds for one of them--not sure which one though. I'll start some and maybe someone who can tell them apart can ID it.

Paige, I am very glad you are having such a great time with the native plants.
You cam trim your Elderberry as much as you like, it grows very fast, but if you take way too much, you might sacrifice some of the blooms, I am sure you will find the right balance.

Linda, you have so many unusual native plants, where do you find them?
That Pipe vine is really neat, I had never seen it, you need to add it to the plant files.

Debbie, if you have seed of your Pipe vine, please save me some, I don't have it.

Idiopath, please ask any time, I am sure one of us will have an answer for you.

Josephine.