Well I had dragged all my brugs out into the sun last week and my favorite performer Isabella is gearing up already! I found buds on every branch and a double bud on one side. Rosamond also has at least one bud. I am excited to think I will see flowers this early!
First Buds
It's so exciting to see the first blooms of the season. Can't wait to see pictures.
Thats awesome, hope you post pictures soon.
elva
That is great Laura. I have been repotting mine madly all weekend. Those 25 gallon pots are a killer. I think my DH is going to kill me one of these days.
how exciting and so early, great job!
Thanks Everyone. It renewed my enthusiasm after dealing with spider mites all winter!
Kell, you should have heard my DH when I asked him to comeoutside and help me decide where the brugs should go..
"You are going to put them in the ground again? I thought they were doing fine in the pots? Ok well..let get the vegetable garden in first and the new daylily bed going, OK? They can wait a while can't they?? ""
I think he is having flashbacks to having to dig them up last fall.. (and drag them into the basement,, and etc etc etc..
OhioBreezy, I dug up the entire plants last year so they didn't have far to go. I am excited to think that they will get really large this year!! Course then I won't be able to get them into the house next fall. The plan for fall is to take cuttings and bubble all winter.. and then attempt to overwinter the ones outside.
Kell - what kind of dirt do you use ? 25 gallons is a lot of dirt .
Went out and counted and Rosamund has five buds.. not bad for a cutting that looked dead last year! :)
Lucky you. I liked Rosamond a lot, but had to let some go to make room for new ones. She was one that went away. Oh, she is around and easy to get to....just not at my house now. I hope you get some good pictures when she blooms for you.
Laura, did you plant them in their pot? It makes it so easy to dig them up and the roots slip right out of the drainage holes so you do not cramp their style at all. They still get huge!
Oh Tony, this year I am breaking the bank. I bought lots of dirt at the hydroponics store. It is all so expensive I think because most of their customers have a cash crop they are using it for. LOL. Last year I had terrible time keeping my big pots watered. This year I am taking them all out of the ceramic pots and putting them in plastic. I hate the look but I want them to stay wet longer!
I am using different soils I found at the hydroponics store. All were over $10 for 2 cu ft, I can't remember how much exactly, but more than I wanted to spend. I had finally bought Pro Mix but after reading the label I won't use it for brugs. I am trying a coco blend that is supposed to hold water well. Carol gave a warning about the salt though in coconut husk soil so we shall see. I did notice Orchards has a cheaper coco blend. I may add some of that to Supersoil when I go broke. Supersoil is just too porous on its own.
Here is one that is so colorful, no doubts what they are selling it for. I sure hope it is good for brugs too! Happy Frog!
Read the back. Too funny.
And the coco blend. I also bought the regular Black Gold to mix in with it.
Kell.. No I didn't.. the pots theywere in were pretty tiny since they were cuttings.. now they are in larger pots.. I am pondering options :)
Kell, would you elaborate on the decision to not use Pro-Mix for your brugs? Pro-Mix works so well for me, sometimes with the addition of some bagged top soil and builder's sand, I had planned to use it for my brugs. Thanks.
Tussee
ProMix works great. I've used it for years and never had a problem with it other than it dries out just like other soilless mixes will. To keep it sweet, put a teaspoon of lime in the mix and then plant your brug. You won't have any problems.
Brugie, I came back to this thread just to ask what you used for your brugs., lol., and there's my answer. Do you have mental telepathy? Thanks for the lime tip!
Tussee
Tussee, Pro Mix is way too porous for me. I will use it for my more water sensitive plants or cuttings that need excellent drainage. I make my soil as heavy as I can for we get no rain here from May to October. I have so many plants, I need to reduce my watering needs. No way I am going to water every day. Well, I do water every day but no way I am going to water the same plants every day. LOL.
I could add to Pro MIx to try to make it more water retentive but I spent a fortune on it so why add real soil to it and ruin its main properties.
I have my plants down to a great system, I plant them in a heavy mix in spring and by fall they are all rootbound so the winter rains do not sog them out then. Works great. Last year my mix was too porous, drove me nuts all summer on my huge potted brugs
OK.. Rosamond has bloomed her first bloom and there are about 15 buds that are hot on her heels! Isabella has only one that has broken through the calyx. SHe is going ot have to watch it if Rosie isn't going to be the star this year!
Rosamond seems a deeper color this year.. is that possible?
OOPs, forgot the pic..Duh
Edited to say that the bloom doesn't look too dark in the picture but the full morning sun is on it and washes things out
This message was edited Jun 20, 2006 10:01 AM
She'll open up more for you at dusk and the form will look better. At least that's what mine did. Has a very nice scent too.
Yes.. that is what they did last year. I think that she may have opened before today and I didn't notice because when I went back outside she was pretty shriveled.. I watered just in case
Tonight four more flowers opened though they don't have their color yet
gorgeous, thanks for sharing your photos, I have no bloom yet, so it's nice to see others :)
Laura I am so happy for you, how about your Dad's plant is it blooming? a couple of mine are on their second flush, it is as exciting as the first.
Kare,
Dad's isn't blooming but he has it outside and it is as happy as a clam! I think I might have found a tiny bud on it but I wasn't totally sure. My sister plant of his isn't budding yet either..hmm.. that reminds me..I think I still have three plants in the basement!
Jazz i love those pink brugs .. I'm impatiently waiting for my Equador Pink to start Y'ing .. it's a toddler compared to the rest of them!
X
PS .. I used to have a gazebo like yours until a microburst storm turned it into toast! I really miss it .. I'm going to use the corners for mg to climb on.
X, We actually had this one blow down the driveway once when we had only used the regular type stakes to secure it.. HAH! Stake in the ground will no keep a cabana from going airborne!! Anyway.. It is lag bolted into concrete now.. Double HAH!
(we were able to recycle it when a coworker didn't take his canvas off for the winter and the snow crushed the top of his. He kept the corners but gave us all the twisted metal and my dear talented DH was able to remanufacture all we needed out of the scrap..woohoo)
X, the cool thing is that once these brugs get going they really go!! makes up for all the frustration!
Can I send your DH my twisted metal? ;-> .. I still have it! LOL
I got some 4' rebar for holding up my corners. Since their won't be a canopy on it, it should stay put! At least I hope so. I waiting to get my English/Charleston Garden room finished before I put the corners up. I also still have the canopy for mine .. if you want I'll be happy to send it to you for postage. It's in excellent condition.
X
X you have Dmail!
OK..Blooms have all pinked up! I guess there were five new ones not four!
Isabella is doing her best to catch up! Please don't stare..She is quite sensitive about her spider mite problem.
