Annie Hayes

S.D. Hort Society's guest speaker tonight was Annie Hayes. She is absolutely charming, delightfully funny and natural. It was only disappointing in that there were her plants for sale, but maybe 5 each of the ones I wanted and 350 some people there, which means you're going to lose your dignity and your good humor if you try to rush the tables after the presentation. Lots of lovely plants for those who are not fighting gophers and rabbits. Self-sowing annuals, or anything for that matter, not planted in wire is futility. Still, quite a few items that I'll have to watch for on her site.

You'll just have to take a field trip up here and go to her nursery in person! Prices are much better in person than they are on the website for mail order, not sure if it's enough to offset the gas it would take to drive up here, but there are lots of other great things to do here too! I don't know what she had down there, but at the nursery she has some nice castor bean plants which I've bought to put in my garden and hopefully discourage my gophers (the ones I didn't know I had until I planted everything WITHOUT wire baskets!). Castor oil spray and pellets haven't worked very well so I'm not sure why I think the plants will be any different, but since I can't use poison I figure it's worth trying!

PS Who cares about dignity? LOL

Castor bean plants spring up wild here. I was so smug about having no more gopher problems...that's why the gods have sent me rabbits. I'm sitting doing cuttings today and I've got bunnies tame enough to be sitting 2 feet away from me. What am I supposed to do? They're the world's sweetest creatures. Maybe I will have to plant a clover patch for them to try to keep them from my other goodies.
I was really taken with the nicotiana mutabilis and wondering how high the wire would have to be to protect it...perhaps rabbits don't like it. I can't wait for her to have the S African glads available again. Anything in the way of annuals I put in my whiskey barrels around other things.
I'm not really rational about the cost of gas when there's something I want...I had to really talk myself out of going to your Ru up there a week ago...I wanted the salvia that was going to be there. I'd been hoping there would be one in Modesto or Stockton and there it was and I just couldn't make it then...too many other things going on at the moment and hard to get away from seedlings, cuttings, etc.
I'll go take a look tomorrow at the nursery close to here that's carrying some of Annie's stuff.

Oh, Sherry, I wish I had been there. I love Annie. She's such a sweetie, and she's the only person I know who makes me feel tall.

Her Nicotiana mutabilis plants grow into enormous monsters. Here's one of them in my garden last year. Look how it dwarfs the bird bath beyond it.

OH! I'm so jealous! I definitely have to have that one. Gophers or rabbits haven't bothered it? Yes, for anyone who has not been to hear Annie speak....do it if you get the chance. She's so fun and totally real with an obvious love of what she's doing.

The gophers didn't want it. I don't have rabbits. It reseeds too, so you really only have to buy it once, although once you've grown it, you'll want several in different corners of your garden.

You're right...I was just cruising through her site to see what else I want and that's exactly what I'll do...order 3 of the mutabilis! Yippeee! I can hardly wait. Well, maybe I'll see if there's just a little something else there that I might need.

Yep, I'm lucky to live only 1/2 hour away. It is an amazing place and it's the only place I buy anything anymore. And they are helpful!

I'm lucky that I DON'T live close! I had to throw in an asclepias and a couple of salvias that I don't have.

wcgypsy, I saved seed from last year's asclepias blooms. If you think it's still viable, I can send. D mail me.

Sherry, did you order the orange/yellow asclepias? I have a whole six pack sitting here looking for a good home if you want them. Let me know.

Donna

Dunkirk, ,
Thank you. I ordered the asclepias verticillata / "whorled asclepias". I have asclepias curassavica yellow and orange and asclepias speciosa. If you have seeds for any other than those, I would love some, plmk. Likewise, if you don't have any that I have/will have and would like seed, plmk. I kinda wonder about some of the asclepias popping up for sale all over now. I did pick up some a. purpurascens and it's not native to our area so I'm wondering if it's good for the 'cats'. What I've read says that unless it's native to our area (Western states), it's not very digestible for them. ( Any info on this will be appreciated if anyone knows)
Sherry

Donna, you posted at the same time I did........lol....I also just planted another currassavica that I picked up recently called 'Wildfire'. I'm not sure that I can see any difference in the coloring between that and the regular orange/yellow combo, but I will have seed from that also before long.
Sherry

Ok Sherry, just thought I'd ask if you needed some. Maybe I'll see if anyone going to weegy's next month wants some. lol

I'm glad you mentioned the importance of natives for the butterflies - I didn't know this. I'll be careful about what I plant now.

Here's a quote from Las Pilitas:

"Alkaloids from the wrong milkweed(South American, Mexican, etc.) can expose the butterflies to predation. If the monarch or other butterfly has not evolved with the milkweed they may have limited tolerance for the particular alkaloid of the plant species. The California flyway runs from Baja to Canada, it does not include Mexico proper nor Central America. If you live in Chicago you can plant Mexican species (Asclepias mexicana) or Asclepias tuberosa, don't plant our species. I would guess the symptoms to be similar to the problem of intolerance to legumes that some people have"

Zuzu...if Annie makes YOU feel tall, she must be a Liliputian !!! (sp?) LOL

When there are coveted plants, and in limited supply at a plant sale, DIGNITY goes right out the window ! It's every man for himself.

I try to save as many A. tuberosa seedlings as I can when I find them.
Right now I have one blooming in between an orange and a yellow DL and the color pairing is great! I couldn't have planned it better.

One of my DS's lives in Ventura county and has lots of very interesting butterflies up there. Next time I go up there I'll take my butterfly book and see if I can identify some of them. Her stupid gardener is chemical crazy, so I told her last year to tell him NOT to spray anymore. Luckily, he has stopped, and she said (amazingly) "Oh you were right...I do see more butterfly's now..."

DUH !!!!!

I has million butterflies came through from Mexico or San Diego, CA with windy blow that they go ahead to North to find flowers pollen. Butterflies like to get nest and alot of sticks from broken branches and break small pieces and put on ground to make like wood piles up... Butterflies get ready for coonon to hide nest and don't bother until it hatch... Take a try and see it work...

JD, I hate that greedy feeling I get when trying to get to the plants I want before someone else does....so I left early and ordered them on line. Yippeee! They were here in 3 days. Nicotiana mutabilis (a 'must have'), asclepias verticillata, salvia daghestanica, salvia candelabrum. Oh Joy! An embarassment of riches! I should have ordered more of the nicotiana, but there are a couple of nurseries down here that carry her plants, so I'll check to see if they have some here. I think I'll be doing some of those for our next RU. God willing and the creek don't rise.
Sherry

YOU GO SHERRY !!!! hee hee

You may not have noticed that Annie's now is selling in So. Cal. Here is a list of where you can get some of her gems. http://www.anniesannuals.com/info/outlets/buy.htm#socal
I always find visiting her retail outlet to be very expensive. Glad I get a discount from being an UC Botanical Garden member.

Yes, I've seen some of the plants around - though I've never been to any of those nurseries - too pricey unless it's something special.

Depends on what you want and whether or not you can find it elsewhere. I just got aristea major, nicotiana mutabilis, 2 more salvia that I've not seen anywhere else recently, asclepias verticillata,asclepias physocarpa...but then if there's something I really want and no one else has it, I will pretty much pay what they want for one and then propagate it and have more for myself or to share at Roundup. I also have to think that uncommon plants should and do cost more and that they know a lot of us are going to buy one and propagate from that and that they have to make their money on the 'one'. I'm just happy that there have been those who have seen a need for promoting the more uncommon plants that I search high and low for. Oh well....I don't smoke, drink, gamble or live large in general...my money all goes for plants. LOL....

I agree with all that, Sherry. That's what I meant by something special. Also, I don't know how much they mark her stuff up. Not criticizing Annie, it's just that her stuff is out of my budget range right now. I could be wrong, but I don't think good "niche" growers make a fortune on their business after overhead and the time effort involved.

Upon consideration I have to say that my money doesn't all go to plants...it's probably equally divided between plants and mocha frappuccinos. I can't begin to tell you how much it does for my well-being to work with the plants all day AND have a mocha frappuccino. Life is good. I can't allow myself to buy everyhting Annie has, obviously, though I certainly would like to, but I do feel good about what I do buy from her (and likewise Garden Glories Nursery in Vista that carries Annie's plants, and Buena Creek Gardens, and Brita's in Seal Beach . I used to love buying from Mary Lou for the same reason). I feel that my purchases are directly supporting an individual or small operation that might not be there otherwise to offer me the things I don't see elsewhere. I don't buy plants at WM or HD or Lowe's. I just don't feel that they need my help. It's odd I know...I buy other things there but I feel differently about the plants. I want to buy them from people who truly love growing things and love what they're doing.
What we should do is make up a 'wish list' for the next Roundup and if there is any particular plant from Annie's, or wherever, that we would like one of us says, "Okay, I'll buy and grow that one" Each person gets one and propagates it for the rest of us. I will have lots of seed from the nicotiana and will plant for the next Roundup or share seed. Not everyone will want this plant ( we don't all want the same things..what makes my heart go pitty-pat might not work for others, but I will possibly by then also have plants of the other items I got from her, so it's like amortizing what I paid for them...I get so much from that one plant.

You're not odd at all, Sherry. DH and I will often buy from a local business just to support them, even though it's not the lowest price. This is the first I've heard of Garden Glories, but I like Buena Creek. I don't drive up north much anymore, except to Pat's Epies or Tree of Life.

If I can ever learn to propagate, I'd be happy to take part in your growing plan for the Roundup. Don't know who else would want five varieties of native buckwheat, though! :-)

I'm a cappuccino girl.

Propagating's easy...like everything else, you just 'do it', and if it doesn't work, you do it again.
It surprised me that I hadn't heard of Garden Glories before also. I still wouldn't know about it if I hadn't joined the Hort Society and gone to Annie's presentation. And she's in Vista...so close! Makes me wonder how many other little private place are around that I don't know about.
Some of this is sounding like I've already said this...LOL! With the 2 different threads maybe I'm repeating myself....