Podster thanks for the link it is very helpful.
Well now I am really confused about my brug. On one side of the y it has yellow flowers and on the other side of the y the flowers are a nice peachy pink.
I haven't smelled them yet. Gotta do that LOL.
As far as overwintering them. I didn't do a thing. Just left it in the pot as per instructions from the seller. I guess she knew what she was talking about because it is really georgeous this year.
I used 4 month osmocote on it March and August. I put some epsom salts on it about 10 days ago and it really seemed to take off with epsom salts.
Is it normal to have two different colors? My first Brug and I am in love. Gotta have a million of these babies LOL.
Anyboy want me to root some of mine to trade for yours? Don't know if you'd get yellow or peach or a combination plant off mine.
I'm going to go outside now and start some cuttings for helping me to get to my first million brugs!
Charlene
Zone 8 and colder plants with a tropical flavor
Podster Would you bring me some cuttings off of your "common" althea. If you look at my list for the plant trade it is a request of mine. DH was so disappointed when my altheas were double pinks. He said that these were not what he remembered in his yard growing up. He would hug your neck for the cuttings.
Charlene
Charlene ~ sending you Dmail
Charlene ~ my pink opens up yellow and turns to pink. The first time it bloomed, I was driving into the yard and it distracted me to see the yellow color that I almost ran into a tree. The next morning, it had turned pink... http://davesgarden.com/community/journals/si/107422/
Due to letting them freeze last year, they haven't acquired blooming status yet and I can't promise cuttings yet... pod
Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight....lalalal.....lalala.lalalala.....Julie Andrews...Sound of Music
: )) I know you don't want me singing!
Maybe........
I used to own a daycare center way back in my youth. Now those little guys loved my singing.
However no one else has ever cared to hear it. LOL
Another winter hardy bulb... unusual and fragrant.
Charlene, Brugs are root hardy in zones 8a and 8b, so they will die down. If you mulch heavily, you'll give the roots more protection and they should bounce back faster. If you don't have a way to overwinter them indoors, Podster's advice about laying them on their sides and covering with a blanket would work if the freeze is just for a day or two. After that the ground cools off too much to be of any help.
They are heavy feeders so start feeding at least once a week with Miracle Grow as soon as you are free of freezing weather. You will lose the "Y", but by summer they will have formed more "y"s. They will come back as shrubs rather than the single trunked tree. Another thing that you can do if you plant your Brug in the ground is to take cuttings in the fall, root them in water indoors over the winter and get a head start in the spring. If you are interested in a tree form, allow at least a new shoot that emerges from the ground to grow. These shoots usually grow up straight. You can even leave it on the mother plant until it 'y's. Cut it off and root it in a pail of water with an aquarium bubbler.
All of mine are in pots because I was hoping we'd have a new house built closer to our large oaks and I could then plant them in the ground. They overwinter well in the greenhouse as long as my DH keeps his hands off the thermostat. They don't go dormant and bloom once or twice while in the greenhouse. I love going in there winter evenings and enjoy the fragrance.
I ordered seed from OnaLee last Spring. Now have 4 pots of brugs that are getting pretty good size. You say they will bloom during the winter? I have so many large plants to bring in this year it will be a jungle in the house.
They are supposed to go dormant, but they don't in the greenhouse. If they are healthy, I don't pull off any leaves and don't prune until spring so they continue to grow and bloom. Some leaves do yellow and fall off. I have some Brugs that seem to be more cold sensitive. They lose most of their leaves, but don't go completely dormant. If I keep the thermostat between 45º and 50ºF, they all survive. This past winter, my DH lowered the thermostate down to 40º to save propane. Most of the Brugs eventually lost their leaves and a number died down to the soil level and didn't come back.
Having a good plant dolly really helps. I bought mine from either FarmTek or AM Leonard. A little high, but well worth it. It can really hold the large 24" and 36" pots that I have.
That would be closer to the temp of my attached garage. The washer and dryer is there so sometimes have the electric heater on. It is insulated and we have flourescent shop lights so may reserve a place there instead of inside the house.