I asked the question of whether brugs could be planted in earth boxes and one of the replies was that some of the brugs get very large. This made me realize that (obviously I am new to this!) that I have no idea which brugs get larger than others. I looked at the website that I am ordering them from and they refer to the bloom size but never the size of a mature plant. I have ordered a Flamenco, Miss Emily MacKenzie, KBS, and a New Orleans Lady. Can anyone give me an idea of the differences in sizes with these plants? And, please, how long do you stake them for? My plants and I thank you in advance!!
Annie
how large will these brugs get?
Almost all can get very large, six to eight feet in a single year. I never stake them unless one gets blown over by strong winds.
ken--i have my first little brugs starting--we are in the same zone (by the way-is big sandy near a catholic church called st annes?) so you said you never stake them and that they get very large--so i assume they stay out over the winter here?
So do you think it is a better plan for me to plant these in-ground and not do the "in-out" thing? I am a little south of you so we should be a tad bit warmer. The other day I went out and my soil temp was 59 degrees.
They will freeze down to the ground and come back from the roots as long as the ground temp does not freeze. I expect my planted brug to come back from the roots here in Odessa. Best thing to do if you plant it is take cuttings before the first freeze or cold temps as insurance for the next year in case it does not come back. You can also do the big pot and in and out thing. They like to form huge root systems. I had a cutting that filled a 5 gallon pot with roots in under 2 months. The size of the plant will be limited by the size of the pot. We put that 5 gallon one in the ground in July and it grew to about 4 ft and had about 40 blooms on it in the late fall.
Tammie
thanks--good idea for covering all situations!
AnnieJo, did you use a soil thermometer or a kitchen thermometer? How many samples did you take? If the Brugs you are referring to are the ones you mentioned in the Texas Forum, most of the Brugs will be root hardy in Austin. I would, however dig up New Orleans Lady and overwinter her in a greenhouse or indoors to be on the safe side as some Brugs are more cold sensitive than others. Take a look in the PlantFiles if unsure.
Austin is south of us but a tad west so we are in the same zone. It would be OK to plant most of your Brugs out. We plant all of ours out and do have a few that do not come back but we take hundreds of cuttings just before first frost so we do not worry if they don't.
Linda, I do not know of any St Annes church but Big Sandy is our mailing address, we live out in the sticks. We are 30 miles north of Tyler and 100 miles east of you.
I used a kitchen thermometer so I didn't get but about 6 inches down. Do I need a soil thermometer?
Annie
Annie, soil thermometers are not very expensive, but unless you want to plant seed that needs to be planted within a certain temperature range or below or above certain temperatures, you can do without one. The kitchen thermometer would probably suffice. Just remember that the soil should be moist when you take its temperature. Water is what conducts the heat or lack of to the probe.
I bought my soil thermometer at harbor freight.. it was about $6.. can't remember exactly.. I love that store. LOL
Thanks for the info about the moist soil. I took my temps when it was dry. I will check it again. Thank you guys so much for all of the help!