Yes, I've caught the coop bug. Not only is there a glad/lily coop, but there is also a calla coop. So does anybody grow callas in 8a or anywhere else? I have only 1 pot of callas in the gh and I don't know what kind it is. According to PF they need lots of sun, but I wonder if that also means Tx sun.
Anybody grow callas in 8a?
I tried a couple dozen calla bulbs last year, the spotted variety, and found that while they like full sun, direct hot afternoon sun should be avoided. Tended to burn the leaves, the blooms faded quickly and didn't last as long. So a cooler spot - both soil and air temps with full morning and early afternoon sun seemed to fare better. Waiting to see how many reappear this spring.
Chuck
that's kind of what I was thinking. I think if I do callas I'll have to keep them in pots for awhile at least and move them around to see where they do best.
I grow callas in 7b, so I think you'd be fine in Fredericksburg. I don't think they would take full sun. Mine are under a crepe myrtle where they get morning sun, but afternoon shade. I love them, the blooms last forever. The Captain callas do well here, but I have planted some of the other types that didn't come back. We had some pretty cold weather here this winter, so I may have lost some of them.
I lost all the ones I planted in full sun. The leaves were a lot smaller, scorched and the blooms disappeared after 2 or 3 days. Definitely need protection from hot afternoon sun.
Thanks for all your answers. I kind of expected that they wouldn't survive full Tx sun, but I thought it best to ask. I don't know now if I can afford to order callas now because of the lousy economy. I am ordering a little from the hosta coop, the glad/lily coop and hopefully the tropical coop with Agristarts. I already feel guilty about those. I told DH that I don't mind giving up eating out and buying clothes and going on vacations, not that we ever did much of that anyway. But I just can't give up buying plants. They are the spice of my life.:) I have one small pot of callas that I bought last year off the fried/frozen cart at Lowes. It's been in the gh all winter. I hope they come back. If they do at least I know I can plant them in the ground where they'll get am sun.