Stir crazy, but there's nothing much in the nurseries yet

I'm the same way, Iris. If it doesn't flower or produce fruit, I have no room for it.

I simply divide with a strong knife and go right through the plant while it's in the ground. There's no point in lifting, dividing and replanting to my way of thinking. Then I put as much compost as will fit in the vacancy.

My biggest problem with dividing daylilies is giving them away to people who don't appreciate them so putting them at the curb (though we have no curbs) is easier for me. Then, at least, I don't have to know or care about the plants. When I spend two full days packing I do care.

You have all been busy! I'm not sure if the west coast pictures are soothing my east coast winter soul or creating big lust. I might have to make a bowl of David's popcorn while I contemplate that dilemma.

Pirl, I recognize one of those boxes.

Sue, I love your blue collage. I've tried Royal Ensign a couple of times from seed without success. I think I'm going to have to try again!

The local big greenhouse is closed until they stock up for spring and so are other favorite places. I bought two packages of seeds - whoopee!

venu209, I found them in a 6 pk at a local nursery, they were so gorgeous, I hope the few seeds I got will give me something, if not, I will be on the hunt for them again. That blue is so intense!

This message was edited Jan 27, 2009 7:17 AM

It's a start pirl! I have a box of seeds that I am determined to start this year, my funds are too tight to buy much so I am going with some easy things (I hope) to spread around. That's my plan anyways. They had a fast and furious Terra Nova co-op yesterday, (I resisted) for plugs of some new Heuchera and Echinacea. So far, I can't grow Echinacea, I think my soil, or at least the spots I've tried have too much clay but my Mom has looser soil and she also has failed with them. Drives me nuts, there are so many I would love to grow! So I am looking at all the other wonderful stuff from there.
http://www.terranovanurseries.com/wholesale/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=336

This is one of my favorite plants in my garden right now, and my gradkids love it too! When you rub the leaves, it smells just like 7-up! I have to get an updated image of the whole plant, it's filling in nicely.
Stachys coccinea 'Pow Wow'
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/132444/

That's such a nice gentle color, Sue.

Our very old Echinaceas, Bravado (I think) or maybe Bravo, has always done very well but not so with the newer ones and paying $15. to $20. only to lose them just isn't appealing to me.

Here are some primula photos for Polly (but the rest of you can look at them too).

These are primulas of the Ocean Series and the blooms are extraordinarily large. They will produce 5-inch blooms after they're in the ground or in a larger pot, but even in the small container they look huge in comparison to other primula blooms. This is a comparison photo of one of the Ocean Series Primulas next to a regular Primula Acaulis:

Here's a closeup of that one so you can see the cute yellow edge.

I also bought it in this color:

I bought them for a birthday party and took them there before I could take photos of them, but they were in various shades of pink, peach, and purple. I couldn't resist keeping this one for myself:

Okay, those are all the big ones I kept, but I also bought some p. Acaulis that were really sweet. You saw one of them in the picture at the top. Here's another:

And another:

And one more:

And as long as I'm showing you what I bought that day, here's a pretty Cyclamen:

i love that last one . do they have a scent . i got one that looks very similar to the 4th one. it has no scent . the other 2 were plainer but have such a cheery smell so i passed on the more colorful ones

And another Cyclamen:

ok it wasnt the last lol by the time i got done typing there were 2 more

I don't think they have any fragrance, Iris. Not to my nose, at any rate.

I knew what you were talking about, Iris, because you said something about the fourth one and there were only two Cyclamen pictures, so it couldn't be those. Anyway, my response applied to all of them, so it didn't matter.

The rest of the plants I bought that day aren't in bloom yet, so that's all the photos for now.

Those primroses are just beautiful, Zuzu. I especially love the bicolored ones. Who will be selling them? They are huge.

Those are the biggest, brightest primulas I have ever seen!

Wow! They're spectacular. Even the leaves are much larger than the smaller, more typical ones.

They are such a big and bright signs of spring time! And more cylamen for you?!, they are hard to resist!

Have you seen this odd colored primula?
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=2963&account=none
and love these, too pricey for me, wonder if I can get some on sight:
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3002&account=none
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3003&account=none
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3027&account=none
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3028&account=none
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3029&account=none
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3059&account=none
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3041&account=none
http://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/plant_display.asp?prodid=3061&account=none

Now on the opposite size scale, I lost this sweet tiny one this year, may replace it on my next trip to Annie's.

This message was edited Jan 27, 2009 5:20 PM

They're wonderful, Sue. So different from the five or so standard colors of a dozen years ago.

Sue, isn't it amusing that Annie wants $14.95 for some of those auriculas? That's the exact price of the dozen assorted ones from Hortus.

http://www.hortusb.com/prsp.html

Polly, I'm sure the Ocean Series will be available at a lot of places soon. Last year Empire Nursery in Santa Rosa was the only source, as far as I know, but this year I even saw some at Safeway (our local grocery chain). If they're in grocery stores, they have to be in a lot of nurseries, I would think.

Maybe somebody like TerraNova will be offering them for sale.

I think I have some of those primulas, but I'll have to find the tags. The guy I got them from sold me some last year and wanted me to test them out and report back to him. They were in one of his "off limits" growing areas, but he sold me some anyway.I can't find the pics. of them from last year...but I know I posted them on here somewhere.

Thanks Zuzu, I'll be looking for them.

We'll be in for more snow, sleet, rain to be followed by more snow in the morning. This is the worst winter in a very long time.

I looked to see what primulas Terra Nova had, and all they have is Green Lace. That's a neat one, though.

http://www.terranovanurseries.com/wholesale/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=226

Pretty. It reminds me of a sedum I have.

And look at this picture of Ocean Mix, really show how large they are. Almost like a different plant.

http://bel-r.com/files/Ocean_Mix.jpg

They are very large. They'd match the daylilies of red and yellow that are on the other thread but they have totally different blooming times.

Maybe with some nice late tulips or daffs?

Perfect!

Many years ago, I mail ordered a big collection of early, mid and late blooming tulips...thinking I would have this on-going succession of blooms. They all bloomed at the same time! So much for doing tulips in So. Calif ! There were nice though...for about 3 days...until the sun pureed them.

Tulips grow well here, but they start blooming long after the Primulas do.

When I lived in Piedmont, we used to go see a huge tulip display every year -- thousands and thousands of tulips -- on the grounds of one of the cemeteries in Oakland. They bought new bulbs every year, so they pulled them out as soon as they finished blooming. Then they would post a security guard next to the mountain of spent tulips until they were taken away to the dump. It always seemed peculiar to me. I can understand why they didn't keep them in the ground. The display wouldn't have been so impressive in subsequent years, but I don't know why they didn't want anyone else to take even one or two.

JD - Can you grow tulips in the shade or just morning sun? Or is heat the problem?

Zuzu - "my" radio gardening guy, Ralph Snodsmith, was the Director of the Queens Botanical Gardens for many years and they would plant 300,000 tulips (donated by VanBourgondien) every year and dig them up after blooming, just as you mentioned with the Oakland cemetary. People were allowed to take them but the rest were all composted.

The reason they prefer people not take them is disappointment. People will expect them to flower each and every year and that's just not the case.

You'd think they could have explained the reason politely instead of taking the hostile step of posting a sentry.

Absolutely.