I know we all have our favorites.
Are there any flowers you don't like and won't grow in your gardens?
For me - it's petunias. I have a love/hate relationship with petunias.
They look SO pretty. The colors are glorious.
I REFUSE to grow them.
I hate the sticky mess. That's what turned me to Calibrocha (Million Bells)
They have the look of petunias (albeit, smaller blooms) but without the legginess & sticky mess.
I have no interest in growing Impatiens. They're all over the place. I find them too boring to include in my garden. The same goes for begonias - especially the wax begonia.
My mother loves them. She always has a bunch of them (and impatiens).
She likes anything where she doesn't have to do anything - other than water.
Nancy
Are there any flowers you DON'T like?
you hate all the flowers I love ... LOL... I am not the biggest wax begonia fan... but I love tuberous ones
off the top of my head... I really can't think of one I hate... it's such a strong word.. I have a few I dislike though
I'm like Allison, hate is such a strong word!
I am however, getting to dis-like Liatris(sp) as spread so easily.
The flower itself was pretty, but the fragrance was horrid on a type of plum I think it was. The spring after we moved here, This awful smell permeated the air by the driveway. It stayed planted for a few years, but it finally did come out. Maybe that's what did in my sense of smell. Or at least diminished it. Sure wish I could smell the flowers better.
I don't hate petunias... I hate the mess.
There are no flowers I hate. The ones I don't care for I'll admire in other people's gardens.
Remember-my garden is totally containers. I'm not going to "waste" a pot for impatiens. LOL!
If I had in-ground garden, I might have impatiens, begonias scattered around for fill-in color. No petunias, though. :o/
Which ones don't you care for, Allison?
Interesting topic, Nancy. Not a fan of brugmansias at all. Not a big fan of 'overly double' flowers like ranunculus, etc. Never too crazy about the standard marigolds. Just hearing MIL's tongue traumatizes me.
Nancy, same with Allison, all the ones you don't like I do...lol
I get annoyed with flowers that don't smell good.
I really can't stand celosia.
The flowers I really hate are the ones that don't grow. lol
I have to agree with Nancy about the messy Petunia's! I like them but I do hate the sticky mess. I don't like sticky anything so that might be the problem.
Marigolds... love 'em. I love the way they smell. I came across some a couple of years ago that were advertised as being "oderless".
HUH? What's the point? LOL!
I agree about celosia. Not one of my faves either.
When it comes to annuals my must-haves are marigolds, zinnias & calibrochas.
What about bulbs/perennials?
I don't care for gladiolas. They remind me too much of funeral flowers.
Irises - not high on my list and I probably wouldn't grow them. If I moved some place where they were already there - I'd leave them. Mainly because I'm too lazy to do anything about them. LOL!
I enjoy spring bulbs more in other places. Love the scent of hyacinths.
I think I'd be too frustrated waiting for them to die back.
Most of the perennials I grow are summer bloomers for that reason.
Love Glads..will be planting 75 bulbs this year.
Now Iris's....so easy to grow, so many different kinds and colors and bloom times!! Same thing with lily bulbs, colors, smells, shapes and bloom times.
I really don't care for any succulent plants. They seem strange to me. I know that a lot of people like them so I keep looking at different ones but none really trip my trigger. If I lived in a dry, desert area, I'd probably love them. I just like leafy things.
I don't see the point of green flowers. Why bother?
I have not had a problem with liatris since I started removing the flower stalk as soon as they fade.
Thank you for that tip Andy, i'll try it this summer!
Don't like anything that needs staking.
funny Pixie I planted Liatris...in hopes it would spread... it died
LOL
I would say an invasive plant would be on my dislike list... like an underground runner... something I can keep up on and deadhead and not have it spread would be ok though... I could probably say the pachysandra from the prior owner that I can't get rid of I really do hate... as every time I go outside and see another piece popping up... my head sets on fire... Randy usually laughs at me yanking out those pieces while saying some not so nice words every time
I'm not crazy about daylilies - too little bloom for the space. I pretty much feel the same about iris, but both were here when we moved in so I leave them. I don't like begonias in general, nor do I like dahlias. Basically, anything that needs to be dug in the fall dies here, because I don't dig it!
Don't care for the smell of Petunia foliage. Dislike cone flowers since the petals look like it is wilting. DL are fine as a filler, the only orange one is Pumpkin Time which blooms here from the middle of July until late Sept. Don't like the 'ditch lily' type. Love irises, especially the dwarf & intermediate types. My allergies don't care for lilacs & NEVER can bring them indoors. Impatiens are useful for shady areas.
I'm not crazy about Gladiolas,too much trouble planting the bulbs and then they flop over. Same goes for dinnerplate dahlias I am not fond of staking and tieing.
I am underwhelmed by geraniums.
I have learned to dislike the flowers deer will go out of their way to eat.
O MY EYES! MY EYES! People are writing bad words about dahlias :O I'm beginning to have issues with the non-bloomyness of daylilies which has been mentioned but I like their foliage in the shade so I will probably keep a few. I am not particularly fond of the annual geraniums because I don't like their smell. I am not a fan of scabosia because it is too floppy so I replaced it with knautia.
Awwwwww.
Don't fret.
I have dahlias. I love them. I'm not thrilled that I have to dig them up for storage. Most of my perennials are hardy for my zone so I don't have to do anything with them.
The dahlias, canna & callas were all given to me, so I do what I gotta do.
Nancy
Thanks everso gabagoo ^_^ I store cannas, callas, acidenthera, and glads too. They add interest in my garden and other than the storing part are easy/peasy to grow here.
I like the little annual dahlias, if that helps any! We had a bad experience with our former landlady and digging dahlias always on the busiest farm day of the fall, well, several bad experiences. Put me off them forever I'm afraid.
I also have a problem with forget-me-nots (Myosotis), they grow, they bloom, they seed, they mold, they spread like crazy. But I'm fond of blue. This year, I'm giving Cynoglossum a shot.
I love forget me nots and just pull them out after they bloom, there's always more next year.
I am TOTALLY surprised no one has mentioned Houttuynia cordata, The Chameleon.
Or Loosestrife, for that matter. Even though I like Loosestrife flowers in a nice mass, its invasiveness is most unwelcome.
Yarrow is another one. Though I cannot make up my mind completely. It spreads so, but, I like the foliage. Flowers are OK, but not a wow factor. I have seen it grown as a lawn, which is an interesting consideration.
Gout Weed, or Bishop's Weed (Aegopodium podagraria 'Variegatum') is another I am on the fence about .... BOY! does it spread, and has no real flower, though I do like Queen Anne's Lace, which it resembles, but always cut to flowers off and grow it only for its foliage. This is an "heirloom" plant from great grandmom's flower garden, so I do not remove it, I keep it as a fond remembrance.
Lily of the Valley almost falls into the last category (ambivalence), as it spreads so invasively, the flowers, though fragrant, are only around for a short time, and then all you have are those short leaves. This is another from great grandmom's garden. I like it because it grows in the darkest corner of the gardens up against the north side of the house, under the spirea, and fills in what is usually a place nothing grows. *it is there with the vinca minor, yarrow and Gout weed.
I am also one who does not "like" the 3 or 4 plants that EVERYone else seems to HAVE to include in their spartan plantings. Not that I hate them, just see them EVERYwhere. That includes everyones Impatiens (which I grow new guinea), those "darn" red (or pink) Geraniums (though I like Johnson's Blue), Marigolds (though I grow some to keep the moles out of my gardens), Begonias are not so bad, but if I see one more display that goes Geranium, Begonia, Geranium, Begonia ..... I swear!
I am also not a big fan of arborvitae or yews (I know, not flowers, but....), which seem to be the ONLY evergreens so-called "landscapers" know about.
Lastly, I am too lazy to take care of things that need to be dug up and stored for the winter (glads, dahlias, cannas etc.) Though, I do like them, just hate the demands. I do over-winter a lot of tropical things, so I suppose if I were to just grow them in a huge pot and over-winter them in the garage, maybe. I know neighbors who never lift their glads or their cannas and callas for that matter. Location, location, location.
Willie, I chuckled when I read your answer. I almost listed some overplanted things in my neighborhood.
Around here, at least every other house has Stella d'oro daylilies, a red knock out rose, and a flowering pear tree (sometimes all three). None of these plants are especially bad but they're everywhere--over and over again. Sometimes I wonder if there's a law in my city that mandates them. I have to drive out into the rural areas to see something different.
Love Loosestrife, has been 3-4 years since planting it and it is still in the same general area. Not extremely invasive for me I guess. I'm thinking that zones play a big part in how we view these pest.
Yarrow does spread here but it's easy to pull up so it's not really a problem.
Lily of the Valley is one of my favorites.it reminds me of my Grandparents camp as a child. I will always have it on my land for that reason.
Thats another point.....I have lots of land so these things are NOT a problem. Zones and amount of plantable land is the deciding factors for most of these I think.
Canna lily is a flower I don't like. I like the foliage, but not the blooms.
I don't like the begonias with the big, full blooms, but I really like the ones with the delicate, almost inconspicuous flowers and the fancier leaves. I like to use those in my shade containers, and I have a hard time finding them at nurseries. The big, full ones seem more common. Same goes for impatiens- not crazy about the "standard" ones that you see everywhere, but there are a couple cool varieties out there. I like the "Fusion" ones.
Daffodils do nothing for me, either. I have something against yellow flowers in general...not sure why.
Noreaster, you'd hate my garden then. ^_^
I like cosmos flowers, but not the foliage. They should get together.
I don't like Stella D'Oro DL although I do like Hyperion. The rest I dislike because of their habits, rampant spreaders or reseeders (not where you want them!), Purple coneflower, NIgella, Feverfew (Ugh!), Lysimachia, Black eyed susan, Joe pye weed, Phlox. I have all of these & except for Feverfew, admire something about them but they are hard to contain. I do like wax begonias because they flower non stop with little care. Old fashioned petunias smell great to me.
I love German Iris but I don't think they are worth it (short bloom, leaves get ugly). Don't think hybrid teas are woth it either. don't have any passionate hates. No bad flowers, just humans making bad decisions about flowers.
I'm sure I wouldn't, flowerjen! Besides, "hate" is a strong word...I don't actually hate any flowers that I can think of.. There are some that just appeal to me less than others, which just means that I wouldn't plant them- not that I don't still enjoy them when I see them elsewhere.
OH - hybrid teas are a definite NOT FOR MY GARDEN but I have hundreds of old garden roses.
Ditto on the Hybrid Teas. We are all about blackspot in this area - too much moisture; too lazy to spray. for this reason I adore rugosas...
I don't like floppy flowers, but i do like glads. I set aside an area in my veg garden for growing cut flowers, and this is where the glads are. I use wire fencing (2 x 4) as a grid to grow the glads through - no floppin! I don't dig them either, nor the Dahlias, and they usually survive.
I really can't think of particulars that i dislike, other than the aforementioned floppies, things that are prone to blackspot/mildew, or anything that wants to take over the world, as Willie mentioned. I have space for some of this type, but I keep a watchful eye...
Don't like crown vetch - know a four-letter word that describes it - EVIL
(or maybe that's the nurseries that sell it and don't tell you how invasive it is).
WNYwillieB - goutweed/bishop's weed - sitting 'on the fence' and great grandmom - we inherited it from our neighbour and it came under the fence.
As you indicate, it can really spread. It doesn't know the difference between a flower bed and the lawn.
Pixie62560 - Agree re purple loosestrife - have had 'Morden Pink' and 'Rosy Gem', number of plants, for ten years and never seen seeding or other spreading - spectacular plants.
Dahlianut - found Knautia (macedonica) useful plant - very long bloom time, especially if deadheaded (huge job), and has an unusual wine colored flower - but it's a big flopper and difficult to stake.
This message was edited Apr 13, 2009 1:43 AM