Ruellia, Desert Petunia, Florida Bluebells, Mexican Petunia, Mexican Blue Bells 'Katie'

This plant annoys me sometimes because it does spread; however, they are very easy to remove at any stage of growth.

Excel...Read Morelent for front of border, fillling bare spots, container gardening

Recently I acquired "Katie Bluebells" from an aquatic
plant source. It was thriving in a shallow pond, so I found
it odd th...Read Moreat information above mentions not to overwater it.

The plants were all blooming and beautiful, sitting in
tight little pots of kitty litter in a short few inches of water.

The plants I purchased, brought home and stuck into the
pond are doing quite well.

For those concerned with it's 'invasive' qualities, it can always
be planted in pots, or in pot-in-pot designs in the ground. Very
easy to solve.

I tried to add a note regarding the danger of this plant. Here's what the Florida Dept of Ag says about it:

"Mexican petu...Read Morenia has been designated by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council as a Category I invasive plant. That means it has the ability to displace native plant species so as to alter native plant communities. While it is not illegal to plant it, unintended consequences can last for ever."

I live in lakeland Florida. I bought a pink Mexican petunia four years ago . It's now almost 2 1/2 foot high. I have 13 plants now from ...Read Morecuttings and some from little baby plants that came from it. It must be the less invasive variety as mine has little cane like stems and are compact and very
attractive and tropical looking where as my sisters are on long grass like stems and they spread all over.
I live in Florida where it gets hot and humid and lots of plants get cooked in the summer. This plant just blooms spring till summer and nothing seems to bother it. I've never had a plant bring me so much happiness.
I bought two purples ones a few weeks ago at Home depot, but don't know if they're dwarfs or going to get 2 1/2 foot tall like my pink ones or not. It didn't say on the sign over it, and there was no tag in the flower pot.
Today I bought seven Katies Dwarfs in colors of purple and white. It says on the tag they will get 6-10 inches.
Has anyone ever had a Katies Dwarf grow taller then 10 "?
I'd like to get purple and white in the taller variety. not the invasive variety, but like my pink one.
Also, although I can make plants easily from cuttings. I'd like to know how to collect seeds from them. What do they look like, and how and when do you harvest them?
I know alot of plants being sold now days are hybrids that are sterile and you can't harvest seeds from them.
You may email me privately at dawn6258@tampadsl.net
Thanks
Cheryl

Much more interesting and much less invasive than the other cultivars. I planted my transplant in May and it had expanded to at least twi...Read Morece it's original size by frost so it is good for filling in spots quickly. Also, it is very easily divided if it spreads out because the stalks pull up separately. Also comes in white or pink blooming varieties.

It's easy to divide and share this plant: pull the extra stems off, making sure there's a bit of root attached. Just stick it in the gr...Read Moreound - very easy to grow. I also have the pink and grows just as well!

"Katie" is sometimes called Nolan's dwarf. Shortly after Lynn R. Lowrey, a well known Houston horticulturalist and collector (considered ...Read Moreto be the founder of the native plant movement in Texas) sold his nursery in Conroe, Texas, to his friend Katie Fergerson, two employees, Herbert Durand and Nolan Guillot, discovered a short growing natural hybrid Ruellia. After it was brought to Lowrey’s attention, he began testing, cultivating, sharing and promoting it after naming it after his friend. Both Katie Fergerson and Lynn Lowery are now deceased, but their contributions to horticultural endeavors live on.

It is a plant which forms clumps 6-10" tall and 12" wide, it is a super border and/or ground cover plant which begins blooming profusely in mid-summer to late summer and continues into fall. The bluish-purple, petunia-like, 1.5" blooms standout against the deep green sword-shaped foliage which is beautiful without any flowers. Tolerating shade, the plants will flower more in full sun. Once established, they are drought-tolerant, but perform best with regular waterings. Apply a high phosphorus fertilizer to encourage bloom production (needs no deadheading).

A few new plants may spring up from seed (I have had a few do so), but this species is not invasive and does not self-sow endlessly as do the larger types. If it does, it is easily removed. It has no serious insect or disease problems. It is mostly deer resistant. In mild winters, it is evergreen, but it will die to the ground after a hard freeze and return in spring from the roots. I protected mine last year with white colored frost protection sheets purchased at a nursery and they are 1.5 feet in height and width. It has been named a Texas Superstar by Texas A&M University because it withstands hot, dry areas and needs no pesticidal sprays. In colder climates it must be grown as an annual.