Viewing comments posted by lovesblooms

There is no coleus like Black Dragon. I just love it. I let mine grow three feet tall and two feet wide this year. Seed I planted was saved seed, so there was variegation in the seedlings, but only in the magenta stripe: some of the seedlings showed it more prominently than others. I saved seed from the biggest and darkest.

I wish I had a picture of these. I planted them with Dianthus Kaleidoscope Mix and Dianthus Velvet n Lace. It was an arresting grouping, blooming from early to mid summer. I didn't deadhead because the dark flowers lasted so long I basically forgot to, or I may have gotten another flush. About 10 inches tall.

Beautiful, fragrant, long-lasting blooms. They needed staking in my yard; were otherwise prostrate on the ground, since they were a small first-year clump. Probably too wet in my clay although they had plenty of sun.

I was never really a carnation lover--I always thought of them as cheap stand-ins for roses--but when I learned they can be fragrant I decided to give these a try since they were pretty (for carnations, I thought). But I was pleasantly surprised, since I actually winter sowed these and they bloomed the first year--not much, but worth the small starter clump--and by the end of the year I was actually proud that I'd grown "real" carnations, and they're a whole different creature than the ones found at the store.

Out of several cultivar seeds, this is the only yarrow I winter sowed that bloomed this year. It came true and I definitely liked the delicate look of the flowers, so different than the flat-topped yarrows, But it was only a small clump, so I'll look forward to it next year to compare with the flat-topped white yarrow I also planted in another area of the garden. My little plant bloomed once and I let it set seed rather than deadheading, so I didn't get a good estimate of bloom time.

Came true from seed for me, and grew into a healthy 6- to 8-inch clump of saturated, variegated purple-gray-green outdoors the first year from indoor sowing in February. It was in a deck rail planter but I think I'll move it to the shade border this year.

These came true from seed for me. They were sweet, but I actually found myself preferring the regular blackeyed susans for the greater contrast of the black eye. Grew 16 inches tall, bloomed till frost.

These just pretty much refuse to fade. I gathered seed, pulling the whole flower. They're dry now but still quite purple. Perfect for arrangements, fresh or dry. The yellow tips on the ends of each "spike" (my scientific term) also make them a conversation piece, since they 're so noticeable. They bloomed from early summer until fall and reached about cosmo height--4 to 5 feet--for me last year.

Grew these two seasons in a row, the second time along with Great White. I liked Tomesol's flavor better. I don't know if this is a rule or anything, but it seems white tomatoes are earlier than any other color tomatoes except cherries--and that's a near thing. The Tomesols grew fast and produced well, no real disease issues at all. I started picking green ones and had a lunch paper bag full in no time. I loved the definite hint of smoke in the tart flavor when ripe. Would definitely grow again if I had the seed.

The silver is the silveriest, and it looks delicate, but it put up with heat and drought in full sun for me without complaining much. I winter sowed these last year, and when they came up, I planted them in a huge pot with a small red cascade rose. They eventually crawled over the edge and dripped out.

This came true from seed for me, and my small clump of seedlings bloomed the first year after winter sowing here in zone 7a. Gorgeous color combo in fall. Can't wait to see the bigger clump this year.

I started calling the light post this was trained to climb "The Pillar of Flame" in my head. It was so dramatic, and the show lasted for months. The root sprouted much sooner than I expected and grew over six feet high, beginning to bloom in early summer and continuing until early fall. I loved how the flowers started green (and honestly with a flower shaped like that, who needs color?), with the red color slowly infusing the entire bloom until it was a rich, saturated orange-red. This way, each flower lasted a long time, without me feeling the need to deadhead.

I might add I bought these because the pictures I saw online seemed to portray them as a hot pink versus the Rothschildiana's bright red. But they're not pink or pinky at all.

I didn't grow this to cook with--I put it in with the flowers. It was gorgeous, grew to a little under two feet with its abundant, showy flower spikes, and was pleasantly pungent when brushed by along the pathway. Gathering seeds leaves the slightly spicy aroma on my hands for a while. And there were LOTS of seeds! Won't be surprised to find seedlings everywhere this spring.

I bought a grafted rose, so it was already a nice size when it got here. I planted in a new bed of clay amended with leaf compost, watered and fed regularly for the first few months of spring, then left it alone, except...

... when it got black spot. It spotted a little bit and I sprayed it with my home made mix and it went away, but then it came back and just kept coming back even though I tried to spray, until it had lost a lot of its new leaves and I gave up and it was just sticks. It gave us two huge, gorgeous, fragrant magenta blooms before it was "pruned" rather drastically by deer and never recovered enough to produce more.

This seemed to take forever to get started outside--good thing I'd started them indoors. It took its time warming up and the area where I planted it is partially shady, but once it got going it didn't stop until the bitter end and it had grown over six feet.

Lacy foliage (smaller than erubescens) with layers of hundreds of dozens of "snapdragon"-like flowers (also smaller than erubescens) that made it look even more lacy--no photo I have did it justice, but I loved it and will give it a go again this year.

Mine grew to almost five feet or so, but I may be to blame, since I planted it upside down and it had to work its way back around. When in doubt, lay it on its side! Lost growth time that way. But the leaves are a very impressive presence. Can't wait to try again this season.

Mine is actually in a container outdoors and hasn't dropped its leaves or turned brown at all through much lower temps than listed. It is near the house, but I somehow didn't expect it to survive anyway, since it's small. It gave me a few blooms once late in the season, but I didn't expect much its first year, the big rootball still crammed in a container. The hardiness though is a nice surprise, since I'm in 7a Maryland last time I checked.

Beautiful plant, grew over six feet for me in an enormous grow bag (the size of a 4X4 raised bed, 10-12 inches deep) with 15 other plants. Eventually, I couldn't keep up with production with my several okra plants, but most of the time fruit under 5 inches long was still tender.

This is a tough one. I planted it in clay, in our shaded backyard, during 2013, The Year It Rained--which turned Maryland practically into a rainforest. The rain actually washed the clay away from the roots. I couldn't dig deep enough in the stuff, so they spent the year with exposed, shallow roots. And grew. And bloomed. And never looked anything other than the pictures show. The foliage is gorgeous. I didn't bother to dig them in deeper before winter, and the following spring I found I'd only lost one of the three plants.

This squash is the only one other than the Trombetta squash that never succumbed to bugs or disease. This is what made me realize that only C. moschata squashes belong in my garden.

It sets multiple fruits at once, so that when we picked one, there were always few more maturing on the vines, all the way until frost. The flavor was also worth saving space for in the garden this year.

The other rose in my garden that has absolutely no acquaintance with black spot in my garden. It grows in sprays as pictured, not clusters or stems. I've never sprayed it once, never needed to. It was in a new bed of clay amended with leaf compost, watered and fed conscientiously for the first few months of spring, then left to its own devices the rest of the year.

It bloomed in multiple flushes throughout the season, and I had to prune it back twice before the end of the year just to keep the arching stems from getting into the pathway. The blooms are small (maybe 2 inches max) but profuse and a very delicate shell-pink.

It was given to me in trade by a gardener who's had its cuttings passed down through her family for years. It grew to twice its arrival size--at least--this past season, and I can't wait to see what it can do this season. I may have to move those white lilies behind it!

There was no real scent for me in my conditions, and the arching new stems are practically thornless.