Posted by
BookerC1 (Mackinaw, IL - Zone 5a) on Jul 9, 2012 3:26 PM concerning plant:
A student gave me one potted in a little coffee cup, which I set on my windowsill. It lived and bloomed for almost 3 years, until the cat finally knocked it down while we were out of town for a week.
Great for areas with dry or poor soil. Very drought-tolerant, and blooms non-stop without deadheading. Great in the ground or in containers. The fleshy stems and leaves look as if they'd be pointy, but they are actually quite soft.
Posted by
Newyorkrita (North Shore, Long Island, NY ) on Sep 4, 2013 5:16 PM concerning plant:
This is one of the best annuals one can choose for any difficult dry area or problem spot in the garden. Never needs watering and just blooms and blooms and blooms. Such pretty and colorful flowers.
Posted by
ILPARW (southeast Pennsylvania - Zone 6b) on Sep 8, 2020 8:21 AM concerning plant:
This Sundial Series seems to be the most commonly used set of cultivars in the Midwest and Eastern USA in recent times. The leaves of these cultivars are narrow and sort of rounded and not wider and sort of flattish as some other cultivar series. I prefer the more fine texture narrow-leaved cultivars. The old Moss Roses we used to grow at my parents house back in the 1950's into the 1990's were this kind of cultivar series in appearance. This series is noted as blooming even during cloudy or cool weather that the older cultivars often did not do. I found a great mass planting that was blooming well in early September in 2020, and the old cultivars usually would have little bloom into September unless one dead-headed the old flowers. Moss Rose, a species native to South America is a wonderful low annual for hot, sunny, sort of dry sites. It blooms just during the day, not night.
Posted by
Natalie (North Central Idaho - Zone 7a) on Sep 7, 2014 10:24 PM concerning plant:
I really love this plant, especially for areas that are very hot and dry, with poor soil. It is very easy to grow from seed, which is a bonus for me. It also reseeds nicely, which is good if you have it planted in a hard-to-reach area, as I do. The only problem I've had with it so far is that the deer seem to think it is delicious. I've planted seeds three times this year, and luckily it got to blooming size each time before the deer did away with it. I hope some seeds dropped before they ate it! If not, I'll try again next year. Luckily, it's a fast grower and it seems to thrive on neglect.
Posted by
dmac (NC) on Sep 29, 2011 7:02 PM concerning plant:
Love this plant and I have great success sowing it in place outside after last frost date. The flowers remind me of the crepe paper parade float flowers. Mine have survived some droughts and my poor watering schedule with flying colors. It's a bit tedious but you can collect seed from them as well.
