I try to leave feedback when the plants are good. But since I have a business, I don't feel comfortable leaving any bad feedback. However if we could show a picture, I might be tempted to leave a neutral and show the picture.

That's an excellent idea. That way, people are backing up their complaints with visual proof, so to speak, and not just causing trouble if they have some sort of ax to grind with a company.

And that's true, too. I never thought about the people that have an axe to grind, and of course there would be many. I was just thinking of people that maybe were new to gardening, and expected more than what was actually correct.

Yes, if you're complaining about inferior plants, photos would definitely be in order.

Or to show off how excellent plants are from a company.

Yes! That too!
See? I'm one of those complainers....

I planted Balloon flower plants in my garden many years ago once they are established they just keep coming back each spring. Here in the north they take awhile (as in late) to show in spring but they will make their appearance. I love the blue/purple and have both the single and the double flowered plants. I think starting with plants is the way to get them going in your garden they certainly love my zone 4 northern climate. Another thing is if you keep deadheading them they will bloom for a long time. I will look if I have any photos of them.

daylilydreams said:I planted Balloon flower plants in my garden many years ago once they are established they just keep coming back each spring. Here in the north they take awhile (as in late) to show in spring but they will make their appearance. I love the blue/purple and have both the single and the double flowered plants. I think starting with plants is the way to get them going in your garden they certainly love my zone 4 northern climate. Another thing is if you keep deadheading them they will bloom for a long time. I will look if I have any photos of them.

I started a batch from seed in early March indoors. The germination is dismal. Hindsight I guess, is if I want them to comeback each year, I'd have to have blooms so they reseed, right?
Would the better option be to buy an established plant at the nursery which will bloom this year?

Julia they do not have to reseed I deadhead mine a lot so they bloom much longer they are very hardy perennial plants. You will have a much easier time getting them established if you plant a couple of plants it takes them time but after a few years you will have them for years. You do have to be patient getting the plants established mine did not take right off like some plants do but it is worth the effort they are beautiful. I will try to remember to take some pictures this summer when they bloom. I think I have them in about three areas they don't transplant well at least for me they don't so it is best to plant them where you want them to remain for the long term. At one time I did try the pink ones which did not make it for the long term they were very pale in color to me the blue/purple are much nicer.

I have found in my many years of gardening that in my cold climate planting plants of whatever perennial gives me much better results you can always divide a lot of them later if you want more plants.

I picked up a couple of them last year at Wal-Mart on sale. I have my fingers crossed that they'll come back this year!

Not good to transplant once established. I needed to know that. I planted seeds last year and they didn't do all that much but this year everything has taken off. So I won't attempt to transplant them if they come back stronger. I'll just thin the plants. Sound right?

Woofie give your plants plenty of time to appear in spring before you dig around the area they can take their time putting in an appearance.

Tee you are in a warmer climate with likely a different soil type than our heavy soil. If you have a good stand this year and could try transplanting some without disturbing most of them I would give that a try. You will still have some that stayed in place and you never know but that you might have success with moving some, if not you will not have lost all of them. My clumps come up quite thick each year when I bought the plants they were a small clump in the pot.

daylilydreams said: they don't transplant well at least for me they don't so it is best to plant them where you want them to remain for the long term. At one time I did try the pink ones which did not make it for the long term they were very pale in color to me the blue/purple are much nicer.

I am assuming your referring to well established plants and not newly planted pots that we get from the nursery or wherever.

I've got alot of Hyssop (herb) which also blooms with the bluish flower. Maybe I'll move some of that too. What do you think?

Since we back up to woods, our soil is great in some places due to large deposits of leaves and organic matter that have occurred over the years ... and clay to heavy clay in other places. But where I planted the seeds is a lasagna bed that is a bit raised. So good soil and good drainage.

That sounds like a good course of action, Betty. I'm hoping to see more than I did last year.

Your hyssop is lovely, Julia.

Julia I was referring to transplanting from well established clumps, sorry I didn't make it clear. Although sometimes people have trouble getting nursery plants to grow it happened to my sister. We lived in the same town and for some unknown reason she had trouble I believe she tried a second time with another plant before she got it to grow.

I think the hyssop would give you the color you want that is one plant I don't have so am not sure how easy it is to transplant but it looks like you have plenty so could take some from the outside edge and give it a try.

Gardens are always kind of trial and error anyway until you know what will work in your soil and climate. My garden is always changing in some way that is what keeps it interesting. One thing I think every long term gardener learns is patience it takes a long time to establish a garden.