Gooseneck Loosestrife has long been one of my favorite perennials. Come to think of it, I like Yellow Loosestrife too. But the blooms on Gooseneck are almost blindingly white and they show up very nicely at night.
In the fall of 2018, knowing Gooseneck Loosestrife was hardy to zone 3, I decided to try an experiment. I had a nice looking, large double-walled plastic pot I filled with a very good quality potting soil mixed with a very small amount of hydro-gel. Then I put five small plugs of the Gooseneck in the pot and placed it on the covered, south-facing patio of my house. I watered it through the winter months on an as needed basis... and in early March I began to see small shoots emerging from the soil.
By April 22nd it was apparent the five plugs had developed a very good root system because the pot had almost filled up with new shoots about 2 inches high.
By May 28th the shoots had grown to about 12 inches and they filled the pot.
And by July 4th the pot was in full bloom. I deadheaded the spent bloom spikes and was surprised and pleased that the bloom display lasted until mid-August.
In the next couple of days I will take the root ball out of the pot... divide it into 4-6 pieces... and start the procedure all over again. Friends have already asked for whatever pieces I have left over.
