Viewing comments posted by sallyg

Wild descendants of landscape specimens are now completely filling some highway right of ways here in central Maryland. It readily takes hold when areas are left unmowed.

Rating this negative for self sowing and invasive traits. It has taken hold along the shoulders of a local two lane highway, well away from any initial plantings. If you let the seed heads dry, the seeds can sprout and seedlings are very hard to pull. Beware of handling the dry seedheads, as the seeds are very sharp, and become stuck in your socks, fleece, and knit gloves. They poke you painfully, or you spend hours picking them out of the fabric.

I have clumps of it, for about 20 years. It does grow next to a maple tree making a nice flowing grass clump. I manage them by cutting off all seedheads before they dry and shed.
Editing 5 years after initial comment - I've gotten rid of this, who needs the chore of trimming seedheads? and I'm now seeing this thickly established along even more local roads.

I bought a grocery store edo/eddo and grew it into a potted plant. That variety seems smaller in size/stature than some. It grew to about 3 feet tall. First winter, I guess I kept it growing in the basement. Second summer, it grew well but on pulling it, I found no tuber left, only two tiny new tubers offsetting from the two stems. I potted the tiny tubers to keep growing but discarded the tops.

This summer, I was given a bulb of "giant" elephant ear. Also potted, it grew four+ feet tall stems and larger leaves than the edo.

It can be a challenge keeping these watered in a pot. I used large saucers underneath the pots to hold more water.

I grew two from seed. The plants were big, vigorous, had big clusters with up to 20+ fruits. Taste was in the 'Cherokee Purple' style, skin seemed about typical for cherry tomato. I liked the taste, as Cherokee Purple is my favorite. I had to learn how to judge when they were ripe. A lot of rain here all summer meant they started cracking, but I had picked a lot before that and have some frozen. I would grow it again.

I have had this for several years and it seems more prone to yellowing, and just overall less vigorous and has a harder time rebounding from any lack of care that I inflict. I am a decent plant mom but I do take chances, take cuttings, put them outside in summer shade, and other stresses not found if they are kept solely indoors in one spot. Not as carefree as older silver-green Ags. And the wide leaf shape does not appeal to me as much as thinner leafed ones.

My shrub is about five years old now, and loaded with flowers. It does have a wonderful fragrance, bloom lasts a number of weeks. I've seen multiple Humming birds around it many evenings, butterflies as well. The form (so far) is wide and spreading, so give it room. This year I have a ton of seedlings underneath. it may be best to keep it mulched and only have spring bulbs underneath, so you can easily keep up with seedlings and suckers. After flowers it has beautiful purple and pink berry clusters. Leaves emerge late in spring, don't panic when it is bare as many other things leaf out.
It's now November, and this is mobbed by bluebirds! They must be eating the berries.

Third year at least of growing these, again happy with yield, flavor, beefiness, looks and plant vigor. Was listed recommended by University of Maryland extension.

I rescued one once, from clearance. It recovered a little, but never fully thrived for me. I just couldn't figure out what it liked, or maybe there was some unseen other issue (mealybugs in the crown?). It is grown just for foliage.

My second year growing these. I love the flavor, but the two plants really struggled, whereas nearby Early Girl, Celebrity, and several peppers were fantastic this year due to perfect rain. Did not seem diseased; just barely grew and yielded few (note, Mortgage Lifter also struggled). I seem to recall fair enough yield the first go round. Definitely loved the taste then too. I will try again. I like the flavor that much.
Third year growing them (2017) 4 Plants started out gangbusters, growing vigorously, setting fruit, but last few weeks plants have come to a screeching halt while ripening the fruit. And the fruit this year has been mostly quite gnarly and indented. Worse yet, many seem stuck in light pink, tonight I found several rotted out on the bottom, getting so much less useable fruit than Celebrity and Early Girl.
2021- Continuing my search for this flavor in a better producing plant, that is how much I like this flavor. Southern Nights made me pretty happy in 2021, Large Barred Boar had great flavor and some success.

Spiderwort is native to US. Its an easy to grow, sun to part shade, perennial that will spread by underground rhizomes. Because of the spreading. be careful where you plant it. It blooms in spring, looks ragged in summer, and perks up its leaves in fall. Several cultivars have been developed, in purple, pink, and white. I love the way the yellow stamens glow against the purple petals, but I know some gardeners who have had this plant and decided they don't like it.

I've grown these for several years. Unusual yellow flowers. They are self sowing here though not profusely. They seem to prefer to sprout between the rocks edging my garden path, rather than in the nice soil where I thought I sprinkled the seed. They bloom in spring, then get a bit ratty while the seed pods develop and dry. Then in the late summer to fall I notice lots of fresh greenery. I am not sure if the old ones came back, or these are all the new ones. Either way, they are very fresh and green in the garden right now while everything else is frost-killed or brown. One note- the foliage has a pungent strange smell. You don't notice it walking by the plants, but you will if you collect seeds or weed it.

I've had this for years. It's a lovely coral color. They self sow, and they grow easily, although they sprout a bit later than you might expect. Once blooming, they go nonstop until frost.

This has become widespread in many natural areas in the US. As a non native invasive plant, it is such a nuisance in the Patapsco Valley State Park, in Maryland, that they rip it out by the bagfuls. Then they have a recipe contest for cooking it because it is edible!