Cottage garden fused with tropical

Erynigium agavefolium? The Latin name tells you all you need to know about the foliage.

 

I love this plant but whenever I've tried growing leonotis/leonurus I never get anywhere with them. But inspired by the photo I'll try again this year with that exact sub species.

 

Madahhlia - I would agree with you about Leonotis leonorus - its never done anything for me either. I think it needs more heat than we can provide.

Leonotis nepetifolia is a different animal. It does need a good early start (indoors) - and easily reaches 8 feet for me. But if it has a poor cold start it may not reach 2 feet. But I think this is so for a number of tender annuals such as Cosmos, Cleome and Tithonia. Christopher Lloyd always said don't put them out too early. If they get chilled early on they can go into a sulk and never recover. I have certainly experienced that with those three.

 

Me too! I would love to grow tithonia (preferably right next to the calendulas and Leonotis nepetifolia - pass the sunglasses) but it has never played ball. Cleome germinates well but has seemed very susceptible to checking, I always thought they responded badly to being even slightly potbound but it could just as easily be cold. I had some decent results with cosmos last year for the first time in ages. But not the orange ones!! Girly pink, bleagh.

Interestingly having searched for Leonotis nepetifolia on Ebay, the photos are not at all prepossessing, unlike your glorious picture above. So I'm reluctant to buy.

 

I grow Leonotis nepetifolia and Cleome (both from seed). They don't race away whist in pots, but do get a wiggle on when planted out, but I never plant them out until June, maybe even 14th June, thus they avoid the cold nights typical of May.

In my case its "coz I didn't get around to it" more than anything else, but I am never in a hurry to plant out early in Spring "Never cast a clout 'til May is out" and all that