What are you going to grow "New to you" for 2014

Paulownia trees!

 

Word of warning on the Everlasting sweet peas, sumbody, once they get established they can be extremely thuggish and will smother others plants around them. If you've got a fence or a wall. That being said they're a great plant and what they lack in fragrance they make up for in abundance of flower.

 

Thanks for the info Ruley - I can believe that they're thuggish - the plant in question has survived nearly 15 years of living in a bramble overgrown garden which was totally cleared this year and it was the only survivor from a beautifully kept garden from years ago. I saw it scrambling over a tree stump. I hadn't really thought about where I would put them but I have plenty of walls to accommodate.

S

 

FC, i just bought a pack of heritage fragrant sweet pea seeds from T&M. If you wish I can send you some..
Also can someone please suggest when should I sow them? The pack says either jan or March.. If I sow early will they flower early? And how long will they last?


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I plant mine in November and keep in a cold frame until fit to plant out. I also pinch the tips out when there are 3 or 4 pairs of leaves, this makes them bushier. I have sown some in the spring and they are later, by a couple of weeks.
As for what I am trying this year Anemone altaica, Lilium lancongense,
Lilium nepalense, Helicodiceros musciverous ( I like weird) and Gladiolus flanaganii.
Nigel

 

I sow in January. I used to sow in November, but I found looking after them over winter, in cold conditions, did not seem to do the plants much good, and there was little difference (for me) between November and January sowings. March sowing OTOH started flowered later than I want, so I have stuck to January sowing since.

I sow them into tubes made from newspaper (wrapped around an aerosol can, and the bottom tucked-under) which gives about 4" of vertical "pot" so the roots can establish well, and then I plant the whole thing out (but tear off any paper above-ground, otherwise it acts as a wick to dry the paper under ground)

 

I will sow mine at the weekend - @Kristen do these still need pinching after 3/4 leaves ? - and as I have perennials too do they get treated the same ?

S

 

I pinch my sweet peas. They then bush up, but I grow mine single-cordon so I then thin them back to a single stem (a couple of weeks after planting out). I find that the original shoot is often the puniest, whereas one of the side shoots is much stronger than the rest, and that is the one I favour (but it takes a whiel before it is obvious which is the strongest IME)

The rest of the perennials are probably case-by-case I'm afraid.

 

I like your idea of vertical pot, I am going to do that too. I am guessing after sowing, you keep them inside before planting out in april? Or can i sow and leave outside in my shed or portable green house? Sorry for such a daft question :-( first timer for sweet peas...


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Kristen : I pinch my sweet peas. They then bush up



Sorry for flooding the forum with yet another question. This is a hollyhock question- Does this pinching up work for hollyhock too? And once the plant gets bushy, like sweet peas may be select the strongest stem? I have perennial hollyhocks that I sowed beginning of Jan. They are at 2 cotyledon stage but thonking ahead.

 

No. Hollyhocks form a basal clump from which the flowering stem/stems emerge.

 

Regarding hollyhocks never tried pinching them out, but the ones I've grown show little tendency to bush out form multiple stems etc. There's something about the growth habit that makes me think it might not work well. You could try some and leave some as a control.
Nigel

 

I keep mine in the greenhouse, but they don't need a lot of "heat" otherwise they will grow soft and leggy. I put mine out during the day, and back in at night, as soon as the days warm up (except on days that then turn Arctic!) - that might even be in February but more likely March - and then once the nights are not too cold they stay out - right next to the house so they aren't having to fight the weather, and then get planted out when the soil has warmed up a bit and stopped it has behaving like the a mud bath.

Those "blow aways" get hot during the day when the sun gets on them, more so as we move into Spring, so watch out for that otherwise the plants will cook. Some heat to get the seeds to germinate, they don't need any light at that point, as soon as they germinate then some light - shed window probably best.

If you aren't sure you can provide enough light in the shed then I would delay sowing a month, or do half now and half later and then, next year, you will know if the earlier sowing was OK or if the plants were on the weak side.

 

Great thread.


What I've ordered so far is:

Dichondra 'Silver Falls'
Bassia Scoparia
Cordateria Selloana 'White Feather'
Lagurus Ovatus 'Bunny Tails'
Calamagrostis Brachytricha
Brassica Oleracea Longata (Walking Stick Kale)