Anybody else had trouble with Centranthus Ruber Album

I've grown Centranthus Ruber for many years with no problems at all.Decided I'd have a go at growing the Album variety as do like white flowers. Was relatively successful with raising some plants from seed and planted about 8/9 plants out last Spring. They flowered and looked fine. This Spring all as dead as Dodos! while the Ruber variety are fine. Perhaps the Album variety didn't like the wet weather?, altho that said the ground they were in was pretty free draining. Anybody else found the Album tricky? as no point in me trying again if the plant likes desert condition which we definitely don't have!

 

I don't know anything about this plant Silu, but what seems strange is the white ones didn't survive. White flowering plants are usually hardier than other colours.

 

I have 'Snowcloud' silu and no problems with it here I'm already having to pull up hundreds of self sown seedlings and I'm on heavy clay soil.

 

Thanks Simbad, if yours are happy on heavy clay, maybe it's a temperature problem. I always like to try and understand deaths to hopefully avoid in the future. Seems odd as all the dozens and dozens of other varieties of herbaceous plants I have bar some (not all) of Helenium Chelsey have come through the winter with no bother at all. Oh well not a big deal. If my Meconopsis or Trillium Grandiflorum had bought it I'd be much more upset!

 

Doubt if it was the rain, the red, pink and white do fine in North Wales and its always raining there.

 

I have grown the white one in the past and had no problems - I am also on heavy clay. As I prefer the red one, which is a real weed around here, I have pulled all my white ones out.

I suspect that the red one is slightly more robust, as I tend to see more red ones growing wild. But I am sure the white is almost as robust - so its worth another try. The cold wet conditions at the wrong time may have affected younger Centranthus plants, which of course love it dry.

 

It is naturally a cliff dweller, so can tolerate high rainfall by the fact it grows in a well drained place & just sends lots of roots down.