Forget me Nots

Hi
I have a wonderful display of forget me nots at the moment, do you think they are weeds or wildflowers and do you let them grow in your garden?
Stingo

 

Hi Stingo - if I had any, I would let them grow in my wildflower section! I think they're fantastic! :D

 

I just posted but it dissapeared???

Yes its definately a weed to me BUT I have seen some fantastic planting schemes of a large dark flowered forget me not, they look great mixed with orange. Christopher Lloyd shows them in his book.

 

Definately a contributor to the garden, whether it be flower or weed. Christopher Lloyd said he used to dig them up if there were too many in one spot and replant where there was a shortage.

 

so have you got through the "successional planting" Peter?

I have bought "the well tempered gardener" for my holidays, but it is a HUGE book with no pictures, it may be too my=uch for a girlie pea brain!

AND my ageratums "blue horizon" are poor.

 

When you say poor what do you mean, are they growing at all, when they get to 4/5 ins pinch the tips out to increase branching, they will still grow tall. I have the "pleasant" task of pinching out 3,500 of the b****rs in a couple of weeks Asking the head gardeners not to request so many falls on deaf ears so it is a yearly days work to increase the back ache. :(
It's worth it when you see the drift of blue over the other plants

 

They are about 1/2 inch high and look feeble. the Patrina are about the same height, but much stronger looking plants - very poor out of 23 seeds set (don't laugh, I can hear you strongy!) only 11 shown, its like trying to hatch rare breed chickens. verbina bodneriensis not even peeping.

 

I grew the tall Ageratum 'Red Sea' last year - but I wasn't too impressed. Perhaps I should not judge on one year.

I have read 'sucession planting' Waco - but digesting it is another thing. This is a book by Christopher Lloyd who explains how he grows plants to produce a succession of different flowers through the year in the same spot. I am surprised there not more talk of the principle - its what we all want.

 

Peter I have started it as a new thread to see if anyone comes up with anything else. I grow loads of bulbs through shrubs, but I am more interested in perennials such as the doronicum/phlox combination.

going to start on "the well tempered gardener" soon but saving it for my holidays.

 

Waco - I think that 'the well tempered garden' is Christopher Lloyds best book - my copy has some pictures but they are generally of the sort of mixed planting he preferred. This year am trying Canna Lilies in the open ground between clumps of Phlox (a lilac one) and Penstemmons (lost a few in the winter so am trying different ones this year). Have also got a number of Colchicums but they look very uniteresting at this time of the year - which bulbs do you grow through shrubs?

 

chobart - I am so excited about reading book now, may start before my holls, CL was an oboist I believe.

anyway bulbs - see my erythronium cock up on successional planting post!

I have got loads of lillies through shrubs used as wind breaks - eleagnus, but these too are getting over run. Clematis through euonimus works well. Daffs through spiaria works very well as they are just dying back as spiarea leafing up.

eremerus through my budlia will have to go as being swamped.

Colchicums are great fun "naked ladies" they call them round here. I used to have a lovely one called "waterlilly" but lost it in flood. Now they really need to be planted through shrubs, ok leaves are dull now, but when the flower comes up it need the suppost of a shrub to stop it falling over.

Sorry you got me going now!

 

For-get-me-nots brought in from the rain.
Seemed like a good idea at the time......

 

lovely.just on their own.

 

"A weed is just a plant growing in the wrong place". Forget-me-nots are easy to remove from where you don't want them. I let them seed, then pull them up before the mildew takes hold. There are about a dozen wild forms in the British flora. Take a close up look at the garden variety - such a blue beauty: