Re: Orville Fay

Hi Margaret.

<<<<< I've had Orville Fay for years and it's never done much for me.  I've
 thought it was because it's near tree roots and plan to dig and replant
 this spring.  Since you praise it even in dry weather, may I ask you how
 you plant it and with what you amend and fertilize?>>>>>

I am not the Siberian culture expert on this list but I have grown lots of 
them and in a cold zone.  First, I would say that if a clone of some named 
variety is not doing for you what it does for others, you could try buying a 
new clone.  Buy it from a northern nursery, mine originally came from Maine.  
Sometimes a plant does not perform as touted no matter what you do.  Flight 
of Butterflies is one,  all yellow ones come into that category for me. Worst 
of lot is Butter and Sugar.  Do I have that name right?  It will only prosper 
here in a cold frame. I have purchased four or five of them and none are 
worth the space allotted. The best one I ever grew was from a local friend 
and it was none too vigorous. 

I transplant or divide in the very early spring.  As soon as I can dig up a 
clump, late April or early May I divide and replant.  Sometimes a Siberian 
described in glowing terms will just become a few leaves in my garden and 
never prosper.  Occasionally trying another plant from a different source 
will do the trick.  When I put in a new plant or divide, I amend the soil 
with a five gallon pail of composted horse manure.  I am not expecting to do 
this again for a long while.  If a Siberian remains puny and not earning it's 
space it is discarded.  All Siberians in zone 4 take more than one season to 
become a specimen clump. Some take three years.

Orville Fay arrived here tall and healthy, a good sized division in the 
spring - no summer orders here.  I planted it as usual in full sun quite near 
a shrub, a large mountain laurel in the rock garden.   By the third year 
everyone asked about Orville - what was that plant?  I have never divided it 
but I have hacked off pieces to give away filling the holes left with more 
composted manure.  I dread digging up Orville as he must have roots to China. 
 (I know the laurel in a rock garden seems crazy but it is on a huge rock and 
is a very old plant)

I think you must commit yourself to watering a transplant the first year.  As 
you are in CT, you know we had three years of drought followed by last year's 
monsoon.  My Orville is actually in a rock garden so you can see it is not in 
naturally moist soil - it is just the best Siberian in the garden.  There are 
many Siberians with beautiful flowers but I do not think growers consider 
foliage, hardiness and growing conditions of many areas.  This plant never  
breaks down in the fall, I have to cut it down.  

Another question of mine is why and what to do with Siberian clumps that seem 
to become smaller and weaker as time goes on.  There are many that cannot be 
called permanent fixtures in the garden.  Some will disappear entirely.  
So.......when I see a big healthy bunch of foliage I always ask for the name 
of the plant and how long it has been in place.  Since a Siberian has an 
early and short blooming season, I would also like to know about the bud 
count.  With that short season good foliage is necessary in the mixed gardens.

<<<<Also, I too love the more dwarf siberians but have a hard time
 establishing them.  Once I get them going they're dynamite.  I'd love to
 hear what dwarfs you particularly like and how you do with the SIGNA
 seed. >>>>>

Sorry for my lack of labels but all of my dwarf were purchased as Siberian  
something or other nana.  I have the best plants amongst the whites.  With 
the SIGNA Siberian seed someone else on this list will probably have much 
better instructions than I.  I put them outdoors as soon as I can get the 
cold frames open and leave them outdoors (frames uncovered all summer) until 
they germinate.  It may take a year or more.  I have other slow germinators 
or seeds than require warm/cold/warm periods.  They stay in the frames in 
square pots covered with grit (to keep the seeds from moving around) sunk 
into the soil until they germinate.  It is sort of casual but I have a large 
garden and cannot spend a lot of time on one or two difficult seeds.  Left 
outdoors year round, they usually germinate one day and surprise you.  Leave 
the labels underground or as me, you might lose the ID of the seed entirely.

Claire Peplowski
East Nassau, Ny z4

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