Re: Bloom after(?) the drought
Hi All,
Jim Murphy from zone 6/7 in the Piedmont region of Virginia. I live at
about the same latitude as Dennis, but with much different conditions. It is
much colder here in the winter, and a little cooler in the summer, with very
heavy acidic clay soil.
Our bloom season is going great, at about 40% because of lots of 90 degrees
this week. I have a few short SI's but they are near large trees that take
moisture.The TB's were extra good this year.
Looking perfect are SAPPHIRE ROYALE, with electric blue color on a tall
plant with intermediate form, REPRISE, with tons of bloom, while HIGH
STANDARDS is huge and impressive. ROARING JELLY is just fabulous, vigorous
and in great full bloom, while three seperate clumps of SKYWINGS, and one of
WHITE PRELUDE are just so so. RUFFLED VELVET looks splendid in a huge clump,
while SPRINGS BROOK looks a little anemic in a small clump.
I have many older ones in large clumps now, and in different locations, and
moisture really makes more difference than any other factor in my garden. I
use organic fertilizer, mulch and manure on everything and that is great as
long as there is moisture in the soil.
This is the first year for a lot of seedlings in bloom for me and I see
some I like and other directions I need to go in . Using new cultivars is
not under rated, a lesson I learned 5 years ago with daylilies. Wide petals
and lots of color make a big difference in a plant that already has general
good plant habits and good foliage.
Happy Bloom season to all. Jim
rdhager@dmv.com wrote:
> Early indications are that Siberian performance will be spotty here this
> year. With last year's severe drought and mandatory water restrictions
> (even on well water), my sandy soil was just too dry to keep the
> Siberians happy. Though I didn't loose any, those in the driest
> locations are blooming very short this year, the most severe being a
> white sanguinea that has consistently bloomed over 20" and is only 6"
> this year. On the plus side, those few that did get enough water last
> year are looking quite happy. BTW, the few TB's that I have are looking
> good.
>
> Long range forecast is for a wetter summer here on the Atlantic coast.
> With that promise, I can always look forward to next year.
>
> R. Dennis Hager
> on Delmarva
>
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