Me again and this time its flowers . I’ve not really done much other than buy the odd thing I see and shove it in the ground and hope it grows! This year I’m becoming much more interested in flowers / ornamentals. I’ve even bought a rose, which I’ve been terrified of for ever!
Perhaps I’ve been spurred on by my final success, after a 4 year wait of my peony!
I’ve actually become a bit addicted and seem to buy something new every week!
My first question is about my rose. It is a pretty pink one called Mum in a million. It said on the label it is a climber, but on the net it said it was. I’m very confused! It came with a small bamboo teepee. Any advice about planting, caring and supporting most welcome as keep reading conflicting advice so ended up leaving it in it’s pot for over a month now! I thought of you @SuePJ as I know you have loads of roses!
It’s a medium shrub rose, so is not a climber but may have quite an erect stance and may, if left to its own devices, grow quite tall. I have a big shrub rose and I support some of the outer stems with stakes just because they hang down so heavily when in full bloom.
This info is quite useful.
Looks like it will flower through to autumn. Lovely shaped rose. Gorgeous colour. If you plant it now, make sure you keep it well watered. If you decide to keep it in a pot, keep it in a bigger one than the one it’s in at the moment.
The poor love it’s still in it’s pot and looking fabulous with masses of new growth! Hubby being a pain about where the edge of the extended bed will be so I think I’m going to just plant it approximately where I want it and clear the grass in a circle around it (a 60cm circle? Bigger?) and worry about the rest of the bed later. Will this work? Any flaws in my plan?
None. What’s your soil? Keep an eye on watering - our forecast says no rain for next 10 days. You could dig a bit of compost/fertiliser into the bottom of the hole always good to break up the soil in the bottom and up the sides of the hole. Water pot well before you take the rose out or do “puddling” where you put the rose in the hole as is and then fill the hole completely with water and let it drain away before backfilling the hole. But you probably know all that.
You’re right about keeping the earth round the rose (ideally) clear. I don’t, I plant things like catmint, perennial geraniums and potentillas round my roses. They seem to cope.
I fell for these cute little guys! I’ve never grown chrysanthemums and I read they have sensitive roots. These are obviously 4 or 5 little plants. Should I try to separate them? If yes plant them in the ground or in pots? Should I chop the tops when replanting to help the roots?
If not to seperate should i leave in tiny pot or move into big pot?
Actually no! I’m terrified of planting things. I have a few issues. Firstly I can’t decide where to put stuff. Secondly I get scared of doing it wrong so don’t to it. And don’t know things like puddling (although now you say it I think I’ve seen Monty doing it!).
I’m on a mission to stop buying things and get what I have in the ground. Currently waiting, in some cases for years are the following:
Above rose
Other roses, 2 I think from Hubby’s family cuttings
Banksia roses (cuttings from @vero ), seem to be doing well, 2 I think made it.
An Acer (Japenese Maple?) I think I’ve lost the tag.
2 crepe myrtles
There may be more, I’ll update when I check tomorrow
I wondered if that was the case based on what I read
That’s what I was thinking! Does that include all the buds?
Am I OK to put them in the ground? I guess I should wait a bit though until warmer?
I can’t find the exact type (I think from looking it is just pompom 'mums marketed as ‘Flower Pops’) but general advise says 75cm playing distance which seems a bit excessive for such tiny plants!
Oh and thirdly I don’t know how to plan, either with what we have or how to change / add so I’m paralysed by the indecision … 10 years soon we’ve been here! How hard can it be to choose where to plant something or where and how to put a couple of new beds??
Best to plant this in a position that is sheltered from cold winds as many varieties suffer from ‘wind burn’ in both hot summers and cold winters during their formative years. Fairly close to, or between, some existing well established shrubs would be best. Water it weekly for the first year and try to shade it if we get a scorching summer. Don’t just wet the surface. Much better to slowly tip a whole bucketful on so that it gets down to where it is needed. Some old roof tiles laid on the soil around the stem will help to keep the roots cool and a good mulching will help moisture retention.
If you are in a frosty area you’ll need to cover it with some fleece in winter during the first few years. Once they have grown larger you can afford some frost die-back, but while they are still little they do need protection from frost.
They grow naturally in already wooded areas, so the ‘Not Too’ code applies.
Not too cold; Not too hot; Not too windy; Not too dry; Not too wet.
It’s worth the effort as they grow into beautiful and long lasting trees in a location of which they approve.
Don’t be scared of planting things. Just learn the weather and soil conditions of your plot first. Go out there on windy days and note the wind direction and the sheltered and exposed areas for that wind direction. Note which parts of the garden still have some sun in winter. Have a little dig here and there at different times of the year and note whether the soil is wet or dry in relation to the number of days since it last rained.
Once you know your plot, then you will be able to put the right plant in the right place and all will be well, and in 3years you’ll have a garden for the neighbours to envy.
I’ve got a blank canvas all round the garden, currently weeds and mud so am looking in neighbouring gardens to see what they have planted. Cactus do well here obviously but delicate plants don’t as we don’t get hardly any rain. I also have to think about the little ones being tempted to touch or eat attractive poisonous plants too. I do miss my primroses and bluebells I left behind and the wonderful camelias but they would just die here.
Sorry another flowers question! Last summer I bought a boganvillia (sp?) and brought it in over winter, its starting to resprout which is great, I didn’t kill it and the weather warming up so will move it outside soon. Now it’s naked and I’ve had a good look at it I think it may be 3 plants. What do you think? If it is should I leave as is or separate them into different pots? Also should I give it a little trim to encourage growth? If so how much? I’ve spent ages online but every site I read tells me something different!!!
Bougainvillea don’t like frost. The odd night around zero isn’t too much of an issue but more than that can hit it hard. You will need to protect it outside in the winter.
Edit: Ah, are you going to keep it in the pot and bring it in in the winter ? They can grow very large.
Yes I brought it in and now want to move it back out . Just not sure if 1. I should trim / prune it and if so how much and 2. If it is 1 plant or 3 and if 3 if I should separate it?
Re the Bougainvillea, best to leave it be for the present as @JaneJones has said. As for re-potting, or planting outside, wait until strong growth is indicated by a fair few roots coming through the bottom of the existing pot.
When you bring it in on cold nights you just want a frost free place such as a greenhouse or summer house. Don’t bring it into a heated room as the temperature contrasts between indoors and out won’t do it any good at all. This applies to virtually all plants.
When the time comes to either plant out or re-pot, then that is the time to gently investigate if it is just one plant or three. Re-potting or planting out always causes some root damage, so it’s best to wait until there are a lot of nice strong roots before taking that action, and preferably do it in the late autumn when the plant is going dormant for the winter season.
Have a look at this link for lots of info; Bougainvillea / RHS
The amount of effort you will need to put in to growing this particular plant will depend on how much frost you get in winter.
. I’ve not really done much other than buy the odd thing I see and shove it in the ground and hope it grows! This year I’m becoming much more interested in flowers / ornamentals. I’ve even bought a rose, which I’ve been terrified of for ever!
are the following:
… 10 years soon we’ve been here! How hard can it be to choose where to plant something or where and how to put a couple of new beds??
. Just not sure if 1. I should trim / prune it and if so how much and 2. If it is 1 plant or 3 and if 3 if I should separate it?