Mid-Atlantic Gardening: The month of May in our Gardens., 0 by Gitagal

Gitagal wrote:
Wind--
I am by NO means an expert om diagnosing problems. However--If the leaves looked like you describe on an Azalea or a Rhodo--I would say you have an Iron deficiency. I am not aware if a Clematis needs Iron....!
If it does--you can purchase it where all the garden supplements are sold. Or--believe it or not--some people just stick rusty old nails in the soil around the plant....Ar least that is FREE!

Might be a good idea to post a picture on the Vines Forum.....see what they say?

I have had a very small, struggling clump of Bee Balm in my "YUK" bed. It never does ANYTHING! Just a couple of stems...BUT------I must explain what my "yuk" bed is.....

It is my corner bed in the back yard. Only a few feet away from it is my HUGE Silver Maple....Need I say more? The roots are everywhere!!!!!! I cannot even dig in this bed! It is like hacking out a small hole to plant a plant in! I am slowly filling this bed with "indestructible, warrior" plants. Have purchased, and got a bunch more at he Swap----like:
Perennial Cosmos "Chocolate" and a Pink one. (I bought these here).
Perennial Coreopsis "American Dream" from Hart
Clustered Bluebells (from Hart)
And also a Veronica from someone else....

Already have in there---Shastas, Black-Eyed Susans--2 Butterfly Bushes--Sedum "Autumn Joy"--Asst. Daylilies--Pink Evening primrose--Spring Bulbs--etc.

Have a bird bath at one end and on each side of it is a Hellebore and in front are couple of small, perennial Ferns. And, only because it was planted ages ago--there are also 2 Peonies and a "Tropicana" Rose. How they survive--I have NO idea! Except, maybe, the bothersome roots of the Maple are the surface roots and they have theirs way deeper down.

Sorry about your Hydrangeas! They do not like dry conditions.....Do you have them in part shade? Morning sun at the worst? Afternoon sun is very hard on them....

This is the SW corner I am talking about....See how close the tree is?

Gita