What's still blooming?

Pirl - golly, it seems like you should have pods by now! If there's enough sun for flowers I would think there would be enough for pods! Maybe something different in the soil? I wish I had more of an answer. ANYBODY KNOW WHY NO PODS AFTER FLOWERS?

Cindy, I planted both morning glory and hyacinth bean on the obelisk. After a month, they were neck-and-neck. After six weeks, I couldn't even see the morning glory anymore (although yesterday, after a rain, five months later - one gallant Heavenly Blue sent out a bloom). But your clematis would have a head start and could compete. They could help each other twine!

For some reason, hyacinth beans are a little hard to find in catalogs. I can't remember where I got them last year from the Net and will have to do the search again in the spring.

Well, I have some hyacinth bean seeds from 2003. I put some directly in the soil but nothing is happening yet (about 4-5 days). I just took 4 and will soak overnight and plant. We have them in Houston-my hubby "borrowed" a few pods one year as he was biking along. I remember growing one but the space was too small so we chopped it down (eek!). I'll let you know if these seeds are still viable and would be happy to share. Only have a few left but plan to grow one now in a bigger space. It is the purple pod kind. And I just read the following article on them--didn't know you could eat them! http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/2929

Rebecca - I just went out, into the mist, and did find a few seed pods! Thanks for encouraging me. How long do we have to wait to harvest the pods?

I'll gladly send a few to Weerobin when I can safely remove the pods.

You're a nice person, Pirl. I'm selfishly letting mine stay there for winter color and - HOPEFULLY - to reseed.

I WILL, though, offer to share half my seeds when I get new ones next spring (I want to put some in another place, too.)

Thanks!

Maybe I should put an old nylon around the seed pods so they won't drop their seeds.

Wow, Pirl, I have to agree w/ Rebecca about that 'nice person' comment!
I'd love to try hyacinth bean - I love interesting features like the colorful seed pods.
But be sure to save enough for yourself to enjoy!!

Thanks! I enjoy giving to nice people. I spotted four pods so I should be able to send you two pods - no postage required!

What a great surprise to have a Clematis bloom! My 'Jackmanii' doesn't seem to recover once it turns brown. Very little (if any) new growth. I'm tempted to cut it back when it turns brown to (maybe) prompt new green growth. Has anyone ever cut back a Clem mid-season?

Yes. Some spring back faster than others and some just pout and don't do much until the following year.

So I wouldn't do any real damage if I cut them back?

My foliage turns completely crispy black, shrivels, then falls off.
But in late summer / early fall, fresh leaves resprout all along the stem.
So I would be afraid to cut any of my stem back, since I'd be cutting off the 'regrowth'.
I guess if yours doesn't show any sign of resprouting, no harm in trying a trim.

You always have the option of cutting back just one stem. Then, if you like how it looks (either way - cut back or not), you'd know what to do with it next year.

I just googled "clematis groups" and came up with this webpage-- http://www.gardenaction.co.uk/plantfinder/clematis_17.asp
I found out my clem is in group 3 and now know how to prune it! Hope this helps.

Love this topic. I don't have anything blooming in my shade this time of year, and I am taking copious notes from these posts to know what some options are. Thanks, guys!!! Terri

GE1836: YES!

I would be very happy if those Clem vines would resprout new leaves but they don't. I will definitely need to pay greater attention to them next year and try some remedies. Thanks for all of the advice.

My cimifuga which was just buds last week finally opened at last.
We had our first frost Thurs night, so I worried it might have got nipped.
But looks fine!
Why on earth it waited until Oct 30 to bloom is beyond me...

Weerobin - is that the species Cimi? It sure is pretty. Glad mine bloomed earlier in the summer or they'd be crispy critters by now. I only got 1/2" of rain last week from all of that nasty weather and was hoping for a lot more. Most of the lower garden has surrendered to the lack of rain and is laying down. I still have wilted impatiens blooming but that's about it.

Sorry, Cindy, I don't have the info. Organizational skills were never my strong suit.
I presume it's a cultivar, but I don't know which one.

My house also got almost NO precip from the huge swath of storms which passed through.
It's funny how focussed I can get on weather fronts - almost praying for rain.
I come close to clinical depression when a promised 'front' doesn't materialize!
We are desperately dry!!!
I spend my weekends rotating sprinklers even this late in the year.
If I knew a rain dance, I'd be dancing for sure!

Sorry, Weerobin - that's a miserable feeling to see things get so dry they rattle. But they're tough and so are you and rain WILL come!

And we are setting records for rain . . .

LOL - I didn't know it was possible to set a record for rain in Washington. After all, what's more rain than continual rain? Harder rain, I guess. (Not knocking it - I spent eleven years in Olympia, and LOVED it. Once it rained for three months.)

Hmmm - no rain (well, maybe an inch) for 3 months or rain for 3 months - tough choice.
Weerobin - I assumed that you had gotten more rain down there. I gave up on the sprinkler schedule a month ago. I too had been watching the weather forecasts and have actually turned rather pessimistic about them. Just hoping that we get some rain (or snow) before the ground freezes.

It generally drizzles all winter long - but it's really mostly about the gray. In the last few years we've had hard rain, so more accumulation . . .

We get a lot of gray here but I'm sure not nearly as much as the NW. I think I'd miss our bright, sunny frigid days (especially if I'm indoors and warm!).

Yes. I was raised in Fairbanks, Alaska, and it seems that even with 3-hour days we had more warm sunlight.

Of course, I was younger then and more immune to the dark . . .

katie - I can't even imagine 3-hour days. Did everyone get time off during the work day to enjoy sunshine? :)

No . . . you wouldn't know it had been sunny unless you were near the window. Weekends were nice, though, you could lay in a patch of sun on the carpet and enjoy the warmth. And our houses were very well insulated - no drafts. It was very dry, as well. You could shovel 4-ft chunks of snow in a single batch.

Looks like I wouldnt survive ther for long.
I guess is one was born there and had lived a pattern of 3 hours a day of sun ,it would be OK.
The consolation here is, we know the sun is comming back Dec.21.Looking forward to it.

No more blooms here this season. Woke up to a couple of inches of lake effect snow so I'll be working on insulating my little greenhouse for the winter. Still have 'Mona Lavender' blooming indoors so that's some consolation. Now if I can just wrap my head around 4 or 5 months of this...

Katie, I often visited Fairbanks when I lived in Barrow. Fairbanks was like being inside a snowglobe!

All blooming done here, too - it got down to 26 last night. It's interesting how the cold hit certain parts of the yard and not others. Of four hydrangeas, two got frozen and two didn't. I wish I understood better what causes the difference.

We got down to 28 degrees last night - high was just upper 40's, so I guess this year's season is pretty much done.
I have a few resiliant guys still doing their thing.
Here's a quince - it often surprises with late blooms.
Chaenomeles alpina pygmaea.

And here's a hardy salvia which doesn't seem fazed by the frost.

Brrrr - winter already, eh? We haven't had a frost yet, but things are definitely cooling down. It's supposed to be a cold and precipitous winter for us. Weerobin, those quince berries are very bright - just what we need this time of year.

We had snow showers all morning. No white blanket yet.The ground is too warm.
This is still going OP ted stem to bloom since Sep 15

Brave babies!

A real champ.

I thought quince bloomed in early spring. Had no idea there were late bloomers as well.

Sounds like a pygmy alpine quince - maybe it's used to different temperatures . . .

This message was edited Nov 9, 2010 4:37 PM

We've had a few nights that have dropped below freezing but I still have blooms on my 'homestead puple' verbena, 'oranges & lemons' gaillardia, 'munstead' lavender, 'tutti frutti' agasatche & 'vermilion bluffs' sage. I guess they're all just sheltered enough.

Whoops - forgot this is the SHADY plant forum & those are all in the sun - sorry!

This message was edited Nov 9, 2010 11:21 AM