Need a blue annual to replace balloon flower (Full Sun)...

Hi, everyone :) I'll be getting 3 balloon flower plants in late August, but I need a flower to fill their place until then. Can anyone suggest a blueish annual that gets to about 2-2 and 1/2 feet tall, but not super wide??? It will be planted in front of white cleome and beside lady's mantle... thanks!!!

Hugs :)

How about some Salvia? I think you could even use Liatris and just move it later. I think it might get too tall though. I absolutely love the blue salvia! My old favorite was always Blue Bedder.

Is that a mealy-cup sage??? Salvia would look very, very nice with the cleome... hmm... thanks for the suggestion, Michele :) Off to find 'Blue Bedder' in the PF.....

http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/2868/index.html

Looks great! Terry even called it a "great filler".... that's what I need! LOL :)

Now, the true test.... can I buy these at nurseries??? With all the outside prep we're doing right now, starting from seeds indoors is not my favorite option, LOL....

Torentia -- wishbone flower!

How bout some blue larkspur?

How about bachelors buttons? They grow fast and can be direct sown - - no need to start ahead of time.

LOL I just found this post again.

I was checking out bachelor's buttons in a round robin the other day and decided to send em on! What a bummer!!! :) I would like to grow those sometime, for certain. I'm pretty interested in the mealy cup sage. I think that's likely gonna be my choice IF I can buy transplants from a nursery or direct sow. If not, bachelor's buttons it is!! :) Thanks everyone for your help :)

I don't have that one anymore but I did start seeds for other bule salvias. I'll have to look them up to see how big they get. :) I'll have to get that blue bedder again! It stayed put for several years.

So can I buy them at nurseries, Badseed??? Or can they be direct sown??? I dig em :) Hahaha....

Isn't Salvia a perennial?

There are a TON of different types of salvia, emily :) Both perennial and annual varieties :) The "Blue Bedder" that badseed is suggesting is a mealy cup sage, annual salvia.

LOL -- I keep accidentally typing "saliva".... LOL :)

Hugs :)

Okay, let's not be drooling over the salvia. :) The blue bedder wintered over for me a few times. I still find a sparse plant here and there. Next time I get out, I'll look for some for you. I did check to see what I started from seed and I forgot again. LOL I think one is blue victoria and the other is blue queen.

Oops. My newbieness is showing through. I have a few different types of Salvia and really enjoy the deep colored blooms. And as you can tell, I still have a lot ot learn about this family of plants. Anyone know of any good Salvia sites?

There's this really great site called Dave's Garden :) LOL -- just kidding ;)

Try going to plant files and just typing in "salvia" in the search. Grab a snack and a blankie first, I'm sure you'll get more than a few entries to look at :)

BTW, everybody's a newbie in something, right??? There are soooo many plants out there, there's no way we could all be knowledgeable about everything. Well, unless we were Michele and had started every known plant under the sun from seed :) That woman does know an awful lot of plants...
I can't even begin to talk tropicals. Don't grow 'em and don't care to. I didn't even know what a brug was until 6 months ago!!! LOL :) Great thing is that DG keeps us all learning!

Take care!
Jacci

My background is growing indoor tropicals, specifically Aroids (Alocasias are my fav). This is my second year growing outdoor plants so still have so much to learn. Many of my outdoor plants will have blue blooms, which I just love.

LOL -- see, there you go!!! I have absolutely NO idea what a alocasia is :) LOL...

OOHHHH! Elephant's Ear! Yup, they're big :) Whoee....

LOL ;)

huga, did you ever decide on anything? Lisianthus has to be my all time favorite annual. It loves the heat and sun and blooms all summer long. This is the Lisianthus 'Forever Blue' in full sun....it stays short and compact.

Oooh, very pretty :) I'll have to keep that one in mind for another space. I think that Badseed is going to give me some salvia at the Ohio RU that will work well in the particular space I'm thinking of in this post, though. Thank you for the lovely pic!!!

Huga :)

I'm with Brinda on the lisanthius........love it. Also to be considered Desert Petunia, or ageratum.

"eyes'

I was going to say Bachelor's Buttons, but it's too late.

Tell me about growing Lisianthus. Is it easy? Do you have to start from seed?

Don't start from seed! It takes FOREVER........ just my experiance.

Heather

Ivy, Heather is right! Those seeds have to be the tiniest I've ever seen. And it seems like the little plant (once germinated) stays about 1/4" tall for months. (LOL...if you like a challenge, give them a try) I started seeds in January one year.....and finally threw them away at the end of August. They were about an inch tall. Now I order them from Burpee. They are pretty expensive, but they put on such a huge show all summer, it is worth it. And sometimes they overwinter for me.

There are many different kinds of Lisianthus. I've tried many of them but my favorite is 'Forever Blue'. It is a shorter-spread out plant than the others. Makes a beautiful pot.

Thanks Brinda and Heather! I feel that way about my coral reef poppies - started them 3 months ago, I only got 3 seedlings and they are still only a quarter inch tall!

I will check out Burpee. I always looked at Lisianthus, but never tried them. I think because they look delicate and rose-like, I thought they would be fussy, hard-to-take-care of plants.

Good Luck Ivy! If you try them you will love them, I'm sure. They are heat loving and drought tolerant and never any bug problems! I think they are the easiest plant I grow. And the showiest too! I think everyone should try them! LOL But I would NOT suggest any other than the 'Forever Blue' variety. The others seems to be tooooo leggy and fall over all the time. They don't get bushy at all, even though the blooms are pretty.....they just don't have enough blooms for me.

Thanks for the advice Brinda. I will take it.

You know I'm an Okla. gal! Raised in Norman, where we had a yard that was full of nothing but weeds and a beautiful Mimosa tree.

No wonder I like you Ivy! LOL Mimosa trees grow so quickly here. And they drop seeds everywhere! They may be pretty....but I don't want one in my yard.

I was just a kid when I lived there. To a nine year old, a mimosa is a wonderful thing. All those seed pods to play with!