Omigawd ~ I found 'Frosted Violet' today while giving myself the spurge of window shopping at a very cool local nursery (Garland) and now I probably have to go back & get it. 10 bucks a gallon ~ what was I thinking to leave it there?
If you google the images for this one you only get an idea of the luscious deep purple/red-violet/silver leaves. I like it better than even the 'Midnight Rose', 'Obsidian' or 'Dolce Licorice' that I also drooled at... Does anybody grow this Heuchera?
Frosted Violet !!
Hi Marea
I don't grow this one (yet) but it looks like a good one. Can't beat $10/Gal.
You must admit though, that Midnight Rose is mighty purty when it's all
speckly & such. Ha I guess in the end it's always (asking yourself) how
does it fit in the garden? Can it compliment something else? What's
different about this one? And bottom line - do I like it? Frosted Violet
is such an intriguing name. I'm sure it will do well in your care.
Sorry to but in here, but I have a question about Heucheras. I'm new to gardening (only doing it for about a year). I planted several 'Palace Purples' this year and was wondering if I should cut them back in the winter? I love the color and the look of the seed heads, but not sure if they retain the color through the winter. I also have a few in containers, will they va zone 6b winter?
Next spring, I was thing of adding a few 'Dolce Keylime Pies', do you think they would be a good compliment or would you recommend another variety? I love the sound of 'Dolce Licorice'.
Michaeljo, here in Oregon the Heucheras are evergreen & look beautiful all Winter ~ I always cut the spent bloom stalks off, but I feel like they just get in the way of enjoying the leaves. Maybe when my plants mature & put up more impressive stands of flowers I will think differently.. I grow all my plants in containers & as long as I make sure there is good drainage everything does just fine here. Hopefully somebody will pipe up to advise you about how to Winter your containers there.
Choosing which variety: Dolce Key Lime Pie seems to do well everywhere & it is a great contrast to purple leaves. Like fleur_guy stated so well, how does it fit in the garden? There are SO many colors to choose from.
Fleur, yes, I DO have to admit that the glow from Midnight Rose set my heart aflutter, too LOL. But just WAIT until you see the ultraviolet veining on Frosted Violet! *grin*
michaeljo,
I never cut back my heuchera, just remove browned leaves. The heucheras do have a winter presence in the garden. Some, like Kimono and the related Tellima change color in the cold weather. I do have to watch out for frost heave. After the ground is frozen I gather all the discarded Christmas trees in the neighborhood and use the branches I cut from them over all the garden plants. I've always planted out whatever was left in pots so I can't tell you how they survive that way in the winter.
Kimono is in front and Bronze Wave is in the back, after the first frost. I couldn't have matched that pansy color with the Heuchera if I had planned it that way. Interestingly I have 2 other Kimono plants, all divisions from 1 original, that haven't turned color.
Another DG heuchera fan sent me an email with info on overwintering in pots ... basically huddle the pots together and keep them in a sunny location. I'll have to try the christmas tree branch method for the ones in the ground. So many to choose from, how will I decide ... love the Kimono.
Most of my heuchera are in pots including Frosted Velvet that I have had about 18 months. the frosted Velvet does not always have that deep coloring. right now it is pretty green.
As far as cutting back on Heuchera,I have chopped Purple Palace back to almost nothing and they come back very nice with great big leaves. I have tried it with one are two others with mixed results. I thinbk it depends on the species. My purple palace get leggy. Like everything else with Heuchera I think a lot of it depends onb the background parentage.
I used to worry about the over wintering but around here they seem to be about equel anywhere they are. I have a Lime Ricky that grows about grows all winter long. It got caught in a ice storm and had about a inch of ice covering it like some disk weight. It did just fine except for a tiny bit of die back after the ice melted. cold has never been a problem for me. It is the heat and humidity that causes problems.
marea,
I found a pic with my new Frosted Violet - taken mid spring this year. Wish I had a better pic. I'll get a close up next spring. Anybody else find Heucheras really hard to photograph if it's the least bit sunny out? Anyway, I like it's spring colour best because it just seems to glow from within. It greens up for the summer, as a lot of them do. It's looks nice now, but it made me gasp in the spring.
Sandy
sanannie - nice picture. Love the blue-green hosta -- what's the name of that? And what do you have planted around/underneath it.
Hi michaeljo - the hosta is Blue Angel and the little plant with the pink blooms is Dicentra 'King of Hearts'. I think the green underneath the hosta is leftover foliage from Virginia Bluebells.
Sandy
I just got 2 Frosted Violets from Hallsons and just from your pic Sandy, I'm gonna plant them with blue hostas!!!
Debbie
Hey Debbie, Maybe I'll divide that one up and have a trio of Frosted Violets there. Heck yeah, sounds like a plan!
Sandy
Baja--- Watch I would put the frosted violet in a large pot if I were you. Your in the same situation I am. I almost lost that one and put it in a pot and it is coming back. The idea of the pot is you can move it real fast to a more hospitable spot. I have about 3/4 of all my Heuchera in pretty large 4 gal pots because of the way our climate is acting.
Sandy------ Why devide the plant. You can just cut them back when they get larger and harvest the cuttings and have a whole bunch. I am ging to cut purple palace back this year again and will have a bunch of them for Garden Club charity sale. Be careful with those clippers if you have had a couple of pints.
Oz, it seems to me that that clippers and alcohol wouldn't mix either! Or, we could just wear gloves. lol
With some of my older Heucheras that have a lot of growing tips I had great success with them rooting well in the spring. I pulled off most of the leaves on the bottom of the cutting and basically stuck them in the soil.
So, when you cut your Palace Purple back, do you have to pick the ones with quite a bit of flesh on them (other than just leaves) to pot up?
Sandy
I just divided a big purple palace, you mean I could have taken cuttings. How do you do that?
Well, I'm sure there are more efficient ways to do it - but all I did was cut off some growing tips, pulled off the lower leaves and plunked them in the soil in a shady spot in the spring. Just giving it a go.
Sandy
Sandy, another beautiful combination I might just have to "copy" :-) I agree, the spring color of 'Frosted Violet' is really nice - hard to describe, but seems to glow from within fits - almost iridescent! The only thing I dislike about the plant is the flowers are just too darned tall - almost 3' this year! Some people might like that, but I prefer those with shorter, stalkier stems/flowers.
michaeljo, for a fairly new DG member, you're showing up everywhere! LOL I highly recommend 'Licorice' - have never grown 'Obsidian' - the "other" almost black foliage Heuchera, but 'Licorice' has been outstanding in our gardens. Looks lovely paired with any of the bright chartreuse or amber colored Heucheras. Even though you're new to gardening, sounds like you're well on your way to join the rest of us with our plant addictions :)
I love Obsidian and so many others. Frosted Violet looks like another winner.
Sandy---- I just got time to look at them the other day and I will be cutting the stems and rooting them. I will not get as many as i thought. I usually take my cuttings along the leggy part where they are trying to send down roots.
Michaeljo---I have both Obisdan & Licorice. In my area Obisdan will not tolerate hardly any sun and it does not like hot humid weather either, while Licorice seems to revel in what is becoming our hot humid climate. I have seen Obisdan suffer even in the shade in mid summer when it is still near 90 at 9 and 10 PM many nights. I think I should mention that I have Obsidan and Licorice planted in the ground in permanent locations.
My Obsidian only gets very early morning sun. The darker ones seem to prefer a lot of shade here.
Snow Angel almost died when it was in sun so I moved it a few feet into partial shade and it's as happy as can be.
Pirl, that's a stunning picture! I have Obsidian paired with a Jack Frost Brunnera, but I must admit I like the contrast of the chartreuse. Talk about popping!
Sandy
Sandy - any of the dark heuchera would be stunning with Jack Frost Brunnera, especially Pewter Veil, as just one example.
Brunnera are dead ducks in this area. They start out real fine oin the spring then when we get into the summers we have been having they are goners. I can tell you first hand that Licorice around here just seems to love sun. Mine gets a lot of noon day to about 4 pm sun and that stuff is hot.
Good to know. Thanks for the information. I haven't yet bought a Brunnera. One of those plants I keep meaning to get but when I remember it I don't find it and vice versa.
Wow Pirl, that combination really does "pop"!! Had always wanted to plant Carex 'Island Brocade' with my 'Licorice' but never got around to it. Now thinking if I do finally get a chance to plant something with it, I might just have to 'pop' in some Lysimachia, although it is planted in a sunnier location and it might just be possible to use Sedum 'Angelina' as well - you've got me thinking! LOL
Thank you, Debra. I have a pot of Angelina from about two years ago, and keep taking pieces to add to other gardens and never get around to planting the whole pot. It even stays out and survives the winter with no problems.
That garden, with the Obsidian and Lysmachia, has a lot of those two colors and the Red Veined Dock is another one that's lovely - I do remove the flower stalks. At the far right, in this photo, you may be able to spot a dark wine iris that's similar in color to another heuchera elsewhere in the same garden.
There's another tiny sedum with rounded edges that forms beautiful mounds. I'll have to track down the name of it. The Lysimachia can grow with great gusto but it's also easy to rip out and not like some of the vile invasives. The heuchera family doesn't have that problem, thankfully.
(Happy birthday a few days early, Debra!)
The sedum that looks so well behaved (and is, so far) is Ogon. Here's the link and if you check the bottom photo, by Kell, you'll see she teamed it up with a dark heuchera!
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/54240
All of you are contributing to my every growing plant obsession ... it's wonderful. Thanks!
Pirl - your pictures are beautiful. You really have an eye for color and arranging plants ... I have so much to learn.
MY Jack frost didn't do well this summer, but it usually looks good. Maybe it needs more friends ...
This message was edited Nov 10, 2007 8:18 AM
Thanks, Michael. We're all here to encourage you so, yes, Jack Frost probably does need more company!
pirl, thank you for early birthday wish - sweet of you :) Another lovely photo and combination!!! Thought at first, what a gorgeous 'June', then what I can see of the tag - 'Remember Me'? And I love the driftwood - we also collect driftwood and rocks and use them throughout our gardens, they add a really nice touch. Unfortunately, I can't grow 'Ogon' here - tried it twice and lost it (not "quite" hardy) - but with global warming, who knows one of these years it might just work!
Michael, this was probably one of the worst years for our 'Jack Frost'. I'm sure our drought conditions made him very unhappy, but looking forward to next year and praying for rain - even with the three days of a good drenching rain two weeks ago, we're still extremely dry. Has really foiled my plans for planting this fall, the ground is like cement and with recent temps in the 20's, the hoses have been drained for this year. Last year we were still planting at this time - looks like it will be a busy spring!
Actually I have both Remember Me and June in that garden, along with about 20 others. I'm missing the great weather we had at the end of last year, too, Debra! I gardened right through January 13th and then winter really arrived.
pirl, I've been following the "weather" thread on the NE forum, hard to believe you haven't even had a frost yet! Is Southold more coastal? I knew we were going to get our first frost two weeks ago, but disappointed that I didn't have enough time to take a few cuttings of my favorite Coleus this year :( There was just too much to bring in!
I just got up and checked again - no frost. Dahlias still showing off in the back gardens. It's hard to believe it was 32 when I got up and still no frost. Yes, we are coastal!
Sanannie & Pirl, your photos are gorgeous! Thanks so much for sharing.
I've enjoyed a long Fall here with just a light Frost last month, but the freezes are coming this weekend so I've been busy trying to find crannies for "one more plant" inside...
Another rounded leaved sedum is called Chinese Coral or Coral Reef - Sedum tetractinum. I love that one for it's colors during Winter. That will probably be perfect with the peachy color heucheras, huh?
rcn, Happy birthday! Just an idea, but I kept a pot of sedum "Ogon" in my sunny window over last Winter and it did just fine, was nice & full when I set it back out in April.
It's still on my list to go back for that Frosted Violet plant, even more so since it seems to grow well. Thanks you all!
Marea,
I've been lurking-do go back for the frosted violet-mine are doing great here in Vancouver! They seem very happy here at my house and quite tough. The one in part sun looks like it's going to be glowing purple all winter long.
Thanks, marea. I know that feeling of trying to squeeze in "just one more" and there's just a narrow path through the indoor porch now. Still no frost and still one gigantic pot to either get in or take out the plants and find more spots.
I have the Coral Reef Sedum with Chocolate Ruffles heuchera. It's so well behaved! The 'Ogon' is in sun, in a little pot on the porch at the bottom of a rattan stand and is doing fine.
Don't get over to this forum too often, but I learn something every time I do. Pirl - love the pics. Glad to know about the Sedum. I thought it was a rather ill-behaved ground cover that one sees around quite often (but have forgotten the name).
Sandy - where in the Ottawa area can you get the Frosted Violet? I think I need one of those.
Ann
Ann, I found it at Richmond Nursery last year and I've also seen them at Artistic but I could certainly start you a piece in the spring if you like. Let me know and I'll make a note. (I need to buy stock in yellow sticky notes - they rule my life!) lol
Sandy
Golden Carpet is the sedum that goes wild here. I never knew any sedum could get so out of hand (invasive, almost) and if even one tiny piece is missed it's off to take over again.
Hello gang! Just wondering if I could winter sow heuchera or is it better to buy plants and divide later?