Does Agastache Blue Fortune seed and spread?

These are new plants this year, in a new garden,in a new house.
We tore out a 35 foot bed of 20 yearold junipers and tilled in composted topsoil.
Plants have taken off.
I love the color and shape of Agastache as background for lilies etc.
Picture is worth the hastle of removing the bedroom screen and shooting from overhead, hope there are more Satisfaction Lilies there next year, a great combination.
Sorry to ramble.
I don't want Blue Fortune to spread all over as I have other perennials I want for this space.

Hello ge. This is my 2nd year with BF and I love it too. 1 of my 3 plants did not make it through the winter but I replaced it. They have been blooming for weeks, 4 1/2 ' tall and covered with bees of every description. I love the color and shape (mine are next to white David Phlox).

I did not have any seedlings here in GA so I would guess you won't either. I don't KNOW that, just observation. Nice pic.

I have a verigated Hydrangea"lemon wave" planted near the BF and will probably have to divide the plant befor it overtakes the Hydrangea, hope it will wait until next year.
I also thought maybe no digging of the Agast. freezes out this winter.
Everything in gardening is like that.

If Blue Fortune is a semisterile hybrid, it might not reseed. However, Agastache foeniculum and A. rugosa (Korean Mint) are probably the parents and both are prolific seed producers, especially in USDA Zones 5 - 6. Seed eating birds like finches like the seed.

Thanks I'll check the grower.
The plants are huge already this year (first planting) tiney plants from Bluestone, cant believe it.

I've had 2 'BF' for several years & have had no reseeding. I tried to save some seed last summer & found only one or 2 seeds after much searching & those did not sprout for me.

I was told the Goldfinches clean up the seeds pretty well.
Other DGers had said they didn't have any trouble with the plant being invasive.
I have to move one on the three really teeny plants I put in as it is and didn't want to end up moving more than that.

Mine has not reseeded at all. Remember to leave it standing through winter, then cut back in spring when basal growth starts. Mine are from Bluestone also.

Interesting tip, venu209. I'll try that this year since I did lose one of 3 last winter. Thanks!

Thanks for the trimming tip. I hadn't thought about it.

If they don't reseed, will they multiply by root?

I think the clump gets bigger and you divide them in the spring.

Excellent ~ thank you!

Clumps of these Agastaches are usually separate , unconnected seedlings. The habit of the genus is to form a central caudex (trunk) from which all roots and stems emerge. Salvias that layer or have short stolons can be divided, since there is old growth that tends to age and separate from the original caudex. Each of the subunits develops their own roots and stems.

I have seen the California sages split in an interesting way. As with all Lamiaceae, there are four vascular bundles. In some cases, these separate at the base, and the plant can be split into four plants, as long as the separation works its way up the old trunk to active branches..

That should make division easier perhaps? Sorry to be a novice but first year with Agastache here...

I'm a novice too and found the above explanantion very helpfull.

I just ventured into dividing one of my 'Blue fortune' agastaches this spring. I was apprehensive, so I just dug off a small clump from the side of one, disturbing the rest of the plant as little as possible. Both parent & offspring are doing great. I believe I could have subdivided it much more & will probably do that to the other original plant next spring.

Thanks for the info Pam. I want to move all of mine next spring. I have 7 of them, maybe I'll end up with 28 of them next year :)

ge1836, hi I am finding out about how badly the straight agastache foeniculum reseeds and I am planning on getting my hands on some Agastache 'Black Adder' Here is a description I found 'Black Adder blooms from early summer right into fall, much longer than older varieties. This is because it's sterile, so it WON'T toss seeds all over your yard. It devotes all its energy to flower production, and you are going to love the results!'
I wish I had bought the ones I saw at HD earlier this spring but that was before all the a. foeniculum seedlings started popping up all over my garden. : (

Just checked Blue Fortune. I'll have to chec into this some more.
I have too many plants where the three were planted this spring, they got way bigger than I expected so one has to go so the clump doesn't shade out the Iris.
The true variety Blue Fortune is steril so no overpopulation in my garden.
I'm happy with that.

This message was edited Sep 3, 2008 12:20 PM

Meredith, I'm growing 1 of 'Black Adder' in my nursery bed. It's a lovely lavender. Not getting enough sun though so it's flopping quite badly. Foliage still looks good tho and it keeps on bloomin.

Pam, I'm glad you had success. I tried that method with Penstemon 'sour grapes' this spring and managed to kill the mother plant. The small one I separated did fine. Go figure. I have used that method with great success in hostas, just sticking the spade down through the clump in early spring. But 'sour grapes' did not take it well. So much for my greed: I had the one plant and wanted more, now I still have one plant.

My Agastache Blue Fortune is upright and beautiful,no flopping.
This is a new garden so Iplanted climbing nasters to shade out weeds.

Ok ge, I'm jealous. Here in the sunny south, a lot of plants look a bit fried by now (although this summer has been balmy compared to last year and even to May and June '08 which were exceptionally hot). My BF looked like that about 3 months ago. And nasturtiums don't do well here, just too hot. I have some in window boxes and they struggle along in part sun - any more and they give up the struggle entirely. I love them though.

I have never had luck with Nastuers planted anywhere but in the ground.
I believe the soil gets too hot in a container, could be wrong But that's been my experience.
The picture was taken Aug 16 so the BF's are full of bees and not many flowers left.

JoAnn, thanks for that tip. I have never been able to get the nastuers going. I always had them in a pot. That might explain something!!