@Wilderbeast. You are wise to tie it to the pergola as they are very shallow rooted and any strong winds can uproot it. That's what happened to my original a few years ago but the bees still stayed on it regardless. Looks like yours is going to be a stunner.
Just a brief post to see how everyone got on with their EP's this season?
Its been a real shame that the weather has been so unbelievably dry in my part of the SE this year. I checked the Environment Agency figures and to date we've had 3% of our long term average rainfall this month with our last meaningful rainfall being the period 18-24th May!!! Its wreaked havoc upon a number of my gardening projects this year and sadly my Echiums have not escaped its effects...especially the relentless dry winds we had throughout June (I consider persistant dry wind to be equally as damaging as late frost).
Nevertheless, i still consider the project to have been a success and having never grown these before its been a rewarding experience through which i've learned quite a lot. My final lesson being that the dried, expired plants are quite possibly one of the most irritant things known to man!
Next task - spreading those seeds about.
Here are a couple of *fairly recent* pics...
In their prime;
No idea how to rotate - sorry!
The final hurrah (a couple of these are crispy skeletons now);
(*my wild curio front garden*)
Hopefully i'll get an update from some of you guys in the coming days/weeks, but if not - all the best for the future.
I have been sadly disappointed with mine. The two big ones which should have been in flower by now shrivelled up and died! Have no idea why. I have two others but although they look very healthy they won't be flowering this year and whether they survive the winter remains to be seen. @McRazz. You are so lucky to have so many in flower. Dried, expired plants don't mention them!
I have been sadly disappointed with mine. The two big ones which should have been in flower by now shrivelled up and died! Have no idea why. I have two others but although they look very healthy they won't be flowering this year and whether they survive the winter remains to be seen. @McRazz. You are so lucky to have so many in flower. Dried, expired plants don't mention them!
@Fran IOM Indeed, there was definitely an element of luck! Thats a real shame you lost yours, although at least you have a couple of vegetative plants for next year. I'd wager that every year they stay in the ground and strengthen the better their chances the following year, so fingers crossed.
The front left plant in my second photo did exactly the same thing, its simply shrivelled up and died before the flowering finished. I have no idea if this was normal, or the harsh drying winds, or some other environmental factor. I think the fact they were potted plants until March didn't help much with root establishment and the associated resilience this brings.
@Fran IOM. Had you transplanted them from somewhere, they don’t like being moved. Once they’ve flowered and dropped seeds they need to be pulled out, not a job for me, they are like tree trunks. I’ve given up with them now, too cold and wet, completely the opposite to what they like. Not to mention the wind.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
@Lyn mine were transplants and it definitely held them back. re the climate - its a gamble isn't it? I bet it can get a bit hairy up in West Dartmoor on occassion! Here, some years the conditions seem perfect but then we might have a run of 2 or 3 years where nothing would survive (e.g. beast from the east 2018, or the very poor summer of 2021).
I have to keep reminding myself that these are not a naturalised species outside of certain microclimates and therefore really need to be treated as incidental oddities. If you adopt this mindset then it helps temper the disapointment of failure
Looking forward i'm going to be relying on the seed banks within the soil in sheltered spots from now on, which fits nicely with my philosophy for the front garden. If one pops up it'll be a case of "hello old friend" and i'll keep an eye on it perhaps helping it on its way a little.
I had 3 in pots before last winter and none of them made it. To be honest I think it's just as well as realistically they get way too big for my garden! I noticed someone on my estate has a few in their front garden so I'm watching those instead , not flowering this year though. I went to Alcatraz in April and they had them flowering there!
@Lyn. I have never potted them up as they just appeared having been self seeded. Didn't even know I had them as the original plant which had flowered beautifully but got blown over in a gale had been long gone. The seeds must have been in the ground for a long time (years) before they germinated. I recognised them as Echiums and left them to their own devices. I am now left with two hideous "tree trunks" and two or three others which may stand a chance. With them being so big they are hiding a lot of my nice flowering plants which don't get a look in and I feel like pulling them out at times. Must admit I cut off a lot of the lower leaves to make room for my other plants.
Posts
@Wilderbeast. You are wise to tie it to the pergola as they are very shallow rooted and any strong winds can uproot it. That's what happened to my original a few years ago but the bees still stayed on it regardless. Looks like yours is going to be a stunner.
@McRazz. You are so lucky to have so many in flower. Dried, expired plants don't mention them!
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Once they’ve flowered and dropped seeds they need to be pulled out, not a job for me, they are like tree trunks.
I’ve given up with them now, too cold and wet, completely the opposite to what they like. Not to mention the wind.
I went to Alcatraz in April and they had them flowering there!
With them being so big they are hiding a lot of my nice flowering plants which don't get a look in and I feel like pulling them out at times. Must admit I cut off a lot of the lower leaves to make room for my other plants.