Gardeners Tips

True blue flowers are hard to find in many gardens although Purple, Lavender, Lilac, Mauve and Violet exist in many shades. Since there are no true blue Roses, Peonies, Dahlias, Daffodils or even Tulips these showy flowers are out. So if you find a good strong blue then stick to it and use it with great abandon.

This Delphinium was in our garden 20 years ago when we arrived and it has given great service. Unlike my spade that has had 2 new blades and 6 new handles the Delphinium is the original stock. Give or take an occassional cutting it is as new each summer with its tall spires of the strongest, clearest blue you could desire.

Good blue plants include Ceanothus impressus, Corydalis flexuosa and the Gentians. In bulbs there are blue Muscari, Chionodoxa  and the Agapanthus. Hydrangea macrophylla Blue Wave is one of the bluer hydrangea but most plants labeled or called blue are pale imitations.

If your favouirite plant is missing from this list let me know.

Light blue variety of Ceanouthus. There are some good dark blue varieties.

G

Gentiana The dark blue to indigo flowering Gentian.

Helianthemum are related to Cistus and Halimium as part of the Cistaceae family.

At only four inches tall they are ideal for growing in rockeries or on the top of walls. They provide masses of colourful blossom through summer.

Originating from the Mediterranean they love sun and thrive in poor soil.

Plants flower profusely in strong colours of red, pink, yellow and orange.

They generally have an appealing golden center.

I grow from seed but the plants are perennial and you could propagate a good variety from cuttings.

The orange variety tend to have a lusher foliage but the number of flowers can still cover an 18 inch wide plant.

Many of my plants have lasted more than 10 years except the white variety.

They are easy to grow from seed that can be collected in June/July.

I have a phobia or total lack of ability when it comes to growing Gentians. Because I expect to fail I have done so many many times and now I avoid Gentians like I wanted to avoid Gentain Violet bactericide as a child. (The purple dye you mum stained on cuts)

Gentian Facts

• The Gentians are evocative of the mountains (and that should tell me something about there cultivation).
• The majority of species flower in the deep, intense shade of blue for which Gentains are renown. ( New Zealand Gentians are white and there is a yellow Peruvian variety).
• Larger Gentians have 5 petals in a trumpet shape whilst smaller varieties have 5 petals that open like a star.
• In general European varieties flower in spring whilst the ‘easier’ Asian varieties flower in Autumn.
• This is a large genus with over 400 species and varieties.

Growing Tips

• • Gentians are fiercely lime hating and require moist but fast draining soil.
  • Gentians are thought to be difficult to grow outside their wild habitat.
  • Good clumps of root should be planted out between October and February.
  • Once established the less the plants are meddled with the better
  • Top species to grow in England include Gentain Acaulis, Gentian verna, the spring Gentian and Gentian septemfida the  Crested Gentian.
  • Gentiana sino-ornata is not only one of the easiest and most reliable, but also one of the loveliest with spectacular colour

The flower that is most evocative of mountain scenery must be the the Gentian with its alpine associations. Gentians make me blue in the face because I fail every time I try to grow these sumptuous blue flowers.

Here are some of the reasons I have failed: –

• • • Gentians are known to be difficult to transplant .
    • When seed is sown, it should be fresh or it will not germinate & grow.
    • All Gentians prefer partial shade for at least some of the day.
    • The Fringed Gentiana is a biennial variety which is extremely difficult to grow. I have been guilty of lumping all Gentians under one species as though it was a perennial, acid hating alpine. How wrong I was each variety needs to be understood in its own right.

• • • I have failed to provide adequate drainage, most Gentians need gritty alpine conditions
    • The Closed Gentiana may be grown in moist meadows but have no lime in the soil.
    • Winter sow in coldframe or unheated greenhouse with ventilation
    • The Gentianella is an easy sort to grow requiring limestone added to the soil.

I resolve to try again in my Rockery. Perhaps with American, Australian and Japanese hybrids.

2023 has been a top year for Dahlias The garden was disrupted by an impending downsizing house move but the quantity of flowers was excellent even after some neglect.
A second plus was the plants I gave away to friends who seemed to appreciate the performance in pots or direct in the ground.

For Christmas I want a garden suitable for for Dahlias and perhaps some new tubers.