Date: Sat, 18 May 2002 17:03:29 -0500
From: Howard Williams <lesho@EARTHLINK.NET>
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
Subject: [HUMNET-L] Ipomopsis rubra

Humnet,

Like a torch stuck in the middle of my yard, a forgotten Ipomopsis rubra (aka standing cypress) is blazing away. A few female hummingbirds are visiting my yard on a sporadic basis and they're drawn to this plant
like moths to flame. They're also visiting Salvia darcyii, S. guaranitica and Erythrina herbacea (along with haphazard feeder visits).

I planted I. rubra in my yard two years ago. Some bloomed a little right away and some didn't make it. The one blooming now is over five feet tall. Since they're biennials it makes sense that I didn't see them last
year. The trick is to plant them alternate years so you have blooms every year. If you plant them in sand they will self seed. They have a long taproot and are drought toloerant once established. Based on the
current display I'm going to plant more this year. I've posted some
images of I. rubra on hummingbirdgarden-pix.

Howard Williams
Dallas, Texas

=======

Date: Sun, 19 May 2002 09:28:15 -0500
From: Howard Williams <lesho@EARTHLINK.NET>
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
Subject: [HUMNET-L] Subject: Re: Ipomopsis rubra

Linda, Humnet,

Ipomopsis rubra may be labeled as standing cypress -- which is its
common name. I. rubra is native to the southeast so any good native
nursery *should* carry it. You can get seeds as well. I buy my plants at
local nurseries although I now have plants that are reseeding. It's also
blooming right now at the Dallas Nature Center. It can be seen growing
along the nature trails in rocky limestone soil. It grows in open
prairie like conditions so you're unlikely to see it growing in heavily
wooded areas.

Last weekend I was at the Native Plants of Texas nursery outside
Kerrville. The demonstration garden had hundreds of I. rubra growing
along a rocky dry slope -- very impressive. It's really great when mass
planted.

Howard Williams
Dallas, Texas

=================

Date: Sun, 19 May 2002 09:49:10 -0500
From: Howard Williams <lesho@EARTHLINK.NET>
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
Subject: Re: [HUMNET-L] Ipomopsis rubra

Tim wrote;

> I've been meaning to post my questions about ipomopsis. The first question
> is; what is the difference between ipomopsis rubra and ipmompsis aggregata?
> Last year I grew seed from Burpee labeled "Ipomopsis Hummingbird Mix" (
>
> http://www.burpee.com/shopping/prod_detail/main.asp?catID=1&page=1&productID=311
>
> ). After struggling with their spindliness when they were young I ended up
> with about 3 or 4 plants that had a reasonable number of flowers that first
> season. Burpee categorizes it as an annual and I didn't find anything on the
> seed package about whether it was i. rubra or i. aggregate.. The
> hummingbirds did like them. I suspect that they're i. aggregata, mainly
> because the first of the links below include the common name "hummingbird
> mix".
>
> I'm now growing many more this year. I probably started them too early
> because they're getting too big for their tiny plastic containers and the
> weather here has been much cooler than normal for weeks now. I'm wondering
> if anyone else has experience with these and what they can tell me about
> them.
>
> Ipomopsis links;

> http://plantsdatabase.com/go/587.html
>
>
http://www.swcoloradowildflowers.com/Pink%20Enlarged%20Photo%20Pages/ipomopsis%2
0aggregata.htm
>
>
> http://www3.uakron.edu/biology/mitchell/ia.html
>
> Tim Barnard
> Rochester Hills, MI
> Zone 6a
>

Tim,

Ipomopsis rubra is native to the southeast. I. aggregata -- aka scarlet gilia -- is native to the southwest and western mountain areas. You're
probably better off trying I. rubra. By the way, it's best to plant
these out instead of leaving them in a pot. They have a long taproot
which can be restricted by containers. But they might do well in a deep
large pot. They do very well in open dry areas in full sun.

There is a range of conflicting info abou this plant. Various sources
describe it as either an annual, a biennial, or a perennial. I've seen
it listed as being hardy from zone 4 through 10 or hardy only to zone 7.
Bloom time is listed as May through October which is what I've
experienced. The talk stalks continuously produce flowers, but often
sparsely after the first flush of bloom. The plants look fragile but
they can stand up to wind that you would think would blow them right
over.

Howard Williams
Dallas, Texas

===============

Date: Sun, 19 May 2002 10:27:56 -0500
From: Howard Williams <lesho@EARTHLINK.NET>
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
Subject: Re: [HUMNET-L] Ipomopsis rubra

Haji wrote;

> Howard,
>
> From your description of suitable siting, I can only
> wonder why mine suddenly fails. Liberally I cast seed
> about in my rock bed, which germinate with ease every > year. Only after the vigorous seedlings are 6" tall do
> they abruptly decline; the feathery foliage collapses
> and begins melting.
>
> Could the plentiful sow bugs and ants nearby be the
> culprits?
>
> Everything else in the bed flourishes -- greggii
> salvia, agastache, and penstemons.
>
> Haji
> Arlington, VA
> z7a/6b
>

Haji,

I've had similar experiences with this plant. The first year I planted
them some made it and bloomed while others in close proximity simply
withered. Then last year I had two come up about 7 feet away from where
the first ones were planted. They didn't get very tall but they did
bloom. Now I have one tall monster growing where I originally planted
them in the first place. I first noticed it if February and thought it
was a weed. Then I realized from the foliage that it must be I. rubra. I
didn't nurture it in any way -- which may well be the key to its
survival. I'm going to collect seed from this plant this year and just
let some seed fall around it and see what happens. You may want to try
finding seedlings from a local nursery if you can. And although North
Carolina is the listed as the northen range of this plant you are not
that far away that you shouldn't have success -- eventually.

Plants that grow in prairies and fields can be oddly fickle. They do
great in totally neglected conditions but fail in carefully cultivated
gardens. There are certain areas of my garden that I don't 'cultivate' at all. I think those areas often do better than the areas I coddle. I'm
becoming a firm believer in benign neglect. But you have to have the
right plants in the right places to practice this philosophy.

Howard Williams
Dallas, Texas

======================

Date: Sun, 19 May 2002 19:00:07 EDT
From: Rrovansek@AOL.COM
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
Subject: Re: [HUMNET-L] Ipomopsis rubra

Ipomopsis aggregata - skyrocket - is a western wildflower. It is pretty
common in a wide variety of habitats in the great basin, and I think common
in the rockies, too. I rubrum - standing cypress - is native to Texas, Gulf
Coast, and most of the eastern US. It is quite rare throughout much of the
east in my experience, probably because its habitat - sunny w/ sandy soils -
is rare. I understand that in the right region it can be common and
conspicuous. I. aggregata grows up to about 3 or 4 feet, while I. rubrum gets
up to about 6 feet. I. rubrum is strictly biennial, while I. agggregata is a perennial that may bloom in the first summer, so I suspect the annual mixes
are derived from I. aggregata. They're both supposed to be great hummer
flowers, but I have little experience with either one. I would try I. rubrum
if I lived in the east, midwest, or southeast. Westerners could try either,
although I bet I. aggregata would be a better choice for mountain areas of
the west.

Ron Rovansek

============

Date: Mon, 20 May 2002 09:05:45 -0400
From: canyon.eagle@VERIZON.NET
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
Subject: Re: [HUMNET-L] Ipomopsis rubra

Hi Humnet,

Again adding my 2 cents to what Humplantmeister Ron had to say.......

I've been growing Standing Cypress, I. rubra, for about 4 yrs. I sowed
seed directly into the ground in a garden bed that is right next to the
house. It has a south/southeast exposure. Soil there is extremely loose
and fast draining because originally I dug in leaf mulch (added to clay) to
about 50%. The bed is slightly sloped to drain away from the house. It is
also on the dry side to begin with, since the overhang of the house keeps
rain off the top part of the bed.

With these growing conditions, the plants reach about 3'. They self-seed,
so I haven't replanted since the original planting. In fact, sometimes
they pop up where I don't want them and so I yank them out. I've been
pretty brutal to them over the years, but they keep coming back. Even with
all the great salvias, C.Flower, Cypress Vine, etc. that my few hums have
to choose from, they always use Standing Cypress when it is in bloom.

I obtained the original seed from Wildseed Farms, Fredericksburg, TX,
800-848-0078, <www.wildseedfarms.com>. Item#3223. They show a photo of it
as being red, and state that it is red in their description, however, many
of the plants produced yellow flowers. The hums liked the yellow-flowered
plants too.

Lori Markoff
Vienna, VA
zone 7/6

=============

Date: Mon, 20 May 2002 10:00:51 -0500
From: MiriamLDavey <athena@INTERSURF.COM>
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
Subject: Re: [HUMNET-L] Ipomopsis rubra

Humnet:

Here's 2 more cents.

I've seen Standing Cypress, or Spanish Larkspur, growing apparently wild in
the dry, rocky, grassy, scrubby Hill Country of Texas, and along the Gulf
Coast beach dunes of Florida near the Alabama border.

Multiple attempts to grow it in a variety of beds here in BR have mostly
failed, though we did get some to bloom a bit. Rots (fungal diseases)
seemed to be the worst problems.

Miriam

BatonRougeLA
USDA Hardiness Zone 8b
Sunset Zone 28