Date: Tue, 7 May 2002 16:07:31
-0400
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] Salvia
I would try S. guaranitica, S.
leucantha, S. madrensis, S. greggii, S.
involucrata, S. regla. All of these should be hardy in Zone 7.
S.greggi, S.
Regla, S guaranitica have cultivars tht may differ in hardiness,
so be careful
which ones you buy. You might also try S. elegans.
For anyone anywhere, s. coccinia
makes a great annual, as does S. guaranitica.
S miniata makes a nice annual, and seems especially at home in
humid climates.
I think S. x "Waverly" is a great annual, and S. elegans
and leucantha can also
be grown as annuals (they grow fast enough to make nice plants
in a single
year) but they bloom late in the fall. Should be fine in Georgia,
but farther
north they tend to bloom so late that the flowers are killed by
the first
frosts just as they are starting to look good.
Ron Rovansek
Huntington Beach, CA
===========================
Date: Thu, 9 May 2002 07:50:10
-0700
From: Haji Warf <hajiwarf@YAHOO.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] Salvias for zones 7/6/5
Lori (& other Mid-Atlantic humnetters),
I've been successfully growing the following plants in the ground without protection for several years in the DC suburbs (z7a/6b); almost all are in a fast-draining raised rock bed with gravel mulch, located on the north side of the house (front) sloping W-SW
Hummingbird Mints:
-- Agastache aurantiaca 'Shades of Orange' (huge orange flowers
in abundance & for a long period; seems more hardy than other
A. aurantiaca)
-- Agastache barberi 'Firebird'
-- Agastache barberi 'Tutti Frutti' (marginal)
-- Agastache cana
-- Agastache nepetoides 'Pink Panther'
-- Agastache rupestris 'Desert Sunrise'
-- Agastache rupestris (seeds like a weed in gravel areas!)
[I lost the following:
-- Agastache aurantiaca;
-- Agastache aurantiaca 'Just Peachy'...I'm growing other cultivars,
but this is their first year, so no sustained record of hardiness
to report yet.]
Of all the Agastache, A. rupestris and A. cana -- by far -- are the hardiest for me.
California Fuchsias:
-- Epilobium californica ssp.
Latifolia 'Arizonica'
-- (Zauschneria arizonica -- same as above?)
These two must love where they are sited; both spread & are nice-sized clumps.
Penstemons:
-- Penstemon barbatus 'Elfin Pink' (buds now)
-- Penstemon barbatus 'Jingle Bells' (blooming now)
-- Penstemon campanulatus 'Garnet' (blooming now)
-- Penstemon cardinalis
-- Penstemon eatonii (buds now)
-- Penstemon pinifolius (4 different cultivars -- some blooming
now)
-- Penstemon x mexicali 'Red Rocks'
Autumn sage (blooming their heads off right now):
-- Salvia grahamii x microphylla
'Maraschino'
-- Salvia greggii 'Wild Thing'
-- Salvia x greggii 'Raspberry Delight'
-- Salvia microphylla 'Wild Watermelon'
I LOVE these woody salvia; they're the staple of my rock bed.
Others:
-- Hesperaloe parviflora (Red Yucca -- no bloom stalk yet)
-- Nicotiana sylvestris 'Only the Lonely' (beneath a dryer vent
near the foundation, heavily mulched -- huge clump)
-- Stachys coccinea (Scarlet Hedgenettle -- hummers LOVE this)
All the above have been hardy for me, some even staying evergreen/semi-evergreen.
Misc:
-- Salvia guaranitica ^ I have this, too, but I keep it in a very
large pot that gets rolled into an unheated garage during the
worst of winter; didn't realize I could stick it in the ground,
too! It's about to bloom now.
-- Salvia coccinea ^ I do collect seed, only so I can spread it around the yard! I also share quite a bit of seed with others. Great annual.
-- Salvia miniata ^ I use this as an annual, starting seeds in late winter & transplanting.
-- I also have Lonicera sempervirens (several) and L. heckrotti; Lobelia cardinalis, too, but these are known to be hardy here.
Perhaps, we should consider setting
up a DC area
trading forum for hum plants...
Haji
==========================================
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 2002 13:44:37
-0700
Reply-To: BB for Hummingbirds and Gardening for them in the Southeast
<HUMNET-L@LISTSERV.LSU.EDU>
Subject: [HUMNET-L] Mid-Atlantic Sure-Fire Hummer Plants
Pat,
Since you asked, my experience
with Salvia species has been great here in
Northern Virginia. Honestly, I haven't spent two specks of a second
looking
after them. However, the hummers think they're divine and use
them nearly
more than any other plant.
Highly Recommended (based on
observance of hummer use frequency, hardiness
in zone 6-7 and minimal care requirements):
? Salvia greggii ? Some are more
hardy than others, but I haven't lost a
single one to the cold. Don't cut back severely, and trim only
in the
spring to minimize crown exposure to our wetter winters. Just
be sure to
give it good drainage, and avoid clay soils. I find these to be
quite
drought-tolerant and use a gravel mulch. Hummers prefer these
salvia to
just about anything in my hummer bed. 3'x4', woody shrubby perennial.
I especially recommend S. greggii 'Wild Thing,' which has
a smaller stature
but is the most floriferous. Blooms early summer through fall.
? Salvia microphylla ? Although
a number of cultivars are hardy only to
zone 8, there are other "Littleleaf Sage" that sail
through our winters. I
have 'Wild Watermelon,' which hasn't suffered a bit in 5
years' worth of
snow and ice. However, like the S. greggii, this salvia needs
well-draining
soil. Avoid rich fertilizers for both, instead use trace
minerals and rock
phosphate, if anything at all. I don't remember the last time
I fertilized;
it doesn't seem to effect the blooms! 4'x4' woody shrubby perennial.
Blooms
early summer through fall.
? Salvia greggii x microphylla hybrids are also available.
? Salvia guaranitica ? Perhaps
the most talked about salvia, the cobalt
blue flowers attracts hummers by the gazillion (if you're
luckier than I am
to have so many). Different cultivars are available and range
in hardiness.
'Argentine Skies' offers a lovely pale, sky blue color, but
I like 'Black
and Blue' the best. Mine grow to 5' tall x 4' wide. Herbaceous
perennial.
Mid-summer through fall.
? Salvia coccinea ? I can send
you some seed, if you like; I have PLENTY,
and you will, too, if you choose to introduce this into your garden.
Although it doesn't winter over here, seeds are so abundant that
it acts
like a perennial. Save some of the seeds, which are easily harvested,
and
toss out in spring wherever you want to introduce them. It's like
painting
with a broad stroke -- elementary! And boy, do the hummers like
them! All
over-the-edge hummerphiles should have this in their yards. Grows
anywheere
from 2'-5', depending on conditions. Scarlet red. Early summer
through
fall.
? Agastache rupestris ? While
there are other agastache that do just fine,
my experience of 3-4 years' growing seasons has been that
this one does the
best, both with our climate and with the hummers. Plus, it has
a delicious
licorice-rootbeer scent, thus its common name, "Licorice
Mint." What
started out as one plant has now seeded itself out to be many.
This happens
often when there is a lot of gravel around, which should indicate
to you
how well it does in drought-like conditions. The silver-grey wispy
foliage is another indication of its xeric characteristics
-- although I
have one that's growing successfully in unamended soil. The coral-pink
flower stalks appear in early summer and continue right through
until
fall. I LOVE this plant and have moved it in places where everyone
who
visits has to brush by, releasing its fragrance!
? Lobelia cardinalis ? The Cardinal
Flower is a native plant to moist
areas. Just take some precautions if you have young children or
pets
around, though; it is poisonous. When we canoe down the Shenandoah
in Front
Royal during late summer, we see these blooming in clumps
along the banks.
Hardly a hummer could miss the brilliant red stalks, and they
rarely do in
my yard. I have it in an area I designated as my "bog,"
which collects all
the rainwater from both my house and porch (supplemental watering
required
this year!). I also put some beneath the pipe that allows for
the air
conditioning condensation to drip out. Needless to say, that was
one of the
only places in my yard that stayed constantly moist this summer!
Grows
approx. 3'x15". Herbaceous native perennial.
There are many, many others you
might try, but I'd start with these
sure-fire choices. You won't be disappointed, and neither
will the hummers
be. Increasingly, I've been able to find more and more selections
of these at my local nursery (they're FINALLY catching
a clue), although
that may not be the case where you are. Try a garden park, whose
staff tend
to push the envelope with their propagating material. I know I
picked up
quite an assortment this spring from Fairfax Co.'s Green
Springs Park plant
sale.
You'll be the envy of...oh, never
mind. You did mention your neighbors
aren't into this sort of thing. Well, the hummers will be overjoyed,
and
that's all that matters, right? I don't know about you, but hummingbirds
are the little engines of my happiness meter.
Good luck, and let me know if I can help you further!
Pat Foley wrote: I'd
be interested in reliable hummer feeding flowers
that
can take drought and don't need a lot of care, preferably ones
that I can
buy rather than grow from seed. My gardening time is limited,
as I work
full time and some years I have time to get into it and sometimes
not.
Haji WarfArlington, VA (1st suburb
across the Potomac River from
Washington, DC)