If you’d rather contact me directly, instead of leaving a comment on my blog, please feel free to do so.
Maybe you have a question on a topic that wasn’t fully addressed in a blog post, you have a suggestion for a future blog post or you want to talk about something completed unrelated to a post … I’d love to hear from you.
The quickest way to reach me is by sending an e-mail to: droberts at robertslandscapes.com (don’t forget to change the ‘at’ to an ‘@’ when you send the e-mail).
Hello,
Last summer I purchased a Hydragea Pinky Winky. It is still small about 3 feet tall. I did not prune it in the fall. There are several brown spent blooms. I know I need to prune it soon but I don’t know how far to cut the stems. Do I only cut the stems at the base of the flowers or lower or almost to the ground?
Agi,
Since Pinky Winky blooms on new wood, you can cut back the spent, brown blooms to a pair of healthy buds along the stem. If you’d like to keep the shrub relatively small you can prune a bit further down the stem. But there’s no reason to cut back the stem all the way to the ground at this point. Hope that answers your question.
Thanks for the response Debbie.
I would like the Pinky Winky to grow as tall as it will get ,, I guess about 6 to 8 feet. What is the best way to assure this?
Agi,
If you want them to reach their full height, I would prune only for health and to keep them in bounds. However, keep in mind that pruning Pinky Winky back by about 1/3 in the early spring should result in more flowers. Otherwise, let Mother Nature take over and do her thing.
Enjoy.
Hello. I have searched my question online, but haven’t seen anyone address it.
I bought some daffodil bulbs last fall and only planted half of them. Those that I planted came up very well and are still blooming. Is it worthwhile to plant the others now (late April), or is it a waste of time?
Thanks.
Brenda,
While I’ve never done it myself, I have been told that you can plant spring flowering bulbs now and they should bloom next spring. As long as you don’t mind putting in a little time planting, I guess you’ve got nothing to lose.
Good luck. Let me know what you decide to do.
Debbie,
Just read about you on Ed’s blog.
You might want to check out the American Conifer Society. It was life altering for me.The printed material is good but try to attend a regional meet and you won’t be sorry. In fact the last meet in August was in Danbury Ct. Sorry you missed but guess what! This years meet is in Charlotte VT. Not to far for you. Trust me it wioll be the best $30 you ever spent.
April
PS. feel free to email if any questions.
April, Thanks for the info. I’m sorry to have missed the ACS meeting in my ‘backyard’ last summer. I’ll look into this year’s meeting in VT and see what ot’s all about. Thanks for stopping by.
Hi,
I am interested in annuals that are deer resistant. I have an area that I am planning to mass plant 200 plus flats. Semi shade, and full sun. Can you provide me with a list of recommended annuals.
Thank you
Theresa
Hi Theresa, Wow, that’s a lot of annuals! The first thing I’d suggest is talking to a local independent garden center and asking them. Deer preferences can be so geographically specific, what my deer eat my not be appelaing to the ones near you. Having said that, here are a few annauls that are considered deer resistant: snapdragon, nasturtium, french marigold, nicotiana, lantana, cleome, ageratum. Good luck!
Good morning,
When you have time, I would appreciate your answering this question: Is there a pyramidal, dwarf, shade tolerant evergreen that would thrive in a planter along the Connecticut shoreline?
Thanks.
Kay
Hi Kathleen, I have some quick questions for you before I can offer suggestions. I’ll email them to you.
I was very impressed with the picture of the row of cornus kousa. Can it be grown as a (tall) shrub? Still on my quest for “shrubs” to make a backdrop for my perennial garden and hide the neighboring woods.
Thanks,
Judith
Hi Judith, Technically, yes, a kousa dogwood could be grown as a tall shrub and would work for screening most of the year. However, at maturity, it will be @ 25′ tall and will be so large that you may no longer be able to maintain it as a shrub. Also, it is not reliably deer resistant. Have you given thought to using American holly (Ilex opaca)? It is evergreen, won’t need to be pruned to retain a shrub habit, thrives in full sun – full shade and is deer resistant. Just a thought.
OK — Kousa dogwood off the list and American holly on! I have enough plants that deer like — don’t need any more!
Thanks.
Hi Debbie,
Do you know if Acanthus Mollis is invasive in CT? It doesn’t appear on any of the invasive species lists I can find, but I find mentions of it being invasive in a lot of gardening forums.
thanks!
Hi Stacy,
To my knowledge, Acanthus mollis is not invasive in Connecticut. Here’s a link to the most current CT Invasive plant list: http://www.hort.uconn.edu/cipwg/pdfs/CTInvasivePlantList2011-ScientificName.pdf.
Depending on where in Connecticut you live, Acanthus mollis may not be hary for you. It is is considered hardy to zone 6 but parts of CT are in zones 5a where Acanthus would be grown as an annual.
While I have seen Acanthus moliis in nurseries, it’s certainly not readily available (at least not here in Stamford) so you may have to really look for it if you do decide to grow it.
Good luck.
Hi Debbie,
I have a very small yard with a trellis on the back fence, I’d like to plant something on the trellis that would be attractive and also help with privacy. I was planning on planting a trumpet vine since the area only gets partial sun but i’m concerned about the invasive quality. Is there some way to contain the plant to keep it from spreading in unwanted areas? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you, Nancy
Nancy,
Even though trumpet vine (Campsis radicans) is native to the eastern US, as you noted it is quite aggressive. Unfortunately, I don’t know of any way fool-prof way to contain it. I’m not sure where you garden, but if its in NE, you might want to check out this post on Native Plants Wildlife Gardens that looks at some native vines. You might find an alternative here: http://nativeplantwildlifegarden.com/southern-new-englands-native-vines/.