Perennials

From Kathy:

I'm a transplanted New Yorker who is deliriously happy to have earth in
my yard now not concrete! As such I've become in the last 3 yrs. a
passionate gardener.

Passionate...but inexperienced. I have a 2 foot high [hardy]
crapemyrtle. I'm thinking it's too late to plant it, right? But I've
never 'kept' a plant over the winter, and I so want to keep this alive
'til next Spring.

Can you advise me? Also I have no clue what goes on with plants in the
winter, inside or out. I mean: Are they hibernating or whatever? What

Lunaria annuaFrom blogger Judy Aull:

November seems like a strange time to think about a spring-blooming plant. However it makes perfect ‘cents’ when referring to the ‘money plant’ or Lunaria Annua. It is also called by many other names, such as Dollar Plant, Silver Dollars, Honesty Plant and Moonwort. The names that are most often used are “Money Plant” or “Honesty”. Its spring-blooming sprays of purple or white flowers are not exactly spectacular. In the spring of 1767, upon seeing the small flowers for the first time and obviously not too impressed, Thomas Jefferson said “Lunaria still in bloom, an indifferent flower.” It is primarily grown and enjoyed for its fall and winter showing of opaque seedpods that look like silver coins in shape and size.

Is this the best time to move a peony? Also can they be dug up, held and replanted at the end of the year?
Thank you

My neighbor this past weekend gave me several daylilies. She was planting them after digging them up from her old house & transferring them into her new home’s backyard. She found that she had too many to fit in the space she had. I’m trying to find a location in my yard for these very tall varieties (4') and I wondered if there is a way to overwinter them until the spring. They have some dirt still on the roots in a large pot & are waiting for me to do something with them.

i have 3 hibiscus plants for my humming birds i dont think their hardy ones what do i do for the winter?

I have a Jasmine plant in a container that I would like to keep inside during the winter. I have a tropical fertilizer and a sunny east window. Is there a clear plastic cover I can purchase or other ways to increase the humidity that would be appropriate for in-home use?

Thanks for your help,
India

By LEE REICH
For The Associated Press
With harvest season winding down, it’s time for dessert. How about some candy, real candy, from the garden?
Marshmallows, anyone?
Of course you can’t just pluck a squishy marshmallow from a marshmallow bush or tree. But marshmallows — real marshmallows — were originally made from the candied roots of a plant. And that plant is aptly called “marsh mallow.”
DIGGING FOR MARSHMALLOWS

By Norman Winter
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
The audience gasped as I gave the pot of mums a big bear hug, thinking I was going to squeeze the life out of it. That was the scene last week when I spoke at a Spirit of Women Conference.
Gardeners know that squeezing mums is normally a recipe for disaster as branches break like crumbling pretzels. But these were Belgian mums, so the hug didn’t hurt them.

my darned old arthritis has been acting up and haven't been able to do any of my transplanting. Is it too late now to divide my plants or catch some good sales for new beds? or would they do better in the spring?

From a reader:

We have several large lilies in pots, and was wondering if now was the time to transplant them in the yard? If so, do you divide them now, or leave in a bunch? If you divide them, how do you go about doing so? Do you cut the stalks down to ground level when replanting, or leave as is? One plant has several stalks in this pot, approximately 30" tall, and the main stalk is about 50" tall. Do we take all the dirt off and divide by the stalks, or by the bulbs? Do they need mulching for the winter? Thanks for your help.

Joe PyeFrom Craig:

This is the best time of the year for Joe Pye weed – actually the only good time of the year, in my opinion. And thus my ambivalent love for it.

Hank and liriopeFrom blogger Judy Aull:

Early mornings my new dog, Hank, and I take a walk through the neighborhood and one particular plant keeps jumping out at me. It seems that every yard has lots and lots of Liriope (spicata). Some gardeners seem to shy away from it because of its invasive behavior but its good qualities seem to outweigh the bad.Early mornings my new dog, Hank, and I take a walk through the neighborhood and one particular plant keeps jumping out at me. It seems that every yard has lots and lots of Liriope (spicata). Some gardeners seem to shy away from it because of its invasive behavior but its good qualities seem to outweigh the bad.

Well, let’s see; it’s elegant, hardy,

Last year my hydrangeas were covered with flowers all summer long but this year I have had only about 10 flowers. I didn't do anything different this year. Do you have any idea what the problem is? Thanks.

I was given some Lollypop lily bulbs last week. I am moving in December. Do I store the bulbs, or plant them in pots? What is the best way to save the bulbs for my new yard?
Thank you.

I planted several liriope in the flower bed in front of my house. Now some of them appear to have crown rot. If I dig them up and excavate the soil around them can I replant new liriope or is this flower bed ruined? The bed runs right along the walkway up to the front door so I'm worried that anything I plant will be killed by the fungus that is destroying the liriope.

I appreciate any advice.

Brunnera macrophylla “Jack Frost”From blogger Judy Aull:

Who wouldn’t love a plant that looks like ‘crackled porcelain’? With metallic silver heart-shaped leaves sporting mint green veins and edges, Brunnera macrophylla “Jack Frost” (Siberian Bugloss) is a collector’s dream.

I was first introduced to this plant when Tracy Disabato-Aust featured it in her book, “50 High-Impact, Low-Care Garden Plants”. Brunnera is a perfect foil for the dark corners in any shade garden.

Despite the fact that this cultivar is very pricey,

I have a small bed of a variety of daylillies. I would like to incorpoarte some perennials in to add fullness and color to the bed. Any suggestions?

From Deborah:

We have 4 mature Blue Muffin Viburnum which have suddenly started wilting, then within days, the leafs are totally brown and crisp. We seemed to lose on the shrubs in days! The others are beginning to have branches wilt and die in days. We can find no signs of insect damage. It appears that the inner part of the affected branches are brown and dry, but the bark on the base is moist and soft?? We took a branch to Soil Service; they honestly couldn’t tell us what’s happening.

Red Emporer gingerHere's a plant that may need some help in Kansas City's climate but to read an article on why it might be worth it, click here. Photo thanks to extension.org. -- Craig

By Norman Winter
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
Red Emperor ginger is one of those plants people treasure even if it never blooms. I did not know much about this plant but received a cluster of them from my daughter, who had been using them as a thriller plant in a mixed container for a special event.