My May Nights, Sensation Rose, Victoria White, & Blue Hill are going strong right now. I love salvias.. so care free! Does anyone have any HUGE salvias that always end up looking like someone laid in the middle of the plant?

Oh my!!!! Is that a blue penstemon? Or is it a salvia? Either way it is AMAZING! And with the dark salvia WOW!!

Yes! I have one Salvia that always starts out so nice and perky. By July it is flat as a pancake! Just last night I thought, "I should put a cage around that now before it flattens!" Doubt I will though

Jennifer - Both blue penstemon & blue salvia. These are good down to zone 5.. all these plants are at least 2 years old.

Electric Blue Penstemon
Foothill Beardtongue (Penstemon heterophyllus 'Electric Blue')

May Night Salvia
Sage (Salvia nemorosa 'Mainacht')

Blue Hill Salvia
Violet Sage (Salvia 'Blauhugel')

Toni,
I grew Electric Blue Penstemon via winter sowing last year. Only two tiny plants survived the winter and spring. So far they have not bloomed. They are 3-4 inches tall. But they both have a handful of buds. Hopefully they will grow this year and survive the next winter!

Jennifer - I can't grow anything from seed other than weeds... I'm REALLY good at growing weeds. LOLL. Anyways, these plants... the electric blues were rather puny & pathetic last year, let alone when I put them in 2 years ago (2012). I've noticed that it takes penstemons 2-3 years to really get going. For instance, one set of my little pineleaf penstemons were just little bitty 3" container plants when I put them in 4 years ago. Today, each one covers at least 2' in circumference!

Skiekitty said:My May Nights, Sensation Rose, Victoria White, & Blue Hill are going strong right now. I love salvias.. so care free! Does anyone have any HUGE salvias that always end up looking like someone laid in the middle of the plant?

• Blue Wild Indigo (Baptisia australis)
• Uploaded by Skiekitty

Yes, my Salvia 'Blue Hill' ends up looking like something laid in the middle and the stems all flattened out from the center. I try to cut the stems as they finish blooming, but I don't remember if it happens again in the same season. It happens every season. I've had Blue Hill for years. It probably didn't happen for the first few years when it was young.

Beautiful flowers and pics!

I had grew Electric Blue Penstemon as a plant. It lived for only a couple of years. Loved that blue color!

Here's what the MayNights look like.. the squished ones in the back. I swear something's sleeping in it at night!



And the May Nights in my front flower bed. I traditionally have this filled with annuals, but I'm getting tired of replacing them, so planted salvias. Can't go wrong with them! I also have some penstemons in this bed too, but they're not flowering yet.

I think you are right about the nester. There was a fawn in an astilbe down the street.

The Salvia x sylvestris, like 'May Night', almost always splay out like that here. I think it happens more with plants that get extra moisture. We usually have rainy, hot summers so they go splat toward the end of their bloom.

Toni, all of your photos are lovely but that Penstemon is scrumptious!

Toni

Beautiful garden! Do you have 5 May Night's? Bet the Butterflies love it too! You should add that pic to the database! Sage (Salvia nemorosa 'Mainacht')

By the way, that's how my Blue Hill looks (your first pic).

Marilyn - Actually, in the front yard in that front flower bed, I think there's.... well, there's the 2 big ones on either side, then in the back row, I *think* there's 5 horizontal & then another 3 more vertical along the driveway. I think. I shouldn't be thinking.. not my strong suit. I'll take a picture from the "backside" (from the house looking out to the street) so that you can see how it's done that way.

Sounds great and sounds like 10 of them!

Here's what the salvias look like from the "back" (facing the street)

They look great Toni!

It looks great, nice for travelers going by.

Golden Jubilee is really pretty this year. I think I'll get some more of this.


And my Purple Rain is going strong again.

Looking great!

I might get Golden Jubilee again next year and make sure I don't let it go to seed. Love its leaves!

Did you add your pics to the database?!

Pretty plants, Toni!
'Golden Jubilee' reseeds easily so you'll likely get more of them whether you want them or not!

Danita said:'Golden Jubilee' reseeds easily so you'll likely get more of them whether you want them or not!

That's the only reason I've not grown GJ, since the first year.

This is the 3rd season and no volunteers yet.