I grow Cuban Oregano(Plecanthus) around the base of some of mine.I think the aroma helps to keep some of the bugs at bay.

Hi Linda,

I have to grow all of my brugs in pots, but I do under plant some of them. Most of the time I use impatiens, but I have used sweet potato vines too. Monika uses both impatiens and the fiberous (sp?) begonias.

Both of these annuals will tolerate the fertilizer that you give the brugs. I guess because the brugs take up most of it, greedy little pigs!! LOL

I try to ferilize 2 x's a week in the middle of the summer and the impatiens do just fine. Plus, me and Monika both having to grow our brugs in pots, have to water quite a bit in between fertilizing. This also helps flush out the fertilizer salts that would normally build up in the soil.

Last year Scott's came out with a new formula of Miracle Grow. The numbers on the old formula was 15-30-15. The numbers on the new formula are 24-8-16. I began using the new formula last year and had great results. In fact I was able to finally get the leaves on my 'Whiskers' to be a good green color. Normally, 'Whiskers' was notorious for having some what yellowish leaves. This new formula is more suited to the nutritional needs of brugmansia.

Here is a link to the new Miracle Grow.

Hope this helps,

David

Here is a link that might be useful: New Miracle Grow formula

Linda,
I am so glad you posted this topic. From all the posts here I have learned a great deal about Brugs. For instance, I knew they were heavy feeders, but I didn't know Brugs were that ravenous! My gosh! You've gotta really love them to put that much time and money into them!

David,
Just read your post too about the new Miracle Grow fertilizer and it's affect on your "Whiskers". I am so glad you mentioned that about their tendency to have yellowish leaves. I thought it was something I was doing to them.
I finally guessed that they are heavy feeders, so the other day I put a handful of composted steer manure into each pot of Whiskers, and BOOM! They responded immediately and greened up and are making new leaves. What a bunch of oinkers!

I also found that it solved the problem I was having with my roses - yellowing leaves. I figured out that my sandy soiled was just leaching out really fast, so I will have to keep adding leaf mold and compost to build up my soil and side dressing with manure. I dug in the composted steer manure around them back in February and every one of them now is making rich, green, lustrous leaves for the first time. Happy me! Poor babies - they were just hungry. Oooh, poor babies!
I bet that is also what's wrong with my Loblolly pines too.

Thanks all!
~ SweetAnnie4u

vmter2tn, for two years now we have tested hostas up under and at the edge of the brug garden. I would say putting them at the edge of ones garden is the best place for them as they don't do all the fertilizer well. I did plant corsica mint in the garden last year and it took off like crazy, also smells great to walk on!

Wow! What a lot of info here. I have been trying to read a lot about brugs because I knew nothing until I moved into a house with one in the yard. I took cuttings and was just going to put them into a new flower bed that I have built. I will be putting a lot of different plants in the bed, too. Should I put the brugs into their own bed instead of mixing a lot of others with them?

I always under plant mine with chocolate mint and caladiums. The brugs shade the caladiums and apparently the fertilizer mostly goes to the brugs because neither seems to mind, they are both happy. There was a thread about this on the florida forum not too long ago, you might try a search there :)
~SJN

vsjo, we have our in their own garden beds due to the reason of fertilizing and our spraying on a regular bases.

About 90% of my brugs are in-ground. I like my garden beds 'tight' during the summer months and have tons of different flowering plants packed into the same beds. However, what works for me in my own gardens may not work for others.

In one bed alone I have brugs, several varities of salvias, BOP's, several kinds of cannas, Lamb's Ear, Mexican sage, Crocemsia (sp), elephant ears, poppies, gingers, roses, hibiscus, ornamental bananas, a couple different types of Amaranthus, and several other things that I can't remember (and won't until they start to come up again). I even have a couple of these beds edged with varigated spider plants (yup, the houseplant variety). They all preform beautifully and fully together the whole growing season.

The all get the same amount of water (which is ALOT during the Summer months). I only feed my beds/gardens once a year and that's in the Spring. However, I do mulch in the Fall with shredded leaves which in turn breaks down and feeds the soil. My brugs are usually in excess of 10' to 12' plus tall every year, and that's with cutting the Winter damage back. I've never lost one brug to this kind of planting and personally I think they happen to like the company. :))

With the exception of one brug all my brugs are blooming right now. They know that Spring is here, altho no one has bothered to tell Mom Nature, darn it.

Jenna