Lisanthus is an annual -- not a tender perennial. So enjoy it now -- cut lots of flowers and be prepared to buy more next year. Without a doubt one of my favorite (if not frustrating at times)flowers.

Cathy

Hello Cathy....The ID tag on my plant says "Maricahi Pink"
Perennial Texas Bluebell(Lisianthus russellianus)Height 24-36" space 12" Sun to part Shade Blooms all Summer...and then the typical other particulars about its care and performance(but nothing about zone hardiness. I assume that this particular cultivar is a Perennial/Tender Perennial form and may come back in certain zones...although in mine, I will assume it acts as an annual!)...Will it re-seed itself in my zone I wonder?...or could I save seed and sow direct in the spring?...just curious if anyone in Zone 5-6 has grown this particular cultivar and has observations to share...Cathy, what is frustrating to you about growing this flower and what can I do to prevent getting frustrated with mine..thanks So much for your response!...GardenLove

What is frustrating about lisanthus? I think lots. First, to start from seed, most vendors seed them in Jan. I have one friend that seeds his for the greenhouse in Nov. The people that seem to have the best luck use bottom heat. Germination rate isn't too bad but it seems to be common to lose 10-25% to too much water or not enough water. They are incredibly picky plants the first 2 or 3 monthes.

They hate being root-bound and once they are -- they are almost always doomed.

If you buy plugs -- they too have trouble with moisture issues at first and most greenhouses plan on losing 5-10% of the plugs.

I planted 1050 plants this year -- I still have one variety that has not bloomed and probably won't. I think they were too root bound when I got them. Most of those are alive but still small. Easily 850 are in bloom now but good drainage and regular moisture is essential.

I don't bother with plugs as I may not be able to get them in the ground before they are root-bound. I buy finished plants but I think my success rate is a little better than buying plugs.

That being said -- they are the workhorses of my late season bouquets. They make every bouquet look elegant and they will last 2 weeks easily.

I'm certain that Maricahi is an annual. I don't have a Ball seed catalog in front of me. I usually grow Echo --its my favorite but I have grown other varieties including the shorter types in the past. They definitely don't self-seed in Iowa. I have never tried to save seed.

Maybe someone knows something new about lisanthus. Every book, catalog that I have list them as annuals.

Cathy

I see....I guess I will NOT ever be growing them from seed then!...they would surely be doomed...I better go take mine out of the pot right now before it does get too rootbound.....Anyone else know about the perennial vs annual question on this cultivar?.....either my ID TAG is totally wrong, or this one acts as a perennial in the right zone...hmmmm...thanks for the replies!...GardenLove

Lisianthus is actually a perennial. I have wintered over plants here in zone 5, but they performed poorly their second year -- no bloom and many plants just died even though they survived the winter under cover. I just wonder how they do in California (so I don't mess with the time covering them any more). I buy plugs, but have to buy 360 plants per variety and 3-4 trays. The plugs are never rootbound. I can get them in 10-12 weeks from order date (grower's sow time). I grew Mariachi Lime Green for the first time this year at customers' request.

Perhaps the particular variety that is the native Texas Bluebell is perennial in Texas, but that doesn't mean any other eustoma will be perennial, not even in Texas. There has been a lot of crossbreeding to get more marketable types, one of which is Mariachi. I've found information on plant tags to be WAY off sometimes and never rely on them any more.

Another example is the Dianthus family. There are annual, biennial, and perennial dianthus. NO assumption can be made as to whether a particular cultivar is perennial (or annual, or biennial) - there has been lots of crossbreeding in that family, too. I've found tags on them in nurseries that were just plain wrong.

The Arnoskys did an article on lisianthus once. Even they were very frustrated. Apparently the seedlings stay very tiny for a very long time, then suddenly start to grow and become rootbound very fast. Once they're rootbound, they're shot. I think they have gotten past that these days, but if they had a problem with it in Texas, I'm not about to try it in Idaho! Besides, my greenhouse doesn't even get covered and heated until March 1st, way too late for lisianthus.

Jeanne

Was good info to me Jeanne about perennial/annual thing. During my study and search of the plant 3-4 years ago, all my reading indicated perennial. And glad mine have never been rootbound.
T

If I had purchased one plant from a nursery, I would certainly consider mulching and trying to winter over this truly beautiful flower.

We purchase plugs. They are about the size of a dime when we receive them. And, they sit there for weeks it seems before they decide to do anything. They are hardy plants though and can take temps down to minus 0. In one of our new hoophouses which is 96' long we have them planted 6" apart -- 16 rows. In this environment, we would consider them perennial. And, actually, March 1 isn't too late to plant plugs in the unheated coldframe. We planted our plugs April 15; and, we have been harvesting the cuts for well over three weeks. We've not suffered any losses and they're never rootbound. They must, however, be planted upon receipt. They can't sit in the greenhouse for any length of time in the tiny cell flats.

I don't know how this one does growing out in the field. Some perennials we treat as annuals here as well as the Arnoskys do in Texas.

Lisianthus is truly one of the most beautiful cutflowers. And, if you are doing any type of wedding work, this one should be on your list to grow. Every bride wants it.

Sometimes I'm jealous of your Midwestern weather. My hoophouse is heated barely above freezing at night, and our freezing nights go on into June. Slow-growing things just don't make it with the cold mountain nights, even in the hoophouse. They either bloom too short or don't grow at all.

Jeanne