I haven't had much troubles with the tall sedum varieties flopping as long as the soil isn't too rich.

This beauty came as mislabeled, foliage stays healthy compared to other older dark varieties.

Abbeydore'

@prairiemoon2 z6b MA also forgot to say, Central MA technically lol. Everyone in the East says I am West, everyone West says I am East lol.

@Kali C: I forgot to ask, does Firecracker splay/flop in your garden?

@prairiemoon2 z6b MA: I’m drooling over your rose and sedum combo!! It’s gorgeous!

@FrozeBudd_z3/4: lovely sedums! Is the green one Lemonjade?

That's 'Savannah' Rose. This will be it's 3rd season? It had a foliage problem the first season, then recovered pretty well season 2 and fingers crossed going into this year. I'm working on disease resistant varieties for no spray roses.

Mazerolm, I believe it's 'Elsie's Gold', flowerheads only vaguely color up a bit, I've purchased one or two other similar more recent introductions, though there's pretty well no difference whatsoever between the plants, rather a waste of money if you ask me to see them looking mirror image identical !!

@mazerolm_3a so initially no, it was really upright. But then SOMEONE - me - accidentally stepped on it, like three times in one afternoon somehow. It stayed alive and fine but was obviously all flopped over lol. I think if I hadn't trampled it it would have been fine.

I am planning mine as we speak, I will be starting to Start/sow seeds soon, I can't wait for spring.. this snow has to go! I am in Zone 4B..

Hi @Emmy Husfloen: yes, can’t wait for the snow to go even though this has been a very mild winter so far.

Are you starting indoors or Winter Sowing?

prairiemoon -- a suggestion for mildew on phlox: dilute one part milk (any %) with nine parts water and spray leaves, under and on top. I have a marvelous sprayer that has a spout that swivels for getting to undersides (Solo brand). Spray before infestation, or at first early signs of mildew.

This has worked nicely for my phlox mildew in Central Massachusetts (zone 6-whatever). Needs to be applied more than once usually, but does keep the mildew at bay as long as I am faithful about it!

Roxanna - That sounds like an easy and organic solution. Since I just bought two new 'Nora Leigh' Phlox, I'm definitely going to try that. Thanks!

Diluted milk also works pretty good on peonies so long as you catch them when they are emerging and apply pretty regularly!

I've enjoyed reading through this thread and everyone's garden dreams and reminiscing, especially during a cold dreary period! We had to replace our covered front porch late last year which was sinking and decided to go with poured concrete with a walled foundation well below the frost line. I dug up all my plants and put them in cardboard boxes along my house foundation and covered with leaves, twigs, etc. Now where my flower beds used to be along the front porch and sidewalk is a bunch of terrible clay subsoil. Sigh.

We're bringing in soil to plant grass seed and fix some grading issues. I've decided to try to plant out a prairie style planting here, plants that may be more adaptable to the tough conditions. I'm wintersowing some and also ordered some flats from Possibility Place. I have a lot of work to do come spring!

Greenhearted - you do have a lot of work ahead of you, So you don't have a covered porch now, you have a concrete patio in it's place?

I hope this thread will keep going through the growing season to see how everyone is doing with their plans.

@greenhearted Z5a IL: I concur with prairiemoon, that does sound a lot of work. Will it be a challenge to integrate your dug up existing plants with the new ones you bought for your prairie style bed?

@prairiemoon2 z6b MA: love your idea of everyone posting their progress! I’ll have to remember to take « before » pictures... I always forget!

@prairiemoon2 z6b MA - we still have a covered porch; it's raised concrete now. We previously had a wood porch on concrete piers/sonotubes and noticed that some of the non-load bearing posts were detached from the ceiling (!!!) We had a contractor out who told us that there were too few piers to support the weight of the house roof that extends over the porch and we could either tear down and put in a bunch more piers or do a solid concrete foundation.

I feel disheartened looking at the clay desert where my front yard used to be, but am trying to view it as an opportunity to try something new - I'm going to use Roy Diblik's "Know Maintenance" approach.

@mazerolm_3a Yes, I think I can use some of the plants in the prairie design - ''Summer Beauty' allium, 'Walkers Low' catmint, some salvias, possibly 'Golden Jubilee' agastache and 'Karl Foerster' grass. Guess it will all depend on who can survive here!

Yes, good idea to take progress pictures!

@mazerolm_3a I am going to do both this year, indoor and outdoor. @roxanna7 great tip for milk/water spray on phlox! I transplanted some last year, hope they come back twice as big this year! Looks like I should change my name to include my growing zone, what a great idea!

Has anyone received their order from The Gentleman's Backyard Gardens?

Sorry FB for not replying sooner :(.

I 'bugged' them a couple of times and did receive my delivery on May 20th. After being spoiled with getting mostly excellent mail order specimens from other companies the last few years I was taken aback by the all bare root plants I got from TGBG (my vision isn't the best but I don't think I saw nary a sign of green). I quickly potted them up and a week later I see signs of life but my concern is that these plants may not be well enough established to make it through a winter (let alone see flowers this season).

I haven't received mine yet, I just sent them an email yesterday and received an automated reply where they mentioned that one of their large shipments was badly delayed.

Delayed potted plants are one thing, though bareroots having remained dormant for something like seven months now or longer, unless these are held at ideal cold storage temperatures, they might not be in viable condition when received ... I'm not feeling too confident after what Rouge had mentioned. Whereas, I had received excellent bareroot stock from Lindenberg Seeds, big healthy divisions, the best I've yet received from them. I guess, I certainly won't have my hopes up for if and when my plants arrive and apparently I'll have to be pampering and praying for their survival, sigh!

Yes, this is exactly what they said - their shipment was delayed so much that the plants were not viable, and they needed to arrange a new shipment for those.

I think I only ordered potted plugs from them, not bare roots, so I hope they will eventually arrive and be ok.

Hi,

I received my order from TGBG on May 27th. I had ordered 65 plants, some in multiples, and everything looked great! I was expecting all bare roots so I was pleasantly surprised that most of them were potted. The bare roots ones were peonies, tall phlox, veronicas, baptisia, dicentras and cornus. The peonies roots were huge, but needed to get planted asap, as they had already began to grow. One stem was black and I had to cut it off. The tall phlox and veronicas were really dry but I could see new growth even though it was not green. I soaked them for a few hours then planted. The potted plants were agastache, bergenia, lots of echinaceas, lupines, penstemons, delphiniums, monardas, clematis, heucheras, hostas and stachy. They were all in really good shape, but yes, small pots. I actually prefer small plants because it’s a chore to dig holes in my clay soil.

I had also ordered from Canning, and they’re not kidding about sending large plants. They were very big and I was able to divide many!

I’m very sorry that some of your orders did not turn out well.

I will order from both, but never again for so many plants, I feel sore from all the planting!

The above photo is my first clematis bloom this year. It’s Giselle.

Houzz is making all my photos sideways so maybe I’ll try tomorrow. I have irises, nepeta, thalictrum and alliums blooming. Forget Me Nots are just finishing up. A few

of my clematises are just starting to bloom, My more established rose bushes and a peony have buds that look like they‘ll open any day now.

Mazerolm, you sure had gone to town with a bulk purchase of perennials, am glad things worked out with Gentleman's Backyard! Well, for me I'm still awaiting upon my order and yes the season is progressing onward. Shawn had said my order was to be shipped this week and of the tracking number to be passed along at that time, I still wait for such to occur. Also remain waiting upon my Phoenix Perennials order, they do tend to ship things out late, but in very good condition. But, it's a bit discouraging and now at times the weather being hot.

I received my Canning order several weeks ago and all was mostly well other than one plant badly deteriorated in which I was credited and a clematis all sooo very small for the high price paid. But, otherwise, yes, her plants are rather fine!

Cab84, your clematis is looking great and sounds like your gardens are ready to burst with color!

Thank you FrozeBudd! Houzz is so weird. I meant to post that on the May Blooms thread so I have no idea how

it ended up here. I was having a lot of trouble posting that day.

I had also ordered from Canning, and they’re not kidding about sending large plants. They were very big

I have ordered from Canning many times and I am almost always pleased with what arrives at my front door.

@FrozeBudd_z3/4: I hope you will be happy with your order!

I had also ordered from Fairyscape Daylilies for the first time this year, and was amazed at what I received. I don’t know if it’s customary for daylily sellers to send so many plants, but she sent 4-5 plants of one variety when I had only ordered one. So a great experience all around!

Still waiting for my order from TGBY here, which has about 20 items in it...

(A relative of mine is also still waiting for her plants to arrive from TGBY)

I have 18 plants on my order with the fella, he said he had acquired stock of my entire order and would be mailing it out last week, apparently he hadn't gotten around to doing so. I'm just hoping plants will be potted and larger grown on that they have a decent chance surviving the long journey and establishing.

Rouge, your plants from TGBY making any progress?

Marzerolm, sounds like you had great success all round with your orders! I had the most gawd awful crap quality from two dahlia suppliers that I only have two or three growing tubers from about 15, next year I'm going back to Ferncliff, always have received excellent viable dahlias from them!

Have dropped the fella a few more messages and not a word back, after saying the plants were to be shipped out last week, now half of this week has passed and still no idea of when they'll be sent out, SIGH!

Hope you get your plants soon and in good shape, FrozeBudd.

FB, as of late last week a relative had still not received her shipment from TGBY and he is not replying to her emails and phone messages....not good.

Anyone still waiting for their order from The Gentleman’s Backyard like me?

I'm still waiting :(

EDIT: I just got a notification that they give me a refund for one of the plants. I hope it means that they are putting my order together.

Rouge, your plants from TGBY making any progress?

Here are the three almost a month after taking delivery of them

Chrysanthemum

Anemone

Allium:

Mazerolm - as I've been following other threads on the Perennial forum, I keep seeing a link to this thread with the photo of your Iris next to it and...every time I see it I think what a handsome Iris it is! lol

@prairiemoon: lol! it’s a real eye catcher! I ordered it but will only receive it sometimes in July or August. The variety is Daring Deception.

Mazerolm - And I just noticed that you are in z3, wow! I'd think that is a very challenging winter climate to work with. Great that you can grow something so gorgeous! I don't have ideal conditions for Iris. I've grown Bearded Iris, which I love, but I found them more than I could manage because they don't do as well, if you aren't able to pull them up and divide and replant every few years. I did it once and it was a job. I had 'Beverly Sills' a pink and white frilly tall one and another one that was almost black and velvety. Oh well, you can't grow everything but I can surely enjoy yours!

My plants from the Getleman's Backyard have just arrived, and they are decently sized and looking healthy. They spent only two days in transit and were very well packed. All of them were potted.

So looks like it is "hit and miss" as all but of mine were potted and the potted one had no green showing :(.

Here they are, just the mum in the front is tiny, all the others look very good.

Awesome Magda, I'm soooo glad you have received in fine order and today I also get my notice of the plants being shipped out! I also have perennials to arrive from Phoenix Perennials, I really need all these to help fill beds I am revamping!

@Magda (Ontario, USDA4/5) it looks like you received some healthy plants. Because my three were so small, (all but one bare root) I am concerned about their ability to survive their first winter in their new home.

Here is the mum after one month in a pot:

Rouge, I think Shawn had held many orders back to enable him to bulk things up, I guess he had more than his fair share of headaches with his received deliveries. Yes, that little guy there looks like he needs all the love he can get to some beef on him!

Well, better late than never, my shipment arrived today and in rather fine shape as well, only took a week to come all across the country and right to my acreage by Purolator, I'm pleased! Suppose to be ghastly wicked HOT for the next week to ten days, so I intend to pot up the bareroots and up pot those already in containers. The bareroot phlox 'Luminary Opalescence' is huge and so is the 'Purrsian' catmint and yarrows, a few strawberry crowns are not salvageable, but most should make it ... overall I'm happy!!

And yet my sister, who placed her order way long ago still has not received it as of yesterday!

Rouge, like yourself, I was a bit of a squeaky wheel and I guess it payed off, as is I remain pleased with the progress of plants received, though only a few strawberries survived and a veronica remains pokey, but will be fine and again, everything else is growing nicely. I hope your sister is able to receive her money back!

How's your plants Rouge?