Coleus and Amaryllis

It’s time for me to think about fall cleanup.  I work so slowly these days that if I start now I may finish in time to spread mulch in late winter. 

 

The coleus filled some spots in the garden this year as usual.  I like to take cuttings to root for next year in late August.  I definitely get cuttings and bring in any plants that spent the summer outside as the nights get cool and before the heat is turned on in the house. 

 

Last week I brought the amaryllis in from their summer home on the deck.  I’ll stop watering and trim off the dead and dying leaves.  The bulbs will rest until Thanksgiving when I will add a little potting soil and begin to water.  And, hope for a spectacular February bloom.

 

I’ll work outside today and pull some annuals that are past their prime.  So it goes – as another summer winds down.

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BETHLEHEM GARDEN CLUB MEETING - Visitors Welcome

Sixth generation herbalist Susanna Reppert-Brill discusses tea blending, tea
parties, and growing your own herbs for tea at on September 20th at the
monthly meeting of the Bethlehem Garden Club.  1:00 p.m. at Advent
Moravian Church, 3730 Jacksonville Road, Bethlehem, 18017.


 

Coleus

The Coleus again are proving their worth.
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Unfortunately, I didn’t keep track of the varieties I have. You can see lots of varieties in the Rosy Dawn Gardens online catalogue. (Coleus blog from March 2008)
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I do know the name of the one below which I bought from Rosy Dawn. It is Mariposa. Large leaved and beautifully colored, it is one of my favorites.
With the deep pink Crepe Myrtle, this one looks almost black.
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In a pot they also stand out.

If I learned anything from my coleus it is this: always label plants when propagating. I’m sorry now that I don’t remember the variety names.

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Coleus Finder searchable database.

September 10, 2008 blog "Confessions of a Coleac".

Progress in the Garden

It’s been a perfect week in the garden – 60 or 70 degrees and lots of sunshine. Area gardeners are digging with joy.

The bamboo bean tepee is waiting for the pole beans planted last weekend, radishes are in the two leaf stage, cucumbers, flower boxes, canna are planted.

Zinnia seeds are in the ground. The roses have been fed. Lettuce is peeping out of the soil in the flower box.

The Euonymus, Pieris japonica, PJM, and lilacs need to be trimmed. Daylily and Brunnera need to be moved. The ivy covered bank needs to be cut back. There are weeds to pull and hoeing to be done.

But, 47 coleus plants (top picture), tomatoes, a bunch of impatiens, dusty miller, marigolds and other annuals (below) are ready for planting.

I plan a big planting day tomorrow. Everything else will have to wait. I'm almost giddy with anticipation.

Propagating Coleus

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An instructor once told me, “Any plant with a square stem is easy to propagate.” It must be true because I’ve raised coleus cuttings every year using a somewhat haphazard method.

There are many ways to do it – in perlite, in vermiculite, in sand, using plastic bags to retain moisture, etc. If you google “propagate coleus” you will get a pile of articles. Here’s what works for me.


I cut a 4 to 6 inch growing tip from the coleus I want to grow. I pinch off the bottom leaves so there are no leaves in the water.

I put 3 or 4 cuttings in small vase (or dollar store coke glass) and let stand until I see good roots and have time to transfer to pots. I change the water (sometimes).

When the cuttings have rooted I set out 3 or 4 inch pots. I use an old pizza pan as a tray. I usually clean the pots in a mild Clorox/water solution after use. I didn’t this year so I’ll see if it has any effect. I’ve used pots without cleaning before. It didn’t seem to make any difference.

I mix approximately 3 parts potting soil, 1 part perlite, 1 part peat moss.

I gently pour soil around roots and stem until pot is about ¼ to ½ inch from top. Don’t tamp soil around cutting. Pressing on the soil may damage fragile roots.

Water gently and generously to settle potting soil around cutting. Water until it runs out of bottom of pot.

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Top off with fish emulsion solution. Let stand in water overnight to be sure roots are completely wet.

I move them to the windowsill over the kitchen sink so I can keep an eye on them and make sure they stay moist. I’ve had some trouble with damping off occasionally. I try not to crowd the cuttings to ensure adequate air circulation.

In about 2 weeks, I move them under lights and pinch growing tips for bushier plants. (I used to fill windowsills before I had grow lights.) Remember to check every day or two. Water lightly when top is dry. Water from below when pots feel light in weight. Feed once or twice a month with fish emulsion and wait for spring.

I think the most important part of this is to pay attention to the plants. If all goes well, I’ll take cuttings from the new plants in early spring and have enough to fill my pots and garden next summer.

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Coleus Combinations

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I’ve raved about coleus before. The brilliant colors, variety of sizes, ease of growing and propagation make them one of my favorite annuals. I’ve mentioned coleus at least a dozen times in the last 5 years. Type coleus in the search box at the top of the page if you want more.

Well, here I go again.

I like to combine coleus of similar hues or combine them with similar colored impatiens to make a color splash. Sometimes an opposite color will give it some pop. I sometimes plant 3 or 5 of the same variety in the ground to create a bush-like display.

This year’s display in pots -

and in the ground.

The possibilities are endless. It’s fun to experiment with combinations each year.


Distinguishing variety names of coleus is difficult. Sometimes the same variety has different name at another grower. Even though most varieties do best with some shade, the varieties will look different depending on the amount of sun they get. For help sorting through the varieties see “Coleus Finder” and Rosy Dawn Gardens.

There are a few ways to propagate coleus. Next time I’ll share my method.

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Pinkfusion

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Somehow this year my garden got the pinks. As I worked in the garden this week, I noticed there is a heck of a lot of pink out there.

The coleus cuttings turned out to be many shades of pink and pink accents. A neighbor gave me a left-over flat of pink impatiens so I paired them with the pink coleus.

In pots

and in the ground.

Other annuals - pink cosmos and cleome .

Even the pot of zinnias Giant Flowered Mix and California Giant is predominately pink.

The perennials I’ve planted over the years are many shades of pink. A lot of them were gifts from friendly gardeners.

Saucer sized hardy hibiscus (from a neighbor)

Cone flowers (from a neighborhood school plant sale)

Garden phlox (from a friend)

Mum Clara Curtis (actually bought this one myself).

Crepe Myrtle (from another neighbor).

Pink everywhere. A happy accident.

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June Garden Progress

The garden is starting to look good. I have finally spread about half of the mulch that we got at the end of April. A lot of snapdragons and other re-seeding annuals have been pulled or transplanted. The snaps that survived the winter are in full bloom.

Evening Primrose (Oenothera speciosa ‘Siskiyou’) , in all its glory, blooms and oversteps its bounds as usual.

All the pots are planted. I used mostly coleus and fuchsia cuttings from last year’s plants and canna tubers that didn’t fit in the garden.

All seeds are up. Lettuce in the fish box has been cut a couple of times.

Beans are growing.

The tomato is growing but doesn’t have any flowers. It’s a little behind the rest of the neighborhood. The tomato is called ‘Dan’s Favorite’. It thought it sounded interesting. It was labeled “mid-season slicing tomato”. I really don’t know what that means. I’ll have to wait for a taste test to see if ‘Dan’s Favorite’ is also mine.

The first Heavenly Angels Poppy opened. There are many walnut sized buds promising a colorful show.

So far it’s been a busy week. The forecast predicts rain today. I am looking forward to it. So is the garden.

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Houseplants

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Bringing in the houseplants in fall

All the houseplants that spent the summer outside are now safely tucked away in the house. When the temperature outside goes below 60 degrees at night, I know it’s time to bring in the houseplants.

The coleus cuttings will be houseplants until May. I start them in water. I know they can also be started directly in soil but water works for me. After they grow roots, I’ll pot them up. They will spend the winter under lights. I’ll do another batch of cuttings from them in late winter.

The Christmas cactus needed to be trimmed. After a light haircut, I rinsed the leaves with a sprayer on the hose. I sprayed with my homemade baking soda/dish soap/water solution (1 gallon water, 2 tablespoons baking soda and a little dish soap). I put them in a little used, cool room that gets no artificial light. I’ll wait for blooms to start in November.

The amaryllis is taking its yearly nap. They rest under the table in the same cool room as the Christmas cactus. I brought them in about the middle of August and stopped watering. I’ll take off the leaves as they die back. If there are any green leaves left by the end of September, I’ll cut them off. I’ll add soil and start to water lightly after thanksgiving for March blooms.

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The tuberose was disappointing again this year – no blooms. They are still growing in a sunny window. I’ll soon let the foliage die back and give them the same treatment as the amaryllis. Next year I’ll plant them in a larger pot and hope for fragrant blooms.

It’s sad to think about the end of summer but now I have one more chore checked off my long fall list. We had a good rain yesterday so I can get back to weeding, trimming and pulling. And then there’s the new garden – more about that later.

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