When you wrote about the weed that looked like a giant dandelion a week or two ago, it reminded me to ask about a flower that came into my garden several years ago.
I’m sure it’s a flower, not a weed. We thought it was pretty so we left it, but we now have so many that I’m a little worried. I’ve also heard that it is it poisonous. Two people told me it is. One said it’s a buttercup, another said it’s lamb’s quarters.
I looked them up online and found that our plant doesn’t look anything like lamb’s quarters or buttercup. So I’m sending you a picture. I hope you can tell me what it is so we can avoid growing something we shouldn’t.
It is a foxglove. Digitalis purpurea is not native as some say, but has naturalized in the Pacific Northwest. As long as it is not growing in a difficult spot, in my opinion, you’re doing the right thing by letting it grow.
I wouldn’t worry too much about it being poison since most folk don’t attempt to eat it,
The theory is that pioneer families crossing the prairie wanted to bring along a small taste of home (maybe England in this case) so they brought seeds. Foxglove adapted so well to the climate that we still see them. They show up around the western part of the country — here and there.
I had them drift in years ago. I have transplanted small ones early in the season with some fairly good results. They are bi-annual, so the number of blooms seems to fluctuate from year to year with many some years and fewer blooms in other years. I have no problem with them and would just leave them be.
I remember reading somewhere that you should stop fertilizing all garden plants the first part of August. I’ve put a lot of new plants in this year — some evergreen shrubs and trees. What do you think about that?
I’ve not heard it said that you should stop all fertilizing in early August. I do withhold fertilizer by the end of August on some perennials. I don’t want them to go into fall with a lot of new growth that could be damaged in freezing weather. Most establish plants can take a little more frosty weather than new plants. You should stop fertilizing new plants so that their new, soft growth has the time it needs to ‘harden off’ so as not to be damaged by frost.
For annuals, most hanging baskets and containers you are not attempting to winter over, go ahead and fertilize into early fall until you feel they don’t look nice anymore.
In less than a week I’m going on vacation for two weeks. I just had a jolt of conscience about leaving my yard in the hot part of summer.
Plus there are some really nice hanging baskets in my backyard, which gets a lot of afternoon sun. I bought a nice drip system last spring that I meant to hook up early this summer, but got busy and forgot.
Should I try hooking up my drip water system before I go? Last year, my baskets were all fried, so I think I need to do something. Do you have some advice for me?
Yes, you need to do something. It might be worth the money to hire a person to come check on your yard several times a week. It would be cheaper than replacing all the plants that were ruined in any extreme weather.
I am of the opinion that a drip system takes some close attention plus some tinkering to make sure it’s doing what you bought it for. You’ll need to check out how the system works for each basket. I do believe in drip systems, but you need to keep an eye on basket watering since they move around in wind. They need adjusting until your are — as my daughter used to say — for ‘certain sure’ that they are working properly.
Let me suggest this: Set the baskets on the lawn or right in a flower bed out of direct sunlight and give them a good watering. Then place them in a plastic kiddy pool that has a shallow amount of water. This will keep them in better shape in case of wind or a heat spell.
Celeste Lindsay is a WSU-certified master gardener. Send questions to mslindsay8@gmail.com
