Sarah Dorothy

Hi,

Can anyone tell me why I don't have any luck with delphiniums please?
My garden is clay and I'm wondering if they are rotting over the winter or whether the slugs are getting them? They also seem to get wilted leaves. Where am I going wrong?

Thanks

Sarah

paul b long

Hi Sarah

I've had a few failures with delphiniums on London clay, so am probably not the best person to advise, but here goes.... The books say that good drainage is especially important, so I've tried incorporating grit and sand plus leaf mould which seems to work.... for a while at least. They also do not like to be disturbed, so it's a good idea to mark where you've put them.

Sarah Dorothy

Thanks Paul, I'll give it a try. I think maybe they're just fussy! I always seem to want to grow things that don't like the soil I have! I had some success with them one year but they disappeared during the winter-slug food I suspect!

What do you find works well on clay? I'm looking for some new ideas for my perennial border for the summer. I seem to have a lot of mauve and yellow colour so I'm particularly looking for some oranges and reds.

Any thoughts appreciated!

Sarah

paul b long

Sarah
Reds and oranges that work for me include crocosmia, dahlias (Bishop of Llandaff is the brightest red but there are more subtle shades too), peonies, clematis ('Cardinal Rouge' is a lovely crimson), penstemon (there are some scarlet and purple ones and they flower for ages), echinacea (there's an orange one imaginatively called "Marmalade"), sedum spectabile, dark-red leaved heuchera, salvias of various kinds, and reddish and orange nasturtiums (which grow on poor soil and are edible). Also, the red-barked cornus, red-leaved Japanese Maple and the non-flowering Cotinus "Grace" (smoke bush) which you prune hard in spring to get a great display of purple leaves turning to red and orange in autumn. I thought I might have a go with Abutilon (red and yellow pendulous flowers) this year, as climate change has given us warmer weather.

Paul

mor

You can start planting your delpinium in early march. they do start to grow mainly in the spring . after that you should leave them alone. delphinium are good with summers mulchers and cool roots, good drainage, not much cutivation

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