Galloping Horse Garden
  • Blog
  • About
  • Let's Talk about the Weather
  • Tour the Garden
    • March
    • June
    • October
  • Guest Gardens
    • Judy's Garden (White Plains, New York)
    • Elaine's Garden (Columbia County, New York)
    • Mark and Cheryl's daylilies (Cary, North Carolina)
  • Email the author

A North Carolina Garden Blog

My Extra-Late Blooming Kniphofia Rooperi, Part 3

12/6/2013

33 Comments

 
Pride goeth before a fall.
Picture
January 2013: my miraculous torch lilies. If the pictures are good, Ron took them.

Last January, I got a bit carried away with my extra-late blooming Kniphofia rooperi (aka torch lilies or red hot pokers). These little devils are supposed to bloom in September, but for as long as I've had them they have insisted on trying to bloom in December and January instead. Most years that spelled disaster, as the buds were inevitably decimated by a frost. More than once I was on the verge of digging them up. Then, for the last two years, something remarkable happened: the weather held up, and they bloomed. 
Picture
If it's November, it must be time for torch lily buds.

If you have never seen Kniphofia rooperi blooming in the dead of winter, you don't know what you're missing. Although it's dramatic enough no matter when it blooms, when it's the only act in town it is stupendous. But was I satisfied? Could I just accept the blooms as a freak gift from the weather gods and leave it at that? Of course not. I wanted more.
Picture
The Kniphofia's backdrop was sub-par and in need of an upgrade.

What did I want? I wanted everyone in the neighborhood to know I had torch lilies blooming in January. I wanted everyone driving by to slam on the brakes and say, "What's that?" and "I must meet the gardener and get her autograph." Alas, my miraculous, mutant torch lilies were in my side garden, which is not visible from the street. So I hatched a scheme. The torch lilies would move up front. Never mind that they were safe and sheltered by the side of the house and would be unprotected and exposed to the elements up front; I had other fish to fry. Up front, in the company of my pyracantha and coral bark willow, they would be the eighth wonder of the world. Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up.

Picture
The Fall of Icarus, by Peter Paul Rubens. 1636.

Mid-November: so far, so good. My front-yard Kniphofia has tons of buds and, with a little help from contractor garbage bags and some spare bed sheets, has even survived two nights of temperatures in the 20s. Victory is mine. Fame and fortune are nigh.

Monday, November 25: the forecast calls for nighttime temperatures in the teens. I throw my homemade frost protectors over the plants and cross my fingers. 
Picture
After the frost.
Tuesday, November 26:  I learn many important life lessons. Leave well enough alone. Don't be greedy. Appreciate what you've got for as long as you've got it. Don't use garbage bags for frost cloth and expect it to work. And for heaven's sake, don't touch the extra-late blooming Kniphofia rooperi. They know what they're doing.
33 Comments
Casa Mariposa link
12/6/2013 11:33:53 am

Without that sheltered brick wall to keep them warm, they froze. :( But I'd keep them away from sharp objects the next time you walk by. Just dig them up in the spring and move them back. It's fixable. :)

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/7/2013 01:53:49 am

Yeah, really a stupid move on my part, but I couldn't resist trying. Maybe I should turn my side garden into a winter-interest garden, so there'll be something to keep the torch lilies company each year.

Reply
Alain link
12/6/2013 12:52:16 pm

Sorry it did not make it. It was worth a try because had you had a mild winter it obviously would have worked. Perhaps you can have some in both places. It is supposed to get to 17F in Victoria tonight. I expect gardeners will lose many tender plants.

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/7/2013 01:56:22 am

You're right - I was counting on mild weather, or at least, mild weather until they bloom. But in North Carolina, it's always a wild ride. It was 74 yesterday, and it will be 30 and icy tomorrow. The roulette wheel didn't work out for me this year.

Reply
sweetbay link
12/6/2013 01:08:59 pm

Wow so many moral lessons! Sweet. But sad at the same time.

Nothing will hold up to temps that low. One spring I tried to save the wisteria and baptisia when temps were forecast to fall to 20. Total fail. :(

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/7/2013 01:59:04 am

And let's not forget the famous April frost a few years ago that killed off the peach buds. But are you also saying that even if I had wrapped up my torch lilies in a down coat, they would have frozen? I am new to the entire concept of frost protection. Usually I just let nature take its course.

Reply
sweetbay link
12/14/2013 02:28:03 pm

I think once temps get down to the mid 20s it's pretty much futile to try to protect plants. Certainly down to 20 anyway, when the baptisia flowers bit it. After that incident I too let nature take its course. One year all of the bearded iris in this area got zapped by a freeze, which was quite sad. But in spring there is so much going on that much it much easier to shrug and say well, they'll be back next year!

I didn't even know torch lilies would bloom this late. I hope you get flowers next year.

Reply
Anne Himmelfarb
12/7/2013 03:39:43 am

Sarah, how sad. But you did leave some in the side garden for next year, I hope?

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/7/2013 05:55:31 am

I wish I could say yes I did, but no I didn't. How is that for arrogance? I am going to have to take Tammy's advice above and move them back this spring.

Reply
Jane Scorer link
12/7/2013 03:46:32 am

Oh dear! That's what happens when you meddle with Mother Nature - she doesn't like it one little bit !
They did look gorgeous when they were blooming though!

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/7/2013 05:58:18 am

There was a television commercial they used to show here in the U.S. back in the 70s or 80s. It was for Parkay Margarine and the punchline was, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature." I think of that a lot.

Reply
Laurrie link
12/7/2013 05:36:25 am

You only moved a few to the front and left a bunch at the side, right? You still have a few of those glorious unfrosted torch lilies in their original protected spot, even though the ones you moved are kaput? Tell me yes . . .

What stunning plants they are,whether blooming as they should or oddly in January. I can see why you wanted everyone to notice them!

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/7/2013 06:06:00 am

Laurrie, I thought of you while I was writing this post AND while I was dividing and moving my torch lilies, since you had so wisely suggested that I keep a bunch where they were so I could compare performance. I thought it was great advice and I had every intention of following it, until I decided that I had bigger and better plans for the brick wall by the side of the house. So, no, I left none behind. But wait - there's more! My substitute for the torch lilies was supposed to be Karl Foerster feather reed grass. Those all turned out to be mis-labeled fountain grasses, if you remember. The garden gods are laughing at me. I guess I had it coming.

Reply
Jason link
12/7/2013 06:51:35 am

I'm sorry that happened, but try not to let it get you down too much. I think one of the big Life Lessons I have learned is: don't worry too much about past mistakes, just start planning for the next ones. Actually, if you're doing anything meaningful mistakes cannot be avoided. Even the things that seem to be done right may turn out to be mistakes given a little time. Am I cheering you up yet? Also, I have to confess that Kniphofia don't really appeal to me. Maybe it's that common name Red Hot Poker which I find disconcerting. Start thinking about some other fabulous plant, a hardy one, that will bloom in front of your house late in the year and bring passing traffic to a halt.

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/7/2013 09:37:29 am

Thanks for trying to cheer me up. I remember your saying before that you were not a fan of Kniphofia. It's funny - I just can't seem to let go of this plant, even though I know it's just not practical in my garden and is taking up valuable space. But neither can I think of anything else that might bloom at the same time of year that would have an equally traffic-stopping effect. Can you? Maybe I will just have to accept not stopping traffic with my garden. What a horrifying thought.

Reply
Jason link
12/8/2013 11:55:26 am

Well ... how about a big swath of pink Japanese Anemone? Or Hummingbird Mint? Or Hardy Sugar Cane? I read that Molly is a red butterfly bush that blooms really late.

Kathryn link
12/8/2013 01:37:56 am

This is such a well thought out, suspenseful post! I really enjoy your writing.

Is it possible that the garbage bags trapped too much heat under them? I'm not sure when you removed them - I've read they should be removed at daybreak or shortly thereafter. I've only used sheets, myself.

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/8/2013 02:58:50 am

Thanks very much, Kathryn. I did indeed remove the garbage bags at daybreak. It hadn't even occurred to me that they could trap too much heat. I just assumed they didn't do the job and the buds froze because it was just too cold. Have the sheets always worked for you?

Reply
Jennifer link
12/10/2013 10:46:30 pm

We gardeners always think we know best when it comes to our gardens, but nature has a way of humbling us and reminding us who really knows best. I have never grown Kniphofia rooperi because they are a bit tricky this far north, but I have seen them in a couple of Ontario gardens blooming as early as mid-August. I wonder if there is some gardening trick involved in getting them to bloom earlier?

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/11/2013 12:57:01 am

I have wondered about that too. I thought about cutting off all the buds when they show up - basically not letting it bloom when it wants to - and then seeing if it bloomed at the proper time next year. But I don't know if that's any different from having the frost kill the buds, which happens most years and which doesn't prevent them from trying to bloom at the wrong time again next year.

Reply
Patrick link
12/13/2013 09:44:18 am

Strike it up to lesson learned -- not to be repeated. Do create a side garden to salute those zone bending plants as evidenced here. Should be very rewarding. What else would you be growing there?

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/16/2013 12:56:22 am

Hi Patrick. I have thought about idea too. It's tempting to think about putting all sorts of borderline hardy plants on the side garden, just as an experiment to see what will work and what won't. Between the full, blazing sun, the protective side wall of the house, and the concrete paver pathway that edges the bed, this is one hot spot!

Reply
PlantPostings link
12/14/2013 05:13:03 am

A great post for Garden Lessons Learned (http://bit.ly/1k1p4kf)! Do link in! I'm amazed that you could have blooms in November or December in any year! I remember seeing these at botanical gardens and being envious--definitely not something I can grow in my cold climate!

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/14/2013 08:28:04 am

Thanks, Beth. I will certainly link in - I love your Lessons Learned posts, but thought the time had passed. No, these are not cold climate plants. I always associate these with English royal gardens, for some reason. I think they were shown in the movie "The Queen," or something along those lines.

Reply
Indie link
12/20/2013 05:44:05 pm

Oh, no! Your poor plants! Though I did have to laugh at your post. It did seem like a great idea - if I had plants blooming like that in January, I'd want everyone to know, too!

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/21/2013 02:28:50 am

I'm glad you see it my way! I confess I was a little embarrassed at being so shamelessly self-promoting, but I just couldn't help myself. And now I've had my comeuppance.

Reply
Mark link
12/24/2013 09:11:22 am

I've had my pokers 20 yrs plus, live in neew orleans. Local nurseries told me i'm crazy when i told them miine bloom around christmas every year! Great to finally read about someone else with the same ""problem"

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
12/24/2013 10:56:26 am

First, thank you so much for visiting and commenting. Second, I can't tell you how thrilled I was to hear that you, too, have Christmas- blooming torch lilies! I am not alone! Maybe they aren't mutant after all! But in New Orleans, they probably don't get decimated by frost, right? Here in the Raleigh area, they rarely make it past Thanksgiving.

Reply
sweetbay link
12/25/2013 06:36:15 am

You asked about the flowering apricot -- I don't remember exactly how old the tree was when it started blooming, but I know that it grew fast and was blooming by year 3. My tree hasn't bore any fruit, unfortunately. It probably needs another one for cross pollination.

Reply
Holleygarden link
1/8/2014 07:56:59 am

Oh, Sarah! I hope you didn't transplant all of them, and left a few to bloom on the side of the house. I would have done the same thing, though - all the while thinking I would have my photo in some gardening magazine. Sorry your scheme - I mean plan - didn't work out as well as you had hoped. This is a very strange year for weather. (Yes, I know every year is a strange year for weather.) Perhaps next year they will have acclimated themselves and will bloom happily and cheerfully in the front. You know, after seeing you post photos of these before, I planted some in my garden. But mine never even came up, much less bloomed! At least you've got that going for you!

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
1/9/2014 12:40:58 am

I'm surprised yours didn't come up. Would you like mine? I am thoroughly fed up with them! And no, I didn't leave some by the side of the house. I suppose I can move them back there, but I am not sure it's worth it since there's nothing else going on there. Decisions, decisions.

Reply
debsgarden link
1/8/2014 08:51:43 am

Isn't gardening so often trial and error? Your torch lilies were gorgeous, and now you know to plant them in a protected area. We have had several very mild winters that lulled me into complacency, and I have planted some marginally hardy plants. It's been too cold to get out to check them, so I am holding my breath. I am glad my winter daphne is in a pot, so I was able to bring it with its winter buds inside.

Reply
Galloping Horse Garden link
1/9/2014 12:44:16 am

Indeed. I have to keep reminding myself not to get too invested in anything, but it's very hard to maintain such a philosophical attitude.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Author

    The Galloping Horse Gardener is a native New Yorker who packed it in in 2005 to live under the radar in Cary, North Carolina. In 2014, she removed to a new secure location somewhere in Raleigh.

    Archives

    September 2019
    August 2018
    May 2018
    July 2017
    June 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012

    Categories

    All
    Abutilon
    Bog Gardening
    Bulbs
    Events
    General Gardening
    General Gardening
    Hibiscus
    Hummingbirds
    Moving
    Nurseries
    Perennials
    Plant Pests
    Shrubs
    Vines
    Weather
    Weeds
    Wildlife

    Follow the Blog

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Problems signing up?  Send me an email and let me know. 

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Blog
  • About
  • Let's Talk about the Weather
  • Tour the Garden
    • March
    • June
    • October
  • Guest Gardens
    • Judy's Garden (White Plains, New York)
    • Elaine's Garden (Columbia County, New York)
    • Mark and Cheryl's daylilies (Cary, North Carolina)
  • Email the author