I have the same problem, It gets sun from 10 - 12 and then from 3-5 and the only time it does not look wilted is right after I water. It hung on and looked sad all last year and was doing the same this year so I potted it up and set the pot in my pond. It looked good for the first 2 days and now it looks all limp again. Granted it will need time to settle in, it has only been a few days, but I am starting to think it can not tolerate the sun at all

My ligularia is Othello and is in full sun beside the pond. I placed it in a lower spot that holds extra water. When I planted it five years ago, I gave it lots of peat moss, leaf mould, and sheep manure--I replenish some of that each year) and mulch it well and it does great.

Most ligs prefer partial shade, it can depend on the variety, but I have had some do well in partial sun. As a whole, ligs are good at complaining even if they are in an appropriate spot. Mine usually starts to complain around two in the afternoon, even in partial shade.

Adequate watering is not usually enough to keep the large leaves from flagging when exposed to the full heat of the afternoon sun. Although the wilted leaves quickly recover once the sun has passed, try planting them in dappled or light shade to avoid the problem. A layer of deep organic mulch around the plant will help keep the roots cool, conserve moisture, and add nutrients to the soil.

Cheers

Yes, I moved them to the north side of the house where it gets almost no direct sunlight. Still, the heat alone seems to be enough to wilt it during the day - even though it is mulched and watered. Oh well. I'm hoping that once it is more established maybe it won't look so sad in the afternoon. Thanks for the replies, guys.

I have both the rocket and othello in a north facing bed and I indeed find that the heat will cause the rocket to wilt but it will bounce back later in the day. Othello does not seem as particular; I would expect because it has a thicker leaf.

I'm really discouraged now. I planted 2 Rocket Ligs early this spring. I live in zone 8, almost zone 9. I am new to this zone and really new to Ligularias. Help me here. Should I call my zone 8b? Anyway, my ligs look horrible in the afternoon and I have them in a partly shaded area in a hole that I thought would be boggy. In normal weather here it could be! But we are dry and it's only late spring. I think it's just too hot here, but the catalog said it would work in this zone. It will never make it to July. But I have heard you can line the planting hole with a black plastic sack with a few drainage holes in it, then line that with cardboard, and pile in compost and humus rich soil, then plant the lig in that and water like crazy in partial shade or mostly shade. Has anyone tried this? I am going to transplant my ligs and do this. Mine are blooming now, but they are small blooms. NOTHING like the pictures. Should I try to limp (no pun intended) through this year by watering twice a day every day with many kind words and soothing sounds? maybe even some soggy sponges around the thing? Or should I just go for it (what the heck!) and transplant now? Can you tell I am ready to give up?

Sorry. My previous post (I'm really discouraged)was my first post. I have no idea how I ended up in the Far North Gardening Forum. I'm sure you think I am mad for planting ligs this far south. I'll be more careful next time.

LOL Don't worry about it! I did wonder, though, when i saw your zone, but i figured there have to be people in the south planting it. You have some good ideas, like about the plastic bag and the peat moss.

Update on mine five years later. I've mulched the ones in the east bed every year and they do not too badly. The ones in the other bed really should be the ones to complain since they're planted close to a tree that should be competing for moisture. However, those rarely wilt. Not sure what's going to happen this year because they haven't even shown up yet, while the ones in the east bed are a couple of inches high already.

Violet, it's okay, welcome anyway. I have a few ligularias in deep, moist shade and they're fantastic. I think if you had somewhere really shady it would be worth transplanting them. Mine are against the northeast wall of my house, with a mountain ash tree giving shade from the east. They're right where the overflow of my rain barrel comes out too. IMO if you have to fight back a layer of moss, your ligs will do great. ;)

Hi Marcia,
I have a couple of ligularia that haven't come up yet either. But one is on the north side of the house, and everything is later there. So there's still hope.

That bed was under so much snow that it's a wonder anything's up in there. The crocuses just bloomed and the tulips are barely up. So i'll give it a while and see if they show. Not worried yet. :)

Checked again this evening and there are a few leaves poking out of the ground.

Me too Marcia,
Mind you it got up to 34 degrees Celsius yesterday! That changed things in my yard rather quickly. Back to reality today. Cool and windy again. I'm finding the soil quite dry for this time of year, probably due to so much drying wind!

Four years later! The ligs in the east bed are still doing the same thing - wilting in the heat and recovering after the sun passes. The ones i had under the tree were moved a few years ago. They are now at the back of a shady bed with lots of plants in front of them. They never skipped a beat and still don't wilt during the heat. (Heat? What's that? LOL)

LOL, mine croaked years ago! I may have given up babying it, I can't recall. One "shade" plant that has done well in partial sun (or greater) has been some of my hostas! Which I was pleased to find out.