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| I've had H. orientalis for 3 years now, and am happy with them. One plant with about 3 eyes has turned into a nice little clump of 2 dozen plants. The bloom this year was even better, and the plants are over a foot tall. We were so happy that we went out and bought H. niger to plant nearby. Now the question: Should we deadhead the blossoms to prevent any more seedlings? It seems a shame since they are so long lasting.
I was tickled pink last year to find a single seedling come up. After all, there was only one flower the year before when they were planted. Now I am finding quite a few seedlings in proximity to the original clump. Is this something peculiar to orientalis, or will the entire area be overtaken with Hellebores and their mongrel offspring. I understand that some of the seedlings are less than desirable, plus I don't want just Hellebores there. I'm starting to plant Trout Lilies and other smaller plants, and the last thing I want is an agressive neighbor. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by Greenmanplants UDSA Zone 8 (My Page) on Mon, Apr 26, 04 at 5:57
| They're not agressive, but worth taking out when at the two leaf stage as they're easy to remove and you can grow them on in pots. Yes they can be muddy mongrels, but they can also display the best or better than their parents, very much depends on the mix of plants you have as parents, most growers rely on hand pollinated seed only, some have all plants of particular types together... I deadhead and remove the seed as otherwise I get thousands of seedlings. You'll get abundant seed from the couple of hand pollinated flowers to keep you busy, if you want to grow them from seed. Cheers Greenmanplants |
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- Posted by Pennsylvania_Pete 6 (My Page) on Mon, Apr 26, 04 at 14:34
| Thanks, Greenmanplants. I don't need any more potted plants, so I guess I'll just be vigilant about seedlings. I went out and pulled the seed cases out of the ones with faded flowers. Some of the bloom still has color, and the seeds are probably not viable, so they can stay for now. They are planted under some T. distichum (Cypress) amongst the knees, so I can't mow or anything except hand work the ground under there. Worse comes to worse, I guess I can move them to where they can have the place to themselves. Live and learn. |
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