All the above are annuals! This is why they did not return.. did you deadhead the periwinkle? Maybe this is why it did not reseed!

Thanks Jennbenn. I thought gerbers were perennials. It was advertised as such. Sigh. I knew periwinkle and the blackeyed susan vine were annuals, but I thought they easily reseeded. I didn't deadhead any of these plants. I guess I need to look around and celebrate the successes I had this last year at little more to keep me motivated.

The newer hybrid periwinkles (Catharanthus roseus) don't set seed that much or spread as easily as the old wild ones we have growing in Florida.
kevin

Thanks Kevin. I have a lot to learn, I see. :)

hi bama
we are practically neighbors. i am in the auburn area.
gerberas are definitely perennials here, returning every year for me and others i know who grow them in this area.
it could possibly be that they did not get sufficiently established before winter. did you keep them well watered near the end of last summer? sounds like the area you planted is in full sun and perhaps they could not handle that with dryness. i have them in partial sun (about 3-4 hours) and a friend grows them in morning-through-midday sun with good results.
i did buy one last year that did not even live until i got it in the ground. probably was diseased. it was a vibrant purple, perhaps a new cultivar/color and weak(?)
i would not give up on them.
i have no experience with the two other plants you mentioned.

Mulch will also inhibit seeds from growing so if the area was well mulched that may have kept your periwinkles from reseeding. You may want to scrape back the mulch if you want your plants to reseed, if indeed that was the problem. -Ais.

Aislin, thank you for the tip. Mulch may have been the problem although out of 8 gerbers planted, one returned. I'm not quite sure why that one did and not the others.

Jeff, we are most definitely neighbors. :) I'm doing graduate work at AU and make the trip over to Auburn often. The gerberas were beautiful all summer. I don't think water was the problem as a soaker hose was used in that bed and it never dried out. Who knows...maybe I'll try again. I'm currently working on a shady woodland garden. Do you know of any shade-loving perennials that you've had success with? I'm very discouraged right now because I just found out that my newly planted astilbe, lamium, and bleeding heart probably won't withstand our heat even though they were tagged for zone 8. Sigh. I'm beginning to think I'll have to look for zone 9 tags just to be sure it'll withstand our heat.

Astilbe need a lot of water in higher heat areas. You might be alright if you keep them watered well the first year. Water in the mornings, less frequently but deeply to encourage deep roots and you may not have to water them too much subsequent years. Bleeding hearts will often fade away in the summer heat but don't give them up for lost until next year as mine completely disappear but come back in the spring. I have good luck with colombine, hostas (of course), phlox divaricata, toad lilies, coral bells. Good luck! -Ais.

i agree with ais on the plants mentioned at the end of the post.
i have a container of dicentra spectabilis that has been there for a long time and they bloom regularly each spring.
a couple of years ago, we had an extended wet season into late may and june and the dicentra kept their foliage for the longest time. they will disapear until the next spring when it gets really hot and dry.
i grow quite a few hostas and most do well in my shady beds.
watch out for hosta virus-x. it is here in the local lowe's stock of hosta (or was, last time i looked).
astilbe and lamium are o.k. here with a lot of shade (and water, as previously mentioned). heucheras and columbine perform very well.
heck, i grow many "sun" plants in about a half-day of sun.
even some of my daylilies bloom just fine in similar sites.
shade is good for gardening in our area.
if you like them, hydrangeas are good plants for me, too, but they do like supplemental water.

Aislin, thank you for the warning about not to give up on the bleeding heart if it fades away in the heat. I probably would have dug out the remains, tossed it and tried something else. Now I'll know to at least wait and see. I really, really want toad lilies and coral bells. I love the look of those. I haven't seen any impressive nurseries around here though. It seems that the HQs and the Lowes stores are putting the locally owned nurseries out of business. Sigh.

Jeff, I guess I need to get really familiar quickly with the symptoms of virus-x. I read a bit online, but I still am confused as to what's normal coloring and what might indicate a problem. You defo cheered me up with the word that astilbe and lamium are doable here with shade and water. I'll try out the heucheras and columbine, too. Do you have a local source for those? Maybe the nurseries in Auburn are a bit better than PC/Columbus area. I did find a little garden store on the backroads to Auburn around the Beauregard area. Great looking plants and nice garden art, but a bit pricey.

Bama

The periwinkle is a notorious late sprouter. Mine are just now starting to pop up. (As a note, do not plant them in the same bed you put pansies in, the pansies carry some sort of fungus that gets at periwinkle). Gerber's are very picky about drainage, exposure and such, I don't mess with them despite my DW pleadings.

i may have some columbines to share with you. all of mine are from a gardening friend in auburn and they are seeding about for me, now.
the heucheras i have (only a couple) have been purchased locally at box store garden centers.
if you ever travel interstate 65 north out of montgomery, you should make it a point to stop at petals from the past nursery in jemison. they have a nice selection of plants of this type, as well as many other good finds in the perennial and shrub categories.
i am not growing astilbe but have friends who are, so they will grow here.
you can email me about the columbines if you like.

Dieter, I will continue to be on the look-out for my periwinkle. :)

Jeff, I just returned from a trip around town checking out different nurseries and I found one that I really like. It's called Columbus Flower Market and they had loads of nice looking perennials. I especially was appreciative of their shade loving perennials. I bought a couple of heucheras (amethyst mist and green spice). They had another that I loved the look of...had a peach colored folage to it, but I moved on to other plants. ;) I bought a couple of strawberry begonias that she assured me grew in her own yard and returned. I was not so sure about that, but thought I'd give it a try. I bought an evergreen shrub I've been hunting...fragrant sarcococca (sweet box). And I bought a holly fern. Now I may have to return for one of her beautiful painted japanese ferns and great expectation hosta, which is one of the most beautiful hostas to me. She had lots of other choices there as well, but I figured I'd gotten as much as I could handle getting in the ground for now. Especially since my Frankly Scarlett daylilies and tea olive keep looking at me with such a forlorn "don't forget about putting us in the ground soon" look. Thanks for the tip about the Jemison nursery. I rarely get north of montgomery but it might be a nice little excursion to make this summer before I go back to the classroom.

Bamateacha, unfortunately 'Great Expectations' is a weak growing hosta for many in our region, from what I understand. I have had one for years, and I swear it gets a little smaller every year. LOL. It is really cool-looking, but it just doesn't thrive.

Darn. Thanks for the tip, Dave. I guess I'll pass on it.

Hey Bama! We are neighbors. I sent you an email

Yes, we are, YardGal! I responded. ;)