Lisianthus

Prior to January 2022, all I knew about Lisianthus was that it was wonderful in arrangements, it was a favorite of my daughter who would be coming for a visit near the time of the first blooms and that I wanted to grow it.

Many flower farmers advise not trying Lisianthus from seeds as it takes so very long and germination of seeds is sometimes tricky.

But, in the dark of January, I was up for the challenge. The long timeline didn’t bother me as I had plenty of time this winter to “baby” Lisi along.

Last September I bought Voyage Blue FI pelleted seeds from Johnny seeds.
Jan 20: Scattered seeds in shallow trays (re-used carry out containers) on a bitter cold day! It was toasty warm in the Potting Shed.

Feb 3: Seeing a bit of green!
Feb 21: Some real growth happening. I think every seed germinated!
Mar 11: Potted up to Gardener’s Supply self watering trays. These are the best!
Apr 4: Taking on some size now! Finally!
Apr 17: Time to start hardening off
May 7: Outside they went! Some to the cutting garden, some to the herb garden and a few scattered through the borders. The roots were unbelievable!

This plant is a true miracle to me in color alone — all of the white buds had me convinced the seeds had been mismarked and these were going to be white instead of purple. Truly they are white until they open to the glorious purple – with a tinge of white here and there!

WILL I DO IT AGAIN?

Yes, if I have time! However, we will most likely be doing more traveling next winter so I am looking for suppliers who have lisianthus plugs that non-professional growers can purchase. I sure don’t want to be without these beautiful bokay game changers! Burpee had them this year and I have found a few sources on Etsy that had them too. As this season ends, we will know more what will be available next year. I won’t wait long to order though! And, I’ll have some seeds just in case!

ONE MORE THING: I will stake them next time! I did get a few staked and it helped so much to keep their long stems from flopping!

Here’s a bit more about Lisi:

Eustoma, commonly known as lisianthus or prairie gentian, is a small genus of plants in the gentian family. They are native to warm regions of the southern United States, Mexico, Caribbean and northern South America.

From Better Homes and Gardens: Lisianthus, often favored by floral designers when an elegant flower is needed for an arrangement, it is the epitome of a classy, versatile flower. The ruffled petals and elegant buds come in many colors. The delicate-looking blooms are known for not only their beauty, but also their ability to hold up as a cut flower in a vase for up to two weeks or longer. (I AGREE!) Link to more info.

JAPANESE BEETLES UPDATE

Seeing fewer Japanese Beetles than last year for sure! There are enough of them to make a mess of the roses but not the “billions” I often see. Maybe the extreme weather conditions aggravated them. (Too wet followed by too dry.) I sure hope they were aggravated as they sure “aggravate” me!!!

SOMETHING NEW: BLOOM THYME MINUTE

I have reprised my YOUTUBE Channel to share short videos of my garden that I am calling Bloom Thyme Minute where I take you on a virtual walk through my garden and we stop for “just a minute” so I can tell you about what we’re seeing. I think that as of today, there are 7 videos and more will be coming.

Here is the BLOOM THYME MINUTE for Vanessa Bell…

BLOOM THYME

The garden was so refreshed by the rain we had this week and the gardener is surely enjoying the cooler temps the rain brought with it. We won’t talk about the heat that’s coming back!

Friends, I hope you are having a wonderful week in the garden. Mr. G’s tomatoes are starting to come on and we can’t wait. There is simply nothing like that first BLT when we have homegrown tomatoes! G’s favorite is Steak Sandwich. I grow them from seeds as we never see them for sale. (Link) What are your favorite home grown tomatoes?