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| IF YOU PLANT TRUMPET VINE, STAND BACK! | |
| Published: August 09, 1997 | |
Control this lovely vine by planting in a container.Q:The orange-flowering trumpet vines on fences around town seem to be more beautiful this year than ever. I dont have a lot of fence space and I wonder how practical it would be for me to grow one.A:Steve Bender in the book "Passalong Plants" puts it humorously, "...if humanity is stupid enough to annihilate itself with the hydrogen bomb, the only living things left on the planet will be cockroaches playing beneath a trumpet vine." The fact that trumpet vine (Campsis radicans) is so very tough and durable presents some problems in the home garden.The vines are fast-growing and invasive. The new shoots travel some 30 feet above ground, and suckers spread underground. The vines are destructive to buildings and anything else that gets in their way. On the other hand, the beautiful two-inch orange or red blooms which open in summer are loved by people and humming birds. Two gorgeous selections are Madame Galen, with very large scarlet flowers, and Flava, with yellow blooms. So whats the solution to this dilemma? Dr. Ellis Fletcher says, "Simple. Just grow the vine outdoors in a large container placed in full sun and near some kind of support." The container will provide control over trumpet vines frenetic wandering. Its not hard to root-prune the one or two roots that will grow through the drainage holes. The overall size will be reduced, taking less space on the fence or other support. Replanting gladsQ:We are reworking our gladioli beds and have dug the bulbs. Should we replant them now or wait until next spring.A:Store the bulbs (corms) in a dry place until early next spring. You can start as early as January to plant them, staggering plantings over several weeks. The best flowers are those that bloom before the heat of summer becomes too intense.The bed should be raised, with excellent drainage, and should receive at least four hours of sun a day. Add peat moss or leaf mold when you rework it. Plant the corms 4-6 inches apart--the large corms 3-4 inches deep, the smaller ones 2-3 inches deep, and the cormels 1-2 inches deep. Glad corms last only one season, but as the old corm dies a new one forms directly above it. At the same time small cormels grow around the corm. Left in the ground over winter, the old corms disintegrates and the following years bloom comes from the new corms. Cormels which are left in the ground for two seasons become flowering corms. Digging and replanting the cormss every other year is helpful as the new corms are close to the surface and need to be lowered to provide proper anchorage. Some gardeners replant the cormels in a separate bed where they can remain undisturbed for two years. |