Added more in 2010 and 2011 after losing most.
Note: these are ex-plants. I finally gave up and in Spring 2012 I covered their dead shriveled bodies with mulch and I'm done with them. I could get new plants to look okay as you can see below for the first year, but they won't come back each year with any vigor for me, they don't spread, and they look terrible until I put new plants in each year.
Here's the history:
Groundcover, really a midget shrub. Needs shade and very acid soil.
First planted in spring 2007 in a circle around the base of the sweetbay magnolia, expecting them to fill in as a mass of groundcover. Ha! The circle looked dumb, the sun crisped them and they almost died. Transplanted to strawberry jars in late summer finally, and kept them in the shade. Left the jars out over winter.
Struggled ‘08. The few that survive are now planted around the new Bloodgood Japanese maple. Fall ‘08.. nice complement to the deep maroon maple, & this area should be much better... composted, afternoon shade.
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| new plants in 2011. Some of the older ones are spreading a little |
2010 added a few more, doing much better and even spreading a little. I added some elemental sulphur a couple times during the year, but don't want to acidify the soil too much for the Bloodgood maple.
Fragile if its needs aren’t met, may linger as a feeble purple-brown plant that does not spread or get higher than a few inches - essentially its winter appearance.
Spreads by underground runners & by seeds, thrives in the right situation. Bury rotting wood in ground to mimic acidic forest conditions.
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| This is what it is supposed to look like ... not mine! |
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| October 7, 2011 mostly the new plants i put in. By spring 2012 they were ugly and dead looking |
Update in 2013: They came back. Apparently they like being buried in many inches of mulch.
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| 6/9/13 |
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| 6/15/13 |
Propagation:
If it ever thrives and forms runners, divide runners in Spring and replant.
