Winners and losers; which plants performed this year?

[Yorkshire Kris]

Which plants have rocketed this year more than average and which have not done well?

Which plants will you grow more of next year and which will you never try again?

For me Pink China colocasia has been the great success, a strong grower and less likely to get Red Spider Mite. Good colour as well.
Coleus Malibu Apricot was new to me and also had fabulous colour. The T rex and ensetes did very well this year as well.

Plants I wont grow again are the bog standard Amaranthus as it was a black fly magnet and grew like a weed in the ground and in pots.

Black Magic is a no no as Diamond Head seems a better plant.


Palm-wise the B armata and edulis have grown really well but the seranoa repens failed to grow at all and died over winter....

Bamboo wise P parviflora did really well but edulis hardly did anything.

[musa_monkey]

Brugmansia went well for me this yer, i grew some hybrids from seed and one or two flowered albit only just before it went cold.
My Brugmansia Langenbuscher garten cutting also grew well and flowered in the greenhouse. I really like the bright orange flowers and the size of them is amazing.

I grew several plumeria from seed which were quite easy to grow but really need a lot of heat to maintain. Probably wont bother with them again.

[Mr List]

brugmansia migth be one i give up on.
it seems to snap alot in mild wind and i am having real problems with cats playing and scratching it (worried about the cats not the plant)

lots of sedums started off well but then died so i won't bother trying them again

.

[ash101uk]

Musa sikkimensis has grown well this year and made the garden look great. I started off a load of musa sikkimensis seed in spring. I have 13 now in the greenhouse, 3 foot high ready to plant next year.

I tried some Nannorrhops ritchiana palm seedlings in the green house. Won't be trying theese again. Did nothing all year.

[billdango]

Most of my plants did okay especially Musa Basjoo and T Fortuni.
Everything else has done well and the neriums have all flowered wonderfully.
Can,t complain this year as in spite of a wet sunless summer a good Spring and Autumn have more then made up.
And i am glad to report that most of the Citys Canary Island Date Palms have all recovered and are still growing strongly.
billdango.

[flounder]

will give up on petunias and busy lizzies but will grow more pelargoniums and begonias
bamboo wise my p. heteroclada recovered but only just
ensetes and basjoos growing well sikkimensis ok but was planted late
hibiscus rosa-sinensis has been a picture as has solanum rantonnetii

[redsquirrel]

i have an aloe polyphylla that i forgot about in my polytunnel doubled in size,was tucked in a tray of palms which regularly got filled with water

[GoggleboxUK]

Rubbish this year:

Basjoo

Awesome performance:

Maurelii
Trachycarpus Naini Tal
Chamerops Humilis var Cerifera
Zebra Grass
Brahea Armata

Plants that did well despite me being a total noob:

Colocasia (Mammoth, Pink Stem & Black Magic) thanks to great advice from Scott
Alocasia Mayan Mask thanks to great advice from Dave
Bacopa thanks to advice from Kata I got 9 months in flower!!
Aoniums thanks to advice from a few members

[stephenprudence]

Hmm difficult one really;

I'd say;

Winners:

- Yucca aloifolia
- Yucca gloriosa variegata
- Crassula sarcocaulis
- Aeonium arboreum
- Aeonium 'Schwartzkopf'
- Rhododendron simsii

Losers:

- Trachycarpus fortunei

In general I'd say this list; whilst most of the winners are plants that came back after last winter, they have been truly tested and I think they've past that test, whether they were outside or inside a cold garage. But they've come through very well and grown well.

I have other plants but they are new so as yet I dont really have an opinion of them

The one loser was the Trachycarpus which was badly effected by winter, and obviously has reacted to something else, not sure to be honest but it didn't come through well, and didn't grow well

[flounder]

Oh I forgot about 'planys', yeah bacopa was good for me too

[GoggleboxUK]

Oh I forgot about 'planys', yeah bacopa was good for me too

You yoyal yiy, I've ediyed iy now so yhere!

[flounder]

I think I'll start a thread of 'goggles'

[redsquirrel]

Steven,your post reminded me of 2 brilliant plants.nolina nelsonii and 1 small dasy quad,in my tunnel they survived -10 undamaged

[kata]

bacopa was good for me too

Goggle, they do a lilacy/blue color too as well as white. I have both under fleece in with an Acer.

My Dahlias were the bees knees on size...footballs.

I am hopeful the Agas do well next season I bought two late on.

[dk]

My Aloe polyphylla was the biggest surprise this year, they sprouted in february and measured 15-20 cm i diameter by autumn. They simply love high humidity and cool summer temperatures! If they are as hardy as they say this is a winner!

A hybrid cordyline I've sown from seed, mostly green with redish midrib more than doubled in size, in a pot. My larger cordylines did really well too.

Delosperma floribundum and cooperi grew extremely well, hopefully our wet winter won't rot them all!

Yuccas and palms did OK, nothing extraordinary, but decent growth considering the weather.

Cannas not so much, but I'll keep growing the ones with redish leaves for their foliage, and grow another more nanas instead.

Have to say I expected more from my plain green phormium tenax. Not overly impressed with the growth first season in the ground. Hopefully it pick up next season!

But despite the lackluster weather I would say I'm more than happy with the growing season!