Hepatica......I've lost three

[chasw]

Need help please,what growing medium are all you succesfull people using,I have no trouble growing nobilis etc in the open ground at home,so thought I would like to try some of the Japanese varieties,have kept them in the cold greenhouse but three out of four have died off ,would like to try again but would hate to lose even more,

Are you feeding them?

[Michael J Campbell]

If you kept them in the greenhouse over the summer they probably died from the heat,hepatica don't like heat. I keep mine in a heavily shaded north facing shade house over the summer.  Only gets sunshine for about two hours in the evening,but there is three layers of shading on it.
I only bring them into the greenhouse at the end of November for flowering and when they have finished flowering out they go again.

I use JI no 3 and add 1 part grit,one part Perlite,  and one part peat for every 10 Ltrs of compost, they like a fairly heavy compost that does not  dry out quickly. If they dry out once they are dead. I think the rule is to shade when there are leaves on the trees and full light when the trees have shed their leaves.
I divide mature plants  immediately after flowering and  pot on seedlings in late September.

Hope this helps.

Forgot to mention I use long tom plastic pots.

[fleurbleue]

Thank you Michael  I read your advice with great interest 

[chasw]

Thanks Michael will try harder,just as my old school report used to say

[Paul Cumbleton]

Hi Chas,
At Wisley we grow them in:
1 part John Innes No. 2 + 1 part leafmould + 1 part Supercoarse Perlite
(This is the same mix that John Massey uses at Ashwood Nursery with his huge hepatica collection)
To this we also add 3g per litre of Vitax Q4 fertiliser, and 3g per litre of dolomitic limestone

We do liquid feed a bit - only in Spring and Autumn - with a balanced feed. And as Michael siad - much shading in summer!

Good Luck
Paul

[chasw]

Thanks for that Paul

[Mavers]

Which John Innes No2 do you buy Paul & Michael?

If it is a nationally available brand it should be the same where ever it is purchased, however I have never been very pleased with the big brands John Innes mixes as they usually have very little loam & much too much peat.

 If it is locally sourced my No2 could  be very different from the blend you are having success with.

[gote]

I can only agree with Michael. The Japanese hepaticas grow wild in the north-east corner of Honshu and the Hepatica growers in the Kyoto area heve difficulties with summer heat.
Göte

[Michael J Campbell]

I just buy whatever is available at the time, sometimes Erin, sometimes Westland or Arthur bowers if it is available and adjust it accordingly. I know this may sound a bit ridiculous  but I don't stick rigidly to any particular formulas.  I just make up a mixture that I think will suit whatever I am potting up and when I like the feel of it and the smell of it is usually ok. Sounds a bit eccentric, but then maybe I am   

[Diane Whitehead]

I have had my single plant (at $100, I bought only one) growing for ten years
in a shady spot in the garden.  I water it during the summer and pop a cheese
dome over it in the winter so it doesn't get too much rain.

(A cheese dome is made of glass and is meant to cover a cheese board. One makes a very
neat cloche, as it is heavy enough not to be blown over by the wind, and has
a knob on the top for a handle.  I have managed to buy two, and regularly search thrift
stores for more.)

[Ulla Hansson]

I've seen them now and then at second hand stores. They usually do not cost much.

[Mavers]

Not eccentric at all Michael......I like smelling my compost too

Diane do you keep the cheese dome up off the soil a little for air circulation? I have thought about doing something similar with the  japanese hepaticas in my garden but thought I would need to let the air get to the plant.

[brianw]

In an earlier life, before all these bits and bytes, I was an analytical chemist and quite good at glass blowing etc. Cutting glass was second nature then. Recently I read about cutting the bottom off of demi-johns and making "bell-jars". I have not tried it yet but this seems quite a good way to get plant covers with the option of vetilation through the neck. You could do the same with many other "bottles" but demi-johns seem just the right size. I gave all mine away on Freegle(Freecycle) a few years ago but will try it when I get hold of some again. You can do the same with large Pet plastic bottles but they will need tying or weighing down probably.

[Mavers]

Aaah demijohns, those were the days Brian  .............gurgling, odorous, explosive concoctions, purple stained ceiling tiles.

Oh yes, I remember it well.

Got rid of them when I moved home, thought it seemed a good idea at the time 

[David Nicholson]

Aaah demijohns, those were the days Brian  .............gurgling, odorous, explosive concoctions, purple stained ceiling tiles........

........... and Elderberry wine that could strip paint!