I've had the Daphne for three years. Last year, what I thought were buds at
the end of each "branch" never progressed beyond being green. This year,
the bush again has plenty of buds. They did start to open, but are arrested
where they show the cerise colour, but stay closed. They have been like
this for several weeks.

The Daphne is in a very old earthenware urn, 2ft high and 13-15 in diameter,
against a south-facing wall, next to the back door I have never fed it,
and try to make sure it doesn't get dry.

I should be very grateful for any advice about what to do for next year.

Best wishes

Daphnes don't like cold winds and they don't like to be water-logged.
Do make sure its pot isn't too wet because in this weather, all that
will lead to is cold and perhaps, frosted roots, especially in a pot
and perhaps, particularly, an old pot. We have a couple of old pots in
which we plant nothing permanent, so that we can move them into winter
shelter if we need to but change their inhabitants without risk to the
pot. I imagine it's possible that cold snaps in winter have arrested
the opening of the buds, too? I wonder if it's situation is TOO sunny,
perhaps? They're quite shade-tolerant so is it getting too much of
what we laughingly call 'sun' in UK!? When it's in the growing season,
you could try giving it a feed because compost lasts only so long in
terms of nourishment.
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon

Mine is just the same - the flowers won't open because it's too xxxxxxx cold. Just like all the daffodils.

echinosum wrote:
Daphne Dean Wrote:
I've had the Daphne for three years. Last year, what I thought were
buds at
the end of each "branch" never progressed beyond being green. This
year,
the bush again has plenty of buds. They did start to open, but are
arrested
where they show the cerise colour, but stay closed. They have been
like
this for several weeks.

Mine is just the same - the flowers won't open because it's too xxxxxxx
cold. Just like all the daffodils.

I agree that may well be the case for this year but it certainly
couldn't be for last year! When Cheltenham was run, it was 17C in
2005!
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon

"Sacha" wrote in message
oups.com...
Daphnes don't like cold winds and they don't like to be water-logged.
Do make sure its pot isn't too wet because in this weather, all that
will lead to is cold and perhaps, frosted roots, especially in a pot
and perhaps, particularly, an old pot. We have a couple of old pots in
which we plant nothing permanent, so that we can move them into winter
shelter if we need to but change their inhabitants without risk to the
pot. I imagine it's possible that cold snaps in winter have arrested
the opening of the buds, too? I wonder if it's situation is TOO sunny,
perhaps? They're quite shade-tolerant so is it getting too much of
what we laughingly call 'sun' in UK!? When it's in the growing season,
you could try giving it a feed because compost lasts only so long in
terms of nourishment.
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon


Thanks very much, Sacha. I think you're right about the cold and wind, also
about the roots being frozen. I will plant it out in the garden. If
possible, could you advise me the best month to do this, please?

Best wishes
Daphne

What happened last year was that the flower bud was showing pink in Feb, but stayed shut for about 3 weeks until we had a few warm days strung together in mid-March. This year the Odora buds have again been visible since mid Feb, in fact I saw the first one in Jan, but have stayed tight closed for much longer. I'm sure the flowers will open when we finally get a few warm days strung together (the forecast is looking good), provided we don't get such a sharp frost it burns them off before.

I have my D Odora under the overhang of a tree (it's high enough to walk under). I think the best way (short of human intervention) to keep the frost off something is to have an overhang, if it doesn't mind the consequences, namely being rather dry. I don't water it very much, only in very dry spells. They are naturally woodland understorey plants, albeit from the highlands of Taiwan where rainfall is high. We have the somewhat similar D. Laureola growing naturally in the woods around here, and they are in locations which are well shaded and often bone dry for extended periods. (The same trick seems to be keeping my Lomatia Ferruginea alive and well, though I have to water it a lot - again it is a woodland plant; the one we put in Somerset in a sunny location died.) My D Odora only gets direct sunshine in late afternoon, and not at all in winter. On the other hand I have seen a long-established one being grown in an exposed rockery with all-day sun on the Somerset levels. Generally it is milder and damper on the Somerset levels than here in the Chilterns, and they have fewer frosts, though the frost they do have can be more deadly in their moist conditions.

Three years ago, I saw a mature D Odora in full flower in late Feb not far from me, but we had a nice Feb that year. It was in the corner of two fences, so well protected: I don't recall the aspect, but it was clearly getting a certain amount of shade.