Scrubby ol' Monarda Squaw
Graham118
Posts: 2
Hey there...my very first post, so go easy!
I planted two kinds of Monarda two years ago, one of them was Squaw. Apart from powdery mildew, they were great - tall elegant stems and lots of flowers.
That winter they died back as expected, butI noticed that small, scrubby foliage persisted. I presumed this would spring back into the same tall growth as the previous spring. It didn't. It remained fairly scrubby and didn't get much more than a foot and a half tall.
Can anyone suggest why? I had just put in an irrigation system prior the second spring - I wondered if too much water may have caused it. For the first year I had bought lots of organic compost and turned it into the soil, but not for the second year. Could it be a fertiliser thing?
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Where about's in the country are you Graham ? Did you have a period of drought ? and what sort of soil are you gardening on?
I’m in brixton, central London. Soil seems pretty loamy. It’s planted next to a west facing wall. Waddya reckon?
The RHS reckons Squaw likes soil that doesn't dry out in summer but doesn't want to be sodden either. Try giving yours a good mulch of organic material - well rotted garden compost or some multi-purpose compost - this spring. This will enrich the soil and nutrients and help retain moisture in the soil.
"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
It's a bit of a balance trick with Monadra plants as they do not like soil condition wet or dry. But as Obelixx as stated, ensure you enrich your soil with compost but I also throw some grit in the mixture to ensure a level of drainage and reduce any waterlogging