Penstemon Wisley Flame

Wow Amy! Your Penstemons are all beautiful! As usual, mine have been rubbish. I treat myself to some new ones a couple of weeks ago, and they are fab. I do have a few that do well, but its very hit and miss. My ‘Electric Blue’ didn’t make it through the winter. But I have a little red one that I grew from seed and it does really well every year! I’ve got some very young ‘Catherine De La Mare’ plants, so hopefully they will flower some time soon! I love them, but find them tricky to grow up here.

Our Penstemons have saved us this year Karen we always take dozens of cuttings each year and what with not being able to go to garden centres they have given us so much colour filling the garden plus we've been doing swaps with neighbours they've been asking us for plants in exchange for Strawberries ,eggs ,fresh crabs even fish & chips old fashioned bartering . OH is taking cuttings now for next year .. an alternative to taking cuttings Karen try layering one you like , I have done it in the past choose a nice long stem and peg it down at a joint you might have a new plant ready to dig up and move next spring ....

Thanks Amy. I think the cuttings would be the best idea...overwintered in the greenhouse. They really do make such a fantastic late summer and autumn display. I think realistically...for here its going to be a question of treating them as annuals. Although some do make it. The ones that do make it sometimes get absolutely massive!

A new one to me Amy.....my OH has taken loads of cuttings this year....