It's the last official Spitfire check in, which makes me a little sad. This was a wonderful project that connected me with a lot of people I'd never have had occasion to speak with, literally or virtually, otherwise. It helped me as a gardener to see what sorts of failures and triumphs others had, and how this planting thing connects us all.
The plant itself was a giant "meh" for me-- I'm not sold on the concept that a nasturtium can "climb." This one needed to be trained to grow up; it really wanted to trail, and while the color was a big plus for some people, I'm not that fond of it. My search for a deep purple, black, or mahogany nasturtium continues.
These plants were rather schizophrenic-- they hated the heat, but craved the sun, wouldn't climb but too spindly to trail nicely. They grew well in my conditions from all methods--wintersown, direct, and indoor starts, and I ended up with 6 healthy plants. The foliage really finally took off in September and they doubled in size in just the last 5 weeks or so, so in the end I'm getting nice fall color out of them.
Anyway, this plant was so-so, but the project was great. Let's do it again next year! (Or what about a houseplant, started now, and nurtured through the winter....)So last time: I'm growing Spitfire Nasturtiums for the Seed Grow Project. Thanks to Renee's Garden for the seeds, and a big thank you to Mr. Brown Thumb for setting it up and getting me involved.
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Lookin' good! Mine certainly hated the heat, so I'm glad to see yours survived.
ReplyDeleteMy 5-year-old son loves your "secret path" in the photo on the left. He feels that all paths that go through plants (as opposed to neatly mown grass) are "secret" and therefore ultimately cool. =)
Yes, it has been fun seeing everyone else's Spitifres in action (or inaction, lol). Was nice to see yours in person.
ReplyDeleteBTM-- wait til he finds out that this one leads to Narnia!
ReplyDeleteI'm not convinced they are good climbers either; every vine I draped upwards got all ragged and eventually died, while the ones on the ground did just fine. Hey, if you find a deep purple one, let us know!
ReplyDeleteYours looks good! :-) Mine didn't want to climb, either... though I gave them a chance! ha. It was a fun project.
ReplyDeletePurple sounds like a great idea!
ReplyDeleteI've been fascinated with nasturtiums since long before I ever tried to grow them. I read about a nasturtium salad in one of M. F. K. Fisher's old food books when I was young and broke and could afford to read about food but not buy it, and the idea of them bored deep into me.
ReplyDeleteI constantly try to grow nasturtiums here in Tejas, and they never do as well as I'd hoped. It doesn't help that my main exposure to great nasturtiums comes from the huge, gorgeous ones that roll down the coastal hills of Southern California. Sigh . . .
They look great! I still have to do my post! I thought it ended in Sept! Mine still look good!
ReplyDeleteGlad you got something out of the project, Xan. The darkest one I've seen and grown is Empress of India, the foliage is pretty dark.
ReplyDeleteYou should try it.