British Columbia: Monkshood - delayed development

Discussion in 'Outdoor Gardening in the Pacific Northwest' started by NorthPeace, Jun 29, 2022.

  1. NorthPeace

    NorthPeace Active Member

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    Location:
    Fort St. John, BC Canada
    I received two monkshoods as a gift several years ago, a bicolour one and a purple one. Though growing side by side on the west side of our home, they have never bloomed at the same time. In fact, the purple one blooms so late that if I don't cut the budding stalks before the frost in early to mid-September and put them in water inside, I miss seeing them bloom altogether. Oddly, I have purple monkshoods in another location, which is more shady and damp, but they bloom much earlier than this one. Last fall, we had several inches of snow, then a big melt which left my flowerbed bare, followed by severe cold. Now the bicolour is growing fine, but the purple one is more delayed than ever, as you can see in the photo - bicolour on the left, purple on the right. I am wondering if the purple one was damaged by the cold, or if there might be some other problem, and what I can do to encourage its growth. I would greatly appreciate any helpful ideas you can offer.
     

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  2. Daniel Mosquin

    Daniel Mosquin Paragon of Plants UBC Botanical Garden Forums Administrator Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    They are (generally) known as late bloomers to begin with. Maybe full sun would move the purple one to bloom a week or two earlier, but it could just be a cultivar that takes so long to develop flowers, it won't happen after a late spring start (which is kind of strange given you get so many extra hours of sun / day in Fort St. John during this time of year)
     
  3. NorthPeace

    NorthPeace Active Member

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    Location:
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    Thank you for taking time to share your thoughts. Perhaps I should move it to a south facing location.
     

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