Our wet summer 2008. Plants that did well, plants which did badly

[ideasguy]

Jean has posted a comment in another topic which I'm sure you will agree deserves this dedicated topic.

An extract from Jeans posting:

This year in Mid Wales we have had a VERY wet summer, I know all over UK it has been wet but trust me here when we say VERY wet we mean it. The strangest plants have done well in the late sunshine of Septmember : Penstemons have bloomed all summer but the most amazing success has been the large oak tree which produced so many acorns the grass is covered with them. Is this to do with the extra rain?

The original posting is still in place to allow members to comment about acorns. This new topic is to widen the scope.
Since it is possible that we might have to adapt to wetter summers, it might be a good idea to gather feedback from our members on what plants did well this very wet summer.

My observations are exactly the same as Jeans with Penstemons. They did very well indeed, and are still going!

I can add Dahlias to the list. They are blooming very well at present in my garden.
My display of Begonia semperflorens were surprisingly brilliant. Lots of colour all summer, and still going!

Ive tried a number of times to grow Doronicum. Always a disaster.
This year, I bought a new plant - Doronicum orientale 'Leonardo'
It was (as I thought) past its (spring) flowering time. To my surprise, it grew a heap of foliage, and burst into bloom. Not only that, I had sporadic flowers all summer!

Another new plant this year was planted in the same bed - Artemisia 'Powis Castle'                 
Now, Ive seen these at The Eden Project, and they were really sad looking (that was a hot spell in Cornwall)
With the rain, I thought they might suffer.
Not so. It grew like crazy! So much so, it outgrew its allocated space and encroached on its neighbours. I'll move it to give it more room for next year.

Another surprise: Anaphalis triplinervis   
I split this plant and have it in three locations. Normally this plant was quite prostrate 6- 12 ins or so in height. This year they made 2 to 3 ft. Masses of flowers, and a really fine plant

Equally important - lets discuss plants which did badly in the adverse conditions.

After we've got enough plants listed, I'll pull it all together as a WPG project.
 
Over to you Jean, and all our members.

[NightHawk]

I agree with how well Penstemons did in my garden this year, they have turned into monstrous plants! 2 that get full sun have flowered and flowered, the 2 that gets slightly less sun are more green leaf than flower.

Apart from slug damage my dahlias did ok.

Verbena Bonsariensis, first time I have grown this plant, still look out of this world.

Annual Rudbeckia Cherokee Sunset despite the rain and wind have looked great for weeks now.

I don't think my roses have done as well as other years but still ok

Fair to say most of the annuals I planted except Nigella did very well, I would have liked more flowers on the Nigella and the ones I did have didn't last very long.

I planted Crocosmia George Davidson and never came up from the little corms I planted. They were in a mostly full sun position.

Bog standard Montbretia (crocosmia) did as well as every other year.

None of the perennial poppies I planted as small plants flowered, maybe this is normal and I will get flowers next year.

I sowed a whole packet of Ladybird poppies and got one flower!!

My Stachys Byzantina put on a lot of leaf growth but I never got any othe white flower spikes.

All in all I was disappointed in my Hermerocallis. Yes I got a few flowers but I expected it to flower a lot longer and more flowers to appear. 

Although it took awhile to start flowering I was impressed with the Salvia Patens I sowed early in year. I hope I can get them to survive the winter. Lovely plants.

Codea Scandens Cup and saucer vine...did not start to flower until into September, now they have lots of flowers I am expecting a cold cold night to kill it off. I will not grow this again..ever It sent out tendrils to what seemed like Norway and just kept growing, its a darn monster!! 

Anthemis EC Buxton was a real star, it flowered and flowered on and on. Well worth a spot in a sunny border.

I lost all but one of my lavender plants this year, only 1 to surviive is French Lavender Alba. But even that looks tatty IMO

However I haven't got this one in the right spot, it only gets a few hours of sun a day, so LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION 

The wind took its toll on my Cosmos plants, with less wind I think I would not have needed to stake it as much as I did.
But it flowered really well.

My Rosemary plants have taken off and are starting to look like Conifers So despite liking dry conditions the rain has not been a problem for them. These are in the border not pots, the ones in pots are about a quarter of the height.

Kathy