Here are directions for pruning shrubs - you can really hack your burning bush back but best to take out oldest 1/3 of stems to the ground as in renewal or rejuvenating pruning.

http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/spring_shape_up_tidying_up_your_plants

I searched the flowering almond - it may not be a very long lived species (on e reference said 10 years)

http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/database/documents/pdf/tree_fact_sheets/prutria.pdf

Yeah, what I would do is cut it back to the size you want it, then lace it out by getting rid of dead wood etc. it will look more wispy, airy and the benefit is room for new growth .

amymeme wrote:

The coreopsis - several of them these days are touted as "perennial" but really are not reliably.  Do come back from seed.

Jenn - for the most part, plants can tolerate a lot of abuse, ie digging up and moving to a new spot.  Particularly if you do it in a rainy season.  Planting too close together is a common fault - sometimes I do it deliberately to get a full look immediately, knowing I will be transplanting in a year or two.  Sometimes, I'm just an idiot.  Or misinformed - as in the dwarf only 3ft diameter false cypress engulfing my back border

Jimmy - much to my surprise all 3 of my amaryllis bulbs gave me a stem of 4 flowers this year.  After flowering, I fertilize it every watering with half strength water soluble 20-20-20, give it lots of sun throught the summer, start withholding water in Sept, let the leaves die off and go dormant until Jan then bring it out, put it in light and water.

That's the odd thing about mine Amy, my leaves never really die off like I think they're supposed to. Some of the gigantic ones turned ugly looking so I took them off but most Amaryllis I see are in bloom, with no leaves really. Mine is in part sun too, but it seems to do well there. It stays green year round. Do you do the dormant thing because of your weather or is it really something I should be doing too?

TwisterII wrote:

I am forming a love for gardening but am really new to it. My mom and grandma always have tons of plants so I grew up around it. The house we bought already had a lot of established plants so I haven't gotten to do much of my own thing with out yard. Old owners made poor placement decisions with many of the plants and now that they are maturing to their full size I am seeing a lot of crowding issues that is a bit over my head.

Seems like some of the plants we like the most like to die off on us. I have a flowering almond that I think is going the way of your Coreopsis.

For me Jenn's, gardening is relaxing...each wknd pretty much I pick an area, get rid of what I don't want and then start over as a entire new project, takes me all day, I'm constantly moving...and yet, it's relaxing for me, haha. This past wknd I put in a lil hard scape area on the edge of the canyon with a small bistro set to sit and relax this coming summer. I have to look for some good (lots of shade there) from my neighbors fugly, annoying (constantly dropping leaves in my pool) Eucalyptus trees

With your house having established plants already, if you don't really care for it, or if it's going to be future issues (like roots lifting sidewalks or something, for example) I'd just remove it, start over with your own ideas!

Artic_Wind wrote:

amymeme wrote:

The coreopsis - several of them these days are touted as "perennial" but really are not reliably.  Do come back from seed.

Jenn - for the most part, plants can tolerate a lot of abuse, ie digging up and moving to a new spot.  Particularly if you do it in a rainy season.  Planting too close together is a common fault - sometimes I do it deliberately to get a full look immediately, knowing I will be transplanting in a year or two.  Sometimes, I'm just an idiot.  Or misinformed - as in the dwarf only 3ft diameter false cypress engulfing my back border

Jimmy - much to my surprise all 3 of my amaryllis bulbs gave me a stem of 4 flowers this year.  After flowering, I fertilize it every watering with half strength water soluble 20-20-20, give it lots of sun throught the summer, start withholding water in Sept, let the leaves die off and go dormant until Jan then bring it out, put it in light and water.

That's the odd thing about mine Amy, my leaves never really die off like I think they're supposed to. Some of the gigantic ones turned ugly looking so I took them off but most Amaryllis I see are in bloom, with no leaves really. Mine is in part sun too, but it seems to do well there. It stays green year round. Do you do the dormant thing because of your weather or is it really something I should be doing too?

I force the dormancy by witholding water - the leaves turn yellow, dry up and then I pull them off. I believe they need the period of dormancy to induce bloom.

Hmm, we didn't get much rain so maybe Mother Nature forced the dormancy for me Amy, lol. Mine never completely lose their leaves, I even have them next to some Agapanthus so it blends in for most of the year. They seem to like their location. My friend wants me to seperate a clump for him but...I don't wanna disturb it, lol

Artic_Wind wrote:

For me Jenn's, gardening is relaxing...each wknd pretty much I pick an area, get rid of what I don't want and then start over as a entire new project, takes me all day, I'm constantly moving...and yet, it's relaxing for me, haha.  This past wknd I put in a lil hard scape area on the edge of the canyon with a small bistro set to sit and relax this coming summer. I have to look for some good (lots of shade there) from my neighbors fugly, annoying (constantly dropping leaves in my pool) Eucalyptus trees

With your house having established plants already, if you don't really care for it, or if it's going to be future issues (like roots lifting sidewalks or something, for example) I'd just remove it, start over with your own ideas!

I had big plans for this summer. Figured to do one flowerbed a weekend. And then I haven't been home a single full weekend since spring started. I used to think that I had so much time on my hands. Now I'm finding that I don't. I put a lot of work in last summer trying to make all the flowerbeds a little lower maintenance and didn't even have time to get that done. Seems I'm always having to go somewhere. If it's not a family function it's a car show. I did pick up some more flowers last night on my way home. Got a couple Hostas, a renewing bleeding heart, and another Columbine.

Once the almond is done blooming I will buzz it back. I wish I knew how old it is. It is possible that it's at the end of its life. I guess I figured it would slowly taper off in production before it died a little more than this. Our house is about 12 years old so if it was planted shortly after the house was built it is very possible that's all she wrote.

I can totally understand that Jenn. Weekends are just wayyyyy too short. Last weekend I had to skip Kohdi and Mishka's hike in order to finish my little project (Kohdi was bummed about it too Mishka...not so much, haha)

I love Bleeding Hearts...I've been looking for them here for a little while now, but havnt found them yet. I used to have one, it was doing really good and then I had to transplant it and it died.

Bleeding Heart?

http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/27719-product.html#

Thanks Amy! That's a cool site! I could have sworn mine had white flowers with red insides though. Maybe just a different variety. I see they die back in the summer too, maybe mine wasn't dead we have an Armstrong Nursuries here, but I know I'd be over paying so I think I'm gonna order from this place thank you!

They do die back in hot, dry weather. For me, the foliage lasts until frost but, from what little I know of San Diego weather, I would guess that it goes dormant for a good part of the year.

White Flower Farm is a good solid nursery with quality plants, good condition, good size. Unfortunately, you pay for it. But, you won't be disappointed.

Here's a white - I've liked Van Bourgondian in the past but they were recently bought out - I don't know about their current quality.

http://www.dutchbulbs.com/category/Dicentra_Bleeding_Hearts

We're hot and dry right now Amy, not really typical for April but yeah, I imagine not a healthy looking plant for most of the year here. The white with yellow you sent a link of is beautiful! I like white flowers best, white roses, white cyclamen, etc. I always have to have white in my landscape. Unfortunately Mishka likes white flowers too I bought some beautiful white bougainvillea for my back yard, white with a really pale pinkish haze to them...came home the next day and...gone. Only little stubs left...it's growing back right now but more pink than white, hopefully that will change...and Mishka stops dining on my landscape...I can dream right? Lol