Hallson Gardens

Why don't my corydalis bloom? The first year or 2 they were wonderful bloomers and have seeded themselves. The last two years I have had beautiful plants with no blooms. What do I need to do for them?

This is my first season with a "Canary" (I have several "Lutea" and "Wildside"). I understand it may be my first and last season with "Canary" as it may be problematic having it survive a zone 5 winter. What has your experience been with this plant?

Sorry I didn't see the original post to this, but the references say that Canary Feathers will not bloom when it is hot, so this year's heat is what caused them to not flower for the original poster.

And yes, it probably won't survive a zone 5 winter, but then again, it has been a few years since many of us in zone 5 have truly had a zone 5 winter (last winter here we were zone 7 at the most) so you might have a chance if we have another mild winter. We used to grow Blackberry Wine and it survived several winters here then all died after a typical zone 5 (-10 to -20) winter.

I wonder if Canary Feathers will reseed, but it might be a sterile hybrid.

Canary Feathers is a 2007 Terra Nova introduction. Since it never really took off in the perennial trade it may not have proven to be all that hardy or reliable. Many corydalis are really picky about having their perfect micro-climate to perform best, so that might be the case with this one too.

Hope that helps a little.

Chris

Various web sites give a hardiness rating to zones 6-7. Other information is inconsistent. Has your "mother" plant survived the winter or are you only seeing seedlings; those might not bloom the first year.

Maybe you should just stick to good old Corydalis lutea. It is definitely hardy in zone 5 and blooms non-stop here from May to November. C. cheilanthifolia and C. incisa also grow and bloom here. Some of these may have contributed genetic material to 'Canary Feathers'. C. incisa is kind of weedy-looking, though, but in my large garden I have room for even weeds! 'Blackberry Wine' can be a curse (millions of seedlings); I wish I knew how Chris managed to kill it.

Viktoria