Artemisia tridentata, Sagebrush

[penumbra]

Other than keeping the plant dry enough, is there any reason I can't grow this plant in Virginia zone 6? I have seen a few and I am quite smitten with it.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Forsoothe!]

I had a temperature-verses-winter-wetness issue keeping one in a greenhouse. The temperature range was OK, but I kept it too wet. I'd like to try again.

 

[penumbra]

Yeah, I thought about that. Keeping it in a greenhouse and not watering it. It is listed down to zone 4, I believe 4 thru 8. I am thinking of trying one outside under the eaves of the house on the southern exposure. That is where I keep several large cactus during the growing season.In either case I wonder if the humidity here would do it in.

 

[penumbra]

I was too late. The guy that sells them on eBay sold the ones I was looking at within hours.

 

[Forsoothe!]

I will keep the next one in the house without watering at all over winter. Should be dry enough. I can't find any specifics on exactly how low the temp has to be, but I can put it in the spare room window facing west and not water it. It might be my easiest guest!

 

[vp999]

I have one and I can't tell if its still alive or dead as it always look the same since it was shipped to me, I kept scratching the bark too see if its still alive but theres layers and layers of fiber so I could never get too see if the bark still green or not lol. I probably bought it from the seller on Bay whom supposedly collected them him self in Arizona. I use the " All Purpose" bonsai soil from Tinyroots to pot it in. The seller told me to keep it wet all the time.

 

[Forsoothe!]

@vp999 "...The seller told me to keep it wet all the time."

I think they go dormant when too dry for an extended period and wake up again when re-wet, but keeping it wet without foliage doesn't sound right. It sounds exactly wrong, IMHO. I think once they go dry, they stay there for some extended period as a defensive strategy, just like northern trees need 3 or 4 months in dormancy once they are programed by late summer dry period, plus decreasing sun period and intensity, plus maturation of seeds, and plus lower temperatures. If they didn't stay dormant for some fixed amount of time they would get killed by a January or March thaw we have every few years.

I have a Desert Rose that gets lethargic in early winter, but carries on. I accidentally let it get bone dry in March or April one year and it went dormant until late July in-spite of the fact that it was outdoors in full sun and watered everyday from May on. Again, once dormant, must have some number of days/months in that state. I have a personal rule: never throw away a plant until it's been dead for 6 months. It has saved me more than once.

I would keep yours very dry, watering the crown with a couple ounces of water every ~3 weeks until Feb., and dark wouldn't hurt, either. Then put in high light and resume regular watering. Take that speculation for what it's worth...

 

[vp999]

Thank you so much, also its getting around 30s here at night, should i bring it inside with grow light? or just leave it out ? I'll try to send a pic of it tomorrow. It's a cool looking tree with all the folliage still despite of a recent storm couple days ago.

 

[penumbra]

I got one of these a couple months ago, probably same seller. My came looking dead and has not changed. It is Inside under grow lights and I think it is dead but I am waiting on it. I water it very very little and it is in the sand the seller shipped it in.

 

[Forsoothe!]

IMHO it wants to spend winter dry, and cold is optional. if you have a garage, or windowsill, or even a closet where it can stay ~dry , it should wake up in Feb or March (as outlined above). And feedback would be helpful to all of us here.

 

[Forsoothe!]

I found one I liked on bay that I have decided to keep on my large covered porch where it will get wind-whipped with the occasional snow flake and cold as SE Michigan, but will not get watered until I put it out in the sun in April. I intend to never water it and shelter it from rain from Oct. to March.

 

[Forsoothe!]

I have one and I can't tell if its still alive or dead as it always look the same since it was shipped to me, I kept scratching the bark too see if its still alive but theres layers and layers of fiber so I could never get too see if the bark still green or not lol. I probably bought it from the seller on Bay whom supposedly collected them him self in Arizona. I use the " All Purpose" bonsai soil from Tinyroots to pot it in. The seller told me to keep it wet all the time.

Whatever else is true, "keeping it wet all the time" will kill it, muy pronto. These plants are designed at the factory to just go to sleep when too dry and stay there until it rains in spring, or July, whichever comes first. In some drought years that can be 9 or 10 months. I speculate they must have a minimum number of dry days just like hardy-to-wet-zone plants have a minimum number of days under ~35°F. These plants are native to slopes and steppes where they receive 7 to 16 inches of precipitation per year. In Detroit, we get 1/3 of that every month. The winds and cold aren't much different in winter and temps are probably comparable in summer at 7,000 feet.

I think it will be important to make sure it goes into winter dry, so Oct 1st on the covered porch. It's not clear in my mind whether or not it can take a sudden cold spell after being wet in spring. We have a false spring periodically where it warms up, buds expand, and a freeze comes along and kills the Cherry crop and other early birds. I'm still adding materials to a database that I can store on my cell phone as a pdf file and consult from time-to-time.

 

[vp999]

I have put the sage out to winterized along with my pines and other conifers. I put it against a fence and covered with leave, what ever water it gets will be from rain and snow and we don't get that much of those here compares to Michigan. Will see it again in March. Thank you for your feed back.

 

[Forsoothe!]

Sorry, Weatherspark says you get more precipitation than Detroit...

 

[vp999]

Wow... Thanks

 

[sdavis]

Some artemisia tridentata from Oregon. One year in pots.

 

[Forsoothe!]

Some artemisia tridentata from Oregon. One year in pots.View attachment 272122View attachment 272123View attachment 272124View attachment 272125View attachment 272126View attachment 272127View attachment 272128

Are these for sale?

 

[Forsoothe!]

I am not going to treat my Great Basin Sagebrush like a tropical because this species is only half new to me. I killed a Silver Sage years ago keeping it in my greenhouse over winters. I bought that tree in Naples, FL. I'm going to treat the new one like a hardy plant that can't stand wet winters. I have assembled general info into two pdf files that I can keep on my cell phone that allows me to look for specific answers whenever a question pops in my brain, wherever I am. Also, I'm adding on my cell phone AccuWeather.com cities Fredonia, Az, the city the collector lives in, and Flagstaff, AZ elevation 6960 ft because the tree came from 7000 ft. so I can see what's happening day-by-day. Already, the low temp in Detroit was 29°F yesterday, but 19°F in Flagstaff. Whatever else is true, treating these plants like tropicals is wrong and putting it outdoors in wet ground won't work, either. The pdf file that I made out of WeatherSpark.com/Flagstaff is very detailed & useful, but too large to upload here.

 

[sdavis]

Are these for sale?

No

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

@sdavis you and @Peter44 should message each other, as I think the 2 of you are not terribly far apart. Peter does a fair amount of collecting locally too. PM each other and talk.