Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
General Subjects => Flowers and Foliage Now => Topic started by: brianw on December 03, 2015, 09:33:09 PM
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Opening today narcissus Spring Dawn. Early even for this variety. Does not usually open for me until January. I notice that the growth of the new bulbs I bought this year are well ahead of last years bulbs left in a neglected pot. Both are in pots so not conclusive but could this be due to the treatment of the new bulbs before I got them?
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Absolutely. I find that new acquisitions are always the first to bloom for me, with bulbs in my existing collection being much later to grow/bloom, even for the same species, forms etc. Most suppliers will be in warmer climates than I am, so when they arrive here I believe that the sudden change in temperature (and maybe other factors) starts them into growth sooner. My existing bulbs have to suffer a mild (never hot - ave summer temp 16oC) and usually grey/wet summer with a gradual slide into autumn/winter (with pretty similar weather conditions, ave winter min 3oC = only a 13oC seasonal range!), so it takes them longer to notice that the temperatures have dropped (they must have a requirement for a certain number of 'degree days'), which triggers them into growth.
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Absolutely. I find that new acquisitions are always the first to bloom for me, with bulbs in my existing collection being much later to grow/bloom, even for the same species, forms etc. Most suppliers will be in warmer climates than I am, so when they arrive here I believe that the sudden change in temperature (and maybe other factors) starts them into growth sooner. My existing bulbs have to suffer a mild (never hot - ave summer temp 16oC) and usually grey/wet summer with a gradual slide into autumn/winter (with pretty similar weather conditions, ave winter min 3oC = only a 13oC seasonal range!), so it takes them longer to notice that the temperatures have dropped (they must have a requirement for a certain number of 'degree days'), which triggers them into growth.
Matt this is exactly my experience and understanding - all our bulbs are flowering later this year because of the lack of summer heat so no sudden temperature gradient to trigger them.
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Planted earlier this year, Asphodelus acaulis is coming into flower.
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I've been meaning to show my newest woodland bed where I have planted last summer all the new snowdrops I got or bought :). There is still room for new plants and bulbs to plant next year, so it is far from ready though I started to make this already year ago last autumn. The soil here is sandy and I have added leaf mold and composted horse manure in it, and this is a good place that there is no water logging (as might be else where in my garden). Deciduous trees give shade in the summer, but it gets lot of sunshine in the spring, and also snow melts there early (or in fact the trees shelter it so that it doesn't get so much snow as the open garden) so I think it would be a good place for snowdrops. :) The fence in the back is to discourage deer not to come here but go on their path behind the fence (but of course they can jump the fence easily if they want, I rely on them being too lazy to jump and there is lots to eat for them also in other places).
I'm planning this to be especially a spring bed, so I've planted Hellebores (some still young), Galanthus, Crocus, Primula x polyanthus, Corydalis and also young Erythronium seedlings, which I hope will grow and some day will flower. There are also some of Rhododendrons grown from seed (which are young and have not yet flowered). I planted also Corydalis 'Craigton Blue', which I got last spring, here. Other plants include ferns, which I'm fond of.
These pictures were taken last week, it is raining now, and I'm happy that there is no snow yet.
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Hi Leena, your garden looks very nice even in winter :)
Looking forward to see your spring bloom!
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PS I am keeping the sofa warm, it is not much to do outside - the rain is pouring down and many roads are closed.
The waterfalls, that attract a lot of (especially foreign) tourists in summer are now dangerous to pass.
http://www.nrk.no/rogaland/sauda-er-nesten-isolert-1.12689035 (http://www.nrk.no/rogaland/sauda-er-nesten-isolert-1.12689035)
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Thank Hoy, I'm also looking forward to spring. I'm sure I will take lot of pictures then. :)
It's been a stormy night here, in the news they showed how bad it was in Norway yesterday with mud slides.
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Leena,
I agree with Trond, I think that your garden is quite beautiful as it goes into its winter dormancy. I enjoyed the photographs. A garden covered with new, or even old snow can be very beautiful too.
After 4 years of drought and far above temperatures we are finally having something like late fall / winter here in Northern California - Average temperatures (that seem cool compared to the past 4 winters), overcast skies, much snow in the Sierra Nevada, and at least near average rainfall - snowfall (although it looks like much heavy rain is in the forecast now).
The garden here is quite dormant. Not a flower to be seen anywhere. The only plants with some sort of growth are many of our California native bulbs and annuals, but now they too have slowed to a crawl. Some species from similar climates have grown a bit too. If this continues there will not be much until late January.
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The Sun shone briefly today and being so low in the sky at this time of year the light was more horizontal than vertical.
Colchicum doerfleri
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5733/23540656056_59c8e5202c_o.jpg)
Sternbergia lutea
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/684/23270989580_fcd37023da_o.jpg)
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Somebody is a little out of step here! Not even in an alpine house but just sitting on the garden wall. I hope it isn't a swan-song. Lewisia cotyledon from Ashwood seed.
Erle in soggy Anglesey
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Things have got to a point that I wish for the cold & snow to come ??? Unusual mild weather and many species are still in active growth - Primula elatior ssp. meyeri, I really want to see it flower next spring (from wild collected seed/Abkhasia)
[attachimg=1]
Obese squirrels are running crazy so many things needed extra protection - attractive farinose buds of P. frondosa:
[attachimg=2]
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Gabriela, I'm not unsympathetic, honestly, but your words brought a funny image to mind .....
[attachimg=1] ;D
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Gabriela,and this grid protects against squirrels and birds?
A few photos from my garden. December 11th.
Сrocus banaticus
[attachimg=1]
Daphne kamtschatica
[attachimg=2]
Rhododendron canadense
[attachimg=3]
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Gabriela, I'm not unsympathetic, honestly, but your words brought a funny image to mind .....
;D
You're such a teaser Maggi! I admit she is very cute; ours here, the so called gray squirrels, are bigger size and mostly black with a bit pointed ears - a true a devilish look!
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Gabriela,and this grid protects against squirrels and birds?
Natalia - it is a plastic mesh that can be cut to size and is only for the squirrels, temporarely. Usually the ground would be frozen by now or covered in snow but it's unusual warm this year.
They wouldn't eat the buds but dig holes all day long (to look for or hide nuts) and so the roots can remain exposed to cold and drought if you don't cover them back.
I see you also don't have snow yet :) Interesting to see you grow the Canada rosebay - please do show the flowers next year, I haven't found it in the wild here.
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Is it really mid December? Daphne bholua 'Jacqueline Postill' is flowering, as is Rosmarinus x lavandulaceus. The seedheads of Iris foetidissima provide welcome colour.
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My 'Jacqueline Postill' is in flower too Ralph.
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Gabriela - you have my sympathy as far as the tree rats go! Absolute vermin >:(
First bloom of the season on Canarina canariensis...................
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/695/23743848785_ed6a13b1f3_z.jpg)
They are much larger than the spring blooms were (which was the first time that it had bloomed) and I'm rather pleased as it was a little underwhelming in the spring.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/651/23661488151_f01ea3f008_z.jpg)
Salvia confertiflora has finally (of sorts) come into flower................
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5741/23115702834_e637b25fb8_z.jpg)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/626/23661494481_ffc9369588_z.jpg)
It is about four months later than last year which sums up the summer of 2015 rather well!
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Amazing Canarina !
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Amazing Canarina !
What is amazing is that it is outdoors still!
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meanie,
I am hoping to get a batch of Canarina through the winter. They are fairly good sized. I will very pleased to get some flowers this coming spring.
Yours looks great!
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Gabriela - you have my sympathy as far as the tree rats go! Absolute vermin >:(
You're right, that's the good name for them, tree rats. It is just absolutely by chance that one can grow bulbous species here (not
having a greenhouse or something similar). And add the chipmunks too...
But enough complaining, I particularly like your Salvia confertiflora, different than many other Salvias I know.
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You're right, that's the good name for them, tree rats. It is just absolutely by chance that one can grow bulbous species here (not
having a greenhouse or something similar). And add the chipmunks too...
At least we are spared chipmunks!
But enough complaining, I particularly like your Salvia confertiflora, different than many other Salvias I know.
Huge genus so I think that there is something for everyone.
I never expected S.leucantha to look this good in mid December...............
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5788/23706450051_e48e6829e6_z.jpg)
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5827/23160736174_38c98d764b_z.jpg)
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meanie,
I am hoping to get a batch of Canarina through the winter. They are fairly good sized. I will very pleased to get some flowers this coming spring.
Yours looks great!
Yours are growing in the ground?
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Yours are growing in the ground?
Right now I have them all growing in pots. Too many things can go wrong in the ground around here. Rodents are a big one! :P Then, it can get somewhat cold during the winter and I was uncertain as to their cold hardiness. It has been down to -5.5 C so far this season, with many other nights below freezing. Maybe they can take these temperatures? As of today I have them protected with row cover. It is so easy for me. It is no different than farming vegetable crops! I have plenty of hoops, row cover and greenhouse plastic to cover plant with if I desire. Right now I am just using row cover and they seem very happy.
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Robert - not sure as to their absolute hardiness but I can say that in growth they'll take close to freezing ok. I haven't enough mature tubers to push things yet but maybe next year.
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Robert - not sure as to their absolute hardiness but I can say that in growth they'll take close to freezing ok. I haven't enough mature tubers to push things yet but maybe next year.
meanie,
I have a half dozen plants. I am hoping to get some seed production. If all goes well, the next generation I will try in the garden.
Thank you for the information. Keep us posted as to your results if you try to overwinter any in the garden.
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The garden is usually a no go zone at this time of year but thanks to the mild autumn/winter so far but Brugmansia sanguinea has opened its first bloom today.............
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5777/23203409693_124e451d29_z.jpg)
Apart from the sharp frosts we had a few weeks ago (when I moved it to the protection of the house wall) it has been out in the open since late February.
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The garden is usually a no go zone at this time of year but thanks to the mild autumn/winter so far but Brugmansia sanguinea has opened its first bloom today.............
Apart from the sharp frosts we had a few weeks ago (when I moved it to the protection of the house wall) it has been out in the open since late February.
meanie,
In the city of Sacramento the Brugmansias grow fairly well without much protection from frost, not that the city has much in the way of frost (it does freeze every year). The plants in the ground can get quite large and the flowers are spectacular. Occasional there are hard and prolonged periods of frost. Even with large trunks the plant die to the ground, but re-sprout from the base of the trunk.
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Spring has sprung here in Kent. I think this is Narcissus 'Rijnvelds Early Sensation'
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meanie,
In the city of Sacramento the Brugmansias grow fairly well without much protection from frost, not that the city has much in the way of frost (it does freeze every year). The plants in the ground can get quite large and the flowers are spectacular. Occasional there are hard and prolonged periods of frost. Even with large trunks the plant die to the ground, but re-sprout from the base of the trunk.
I've found it fully hardy even here in the UK (it survived the winter of 2012/13 outdoors) but there is little point in pushing it to its limits as it won't bloom. As you said even when it is taken out by the frost it comes back from the base.
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This mild (warm) December weather complete with high humidity is causing considerable problems. We actually had some colder days in July than we are experiencing now!
Botrytis is a real issue under glass and many of my Central Asian bulbs are starting into growth far too early. The low light levels at this time of year are creating lax weak growth -prone to fungal disease. I never thought I would yearn for frost! :o
Iris histrio ssp. histrio
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/572/23758264312_7612be8075_o.jpg)
Corydalis schanginii var. ainii
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/664/23866636185_90df98d535_o.jpg)
Iris nicolai
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5690/23498705379_ac0919a950_o.jpg)
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Lovely plants Steve!
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Not much in flower here at the moment, at least not outside.
A hellebore is among the few which try to flower in the rain. However, evergreen leaves are also beautiful.
[attach=1]
The Cyclamen hederifolium grows well but the flowers have finished.
[attach=2]
An attractive shrub with yellow berries - Ilex aquifolium 'Bacciflava'.
[attach=3]
Cotoneaster bullatus and a Polystichum fern.
[attach=4]
Some hellebores waiting for spring and a Asplenium scolopendrium.
[attach=5]
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Love those Iris Steve beautiful photos
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Love those Iris Steve beautiful photos
Me too. :)
Hoy, you have very nice evergreen plants, I especially liked the one with ferns and rhododendrons, and also hellebores with Asplenium.
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A bit of sunshine in the greenhouse
Sternbergia sicula - not a good picture
Osteospermum - they have flowers when you buy them then when potted up the make a lot of growth and are only coming back into flower when summer is almost over. I took it inside to get the good of the flowers.
Still a few flowers on Erigeron chrysopsidis 'Grand Ridge'
Seed heads on Clematis repens
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Early blooms on Chaenomeles 'Nicole'
Beautiful netting on Moraea alticola
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Beautiful netting on Moraea alticola
Wow!
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Here in zone 7B, at the foot of the Alps mountains, the garden is torn between a very late autumn and a very early spring...
We have a saying here: "Noël au balcon, Pâques aux tisons", i.e. "(if you spend) Christmas on a balcony, (you'll spend) Easter by the fireplace".
Deep frozen Easter eggs to be expected, I'm afraid! ;D
In the meantime, Merry Christmas to you all!
A few pictures taken outside, plants with no protection of any kind...
[attach=1] Helleborus orientalis
[attach=2]Cyclamen coum
[attach=3]Centaurea hypoleuca 'John Coutts'
[attach=4]Galanthus gracilis
[attach=5]Hebe Midsummer beauty
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Thank you for the beautiful photos!
Add our news.
After frost we had two weeks of warm weather, the temperature was up to +10 ..
[attachimg=1]
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What wild weather we had on the 24 December. Late in the afternoon we had a violent thunderstorm first with heavy rain and hail, then it turned to snow. Very nearby, a tornado touched down with a 8 km path of destruction. Nobody was hurt and no homes were damaged, however there was other property damage.
[attachimg=1]
Snow on one of our garden beds.
The weather is to be cold, at least for us, -7 C at night and a bit above freezing during the day, with periods of snow.
[attachimg=2]
Another garden bed with snow.
Now the garden is a mess of snow, half melted snow, and mud. Nothing in bloom, however I did see some flower buds on the Cyclamen coum the other day. With the cold temperatures I do not think there will be much for a while.
[attachimg=3]
The last of the autumn color - Rhododendron luteum with red leaves.
[attachimg=4]
Rhododendron pubescens is tough. It survived the drought without and any problems at all.
[attachimg=5]
Rhododendron preptum - the leaves look good this time of year.