May 2023 in the Northern Hemisphere

[Mariette]

Robert, what I wrote about drought in Sweden relies on what people here are telling me, not scientific dates. You should note that I´m on holiday in the Southeast of this very longstretched country, a part which is regularly much drier than the westcoast. Farmers are watering their fields here, which is certainly no usual practice for this time of the year. Back home, we enjoyed a good deal of rain in the area where I live, next to the Dutch border. Other parts of Europe, on the other side, are suffering from extreme drought already since last year, parts of France, for instance, or the North of Italy.

As to Californian native annual species : I don´t expect them to establish themselves in my garden, as conditions are too different. Just for fun, I´m only trying some of them, usually starting with pot-culture.
 Nevertheless, Eschscholtzia californica is a species which self-sowed for many years on my allotment, often already in autumn and surviving mild winters. Recently it became rare there, out of resons I don´t know. This is a well known annual over here, easily available.

Diplacus pictus certainly isn´t, and was much admired when I showed pics of this in Germany. Following Your advice, I sowed it already in autumn in my frost-free greenhouse. What may have been seedlings just starting into life was gone over winter, but in spring 2 new ones popped up. Right now, I may only hope that they survived my absence due to the care of my sons. 

[MarcR]

Your project seems very ambitious. You’re covering a lot of bases, but then these are topics and plants that many are likely very interested. Will you have any preliminary report for the Forum in the near future?

Robert,

You asked for a preliminary report which was impossible 8 years into the project.
 In my may 8 reply, I have provided links to a list of all the species I grow in these 3 families.

My initial statements re the number of genera and species I grow were place holders until I could compile an accurate inventory of what I grow.  I have not attempted to inventory  the number of plants of each specie.

I can source 80-90% of what I listed and can give growing conditions for all.

The 10-20% that I cannot source are because my sources are no longer available or because they were acquired from friends.

[Robert]

Hi Marc

It appears that you have very large private collection of plants. Collecting seems to be very popular. Your source index of where to find specific plants must be very useful for other collectors.

I have to admit that for me, huge lists of plants and large collections are increasingly completely overwhelming. I admire those that can maintain large collections of plants. The best I can do, is offer my encouragement. I have my hands full with the very small limited number of plants I currently maintain. I do try new plants each season, however only on an extremely limited scale.

Good luck with your endeavor. I am sure many will appreciate your efforts.

[Robert]

Hi Mariette,

I apologize for offering advice on California plants on the Forum. This is foolishness on my part. In most instances I do not know how California species will respond in another location or climate. All I can do is state my observations about plant behavior in the locations I study in detail and our Sacramento garden. This is why I ask so many questions and have a few contacts beyond our part of California that share detailed science based information about how California plants respond in their locations.

I rarely look at the news, however Jasmin follows the news nearly everyday. I asked Jasmin about the reports concerning drought conditions in Sweden, France, and Northern Italy. She knew nothing about these reports and when she did a search she still came up with nothing. I also scanned the US NOAA databases for information. I could not find anything there either. I believe your report 100%. I guess this is, too, why I ask questions. Perhaps I ask too many questions?   

Enjoy your holiday!   

[Mariette]

Robert, there is absolutely no reason for excuses, quite on the contrary! I´m glad for the inspirations and information You offer, and surely others will feel the same! As it may be difficult for You to establish some European species in Your garden, so it´s over here with Californian ones. After all, even conditions in Germany differ largely, some parts enjoy sufficient rainfall, others don´t. Also, much depends on drainage, the lack of which is a great problem in my garden. Some Californian annuals like Eschscholtzia are commonly known in Germany and regularly offered by the trade. It´s just tempting to try some more of those You show, perhaps some will do.
There was a great surprise when I returned in the week-end: My 2 plants of Diplacus pictus are in flower!

I wonder why You find no informations regarding the drought in Italy and France. The river Po lacks water since the middle of last year, the lake Garda, also. In France are parts where the use of water is restricted in a way never known before.

[Robert]

Hi Mariette,

I found, in English, this EU web site concerning drought in Europe. This is exactly the information I was looking for. For me, this does not replace perspectives on the weather posted on the Forum. Ultimately we are concerned about how the weather is impacting our gardens and what works to help ameliorate adverse situations.

I was also able to find a limited amount of news coverage concerning drought conditions in France and Northern Italy. Without getting into the details, the algorithms used to present the news here in the U.S.A. are attempting to manipulate our perceptions of the world. Some of the “news” material presented to me was extremely offensive and misogynistic. Jasmin and I were using the same news outlet (NPR) and the same devise. How the algorithms could target me was scary. I refuse to support this type of behavior and thinking, thus I quit following the news.

[Robert]

Our Gila capitata hybrids are now starting to bloom. This line is derived from subspecies mediomontana x subspecies pedemontana hybrids. The plants are extremely vigorous, about 2 meters tall, and bloom profusely for an extended period of time into the summer. The flower heads are very large. Currently this line is susceptible to extremes of damp weather and insect damage at the seedling stage of development. Clearly improvements need to be made, however I am extremely pleased with the progress to date.



Collinsia heterophylla is starting to seed itself freely around our garden. Ian Young’s gardening advice to look to nature for gardening inspiration is priceless. In nature Collinsia heterophylla is frequently seen blooming is dramatic pure stands. Next season I hope to imitate this natural propensity in our garden.



Penstemon laetus ssp. laetus has very showy flowers and blooms for an extended period of time in our garden. Currently our plantings of this species is limited to containers with lean, quick draining soil. They do seed out in other containers. Currently my goal with this species is to see if I can develop a line that is amenable to cultivation in average garden soil. Extending the range adaptability of this species would be an asset to our garden.



Meadow Penstemon, Penstemon rydbergii ssp. oreocharis, is very amenable to cultivation in our garden. This species is very tolerant of average garden soil and summertime irrigation. I am working on improvements with this species to extend its versatility in our garden.



Penstemon purpusii is another Penstemon species that is currently limited to container culture in our garden. I have a number of seed lines of this species from seed accessions I made on Snow Mountain in Colusa County, California. I have not worked with this species to date, however this species too may have potential for cultivation in the open garden. This small species has very large showy flowers.

[Robert]

Even parts of the old ornamental garden at our Placerville property survive. Last autumn I planted a small patch of Ethiopian Barley next to a bed with bearded Iris. The orange and red poppies planted themselves. The photograph might not be the greatest, however the scene was very nice

[MarcR]

Robert,

With all the time and energy sent on maintaining my collection I have no time for hybridizing; but I think the results of your efforts are beautiful.

[Mariette]

One cannot but agree! I do like the penstemons very much, but generally they abhor our often damp conditions. It would be very welcome to to be able to grow more adaptable strains!

Back home from Sweden, most of the tree peonies were already withered. This one still looks alright.



Camassias are a mystery for me. For many years I grew big clumps of C. leichtlinii ssp suksdorfii and several others as well. All of them disappeared, either due to rodents or unsuitable weather. The only ones remaining for many years, though reduced, are  C. leichtlinii ssp leichtlinii ´Sacajawea´in front of the pic, and C. cusickii to the right.



As may be seen in the background, they started producing seedlings these last years.



I wonder what they are? The blueish one in the middle looks like C cusickii, yet the other blueish one withers like leichtlinii, though there are no blue ones growing here for about 15 years. The white one is really white, unlike C. l. ssp l., which shows creamy white flowers, like that of ´Sacajawea´ to the right.



Yet the chalk-white seedling withers like C. leichtlinii, despite of its different tint of white.



[img]ht

[Robert]

Hi Mariette,

I enjoyed your remaining Camassia plants immensely. It is very interesting how the seedlings evolved in your garden. They seem quite “at home” in their current setting. I like the naturalistic setting with the other plants.

Here in our Sacramento, California garden I grow both our local interior California versions of Camassia leichtlinii ssp. suksdorfii and Camassia quamash ssp. breviflora. Our local subspecies suksdorfii has thrived in our garden and I have a succession of seedlings advancing from various geographic locations in our area. I have only grown one set of Camassia quamash ssp. breviflora in our garden. They have persisted but they have preformed poorly. They rarely bloom and the clumps are slowly dying-out.

I rarely encounter Camassia quamash ssp. breviflora in our area. Camassia leichtlinii ssp. suksdorfii is by far more common. Populations of Camassia leichtlinii ssp. suksdorfii from interior California locations appear to have some very distinct regional adaptations compared to populations growing in Coastal California and in the Pacific Northwest. The interior California populations that I have observed over the years are always found growing in moist to hydric environments. The soil rarely or never dries out completely during the summer-autumn seasons. Frequently the plants are growing and blooming in hydric (flooded) environments. During years of much above average precipitation, such as this season, the bulbs can remain flooded all summer and autumn.

I frequently observe regional and/or habitat specific adaptations in our wild plant species. I am working at using these regional and local adaptations to advantage to create superior varieties for our Sacramento garden. This certainly keeps me busy and the projects are very fulfilling. I will keep the Forum posted as to my progress with the Genus Camassia.

Mariette, if you decide to continue cultivating Camassia I will be keenly interested in your progress and results. Thank you so very much for sharing your observation! 

[Mariette]

Robert, what puzzles me is that in this particular spot the camassias set seed. There are three others in the garden, where small groups of 2-3 Camassia cusickii are in flower, most likely the seed was spread with garden compost. All of these do not set seed as far as I can judge till  now.
Once I planted Camassia quamash, but these hardly showed any growth next season, and disappeared, maybe due to rodents. Maybe I should try again, now, as the rodents´population obviously broke down.

Unlike sandy and other well drained soils, our heavy clay may prevent dormant bulbs from drying out, which is why it´s prefered by many geophytes favouring more humid conditions. Drought during their dormant season does hardly any harm to them.

[Robert]

Mariette,

This is all very interesting. Thank you for sharing. You have described your clay soil in the past. It is a reminder that we can still accomplish great things in our gardens under very adverse conditions. 



This is an example of how I am attempting to utilize California native plants in a naturalistic way in our Sacramento, California garden. Potentilla gracillis var. fastigiata is a native species that seeds itself around our garden without help on my part. The non-native annual Nigelia damascena also seeds around our garden. Currently this works in our garden, however I would like to refine the design by incorporating additional California native species.



Potentilla gracilis var. fastigiata is a perennial species that is both drought tolerant as well as tolerant of summertime irrigation. This species grows well in both part shade as well as full sun. It blooms for many weeks during the spring and has very attractive foliage when not in bloom. This species definitely works in our garden.



There are still plenty of non-native species in our garden. Geranium dalmaticum always looks nice. It is a keeper. The Fuchsia is the last one standing in our garden. As long as it survives we will allow it to grow.



Our native Columbine, Aquilegia formosa, thrives in the shadier parts of our garden. The plants are very persistent and seed around occasionally. This species will throw flowers off and on most of the summer. Currently I am experimenting with other species to see how well they can be incorporated into our garden design.



Erythranthe lewisii x cardinalis hybrids have been available in the California nursery trade for a long time. I have created my own set of hybrids in a range of colors from yellow, through red, to hot pink, to lavender pink. They are all perennial and bloom most of the summer. Each season I create new hybrid combinations hoping for something different to appear. Nothing so far, however many are pretty and well enjoyed in our garden.

[Robert]

Triteleia bridgesii is one of our later blooming Themidaceae species. I have them planted throughout our garden and they preform well in a variety of soil types and watering regimes, from no summer irrigation at all, to moderate summertime irrigation. I especially like this species and have incorporated it into our breeding program.



To date, this is the best selection I have made of Eriophyllum lanatum var. grandiflorum. I am hoping it will preform equally well in the open garden. It blooms profusely and has an excellent dense compact habit of growth. It also propagates well from cuttings. This seed accession came from 3,275 feet (988 meters) in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. There was nothing special about this seed accession, as the majority of the plants in the area were “average”, pretty but nothing remarkable.

[MarcR]

Robert,

I grow many of the natives that you grow; but I don't feature them. I do not grow anything from Compositae [asteraceae],or Portulacaceae, and very little from Rosaceae; even though I can appreciate them in other people's gardens.
I use natives as accent plants and companion plants when they compliment species from the three families that I feature. I also grow an eclectic mix of plants from many other families; especially: Amarylidaceae, Liliaceae, Scrophulariaceae/ Plantaginaceae/Phrymaceae,[which I treat as one complex -  Scrophulariaceae++] Malvaceae/ Sterculiaceae, Campanulaceae, Theaceae, Magnoliaceae, Styracaceae, Papaveraceae/Fumaraceae, Fabiaceae, Violaceae and Bignoniaceae.