Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Plant Identification => Plant Identification Questions and Answers => Topic started by: robg on May 17, 2009, 11:54:18 AM

Title: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: robg on May 17, 2009, 11:54:18 AM
Well, it's a compositae of some sort but I can't find it in my books.  Judging by how well it grows and flowers, it's weed somewhere, but perhaps not as last summer it didn't set any seed, though cuttings take well.

Any ideas please.
Rob
Title: ... I don't know, etc again - Second picture
Post by: robg on May 17, 2009, 11:57:42 AM
I'll have to find out how to get more than one picture up - oops! there's a "More Attachments" button.  Here's a close up.

Rob
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: annew on May 17, 2009, 10:01:23 PM
Don't know, but it's nice!
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: Lesley Cox on May 17, 2009, 10:30:10 PM
Very nice. super wall too. Yum yum. :)
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: fermi de Sousa on May 18, 2009, 05:45:43 AM
Hi Rob,
it looks similar to what is grown here as Chrysanthemum mawii - the typical form is a bit pinker.
cheers
fermi
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: robg on May 18, 2009, 04:29:27 PM
Thanks guys, particularly Fermi who is near enough on the ball.

Chrysanthemum mawii is now called Rhodanthemum Gayanum, coming from Morocco and Algeria.  What I have is the white version called R. African Eyes; I tried for R.Gayanum 'African Eyes', but no it's R. African Eyes - I do have difficulty with plant naming sometimes!!

The irony of all this is that having gone out once in the rain to get a leaf (with greenfly!) and flower to look at closely, I then went to check the growth, still in the rain, and found tucked very well underneath the nursery label saying R. etc.  So that's what it is.   It clearly doesn't come from the desert zones as it survived a typically damp Scots winter OK and is thriving in the rain.

Here's a picture of the wall now the sun's come out - sadly the builder didn't follow instructions fully to pack the back with soil so getting plants to establish can be a bit tricky.

Thanks again

Rob

 

Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: Lesley Cox on May 18, 2009, 09:24:06 PM
Thanks for the wall picture Rob. I envy you. I did think your plant looked a bit like the North African Leucanthmum hosmariense or something related at any rate. It, and Rh. gayanum and a couple of other close relatives hybridise quite easily and there are some really nice, very dwarf plants around now, with varying shades of pink to raspberry flowers. The Leucanthemum is at its best blooming through winter of course, here anyway.
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: fermi de Sousa on May 19, 2009, 08:56:50 AM
Hi Rob,
thanks - ANOTHER name change we'll have to get used to! ;D
And thanks for a look at your garden.
cheers
fermi
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: robg on May 19, 2009, 09:12:02 AM
Hi Lesley

What a clever girl you are  --I found this

" Leucanthemum gayanum (Coss. & Durieu) Maire [Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Afrique N. 14:149. 1923]   (= Chrysanthemum demnatense Murb.) (= Chrysanthemum gayanum (Coss. & Durieu) Ball) (= Pyrethrum gayanum Coss. & Durieu) (= Rhodanthemum gayanum (Coss. & Durieu) B. H. Wilcox et al.) "

And as for name changes, Fermi, you could try reading through all of this if you are into that sort of thing, but even a quick scan does give a bit of reasoning behind it.

http://www.guynesom.com/AsternamesWEB.htm

I've tried to find something on this 'African Eyes', but guess from Leslie's comment about hybridising that that is what this is and therefore doesn't have a full latin name.  Certainly last year it didn't seem to set any seed which might relate to it being a hybrid - quite happily does cuttings though.

Cheers
Rob
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: JohnnyD on May 19, 2009, 11:17:03 AM
Hi Rob,
Love the layout Rob, and know the problem of dry walls.
One trick, where there are gaps in walls which make establishing plants difficult, is to take root balls from defunct baskets or pots and ram them, a little bit at a time, into the gaps - as far and as firmly as possible.
The old roots mean even small lumps stay where you put them.
This provides a reinforcement which not only holds water, it also gives the new plants something to get hold of until established.
Cheers,
Johnny
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on May 19, 2009, 12:40:20 PM
There's not only "Great walls" in China Rob !!  ;)
Splendid layout ! Thanks for showing !
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: Maggi Young on May 19, 2009, 02:13:01 PM
Hi Rob,
Love the layout Rob, and know the problem of dry walls.
One trick, where there are gaps in walls which make establishing plants difficult, is to take root balls from defunct baskets or pots and ram them, a little bit at a time, into the gaps - as far and as firmly as possible.
The old roots mean even small lumps stay where you put them.
This provides a reinforcement which not only holds water, it also gives the new plants something to get hold of until established.
Cheers,
Johnny

Great tip, Johhny,  very useful idea!
Title: Re: ...And I don't even know where it came from!
Post by: JohnnyD on May 20, 2009, 09:02:59 AM
p.s. - I should have added that it is also a good way to introduce seeds to a dry wall.
J.
SimplePortal 2.3.5 © 2008-2012, SimplePortal