August in the Northern Hemisphere

[Hoy]

A few August flowering plants from my summer house. It is no formal beds. The plants grow where they like and where they survive. The worst enemy is summer drought since the neighbour has managed to keep his sheep fenced. None are native.

Opuntia polyacantha has survived one winter. I hope for flowers next year!




Delosperma cooperi has germinated from seed. The original plant is dead 3 years ago. Seedlings appear a few places.




A tiny Sedum relative. It does best in pure sand.




A Cyclamen, probably purpurascens. From a seed mix. Ed.:hederifolium




Limonium latifolium. Two other species are native in this area but I have planted this. It seems to like the sea spray.

[Hoy]

An Allium. Could it be senescens?




Allium cernuum




At last one native: Hieracium umbellatum. It can be very pretty. This specimen has fasciation.




Epilobium/ Zauschneria canum a couple of years old. First time with flowers! Euphorbia cyparissias try to hide it.




Two cricket nymphs. Maybe two different species.

[ashley]

Very nice Trond.  The Limonium is obviously enjoying summer at the seaside
Your cyclamen looks like hederifolium.

[Hoy]

Very nice Trond.  The Limonium is obviously enjoying summer at the seaside
Your cyclamen looks like hederifolium.

Thanks Ashley

I have made a correction of the name also.

[Gabriela]

Even if not natives they look like they belong there Trond. Especially the Limonium with the sea view - wonderful! Brings back memories walking among sea lavenders on a wild shoreline of the Black Sea...

[Hoy]

Even if not natives they look like they belong there Trond. Especially the Limonium with the sea view - wonderful! Brings back memories walking among sea lavenders on a wild shoreline of the Black Sea...

Thanks, Gabriela, it is my goal when planting I have yet to see the Black Sea though!

[Robert]

Trond,

Very nice for a naturalistic planting. It is quite an eclectic selection of species! Of course, I am always surprised by the mention of drought or dry conditions in Western Norway - or perhaps your summer home is located in the east towards Oslo? It looks so lush and green - all of this is relative to our California climate. Anyway, thank you for sharing.

[Hoy]

Trond,

Very nice for a naturalistic planting. It is quite an eclectic selection of species! Of course, I am always surprised by the mention of drought or dry conditions in Western Norway - or perhaps your summer home is located in the east towards Oslo? It looks so lush and green - all of this is relative to our California climate. Anyway, thank you for sharing.

Thanks, Robert   Yes, I choose my plants! But I have also planted native Norwegian plants including grasses and grasslike plants

This is at our summer house situated at the SE coast running from Oslo southwards. It is the sunniest part in Norway in summer. In Kragerø county the islands get less rain and more sun than the mainland. This picture shows a typical situation: Rain to the left (mainland), sun to the right (islands).




The driest part of the summer is usually June-July,  but the amount of rain vary a lot. This year June was dry but July was wet so it looks very green now. As the dry condition only lasts about a month or two it is only the shallow soils that suffer. (Most soils at the islands are very shallow though.) Drought here is nothing like California!

[meanie]

Your Salvia is a stunner Meanie. I bought two earlier in the year when they were flowering, one a deep maroon and the other a blue/purple both similar to yours. Planted out they grew well but have died off totally with frosts. The stems look totally dead so I'm hoping they will come away from under the soil.

Could they be;
Love and Wishes.............


and Amistad................


Amistad is borderline hardy here but I can't make any claims on Love and Wishes as it is the first year that I've had it.

Hoy - I cannot keep Epilobium going here. What's the secret?

A few new things in bloom since my last post;
Albuca humilis...........


Salvia patens.............


Tricyrtis formosa.............


Schizanthus pinnatus...........


Manfreda elongata.............


And a very wonky Eucomis "Sparkling Burgundy". This is the first of my leaf cutting bulbs to bloom.............#

[Robert]

Thanks, Robert   Yes, I choose my plants! But I have also planted native Norwegian plants including grasses and grasslike plants

This is at our summer house situated at the SE coast running from Oslo southwards. It is the sunniest part in Norway in summer. In Kragerø county the islands get less rain and more sun than the mainland. This picture shows a typical situation: Rain to the left (mainland), sun to the right (islands).

The driest part of the summer is usually June-July,  but the amount of rain vary a lot. This year June was dry but July was wet so it looks very green now. As the dry condition only lasts about a month or two it is only the shallow soils that suffer. (Most soils at the islands are very shallow though.) Drought here is nothing like California!

Trond,

I am impressed that you are growing some xeric type species - even in the "dry" SE coast of Norway. It seems that they do well with minimum attention too.

The photograph and explanation sums things up very well.

We have not had any meaningful precipitation since April and are unlikely to get any until mid-October. In the mean time it has been hot the last few day - 38 C, with a low temperature of 18 C. I went out early to take photographs in our garden. None of them turned out!       I guess I was out tooooo early. I was excepting another hot day today, however it stayed relatively cool - 32 C. I spent all morning planting vegetables. Vegetables from the market taste terrible, so I am highly motivated to grow our own. The greens I planted last month are ready to pick now as "baby greens". They are divine.    As for the ornamentals, Rhododendron arborescens var. georgiana is in full bloom now and looking very good. Some of the Salvias are blooming too. The garden misses me when I am out of town. There is certainly plenty to do to get it back in shape again. I will try some photographs again as some parts of the garden do look nice. 

[Robert]

Meanie,

I certainly enjoy your Salvia photographs!    I think that you have shown Salvia 'Love and Wishes' in the past. Seeing it again is a good reminder to look for it here in the U.S.A. A must try for our garden!

I have planted a goodly number of meso-american type Salvias in the garden this summer, however transplanting has slowed them a bit. Maybe they will look good this autumn. Albuca humilis just finished blooming for us. I like its fragrance!

Thank you for sharing. I look forward to your next batch of photographs. 

[Robert]

Today was much hotter that yesterday. This morning the timing worked out to get a few photographs of Rhododendron arborescens var. georgiana.



This form of Rhododendron arborescens blooms very late in the season. This specimen is planted in a hot west facing perennial border (our "Monet" border).



It is completely unfazed by the heat and hot afternoon sun in this border. The flowers have a nice fragrance, which is an added bonus.

[johnw]

Forty-eight hours after the first significant rainfall since May Magnolia grandiflora and Albizia julibrissin v. rosea have opened here.  The quick response is fascinating, Brachychiton rupestris is wasting no time taking advantage of the situation, new growth surges forth  and seems a stronger red than usual.


johnw

[fermi de Sousa]

 
John,
that's tantamount to plant cruelty, subjecting a Queenslander to a Canadian winter!
 
Lovely new growth!
cheers
fermi

[meanie]

John,
that's tantamount to plant cruelty, subjecting a Queenslander to a Canadian winter!
 
Lovely new growth!
cheers
fermi

Inspiring to those of us who only have a UK winter to deal with though!