Crevice Gardening ......in defence of rock.....

[krisderaeymaeker]

It does not like wet and grows best in a vertical position

That's the way they grow in Turkey to Franz .
Here a white form of Dianthus alpinus in my crevice .......

[krisderaeymaeker]

Well, I will definitely have to try these campanulas in the crevice gardens.  Thanks, Kris, Franz, and Ebbie.  Do these examples have any relief from the sun?  Here it is not only drought and dry conditions, but heat and sun all day, and then very cold winters.  It's amazing the array of plants which will endure such conditions.

Ok, just one to convince you more Anne .........
The same that Ebbie showed us ......... 

[krisderaeymaeker]

And his neighbour ......Helichrysum milfordae . Always very shy in flowering .......
And one view from above .....

[hadacekf]

Kris,
A perfect crevice garden.

[ranunculus]

Kris,
A perfect crevice garden.

I agree, Franz ... superb.

[krisderaeymaeker]

Kris,
A perfect crevice garden.

I agree, Franz ... superb.

Thanks for the compliments Franz and Cliff 

[astragalus]

Kris, your crevice garden is beautiful.  The helichrysum is lovely but would never make it through the winter here.  I've tried several different ones and they don't survive, too bad.  No one can grow everything unless they have alpine houses and greenhouses at their disposal.

[krisderaeymaeker]

And just one for today .........A tiny Hypericum imbricatum .

[krisderaeymaeker]

Kris, your crevice garden is beautiful.  The helichrysum is lovely but would never make it through the winter here.  I've tried several different ones and they don't survive, too bad.  No one can grow everything unless they have alpine houses and greenhouses at their disposal.

Thanks Anne .
I agree on your quote Anne , we al have our limits .....I must admit that I lost this Helichrysum several times in the past. This one is in the crevice now for two years and it get some winterprotection . (glas)
Each year I say to myself that I need to stop with this winterprotections ....It is a lot of work and the garden looks terrible in the winter. I already have less and on one day I am sure I have not any left .....

[Tim Ingram]

I keep discovering more alpine hypericums I haven't heard of - I do like that H. imbricatum; they seem a very underrated genus.

Peter Korn showed Helichrysum milfordae growing well on one of his sand beds, and also flowering well. He said that it does best planted near to a high water table - and his winter temperatures can be pretty low. I must admit I grow it with glass cover in winter, but it doesn't flower well for me. I wonder if they grow it in places like Tromso where there must be persistant winter snow cover?

[astragalus]

Kris, I don't provide any winter protection, only protection from deer.  If it were a white flowered ranunculus, I would probably do anything to try and keep it, though.  We all have our exceptions!  The only one I can grow is Ranunculus pyrenaica (spelling?), and it may be that the only reason I can grow that one is because it seems to be able to go dormant when the garden gets dry and then reappear in the spring.  There is no high water table in the garden.  What there is, is very, very deep crevices (in some cases up to 5'), and there must be some moisture retention there although I doubt the roots go that deep.  The one exception to that might be Claytonia megarhiza, whose roots seem to go on and on.

[krisderaeymaeker]

I keep discovering more alpine hypericums I haven't heard of - I do like that H. imbricatum; they seem a very underrated genus.

Agree Tim ,  this Hypericum kazdaghensis is also a very rewarding thing wich flower for a long period .

[krisderaeymaeker]

The very rewarding Phlox pulvinatum . So far the best Phlox here . I would like to grow others but struggle in wintertime ....

[krisderaeymaeker]

Saxifraga pseudovaldensis .

[astragalus]

Kris, Phlox pulvinata is one of the easiest of our western phloxes to grow.  Another easy one is Phlox kelseyi.  It comes in white and various named purple forms (P.k.'Lehmi purple', and P.k.'Lehmi midnight').  The really great thing about P. kelseyi is that it will have repeat flushes of bloom when it's happy.  It does fine in troughs, crevice gardens, just wants good sun.  I think you can get seed from Alan Bradshaw of Alplains Seeds.  Phlox condensata is another winner but is not quite as easy to make flower the way it should.  Try as many as you can find, they are all wonderful.