Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

General Subjects => Flowers and Foliage Now => Topic started by: Sinchets on July 01, 2009, 02:42:41 PM

Title: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 01, 2009, 02:42:41 PM
Here it is a difficult time of year, where we have to be thankful of annual bedding and the occasional brave perennial brightening up the garden. Most of the other plants here are busy setting seed or have gone dormant until the autumn rains. Flowering now:
Delphinium hansenii hansenii- the last few flowers at the top of the 1.5m stems- hopefully seed will set before this plant goes dormant.
Linanthus grandiflorus- a self sown annual from the edge of the woodland bed- more impressive in that its parents were about 20m away last year.
Mimulus cardinalis- flowering in a pot and still waiting for the pond to be dug  :-\
Verbascums and Eremurus in the xeric garden
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 01, 2009, 03:54:15 PM
Mimulus cardinalis- flowering in a pot and still waiting for the pond to be dug  :-\
Verbascums and Eremurus in the xeric garden

Simon,
I suggest you start digging the pond right now - with 35°C or so in the shade, you should produce enough sweat to fill it right away.
 ;D ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 01, 2009, 06:05:28 PM
Mimulus cardinalis- flowering in a pot and still waiting for the pond to be dug  :-\
Verbascums and Eremurus in the xeric garden

Simon,
I suggest you start digging the pond right now - with 35°C or so in the shade, you should produce enough sweat to fill it right away.
 ;D ;D
Lol, that's the main reason why it hasn't been dug yet. By midday it is too hot to be out there! We still need to finish scything the meadow too  :(
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 01, 2009, 06:12:49 PM
Some roses in their first flushes of bloom here...
1) The 'Therese Bugnet*' hedge has started to bloom.... very fragrant en masse.   (*Sorry, can't figure out how to do grave and acute accents on a Mac with a Microsoft keyboard!)
2) 'Agnes'... a lanky old specimen that will get cut down for "rejuvenation" this year!  Lemon-scented but only once-blooming.
3) 'Marie Bugnet'... very scented, as well.
4) The 'Pavement' series of rugosas seems to be rather unfortunately named ("Pavement" doesn't seem to capture the gardener's imagination!), but are excellent, hardy, very scented roses for very cold areas... 'Apart Purple Pavement'.
5) Penstemon lyallii
6) Persicaria polymorpha
7) Saxifraga cotyledon
8) Helianthemum 'Ben Nevis'
9)  Alchemilla faeroensis, about half the size of A. mollis.
10) Helianthemum oelandicum ssp. alpestre
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: johnw on July 01, 2009, 06:15:34 PM
Alstroemeria pallida from Archibald #14355, collected wild at 2200m in flower today. Seed from 1995.  Flowers sitting on a rhododendron seedling.  This has always been a wretched plant with long stringy shoots, always looking etiolated and slightly mixed-up seasonally as it is now dying back. I haven't dared to try it outside. Has anyone been brave enough to do so?

johnw
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 01, 2009, 07:54:17 PM
It may be bad behaved John, but it is one beautiful flower !!  8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 01, 2009, 08:04:45 PM
I'll second that. The only one I've managed from seed here was A.ligtu. Sadly I now know that voles love them so I shall never even see those flower. :'(
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 01, 2009, 09:25:39 PM
How have you managed to keep that lovely Alstromeria so long in a pot, John? We've always found them, even the tiniest species,  to be desperate to burrow out of the bottom of any pot and head for the centre of the earth at speed!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 01, 2009, 09:47:12 PM
Coming from over 2000 metres it should be reasonably hardy?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 01, 2009, 09:53:31 PM
I do like the look of Alchemilla faroensis of which I've had seed from the seedlists at least 3 times, but have never had one germinate. Hadn't seen the plant before but I liked the idea of something from (presumably) the Faroe Islands. (Am I getting mixed up here and actually thinking of the Farne Islands because I had somehow imagined the Faroes off the NE coast of England ???)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: johnw on July 01, 2009, 10:53:36 PM
How have you managed to keep that lovely Alstromeria so long in a pot, John? We've always found them, even the tiniest species,  to be desperate to burrow out of the bottom of any pot and head for the centre of the earth at speed!

That could explain its tortured appearance. ;D

johnw
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 02, 2009, 02:43:55 AM
thank goodness for the xeric garden, simon :) hopefully there is at least some good tough foliage to look at?
summer dormancy is not much heard of here, some early things finish early, but most plants just try to use what little summer there is! there was widespread frost in alberta last night! no sign of it here, that i have seen yet, though i think it was there on buildings etc....an interesting summer it has been..
the annual is nice..i like the idea of things seeding here and there..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 02, 2009, 03:52:24 AM
Lesley, apparently Alchemilla faeroensis is indeed from the Faeroe Islands (Denmark) off to the NE of Scotland.  I got the seed from Kristl's Gardens North years ago.   The plants are not the tiny 'pumila' form - they're almost 40 cm to the top of the flowering stems.  I'll certainly try to collect seeds, if there is any interest in it.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 02, 2009, 08:28:30 AM
thank goodness for the xeric garden, simon :) hopefully there is at least some good tough foliage to look at?
summer dormancy is not much heard of here, some early things finish early, but most plants just try to use what little summer there is! there was widespread frost in alberta last night! no sign of it here, that i have seen yet, though i think it was there on buildings etc....an interesting summer it has been..
the annual is nice..i like the idea of things seeding here and there..
A frost? I know summers are short with you, but what a challenge to garden in areas like that! We might make it to
-25C here, but at least it is cold when we expect it to be cold.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 02, 2009, 08:27:52 PM
My neighbor said there was frost on the roofs Wednesday morning... didn't notice it ourselves.

1) Anthemis carpatica 'Karpaten schnee'
2) The absolute last of the spring bulbs, a few Brimeura amythestina.
3) Clematis recta
4, 5) Dracocephalum botryoides
6) Dracocephalum ruyschiana
7) Pimpinella major 'Rosea'
8 ) Scutellaria orientalis ssp. alpina (?)
9) Scutellaria alpina
10) Thyme between the stepping stones.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 02, 2009, 09:29:04 PM
Thanks Lori, for sorting out my woolliness about the Alchemilla. I guess my geography was ROUGHLY in the right area. Well very roughly. :) 40cms sounds OK. I like the airy quality of it. A. mollis seeds around here to a frightening degreee.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 03, 2009, 12:38:37 AM
there was widespread frost in alberta last night! no sign of it here, that i have seen yet, though i think it was there on buildings etc....an interesting summer it has been..
the annual is nice..i like the idea of things seeding here and there..
A frost? I know summers are short with you, but what a challenge to garden in areas like that! We might make it to
-25C here, but at least it is cold when we expect it to be cold.

similar to lori's neighbour, my mom saw frost on the roof early in the morning...i generally dont look around at that hour ;) i have tomatoes in pots in my veg garden in progress, and they have been unaffected, as they were for several weeks of regular frost in late may/early june..so that tells me the spot i have chosen is pretty safe from frost, and as for flower garden plants, if they cant take the climate, i dont care to grow them...of course the trick is knowing which those are ;) but i know there are many many things that manage this climate well, i wont worry about the others--and thats why i still garden indoors year round!

it can be a bit of a drag when (like the last few days) i need a jacket for at least part of the daytime, and a couple of nights/mornings i lit the woodburning heater because it was cold in the house....
on the bright side, we have no such thing as 'too hot to go out in midday' and if its sunny and warms up the house in midday, its cooled off easily by evening--in fact this year, we have had to close most windows fully by early evening to keep some warmth! other times/years it is much warmer, but never problematically so...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: illingworth on July 03, 2009, 02:49:35 AM
With our slow dialup connection we are always behind. This Cypripedium passerinum put off its first flower in late June, after 5 or so years in the garden. It now has a nice glistening seed pod - which sometimes can fool me because sometimes they turn out to be empty. This came as a gift from a generous friend.

Rob
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 03, 2009, 10:36:27 AM
Wow,wow,wow - a fabulous gift in more than one sense then Rob  :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 03, 2009, 11:48:02 AM
Here are some plants that are flowering here now:

1) Alstroemeria aurea 'lutea'
2) Arisaema saxatile
3) Deinanthe caerulea
4) Dianthus erinaceus (the real thing)
5) Dianthus microlepis
6) Origanum rotundifolia 'Kent Beauty'
7) Primula nipponica
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 03, 2009, 01:25:01 PM
Wim,

Excellent pics.  The Deinanthe brings back my wonderful memories of mine flowering for the first time this spring (and it blew my socks off!!  :o), the Arisaema saxitile is one that I will have to look out for as I love that flower, and that Primula is adorable.  Thanks for the wonderful pics. 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 03, 2009, 01:42:34 PM
Really lovely flowerings Wim.... Deinanthe caerulea is really gorgeous and the Dianthus erinaceus (the real thing) - is it rare?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 03, 2009, 02:12:00 PM
Thanks,

Paul, the Arisaema and Primula are flowering for the first time this year, if it sets seed I'll let you know.

Robin, the Dianthus isn't that rare but it seems there was a mix up the last years where another species was sold as D. erinaceus in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 03, 2009, 03:32:58 PM
Good show Wim !
The lovely Primula seems to be suffering from the heat...  :-\

The Alstroemeria looks nice as well - how tall is it ?  Do you grow it outside in the garden or in a pot ?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Darren on July 03, 2009, 04:12:35 PM
Magnar - thanks for the offer of Delphinium seed in last months thread. I accept! 

Wim - Envious that you get Dianthus erinaceus to produce flowers evenly spread like that. Now my plant is mounded up in the middle it only flowers on the southern side, and sparsely too!

Some pics from me:

Cistus are enjoying our recent heatwave. The first two pictures are Cistus 'Jessamy Beauty' which came from Keith Lever. The next is a flower on a plant grown from seed labelled C. ladanifer. It fits the description in every way but the flowers do not have the red blotch on the petals like most forms do.

Next is the true Geranium argenteum from habitat collected seed via the AGS exchange - it rarely appears so I was very pleased to get it about 7 or 8 years ago. A friend locally got seed from the same lot and has it seeding itself around her garden. I'm not quite so lucky despite having two plants close together. I am never organised enough to collect the seed before it gets explosively ejected!

Also enjoying the heat (or at least the sunshine) are the few hardy cacti I grow outdoors - these pictures are Coryphantha vivipara flowering in a trough (it gets a polycarbonate cover on it in winter). This came from habitat seed via the AGS exchange again, along with an unknown 'Escobaria sp' which has yet to flower. I am envious of the cacti Kristl grows in her garden (see last summer). I have these plus a few Opuntia which do quite well in poor soil on our rock garden.

There was some debate on another thread about the bargain mixed lots of Ponerorchis graminifolia being offered by UK suppliers. This one from such an offer perhaps shows it is worth the gamble!


Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 03, 2009, 04:30:20 PM
Luc,

who wouldn't be suffering, I really hate this typical Belgian humid heat...
the Alstroemeria is about one meter high. It stays outside all year but it's planted against a south facing wall under a Magnolia stellata.

Darren,

it's a very young plant hence the evenly spread flowers, I guess that it won't be like that in a couple of years.
Nice to see the cacti growing outside, here I have some (Escobaria, Echinocereus and Maihuenia) outside in a trough too but they don't need a covering in winter...

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 03, 2009, 06:19:58 PM
nice stuff!
rob--the cypripedium is lovely--there is a park not too far from here where there were tons of them flowering last year, maybe i should be checking to see if they are in action now; i find it very irritating that the suppliers of hardy orchids mostly have stupid hybrids, and very few of the native species, and really nothing from alberta...
btw--we switched from dial-up internet to 'mobile internet stick' which works on cellphone technology; you have to be careful about usage charges, but a great way to get fast internet in the bush, as long as you can get cell signals; luckily my cousin used it first, so he told me which of the 3 available here was effective on our road..

wim--i agree, very cute primula
darren--the escobaria are looking really great; i went searching for alberta cacti recently (a soon to come thread) but wasnt far enough south for most of the escobaria--only spotted one, with no flower or seed...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 03, 2009, 11:44:13 PM
Darren,

Very nice.  Love that Ponerorchis and the wonderful silver leaves of the Geranium argenteum (living up to it's name ;D).  Great stuff!! 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Onion on July 04, 2009, 07:20:34 AM
Some pics from me:

Cistus are enjoying our recent heatwave. The first two pictures are Cistus 'Jessamy Beauty' which came from Keith Lever. The next is a flower on a plant grown from seed labelled C. ladanifer. It fits the description in every way but the flowers do not have the red blotch on the petals like most forms do.


Darren,

can you post a picture of the hole plant, labelled C. ladanifer ? It looks like the C. salviifolius I grew. But I need a picture to see if my suggestion can be right. Because C. saliviifolius is a flat species.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 04, 2009, 09:44:36 AM
Flowering now in the garden:
Delphinium maackianum (?) F1 from seeds originally bought from Chilterns. I really like the 'Pterodactyl head' flower buds
Delphinium fissum- seed collected in Bulgaria- there are only 3 species listed for Bulgaria and this is the only perennial found in this area. I would be interested to hear if this is thought to be identified correctly.
Delphinium grandiflorum - the pink form from 'Amour'
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Darren on July 04, 2009, 12:23:37 PM
Onion,
As requested here are some other pics of the Cistus 'ladanifer'.

The whole shrub with my camera case for scale. I guess it is now about 1.5m high (so not a flat species).

A close up of the foliage, which is extremely sticky. The gum is really hard to get off your hands too!

My original pic was a bit misleading and I realise that the flower does look a lot like C salviifolius when not seen to scale it - is actually about 10 cm in diameter.  One of its siblings from the same seed (it was left behind when we moved) had flowers 15cm across and also pure white.

I have often wondered if the seed was hybrid? What do you think? I'd be interested in getting an opinion on this. The foliage and habit resemble ladanifer but the flowers are not quite right. It is a lovely plant anyway! It seems very hardy here and never suffers frost damage.  It often sets seed which germinates very freely whilst still in the capsule, which makes it a challenge to collect.

I just checked to see if I still have C salviifolius and can confirm it is still there but does really badly for some reason and rarely summons enough energy to flower!

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: arisaema on July 04, 2009, 12:48:02 PM
Great pics everyone!

Wim; I think your Deinanthe is the "bifida x caerulea"-hybrid 'Blue Wonder' - IMHO a more floriferous and nicer plant than both species :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 04, 2009, 01:17:46 PM
It could be, I bought it a couple of years ago as Deinanthe bifida which it clearly is not...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: annew on July 04, 2009, 03:33:43 PM
I bought one the same as caerulea, but some of the leaves are bifid, so I think mine must also be the hybrid.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Onion on July 04, 2009, 08:00:30 PM
Onion,
As requested here are some other pics of the Cistus 'ladanifer'.


Daren,
I recognized the following page, because we (in the nursery I work) have the same problem with the correct names.
http://www.cistuspage.org.uk/Photo%20gallery.htm

I compare the pictures and it may be Cistus x oblongifolius . Or send a mail to the holder of the page.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 04, 2009, 09:52:50 PM

4) Dianthus erinaceus (the real thing)

Yes.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 04, 2009, 09:59:03 PM
Robin, Dianthus erinaceus is not especially rare but several other dianthus species or hybrids are often distributed as "the real thing" when they are not. The very sharply pointed and exceedingly painful leaf tips are the giveaway in Win's picture. If you don't howl on contact, it isn't erinaceus. ;D

Gorgeous Deinanthe.......Yum yum.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 04, 2009, 10:35:21 PM
Wim - Envious that you get Dianthus erinaceus to produce flowers evenly spread like that. Now my plant is mounded up in the middle it only flowers on the southern side, and sparsely too!
In my experience, D. erinaceus flowers best if well watered in the month before buds set (Sept here). If I don't water it or if we don't have lots of rain (my plants are outside) the buds set, usually hundreds of them on my big plant, but they abort and don't fully develop. Well watered they will flower really well, but like yours Darren, on the warmer side first then gradually going over to the cooler side. A potted plant needs to be turned half way every couple of days from early spring until flowering.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 05, 2009, 03:28:49 PM
Flowering now:
Campanula takhtazanii- the only information I have is that it is Caucasian- it has a very Symphyandra pendula type flower
Salvia nemorosa 'RosenWein'
Nepeta nuda albiflora
Nepeta lanceolata
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ruweiss on July 05, 2009, 07:25:23 PM
Some pictures from the last days, the Gentians flowered for me for the first time from
Chinese seeds collected by J.Jurasek.
Sempervivums are now at their best.
I lost the label of the Lilium and hope, that the name is correct. If not, so let me know it.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ruweiss on July 05, 2009, 07:29:15 PM
Now the Sempervivums:
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 05, 2009, 07:35:01 PM
Those troughs are breathtaking!  What an inspiration, Rudi!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 05, 2009, 08:49:03 PM
Some pictures from the last days, Sempervivums are now at their best.

nice stuff--is the pterocactus grown indoors/in  a pot? really nice plant
the sempervivum carpets are amazing! very inspiring, though i have doubts i can grow them so exposed here..will be experimenting for sure..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 05, 2009, 09:29:01 PM
Grown in crevices like that, the sempervivums are outstanding.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 05, 2009, 10:49:30 PM
Now the Sempervivums:

Congratulations, Rudi, your Sempervivums look magnificent bursting out of the crevices and pouring like larva down the rocks :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: johnw on July 06, 2009, 12:45:16 AM
Rudi -  Your semps are magnificent.  Can you tell us about the long term care you give them?  I have some semp troughs and they look good for the first 3-5 years but then lose steam and thin out.  I wonder if there is a long term solution.  I am not so good (as in almost never) about fertilizing them.

johnw
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 06, 2009, 08:31:54 AM
Great show Rudi !
Love the Lilium with it's turned up flowers !!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 07, 2009, 05:54:54 AM
1) Crambe maritima, looking very broccoli-ish, starting to bloom.
2) Yellow buttons of Tanacetum huronense terrae-novae with Salvia nemorosa 'Marcus'
3) Dragging you all back in time once again... a frowsy, blowsy peony.
4) And a frowsy, blowsy poppy... Papaver orientale 'Dwarf Allegro'
5) Another tactile geranium, G. 'Philippe Vapelle' (obvious hybrid of G. renardii).
6) This one is very cuddly too, with long hairs on the backsides of the leaves and on the buds... G. x magnificum, drooping after today's lovely rain.
7) G. ibericum
8) Wonderful colour (but such a brief bloom)... Lindelofia anchusoides.
9) Mimulus guttatus in the spot that it likes, alongside the greenhouse where it gets ample water from the gravel floor.
10) Silene ssp.... I like it very much but I'm not sure what it is - with Linneas borealis in the foreground, carpeting the  top of the acid bed.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 07, 2009, 02:36:50 PM
From the opulent to the petite - what a wonderful show, Lori -  Lindelofia anchusoides is a fabulous blue  :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 07, 2009, 03:47:32 PM
From the opulent to the petite - what a wonderful show, Lori -  Lindelofia anchusoides is a fabulous blue  :)
Oh no, has it changed? I'm still growing it as Paracaryum anchusoides  :-[
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Tony Willis on July 07, 2009, 04:15:15 PM
a couple of things on my raised bed
Dierama igneum
Potentilla uniflora
Geranium argenteum

and a nice shrub new to us a couple of years ago flowering for the first time
 Styrax japonica pink chimes
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Rodger Whitlock on July 07, 2009, 05:28:55 PM
Styrax japonica pink chimes

I have 'Pink Chimes' too, but I've come to the conclusion that the ordinary white-flowered form is the better plant. It's a good white and just somehow works better visually.

Purely an esthetic judgement.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Tony Willis on July 07, 2009, 07:31:23 PM
Rodger

you are probably right. Mine looks almost white anyway so naming it was a bit pointless.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 07, 2009, 08:01:18 PM
Simon,
And I had Lindelofia anchusoides recorded as Adelocaryum anchusoides, until I was correctly fairly recently on a different forum.  I can't keep up!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 07, 2009, 08:21:29 PM
Thanks Lori. I've seen it in seed catalogues as Adelocaryum- but that was a while ago.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 07, 2009, 09:14:50 PM
Tony,

Just a follow up to your pink flowers above. Here are two eucryphias in flower here at present. Both are very young trees, barely a metre high but are flowering very well, especially 'Ballerina' and this is also the stronger pink.

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Onion on July 07, 2009, 09:41:59 PM
Paddy,

another dream for my area  :'(
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 07, 2009, 09:45:48 PM
How tall does the tree grow Paddy? Great to have such lovely flowers dangling dreamily in July  :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Tony Willis on July 07, 2009, 09:51:32 PM
Paddy you must have more of the Gulf Stream than me,that is wonderful. How hardy is it,I showed it to Mrs W and I am already being pestered to get one.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Regelian on July 07, 2009, 10:11:30 PM
From what I have read, Eucryphia can handle frost without a problem.  They need moisture and a wind protected situation.  Apparently easy from cuttings.  I've never seen one offered, but would certainly try it in my climate, 8a, dropping to -15°C on occaision.  I have an Araucaria angustifolia since 3 years.  No damage.  Actually, I have three from seed, so I can afford a mistake! ;D ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Stephenb on July 08, 2009, 07:47:33 AM
1) Crambe maritima, looking very broccoli-ish, starting to bloom.

Lori: Surprised to see that you can cultivate Sea Kale in Alberta! One of my favourite edimentals (edible ornamentals), beautiful when established and covered in flowers! I have one that is now about 27 years old and still produces every spring. Here it is in flower a week ago:

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 08, 2009, 08:56:44 AM
Re eucryphia: The two plants shown are very young, only planted 18 months ago approximately and are now about 1 metre high. They have come through the harshest winter weather we have had in many years without any damage whatsoever. I expect they will gradually grow to 5 or more metres.

I also grow E. x nymansay, E. 'Rostrevor', E. 'Mount Usher', E. 'Ballerina', E. lucida 'Pink Cloud'  and another whose name I haven't as it was given to me as a gift. The oldest of these, E. x nymansay,  is now over twenty years in the garden, is 5 - 6 metres high, flowers in August usually and has never had any damage from frost or weather.

They are good garden plants. I have never had to prune or do anything else to them over the years and they flower reliably and profusely year on year.

The pink flowers are a nice addition.

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 08, 2009, 10:40:52 AM
Paddy,

Yeah for southern hemisphere plants!!  ;D  Go leatherwoods!!  8) 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 08, 2009, 01:18:00 PM
Paul,

I can certainly recommend them. They are excellent plants here - unlike the eucalyptus!!! My son is in the process of removing one from his garden. It was there when he purchased the house and it completely out of scale and unsuitable for the small space. They enjoy our generous rainfall but there is the danger that after growing at an enormous rate they become unstable on the roots.

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 08, 2009, 02:18:13 PM
Flowering now:
Dianthus amurensis- Inever did understand why this was marketted as 'Siberian Blues' and a big play about the flowers being the "closest thing to blue" you could get in a Dianthus. It's a beautiful plant without the hype.
Achillea millefolium 'Summer Berries' - guarding the front gate.
Hosta venusta (?)- a dwarf Hosta bought a long, long time ago from Raemoir Garden Centre, Banchory- it is spread around here by the voles disturbing the soil.
Penstemon rydbergii- second flowering, after some recent storms, in a shady border
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 08, 2009, 02:56:14 PM
Re eucryphia: Thanks for giving more information Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 08, 2009, 08:07:37 PM
Achillea millefolium 'Summer Berries' - guarding the front gate.

nice achillea--a genus i really like, and hoping ot get some more--miniatures and pink flowers are hign on my list; i picked up  a nice bright yellow form with silver foliage this spring, still in a pot, but blooming away.. my intention is to plant it with some red foliage penstemons--'husker's red' i think...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Tony Willis on July 08, 2009, 08:17:30 PM
Paddy thanks for the info on the eucryphia. We have a lost name one which has been in the garden several years and is slowly growing

Here is Deinathe caerulea in flower at the moment
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 08, 2009, 08:26:07 PM
Wonderful coloured Achillea, Simon, I love the level heads and they look great against the backdrop.  Lovely Dianthus - I expect the light changes the impression of the colour during the day and by evening it would look quite different.....the little hosta is really sweet - so voles do have some good points don't they? ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 08, 2009, 10:19:13 PM
I have a pink eucryphia called 'Carousel' but very small and not flowered yet. All the Eucryphias have that certain something that says "Class" plants, very choice and special. I love them all. Especially valued too in that they are autumn flowering.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: johnw on July 09, 2009, 12:46:50 AM
All the Eucryphias have that certain something that says "Class" plants, very choice and special.

Here, that something also says "Winter-Damaged" plants.   :'(

johnw
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 09, 2009, 09:04:42 AM
The Achillea is a bit aggressive, but a great plant in dry soil- sun or part shade. It's been a good seller here, but only in flower, otherwise people are suspicious we are trying to sell a common garden weed  ;)
The Hosta is interesting- I really wasn't sure if it would take to the heat here- but the voles 'divided' them for us, and they are now coming up in lots of places.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 09, 2009, 01:18:56 PM
Simon, I've always been puzzled by the hoopla (or should I say advertising) over that Dianthus amurensis cultivar/selection (whatever it is)!  Achillea millefolium is rather aggressive no matter where, it seems!  So many of the interesting colours have the habit of fading to less attractive beiges, too.

Stephen, what a venerable old plant you have - amazing.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 09, 2009, 06:04:45 PM
Simon, I've always been puzzled by the hoopla (or should I say advertising) over that Dianthus amurensis cultivar/selection (whatever it is)!  Achillea millefolium is rather aggressive no matter where, it seems!  So many of the interesting colours have the habit of fading to less attractive beiges, too.
The standard off-white Achillea millefoilum is native here too-we are planning on letting 'Summer Berries' "escape" into the meadow to see how fast it moves through it by runner or by seed.  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 09, 2009, 07:48:42 PM
First signs of autumn!
(But let us enjoy summer while it is here)

My first autumn flowers: Colchicum parnassicum and flowerbuds of Scilla intermedia.


Poul
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 09, 2009, 07:54:40 PM
Hi, Poul!
I was astounded to see that fall-blooming colchicums start in August out on our west coast (as compared to September/October here)... I'm flabbergasted to see them blooming in early July in Denmark!  Will wonders never cease?   :D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 09, 2009, 08:03:21 PM
Hi Lori,

It is my first season with parnassicum, so I do not know if it is unusual, but it has a reputation of flowering as early as in June.
Last year my col. montana (Meredana montana) flowered July the 10Th, but previous years in august. Col. autumnale flowers in august in Denmark.

Poul
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 09, 2009, 08:13:54 PM
Must have been the cool weather you've been having up there. We won't (normally) see them here till the latter half of September when the nights start to get cooler!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lvandelft on July 09, 2009, 08:59:57 PM
Pictures made this week:

Coreopsis Little Sundial                
Daphne                              
Delphinium Coral Sunset          
Fungus                    
Opuntia
Gypsophila Rosenschleier              
Hydrangea Annabelle 1  
   (About a week earlier)            

Hydrangea Annabelle 2                
Rosa
Hypericum densiflorum  I put the wrong name to this plant, should be Hypericum frondosum Sunburst  
               (edit L.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Roma on July 09, 2009, 09:24:35 PM
First signs of autumn here too.  Noticed a flower on Acis autumnalis this afternoon.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 09, 2009, 09:58:24 PM
Luit,

Hydrangea 'Annabelle' is an outstanding plant and your specimen is a great example.

Roma,

Acis autumnalis is just starting to flower here also, just a sprinkle of flowers to date.

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 09, 2009, 10:58:22 PM
Luit, I too like Hydrangea Annabelle, each head is so frothy and your specimen looks wonderful - what is the pink flowering shrub bottom right?

I particularly like seeing the progression form green to white as in your photos one week apart. Another Hydrangea I like is the oak leaf one - for shape of leaf and autumn colour, although even the flower heads are strangely attractive.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 10, 2009, 07:30:53 AM
First signs of autumn here too.  Noticed a flower on Acis autumnalis this afternoon.

signs of autumn! scary thought--esp since it seems summer has never really got under way here... and we will probably have autumn long  before you too...lol
oh well, i didnt move back here for the weather...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 10, 2009, 08:17:17 AM
Poul,
Announcing Autumn is nothing to be proud of you know  >:( ;) ;D


Great Summerflowers Luit.
My Annabelles are also in full flower but they suffered from heavy rainfall yesterday - the heads are down...  :'(

Your Ghypsofilia is impressive - like a cloud of flower !!  :o :o
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ArneM on July 10, 2009, 09:34:56 AM
Although the garden does not look that well because of wind and rain the whole time, I still found some plants to show.
A picture of Deinanthe bifida 'Pink Shi' will follow when it flowers.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 10, 2009, 10:45:19 AM
Beautiful, Arne.  I love the pink Deinanthe! :o
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lvandelft on July 10, 2009, 11:14:40 AM
Robin, next to my H. Annabelle is no shrub but it's Geranium oxonianum Sherwood (I believe that is the name).
This is a Geranium with a special flower form which is not really nice, but I planted it there together with Physostegia and Annabelle and
if I would need the spot I would take the Geranium out. In many years it suffers from red spider and shows a bad display.
Probably my fault because the spot is very dry near a raised terrace.

Great Summerflowers Luit.
My Annabelles are also in full flower but they suffered from heavy rainfall yesterday - the heads are down...  :'(
Your Ghypsofilia is impressive - like a cloud of flower !!  :o :o
Luc, the Annabelles in other gardens here are all with their heads down or even fell to the ground.
The heads of my plant are a bit smaller and still up. I cut the plants in early March totally off at ground level.
I learned that the flower heads stay smaller then and the plant keeps lower.


Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lvandelft on July 10, 2009, 11:16:13 AM
Arne, what a beautiful pink Deinanthe. I knew there is a white form, but never heard of a pink one.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 10, 2009, 11:23:58 AM
Although the garden does not look that well because of wind and rain the whole time, I still found some plants to show.
A picture of Deinanthe bifida 'Pink Shi' will follow when it flowers.

Great shots Arne!

I really like the Argemone polythemis - never seen one before

Also I love the wisteria which looks pinkish - is it?  The flowers are wonderful and, I imagine, scented?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ArneM on July 10, 2009, 12:07:09 PM
Thank you all!

'Pink Ki' is the pinkish and 'Pink Shi' (who has chosen thses names?) is the more bluish D. bifida but you will see the difference later.

Great shots Arne!

I really like the Argemone polythemis - never seen one before

Also I love the wisteria which looks pinkish - is it?  The flowers are wonderful and, I imagine, scented?

I think my wisteria just looks on this picture pinkish, actually its flowers are lilac/violet but I was always told that men do not have a good colour perception. ::) Luckily I can assure you a great scent. ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 10, 2009, 12:13:57 PM
There are pinkish Wisteria varieties.  I grow a pale pink one called 'Carnea', that fades quite a bit as it ages.  There are a couple of other varieties available here as well, but I haven't seen them in flower to know the difference to mine.

I look forward to the other Deinanthe.  I was given a D. caerulea last year and was blown away by it.  I would love to find other species/colours of it as I adore the flowers.  Such a precious rarity!! 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 10, 2009, 02:13:34 PM
Nice to see you back on the forum, Arne. Does this mean all examinations are now completed?

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ArneM on July 10, 2009, 02:20:18 PM
Nice to see you back on the forum, Arne. Does this mean all examinations are now completed?

Paddy

Yup, we have holidays here now and for sure I passed all exams, especially the FCE exam. ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 10, 2009, 05:32:58 PM
Congratulations are in order then. Well done!

Enjoy the holidays.

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ArneM on July 10, 2009, 06:46:59 PM
Congratulations are in order then. Well done!

Enjoy the holidays.

Paddy

Thank you, Paddy. :D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 11, 2009, 06:39:44 AM
I bought Deinanthe caerulea 'Blue Wonder' a few years ago and have been surprised and pleased to find it hardy here... but I found it really hates our dry conditions!  Even when planted in half-shade, it would collapse whenever it got fairly warm outside (i.e. over room temperature...  ;))  It seems reasonably happy now (self-supporting, anyway!), in full shade and with its base sheltered under the big leaves of a Telekia speciosa... but sparse blooming, perhaps not surprisingly.

1) Hemerocallis dumortieri, one of my favourites for its wonderful fragrance and refined manners.
2) Allium x 'Globe Master'
3) A rather pretty small heuchera, Heuchera x 'Petite Ruby Frills'
4, 5) Columbines
6) Campanula rotundifolia
7) I rather like these open-faced campanula hybrids, Campanula x 'Samantha'
8 ) Saxifraga cuneifolia
9) Dianthus subacaulis 'Gary Eichhorn'
10) Dianthus alpinus?


Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 11, 2009, 10:00:38 AM
Quote
Hemerocallis dumortieri, one of my favourites for its wonderful fragrance and refined manners.

It looks wonderful in that situation under arching branches, Lori, looking straight at you  ;)  Their shape is so appealing and, I imagine, the perfume too.

the Dianthus Alpinus? is a beautiful little plant with lots of character - I shall look out for it.  Thanks for the wonderful images of your garden.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ArneM on July 11, 2009, 10:34:39 AM
Is Deinanthe caeruela 'Blue Wonder' really a cultivar of caerulea or actually a hybrid? There are many nurseries which list it as a hybrid (caerulea x bifida) - I share that opinion - but others sell it as a cultivar of caeruela... ???
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lvandelft on July 11, 2009, 10:53:00 AM
Some more plants flowering here:

Anthericum ramosum 
Boehmeria spec. 1               
Boehmeria spec. 2             
   There are several of these nettle like plants. I would like to know which species I have?

Coreopsis verticillata Grandiflora           
Dorycnium hirsutum                     
Geranium Russell Prichard                 
Helianthus + Miscanthus                   
Penstemon Andenken an Friedrich Hahn             
Verbascum
   (These huge hybrids are seeding everywhere on the former nursery grounds)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 11, 2009, 10:58:29 AM
Luit,

Lovely.  That Helianthus foliage is beautiful!!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 11, 2009, 11:35:15 AM
Some more plants flowering here:

Anthericum ramosum  
Boehmeria spec. 1              
Boehmeria spec. 2            
   There are several of these nettle like plants. I would like to know which species I have?

Coreopsis verticillata Grandiflora          
Dorycnium hirsutum                      
Geranium Russell Prichard                
Helianthus + Miscanthus                    
Penstemon Andenken an Friedrich Hahn              
Verbascum
   (These huge hybrids are seeding everywhere on the former nursery grounds)

Luit, is your Anthericum ramosum closely related to the wild one I photographed in my garden visit/ La Thomasina thread?  The flower was very fine like yours appears....I think it is a lovely plant to have at this time of year  :)

Also is you Dorycnium hirsutum  what I think it is - like a sub shrub which produces lovely wine red seed heads - I grew it once and the leaf is very attractive.

Does your rock garden look over a canal - the setting looks wonderful?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 11, 2009, 11:53:52 AM
Is Deinanthe caeruela 'Blue Wonder' really a cultivar of caerulea or actually a hybrid? There are many nurseries which list it as a hybrid (caerulea x bifida) - I share that opinion - but others sell it as a cultivar of caeruela... ???

Arne,

most people I know who grow 'Blue Wonder' see it as a cultivar of caerulea. I've seen it with bifid leaves which would point in the direction of a hybrid but there seems to be Deinanthe caerulea plants which have bifid leaves too (according to The explorer's garden by Daniel Hinkley) so I don't know... maybe someone on the forum knows who has brought it into cultivation?

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 11, 2009, 04:22:33 PM
I bought Deinanthe caerulea 'Blue Wonder' a few years ago and have been surprised and pleased to find it hardy here... but I found it really hates our dry conditions!  Even when planted in half-shade, it would collapse whenever it got fairly warm outside (i.e. over room temperature...  ;))  It seems reasonably happy now (self-supporting, anyway!), in full shade and with its base sheltered under the big leaves of a Telekia speciosa... but sparse blooming, perhaps not surprisingly.
10) Dianthus alpinus?

No Lori it is not Dianthus alpinus. That one has green leaves not glaucous with blunt (rounded) tips not acute. It is also lower. I think that various "Alpine pinks" are masquerading as D.a.

Thank you for the tip on Deinanthe. I have 'Blue Wonder' and it makes no problems but another unnamed clone was doing badly. I believed it needed more light and the result of a move was not at all better. Now it will get a wetter position.  Yes they are surpsisingly hardy. They seem to survive well also in mid-Sweden.
Göte 
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lvandelft on July 11, 2009, 08:05:21 PM
Luit, is your Anthericum ramosum closely related to the wild one I photographed in my garden visit/ La Thomasina thread?  The flower was very fine like yours appears....I think it is a lovely plant to have at this time of year  :)

Also is you Dorycnium hirsutum  what I think it is - like a sub shrub which produces lovely wine red seed heads - I grew it once and the leaf is very attractive.

Does your rock garden look over a canal - the setting looks wonderful?
Robin, I think my Anthericum is the same as the one you showed. A. liliago is a bigger plant, but I saw it only once in Austria.
The Dorycnium is a subshrub indeed and nothing for a small garden. Now after 3 years I'll have to cut it back or replant a new
seedling, which show up here and there. Old plants don't behave so well.
My raised beds are not on the side of the canal, but we look from the window over my other plantings towards the canal.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 12, 2009, 12:27:35 AM
BOTH Deinanthes are truly gorgeous to someone who has neither.
Arne, is the banana growing outside. It appears to be. Does it fruit?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 12, 2009, 12:30:58 AM
Dianthus alpinus has very short, glossy foliage on a tight mat. The flowers are also very short-stemmed. I di like the little Heuchera though. Very pretty. :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 06:34:44 AM
Thanks for the info on Dianthus alpinus... I was doubtful that mine was it, but I wonder what it is?

1) Along the sidewalk
2) Trifolium rubens. I really enjoy this plant... and the flowers are certainly "Rubenesque".  ;D
3) Peucedanum ostruthium 'Daphnis'
4, 5) Boulevard planting.
6) Verbascum... one of the many offspring of V. phoenicium hybrids that have seeded throughout the yard.
7) Polemonium pauciflorum... I'm very fond of these.
8 ) Dianthus fragrans
9) Erigeron peregrinus ssp. callianthemus
10) Bolax gummifera... or whatever it's called now.  ???  Actually, it's Azorella trifurcata!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 12, 2009, 06:46:20 AM
BOTH Deinanthes are truly gorgeous to someone who has neither.
Arne, is the banana growing outside. It appears to be. Does it fruit?

Hi Lesley,

if mine set seed this year, I'll send you some (or is it not your biosecurity index?)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 12, 2009, 06:51:26 AM
Thanks for the info on Dianthus alpinus... I was doubtful that mine was it, but I wonder what it is?

1) Along the sidewalk
2) Trifolium rubens. I really enjoy this plant... and the flowers are certainly "Rubenesque".  ;D
3) Peucedanum ostruthium 'Daphnis'
4, 5) Boulevard planting.
6) Verbascum... one of the many offspring of V. phoenicium hybrids that have seeded throughout the yard.
7) Polemonium pauciflorum... I'm very fond of these.
8 ) Dianthus fragrans
9) Erigeron peregrinus ssp. callianthemus
10) Bolax gummifera... or whatever it's called now.  ???

great stuff, lori--that boulevard planting must really catch a lot of eyes, rare to see anything there...
i think i was looking at bolax on some list--beavercreek/wrightman's?
how does this trifolium behave? clovers are at the very top of my fiercest weeds list: dandelions seed as much or more, but they arent stoloniferous, grasses are stoloniferous, but  arent quite as conspicuous, and nothing else is in competition...lol
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 06:57:25 AM
I've found Trifolium rubens to be perfectly behaved... (N.B.  It's not fair to judge a genus by the behavior of some invasive introduced weeds.. you'll miss out on far too much! ;D)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lvandelft on July 12, 2009, 06:58:09 AM
Lori, the diversity at your sidewalk let me think you are a happy gardener  :)
The Trifolium is some weeks over here already. It's a beauty, but always too short flowering.

Quote
10) Bolax gummifera... or whatever it's called now.
Looks more like Azorella trifurcata (I showed it in the Flowering June thread)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 07:01:30 AM
Hasn't one name replaced the other?  (That is my impression, at any rate...  ???)  What an odd texture it has... like rubber... most un-plantlike!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lvandelft on July 12, 2009, 07:13:49 AM
Lori, here you see what I know as Bolax gummifera.

http://www.alpinegardensociety.net/image_files/forum/sizedBOLAX%20GUMMIFERA3407.jpg
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 12, 2009, 07:36:27 AM
I've found Trifolium rubens to be perfectly behaved... (N.B.  It's not fair to judge a genus by the behavior of some invasive introduced weeds.. you'll miss out on far too much! ;D)

normally i agree...probably clovers are among the few (maybe the only) that have scarred me enough to really hesitate ;)
there was an awesome Trifolium you probably saw on Alpine-L from a dry western u.s. location--teeny tiny and non-spreading...that i would do, though didnt sound all that likely to survive here..lol

speaking of weeds, i was just talking to someone in yukon (i think) on a different forum, and he considered Stachys palustris and Mertensia paniculata to be 'real weeds' there, and he doesnt mean too vigorous for the garden, just weeds--Stachys is just not common here, so i cant comment on that, though i think it spreads underground, so i could see it might be hard to contain once established, and Mertensia is absolutely everywhere here, but i've never had a problem keeping it out of anywhere i dont want it...
my position is that i have a hard time considering a native to be an actual weed (too vigorous for the garden is a different thing) unless its really impossible to remove, which i havent run into with any natives (maybe grasses, but i dont know which are natives)...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 07:40:38 AM
"Lori, here you see what I know as Bolax gummifera."

Amazing plant... incredibly well grown.  (Pardon me for saying so, but sort of grotesque at the same time!  :))


Interesting.... according to this site (UBC), the two are indeed separate species (see 1st comment which points out that the plant in the photo has been misidentified!), distinguished most easily by flower colour, with Azorella trifurcata having yellow flowers, while Bolax gummifera has white-green flowers.

http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/potd/2005/11/bolax_gummifera.php

The two species names are often treated (at less authoritative sites) as though they are synonymous, hence my confusion.  Thanks for clearing that up, Luit!    :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 08:01:30 AM
Cohan, yes, that's my own preference as well... I don't use the term "weed" for native species.  (Sure, they can be invasive, and there are some I regret planting, but I save the word "weed" for introduced naturalized species.)  
Again, there are many Stachys that are perfectly behaved (many more than the few I'm growing or know of, I'm sure!  I'm going to go look back thru the Open Rock Garden thread... Simon has probably already shown more than I knew existed!  :D) so again, one can't really generalize...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 12, 2009, 08:44:36 AM
Some of the plants that are flowering today:

1) Anemonella thalictroides 'Betty Blake' (flowering out of season  ??? )
2) Anemonopsis macrophylla
3) Passiflora caerulea
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 12, 2009, 10:14:30 AM
Is Deinanthe caeruela 'Blue Wonder' really a cultivar of caerulea or actually a hybrid? There are many nurseries which list it as a hybrid (caerulea x bifida) - I share that opinion - but others sell it as a cultivar of caeruela... ???
I ertainly do not know enough about them but I bought my BW as a cultivar. However, it is definitely earlier and easier to grow than the one I bought as "straight" caerula"  It is probably also hardier but I am ot quite sure. I will try to form an opinion later this year. There are no open flowers yet.
Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 12, 2009, 10:22:02 AM
Cohan, yes, that's my own preference as well... I don't use the term "weed" for native species.  (Sure, they can be invasive, and there are some I regret planting, but I save the word "weed" for introduced naturalized species.)  
Again, there are many Stachys that are perfectly behaved (many more than the few I'm growing or know of, I'm sure!  I'm going to go look back thru the Open Rock Garden thread... Simon has probably already shown more than I knew existed!  :D) so again, one can't really generalize...
So a dandelion is not a weed  ???
My definition is: A weed is a plant that is in the wrong place.
Some gardeners try in vain to eradicate plants that other gardeners are unable to grow.
I try to get rid of Anemone nemorosa, Fritillaria camtschatkensis and Scilla siberica in many places but I cannot grow English bluebells nor Ornithogalum nutans.
Of course som plants are likely to become weeds if introduced - meaning that most places are wrong. ;)
Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 04:00:38 PM
Each to his own, of course, Gote!  :)
With respect to dandelions, my definition works neatly for me... the dandelions that occur in my yard (that blow in from the city playground behind us, grrr!) are indeed weeds, since Taraxacum officinale and T. laevigatum are introduced here.  (But T. ceratophorum is a native plant, which doesn't cause me any weeding chores anyway.   ;))
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ArneM on July 12, 2009, 05:30:13 PM
Lesley, yes, the banana grows outside but with a height of about 1,50m it is too small for flowering/fruiting.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 06:41:36 PM
1) Anthyllis vulneraria var. coccineus
2) Late bloom on Caltha leptosepala... which we should be seeing in abundance in the mountains soon, if our alpine hikes ever become clear of snow!
3) Nepeta nuda, much loved by bees (which I suppose could probably be said for the genus as a whole).
4) Phyteuma scheuchzeri
5) Verbascum dumulosum... sadly, not so well grown as the ones I see on this forum!
6) Linum flavum compactum
7) Verbascum eriophorum, with densely scurfy white fuzz on it.  These are from seed last year, so I don't know if they will be biennial or perennial here... (though there seems to be a strong tendency for some "biennial" verbascums to be long-lived perennials here.  The short season must confuse them!)  
8 ) Campanula barbata, starting to bloom here... they have also been long-lived perennials.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 12, 2009, 08:32:08 PM
1) Anthyllis vulneraria var. coccineus
2) Late bloom on Caltha leptosepala... which we should be seeing in abundance in the mountains soon, if our alpine hikes ever become clear of snow!
3) Nepeta nuda, much loved by bees (which I suppose could probably be said for the genus as a whole).
4) Phyteuma scheuchzeri
5) Verbascum dumulosum... sadly, not so well grown as the ones I see on this forum!
6) Linum flavum compactum
7) Verbascum eriophorum, with densely scurfy white fuzz on it.  These are from seed last year, so I don't know if they will be biennial or perennial here... (though there seems to be a strong tendency for some "biennial" verbascums to be long-lived perennials here.  The short season must confuse them!)  
8 ) Campanula barbata, starting to bloom here... they have also been long-lived perennials.


good to hear there is some advantage to a short season ;)
wonderful colour/texture on the Anthyllis, not a genus i know anything about, beyond having seen the name..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 12, 2009, 08:52:15 PM
Here's "the straight species", Cohan... both seem to do well enough here.
1) Anthyllis vulneraria, with Geranium x cantabrigiense 'Biokovo'
2) Luzula nivea, in bloom.
3) Poor gasplant (Dictamnus albus 'Purpureus') - is usually very showy, but rather depressed this year after being evicted from its happy home (for tufa bed construction), and relegated to live in the daylily ghetto... until I can carve out a nicer spot for it again.
4) A very peculiar mullein, Verbascum roripifolium... slightly different flower shape, and very odd leaves (which I'll try to get a clear picture of... have only fuzzy ones at the moment!)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 12, 2009, 09:25:20 PM
Here's "the straight species", Cohan... both seem to do well enough here.
1) Anthyllis vulneraria, with Geranium x cantabrigiense 'Biokovo'
2) Luzula nivea, in bloom.
3) Poor gasplant (Dicamnus albus 'Purpureus') - is usually very showy, but rather depressed this year after being evicted from its happy home (for tufa bed construction), and relegated to live in the daylily ghetto... until I can carve out a nicer spot for it again.
4) A very peculiar mullein, Verbascum roripifolium... slightly different flower shape, and very odd leaves (which I'll try to get a clear picture of... have only fuzzy ones at the moment!)

the yellow is interesting too, though i love the orange..are the plant forms the same? couldnt see the plant much in the first post...

now i'm curious about the verbascum leaves, i guess its named for them, and i am curious to know what 'roripi'folium means....lol
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 12, 2009, 09:36:09 PM
Lori, I was about to say that the wild Anthyllis vulneraria grows here close to the chalet and then saw you has posted a photo of it - it is a strangely intriguing plant and very soft looking.  Also Phyteuma scheuchzeri and Campanula barbata (which I absolutely love) are around  :)  Great photos of your plants Lori and the sidewalk is a wonderful sample  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 12, 2009, 10:23:24 PM
I think Azorella trifurcata is now Bolax GEMMifera! ???

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 12, 2009, 10:26:53 PM
"Lori, here you see what I know as Bolax gummifera."

Amazing plant... incredibly well grown.  (Pardon me for saying so, but sort of grotesque at the same time!  :))


Interesting.... according to this site (UBC), the two are indeed separate species (see 1st comment which points out that the plant in the photo has been misidentified!), distinguished most easily by flower colour, with Azorella trifurcata having yellow flowers, while Bolax gummifera has white-green flowers.

http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/potd/2005/11/bolax_gummifera.php

The two species names are often treated (at less authoritative sites) as though they are synonymous, hence my confusion.  Thanks for clearing that up, Luit!    :)

Yes, the site in this link has it wrongly named as B. gummifera instead of A. trifurcata which should now be B. gemmifera (or possible A. gemmifera).
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 12, 2009, 10:40:20 PM
Hmmmm...... I wonder...... RHS plantfinder has A. trifurcata and A. glebaria as synonyms for Bolax gummifer  ...... not gummifera  :-\
The I.P.N.I gives no record for Bolax gummifer or B.  gemmifera, only B. gummifera   :-\


We have the green leaved, yellow flowered Azorella in the garden, where it makes wide mats.... I think of the Bolax as being a grey leaved  tighter cushion plant..... ::)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 13, 2009, 12:52:39 AM
Lori, I was about to say that the wild Anthyllis vulneraria grows here close to the chalet and then saw you has posted a photo of it - it is a strangely intriguing plant and very soft looking.  Also Phyteuma scheuchzeri and Campanula barbata (which I absolutely love) are around  :)  Great photos of your plants Lori and the sidewalk is a wonderful sample  ;)

robin--is it a meadow plant? how tall does it get in the wild? it's a pea, right? or am i imagining that?
i should just google it, but since you have them wild, interesting to hear about it :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 13, 2009, 01:59:07 AM
Lori,

Excellent pics!!  The Anthyllis vulneraria var. coccineus is an absolute cracker.  You lot are all showing me new pea flowers that I just HAVE to get, even though I know I can't  ::)  Thanks for the eye openers, everyone. 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 13, 2009, 06:26:41 AM
Hmmmm...... I wonder...... RHS plantfinder has A. trifurcata and A. glebaria as synonyms for Bolax gummifer   ...... not gummifera  :-\
The I.P.N.I gives no record for Bolax gummifer or B.  gemmifera, only B. gummifera    :-\

Hmm, evidently, I'm not the only one who was confused!   ;D  Anyway, I have changed my records for the plant to Azorella trifurcata.  At least that much we can be sure of... right?  ;)

Thanks you all for the comments!
Cohan, the yellow and orange forms of Anthyllis vulneraria are essentially the same but for the flower colour, so far as I can tell.  (I have both the yellow and orange out in full sun and poor soil.)  If the forms seem to differ a little between the photos, it's because that batch of yellow ones is in a partially shaded area with better soil.

1) The unusual leaves on Verbascum roripifolium.  I have not been able to figure out what "roripifolium" actually means about the leaves; this site refers to it as "Roripa Mullein", which almost sounds like a place name?
http://www.rareplants.de/shop/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=363&P_ID=10195 

2) Here is a Crassula spp. (from Beaver Creek) which is suggested to have unusual hardiness.  Any guesses as to what it might be?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 13, 2009, 07:05:12 AM
Thanks you all for the comments!
1) The unusual leaves on Verbascum roripifolium.  I have not been able to figure out what "roripifolium" actually means about the leaves; this site refers to it as "Roripa Mullein", which almost sounds like a place name?
http://www.rareplants.de/shop/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=363&P_ID=10195 

2) Here is a Crassula spp. (from Beaver Creek) which is suggested to have unusual hardiness.  Any guesses as to what it might be?

does sound like a place name, maybe someone knows it?
so you got the crassula? great :) no ideas, there are bazillions in the genus; if nothing else comes of it, i could post it to a crassulaceae group for you if you want..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 13, 2009, 07:13:49 AM
Each to his own, of course, Gote!  :)
With respect to dandelions, my definition works neatly for me... the dandelions that occur in my yard (that blow in from the city playground behind us, grrr!) are indeed weeds, since Taraxacum officinale and T. laevigatum are introduced here.  (But T. ceratophorum is a native plant, which doesn't cause me any weeding chores anyway.   ;))

yes, dandelions are absolutely weeds here,(and no point fretting about them--this is farming country, and the land turns yellow in dandelion season! i'm starting to eat them--good greens mixed in with various things) but the native geums, mertensias, violas etc that sprout everywhere--i think i have Corydalis aurea popping up in my veg garden and a pot of semps!--i dont consider weeds, just volunteers, which i will remove where i dont want them..spruce trees also seed in all over the place--there is one spot in my yard full of seedlings, an area where i mow, and i noticed yesterday that they are branching-so maybe i will soon have a spruce lawn!...lol
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 13, 2009, 08:31:40 AM
Great stuff Lori !
You're extending our alpine season...  ;D

I was surprised that you mention a form of Camp. barbata as being perennial...  ???
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 13, 2009, 09:48:13 AM
Lori,

Unusual leaves for a Verbascum.  Nice flowers too, by the pic on the site you posted.  Very different to any others I have seen (not that I have seen many in real life at all, premoninantly here on the forums).  Thank.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 13, 2009, 09:57:15 AM
Lori, I was about to say that the wild Anthyllis vulneraria grows here close to the chalet and then saw you has posted a photo of it - it is a strangely intriguing plant and very soft looking.  Also Phyteuma scheuchzeri and Campanula barbata (which I absolutely love) are around  :)  Great photos of your plants Lori and the sidewalk is a wonderful sample  ;)

robin--is it a meadow plant? how tall does it get in the wild? it's a pea, right? or am i imagining that?
i should just google it, but since you have them wild, interesting to hear about it :)

Cohan, I have only seen it growing on sunny banks from June until Septemberish - actually I think they are a Mediterranean native flower and have silver pinnate leaves with a lovely bright yellow flower with a woolly looking calyx.  I hugs the bank so not tall, a few inches, and is very attractive to bees.  I am trying to encourage it into our garden so we will see what happens when I scatter the seed   ;)

Doesn't suggest a pea family but not sure how one would describe it  :D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 13, 2009, 12:00:56 PM
Poul,
Announcing Autumn is nothing to be proud of you know  >:( ;) ;D

Luc,
I am a little split up in this matter. ??? I love summer and really enjoy all the nice summerflowers you and others post, but my main interest is in Autumn flowering bulbs and when they start flowering I get excited. :D I will try not to show my excitement the next two month. ;D

Poul
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 13, 2009, 12:12:20 PM
Poul,

I must admit, my favourite times are lat autumn through to spring, because that is when the really interesting and unusual plants I collect tend to flower.  The first autumn crocus are always a joy, and the first autumn species of Galanthus to open each year is eagerly watched for.  Just ignore these other imbeciles who want to live in an eternal summer..... they obviously don't live here in MY summer, that is for sure.... I think they'd look forward to autumn much more if that were the case.  ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 13, 2009, 12:39:56 PM
Re: Verbascums- there is a very nice albino of V.rorippifolium, with pink centred white flowers. The name means it has leaves like a Rorippa which is a genus of yellowcress. The leaves look similar, but I think it is one of those botanists running out of ideas things.
V.eriophorum is sadly biennial here- it either flowers itself to death in the second year or gets a build up of 'fluff' which rots the crowns. Mine flowered last year and hopefully its self sown seedlings will flower next year.
I agree with Paul- shade temps of 36C by the end of the week- I am looking forward to autumn and the first Crocus  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 13, 2009, 12:44:06 PM
Poul,
Announcing Autumn is nothing to be proud of you know  >:( ;) ;D

Luc,
I am a little split up in this matter. ??? I love summer and really enjoy all the nice summerflowers you and others post, but my main interest is in Autumn flowering bulbs and when they start flowering I get excited. :D I will try not to show my excitement the next two month. ;D

Poul

Ok Poul, I understand, now you have my blessing to get excited  8) ;)

I'm just not a great Autumn lover because it announces the short days and poor floriforous months of Winter....
(sorry... I'm not a galantophile...  ::) :-\ )

And Paul, I must admit, we're rarely being haunted by your "oven" temperatures out here in Spring and Summer ... ::)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 13, 2009, 01:56:38 PM
Re: Verbascums- there is a very nice albino of V.rorippifolium, with pink centred white flowers. The name means it has leaves like a Rorippa which is a genus of yellowcress. The leaves look similar, but I think it is one of those botanists running out of ideas things.

Yes, I think it is named for the similarity of the leaves to Rorippa.... cress like brassica plants.... but I think that Lori had the correct spelling as Verbascum roripifolium     :-X
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 13, 2009, 02:15:14 PM
Mmm 221 hits for V.roripifolium and 114 for V.rorippifolium- I wonder which name makes more sense in the linguistics of botany.  :-\
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 13, 2009, 02:24:33 PM
Well, IPNI ( International Plant Names Index) ......
only recognises this: Verbascum roripifolium (Halácsy) I.K.Ferguson  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Rodger Whitlock on July 13, 2009, 04:21:20 PM
6) Linum flavum compactum

A friend once tried to grow this from seed, but invariably the seedlings damped off after emerging, even when sown in carefully sterilized soil. He finally tried sanitizing the seeds with hydrogen peroxide (at my suggestion) and had success. Evidently there was some kind of fungus borne on the actual seeds.

I had one of his seedlings for years, but it finally succumbed to summer drought (or perhaps winter wet!). Its color is very strong and if you are sensitive to color harmonies the plant needs to be sited carefully.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ArneM on July 13, 2009, 04:22:09 PM
As promised, here is the picture of Deinanthe bifida 'Pink Shi' where you hopefully can see the difference between both cultivars. Ok, the buds are not really bluish but they are definitely a bit more violet toned than 'Pink Ki'. 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 13, 2009, 04:56:06 PM
Well, IPNI ( International Plant Names Index) ......
only recognises this: Verbascum roripifolium (Halácsy) I.K.Ferguson  ;)
Oh no. So what will happen to the 114 hits with spelling mistakes? Will it still be wrongly listed in 100years. Will it be a another Nasturtium/ Tropaeolum, Pelargonium/ Geranium saga onward into infinity? Flora Bulgarica lists it as V.rorripifolium. I bought my seeds as V.rorippifolium album btw but I no longer have it so no label to correct  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Brian Ellis on July 13, 2009, 04:57:58 PM
Well Arne, they are both pretty and I would happily give either a home.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 13, 2009, 06:14:41 PM
Cohan, I have only seen it growing on sunny banks from June until Septemberish - actually I think they are a Mediterranean native flower and have silver pinnate leaves with a lovely bright yellow flower with a woolly looking calyx.  I hugs the bank so not tall, a few inches, and is very attractive to bees.  I am trying to encourage it into our garden so we will see what happens when I scatter the seed   ;)
Doesn't suggest a pea family but not sure how one would describe it  :D

thanks for info on the Anthyllis, robin..the size surprises--it seemed  bigger in lori's photo, but that could be as she said because of different conditons..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 13, 2009, 06:17:12 PM
Poul,

I must admit, my favourite times are lat autumn through to spring, because that is when the really interesting and unusual plants I collect tend to flower.  The first autumn crocus are always a joy, and the first autumn species of Galanthus to open each year is eagerly watched for.  Just ignore these other imbeciles who want to live in an eternal summer..... they obviously don't live here in MY summer, that is for sure.... I think they'd look forward to autumn much more if that were the case.  ;D

my summer is probably not too far off your winter, paul ;)
summer here is so short, that i spend more of the year occupied with completely tender plants that i grow indoors, and i am especially becoming interested in winter growing plants from south africa etc that are most active when there is nothing going on outdoors! mostly into tiny and weird things ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 13, 2009, 07:17:36 PM
Do tell, Cohan. What tiny and weird things from SA do you have? Have a few pots of newly germinated Stapeliads here- can't wait for that heady aroma of death  ::)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 13, 2009, 11:54:52 PM
Cohan,

A lot of us here I think like anything small and unusual collecting-wise.  I love miniature flowers, which is why I am always collecting small bulbs and unusual perennials that don't take up so much space.  ;D  I've mentioned before that I am thankful that my wife also obviously collects strange and unusual things..... otherwise she never would have collected ME!  ;)

Arne,

Love the Deinanthe.  Lovely delicate pink to the flowers.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 14, 2009, 03:44:13 AM
"I was surprised that you mention a form of Camp. barbata as being perennial... "
Well,  I started that batch from seed in 2005; they started to bloom in 2006, and I still have the original plants, so they are getting on in years for what is usually said to be a biennial species... ?   :)  (I've grown other biennials where certain individuals did not bloom in the second year, and so carried on for at least another year, but the C. barbata bloomed as one would expect.)  Again, I can only attribute it to our short season, somehow.

6) Linum flavum compactum

I had one of his seedlings for years, but it finally succumbed to summer drought (or perhaps winter wet!). Its color is very strong and if you are sensitive to color harmonies the plant needs to be sited carefully.


Rodger, it is lucky I have never been hampered by any particular sensitivity to colour harmonies, LOL!  ;D  I got the seeds many years ago from Kristl's Gardens North, and have had them growing happily in the border ever since.  I will certainly collect seeds later, and would be happy to send you some, if you would be interested in another go at them?  

Re: Verbascums- there is a very nice albino of V.rorippifolium, with pink centred white flowers. The name means it has leaves like a Rorippa which is a genus of yellowcress. The leaves look similar, but I think it is one of those botanists running out of ideas things.

Yes, I think it is named for the similarity of the leaves to Rorippa.... cress like brassica plants.... but I think that Lori had the correct spelling as Verbascum roripifolium     :-X

While I was trying to research V. roripifolium, I did run across references to Rorippa, but the apparent(?) difference in spelling threw me off!  Very interesting, Simon and Lesley, and thank you for the authoritative info, Maggi!

Nothing of great note here on a rainy day (3 cm, lovely)... Now some warm weather would be nice!
1) Iris sintenisii
2, 3) The martagon lilies are finally starting to bloom... Lilium martagon and 'Album'
4) "Mutt" dephiniums (i.e. self-seeded)... I find the luminosity of the blues and purples, and the variety of the "bees" in the centers of the flowers quite interesting - white, black, bee-like, etc.!
5) Siberian iris cultivar... with the amount of time I spend on plant records, it baffles me why don't I have the cultivar name noted...   >:(
6) Last spent blossom on Geranium farreri
7, 8 ) Pretty berries on our native Actaea rubra... in transition, and ripe.
9, 10) A heuchera with very showy flowers, 'Magic Wand'
 
 
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 14, 2009, 04:27:59 AM
1) Eryngium alpinum, just starting to take on a hint of blue...
2) Penstemon barbatus coccineus 'Iron Maiden'... I once had an absolutely incredible specimen of this, with dozens of flower stems.  What were we doing then that we aren't doing now?   :(
3) Diervilla lonicera, a mildy-suckering shrub that is native to southeastern Saskatchewan and eastwards.  We find the bronzed leaves rather attractive... and there is not a huge selection of shrubs that are interesting, hardy and chinook-tolerant that can be grown here, unfortunately.
4) Gentiana lutea, just starting out on a good bloom year!
5) Thalictrum 'Black Stockings'
6) Calamintha grandiflora
7) Lonicera 'Dropmore Scarlet', climbing the cat pen.
8 ) More Penstemon barbatus... they're everywhere!  :D  (Or at least I assume that's what they are... should try to key them out, though I'm afraid they might be some hybrid from years of self-seeding, impossible to neatly determine, and then I'll be put off it forever...  :P)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 14, 2009, 02:35:05 PM
Your garden is really growing lush with lovely plantings, Lori......  for instance the Delphiniums are gorgeous en masse and I love the G. lutea - the leaves are a wonderful colour and shape - and the L. Dropmore Scarlet and.....and....Thalictrum 'Black Stockings'....and..I need a cup of tea to come back for more!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 14, 2009, 08:29:08 PM
simon and paul---well this is probably way OT for this thread! i'm really just beginning with the really interesting SA stuff--i got a batch of seed from SA last fall, and had dismal results--i would have assumed it was me, but several friends got seed at the same time, and some of them had poor results as well, depending on what we'd ordered; i still have a few tiny Massonia jasminiflora from that, and hopefully a couple of Rhadamanthus (a similar tiny bulbous thing) hanging on--very newbie at working out watering of these things with very specific seasonality and obviously very different from my climate; no-shows from seed were ornithogalum, bulbine, haworthia, ledebouria, eriospermum etc--all miniature species...

i have quite a few haworthias, gasterias and some other succulents, though most of those are fairly common things; i do like stapeliads too--esp small ones, many are too big for my indoor space; dont have much now--an Orbea umbomboensis that flowered nicely in spring; like Ceropegias too, just a couple of those..  have a few miniature aloes, also, A aristata in flower now;would like to get some of the small Sansevieria sp

 i had two Eriospermum (you may already know all this)--an odd genus, maybe family (one of those ex-lily groups) typically with one little odd leaf at a time, and a flower spike while not in leaf; true leaves of some species are small with projections called enations from the leaf surface so that they can look like highly divided leaves, quite odd... well, i killed one tiny tuber i got, and the other made its one leaf--a tiny hairy thing, will make enations when its older--last fall, and its just dried up now when i checked..this is the tricky time, i guess--they dont necessarily want to be totally dry, but mostly dry, while dormant; in theory it could flower now sometime while dormant, if its old enough; i'm growing the tuber raised, and its fat and healthy looking...



so thats the kind of thing i am interested in, plus conophytum, but i dont have any of those yet.. i'd like to try more seed this fall, but not sure where to get good stuff with locality data preferred (not imperative) after last year's not cheap fiasco...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 14, 2009, 08:33:45 PM
lori---lots of great things as always;
i dont comment on the penstemons as they are all great... do you grow any of the tiny mat species? cant remmeber now if you have showed... i was thinking when i eventually get some pediocactus, a small penstemon would be great with them...

i like the diervilla a lot, i'm into the native shrubs in general--we have most of the locals in the yard on their own account, but taking snippets of other things when i come across them...
like the little geranium, too..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Stephenb on July 14, 2009, 10:42:42 PM
"I was surprised that you mention a form of Camp. barbata as being perennial... "
Well,  I started that batch from seed in 2005; they started to bloom in 2006, and I still have the original plants, so they are getting on in years for what is usually said to be a biennial species... ?   :)  (I've grown other biennials where certain individuals did not bloom in the second year, and so carried on for at least another year, but the C. barbata bloomed as one would expect.)  Again, I can only attribute it to our short season, somehow.

My Campanula barbata also thinks it's a perennial, now into its third year. I looked it up in my Norwegian flora and it states there that it is perennial.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Anthony Darby on July 14, 2009, 11:14:58 PM
At last Iris ensata 'Laughing Lion' has decided to flower, having had last year off.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Anthony Darby on July 14, 2009, 11:25:54 PM
Every autumn my double pink opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) seeds around the rockery. I usually pull most of them out, but this year I have several large clumps. One has produced a different flower. I also have the annual red poppy (P. rhoeas) which has also appeared on some ground disturbed by the Water Board.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Anthony Darby on July 14, 2009, 11:34:15 PM
I have had this tiny Myosotis sp. (Eyre Mountains, New Zealand) for a couple of years. This week it has its first flower.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 14, 2009, 11:51:39 PM
Beautiful flowers, Anthony!  I love the foliage on that myosotis.   The unusual poppy looks a lot like 'Danebrorg Laced'... ?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 15, 2009, 12:06:38 AM
Cohan,

I can't comment on the succulents, but the Ornithogalum and Bulbine may take longer to germinate anyway.  I find that often seed coming from the northern hemisphere takes a year longer to germinate than from the southern hemisphere.  While they may sort of get the right conditions if we try to give it to them, they still don't have the right gradations of temps etc.... or that is my theory.  I've given up worrying if things from the north that "should" have germinated this year don't, because they often do the next year.  If the Ornithogalum you bought is O. dubium, then I've never managed to germinate that from south african seed in the 3 times I have tried.  No idea why, but not a single germination.

Don't expect a great deal from the Massonia in the first year (and jasminiflora is a smaller species anyway).... I find that they put up a quite small leaf the first year, but come through quite strongly the next year.  For me at least.

Anthony,

Love the poppies.  Beautiful!!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 15, 2009, 02:44:27 AM
Cohan,

I can't comment on the succulents, but the Ornithogalum and Bulbine may take longer to germinate anyway.  I find that often seed coming from the northern hemisphere takes a year longer to germinate than from the southern hemisphere.  While they may sort of get the right conditions if we try to give it to them, they still don't have the right gradations of temps etc.... or that is my theory.  I've given up worrying if things from the north that "should" have germinated this year don't, because they often do the next year.  If the Ornithogalum you bought is O. dubium, then I've never managed to germinate that from south african seed in the 3 times I have tried.  No idea why, but not a single germination.

Don't expect a great deal from the Massonia in the first year (and jasminiflora is a smaller species anyway).... I find that they put up a quite small leaf the first year, but come through quite strongly the next year.  For me at least.

Anthony,

Love the poppies.  Beautiful!!


thanks, paul--well, i havent pitched any of the seed pots, they are still in their plastic bags, but some have dried out; i will water them all thoroughly again in fall, though i think many/most of these are supposed to need fresh seed, so i dont have much hope..the ornithos (a couple) were not dubium..
i wont be worried about small leaves for now, i just want them to stay alive to HAVE  second year..lol

anthony--love that Myosotis!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Rogan on July 15, 2009, 07:37:24 AM
"i got a batch of seed from SA last fall, and had dismal results"

Judging by the seeds you had ordered Cohan, I would think I have bought seed from the same nursery on several occasions and also had generally dismal results. I have also had raging email battles with them on occasion with absolutely no resolution - if it's the same nursery we're talking about...

Generally, most SA seed germinates fairly easily if it's fresh, and therein lies the problem - many nurseries insist on keeping their seeds far too long / store them incorrectly and then sell them at exhorbitant prices. I suppose that's also a sign of the times we live in - high costs and dodgy suppliers! However, to be fair to the nursery, the plants raised from the seeds that I have managed to germinate are excellent and impossible to obtain from any other source.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 15, 2009, 10:27:12 AM
Cohan, I have only seen it growing on sunny banks from June until Septemberish - actually I think they are a Mediterranean native flower and have silver pinnate leaves with a lovely bright yellow flower with a woolly looking calyx.  I hugs the bank so not tall, a few inches, and is very attractive to bees.  I am trying to encourage it into our garden so we will see what happens when I scatter the seed   ;)
Doesn't suggest a pea family but not sure how one would describe it  :D

thanks for info on the Anthyllis, robin..the size surprises--it seemed  bigger in lori's photo, but that could be as she said because of different conditons..

Cohan, it seems we have a different wild Anthyllis here as I found the attached photo I took before and the leaves are not the same, any ID ideas?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Anthony Darby on July 15, 2009, 11:06:48 AM
If anyone wants any poppy seeds, sent a message as I'll have millions! 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: olegKon on July 15, 2009, 01:15:34 PM
Summer is progressing with more and more flowers everyday
1. Carduum nutans
2.3. Diedropetala schmalhausenii
4.Eleuterocock senticosus
5.Eryngium alpinum
6.Sempervivums
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 15, 2009, 04:24:08 PM
Cohan, I have only seen it growing on sunny banks from June until Septemberish - actually I think they are a Mediterranean native flower and have silver pinnate leaves with a lovely bright yellow flower with a woolly looking calyx.  I hugs the bank so not tall, a few inches, and is very attractive to bees.  I am trying to encourage it into our garden so we will see what happens when I scatter the seed   ;)
Doesn't suggest a pea family but not sure how one would describe it  :D

thanks for info on the Anthyllis, robin..the size surprises--it seemed  bigger in lori's photo, but that could be as she said because of different conditons..

Cohan, it seems we have a different wild Anthyllis here as I found the attached photo I took before and the leaves are not the same, any ID ideas?

Cohan, it seems we have a different wild Anthyllis here as I found the attached photo I took before and the leaves are not the same, any ID ideas?

Robin, the anthyllis you show does appear to be Anthyllis vulneraria, and the same as the plant I'm growing... (which I assume are the photos under discussion).  (I've attached a photo showing the foliage from one out in the yard - it is not so full as yours, as it's growing in part shade).  And it is indeed a legume.

This site describes it's natural range (large):
http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?300032
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 15, 2009, 08:59:17 PM
Lovely plants, Oleg!  Diedropetala schmalhausenii seems like it must be very closely related to Delphinium, no?

Finally, some sun today... (though it's now clouding over with the forecast 60% chance of showers)... the air is wonderfully scented... ahhh, bliss!

1) Salvia nemorosa 'Snowhill', a favourite of the bees.
2, 3) Our native Heuchera richardsonii, very non-showy flowers but pleasant-looking foliage - again, very attractive to bees, I've noticed.
4) Geranium orientali-tibeticum, lovely foliage, rather ordinary flowers... and something of a rambler - this stalk popped up a couple of feet away from the main plant.
5) First flower on Passiflora caerulea in the greenhouse... what amazing structure!
6) Martagon lily 'Earliest of All'... though it wasn't, this year.
7) A sunny gaillardia...
8 ) Leontopodium alpinum
9) One of my favourite geraniums, starting to bloom, Geranium x 'Patricia'
10) The colour of Aster tongolensis 'Wartburg Star' always reminds me of "Thrills" chewing gum...  :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: fermi de Sousa on July 16, 2009, 04:45:57 AM
Lovely plants, Oleg!  Diedropetala schmalhausenii seems like it must be very closely related to Delphinium, no?

Finally, some sun today... (though it's now clouding over with the forecast 60% chance of showers)... the air is wonderfully scented... ahhh, bliss!

1) Salvia nemorosa 'Snowhill', a favourite of the bees.

5) First flower on Passiflora caerulea in the greenhouse... what amazing structure!

Hi Lori,
interstingly enough the Salvia was avilable here as "Snow Hills" and has survived a few years in our garden.
The passion flower is often used as an understock for grafting fruiting varieties and unfortunately has become an uneradicable weed in our vegetable area! I was amazed (as a child) to read the story of its discovery in the "New World" by missionaries who saw the "Passion" of Jesus represented in the flower structures: the crown of thorns, the whip, the nails. And interpretted the natives eating the fruit as a sign of their hunger for christianity!!
I won't write what I now think of that sort of thing!
cheers
fermi
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 16, 2009, 05:23:51 AM
Hi Lori,
interstingly enough the Salvia was avilable here as "Snow Hills" and has survived a few years in our garden.
The passion flower is often used as an understock for grafting fruiting varieties and unfortunately has become an uneradicable weed in our vegetable area! I was amazed (as a child) to read the story of its discovery in the "New World" by missionaries who saw the "Passion" of Jesus represented in the flower structures: the crown of thorns, the whip, the nails. And interpretted the natives eating the fruit as a sign of their hunger for christianity!!
I won't write what I now think of that sort of thing!
cheers
fermi

Fermi, you know, it's probably actually 'Snow Hill' here too, if the sales info can be believed:
http://www.northcreeknurseries.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/plants.plantDetail/plant_id/264/index.htm
(I will correct my photo titles!   :))  I take it these commonplace (here, anyway) sorts of perennials are not suited to the growing conditions there, generally?  Too dry?

Re. the passion flower "story"... I assume it would suffice to say that "it has to be believed to be seen"...    ;D  
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 16, 2009, 06:57:51 AM
"i got a batch of seed from SA last fall, and had dismal results"

Judging by the seeds you had ordered Cohan, I would think I have bought seed from the same nursery on several occasions and also had generally dismal results. I have also had raging email battles with them on occasion with absolutely no resolution - if it's the same nursery we're talking about...

Generally, most SA seed germinates fairly easily if it's fresh, and therein lies the problem - many nurseries insist on keeping their seeds far too long / store them incorrectly and then sell them at exhorbitant prices. I suppose that's also a sign of the times we live in - high costs and dodgy suppliers! However, to be fair to the nursery, the plants raised from the seeds that I have managed to germinate are excellent and impossible to obtain from any other source.

therein lies the greatest disappointment--their seedlist was  SO  exciting! full of exactly the sorts of oddities and miniatures which i treasure,more than any other list i have seen, with the very significant added advantage of locality information on many species :( of course, great species with great info is of no consolation if nothing comes up..

do you have any recommendations for SA sources of this sort of material which is likely to be fresh and preferably (though not essentially) with locality data? i dont mind garden seed if it is from known stock and controlled pollination, but not so keen on open pollinated stock; my space indoors is very limited, so i prefer to be very particular; outdoors i can be more generous of spirit...lol...at this point, i would be thrilled to get just one or two choice species that i know will germinate(or at least be likely to!)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 16, 2009, 07:04:01 AM
Cohan, it seems we have a different wild Anthyllis here as I found the attached photo I took before and the leaves are not the same, any ID ideas?
Robin, the anthyllis you show does appear to be Anthyllis vulneraria, and the same as the plant I'm growing... (which I assume are the photos under discussion).  (I've attached a photo showing the foliage from one out in the yard - it is not so full as yours, as it's growing in part shade).  And it is indeed a legume.
This site describes it's natural range (large):
http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?300032

thanks lori and robin, for details... foliage doesnt look much different than some of our natives, but the flower head is quite distinct and lovely...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Anthony Darby on July 16, 2009, 10:55:04 AM
Definitely Anthyllis vulnararia. Look out for 'Small Blue' butterflies (Cupido minimus). They look almost black.

Cohan, I have only seen it growing on sunny banks from June until Septemberish - actually I think they are a Mediterranean native flower and have silver pinnate leaves with a lovely bright yellow flower with a woolly looking calyx.  I hugs the bank so not tall, a few inches, and is very attractive to bees.  I am trying to encourage it into our garden so we will see what happens when I scatter the seed   ;)
Doesn't suggest a pea family but not sure how one would describe it  :D

thanks for info on the Anthyllis, robin..the size surprises--it seemed  bigger in lori's photo, but that could be as she said because of different conditons..

Cohan, it seems we have a different wild Anthyllis here as I found the attached photo I took before and the leaves are not the same, any ID ideas?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Stephenb on July 16, 2009, 11:00:13 AM
thanks lori and robin, for details... foliage doesnt look much different than some of our natives, but the flower head is quite distinct and lovely...

Anthyllis vulneraria is a very varied species with as many as 35 subspecies described according to a Norwegian paper I have (some are stated in the GRIN link), with varying leaf shape, height etc. I've had plants of ssp. alpestris, rupestris,  iberica as well as ssp vulneraria, but all have been short-lived. Only the red form coccinea has (luckily) proven long-lived (see picture below in which you can see a Canadian - Hedysarum alpinum, Fragaria vesca and an Allium sp.). We also have wild plants near the garden and one year there were masses of plants on a rocky outcrop in the garden, never to be seen again.

Kidney Vetch is often seen along road verges here and can form a continuous belt for many kilometers (much preferable to have this native to the invasive Lupins). It has been suggested that the Road Authorities actually sowed it at one time, but research hasn’t been able to prove this. However, it was at one time used as a forage plant and the material used was selected from taller subspecies (such as carpatica) and forms rather than prostrate forms. Today, wild Kidney Vetch can exhibit a mixture of forms.  

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 16, 2009, 06:41:46 PM
Wow what a gorgeous patch and red coloured Anthyllis, Stephen.  Thanks so much everyone for the interesting info, ID and comments about this lovely Kidney Vetch which I look out for each year and have finally managed to gather some ripe seed before they were strimmed and scattered them on my sunny bank - I keep you posted with the outcome next year!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 16, 2009, 08:13:23 PM
Wow what a gorgeous patch and red coloured Anthyllis, Stephen.  Thanks so much everyone for the interesting info, ID and comments about this lovely Kidney Vetch which I look out for each year and have finally managed to gather some ripe seed before they were strimmed and scattered them on my sunny bank - I keep you posted with the outcome next year!
We found a lovely offwhite one yesterday with a peachy coloured centre- I can only assume it was Anthyllis vulneraria- but very tiny, because of where it was growing, and with flowers too small for my camera. We found seed, so hopefully it will be beefier in the garden!
Flowering now 2 lovable rogues hellbent on world domination.
Monarda menthifolia- worth it for the fragrance.
Scutellaria laterifolia- tiny flowers, but I really like the colour.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 16, 2009, 08:21:46 PM
Anthyllis vulneraria is a very varied species with as many as 35 subspecies described according to a Norwegian paper I have (some are stated in the GRIN link), with varying leaf shape, height etc. I've had plants of ssp. alpestris, rupestris,  iberica as well as ssp vulneraria, but all have been short-lived. Only the red form coccinea has (luckily) proven long-lived (see picture below in which you can see a Canadian - Hedysarum alpinum, Fragaria vesca and an Allium sp.). We also have wild plants near the garden and one year there were masses of plants on a rocky outcrop in the garden, never to be seen again.

Kidney Vetch is often seen along road verges here and can form a continuous belt for many kilometers (much preferable to have this native to the invasive Lupins). It has been suggested that the Road Authorities actually sowed it at one time, but research hasn’t been able to prove this. However, it was at one time used as a forage plant and the material used was selected from taller subspecies (such as carpatica) and forms rather than prostrate forms. Today, wild Kidney Vetch can exhibit a mixture of forms.  

thanks for more details, stephen...great colour form in the photo

we went into the mountains yesterday, and various peas were very prominent from the beginnings of the foothills biome where its still flat, up to nearly the highest levels..hedysarum for sure, and probably oxytropis and astragalus, and some others i havent looked up--i probably photographed at least 7 or more species...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Darren on July 16, 2009, 08:31:31 PM
Cohan - it sounds like we have a common interest in South African bulbs and succulents. I note your interest in Conophytum (a genus I love and am constantly fascinated by - the first of this years flowers is opening today on C.frutescens. Almost makes me look forward to the autumn when the others will follow) - If you are not already a member I can recommend joining the Mesemb Study Group. UK based but with a global membership. A really excellent source of cheap Conophytum seed with locality data. The occasional bulb turns up too - I grow a lovely pink flowered form of Massonia jasminiflora from their seed. Rogan's advice about seeds is spot on as you would expect from a SA native! Anything I can help with please ask.

Onion - thank you very much for pointing me at the Cistus site. I agree with your conclusion that my plant is C x oblongifolius.

A couple of pictures taken today:

This first is a surprise. Cypella herbertii growing outside and unprotected. Some sources say it is hardy outside in southern England but I didn't expect it to survive our cold and wet winters in the North west. It was planted out in spring 2007 and flowered that year. It did not flower last year and the foliage was lost among the other Irids it grows with so I assumed it died during the winter. Much to my surprise I spotted this flower today so it must have survived two winters including the last really harsh one.

Two plants on my ericaceous raised bed. First is Cyananthus lobatus peeking out above the erics. No matter what I try the blue still comes out looking too pink in the pictures!

Second is the Twinflower, Linnaea borealis, attempting to sell itself as a hanging-basket plant.



Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 16, 2009, 08:34:26 PM
Simon, hope you Anthyllis vulneraria seeds come true....I really like your Monarda menthifolia  it's a great plant for hot places and the red one is lovely too - bees love it  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Onion on July 16, 2009, 08:59:59 PM

Onion - thank you very much for pointing me at the Cistus site. I agree with your conclusion that my plant is C x oblongifolius.


Nice to here, that the site was usefull for you Darren.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 17, 2009, 02:30:46 AM
Cohan - it sounds like we have a common interest in South African bulbs and succulents. I note your interest in Conophytum (a genus I love and am constantly fascinated by - the first of this years flowers is opening today on C.frutescens. Almost makes me look forward to the autumn when the others will follow) - If you are not already a member I can recommend joining the Mesemb Study Group. UK based but with a global membership. A really excellent source of cheap Conophytum seed with locality data. The occasional bulb turns up too - I grow a lovely pink flowered form of Massonia jasminiflora from their seed. Rogan's advice about seeds is spot on as you would expect from a SA native! Anything I can help with please ask.


thanks, darren--i am aware of MSG, but had not got around to joining--i guess i am interested in so many types of plants that i have never got around to really joining anything---just online forums, including for mesembs...lol
i should probably look closely at the very few seedlings i have and ask for some advice over in bulb section....did ask about M jasmin seedlings once and didnt get any replies, probably bad timing as to who was reading...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 17, 2009, 05:44:04 AM
1, 2) After much confusion and many tries, I've keyed this out as Penstemon pachyphyllus... if it obviously isn't, please let me know... (gently)!  ;D   
3) A nice fleabane whose identity I've lost, unfortunately.
4) Eriophyllum lanatum
5) Pretty little flowers on a new one this spring - an experiment to see if it will be hardy - Ellisiophyllum pinnatum.
6, 7) Darren, our timber-frame raised beds look similar, right down to the Linnaea borealis!  Mine is doing the same act... after many years, draping languidly over the edge of the acid bed... blooming is always sparse though in part shade (as compared to sunny openings in the forest, where I see it blooming heavily).  How is blooming for you?
8 ) We're having a strange, disappointing year in the greenhouse with the waterlilies... nothing has changed, but...  ???  Very puzzling.   Anyway, here is Nymphaea 'Helvola', with uncharacteristically few flowers.
9) Lilium x dalhansonii.
10) Asiatic hybrid lily 'Crimson Pixie'
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 17, 2009, 07:24:10 AM
Lori, I just love 'visiting' your garden each day to see what other treasures of yours are flowering and the descriptions you give - your plantings are so artistic, such as the lily 'Crimson Pixie' with a tight mat of silver leaves below setting off it's own green leaves, which normally disappear in to the background, to perfection  ;)

Inside your greenhouse, with the other firey red Lilium x dalhansonii, what else can we see?  Even if sparce flowering, which must be very disappointing. Nymphaea 'Helvola' looks a beautiful waterlily - why is it inside?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 17, 2009, 07:57:49 AM
Darren,

How pink is your pink flowered Massonia jasminiflora?  I have white with shades of mauve and pink, but nothing you could really call pink.  The idea of a pink flowered one is just gorgeous.  Would you happen to have any pictures?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Darren on July 17, 2009, 08:21:14 AM
Cohan - sorry I missed your previous post asking about the massonia. I've only just gone online at home and hadn't visited the forum much in the previous year as my lunchtimes at work kind of disappeared under a heap of extra work...

Lori - The Linnaea does get a couple of hours of direct sun in the late afternoon. it drapes down the west side of the raised bed. You can see a couple of late flowers in the picture. It flowers better in it's first flush in late may / early June but is never prolific. I think it has enjoyed the recent cool wet summers here.

Paul - Of my two surviving plants from that particular raising of M jasminiflora one has deep pink anther filaments which gradually become whiter toward the tip. Overall effect is a nice mid-pink. The other is a less intense colour but still pink. The darker one produced several offsets this year (rare in Massonia). I have carefully cross-pollinated between the two clones and have a good few seeds. The seed I colected last year only produced one seedling but I'm fairly sure this was because of the way I stored the seed before sowing (too cool). My only picture of the pink Massonia is taken as the flowers are almost finished and isn't very good. Will try to do better this coming season and post one. Though it has been identified by greater experts than me it doesn't resemble any other form of M jasminiflora that I grow. The plant is much bigger - about the size of M pustulata. The leaves are rubbery in texture and have lines of tiny hairs rather than pustules. The flower has prominent anthers giving it a shaving-brush type effect rather like M pustulata again, as opposed to the more typical M jasminiflora flower.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 17, 2009, 11:47:15 AM
Darren,

Sounds fascinating!!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 17, 2009, 03:32:42 PM
Lori, I just love 'visiting' your garden each day to see what other treasures of yours are flowering and the descriptions you give - your plantings are so artistic, such as the lily 'Crimson Pixie' with a tight mat of silver leaves below setting off it's own green leaves, which normally disappear in to the background, to perfection  ;)

Inside your greenhouse, with the other firey red Lilium x dalhansonii, what else can we see?  Even if sparce flowering, which must be very disappointing. Nymphaea 'Helvola' looks a beautiful waterlily - why is it inside?

Thank you, Robin!  (I'm glad some of those random plantings sometimes look intentional!  ;D)
The greenhouse is for my husband's hardy and tropical waterlilies, a couple of tropical plants and a couple of tomatoes.  Even the hardy waterlilies don't do very well outdoors here, and flower poorly (by comparison), as the nights are always cool... and even the daytime temperatures are pretty cool here!  The tropical ones would barely survive even in small tubs outdoors here.  Normally, they thrive and flower heavily in the greenhouse, though, with constant warm water temperatures.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 17, 2009, 06:48:07 PM
Cohan - sorry I missed your previous post asking about the massonia. I've only just gone online at home and hadn't visited the forum much in the previous year as my lunchtimes at work kind of disappeared under a heap of extra work...


oh, dont worry about it ;) i well know how easy it is to not be able to follow everything here, even when you  ARE online! i have to pick  a few threads and stick to those, others just occasionally when i have some lazy time..lol
looking forward to Massonia pics..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 17, 2009, 06:55:58 PM
Not exactly FLOWERING now   :P but nice anyway: Diphylleia sinensis
Cheers
Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Brian Ellis on July 17, 2009, 10:25:32 PM
What clean looking berries they bear Göte.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 18, 2009, 07:03:58 AM
Not exactly FLOWERING now   :P but nice anyway: Diphylleia sinensis
Cheers
Göte

this is very nice indeed...curious as to its hardiness here...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 18, 2009, 08:04:48 AM
Not exactly FLOWERING now   :P but nice anyway: Diphylleia sinensis
Cheers
Göte

this is very nice indeed...curious as to its hardiness here...
I have had it for some years without any damage whatsoever in the winter but we have not had a severe winter in that time.
IF (Big If) I remember I could send you a couple of berries when they start to fall.
Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 18, 2009, 03:29:54 PM
Cohan, Diphylleia comosa, the native North American one, is hardy here... don't know about there, and don't know about D. sinensis.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 18, 2009, 06:12:22 PM
1) It's not much to look at with its small, raggedy flowers but Dianthus monspessulanus perfumes the air with a fragrance most unlike dianthus... a sweet perfume rather than the usual clove/spice scent. )
2) Old man's bones, Sedum divergens.)
3) Penstemon hirsutus with its narrow, pinched-mouth flowers... one of those whose seed masqueraded as P. whippleanus.
4) Reticulated bells of Digitalis grandiflora.)
5) Another Scutellaria alpina.
6) Onosma stellulata... took a surprisingly long time to bloom from seed.  I learned this spring, while cleaning up around these plants, that the stiff hairs on old dried leaves are almost as much to be feared as the glochids on cacti!
7) Rosa 'Jens Munk'
8 )Saxifraga cotyledon still blooming quite spectacularly in a front border.
9) More and more verbascums...
10) Gentiana lutea now open.


Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 18, 2009, 06:16:36 PM
Diphylleia sinensis

thanks gote--- IF you remember, that would be nice ;)

lori--i searched just a little last night--Plans for a Future Database, listed it as hardy to Zone 0! but they are in england and dont always have firsthand info, i guess thats based on a northerly or high altitude range..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 18, 2009, 06:29:19 PM
5) Another Scutellaria alpina.
6) Onosma stelluata... took a surprisingly long time to bloom from seed.  I learned this spring, while cleaning up around these plants, that the stiff hairs on old dried leaves are almost as much to be feared as the glochids on cacti!

lots of great stuff, really like those scutellarias...do these alpine species like moist spots/dry/average? just curious as most of the local menthaceae are marsh/slough plants..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 18, 2009, 07:07:37 PM
The scutellarias I've shown here are all in regular soil, full sun to part shade - they get rain plus the occasional watering if it's too long between rainfalls... not at all fussy in our climate/conditions. 
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: David Nicholson on July 18, 2009, 07:20:13 PM
You really do grow some lovely stuff Lori.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 18, 2009, 07:40:15 PM
Cohan, some of the Scutellarias here, and Turkish ones I grow, will take drought in summer and sprout back with new leaves after the autumn rains.
Lori, the real pain comes when you try collect seeds from Onosma- the tiny hairs take days to work back out of your fingertips.  :'(
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 18, 2009, 07:45:21 PM
Thank you, David!
Thanks for the warning, Simon... I think I'll pass on that then!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 18, 2009, 07:49:43 PM
I've had to fight the goldfinches for ours- not a single Onosma wild in our area, but they have learned to pick the seeds out of most of mine.  :'(
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 18, 2009, 07:53:23 PM
Oh well, can't begrudge the goldfinches!  (That reminds me, I did collect seeds from the onosma last year... shook some out without great discomfort, somehow... but with my new-found respect for them, I'll be sure to wear gloves this time!) 
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ruweiss on July 18, 2009, 09:58:14 PM
Dear friends, I was in holidays for some days and could not answer your questions about the Pterocactus tuberosus
and the sempervivums.
Cohan, the Pterocactus grows since several years in the open garden at a very hot place near a big Chamaecyparis
in company of other cactii, agaves and yuccas. The soil is bone dry at most time of the year.
Semp. arachnoideum is worth a try in your climate, in the Alps they grow in under sometimes very harsh conditions
high up the mountains.
For trough and crevic planting the small rosetted forms of Semp. arachnoideum are very useful, their needs are good
drainage in a neutral to acid mineralic soil. Too much humus results in weak plants. Some clones are quite vigorous,
my best plants origin from some rosettes which I got from the late Mr.Tlatla from Czechia, his floral paradise and generousity
are unforgetable for me.
These(and other Semps) enjoy a very weak solution of some liquid manure from time to time.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 18, 2009, 10:47:00 PM
Sempervivum arachnoides is indeed completely hardy here (and down through zone 2, at least).  The commonly-available forms grow easily in regular garden soil (which is alkaline through the Great Plains) and no special conditions.  Nice plant for a "xeric" feel.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 19, 2009, 09:18:42 PM
Dear friends, I was in holidays for some days and could not answer your questions about the Pterocactus tuberosus
and the sempervivums.
Cohan, the Pterocactus grows since several years in the open garden at a very hot place near a big Chamaecyparis
in company of other cactii, agaves and yuccas. The soil is bone dry at most time of the year.
Semp. arachnoideum is worth a try in your climate, in the Alps they grow in under sometimes very harsh conditions
high up the mountains.
For trough and crevic planting the small rosetted forms of Semp. arachnoideum are very useful, their needs are good
drainage in a neutral to acid mineralic soil. Too much humus results in weak plants. Some clones are quite vigorous,
my best plants origin from some rosettes which I got from the late Mr.Tlatla from Czechia, his floral paradise and generousity
are unforgetable for me.
These(and other Semps) enjoy a very weak solution of some liquid manure from time to time.

interesting note on the pterocactus...
as lori says, the S arachnoideum, and many other semps are very hardy here, even many species which dont seem to come from areas as cold as we are here--they must have endured it in their genetic past... whether they could be grown here in such an exposed way as in your troughs is a different question--probably not, but worth some experimenting-i lost a couple that were in a large pot last year, whereas i have never lost any in the ground;
another thought mentioned by someone on another forum: if any peat(nursery soil) is left on the roots when transplanting, the semps have greater risk in winter, though that i think is about wet, not sure if it was an issue for me...

lori--good to hear about the scutellarias, will watch for them...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: mark smyth on July 19, 2009, 09:23:06 PM
If only my Nymphaea 'Helvola' had 3 flowers at one time. So far mine has only had 2 this year  :(
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 20, 2009, 02:52:38 PM
Diphylleia sinensis

thanks gote--- IF you remember, that would be nice ;)

Snail mail address please
Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Tony Willis on July 20, 2009, 05:14:43 PM
some dierama's and a watsonia in flower at the moment
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 20, 2009, 05:43:11 PM
Lovely flowers, Tony, but I'm shocked to see how much colour there is already in your Sorbus berries!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Tony Willis on July 20, 2009, 06:45:02 PM
Maggi

those are next doors sorbus berries mine are still not ripe,just shows what a few yards can do in micro climate terms. The birds are loving them.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: mark smyth on July 20, 2009, 07:22:17 PM
Most of our Sorbus are orange also. Some trees near me are so laden the branches are being pulled down. Within three weeks they will be stripped by starlings. I should get a before and after photo
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 21, 2009, 02:50:35 AM
Mark,
The 'Helvola' actually managed 6 blooms at once that day (the best so far this strange year) - but those 3 were the most photogenic!  ;)  (Lots of open water in between - which ought not to be there.  Very strange.)
1) But here's what it should look like (a photo from early June a couple years ago)...  hence our disappointment!!   >:(

2) First flowers on a new one, 'Comanche' - a changeable, purchased in an emergency order about 3 weeks ago to try to salvage the season (given that our old dependables, 'Attraction' and 'Colorado' are limping along this year)!!

(In our very late and cold spring, it did actually freeze once in the greenhouse - not the water, just the air temperature - after the water lilies had been set out, but surely everything should have recovered by now from the chill... very puzzling.)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 21, 2009, 04:14:56 AM
A few things from the garden...
1) Adenophora remotiflora f. album... or so it was supposed to be - it's pale mauve.
2) Astilboides tabularis
3, 4) Campanula collina - a nice rich purple on the first one (which the camera doesn't really capture); less rich colour on the others...
5) A double Campanula persicifolia that has spontaneously arisen...
6) Sempervivum x 'Beautiful'
7) Penstemon smallii
8 ) Campanula betulifolia... every year, when they bloom, I am reminded that I intended to move them to someplace where they can drape gracefully, rather than lie on the ground!   >:(  (Maybe this year?)
9) A colourful mix-up of dianthus and cerastium...
10) Our native Oenothera biennis... I find it interesting how the calyces form a cage over the flower bud...

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 21, 2009, 04:16:40 AM
Lori,

Do you grow 'Perry's Baby Red'?  It is a miniature Nymphaea, good deep colouration but with smaller size to the plant.  Cracker of a plant, and will grow in smaller situations like my bathtub (outside, for waterlilies etc, not my inside bathtub ;)).  A friend here has Comanche.  Lovely apricot-pink shading that changes as the flower ages.  Waterlilies seem so far away here at the moment.... in the depths of winter. ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 21, 2009, 04:36:42 AM
No, that's not one we've had, Paul.  It sounds like a real winner, and I will certainly pass along the recommendation!  (Named for/by Perry Slocum, I expect?)

A few more... nothing of great note....
1) Sempervivum thompsonianum - it has little furry tufts on the leaves, which add interest... if one happens to be crawling around with one's nose to the ground to check!  ;)
2) Campanula fenestrellata, from seed last year.
3) Geranium x cantabrigiense 'Cambridge'
4) Sempervivum 'Oddity'... I have no idea why I bought this, as I normally shun monstrously-distorted plants (aside from the poor unfortunates that have gotten that way from my growing methods!  ;))   Anyway, I assume the new growth - slightly finer rosettes - may actually be distorted inflorescences... sort of fascinating in a dreadful way.   :P
5) A late peony... that seems to be trying to make a break for the sunshine; I'd best move it.
6) Asiatic lily hybrid, 'Painted Pixie'.
7) Our bark/wood mulch sometimes gives rise to little clumps of mushrooms, here and there... I like the taupey-moleskin colour of these.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 21, 2009, 04:01:04 PM
Here are some pictures of plants from my gardens here in Sweden. I haven't had much time sitting by the computer so some of them were photographed in late June. The date is in the pictures.

1) An Alcea collected in Turkey in 2002, with nice pink flowers. Maybe A. setosa
2) A close up of the flower
3) Aquilegia triternata
4) Aquilegia triternata
5) Blephilia ciliata from Arkansas
6) A pale form of Campanula lyrata. It self seeds profusely in a sandy/gravelly bed, and is sure to come back every year if you've once planted it. Biennial!
7) Centaurea atropurpurea. I expected the flowers to open up more, but they only open up this far. It's still a beautiful knap weed I think.
8) Clarkia rubicunda ssp blasdalei
9) Clarkia rubicunda ssp blasdalei
10) Clematis integrifolia

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Armin on July 21, 2009, 08:18:10 PM
Paul,
excellent shots from your garden.
Your Aquilegia triternata is a real stunner! :o 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Onion on July 21, 2009, 08:47:53 PM
some dierama's and a watsonia in flower at the moment

Tony,

do you grow the Watsonia outside?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Onion on July 21, 2009, 08:52:08 PM
Lovely flowers, Tony, but I'm shocked to see how much colour there is already in your Sorbus berries!

Maggi,

is the "Sorbus" in the picture with the watsonia from Tony? Sorry, this is not a Sorbus, it is a Viburnum plicatum cultivar. Some cultivars produce a large number of berries.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 21, 2009, 09:00:30 PM
Hi, Uli,
No,  not in the Watsonia pic: it was in the Dierama photo... attached below... they are Sorbus, the leaves are clearly visible.....
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Tony Willis on July 21, 2009, 09:16:56 PM
some dierama's and a watsonia in flower at the moment

Tony,

do you grow the Watsonia outside?
Yes I grow the watsonia outside.It has been there for several years and is photgraphed against Viburnum plicatum pink beauty.I grow two other species outside which do not do so well and have lost the names of all of them. I think they came from Archibald seed many years ago.

The dierama is against a self sown sorbus in next doors garden.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Onion on July 21, 2009, 09:52:28 PM
Hi, Uli,
No,  not in the Watsonia pic: it was in the Dierama photo... attached below... they are Sorbus, the leaves are clearly visible.....

Maggi,

only see the wonderful Dierama  :-[ :-[  not the Sorbus berries. What a shame.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 21, 2009, 10:48:53 PM

1) Clematis viorna
2) Delphinium glaucum
3) Delphinium glaucum
4) Delphinium speciosum
5) Delphinium speciosum
6) Dianthus crinitus
7) Dianthus crinitus
8) Dianthus giganteus
9) Dianthus micranthus
10) Digitalis parviflora
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 21, 2009, 11:18:27 PM
The order of the previous batch was not quite correct, but I've written the names in the pictures. Here are some more:

1) Dracocephalum imberbe
2) Dregea sinensis- I was quite doubtful to this species survival here in Sweden, but it has done fine against a southern wall with just minor freeze backs of the twining stems, and this year it flowered
3) Close up of the flowers which smell nice.
4) Eremalche parryi- I would like to grow E. rotundifolia, but I have yet to find a seed source for it.
5) Gentiana lutea, took about six years for me to reach flowering, but survives for a century, so it will surely outlive me unless someone digs it up to use the roots.
6) Geranium refractum
7) Geranium sp ( Tajikistan )
8) Geranium pratense 'Striatum'
9) Geranium viscosissimum has been with me for a long time, and this year it has flowered a lot. The stems are sticky.
10) Geranium viscosissimum flower close up
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 22, 2009, 02:44:36 AM
Terrific plants, Paul!  Geranium viscosissimum is in bloom in the grasslands and forest edge here - yours looks very nice!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 22, 2009, 07:06:40 AM
nice plants indeed, paul :)
unfortunately G viscosissimum doesnt quite reach my area, i will have to remedy that...; your G tajikistan, however, is very similar to G richardsonii which grows here, and ranges from white to nearly/as pink as yours..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 22, 2009, 08:43:03 AM

1) Clematis viorna
2) Delphinium glaucum
3) Delphinium glaucum
4) Delphinium speciosum
5) Delphinium speciosum
6) Dianthus crinitus
7) Dianthus crinitus
8) Dianthus giganteus
9) Dianthus micranthus
10) Digitalis parviflora
Paul,
Really lovely plants and clear,clear colours and forms - the Clematis viorna and Digitalis parviflora are my favourites  ;)

Quote
2) Dregea sinensis- I was quite doubtful to this species survival here in Sweden, but it has done fine against a southern wall with just minor freeze backs of the twining stems, and this year it flowered
3) Close up of the flowers which smell nice.

Congratulations on your first flowering - is it a tropical smell  ::)

Thanks for sharing :) your successes

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 22, 2009, 11:16:33 AM
Paul, the words on the actual photos is great to back up the text of the post.....I'm not clever enough to do such things so I appreciate your efforts! It also means there is no prblem if the photos are in a different order, eh!!  8)

 Dregea sinensis looks lovely.... another plant I don't know.... my ignorance is frightening... thank goodness for the daily classroom which this Forum provides.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 22, 2009, 12:43:32 PM
Paul,

Excellent pics.  The Dregea is something I have never heard of before (but love the look of), so can you tell us anything more about it?  Love the Geraniums and that Gentiana lutea as well.  Thanks so much.  8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 22, 2009, 03:22:16 PM
Paul, the words on the actual photos is great to back up the text of the post.....I'm not clever enough to do such things so I appreciate your efforts! It also means there is no prblem if the photos are in a different order, eh!!  8)
Maggie,
There is a simple quickie. Use the name of the plant in the name of the picture file. Many of us do that and it is helpful in storing the pictures too. Personally I have a folder for each genus. Pictures that deserve it are edited and copied to that folder and given the species name plus date. It is really helpful.
Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 22, 2009, 04:13:42 PM
What organisation - I'm really impressed Gote you're a genius......especially as I have spent the afternoon entering keywords into my photo-file system and trying to simplify the process but it's really hard  ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Brian Ellis on July 22, 2009, 05:36:53 PM
In flower today the 'Vesper Iris' - Pardanthopsis dichotoma.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 22, 2009, 05:51:21 PM
Wow, Brian, that's a really stunning iris, so tall, and the pattern from the centre is like blue rivulets flowing down each petal...gorgeous combination  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: David Nicholson on July 22, 2009, 08:52:00 PM
Very nice Iris dichotoma Brian. I have a couple in the garden grown from Seed Ex seed sown 21 February 2008 which I hope I might get a flower from next year. If they are as nice as yours I shall be well pleased.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Rodger Whitlock on July 22, 2009, 09:11:34 PM
In flower: Cichorium spinosum
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 22, 2009, 10:17:58 PM
Dear Paul,
              here is some information about Dregea ( also known as Wattakaka ) which I've been able to compile from my books. " A scrambling or climbing plant of gentle beauty for sheltered walls in our warmer counties, in any fertile soil. One of its nearest genera is the greenhouse climber, Hoya" Ornamental Shrubs Climbers and Bamboos- Graham Stuart Thomas.

"Dregea sinensis is supposedly rather tender, performing well in beds or tubs of a medium fertility, loam-based mix in a cool glasshouse or conservatory; it will however, tolerate sharp but not prolonged frosts. Outdoors it favors a very sheltered situation in full sun to semi-shade...."  " Climbing shrub to 3m, leaves to 10cm, broadly ovate, cordate, grey felted beneath. Flowers 1,5cm in diameter, 10-25 in axillary, long stalked, downy umbels to 9cm diam.,pink or white. ....China"   Manual of Climbers and Wall Plants - J.K. Burras, Mark Griffiths

"A decidious climber with heart shaped leaves and hanging umbels of scented pink or white flowers, native of W China in W Hubei, Sichuan and Yunnan, growing in scrub in rocky places at 40-2400m, flowering in May-July. Climber to 2,5m; leaves softly greyish hairy beneath, to 10cm long. Flowers 1,5cm across, in umbels to 8cm across. For any good soil in sun or partial shade. Min. 15C, perhaps with protection for the root. A nearly hardy Hoya like climber. "   Conservatory and Indoor Plants Vol 2 - Phillips & Rix.

I'm sure Rix and Phillips mean -15C in the above description.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 22, 2009, 10:24:19 PM
Nice little cushiony Cichorium spinosum plant. They can get quite big with stiff stalks in every direction. I saw a lot of it growing in Turkey when I was there. You should plant it out in a well drained gravelly site.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Roma on July 22, 2009, 10:27:08 PM
Not really flowers or foliage but looking good in the sun about 10 yesterday morning.  Larch cones.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 23, 2009, 12:09:19 AM
Brian,

Fantastic Iris dichotoma.  I love the flower markings.  Wow.  :o

Paul,

Thanks for the extra info.  I read the 15'C and cancelled out any chance of growing it here, until I read your note at the bottom.  I was trying to work out why I deciduous climber would have a 15'C minimum up until that point.  ;D Very nice.

Thanks again.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Rodger Whitlock on July 23, 2009, 12:41:09 AM
In flower today: Nierembergia rivularis

In 1991, Don Elick was a speaker at the Western Winter Study Weekend held in Victoria that year. I was fortunate to host him, and we had many interesting discussions on a wide range of topics, not only horticulture. He commented on the cracks due to serious settling of my concrete patio and suggested that they'd best be utilized for such plants as demanded such conditions. Did I have any nierembergia? As it happened, I had bought a pot of it a year or two earlier and planted it out, so yes, I did. We proceeded to gather some of the stringy rhizomes and drop them into the patio cracks, then backfilled with sand.

Now, nearly 20 years later, the Nierembergia continues to thrive in those cracks with no attention, while the original plant in the open garden has long since disappeared.

The photo includes the remains of faded flowers. Though this nierembergia flowers all summer long, to look its best, you must remove the faded flowers every few days, or you get the rather ugly corpses of flowers depicted.

I don't know what makes this location so favorable to the nierembergia, but rather suspect it's the cool, deep root run it gets under the concrete, plus protection from excessive winter wet.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: fermi de Sousa on July 23, 2009, 03:13:10 AM
In flower: Cichorium spinosum
Rodger,
that spiny chicory is a stunner. How long has it taken to flower? Does it set seed?
I also love the Nierembergia which I'm trying in a similar situation - between rocks around a small pond.
cheers
fermi
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Rodger Whitlock on July 23, 2009, 04:54:09 AM
In flower: Cichorium spinosum
that spiny chicory is a stunner. How long has it taken to flower? Does it set seed?

I only acquired it this spring, from Wrightman Alpines in Ontario. I was rather surprised that it flowered so soon, but it must enjoy the conditions I'm giving it (rich soil, lots of water, and brilliant sun). The flowers are fugitive, opening in the morning and fading as the sun goes down.

No idea if it will set seed, but if it does you may be sure I'll try to collect it for the exchanges.

I've always like the idea of these small, spiny subshrubs from the Mediterranean, but they don't seem to be all that common. In the same shipment I got Satureia spinosa and Catanache caespitosa, to join a plant of Ptilotrichium spinosum I already had.

The ptilotrichium approaches cactus levels of spininess. The flower heads are where the spines occur, very thin, pointed affairs with quite sharp points - as I discovered when I deadheaded mine. Definitely a plant to be a little wary of.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 23, 2009, 05:36:16 AM
The huge flowerheads on Crambe cordifolia...

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 23, 2009, 08:04:53 AM
It is raining a lot here so the humid part of the garden have great days.
Can anyone help with a name of the last of them?

Poul

 Hortensia.jpg
 Roscoea auriculata var beesiana.jpg
 Roscoea humeana.jpg
 Forgotten name.jpg = Houttuynia cordata ..... probably  'Chameleon'
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 23, 2009, 08:11:08 AM
There are some pretty flowers in rest of the garden too. Not so rare but nice anyway.
The last two from the green house.

Poul

 Crocosmia Lucifer.jpg
 Tulbaghia violacea.jpg
 Arum italicum.jpg
 Hesperantha baurii.jpg
 Scilla intermedia.jpg
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 23, 2009, 08:18:22 AM
Can anyone help with a name of the last of them?
Poul


Houttunia cordata - perhaps the cultivar ' Chameleon ' -

Nice Scilla in your last post!

Gerd
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 23, 2009, 10:47:27 AM
Your garden must be looking very good with all these plants, Poul.

I agree with Gerd: Houttuynia cordata ..... probably  'Chameleon'
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: olegKon on July 23, 2009, 11:42:16 AM
Some things today
1,2 Ranunculus
3.Adenofora liliacina
4.Veratrum nigrum
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 23, 2009, 12:35:24 PM
Oleg,

Love the veratrum. V. viride does well here and I must get the dark one at some stage.

Rodger, some plants certainly live their lives in what seem to us the most unpromising conditions. Amazing to have it growing so well for twenty years.

Poul, Houttonia certainly - a plant which I would consider a weed here as it travels without restrictions and gets to be a pest but nice nonetheless.

Lori, crambe is looking splendid, great plant, great presence.

Lovely run of photographs everybody. Enjoyed them.

Paddy

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 23, 2009, 02:34:51 PM
Here are some more photographs of flowers here with me in Sweden:

1) Lathyrus chilensis
2) Leuzea rhapontica
3) Linanthus "dylanae" ( probably L. grandiflorus)
4) Linum dolomiticum
5) Lonicera involucrata flowers
6) Lonicera involucrata  fruits
7) Monarda bradburiana
8) I've always been fascinated with thistles and especially Onopordums, which I've collected half a dozen species of in Turkey. Here the common Scotch Thistle- Onopordum acanthium, which I think is used for a wide variety of thistle species, maybe some Scotsman can tell me which one it was being placed around the camps as protection from sneaky Vikings?
9) Onopordum boissieri- is fairly shory ( about 1m ) and gets purple colored bracts during-after flowering almost like Eryngium leavenworthii.
10) Close up of the flower of Onopordum boissieri

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 23, 2009, 02:58:07 PM
Nice plants, everyone!  Paul, it looks like you have quite a few of our underused native plants - Lonicera involucrata is almost completely overlooked here - glad to see you are appreciating it!  What is the habit of Lathyrus chilensis - bushy, vining?

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 23, 2009, 03:28:09 PM
Dear Lori,
             the Lathyrus chilensis is vining and grows againt a south facing wall. I like your Crambe cordifolia. It's an imposing plant. I grew Crambe orientalis for a few years, and I am currently waiting for Crambe kotschyana to reach flowering size.
I like the Lonicera involucrata and saw a lot of it when I was in Banff and in the Colorado Rockies.

Here are some more Onopordum pictures. Onopordum bracteatum is by far the spiniest of the Onopordums I've been growing, and I think it's the most beautiful too. The flowers haven't quite opened yet, but I have a few pictures of the stem and also of a still unidentified Onopordum from the Lake Egirdir area of Turkey.

1) Onopordum bracteatum
2) Onopordum bracteatum- gloves needed to handle
3) Onopordum sp the whole plant is about 2,5m tall and quite wide
4) Onopordum sp bud
5) Onopordum sp flower

and a few others

6) Palafoxia sphacelata
7) Papaver sp- any suggestions of what it could be would be appreciated. Looking at The E-flora Flora of China it could be P. nudicaule var. aquilegioides as the fruit capsule is glabrous, Comments still appreciated.
8) Close up of the flower of the above species
9) The leaves of above.
10) Penstemon triflorus is still flowering and is showing some variety between flowers.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 23, 2009, 03:35:50 PM
more great pix, Paul!
Yesterday, I was looking at some shrubs in a municipal planting.... they were cut very hard back a few months ago and are only now beginning to look good again.... saw a shrub flowering which I didn't remember seeing there before.... couldn't think WHAT is was..... you've solved the question.... Lonicera involucrata!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 23, 2009, 06:45:33 PM
as always--lots of great things, and lots of new things to me!

rodger--fun to see the plant thriving in that spot--nice to turn a 'problem' area into a garden :)
lori--the crambe is really interesting, i will have to look it up..my real fascination is tiny plants, but i have lots of space, so i do appreciate some giants too ...
paul--i like all the pricklys...and i agree with lori, very nice to see a native grown there--that lonicera is selfsown all over my yard and acreage, and forms a really nice spreading mounded shrub..the fruit is probably more showy than the flowers, but bees really love the flowers, the bushes are always abuzz here..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 23, 2009, 08:08:26 PM
Here are some flowers from last week

1. Cyclamen colchicum
2. Gentiana septemfida lagodechianus
3. + 4. Scilla autumnalis

Gerd
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 23, 2009, 08:14:36 PM
More pictures...I hope you're not fed up yet

1) Cerastium banaticum
2) Cerastium banaticum close up
3) Phacelia campanularia ssp vasiformis
4) Phacelia grandiflora
5) Potentilla atrosanguinea var argyrophylla
6) Ptilostemon casabonae - the whole plant
7) Ptilostemon casabonae - flowers
8) Salvia bulleyana... or is the current name Salvia flava var megalantha ?
9) Salvia castanea
10) Salvia sp ( collected at Lake Titicaca )

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 23, 2009, 08:15:51 PM
Some Gesneriaceae - with the exception of the Petrocosmea grown all year round inside

1. Petrocosmea flaccida
2. Sinningia eumorpha
3. Sinningia pusilla
4. Saintpaulia confusa

Gerd
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 23, 2009, 08:32:55 PM
Still more.....

1) Salvia virgata from Turkey 2002, gets about as tall as me ( 172cm)
2) Salvia virgata closer look at the flowers
3) I have donated seeds of this species as Salvia sp TUR03-148, Salvia staminea or Salvia staminea  ex. TUR03-148 over the past four years or so, and if you happen to have a plant named any of the previous you need to get out your pen and paper, because it is WRONG. The right name should be Salvia virgata var alba. Maybe this should be made known to a wider audience in the SRGC Journal ?
4) Scorzonera tomentosa has nice grey felted broad leaves
5) From a SRGC Seed Ex named Scutellaria aff oxyphylla a few years ago
6) Scutellaria oxyphylla
7) Sedum sempervivoides is like a little Christmas in the middle of summer
8) Sedum sempervivoides grown in a shallow pot
9) Sedum sempervivoides close up
10) Senecio bigelovii was a plant which I got aquainted with in Colorado in 1999, and when I found seeds of it a couple of years ago I had to order some of course. Lacking ray flowers it is a bit odd looking, but a nice plant still.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 23, 2009, 08:44:36 PM
Very nice photographs Gerd. Do you have the new booklet on Gentiana by Jürgen Matschke ? You really grow many unusual gems. Thanks for sharing.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: ichristie on July 24, 2009, 07:18:35 AM
Well done, what a lot of superb pictures and plants I have never heard about a very interesting mixture. I have one odd Roscoea flowering at the moment looks like a hybrid between R. humeana and R. beesiana the flower is quite large and it has one flower per stem like R. humeana the colour looks like R. beesiana which has several flowers per stem and is taller,  cheers Ian the Christie kind.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 24, 2009, 07:24:06 AM
Your garden must be looking very good with all these plants, Poul.

I agree with Gerd: Houttuynia cordata ..... probably  'Chameleon'

Thank you all for the identification of Houttuynia - I remember now, it is Chameleon.

Maggi, a photo is thankfull in many ways. You can select just the things you want to show!
My garden is only 700 square meters, but I have lots of different species, so in general I am satisfied with the overall impression.

Poul
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 24, 2009, 07:37:28 AM

Poul, Houttonia certainly - a plant which I would consider a weed here as it travels without restrictions and gets to be a pest but nice nonetheless.


Paddy,

The issue weed is a funny thing. In general common native plants are often regarded as weed. For instance Oxalis pres-caprae is a weed in southern Europe, but in Denmark I grow it in a pot under glass. The same with Gagea lutea, which was shown on the forum some months ago. It is native in Denmark and regarded here as weed.

Poul
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 24, 2009, 08:28:35 AM
Paul, I really have enjoyed seeing all the plants you grow and the Salvias are amongst my favourites.  Also I agree that the Sedum sempervivoides is giving a wonderful display of bauble-like flowers 
Quote
like a little Christmas in the middle of summer

Plants like these are flowering all over the rocks at the moment and seem like something from another planet - the bees love the high summer flowering too and have gone crazy on my rock garden  8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 24, 2009, 08:37:18 AM
Very nice photographs Gerd. Do you have the new booklet on Gentiana by Jürgen Matschke ? You really grow many unusual gems. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you Paul - No, I didn't acquire the Gentiana book.

Gerd
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 24, 2009, 09:17:03 AM
Poul,

Perhaps, a better word would have been, "thug" - a plant which does not behave itself well in the garden!

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Hristo on July 24, 2009, 09:42:52 AM
Super pics all,
I love the Petrocosmea flaccida Gerd, very attractive.
Very nice Roscoea hybrid Ian, great to see them again as they just don't like it here at all!  :'(
Not much flowering here in the crispy woodland garden but these four toughies plus a few others for later;
Aquilegia chrysantha
Arthropodium sp.
Lilium - purchased as 'R O Backhouse' - which seems to cover many forms and colours when googled!
Freesia laxa - this is flowering from seed that came in with sphagunum moss from Michael, that's seed to flower in about 4 and half months!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 24, 2009, 09:51:53 AM
Very nice pics, Hristo.
Is Freesia lax the same as Anomatheca laxa?

Poul
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Hristo on July 24, 2009, 10:59:22 AM
Hi Poul,
Yes, currently one and the same, A.laxa is Fressia laxa, this may of course change, it often does! LOL  ;) :D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 24, 2009, 11:16:03 AM
Was curious to see what your little chess man icon did Hristo and was surprised to see that
Quote
Christopher hasn't done anything new lately
  Can't believe this is true especially as you have a new Avatar which is very attractive but......I do miss your smiling face  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Hristo on July 24, 2009, 12:17:17 PM
Hi RR,
If you followed the chess-man you will have seen why I haven't been doing much here lately.
The GSM interent connection is so slow I spend much of my time sorting out sales on ebay, this is the time
of year when we hopefully earn enough money for firewood for the winter!
I do enjoy lifting the rhizomes and bulbs in the garden and beds, it's nice to see how things have multiplied, and
hopefully be able to create duplicate plantings to beat them pesky mice/voles/blackbirds/locusts/snails/caterpillers/fence climbing goats etc etc!
P.s...I have posted Pancratium maratimum in the Amaryllidaceae thread photographed during our recent seed hunting expedition to the Bulgarian/Turkish border.
Pps - have new face pic, will upload just for you! LOL  ;)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 24, 2009, 12:58:46 PM
Some wonderful things everyone has posted.  Some beautiful Salvias, in particular the bulleyana (love that colour combination, I didn't know they came in that colour.  :o).

I do have to question one thing in one posting though...... http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3784.msg102640#msg102640 ..... is the first one really Crocosmia 'Lucifer'?  I thought it was supposed to be red, not this orange colour?  Or is it just the camera's representation of the colour?  I just thought I would mention as if the colour is true, my understanding is that that is not that variety? ???
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Brian Ellis on July 24, 2009, 02:30:43 PM
Quote
I do have to question one thing in one posting though...... http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3784.msg102640#msg102640 ..... is the first one really Crocosmia 'Lucifer'?  I thought it was supposed to be red, not this orange colour?  Or is it just the camera's representation of the colour?  I just thought I would mention as if the colour is true, my understanding is that that is not that variety?

Yes it should be much redder than that Paul.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 24, 2009, 03:07:05 PM
Lilium - purchased as 'R O Backhouse' - which seems to cover many forms and colours when googled!

Well, the only liiles registered with any variation of the name "Backhouse" ('Mrs. R. O. Backhouse', 'Backhouse Hybrids', 'R.O. Backhouse') are all martagon hybrids, which that one clearly isn't! 
I complain that we can't get the many desirable cultivars of garden plants that seem to be available in Europe, but at least lilies are quite easy to get here... and even accurately labelled, generally.  :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 24, 2009, 06:57:16 PM
Some Gesneriaceae - with the exception of the Petrocosmea grown all year round inside

1. Petrocosmea flaccida
2. Sinningia eumorpha
3. Sinningia pusilla
4. Saintpaulia confusa

Gerd

interesting to see that you grow the african 'violets' also... i find the species very interesting...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 24, 2009, 08:38:36 PM
interesting to see that you grow the african 'violets' also... i find the species very interesting...

So do I - but it's not because of the 'violet' - it's because the Gesneriacea family is so interesting, especially the relicts which were found outside the tropics.
My only problem is - there are too much plants which I am interested in!

Gerd
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 25, 2009, 04:38:45 AM
1) Carduncellus pinnatus seedhead.  Oops, I just realized that this photo is a bit fraudulent!  The seedhead had broken off, and was laying in the path... I set it back on the rosette for the photo, before I collected it... but upside-down!   :o
2) I think this is Artemisia longifolia, starting to bloom... though not very noticeably!   ;)  (I bought it years ago as A. heriottii, an obsolete name for A. tilesii... a native plant... guess I'll have to try to figure it out.  ???)
3) Thyme and Dasyphora fruticosa 'Yellow Gem'
4) A native onion, Allium cernuum.
5) Campanula carpatica 'Blue Clips'.
6) Euphorbia griffithii 'Fireglow' - forms a very substantial bush here and provides good colour the whole season through.
7) Athamanta turbith ssp. haynaldii
8 ) Knautia macedonica, with flower spike of Verbascum eriophorum.
9) One little flower of Parnassia palustris peeking out in the acid bed... fascinating flower structure with "gland-tipped staminodia in united in 5 scale-like clusters opposite the petals" (Moss, Packer: Flora of Alberta) - hope it comes across in my bad, zoomed-in photo.
10) Salvia tesquicola (or S. nemorosa ssp. tesquicola, whichever it should be?)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 25, 2009, 05:25:19 AM
Lori,

Wow, even the seedhead of Carduncellus pinnatus is cool!!  ;D 8)  Thanks for the lovely pics.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 25, 2009, 07:13:34 AM
gerd--i understand this problem of being interested in too many plants! i only relatively recently heard of the hardy gesneriads, some of them are very interesting, not sure how hardy any would be here...

lori--nice stuff; Parnassia is flowering now in the wild here, though i havent been in the right spots to photograph much yet; we have something like the Euphorbia 'fireglow' here--some kind of fiery name...my mom had it planted between apple treesm where it is probably too shaded, and it has grown very straggly against a trunk, but amazes me with evergreen leaves...i need to move it or take cuttings...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 25, 2009, 12:28:35 PM
gerd--i understand this problem of being interested in too many plants! i only relatively recently heard of the hardy gesneriads, some of them are very interesting, not sure how hardy any would be here...

Cohan,
For sure we are not the only ones with this problem here!
To hardy gesneriads - I believe Ramonda myconi is worth to try - I never lost
one by frosts - even without snowcover.

Gerd
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 25, 2009, 03:48:35 PM
Of the hardy gesneriads, I grow Haberlea rhodopensis, and Ramonda myconii here - the evergreen leaves are prone to winter-burn in our low humidity and poor snow cover conditions, however; the Haberlea has been tougher in that regard.  Better gardeners than I grow Jankaea (though I know one uses winter covers over the more precious plants - not something I'm interested in doing).

Cohan, it's possible your mom's plant is one of the coloured varieties of Euphorbia polychroma, e.g. 'Bonfire' - very commonly grown species, and very attractive... (but all the larger euphorbia species I grow die to the ground here - not evergreen - so perhaps I am not guessing correctly?)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: WimB on July 25, 2009, 04:24:37 PM
Some plants that are flowering here today, nothing really special but a lot of colour:

1) Agapanthus ...
2) Arisaema bathycoleum After having checked the plant in Gusman's book it seems this is Arisaema yunnanense var. yunnanense instead of A. bathycoleum
3) Echinacea 'After Midnight'
4) Echinacea 'Harvest Moon'
5) Echinacea 'Summer Sky'
6) Habranthus ???
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 25, 2009, 05:46:09 PM
Of the hardy gesneriads, I grow Haberlea rhodopensis, and Ramonda myconii here - the evergreen leaves are prone to winter-burn in our low humidity and poor snow cover conditions, however; the Haberlea has been tougher in that regard.  Better gardeners than I grow Jankaea (though I know one uses winter covers over the more precious plants - not something I'm interested in doing).
Having seen Haberlea rhodopensis growing in the wild in the Rodopi mountains, I can ensure you it is a tough little cookie that can take bad weather conditions.
Flowering here now and I am not sure what to make of it is the plant I grow from seed listed as Senecio caucasigenus/pyroglossus. It looks so much more like an Inula to me. :-\
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Brian Ellis on July 25, 2009, 07:14:29 PM
A mixed bag from the garden this evening.
A beautiful Asiatic lily 'Dimention'
Berkhaya purpurea is just a lovely colour too.
Can anyone identify this Bomarea please?
This is our Crocosmia Lucifer, a bit more red I think than the other
Liatris spicata is a joy, I love flowers that open from the top downwards.
This Monarda has decided to perform this year, it has been in the same position for at least three, if not four, years and last year had one flower!  It must be the weather 8)
Here is a Pandorea jasminoides grown from seed, obviously there is a reasonable colour range as I wasn't expecting this dark centred flower.
Lastly Platycodon grandiflorum with a stray, no the name escapes me for the moment.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Brian Ellis on July 25, 2009, 07:20:11 PM
..of course it helps if you put the last picture on!  It has come to me Amsonia tabernaemontana
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: David Nicholson on July 25, 2009, 07:26:34 PM
It's always a joy to browse this thread, such lovely stuff posted by all. Stunning blue on your Platycodon Brian.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 25, 2009, 07:31:17 PM
Of the hardy gesneriads, I grow Haberlea rhodopensis, and Ramonda myconii here - the evergreen leaves are prone to winter-burn in our low humidity and poor snow cover conditions, however; the Haberlea has been tougher in that regard.  Better gardeners than I grow Jankaea (though I know one uses winter covers over the more precious plants - not something I'm interested in doing).
 

I have grown the Haberlea and Ramonda myconii for many years (decades) without any problem. I grow Ramonda serbica since some ten years too. Jankaea has always died in the winter. What minimum temperatures do you think it can stand ?
Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 25, 2009, 08:55:49 PM
I have not yet grown Jankaea myself.  The gardener who I am referring to seemed to have had it for a few years, and it can be counted on to reach -30 deg C on at least a small number of nights in any winter here (and can rarely get -40 C or worse)... but, as I mentioned, this person does cover some choice plants for the winter, including (I believe) the Jankaea.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 25, 2009, 09:02:40 PM
I often wonder if these plants are killed by 'kindness', Jankaea heldreichii does grow on Mt Olympus after all.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Geebo on July 25, 2009, 09:43:05 PM
Hi All,
Just some sellection of flowers during June/ July.
Guy.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 25, 2009, 10:33:36 PM
Hi Guy,

Haven't seen you post in ages. Welcome back.

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 26, 2009, 02:00:37 AM
Hi All,
Just some sellection of flowers during June/ July.
Guy.

lots of nice  blues! berkeya is one i dont know..
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 26, 2009, 02:09:37 AM
Of the hardy gesneriads, I grow Haberlea rhodopensis, and Ramonda myconii here - the evergreen leaves are prone to winter-burn in our low humidity and poor snow cover conditions, however; the Haberlea has been tougher in that regard.  Better gardeners than I grow Jankaea (though I know one uses winter covers over the more precious plants - not something I'm interested in doing).

Cohan, it's possible your mom's plant is one of the coloured varieties of Euphorbia polychroma, e.g. 'Bonfire' - very commonly grown species, and very attractive... (but all the larger euphorbia species I grow die to the ground here - not evergreen - so perhaps I am not guessing correctly?)

i know wrightmans in ontario lists a few of the gessies, i will certainly try sometime..how do you grow these, lori? shade/sun/woodland/rocks?

i should take a picture of the euphorbia... the fact is i seldom remember it--this time of year you really cant see it without searching, too much other vegetation in that area..i only notice it in spring when i am raking around the apple trees...lol..maybe it wouldnt be evergreen in the open? at least, i think its evergreen--im sure when i am seeing fully leafed stems when everything else is bare it couldnt have grown them already...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 26, 2009, 03:00:25 AM
I don't claim to grow them well at all, but Haberlea rhodopensis, and Ramonda myconii seem to need some shade in our dry climate, so I have a couple of Haberlea under shrubs in regular soil, and one Ramonda in a small rock garden (half grit- half compost) under the shade of a mountain ash (where it burned very badly last winter).  I should move one into the tufa bed, into an east-facing crevice... probably.

Cohan, could it be you are thinking of Euonymus (re. Euphorbia)?

Hot colours for a hot day...
1) Self-seeded California poppies (Eschscholzii californica)... so bright, so dependable!
2) Dianthus barbatus... showed upon its own a few years ago and has been reseeding itself...
3) An odd salmony-coloured Penstemon barbatus hybrid (I assume, from the shark's-mouth flowers)
4) Cooling off a little... native Monarda fistulosa
5) Aaaah, cooler... Allium senescens ssp. montanum var. glaucum
6) Salvia verticillata 'Purple Rain'
7) Icy blue... Eryngium planum
8 ) A new tropical, Nymphaea 'Albert Greenberg'
9 ) A new one this year, Scutellaria indica var. parviflora - very small flowers and overall.
10) And, Carduncellus pinnatus -  a different plant -  as it looks with seedhead intact this time!   The plumes will soon expand and push their way open.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 26, 2009, 03:31:27 AM
And... forgive my enthusiasm in forcing all these photos on you poor unsuspecting folks... our season is intense and fleeting!  (I'm getting a little anxious that July is nearly over   :o)

1, 2) Sunset from 10pm last night, when I had just missed the opening of these flowers... Oenothera triloba.  One can actually watch the flowers open - it takes something less than a minute.  Simply magical!  (I must remember to be out for that other bud tonight!)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 26, 2009, 07:27:45 AM
I don't claim to grow them well at all, but Haberlea rhodopensis, and Ramonda myconii seem to need some shade in our dry climate, so I have a couple of Haberlea under shrubs in regular soil, and one Ramonda in a small rock garden (half grit- half compost) under the shade of a mountain ash (where it burned very badly last winter).  I should move one into the tufa bed, into an east-facing crevice... probably.

Cohan, could it be you are thinking of Euonymus (re. Euphorbia)?


i might have the advantage of more snow, less dry generally, but it all depends on the year..

you know, i dont remember where i got the idea it was a euphorbia, whether thats what my mother said (will have to ask again what she called it), or i saw it somewhere..a little online searching didnt help much (it does vaguely resemble a stretched out E amygdaloides, but that doesnt sound hardy here from the little reading i did); doesnt look like any euonymus that i know, but i only know the basics which are super common in toronto..i will just have to try to get a picture; doesnt help that i've never seen it flower...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 26, 2009, 07:44:27 AM
I often wonder if these plants are killed by 'kindness', Jankaea heldreichii does grow on Mt Olympus after all.
I might have done that.  :(
Re Ramonda myconii. The conventional wisdom is that all the hardy gesneriads are plants for shade. This should perhaps be interpreted as "no sun" rather than deep shade. I have always placed them in crevices in sloping positions on the north side and it has worked well. In the wild I have seen R.m. in positions that sometimes were very dry. They shriveled up completely but recovered. Obviously they can take a lot of dryness in an emergency. Could the sun reach those that were burned in the winter??
Göte   
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Sinchets on July 26, 2009, 08:02:57 AM
I really do think that the hardy gesneriads do need demistifying. They are tough plants and unless you are growing them for show, a few scorched leaves cannot be seen as a cultivation problem. They bounce back from being dried out, as this happens in the wild- frequently. Haberlea rhodopensis grows on almost vertical cliffs- north facing. The seeds appear to germinate in patches of moss along seepage lines. We will go back to the  population we know to check for seed, but I would not be suprised if they are dry for some time in summer. In winter it  is possible that the rock faces they grow on may be too steep to hold much snow cover- in which case they may be frozen into the water seepage lines. We never saw any growing on the tufa deposits in this area- but I assume this is because the tufa 'grows' quicker than they do.
As I have mentioned before my mother still has my hardy gesneriads, as I could only fetch them here bare-rooted at the time- and I didn't want to do that. Apart from rain they are only get water when they show obvious signs of distress and she still has them after 3 years.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Geebo on July 26, 2009, 04:57:25 PM
Hi Paddy,

severe Artritish had prevented me to continue posting on the forum for some time,much to long really,and most of my time had to be spend in the nursery due to slowing down,with little or no time left for leisure
Things have not improved ,as I am now complete immobile,and bound inside,with more than time on my hands,and an opportunity to visit the forum again,you might see me around,the replacement of two knees is going to take some time to recover. :-\
I will try to get out there sometimes to get some pics to keep You informed,hope Im not going to get to boring with our Helleborus  ;)
See You soon,
Guy



Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 26, 2009, 05:40:04 PM
Guy,

Sorry to hear about your troubles with knees etc. Hopefully, you will heal quickly and return to being mobile again.

Take care, Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 26, 2009, 05:48:41 PM
Here's an embarrassing admission that probably demonstrates my laissez-faire gardening attitude perfectly...  :-[
 I had the original Haberlea rhodopensis in a sunny acid bed for about 8 years, during which time it generally looked burnt and ratty and never bloomed... but was, nonetheless, impossible to kill (not that I was trying to...)  It finally occurred to me to look into the conditions it preferred... ahem.  
Then I moved it into shade, where it has bloomed annually since.  
So, yes, tough plants.  
I imagine an additional factor with Jankaea would be those furry leaves... probably prone to rot in wet climates, I would assume.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: David Nicholson on July 26, 2009, 07:45:24 PM
Hi Guy, nice to see you posting again. Sorry to hear about the knee problems and hope you are soon more mobile again.

Lori, you keep posting them, I'll keep enjoying them ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: hadacekf on July 26, 2009, 08:06:45 PM
After five year old absence into my garden appears a self seedling of Verbascum bombyciferum. This is an eye-catching plant with heavily felted, silver-grey rosettes of large leaves, and bearing long, tall, fleecy stems of bright yellow flowers.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 26, 2009, 08:38:44 PM
Franz, I love it!  What a beautiful furry beast it is and what a name to go with it: 'Verbascum bombyciferum':)  What promoted it to grow so magnificently this year do you think?  Your alpines must feel exceptionally dwarfed!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Geebo on July 26, 2009, 09:20:52 PM
Franz,what a surprise it make,here in our garden it seem to appear every Year in the most unusual places,it seem to have a mind of its own were it is going to get growing,it never get out of hand,so we leave it in peace,and next year or two year there after it show its statueske again.
We to love it even it is always somehow out of place  ;)

Guy.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 26, 2009, 11:54:43 PM
Hi Paddy,
severe Artritish had prevented me to continue posting on the forum for some time,much to long really,and most of my time had to be spend in the nursery due to slowing down,with little or no time left for leisure
Things have not improved ,as I am now complete immobile,and bound inside,with more than time on my hands,and an opportunity to visit the forum again,you might see me around,the replacement of two knees is going to take some time to recover. :-\
I will try to get out there sometimes to get some pics to keep You informed,hope Im not going to get to boring with our Helleborus  ;)
See You soon,
Guy

sorry to hear! hopefully the knee surgery will help..
nice perennial border, set off beautifully by the white house :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 27, 2009, 07:02:15 AM
Lovely verbascum there!  I've grown V. bombyciferum the odd time but it never fails... the plants I count on to reseed themselves often don't.  (Damned biennials and monocarps!   >:()
Speaking of another damned biennial (more or less), it occurred to me a couple of times during the winter that I'd best finally collect seeds of Campanula thyrsoides, since my last plants bloomed last summer... but being a great procrastinator, I never did.  This spring, though, I started finding quite a number of mysterious, bristly-leaved seedlings around about through the yard, and finally figured out that they were C. thyrsoides (or so I hope!)...  So at least that one did what biennials are supposed to do!

Cephalaria gigantea - which I find surprisingly hard to photograph!  It should show up against the dark tree but never so well as I'd hope!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: pehe on July 27, 2009, 07:31:21 AM
Some wonderful things everyone has posted.  Some beautiful Salvias, in particular the bulleyana (love that colour combination, I didn't know they came in that colour.  :o).

I do have to question one thing in one posting though...... http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3784.msg102640#msg102640 ..... is the first one really Crocosmia 'Lucifer'?  I thought it was supposed to be red, not this orange colour?  Or is it just the camera's representation of the colour?  I just thought I would mention as if the colour is true, my understanding is that that is not that variety? ???

Paul, sorry for the late answer, I just mised your post.
Yes it is 'Lucifer', in real it is true red. The photo was taken in the evening and I should probably have used flash to get the color more true.
It is a problem when working in daytime, either is many flowers closed or the light is poor. But following Ian's photographic hints in the bulb log gives better results.
By the way, besides autumn flowering bulbs, Crocosmia 'Lucifer' is one off my favorites. It is very vigorous, healthy and both flower buds, flowers and seed pots are very beautifully.

Poul
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 27, 2009, 08:17:32 AM
Good to hear Poul.  It's always worthwhile checking is someone has a possibly mislabelled plant.... that is how so many things get passed on to other people with incorrect names, never realising that they aren't the true item.  Glad yours is the real red.  8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Geebo on July 27, 2009, 08:15:40 PM
Hi,
Thanks to all the forumnists sending me there consern,it lift the moral here,

Keep posting, :) :) ;)
Guy.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 27, 2009, 10:54:58 PM
Hi Guy, wishing you well in your recovery - two replacement knees must be really tough rehabilitation but I'm sure will be worth it in the end to be free from pain - your garden looks wonderful and I hope will lift your spirits  :)

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Michael J Campbell on July 28, 2009, 07:50:35 PM
Can someone ID what is left of this flower please,the slugs discovered it before I did. It is 15cm high and the two  leaves are 30cm long.


Flower.
One of the leaves.
 
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 28, 2009, 08:48:23 PM
Some last pictures of July flowers

1) This was a very nice pink Alcea species which was collected in Cappadocia in 2003. This is how I remember it looking on the plant where I collected seeds, but seeds from the same plant...

2)...gave a different shade of pink as well. Alcea rosea is by the way not native to Turkey, but is grown along houses and has surely escaped.I posted these two pictures in July as Alcea rosea, but I have just learnt that it is Alcea apterocarpa      edit made 28/09/09

3) Silene gigantea grows out of cliffs in Turkey
4) It forms a quite big rosette the first year, and flowers the second or third year
5) The flower stalk gets about 5 ft ( 150 cm ) tall, and is very resinous in the upper part- a good trap for flying insects. Including those nasty Clematis- bugs with the orange abdomen.
6) Streptanthus insignis
7) Teucrium chamaedrys
8) Vincetoxicum canescens
9) Vicia cassia
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: PaulM on July 28, 2009, 08:56:34 PM
I have to share some pictures of a rare Verbascum species flowering with me now too. I recently learned that it is Verbascum chionophyllum, which is endemic to the area east of Mut, where I collected it in 2004. The foliage is fuzzy like a wool mitten. It is perennial and needs an extremely dry and calcareous spot with intense sunlight for best performance. I should be able to collect some seed, and I don't have any other Verbascums growing in the garden this year, so the chances of DNA pollution are slim.

1) Foliage
2) Flower + foliage
3) Flower + foliage
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 28, 2009, 11:05:56 PM
That Verbascum is not one I have seen..... so VERY furry, and a good colour to the flower, contrasting with the white foliage. 
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: mark smyth on July 28, 2009, 11:46:19 PM
Paul I like the way you put plant info on your photos
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 29, 2009, 12:21:45 AM
I adore that fuzzy Verbascum.  So touchable.  ;D  Looks fantastic! 8)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 29, 2009, 02:48:34 AM
I've finally managed to catch up with 12 pages of this thread since I last looked, all done while my home help is doing the vacuum cleaning. Such a decadent feeling, amusing myself while someone else does the work. Alas, it won't last. Far too many things to comment on but Guy, I do hope your knee surgery is sucessful and you can live a normal garden life again as soon as possible. You do have my sympathies, especially as voltaren is off the menu for the rest of my life. Really nice to see that little weldenia is still doing well for you

When I had Cichorium spinosum, the flowers were BLUE, the same lovely, limpid shade as the wild, roadside species, C. intybus.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Rodger Whitlock on July 29, 2009, 03:18:24 AM
When I had Cichorium spinosum, the flowers were BLUE, the same lovely, limpid shade as the wild, roadside species, C. intybus.

Cichorium intybus is a very common roadside weed here: the Island Highway that runs from Victoria north has it almost all the way along, wherever there's a gravelly verge.

Over the years, I've found a good clean white-flowered form, pinkish ones (but not a good clear pink), and also ones that are considerably deeper blue than the usual sky blue. I had the white-flowered form in the garden for some years and was interested to note that C. intybus can be described as a weakly twining climber. However, in spite of very careful deadheading at the end of its flowering season, a few volunteers turned up so it had to go before the entire garden became infested.

Unfortunately, the road where I found it has since been realigned and "improved". It is no more where it originated.

I will say that my specimen of C. spinosum is a pretty washy affair, so I'll have to sow seed (if any forms) and see if the next generation has any better color amongst it.

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 29, 2009, 08:58:48 PM
Fabulous verbascum, Paul!
The transition into the later bloom is starting here...
1) An early Verbascum nigrum  
2) Dracocephalum purdonii
3) Lychnis fulgens, wilting a bit in the sun.
4) Digitalis lanata lutea
5) Lysimachia nummularia... I know this is a pest in warmer areas, but it's easily controlled here and makes a floriferous carpet under the ferns...
6) Asiatic lily hybrid 'Amberglow'
7) Veronica longifolia, or so I assume, a dwarfish selection.
8 ) A trough-sized Potentilla fruticosa var. pumila with Opuntia polyacantha.
9) A spontaneous double among the self-seeded Campanula medium.
10) Campanula kemulariae, from seed last year.  EDIT: Correction - the seed was mislabelled - it's actually some damned big adenophora!   >:(
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Armin on July 29, 2009, 09:18:21 PM
Lori,
"A spontaneous double among the self-seeded Campanula medium" is very interesting.
Never saw double funnels on a campanula :o
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 29, 2009, 09:20:26 PM
Lori, more lovely later plants but the Digitalis lanata is heavenly with its whiskers in the sunlight  :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 29, 2009, 09:51:39 PM
Fabulous verbascum, Paul!
The transition into the later bloom is starting here...
1) An early Verbascum nigrum  
2) Dracocephalum purdonii
3) Lychnis fulgens, wilting a bit in the sun.
4) Digitalis lanata
5) Lysimachia nummularia... I know this is a pest in warmer areas, but it's easily controlled here and makes a floriferous carpet under the ferns...
6) Asiatic lily hybrid 'Amberglow'
7) Veronica longifolia, or so I assume, a dwarfish selection.
8 ) A trough-sized Potentilla fruticosa var. pumila with Opuntia polyacantha.
9) A spontaneous double among the self-seeded Campanula medium.
10) Campanula kemulariae, from seed last year.

lots of gems lori!
 i've never grown any verbascums, will have to change that..i had mostly thought of rock garden sizes, but something big could work here too! is this one large as it seems (several feet tall?)
we have some veronica here--presumably not dwarf--spreading around a bit, but not problematically so, so far...
the mini potentilla is cool; i've only just this year seen  P fruticosa growing in some ditches/roadsides near here, had no idea it was around, nearer than foothills til now...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paddy Tobin on July 29, 2009, 10:18:45 PM
Lovely selection, Lori.

Paddy
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 29, 2009, 10:20:27 PM
Thanks, all!
Cohan, V. nigrum gets to 6' in bloom for me - the one shown is in a dry spot, so a bit shorter.  I'll send you seeds later on, if you like.  I was interested in the dwarf Potentilla/Dasyphora fruticosa forms for the troughs because I thought they'd provide constant bloom like their big brothers... they haven't yet but maybe they're still getting comfortable in their situations...

Aruby, while that particular double campanula was unexpected, there are some cultivars of the smaller campanula species that are double-flowered, e.g. C. carpatica, C. cochlearifolia 'Elizabeth Oliver'.  They are not yet in bloom here, but I may be able to show one later.  Oh, now that I think of it, there are double-flowered cultivars in other species too... C. persicifolia, C. trachelium, etc., so I suppose it is a fairly strong tendency among campanula?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 30, 2009, 06:17:49 AM
I just realized that what I posted as "Digitalis lanata" actually seems to be Digitalis lutea... a rare error from a very good specialty nursery in town.  I've corrected it in the posting.
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 30, 2009, 07:43:04 AM
Thanks, all!
Cohan, V. nigrum gets to 6' in bloom for me - the one shown is in a dry spot, so a bit shorter.  I'll send you seeds later on, if you like.  I was interested in the dwarf Potentilla/Dasyphora fruticosa forms for the troughs because I thought they'd provide constant bloom like their big brothers... they haven't yet but maybe they're still getting comfortable in their situations...

seeds would be nice, thanks :)
you know, i forgot the potentilla had been moved, as i guess a lot of the genus has? too bad, i liked that genus...lol
constant bloom would be great for a mini-shrub, hopefully it develops...
i guess the large P fruticosa are probably used as much in calgary as they are in these parts? these are a real mainstay of gardens and public plantings, and small surprise, blooming until long past the early frosts..
i'm not much on garden hybrids usually, but  i would like to get some white and pink forms of this eventually; for yellow, i think i'd like to stick to the species, apart from one thats already here in a rather shady spot...
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Hristo on July 30, 2009, 01:24:14 PM
Nice pics all, interesting to see Digitalis lutea growing in another continent, we saw the true D.viridiflora on Tuesday growing in the Beli Iska river valley below Mt.Musala. Very similar to lutea but with very distinct brown to orange markings on the lips.
Had a great couple of days seed collecting and we were lucky enough to see Aquilegia aurea, Primula deorum, Gentiana frigida, Geum bulgaricum and a host of other high alpine plants in flower at around 2,300 to 2,900 metres. A few pics posted here froim the trip.
1) View upto Mt.Musala, 2nd highest mountain in Europe
2) Geum reptans
3) Saxifraga bryoides
4) View down from the summit area
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on July 30, 2009, 02:33:16 PM
Fabulous verbascum, Paul!
The transition into the later bloom is starting here...
1) An early Verbascum nigrum  
2) Dracocephalum purdonii
3) Lychnis fulgens, wilting a bit in the sun.
4) Digitalis lanata lutea
5) Lysimachia nummularia... I know this is a pest in warmer areas, but it's easily controlled here and makes a floriferous carpet under the ferns...
6) Asiatic lily hybrid 'Amberglow'
7) Veronica longifolia, or so I assume, a dwarfish selection.
8 ) A trough-sized Potentilla fruticosa var. pumila with Opuntia polyacantha.
9) A spontaneous double among the self-seeded Campanula medium.
10) Campanula kemulariae, from seed last year.

Lori,
You seem to have a never ending diversity of species in your garden !
Amazing stuff !!
Thanks for adding some colour to our Summer  :D


Chris,

Some great pix of a mountain I had never heard of !
Thanks for showing !
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 30, 2009, 02:40:20 PM
1) View upto Mt.Musala, 2nd highest mountain in Europe


Chris,
So - that's the origin of my Dianthus variety - the name seems to be of Turkish origin?
Dianthus microlepis var. musalae
Fine pics!

Gerd
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 30, 2009, 02:42:10 PM
Great views, Hristo, and Saxifraga bryoides is beautifully speckled - lots of Saxifraga growing wild here and Sempervivium.

By the way, your Avatar really is an action shot - are you seed collecting?  ::)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Maggi Young on July 30, 2009, 03:00:43 PM
Quote
By the way, your Avatar really is an action shot - are you seed collecting?

 Theoretically, yes, I expect that was the idea..... but I reckon he's just sitting in the sun, having lunch!  ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: wolfgang vorig on July 30, 2009, 04:48:07 PM
some Gentian's today,

Gentiana gelisepta  (G. gelida X G. septemfida     

Regards   Wolfgang                                                                                                                           
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: wolfgang vorig on July 30, 2009, 05:06:33 PM
Ganzania's in pot's
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Hristo on July 30, 2009, 05:32:58 PM
Very attractive Gentians Wolfgang!
Cheers Luc.
Gerd, Musala means 'Towards God'. I am intrigued as to where the variatel status for Dianthus microlepis has come from, we have seen this species up many other mountains here where it varies in colour from deep pink to white, as it does on Mt.Musala, what colour is yours?
Cheers RR, yes I had been picking up seed from P.maratimum, this population may represent the most northerly point of this species distribution
( worldwide ) being just 30km south of Burgas.
Maggi, the lunch of Bulgarian rye bread, smoked meat, followed by fresh local melon was a distraction!!  ::)

Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: cohan on July 30, 2009, 09:02:25 PM
Nice pics all, interesting to see Digitalis lutea growing in another continent, we saw the true D.viridiflora on Tuesday growing in the Beli Iska river valley below Mt.Musala. Very similar to lutea but with very distinct brown to orange markings on the lips.
Had a great couple of days seed collecting and we were lucky enough to see Aquilegia aurea, Primula deorum, Gentiana frigida, Geum bulgaricum and a host of other high alpine plants in flower at around 2,300 to 2,900 metres. A few pics posted here froim the trip.
1) View upto Mt.Musala, 2nd highest mountain in Europe
2) Geum reptans
3) Saxifraga bryoides
4) View down from the summit area

fantastic views! love the geum and sax too!
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lesley Cox on July 30, 2009, 09:53:36 PM
Fresh, local melon. Oh yes. :P
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Lori S. on July 31, 2009, 06:14:24 AM
Terrific gentians, Wolfgang!  Your photos reminded me that we did not plant our usual pots of gazanias out this year... an effort to reduce watering chores, I suppose, though I do miss their lovely xeric effect, seeing yours!

Great views and plants, Hristo!

A few recent ones, nothing of great note...
1) Very large flowers on Campanula troegerae x betulifolia, another recumbent plant that I need to position to better effect (temporarily propped up on a birch log for the photo!)
2) I think this is Sedum/Hylotelephium anacampseros? - a quick guess, with the plant marker pulled out long ago - please correct me if I'm wrong!
3) A repeat on Nymphaea 'Marliacaea Albida' - amazing that Marliac's creations are still "the gold standard", and how very clever of him that most are indefinable (and sterile) hybrids!  If only the plant patent notion had been around then, his estate would be invaluable! 
4) A new viviparous tropical, Nymphaea 'Crystal', with variegated leaves (though the variegation fades rather quickly);
5) Symphyandra zanzegura, growing up from under a big spruce bough... (but given its short-lived nature and the legion of seedlings in the area, I won't bother to move it.)
6) A few pretty bells on Adenophora tashiroi;
7) Eryngium alpinum, now in its blue glory;
8 ) And speaking of blue, the delicious tones of Delphinium grandiflorum are abundant now.... I've found, through its self-seeding, that purple, white and a somewhat muddy mauve have also been produced... though the lovely blue predominates, thankfully.  It was very interesting, too, to see it in its natural habitat, Chris - thanks!
9) Eryngium x zabellii
10)  I hope no one's eyesight is permanently damaged by this one... a repeat of Lilium 'Goodnight', while it is in full glorious bloom.  We have such a long period of white or dullness here, that one must have colour in the brief summer!!!  (A "white garden" is for those recovering from breakdowns or such like, who must avoid stimulus by doctor's orders.   ;D  )  
 
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Brian Ellis on July 31, 2009, 09:01:47 AM
I like the bracts on eryngium x zabellii Lori, is the foliage fine or coarse?
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: gote on July 31, 2009, 09:16:07 AM
3) A repeat on Nymphaea 'Marliacaea Albida' - amazing that Marliac's creations are still "the gold standard", and how very clever of him that most are indefinable (and sterile) hybrids!  If only the plant patent notion had been around then, his estate would be invaluable!
4) A new viviparous tropical, Nymphaea 'Crystal', with variegated leaves (though the variegation fades rather quickly);
Absolutely, The majority of my cultivars are Marliac. However, I find that Nymphaeas are easily misnamed and itis difficult to unravel this. It would be difficult to uphold the patent rights.

Is this varigeation similar to that in yellow hardy Nymphaeas and Do you think that it is influence from N mexicana which allegedly is a parent of the Marilac yelows?

Göte
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Paul T on July 31, 2009, 09:58:14 AM
Lovely, Lori.  My immediate thought was that the yellow Nymphaea have similar markings (although not as strong) and wondered whether it was similar.... but Göte  beat me to it.  ;D
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Ragged Robin on July 31, 2009, 10:04:35 AM
More gorgeous combinations of foliage and form, Lori - campanula and sedum my favourite, they seem made for each other and I would never have thought it....

Nymphaea 'Marliacaea Albida' looks mystical in your beautiful photos  :)
Title: Re: Flowering now- July 2009
Post by: Gerdk on July 31, 2009, 09:11:24 PM
Gerd, Musala means 'Towards God'. I am intrigued as to where the variatel status for Dianthus microlepis has come from, we have seen this species up many other mountains here where it varies in colour from deep pink to white, as it does on Mt.Musala, what colour is yours?

Chris,
Please look at following pic - the plant came from a nursery with the name mentioned.
Thank you for the explanation of the name 'musalae' - is it of Turkish or Bulgarian origin?

Gerd
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