Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Bulbs => Bulbs General => Topic started by: Michael on February 17, 2010, 03:43:06 PM

Title: Lachenalia
Post by: Michael on February 17, 2010, 03:43:06 PM

A few lachenalia blooming now:
(btw i'm not 100% sure of the ID, so if you think they are inaccurately labelled, please let me know)

L. aloides quadricolor
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1595.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1380.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1377.jpg)

L. bulbifera
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1403.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1399.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1402.jpg)

L. carnosa
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1390.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1650.jpg)

L. mutabilis
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1648.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1394.jpg)

L. viridiflora (this one is an early bloomer, and I was a bit late to photograph it...)

(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1386.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_0914.jpg)

This one might be an orange aloides maybe?
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1398.jpg)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1383.jpg)

And a daubenya aurea in bud ;)
(http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab183/Michael_Benedito/Hyacinthaceae/IMG_1598.jpg)

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: Miriam on February 17, 2010, 06:49:08 PM

Beautiful plants and photos (especially with the droplets  ;)).
L. aloides quadricolor is really spectacular!

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: Lesley Cox on February 17, 2010, 07:41:13 PM

Lovely pictures Michael and enjoying your climate. Are some fragrant?

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: pel1 on February 17, 2010, 07:47:24 PM

Great photos-nice to see a Lachenalia thread! Here are a couple of nice plants at Wisley a little while ago....

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: Michael on February 17, 2010, 08:50:17 PM

Lesley, none of them are fragrant, as far as I know... Are there any fragrant Lachenalia? I still have a few (mathewsii, contaminata, pustulata, etc) to bloom in the coming weeks, maybe those are fragrant?

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: Gail on February 17, 2010, 09:00:32 PM

Some lachenalia are scented eg. L. pusilla, latifolia, arbuthnotiae.  I did have quite a few at one time but have lost most of them.  L. pustulata is fun with strange blisters on its leaves but I like viridiflora best - as seen in Michael's lovely pictures.

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: David Nicholson on February 17, 2010, 09:05:31 PM

Lovely show Michael, well done.

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: fermi de Sousa on February 18, 2010, 12:30:30 AM

Michael,
nice stuff! That Orange one is intriguing - please post more pics as it develops a bit. Did you grow it from seed?
cheers
fermi

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: Lesley Cox on February 18, 2010, 01:43:38 AM

I believe quite a lot of Lachenalias are scented, especially the blue species and especially mutabilis. So give every one a good sniff Michael, on the off chance. You may be pleasantly surprised. :)

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: Michael on February 18, 2010, 09:47:28 PM

I didn't knew there were scented Lach's! I'll have a sniff around, tomorrow, Lesley ;)

Yes fermi, from seed. It's amazing in how the seedlings from the same pod are so variable: some come with mottled foliage, others plain green! But the flowers are the same!

Title: Re: Lachenalia
Post by: Rogan on February 24, 2010, 09:40:12 AM

Some Lachenalia are very strongly scented indeed, a characteristic often exploited in hybridization programmes.

The orange Lachenalia in Michael's post is an orange form of L. bulbifera, I think - as has been mentioned above, natural populations are very variable. In certain districts L. bulbifera grows within sight of the surf - an amazing habitat (...often in company with bulbs such as Gladiolus cunonius and Ferraria spp.)

This is a common form that grows amongst coastal dunes along the southern Cape beaches. It is a most accomodating plant too and loves a 6" pot: