Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
General Subjects => General Forum => Topic started by: christian pfalz on May 31, 2010, 09:29:59 AM
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hi, here in germany, a great garden for prairie plants, weinheim, herrmannshof...i love it....
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder001-14.jpg?t=1275294335)
onother one...
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder002-14.jpg?t=1275294403)
in my garden, not so big as weinheim ;)
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder005-4.jpg?t=1275294195)
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder005-8.jpg?t=1275294287)
ratibida
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder004-14.jpg?t=1275294444)
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder001-29.jpg?t=1275294570)
cheers
chris
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hi, some pics ago...
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder008-6.jpg?t=1275294627)
yucca louisianensis and echinacea...
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder002-32.jpg?t=1275294713)
manfreda virginiana in bloom...
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder001-38.jpg?t=1275294793)
ratibida
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/gartenbilder011-4.jpg?t=1275294885)
cheers
chris
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Hi Chris. A lot of these the farmers call weeds around here:<)
John B
in Kansas , USA
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A lot of these the farmers call weeds around here:<)
John B
in Kansas , USA
Well, I suppose that is very true.... I know growers who think any crop they did not plant and which cannot be eaten is a weed..... but I'm so glad we have broader 'taste' than that! ;) ;D
Such a garden here in Aberdeen is only a dream for me.. but I love to see it, even if I am a little jealous!
(But don't tell my rhodos I said that!)
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john, weeds ??? :'( i´m happy to grow them in my garden....it´s a wonderful sight, when all these flowers are in bloom....
cheers
chris
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Yes Chris the are pretty. I have collected wildflowers in the past. All I still have are the native Blued Eyed Grass,
Oxalis, and Gentian.
John
john, weeds ??? :'( i´m happy to grow them in my garden....it´s a wonderful sight, when all these flowers are in bloom....
cheers
chris
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john, prairie plants are very good for my sunny garden and sandy soil....exspecially echinacea, ratibida and grasses...
cheers
chris
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great stuff chris :) i am more woodland area than prairie, but some of our native plants live in both places--still very early for those here, though..
as far as weeds: i am very irritated that there are a number of native plants which are on alberta's weed lists (there are several categories from common weeds to things you are legally required to remove)-they are on the list because they are poisonous to livestock--i can understand removing them from areas where livestock are kept directly, but to classify them as weeds anywhere, even growing on the roadside etc, is simply stupid..
the plants were here before farmers and livestock and should have precedence! of course i don't say that to my neighbours...lol---but really, i have never heard much aboput livestopck poisoning around here, i think it may be more of a problem in drier-prairie- areas where there is less to eat...
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john, prairie plants are very good for my sunny garden and sandy soil....exspecially echinacea, ratibida and grasses...
cheers
chris
Hi Chris. Dodecatheon meadia & Dodecatheon jeffreyi planted with Anthericum liliago (ssp. major ?) at the front of one of our perennial borders in Devon, UK. Both of these would do well with you I think ?
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Great border, Kim. 8)
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When I was in Texas I was amazed at the wild flowers. The people I stayed with planted their garden and roadside verge with wild flowers. All other residents on the road had close cut grass.
Looking good Chris. Are Ratibida annual or perennial?
I'm tempted to make my big raised bed in to a prairie
I'm looking for seeds of the true Helianthus annus - small and mulitflowered.
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mark, perrenial by me...
cheers
chris
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When I was in Texas I was amazed at the wild flowers. The people I stayed with planted their garden and roadside verge with wild flowers. All other residents on the road had close cut grass.
Looking good Chris. Are Ratibida annual or perennial?
I'm tempted to make my big raised bed in to a prairie
I'm looking for seeds of the true Helianthus annus - small and mulitflowered.
Ratibida : Perennials
I've had what is probably the wild Helianthus annuus for a few years - it also differs in that the seed has to be stratified to germinate - I thought I'd lost it as we had a cold summer last year and the seed didn't mature. However, I've just noticed a lone seedling sown two years ago in one of my cold frames outside. If it's a good summer I may have some seed in the autumn.
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Ratibida columnifera and R. pinnata are long-lived perennials in the garden here too. The former is native in this area.
Here are a couple more prairie plants for you... Geum triflorum, with Penstemon nitidus in the background. (I'll bore you all to distraction with penstemon pix when I get some better photos this weekend... it's gorgeous.)
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Ratibida columnifera and R. pinnata are long-lived perennials in the garden here too. The former is native in this area.
Here are a couple more prairie plants for you... Geum triflorum, with Penstemon nitidus in the background. (I'll bore you all to distraction with penstemon pix when I get some better photos this weekend... it's gorgeous.)
Lori,
You could never bore me with Penstemon pix. I'm looking forward to seeing them.
Graham
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The subject said "Show your prairie plants", so here are some that occur across the Canadian prairies.
1-7) Penstemon nitidus, blooming in the front yard, on the south-facing slope. It's locally native but I don't believe it's in bloom in the river valley yet.
8, 9) Viola canadensis var. rugulosa, also in the yard.
10) The Geum triflorum along the river are more vividly coloured than the ones I grow.
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1, 2) Lithospermum ruderale is likely not too widely grown, though the flowers are quite attractive. These are in bloom in the front yard, where it is a bit warmer, though not yet in the wild.
3, 4) Buffalo-bean or golden bean, Thermopsis rhombifolia, in the grassy uplands along the river.
5, 6) Also, bastard toad-flax, Comandra umbellata.
7) A modest little Viola adunca in the wild, as compared to the much more robust ones in the yard (8 ).
9, 10) False solomon's seal, Smilacina stellata, forms groves where it occurs.
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Lori: I discovered Viola canadensis last year - superb plant flowering practically all summer! How does rügulosa differ? (Not sure what rugulosa means - wrinkled perhaps like rugosus?).
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Stephen, the variety rugulosa is the only variety of V. canadensis that I'm familiar with (it grows all across the prairies), so I have no comparison with other varieties, but the leaves are described in Moss and Packer as "rugulose", or slightly wrinkled, so I assume that's what distinguishes it.
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=VICA4
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Lori, can you tell me what soil Viola canadensis likes? It really is lovely with the tiny flower over a heart-shaped leaf and looks fabulous as tree/woodland skirting as in your photo.
Your yard full of Penstemon nitidus looks spectacular - does it flower for long?
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Robin, typical prairie soil is alkaline, but I don't know whether V. canadensis is at all fussy about it. It is a bit rhizomatous/stoloniferous(?), and spreads around but not too rampantly.
I was hoping to refer to my photo library to tell you more precisely how long Penstemon nitidus blooms, but it looks like I only go nuts with the camera at the start of the bloom! Anyway, I think it's safe to say I get at least a month of bloom from it here in the yard.
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Lori, thanks for the info and the photos - I love the wild feeling in a garden at this time of year with random colour schemes that are like waves :D
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I have just noticed this thread. Mention of the Texas roadside natives reminds me of when I was in Texas. My host stopped on the roadside and I was able to photograph at least 12 different small natives. Ladybird Johnson was the person behind all the roadside plantings I think.
I must look up my notebooks from the time as there was a Salvia there that changed its foliage colour dramatically that I would like to source.
I tried to bring back properly packaged seed of a one native whose name escapes me and it was not allowed.
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some great stuff, lori--interesting to see some familiar things in different settings, and of course you have many more true prairie plants than i do--i don't consider this area to be prairie at all, but of course some of the plants come in along roadways and anywhere they can get enough light/space..
i wouldn't have though of V canadensis as a prairie plant, since it grows in woodlands here, but does prefer somewhat open woodland, so i guess it could do well through the prairies anywhere there's a patch of trees! does it grow in the open where you are? (Robin, here it grows in dappled sun to heavier shade, mostly under deciduous trees, but i think it ranges into mixed woods as well; i doubt its really fussy about soils, most natives here will grow anywhere they can get a footing--the woodland species are happily growing into an old compost mound at the edge of the property, and right beside it into a pile of pure woodash!)..the colony just on the south edge of our acreage tends to be a bit pinkish, almost bi-coloured..
V. adunca is scattered throughout the 'lawn' here..
i was a bit surprised to see the Smilacina/Maianthemum stellata in that setting--is that a dry hill, or is it a moist spot? here its mostly woodland/edges, but there is a big patch up the road along a wet area where the willows etc were all removed a couple of years back, and its still doing fine where its not scraped off by the road graders...
love the lithospermum and geum--no lithos here, geum every 5 inches here, but not triflorum that i have id'd, but its possible by the maps.. i need to work more closely on that genus...
just realised my pics are not sized yet, so i will send this then edit them in in a few minutes..
ok--here's a bad shot of the viola, but it shows the colour well..and the Smilacina/Maianthemum up the road, in full sun amongst grass and weeds, where willows used to be..probably they have roots into the wet area below, and grow right up to it..
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Interesting what you say Cohan, I would have imagined it more as a dappled shade plant too but was not sure it would like dry or wetter conditions - anyway it's very attractive and obviously thrives in potash with you ;D
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Cohan, we talked about the habitat of V. canadensis last year, too :). Yes, it does like a bit of shade, and occurs in every little copse of trees and coulee on the prairies and up into the parkland and mixed forest.
The smilacina is not tied to moist areas, particularly. (The photo is, indeed, a dry hill.) It's common as the understory where there is "bush", though it is also very common in road ditches where water would collect at times.
More photos of the setting... much hillier than the rolling parkland area where I grew up, or the very flat glacial lake bed plains in the south central prairies.
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Cohan, we talked about the habitat of V. canadensis last year, too :). Yes, it does like a bit of shade, and occurs in every little copse of trees and coulee on the prairies and up into the parkland and mixed forest.
The smilacina is not tied to moist areas, particularly. (The photo is, indeed, a dry hill.) It's common as the understory where there is "bush", though it is also very common in road ditches where water would collect at times.
More photos of the setting... much hillier than the rolling parkland area where I grew up, or the very flat glacial lake bed plains in the south central prairies.
my senior brain is developing early ;) i remember talking about the violet but i guess i still can't think of it on the prairies! but if its sticking to the patches of trees it makes sense..i am surprised about the smilacina..i guess we just don't have those kinds of spots undisturbed for this sort of plant to grow on...
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Interesting what you say Cohan, I would have imagined it more as a dappled shade plant too but was not sure it would like dry or wetter conditions - anyway it's very attractive and obviously thrives in potash with you ;D
robin--should be adaptable to moisture as well--its never guaranteed here--although my area is wetter than lori's on average, it varies a lot year to year; i'd say as long as they have some moisture during the settling in phase, they'd be pretty adaptable, i'm sure your natural moisture would be enough for any plant from here other than those that stick to wet areas!
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Perhaps I should explain... the Canadian prairies are largely grassland, but intermixed with stands of somewhat stunted trees and/or shrubs where ever they can exist... even in the most open areas, trees/shrubs still grow in the coulees and along watercourses and drainages. I hope that helps to give a mental picture... ?
Some more species that occur all across our prairies, from the same locale as the other wild photos I've shown:
1) Allium textile
2, 3) Early yellow locoweed, Oxytropis sericea. These were in bloom in the yard quite a bit earlier. (The second photo shows it growing in association with Smilacina stellata... as I mentioned, the latter does not require moist areas.)
4, 5) Hedysarum boreale var. boreale starting to bloom. Oddly enough, my plant out along the fence, though much more robust, is lagging behind these in flowering. The seedheads are Pulsatilla patens.
Some of the ubiquitous prairie shrubs...
6, 7, 8 ) Saskatoon berry, Amelanchier alnifolia, with berries starting to form.
9, 10) Also perfuming the air in this season, chokecherry, Prunus pennsylvanica virginiana* on the left and wolf-willow (Elaeagnus commutata) on the right. The single-stemmed, tree-form chokecherry in our yard is looking good now. (I almost wish it looked awful so there'd be an excuse to cut it down - I hate crawling under it to cut out the suckers! I wish the nursery people would understand that they want to be thickets - not trees!! - and graft them onto a nonsuckering base. Oh well, it was here when we moved in and it is a fine specimen.)
*Oops, I'm getting the name mixed up with pin cherry.
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Wonderful shots of your local prairie flora, Lori, and the 4th photo of Hedysarum boreale var. boreale starting to bloom in the foreground of the river scene gives a great impression of the habitat.
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Perhaps I should explain... the Canadian prairies are largely grassland, but intermixed with stands of somewhat stunted trees and/or shrubs where ever they can exist... even in the most open areas, trees/shrubs still grow in the coulees and along watercourses and drainages. I hope that helps to give a mental picture... ?
Some more species that occur all across our prairies, from the same locale as the other wild photos I've shown:
1) Allium textile
2, 3) Early yellow locoweed, Oxytropis sericea. These were in bloom in the yard quite a bit earlier. (The second photo shows it growing in association with Smilacina stellata... as I mentioned, the latter does not require moist areas.)
4, 5) Hedysarum boreale var. boreale starting to bloom. Oddly enough, my plant out along the fence, though much more robust, is lagging behind these in flowering. The seedheads are Pulsatilla patens.
Some of the ubiquitous prairie shrubs...
6, 7, 8 ) Saskatoon berry, Amelanchier alnifolia, with berries starting to form.
9, 10) Also perfuming the air in this season, chokecherry, Prunus pennsylvanica virginiana* on the left and wolf-willow (Elaeagnus commutata) on the right. The single-stemmed, tree-form chokecherry in our yard is looking good now. (I almost wish it looked awful so there'd be an excuse to cut it down - I hate crawling under it to cut out the suckers! I wish the nursery people would understand that they want to be thickets - not trees!! - and graft them onto a nonsuckering base. Oh well, it was here when we moved in and it is a fine specimen.)
*Oops, I'm getting the name mixed up with pin cherry.
great to see these--where is this location?
more confirmation of my mostly non-prairie flora--of these, the only things found in my immediate area are the woodies (and no elaeagnus for a few miles around, at least)-though i'm starting my backroad bicycle botanising earlier this year-maybe tomorrow if its not too rainy!-so i am hoping for some surprises--last year i only started in august, and still found a lot of surprises..
here, amelanchier doesn't usually grow fully exposed (though they can be right at the edge of bush or thickets), though both cherries mostly stay away from the semi shady areas-usually seen in ditches/roadsides--open areas here are either grazed or hayed or plowed...
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backroad bicycle botanising
Great idea and title for a thread Cohan, looking forward to coming along 8)
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The subject said "Show your prairie plants", so here are some that occur across the Canadian prairies.
1-7) Penstemon nitidus, blooming in the front yard, on the south-facing slope. It's locally native but I don't believe it's in bloom in the river valley yet.
8, 9) Viola canadensis var. rugulosa, also in the yard.
10) The Geum triflorum along the river are more vividly coloured than the ones I grow.
Lori,
You are correct in your previous post when you said Penstemon nitidus is gorgeous :D. I must see if it's available in the UK.
Graham
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Graham, if you would like to try it from seed, I can send you some - I'll see if I still have any from last year. Failing that, I'll be collecting more in late summer, and I always send it to the seedexes.
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Graham, if you would like to try it from seed, I can send you some - I'll see if I still have any from last year. Failing that, I'll be collecting more in late summer, and I always send it to the seedexes.
Hi Lori,
I would like to give it a try from seed, many thanks for the offer. I can't find it for sale here in the UK; Google or RHS Plant finder.
Graham
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backroad bicycle botanising
Great idea and title for a thread Cohan, looking forward to coming along 8)
lol--that's what i was thinking as i typed it... i went out today for the first time--not too many exciting plants--i was hoping for dodecatheon, as i've seen a patch from the car, and didn't find any..but a few nice things, and it was nice to be out--prob be a bit sore tomorrow after not having been on the bike since fall ;)
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Thanks, Robin.
Cohan, the photos from the wild are all from the "nature" park along the Bow River here in NW Calgary, through which the bike path that I take to and from work runs.
Some more...
1 - 6) I'm not certain if these photos are of two different oxytropis species, or one. I think Oxytropis viscida is one of them, maybe all of them... ? Anyway, they seem to be oxytropis from the absence of leaves on the stems; I'll have to dissect some flowers and count leaves to be sure... if even then. ??? Quite lovely, whatever they are. The flowers on some have faded to the most unusual shade of blue.
7) A very attractive potentilla... must try to figure out what it is.
8, 9) Wolf-willow, Elaeagnus commutata... the little yellow four-petalled flowers are almost insignificant but have a delicious, sweet, heavy scent! (Forgive the fuzzy photos - the wind was howling that day.)
10) And, not so advanced in the wild yet, but budding out in the yard, Zigadenus elegans (or whatever it's called these days!)
And that's it, until the next time I take my camera along!
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Thanks, Robin.
Cohan, the photos from the wild are all from the "nature" park along the Bow River here in NW Calgary, through which the bike path that I take to and from work runs.
Some more...
1 - 6) I'm not certain if these photos are of two different oxytropis species, or one. I think Oxytropis viscida is one of them, maybe all of them... ? Anyway, they seem to be oxytropis from the absence of leaves on the stems; I'll have to dissect some flowers and count leaves to be sure... if even then. ??? Quite lovely, whatever they are. The flowers on some have faded to the most unusual shade of blue.
7) A very attractive potentilla... must try to figure out what it is.
8, 9) Wolf-willow, Elaeagnus commutata... the little yellow four-petalled flowers are almost insignificant but have a delicious, sweet, heavy scent! (Forgive the fuzzy photos - the wind was howling that day.)
10) And, not so advanced in the wild yet, but budding out in the yard, Zigadenus elegans (or whatever it's called these days!)
And that's it, until the next time I take my camera along!
really nice oxys and potentilla! nice route to work :)
my ideal situation would be to have the boreal forest behind the house and prairie in front...lol
err--that's the ideal cold climate situation...lol
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my ideal situation would be to have the boreal forest behind the house and prairie in front...lol
Yeah!!
err--that's the ideal cold climate situation...lol
;D
Yeah, a tropical beach in front might be okay too. ;D
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my ideal situation would be to have the boreal forest behind the house and prairie in front...lol
Yeah!!
err--that's the ideal cold climate situation...lol
;D
Yeah, a tropical beach in front might be okay too. ;D
i once saw a photo from one of the smaller caribbean islands, taken somewhere in the interior at a fair altitude--there was a cute little house surrounded on all sides by waist to chest high flowering plants and shrubs--with, i think mountains and forest farther back...that seemed about perfect--nice highland air, fertile soil, not too hot or cold, well watered... at least that's how i remember/imagine it...lol
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backroad bicycle botanising
Great idea and title for a thread Cohan, looking forward to coming along 8)
Well that's pretty much what Stellan and the Travel Giraffe do isn't it? ;D
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Lori, your Penstemon nitidus is a real beauty and I'm wondering how much it varies. A nursery friend grew a batch from seed a couple of years ago and while the plants are generally similar in height, the flowers were from a lovely jewel-like blue, like yours, to pale lavender-blue, soft sky blues and even an almost greeny aquamarine shade, exceptionally lovely. I don't know the source of her seed but probably someone like Ratko.
What's the little blue plant on the ground in pic #2? A veronica maybe?
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Yes, Lesley, mine are very variable too, from different flower stalks to different flowers on the same stalk - sky blue to indigo to pink and purple shades! By the way, I collect a ton of seeds from them every year, so anyone who is interested in seed should just let me know.
Yes, the plant in the foreground is Veronica liwanensis x pectinata 'Reavis', which gets to about 2" tall. Here's a better shot of it - same plant, now in fuller bloom.
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If anyone cares (probably not! ;D), the plants I referred to as "oxytropis" are indeed that.
Here's are some photos to show the pointed keel of oxytropis, the keel being the petal structure that is nestled between the lower dual "wing" petals, and is shaped like a boat's keel (Canadians, picture the end of a canoe ;D). (I had the pleasure of touring the absolutely fascinating garden of a professional botanist this weekend, and he very kindly showed me the difference between the pointed keel of oxytropis and the rounded keel of astragalus! I finally understand it!) Unfortunately, I don't have an astragalus flower handy to pull apart to show the difference, but the little point would be absent and the end of the keel smoothly rounded instead.
1) Head-on view to show keel in the center, exposed by pulling lower wing petals apart. (The dark pink prong is the "pointed keel".)
2) Side view to show pointed keel in center of wing petals.
3) Another side view of pointed keel, with wing petals pulled back.
Ah ha, the secret is revealed!! :D
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The Veronica is a little honey. I had pectinata once. Don't know what happened to it. Not now. :(
I like the middle pic of the oxytropis flower. Tiny mouse with large pink ears. :D
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backroad bicycle botanising
Great idea and title for a thread Cohan, looking forward to coming along 8)
Well that's pretty much what Stellan and the Travel Giraffe do isn't it? ;D
yes--though i have a feeling most of his roads are much farther back than mine ;) and he certainly spends much longer on them! i'm out for a couple to several hours at a time...lol
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If anyone cares (probably not! ;D), the plants I referred to as "oxytropis" are indeed that.
Here's are some photos to show the pointed keel of oxytropis, the keel being the petal structure that is nestled between the lower dual "wing" petals, and is shaped like a boat's keel (Canadians, picture the end of a canoe ;D). (I had the pleasure of touring the absolutely fascinating garden of a professional botanist this weekend, and he very kindly showed me the difference between the pointed keel of oxytropis and the rounded keel of astragalus! I finally understand it!) Unfortunately, I don't have an astragalus flower handy to pull apart to show the difference, but the little point would be absent and the end of the keel smoothly rounded instead.
1) Head-on view to show keel in the center, exposed by pulling lower wing petals apart. (The dark pink prong is the "pointed keel".)
2) Side view to show pointed keel in center of wing petals.
3) Another side view of pointed keel, with wing petals pulled back.
Ah ha, the secret is revealed!! :D
Thanks, Lori... that is useful information indeed... good to have this explanation so clearly given... thanks! So often the written descriptions are impenetrable to most of us.... a clear, easy explanation like this is great! 8)
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hi, echinacea paradoxa with opening flowers..
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild003-71.jpg?t=1276079122)
cheers
chris
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hi, golden poppy...
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild004-71.jpg?t=1276111761)
gaillardia aristata just opening...
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild003-72.jpg?t=1276111781)
echinacea angustifolia
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild001-55.jpg?t=1276111822)
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild002-56.jpg?t=1276111845)
cheers
chris
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hi, echinacea paradoxa full in bloom...
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild007-63.jpg?t=1276388295)
cheers
chris
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hello, some flowersfrom today...
coreopsis
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild004-84.jpg?t=1277466000)
coreopsis
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild005-82.jpg?t=1277466019)
echinacea pallida
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild007-74.jpg?t=1277466041)
echinacea angustifolia
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild009-61.jpg?t=1277466068)
echinacea paradoxa
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild011-51.jpg?t=1277466090)
gaillardia
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild006-78.jpg?t=1277466115)
e. angustifolia
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild010-59.jpg?t=1277466144)
golden poppy
(http://i610.photobucket.com/albums/tt188/yuccajoe/Bild008-68.jpg?t=1277466176)
cheers
chris