December 2014 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Hillview croconut]

Very beautiful philadelphus and love green edeges. M

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Lesley,
The lengths some people will go.  I find gardeners generally are an honest lot but I too have had 3 robberies. My stock plant of Cyclamen coum "Maurice Dryden", large pot of Crocus tournefourtii and a number of auriculas and lilies. Blood boiled. I knew who one thief was but could never prove it.
Still we bounce back.

Cheers, M

[Lesley Cox]

This has to be the prize photo of my day. I wanted to apply "Wettasoil" to a long, curved bed round the top of the driveway, which is raised and planted with rock garden things; easy but good, such as dianthus, campanulas, veronicas, auriculas, dwarf bearded irises and many more (I counted about 150 when I was watering tonight.) The Wettasoil acts to let water penetrate immediately instead of running off even if the surface is hard and very dry so it saves water and the applied water goes in much deeper. The watering can I wanted was under a bench where it had been since we moved here 22 months ago, unused in all that time. It lay on its side so I pulled it out and it seemed very heavy as if it had a brick inside it. I stood it upright and found a partly grown possum curled up in there! I couldn't find Roger at the time and didn't want to shout for him and frighten the possum into leaping out and ripping my bare arms and face to shreds (they have vicious teeth and claws) so left it there with a polystyrene tray over it to simulate dark (they're nocturnal) and went for R to dispose of it. When he arrived with a weapon he had to put it down to lift out the possum which, before he had time to pick up the gun, bolted so it has lived to fight another day. I'm not sorry really because having found it, I almost feel responsible for it. No doubt he's now out there munching on the roses and young apricots. It was very cute though and looked at me briefly with pleading eyes (oh yes, I have a great imagination when I want it. )

[Lesley Cox]

Off to watch some cricket highlights now. Only half an hour unfortunately as we (NZ's Blackcaps) are slaughtering the Sri Lankans, for a change. But it will be good while it lasts. If we throw away this test we should be hanged, drawn and quartered.

[Hillview croconut]

We are having a cracker of a Boxing Day test here. I hope the Indians can match the Aussie batting, well Smith's batting. They shouldn't have let him away yesterday afternnon. Unfortunely I had prior arrangements and didn't see a run of it. Oh well!

M

[Hillview croconut]

You can thank us for the possums. Are the NZers selling them to the Chinese? We are, fast becoming a subsidiary.

M

[Jupiter]

Don't talk to me about possums at the moment, one knocked my pot of Cypripedium off the shelf in my nursery and I found it smashed and wilted on the ground.     If I could get my hands on it I'd ring its skinny little neck.

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Jamus,

Likewise. I have a beautiful old "Angelina" plum my grandmother planted for me years ago. It was fine then because I had a conventional backyard, its part of the nursery now. When I got out of hospital, a while ago now, the great big lugs had knock over my only pot of Crocus scardicus. Anyone in the south who knows about this species would have the same reaction as me. They cant afford to dry out especially when young. They had been lying there on the ground for who knows how long and it was a very dry September. So it was down on my hands and knees, operstion scar screaming, with a pair of tweezers trying to get as many back into safety as I could. NOT EASY!

Today I noticed my only pot of Belevalia crassa knocked over - not such a problem now cause everything is going down.  I cant blame the furry buggers. I should cut the tree down but I can't!

Cheers,  Marcus

[Hillview croconut]

Anyone in the South grow Crocus scardicus? I think Otto does cause we swapped. What about you Lesley? You are in a good possie. Sorry about the pelistericus. I have loads of Crocus veluchensis! How far do I have to wade into the bog!! There was still snow lying there in late June. Still flowers, a bit squinny and sick looking. The scilla biflora looked anemic!
M

[Jupiter]

Marcus I've considered some kind of contraption made of wire with upward facing spikes to ward them off. I reckon it could be done pretty simply. I did a similar thing to stop the neighbours cat using my garden bed as a toilet and digging up my Allium bulbs. It worked very well and isn't too unattractive.

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Jamus,

The Greeks do a similar thing to protect flower pot seedlings. Not from possums but scratching birds. They stick pallisades of kabab squewers in the pots,  pointy, sharp end upwards. Looks wierd but must be effective. I have traps. I take them over the river to the Eastern shore. Some wag said to me, "the people on the Eastern Shore do the same so they all just put back! Now that's a crazy visual metaphore.
Cheers, M

[Anthony Darby]

Had quite an adventure in the South. One box I managed to tick was Ranunculus lyalli, both at Arthur's Pass and Gertrude Valley, the latter on a bus and boat trip to Milford Sound from Queenstown.

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Anthony, how fabulous! Does it allow people to grow it outside its zone or just too  miffy?

we have some genuinely beautiful endemic flora here in Tasmania but most should be left where they  live to prosper and us humans come visit.

Cheers,  Marcus

[Anthony Darby]

I've never grown it, and suspect it would not tolerate the Auckland climate. It should grow in places that have a warm summer and a cold winter.

[Lesley Cox]

Marcus, I don't have Crocus scardicus. I'm not sure that anyone here does, I've never seen it except on the Forum.

Ran. lyallii is growable here in the south and will flower reliably year after year, for a few years anyway, if it has a cool, composty/gritty mix, and in my experience, does better in the garden than in a pot. Several OAGG members grow it successfully. What it hates is our current hot sun especially with wind as well. Cool and moist, somewhat like for Meconopsis.  I have a friend who had seedlings from hers and they turned out to be hybrids with the northern specis, R. cortunsaefolius, slightly smaller flowers than lyallii but a beautiful cream shade. The foliage was more scalloped than lyallii but not so much as cortusaefolius.

No-one will believe me but while the weather on TV says Dunedin is having a high from 19-22degC, further south we are having in the high 20s and it was 39(!!!) on our back porch a couple of days ago. High 30s today.  Even as I write this, it is 29C in the dining room. I'm reluctant to go to bed as I can't sleep in this warmth.