May 2016 in the Northern Hemisphere

[Philip Walker]

David,this one is fairly new.I've had it before and lost it before any cutting back was needed.

[Robert]

Gabriela,

It is not surprising to see a completely different mix of species than what we see here in California. I was very pleased to see Viola macloskeyi, one of our California native species too. I have cultivated Viola macloskeyi in the past, but do not have any right now. I must get started with it again as it is certainly a favorite for me.

[Lampwick]

I have one too Philip it's a lovely plant. Mine is beginning to out-grow the space I can give it so I was envisaging giving it a haircut after flowering is finished. Do you trim yours please?

Hi David, 
I also love the beautiful cleft flower of  the white P. bifida and after seeing yours and others I must make an effort to acquire it! The only P. bifida’s I have are ‘Starbright’ and ‘Ralph Haywood’.
I cut back some of the old growth in early spring so that the flowers appear on new growth and not at the end of last years bare stems. I find this species is more “woody/twiggy” than other species. The common name in its native home is Sand Phlox, but some believe it should be more aptly called the Ten Point Phlox.
Your Aethionema 'Warley Rose' is a show stopper David. If that had been on the show bench you would have walked away with a prize! . . . Outstanding!! 
I have had A. 'Warley Rose' for many years and I recently bought A. 'Warley Ruber', it will be interesting to see the difference wont it?

[Hoy]

A few plants from my garden today.

Two Corydalis, one unknown and the other is C. buschii.




The patch of Anemone trifolia is expanding. But the slugs are interested in it too so I have to watch closely. The slugs have put their marks on the A. ranunculoides.





The blue (or what is the colour?) seedlings of A. nemorosa pop up everywhere. They are later than the white ones.





Anemone x lipsiensis is also later than the white.




Scilla lilio-hyacinthus spreads a lot in the woodland.

[Hoy]

Trond,

Your photographs are beautiful. Our comment (Jasmin and I) was that it looks "just like home". Actually more like the high Sierra Nevada near Lyon's Creek. I guess we can call this home as the first time I went to Lyon's Creek was way back in 1960. I have been a regular visitor frequently to this day.

Some of the seeds from last season are doing very well.    More on this later.

Thanks Robert, but I am not always satisfied myself. Especially the autofocus is annoying. And the manual one isn't much better

Glad to hear some of the seeds are doing well I have also a lot of pots now with sprouting seeds

[Hoy]

More wildflowers: Coptis trifolia, an evergreen, small plant for cool, damp situations. The new foliage will emerge after flowering. On the mossy hump is growing together a good companion - Medeola virginiana (the hairy stems).

The well known Uvularia grandiflora.

Polygonatum pubescens just about to flower; delicate and forms smaller colonies than other solomon's seals.

The tiniest Viola for wet places - Viola macloskeyi.

some really nice ones there, Gabriela!

[David Nicholson]

Hi David, 
I also love the beautiful cleft flower of  the white P. bifida and after seeing yours and others I must make an effort to acquire it! The only P. bifida’s I have are ‘Starbright’ and ‘Ralph Haywood’.
I cut back some of the old growth in early spring so that the flowers appear on new growth and not at the end of last years bare stems. I find this species is more “woody/twiggy” than other species. The common name in its native home is Sand Phlox, but some believe it should be more aptly called the Ten Point Phlox.
Your Aethionema 'Warley Rose' is a show stopper David. If that had been on the show bench you would have walked away with a prize! . . . Outstanding!! 
I have had A. 'Warley Rose' for many years and I recently bought A. 'Warley Ruber', it will be interesting to see the difference wont it?

Cheers John and thanks for the Phlox bifida advice. In the garden the Aethionema 'Warley Rose' does it's thing with little intervention from me apart from an annual haircut and occasional feeds but in a pot.........................................

[illingworth]

Neglected and overlooked in our rock garden (more rock than garden) until late yesterday. On a north-facing slope.

[Gabriela]

Neglected and overlooked in our rock garden (more rock than garden) until late yesterday. On a north-facing slope.

Wow! It seems to enjoy the neglect 

[Gabriela]

Gabriela,
It is not surprising to see a completely different mix of species than what we see here in California. I was very pleased to see Viola macloskeyi, one of our California native species too. I have cultivated Viola macloskeyi in the past, but do not have any right now. I must get started with it again as it is certainly a favorite for me.

Yes, and interesting to see species like V. macloskeyi which will grow well in such different locations. It's not often seen here (at least not in the areas I wander) but not difficult to grow in the garden in a moist situation. I plan to raise a small colony in a dedicated container that will stay moist year long.
As you well know, Viola seeds are so difficult to collect in the wild!

Very similar growing here is Viola renifolia, which can be easily mistaken for V. macloskeyi (on a superficial look).

[Gabriela]

some really nice ones there, Gabriela!

Thanks Trond. They are nice but I can't abstain to notice, again, how poor is the flora here comparing with various regions of Europe or even other parts from N.America 

Your 'unknown' Corydalis is beautiful! I don't understand how C. buschii is flowering at your place; mine is only about 8 cm tall (maybe it won't flower this year since I transplanted it late in the fall? for sure that in the process I broke some of the fine rhizomes).

[Rick R.]

Rob and Sharon,
Those primula are precious!

A few days ago, the first seedling arisaema re-emerged from your seed planted in 2015. 

[Leena]

Very beautiful Primula marginata!

Trond, here Anemones seem to flower at the same time as there. They are now at their best. Anemone nemorosa likes and thrives in my garden, but A.ranunculoides not so much. The ordinary kind lives but doesn't spread, and I have twice bought expensive Estonian double A.ranunculoides, and they are very slow to establish, the older one is now here three years old, and still no flower, and only one leaf. I think A.nemorosa is more my kind of anemone.

Your 'unknown' Corydalis is beautiful! I don't understand how C. buschii is flowering at your place; mine is only about 8 cm tall (maybe it won't flower this year since I transplanted it late in the fall? for sure that in the process I broke some of the fine rhizomes).

Gabriela, you have already many beautiful flowers which are not yet here flowering (like uvularias), so perhaps also C.bushii is just late. Here it is not yet in flower, usually it flowers in the third week of May and from then on.

[Regelian]

An aril-bred, Pashtun Princess from Lawrence Ransom (France), plus some PCI seedlings doing their maiden bloom.

[fleurbleue]

The dark purple Iris is a real jewel