January 2017 in the Southern Hemisphere

[fermi de Sousa]

A hot summer's day here in the south!
Here are a couple of things in flower which we got at our plant swap ("The Bunfight") last month, both from Viv Condon:
Cynoglossum amabile.f.rosea;
Isotoma axillaris (syn Laurentia).
Happy New Year!
cheers 
fermi

[Lesley Cox]

I love the isotoma. I had it many years ago but it was frost as I remember that did for it. does yours set seed Fermi?

A visit to Maple Glen nursery/garden today with friends and in rain, hail, sleet and SNOW, thunder and lightening so a bit stressful. Bought some ensata (Japanese) irises but on the way, we went to Hokonui Alpines and I overstretched my bank account somewhat there, as I always do, as well as taking mental notes of what will be ready in the spring.

Louise also showed me the microscopic seedlings of shortias and Jankaea that were germinating from the seed Jiri P in Prague gave to me in September. Mine is coming through now too. I had given some to Louise as an insurance. Two chances to establish them are better than one.

[Jupiter]

We have just returned from a few days away camping with the kids, in the South East, Limestone coast region of our state. Otto asked me to post a few pictures of the clifftop flora we saw there. The tops of the cliff are natural rock gardens with many plants dwarfed by the exposure to wind and salt.

The Limonium is one I grow in my rock garden but it forms the most gorgeous tight cushions on the clifftops, equal to any alpine cushion plant! I've seen this species called many names, bellidifolium; companyonis; hyblaeum. I think Limonium hyblaeum may be the correct ID.

[Jupiter]

Some native species from the coastal cliffs.

Leucophyta brownii
Unknown, a friend said possibly Pimelea serpyllifolia, but I think it looks like a Myrtaceae, Melaleuca sp.
Kunzea pomifera forms a tight low ground cover, one plant can cover several square meters. The fruit are edible and delicious.

[fermi de Sousa]

I love the isotoma. I had it many years ago but it was frost as I remember that did for it. does yours set seed Fermi?

Hi Lesley,
I've grown this isotoma on and off for ages and it usually sets seed and I've even donated seed of it to the Seedexes; however I've never found a self-sown seedling and the parent plant is usually short lived so I've had to re-introduce it whenever it died out. I'll have to remember to keep some this time - but I'm sure there will be some spare

The Limonium is one I grow in my rock garden but it forms the most gorgeous tight cushions on the clifftops, equal to any alpine cushion plant! I've seen this species called many names, bellidifolium; companyonis; hyblaeum. I think Limonium hyblaeum may be the correct ID.

We also grow this limonium - the original came from a friend who dug it up from the roadside at Robe - and it does seed around gently though a few articles suggest otherwise!
https://invasives.org.au/blog/dangerous-new-weeds-sold-nurseries/
http://www.australisbiological.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Limonium-presentation-Philip-Island-12-September-2012.pdf

I must write an article extolling its virtues for our local community newsletter - I've already been maligned for promoting the growing of ornamental oxalis by a (purportedly) retired botanist who lives around here. The editor asked me if I wanted to write a reply to his "letter to the editor" but I said I wouldn't waste my breath!
cheers
fermi

[Jupiter]

Fermi, the Limonium self seeds in my rock garden but I find it easy to pull out the seedlings and it isn't a problem. I make sure I cut the flower spikes off soon after flowering to minimise the volunteers. I've had the same attacks from native plant purists here, one person in particular is always banging on about all the weeds I grow. I sent him this,  quoted from Stephen Jay Gould. "The argument that native plants “belong” in a particular place is equally fallacious because it assumes that the plants are there because they are best suited to conditions in that location. In fact, plants are “products of a history laced with chaos, contingency, and genuine randomness.” Plants have been moved—and continue to be moved—about the planet by weather, by birds and animals, including humans. “’Natives’, in short, are the species that happened to find their way…not the best conceivable for a spot.”

[David Lyttle]

Some native species from the coastal cliffs.

Leucophyta brownii
Unknown, a friend said possibly Pimelea serpyllifolia, but I think it looks like a Myrtaceae, Melaleuca sp.
Kunzea pomifera forms a tight low ground cover, one plant can cover several square meters. The fruit are edible and delicious.

Hello Jamus,

Nice to see the pictures of your native flora from your coastal cliffs. We see Leucophyta brownii here in our garden shops but Kunzea pomifera is new to me. It looks to be an intriguing plant with its fleshy fruit. Our Kunzea species (used to be one now there are about 10) are shrubs and small trees with dry woody capsules for fruit. Our local one Kunzea robusta is putting on a great show of flowers at the moment.

[fermi de Sousa]

Here is the Limonium hyblaeum in our garden this morning:
1) in a raised bed;
2 &3) at ground level growing through a mat of Dymondia margaretae;
4) at the base of a boulder;
cheers
fermi

[Parsla]

Love the untamed look of all the photos so far this month. Wildflower season.
Jamus you must have been half way to Melbourne. Very scenic route.

The message from all of you seems to be that the weather is all over the place.
Indeed today i was driven inside at 10:30 by the 37 deg heat and high UV.
Yet not so many days since we had floods strong enough to move the edges of my paths onto the garden beds. My friend at the bottom of the hill had water swirling about her living room floor.

1. Taken through my kitchen window during the rainstorm.
2. The following day, showing the bridal veil effect of the japanese maple 'sango-kaku'.

Managed to replace my defunct camera with a new point-and-shoot. Next three show it seems to take a nice photograph, despite operator clumsiness.

3. Cyrtanthus mackenii 'cream beauty' from Rod Barwick
4. Same again
5. I thought the Arisaema candidissimum had rotted in its pot - seemed far too late - but it has popped up last 2 days - with an enormous landslide going on in the centre of the pot so more to come i think.

jacqui.

[Matt T]

The Limonium is a lovely wee plant, and also growing well here from seed that I was gifted. They're not forming those lovely tight cushions Jamus found on the clifftops, but they do seem to be standing up to our weather ok and no problem with seeding around...yet.

[fermi de Sousa]

Commelina elegans has started to flower in a raised bed - it grew too large last year and I moved it to a lower level where it has room to expand. There are already seedlings popping up from last year so I'll definitely have to watch it carefully,
cheers
fermi

[fermi de Sousa]

Zauschneria cana (Epilobium canum) is also starting to flower,
cheers
fermi

[Parsla]

Hi Fermi,
Quite taken with the commelina - pretty blue.
it doesn't look thuggish but always hard to guess until it's in the ground.
Jacqui.

[Parsla]

Rather a thrill this morning to find first bloom (well, second -  it appears i missed the first) of Geranium sinensis from Bjornar's seed. It proved worthy of the long wait.

While only one plant survived my inexpert ministrations, its a very healthy specimen ready to be planted out in autumn.

Teardrops of pitch that are blacker than any G. phaem I have seen and has occasional claret splashes on the foliage.

[Lesley Cox]

Parsla, (Jacquie?) I find Arisaema candidissimum very weather dependant. This year when we've had copious rain from spring onwards and are still getting a downpour most days here in the south of the country, this arisaema was in flower mid December and still continues whereas some years when it has been very dry it doesn't come through the ground/pot until much later. One year it didn't show until February as I hadn't been watering it but it did eventually come though the flowers were small and miserable.

Jamus I assume your Kunzea fruit are yet to ripen and will change colour? Or are they like kiwifruit and remain green?  They don't look very edible in your photo.