Re: Alpines August 2012

[McDonough]

Trond, my Gentiana purpurea seedlings from your seed last year are looking quite happy, but I have yet to plant them out in this (for me) disastrous summer of hot-hot-hot drought followed by violent thunderstorms and tropical downpours where we lose power, got nothing done in the yard this whole weekend, scorching hot in the morning and early afternoon both weekend days, followed by violent storms where we lose power (for most of the weekend).  I think G. purpurea is a "stunner", I hope that it succeeds here, and thank you for the seeds.

[Hoy]

Nice plants Trond! Yes I would be interested in seed if and when... I wonder if it might be possible to establish this like you have in a grassy sward? I have an area of long grass with bulbs but it might be too much competition. Would be interesting to try good established plants in pots.

Seedlings seem to cope well with grass. I have even tried sowing directly in the turf - in a place where the grass was thingrowing due to some shrubs, which I removed. It worked very well.

You are welcome, Mark. Hope your seedlings continue to look happy even with your totally different climate!

[Lori S.]

Saxifraga umbellulata v. pectinata, finally opening its blossoms:
 

Update on Plantago urvillei - the blossoms are pink now, and rather charming:
 

Repeats, also, of Erigeron aureus and Acantholimon kotschyi ssp. laxispicata:
   

[McDonough]

Lori, that is the COOLEST Plantago I ever did see!!!!  Where is it from?  I had no idea any Plantago had flowers of color, typically they are green to whitish.

[Lori S.]

Mark, the seeds were collected on Olkhon, Siberia (an island in Lake Baikal, http://olkhon.siberia.com/) in grassland.  (I got the seeds from Holubec, though they were collected by a third party, N. Nepriakhina.)
http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/tro-25200440
I started the seeds this past winter; of several seedlings planted out, only this one is blooming.  The basal rosette is perfectly flat and 2" x 3.5", and the flower stems are 6" tall.  It's pretty cute at present!

Here's another one blooming from seed this past winter - Antirrhinum molle, a perennial snapdragon:
 
I hope some of these seedings will survive to replace my very old, worn out plant that has started declining from year to year.

My anemic, little mystery plant has turned out to be Mimulus cardinalis... must have been old seeds in the reused soil, I guess:
 

[Hoy]

Saxifraga umbellulata - a tiny gem! Anthirrinum molle looks interesting. Something to seek out.
Plantago urvillei looks very similar to the native P. media, which is common here and regarded (by me at least) as the most gardenworthy species of the native ones. Maybe P. urvillei is a little more refined.

[RickR]

I looked up Plantago media, as I thought it might be a worthy garden plant, too.  But it is already introduced in America, and seems to be marching through the United States and Canada on its own.  I wouldn't want to add to that!  Plantago urvillei, on the other hand, I would expect to be more behaved, at least in my climate.  A very cute species!

[Tim Ingram]

Campanula zoysii is looking delightful on a deep gritty raised bed at the moment. We have had an unusually wet and cool summer on and off and this may have led to a second flush of flowering. Gives me hope to try some of the choice Rocky Mountain species.

[Lori S.]

Nice, Tim!  That's one I've never succeeded with... killed the plants I've bought and never managed to germinate seeds either.  And a second flush of flowering yet!   

Crepis pygmaea, from seed this past winter, has put out another bloom...

Here's a shot of our native Crepis nana, for comparison:


Is this Gentiana paradoxa?  That's what I show on the map, but I've moved this plant around a couple times and may have got mixed up.  I'm not sure the foliage is narrow enough for G. paradoxa.

[Hoy]

Tim, Campanula zoysii is a gem! Did you cut it down after the first flowering?

Lori, Crepis nana is as gardenworthy as C pygmaea in my opinion! And they both are better than any Crepis found native here!

[cohan]

Very nice flowers on the Plantago, Lori! Always love to see Crepis nana too
Tim, that would be a great show of flowers for round one!

Speaking of Saxifraga, I have some of this year's seed to sow- should I plant them now or wait for fall for stratification, or spring for warm germination?

[Lori S.]

Speaking of Saxifraga, I have some of this year's seed to sow- should I plant them now or wait for fall for stratification, or spring for warm germination?

I'm sure no expert but it seems to me that the ones I've tried, or looked up, have seemed to require cold stratification, so I would tend to wait until later (if you're leaving them outside) or I would stratify them indoors.  I hope those with more experience will comment!

Lactuca intricata seems to mostly be producing one flower at a time (loads of buds though), but at least I caught 3 open today!  (From seed this past winter):
 

These teensy Primula scotica on the shadier side of the tufa garden are now in bloom; I'm a little surprised how well they take the drier conditions here.


Cancrinia tianshanica, from seed this past winter, with a bud:


Erysimum leptophyllum, from seed this past winter.  (I appreciate seeing some bloom, no matter how modest, in the event they don't winter over! )


An old bedraggled Antirrhinum molle(? - every time I refer to this, I probably call it something different so please tell me if you know what its proper name is), very woody and declining (the survivor of two plants I bought in 2001 - amazing hardiness!):


Cyclamen purpurascens, again:
 

Gentiana septemfida:

[deesen]

You seem to be having a good season Lori, I'm having a stinker.

[Lori S.]

Due to the weather still, I assume, David?  What a bummer - summer is so short in the northern latitudes that one can't help but feel a bit cheated if conditions are poor! 

[RickR]

Lori, your Antirrhinum seems to have ob-opposite leaves.  I wouldn't have a clue, but might that help with an identification?