Allium 2010

[McDonough]

Panayoti, when was it that I was out to Colorado for an annual NARGS (ARGS then) meeting in Boulder CO, I think it was in the mid 1980s?  At this event, one of the field trips was a bus ride up to the top of Pike's Peak, a hair raising experience to be sure. But I remember it well, excited to see dwarf (prostrate) fans of narrow foliage, that I later learned was Allium geyeri in a dwarf alpine form (syn. A. pikeanum).  It was not in flower at the time, so it's great to see your photos of flowering plants from Mt. Evans.

I did grow this in Seattle, and later in Massachusetts after moving back to New England; while it stayed smaller, growing only 6-7" tall, it was upright growing at lower elevations, and did not show any of the prostrate habit as seen up on Pike's Peak.  This form was recalcitrant and never increased, eventually dying out, whereas other forms collected in moist partly-shaded sites in my western mountain travels are easy growers, making pleasant billows of light pink urceolate flowers in late spring.  In moist sites, A. geyeri can easily reach 18" (45 cm) or more. 

Back to the Pike's Peak buses. We were told that the small fleet of Pike's Peak buses dedicated to shuttling people up and down the 14,115' (4,302 m) peak, were specially designed with the wheel bases pulled in towards the center of the bus's length, thereby making it easier to turn and navigate the many switchback turns (180 degree hairpin turns).  However, what this means, is that the front portion of the bus would actually project out and over shear vertical drops at each hairpin turn, the mostly 60s and over crowd of ARGS members screaming in terror with each and every turn, like some sort of hellish amusement park ride.  The adept bus drivers, so used to the trips up and down, would also travel at what seemed like death-defying speed given the precarious terrain and dizzying heights... I think they rather enjoyed getting riders to scream.

[McDonough]

Nice onions!
What's the blue plant together with the alliums in the last picture?

The blue plant looks like Phacelia sericea.

[Kelaidis]

The blue plant is Phacelia sericea. The yellow is Geum rossii.

A few more pix of Mt. Goliath are posted at: http://www.botanicgardensblog.com/2010/07/25/quick-before-its-winter/

[Hoy]

Thanks both, I thought of a Phacelia species.

[Kelaidis]

Dear Mark!
   You bring back great memories! I remember that bus ride. I also recall that Linc and Timmy Foster were on that bus and were not thrilled with the thrills (Timmy later told me she felt as if she was on a trick plane ride)...the crowning moment came when we heard Dr. William A. Weber bellowing (at the top of his lungs) "Penis! Penis! Penis!" As it turned out, he was correcting some poor soul who made the mistake of pronouncing the prevalent low altitude pine as "Pie-nuss ponderosa".
   You realize that was 28 years ago! Gawd, we're going to be tiresome geezers.
   Bill, incidentally, is in his nineties, and still arresting.

[Nold]

(Nothing to do with alliums....)
Too bad I wasn't there, it might have been fun. The correct pronunciation of Pinus, for English speakers, is, of course, Pie-nuss. Botanical names are not Latin and attempts to pronounce them as such are just silly. And, in many cases, impossible.

[McDonough]

Allium listera is one of a small handful of Chinese species with hosta-like leaves, quite remarkably so in this species.  I grow three clones, all collected by Darrell Probst in China, two of which flowered this year side-by-side.  I've grown these a number of years, and it proves to be a most unique, attractive, and hardy Allium for the semi-shady bed.  I upload 10 photos showing the progression from early leaf emergence to flowering.  Normally flowering takes place in latest July to mid August, but this year we are 2-3 weeks earlier than normal.

Early leaf emergence shows off the different clones well, my original plant is the one with ruddy reddish foliage in spring, looking rather odd with fleshy shiny leaves, but robust and more leaves than the second clone... the leaves eventually turning green but larger than the other... the second clone was green and looking altogether normal, smaller and narrower in shape.  The second clone started flowering about 2 weeks earlier than my original more robust form, but there is some cross-over in bloom time. 

This year, it has been so desperately hot and dry, that the leaves started drying off as the flowers appeared, something nor experienced before, normally the leaves are in good green hosta form as the flowers open.  The smaller form did not set any seed, it was near 99 F (37 C) when the flowers were blooming, too soon to tell if the later more robust form will set viable seed this year.

[Lori S.]

What interesting foliage on A. listera.

Mark, here, in bloom now, is the allium that you commented on previously as likely being A. nutans.  Does it still seem to be it?  The stems are flattened, and ridged.  The leaves are also flattened, about 1cm wide, and blunt at the tips.  Thank you, in advance, for an ID.

[Hoy]

Mark, you never stop showing interesting onions! Allium listera is no exception. Both clones had very nice leaves but the robust form wins the gold medal. The flowers weren't bad either.

And your presumably A. nutans Lori, also is very fine. Here I like the dense flowerheads better!

[McDonough]

Mark, here, in bloom now, is the allium that you commented on previously as likely being A. nutans.  Does it still seem to be it?  The stems are flattened, and ridged.  The leaves are also flattened, about 1cm wide, and blunt at the tips.  Thank you, in advance, for an ID.

Lori, that is not only Allium nutans, but a very fine form of it, both for flowers and for the leaves.  I grow one that looks similar, which is flowering now.

I have fallen way behind posting Allium photos, but here are a few recent ones.

1     Allium nutans - robust white form, looks similar to Lori's plant

2     Allium angulosum - good white form, here it is stretching for more light, must move it to a sunnier position.

3-4  Allium plummerae - this should be a standard Allium in everyone's garden who permit alliums, a first rate "garden perennial" that clumps up well, has distinctive pale gray-green glaucous leaves held straight up, topped with flat clusters of white flowers, the ovaries changing to brown or orangish colors.  From high alpine meadows in Arizona and New Mexico, this one wants full sun, but good rich (and moist) soil, but will grow easily even in dryish loam.  Almost never reseeds.

5     Allium mixed species growing together, Allium cernuum, A. stellatum and stellatum hybrids, and Allium nutans hybrids.
6     Same as #5, except a week earlier, showing some of the bud habit.

7-8  Allium stellatum hybrid seedlings (ex. Allium stellatum x senescens 'Rosey Affair') - mixed white and pink.

9-10 Allium ericetorum (chartreuse yellow) on the left, A. saxatile (medium pink form) on the right, growing in a friend's garden.

[Lori S.]

Beautiful alliums, Mark, and thanks for the ID.
Here's Allium flavum var. tauricum out on the corner of the sidewalk... the standard yellow.

[McDonough]

Beautiful alliums, Mark, and thanks for the ID.
Here's Allium flavum var. tauricum out on the corner of the sidewalk... the standard yellow.

Looks to be a really good form, a good bright yellow.  At one point I used to select out and discard the yellow ones, in part, that's how I ended up with so many colors other than yellow, but now I have been purposely replanting yellow forms and A. flavum, just for the spots of bright color they add without taking up much space.

[Lori S.]

Allium sikkimense has been in bloom for some time now:

[Hoy]

That's a pretty blue one!

[Lori S.]

Yes, it sure is!  The other blue one I have, A. cyaneum, didn't bloom very well this year.  (Oh, I guess I also have A. cyaneum... forgot about that one.)

A couple of our native species, from a moist swale between the higher, rocky ridges on Forgetmenot Ridge (again) on Aug. 23:
1) Allium schoenoprasum var. sibiricum, chives
2) Allium cernuum