Image of the day - 2012

[cohan]

Seed would be nice if you end up with spare, though really not necessary: I think it will take all winter/spring to get through my backlog of seed- I thought I was doing well this year at sowing, but Philippe sent me so many things I could never catch up!
Good to know there is another thing I could use in that sort of planting I guess a lot of the things that are sub/alpine meadow plants would work in that kind of setting...

[McDonough]

Since there has been some talk about "scoots" (Scutellaria species), it reminded me to go check my planting of Scutellaria incana.  This one is proving to be better and better every year, climbing to the top of my favorite perennials list, as it has no bad habits.  Growing about 3-1/2' tall, it does not run or sucker, slowly builds in size over the years, is totally drought tolerant, has very attractive leaves and sturdy stems that don't flop, and long period of late season bloom with masses of crisp blue flowers, then with wonderful ornamental pinkish-red seed "box" structures.

It is flowering a little bit later than normal this year; took a couple of photos which didn't turn out great but I include one anyway, check out the links from previous NARGS topics for better profile pics.



Scutellaria incana, NARGS topic with good photos:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=88.0

Scutellaria incana - ornamental seed heads:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=336.msg4438#msg4438

Scutellaria incana, USDA plant profile - 3 varieties:
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=SCIN

[Hoy]

Lori, maybe you are right! I jumped to the conclusion it was a Coprinus since that one is the common mushroom in my bin and its mycelium is found all over the contents. I found this one when I emptied the bin and assumed it was the same but when I look at it now I doubt it. It looks more like a slime mold at the edges. The edges escaped me, I was looking at the mycelium-like weft but now I think it is the mature plasmodium of a slime mold with developing fruiting bodies called sporangiums. In my defence I have to tell that the mushroom Coprinus sp usually cover all the content of the bin! The mycelium looks very similar on some stages.

I have emptied the bin so it is impossible to take a new look at it.

[Hoy]

I am looking for meadow rues with big flowers although they are hard to come by. Thalictrum chelidoni is in that category and very lovely. A peculiar trait is the bulbils that form in the leaf axils.

[cohan]

That 'scoot' is nice indeed, Mark, (and a good list of positive characters) as is Trond's Thalictrum- our local species is one I like a lot, but you could not call the flowers showy even being generous (I've always assumed it to be T venulosum, but looking at the maps right now, there are two other species not that far away, I haven't really keyed them..)

[Todd Boland]

What an intriguing Thalictrum!

It is not often I buy alpine plants in local nurseries but this Sedum was just too unusual top pass up.  Sedum hakonense 'Chocolate Ball'

[cohan]

Great colour! Is this a largish plant like reflexum etc?

[RickR]

Way cool thalictrum, Trond!    Does it have individual male and female plants?

Really dark color on that sedum, Todd.  What time of year was the pic taken?

[Todd Boland]

The Sedum was shot a couple of days ago.  It is much smaller than the lanceolatum types.

[Tim Ingram]

Nice little collection of plants - Scutellaria incana does look a nice thing and a lot larger than species I am used to; should suit our dry garden I imagine. The Thalictrum is very delicate and beautiful; for a short time I grew diffusiflorum which has very large flowers on a short plant, but it didn't prove easy. For us the dry tolerant orientale and tuberosum do well, especially the former.

The genus Diascia was all the rage here some years ago, but few proved really hardy and persistant. This is one of the best and has probably been in the garden for 10 years or more, D. fetcaniensis. They are all wonderfully long flowering and make great container plants mixed with other things.

[Hoy]

What an intriguing Thalictrum!

It is not often I buy alpine plants in local nurseries but this Sedum was just too unusual top pass up.  Sedum hakonense 'Chocolate Ball'

Todd, I had bought that Sedum too! I've never seen it for sale here.

Way cool thalictrum, Trond!    Does it have individual male and female plants?

Agree to both of you 
The thalictrum has perfect flowers, Rick, and makes seed but i don't know whether they contain embryos.

Tim, I have tried Th diffusiflorum twice but it is very shortlived here. Don't know whether it is the winter or slugs that  destroy it. I have tried neither Th tuberosum nor orientale but would love to!

I have a Diascia which looks very similar to yours but it isn't so floriferous. I have had it for many years (from Silverhill).

[Lori S.]

A touch of frost has intensified colours in the higher parts of the alpine tundra... more to follow here:
 http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=1153.msg19486#msg19486.

[Booker]

Glorious image, Lori ... can't wait to see more please.

[Hoy]

Yes agree, but I don't want any frost yet! The latest rhodo (R auriculatum) has just started flowering. The flowers are nicely perfumed

[cohan]

Is that a Castilleja, Lori? Nice colour, there are a few here that colour, but of course, taller plants... Rocky Mtn House has had frost warnings several times already, but we haven't seen any yet, wont likely be long though!