What do you see on your garden walks? 2013

Submitted by cohan on Fri, 01/11/2013 - 18:29

We are 11 days late on this topic!
A couple views of some of my garden beds in the last couple of days-- not a whole lot to see! but you see some of the 'ridges' of the rock gardens and berms I've been developing, and looking at them this winter under snow, I've realised that these winter shapes should be taken into account at the design phase, since this is what I see for months at a time!

1-3 the rock beds in front of the house which get extra snow, being surrounded by shovelled paths; in #3 you can see a bit of the tallest Sempervivum flower stalk sticking through the snow still..
4,5 a couple of rock beds and berms in a different part of the acreage- these are in the moister part of the property, and (not counting the shovelling mentioned above) get the deepest snow
6,7 the third rock garden area, this is on the drier end of the property, and drier yet between the two large spruce trees- the two taller ridges have had the least snow cover of any of my plantings, so time will tell what plants that will favour (naturally, I am planting things that generally want to be drier in this area)

Comments


Submitted by cohan on Fri, 01/11/2013 - 18:46

A few more views,  some of the woodies-
1-5 several crab/apples and a Philadelphus, which always seems to hold enough snow to look interesting, but never bends..
6-Then a Tilia cordata, one of our very few non-native trees, still smallish, after quite a few years (15? longer? mom doesn't remember) and I hope it stays that way, but I really like this tree; only non-native/wild plant in this view.
7- a piece of old stump I dragged out of the bush for my future stumpery!
8-a partly shaded spot surrounded on two/three sides with wild trees and shrubs- the mid-foreground had a pile of branches on it for a couple of years that suppressed most of the grass etc, so I will be taking advantage of that to plant some woodland/edge plants- it is already ringed with wild asters which I may leave as is, or dig out to remove grass and replant...(much of the yard unmowed would have asters)
9- a 'Blue Fox' Willow (may be S brachycarpa) with an old shed behind..


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 01/12/2013 - 01:58

Cohan, at the moment I am actually envying your snow cover! The dry freezing we have now is bad for the plants. The forecast says more of the same the next 10 days :-\ Although it is sunny with no clouds at all, the sun is so low in the sky that it doesn't provide any warmth.


Submitted by bulborum on Sat, 01/12/2013 - 02:18

Well here we had yesterday a dry day , it is here wet sins weeks
whole days drizzling , so impossible to work with pleasure in the garden
It seems we will have a few frosty days
I hope we don't get a winter like last year
so warm all the time (like now) and then heavy frost in February
Here where over 10,000 plants dead in pots last winter :(

but I like your snow-cover
we had that two years ago
no problems at all with the plants
they  love it

Roland


Submitted by cohan on Sat, 01/12/2013 - 12:16

Trond and Roland- I'm sure the snowcover is good for some plants, though most things here also need to be able to handle at least -20C without cover. (Small)  Pots exposed over winter have very little chance here- even with snow. Also, I'm sure most of the plants you guys grow could not survive my low temperatures even with the snow cover...lol

10,000 is a lot of plants to lose!  :o


Submitted by Peden on Mon, 01/14/2013 - 07:49

A January thaw has removed restrictions on rock garden doting, at least temporarily; I notice this morning three Mediterranean species: Bupluerum spinosum looking nice and green. The seeds it set, upon dissection, would appear potentially viable. I rubbed a few into the surrounding grit: The blue broom -E. pungens had sloughed (stepped on by dog, cat, chicken, or donkey?) a couple of green spines which appear to have callused -perhaps. I stuck those in the wet mud near the plant: Convolvulus cneorum from last years seed-ex is spotless and quite vigorous right at the south foot of my porch foundation. The one on the crevice garden doesn't look too bad either. all of these were under good snow during below zero (F) spat. all of the Agaves are "go" it seems. I looked for new seedlings of Draba etc. and did not see any. There's still a little snow where I expect it to be; and hope it remains. This weather is not untypical of my region and is not good for a lot of alpines as severe cold can re-enter the region upon bare, recently soggy ground. Yesterday temperature was same at noon in Saranac Lake, NY as in Los Angeles, CA! Freaky for both regions.


Submitted by Novak on Mon, 01/21/2013 - 10:45

Here in Philadelphia, winter still hasn't really begun. Corydalis ochroleuca has put out a few new flowers. My fall-blooming camellia (the Ackerman hybrid 'Winter's Snowman') had all its flowers killed by frost last night, but it hasn't given up hope of opening more buds. Meanwhile, spring flowers are coming into bloom. Besides Galanthus elwesii and a couple crocuses, I have Helleborus thibetanus in bloom.


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 01/21/2013 - 13:07

Can't say we are so lucky here as having flowers in the garden although some hellebores and snowdrops are persistent in bud.  It is still clear and cold but it seems to end in the weekend when we are expecting rain.


Submitted by Novak on Mon, 01/21/2013 - 14:43

Southeast Pennsylvania winters are pretty mild, but this is definitely milder than normal. The temperature has not yet gotten down to 20 F (-7 C). Consequently, some of the summer and fall flowers are still hanging on. Corydalis ochroleuca, which is consistently the champion in my garden for duration of bloom, has been in bloom for 311 days and counting....

It's nice to have flowers into January, but I do hope we get a real winter eventually!


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Mon, 01/21/2013 - 15:29

Janet - that's an interesting flower on Helleborus thibetanus with such strong veining. The plant I have is much more like the picture on the front of Burrell and Tyler's book - a soft-pink overall. It would be interesting to know how much variation there is in this plant? Unfortunately in our garden the flowers open at ground level and are badly munched by slugs; I must remember next year to protect it.


Submitted by Novak on Tue, 01/22/2013 - 14:29

Tim, it certainly would be interesting to know about the range of variation in H. thibetanus. This is actually the very first time my plant has bloomed, so for all I know the strongly pink veins could be an environmental effect of blooming in atypical weather. Though a google image search does show that other flowers with more-or-less white background and pink veins.


Submitted by Mark McD on Sat, 01/26/2013 - 18:10

Michael, beauties each and every one! 

The difference in climates is amplified this time of year, when seeing plants in bloom during the dead of winter, when everything is quite frozen and dormant here, thankfully with a layer of snow still present. But its a pleasure seeing such magnificent Hellebore blooms, even when it seems off season to us in New England.


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 01/27/2013 - 00:34

Michael, I have to echo Mark: They are beautiful! You seem to have escaped the winter cold so far?
Although some of my plants showed colour at Yuletide the last 3 cold weeks brought a stop to that. And now we have gotten 10cm of snow but today it is raining :-\


Submitted by Michael J Campbell on Sun, 01/27/2013 - 08:20

Hepatica  Japonica  Kosino maboroshi,
Hepatica japonica Kuukai
Hepatica Purple  Nidan Saki
hepatica nobilis dark blue.


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 01/27/2013 - 12:07

Lovely hellebores, Michael! I really like those that are single but with striking colours, ditto for the last Hepatica. We are still 2-3 months away from seeing the ground let alone signs of plant life outdoors ;)


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 02/05/2013 - 11:29

The snowdrops have stood like this for about a month now but the snow has disappeared and come back several times. The last inch of snow came yesterday.

 


Submitted by Novak on Tue, 02/05/2013 - 18:27

I can think of two explanations for the snow melted around the snowdrops. First, the plants will be actively metabolizing, which generates heat. Second, plants -- and anything else that isn't white -- will absorb more sunlight than the snow, causing them to be warmer. 


Submitted by cohan on Wed, 02/06/2013 - 00:03

I know nothing about whether the plants give off heat, but I can say for sure that any dark thing sticking out of the snow- soil, rocks, sticks, etc- will cause faster melting of the snow compared to undisturbed smooth white areas...


Submitted by Hoy on Wed, 02/06/2013 - 00:58

I think Janet's last explanation is the right one. They do indeed absorb heat also when it is cloudy. Even dead twigs get a similar area of no snow around them and they certainly have no metabolism ;)


Submitted by bulborum on Wed, 02/06/2013 - 01:13

Well whatever it is
It looks funny
I know Symplocarpus "produces " heat in the flower

Scilla cilicica collected in Cyprus at Smiyies start flowering here
also Scilla aristides and Leucojum vernum var. carpaticum

Roland


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Wed, 02/06/2013 - 08:31

Michael, I just visited your Lewisia and alpines site.  What a feast for a new englander midst snow and cold!  Your pictures are superb and I loved the Daphnes you showed.  I noticed almost everything seemed to be in pots.  Do you grow these (Lewisias, daphnes) outside as well?  What is your usual minimum temperature?


Submitted by Michael J Campbell on Wed, 02/06/2013 - 10:15

Quote:

Do you grow these (Lewisias, daphnes) outside as well?  What is your usual minimum temperature?

I live in town and  don't have a very big garden so about 60%of my plants are grown in pots. I have both Daphne and Lewisias planted out in a scree bed and some Daphne's in the shrub border.see pic below of one in a scree bed.
Winter temperatures from about -5°C to +14°C (  23°F to  57°F)  summer temperatures from +16 °C to 24°C (60.8 °F to 75.2°F) Annual rainfall 1000-1400 mm  (40-55inches)

Daphne x susannae cheriton


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 02/07/2013 - 14:12

bulborum wrote:

Well whatever it is
It looks funny
I know Symplocarpus "produces " heat in the flower

Roland

Yes, some plants do, I know, but I think they produce heat to mimic rotten meat and attract insects. But I checked yesterday and the thawed circles are much bigger around snowdrops than around anything elseincluding crocuses except Cardamines ;) However I didn't meassure the temp.

Michael, what a nice and tidy plant!


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 02/09/2013 - 09:40

They stay green here too and often flower at this time of the year but now it is too cold and 1 inch snow cover. This winter has been much colder than normal :-\


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Sun, 02/10/2013 - 06:02

15" of snow here so nothing to see but deer tracks through the garden (sigh...).  It could be worse - they could be elk or moose tracks.  Lucky people to have things actually in bloom!


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 02/10/2013 - 13:05

2ft snow here at our mountain cabin. Nothing but snowclad birches, pines, spruces and junipers. A lot of hare tracks. Hope they leave before spring. Last spring they devoured all the Pulsatilla vernalis buds.


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 02/11/2013 - 11:45

Spiegel wrote:

15" of snow here so nothing to see but deer tracks through the garden (sigh...).  It could be worse - they could be elk or moose tracks.  Lucky people to have things actually in bloom!

We have a recent set of moose tracks- not sure what they did this time though - I thought they'd already got all the tender woody branches when they came at the beginning of winter (fall)
I'm more worried about what the voles might be doing under the snow- they will have had such a long season by spring that it could be bad.. I had wanted to try some repellents this year, but the first snow caught me offguard- I knew it was going to snow, but didn't expect it to stay! Hopefully they stick to the 'grass' mostly....


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 02/14/2013 - 01:16

Beautiful, Janet!
Adonis is one of my favorite genera but I have never had any luck with them :(

Michael, that's a good one! I'm looking forward to see my yellows ;)


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 02/14/2013 - 01:32

It isn't much green to see here, and certainly not any flowers, but snow.
We are spending some days skiing at our mountain cabin which sits in the subalpine birch forest at about 1000m in S Norway. Some spruces and pines also grow here.

We have only seen two flocks of ptarmigans, they used to be very common. We have not seen any live animals but lots of tracks of elks, foxes, hares, martens and relatives and small rodents. The latter prefere to move under the snow cower. We are almost alone here and do not meet any other people during our daily cross country ski tours.
A little snow has fallen every day and we have barely seen the sun. It is about -12 - -16C (10-3F) during daytime but absolutely no wind!

   

   


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 02/14/2013 - 13:02

The dim winter light really shows in your pics Trond.  Of the winter snow covered areas in the U.S., Minnesota is one of the sunniest areas in winter.  There are lots of woody evergreens that can easily survive cold temperatures that we get here, but winter burn severely because of the relatively strong winter sun.  

These pics taken this morning in my backyard.
-- Amelanchier sp.
-- Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Squarrosa Lutea' with my "box" of potted materials covered for the winter.
-- Salix schraderiana, Picea asperata
     

-- Chamaecyparis thyoides
-- Betula nigra
-- Chamaecyparis thyoides 'Heatherbun'.  Chamaecyparis are incredibly flexible.  Heatherbun is is normally upright, and it will regain this stature when the snow melts off.  The dwarf plant is normally as high as it is wide in the photo.
   

-- our wild Juniperus virginiana, a volunteer under the tulip tree
-- Pinus strobus 'Wintergold', Betula nigra
-- Pinus strobus 'Wintergold'
   


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 02/16/2013 - 01:16

Rick, as you say, no chance for sun burning here, neither plants nor people - yet!

A real winter day in your backyard! Where are your skis?
The yellow leaves of 'Wintergold' looks nice in the snow. Some of the spruces here do get yellow in winter, especially the last year's growth.
You have to pay attention Rick or else your trees end up like this: (Betula pubescens var czerepanovii)

A few more pictures from yesterday. Today we are going home. My wife and daughter in action in the dim winter light!

   


Submitted by cohan on Sat, 02/16/2013 - 17:25

Nice winter views!
Trond- those are chilly days- we haven't had any that cold for a while..
Rick- lots of nice woodies there!

I don't have skis these days, but I have been running again, started just after Christmas- much of the time I am running on a road that my relatives built through the bush on the farm to connect a couple of different relatives farmsteads at opposite ends of the farm that would be much farther to drive by road. The loop I run is a little less than 2 miles, I think, and of course rarely any traffic (just a relative or visiting neighbour once in a while  ;D) but lots of tracks from coyotes, and some deer, rabbits, etc.
This day in January was a bit chilly to run with my low tech running gear, and a bit too much fresh snow for my running shoes (the relatives plow it regularly) so I just went for a walk with the camera..
First shot is a path I use for hauling firewood out of the bush with a toboggan, the others are on/from the bush road..


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 02/17/2013 - 00:04

Cohan, seems to be a nice walk through the woods! And the sun is high in the sky ;) and shining too :o
Should be manageable to haul firewood in that depth of snow ;D


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 02/18/2013 - 12:04

Michael- that is stunning!

Trond- it's a lovely route for a walk or a run - just me and the coyote tracks...lol The snow depth is not bad, and certainly less than wetter cold places- in the part of the bush where I am getting wood, the snow depth varies from virtually/none in some spruce stands to more than a foot in other spots. Fortunately much of my wood hauling route is the same- only at the farther points I have to branch off in new directions- so a lot of the walking/hauling is on packed paths that I have been using all winter, like the one I showed in the first picture...the (cheap plastic) toboggan was the best purchase I made all year! Previously we used a wheelbarrow when possible (not in the deeper snow!)and mostly carried it out by hand...


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 02/19/2013 - 12:32

Michael wrote:

Helleborus black Hyb

Very beautiful Michael! Is it your baby? What's the name? 'Black Velvet'?

Cohan, I have a spare toboggan (we call it akebrett) which my daughters used when they played in the snow ;)


Submitted by Michael J Campbell on Tue, 02/19/2013 - 13:35

Quote:

Very beautiful Michael! Is it your baby? What's the name? 'Black Velvet'?

It is my own seedling but the parents a couple of generations back came from Ashwood seed. No name, just black hyb seedling.


Submitted by cohan on Thu, 02/21/2013 - 12:20

Hoy wrote:

Cohan, I have a spare toboggan (we call it akebrett) which my daughters used when they played in the snow ;)

Mine is more basic ;) I was looking at bigger 'sleds' used for pulling calves in winter (when they are born outdoors in cold weather and need to be moved) but they are wider- good for getting more wood on them, but not good for squeezing between trees, so I'm glad I got the narrow one...


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 02/24/2013 - 18:55

A few things have melted out of the snow...  Needless to say, those that are evergreen are much more interesting than those that are not!

Gentiana verna; Draba acaulis; Dianthus scardicus:
   

Gray on gray... clockwise from lower left, Achillea umbellata, Artemisia caucasica, ??, and for some green, Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Pearl Bells'

Cotula hispida; Armeria juniperifolia and blackened stems of Satureja montana illyrica (the bases will still be alive); clockwise from lower left, Townsendia parryi, Erigeron sp., Campanula topaliana:
   

Eritrichium howardii - alive or dead? - with Salvia pachyphylla in the background; my wizened little specimen of Petrophyton caespitosum that survived transplanting and somehow keeps hanging on without growing or blooming; Achillea holosericea:
   


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 02/24/2013 - 19:06

This Thuja occidentalis 'Teddy' in the back yard tufa garden looks okay (although there's more winter yet to come).  The other one planted in a trough out front looks awful - yellow and burnt.

Trachelium rumelianum;  Bukiniczia cabulica:
 

Cottony Pyrethrum leontopodium with Sideritis phlomoides on the left and the spiky skeleton of Lactuca intricata on top - wonder if it's still alive?

Silene caryophylloides ssp. echinus on the left and Saxifraga sp. on the right; I'm really looking forward to seeing the Silene this year; seeds were started in 2011; collected by Pavelka at 2100m, Darvaz Dag, Turkey (description:  "very dense spined cushions, solitary pale to dark pink flws, 5-15cm, screes, stoney places. 2008 seed").  I have not been able to find any photos of it.  Correction:  If I spell it correctly (as opposed to the spelling in the seed list), I can find a couple of photos, though mainly herbarium specimens.


Submitted by Toole on Mon, 02/25/2013 - 00:09

Some really nice stuff there Lori ---Hope they have all survived and come away.

Here's a bit of colour here at the moment---Oenothera ,(fruticosa subsp. glauca ??), 'blood yellow' .Not a particulary large sized bloom however i love the colour combination when you get up close.

Thankfully i planted it in a double wash tub where i can keep a check on it's numerous seedlings  :-\ ....

Cheers Dave


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Mon, 02/25/2013 - 11:26

I would put money on the Eritrichium still being fine Lori - it somehow looks OK even though nary a sign of green. I would love to grow this again, the only Eritrichium I ever grew to flower and such great foliage. I had no idea how variable it is until seeing pictures on this Forum. The Salvia pachyphylla looks exactly the same as one I have on a raised bed, viz: not successful over winter! But I am surprised to see Pyrethrum leontopodium looking so good. It is very interesting to watch plants like this over the winter and see what tolerance they do have in the garden. Will be exciting to see everything growing away in the spring.


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 02/25/2013 - 11:53

Exciting to see stuff exposed, Lori- I'm a way from that yet- my dryland beds might be out sooner, but they aren't densely planted yet, so wont be much to see..
That Pyrethrum is amazing- I forget, have you seen flowers yet? I have seed for one of the droopy (ray) flowered species that I really like, but I don't think it has exciting foliage..

Just looked at the weather forecast for the week-- 5-10cm snow tonight then later in the week daytime highs of 3-9C, though still below freezing overnight, of course, from -4 to -14C So some of those beds might be bare sooner, not the ones in front of the house or in the wetter end of the yard, yet- still deeply buried...


Submitted by Mark McD on Mon, 02/25/2013 - 17:47

Lori, I grew Silene caryophylloides ssp. echinus back in late 1970s and early 1980s, grown from MacPhail and Watson seed collecting expedition to Turkey.  It was a very good plant, quite distinctive and flowered well.  All the plants I grew from that expedition are long since memories, although a few plant species made it into general horticulture, like Veronica liwanensis.

Dave, I don't think your colorful Oenothera is O. fruticosa or a variety of it.  Was intrigued to see Maggi's suggestion of E. falklandica; never heard of it, and could only find one photo of it (use the link below, scroll down to find it), showing similarly colored blooms. Searching on The Plant List, IPNI.ORG, and Tropicos, indicate that Oenothera "falklandica" is not a validly published name, possibly a horticultural invention, there are a good number of such non-existant species out in horticulture-land.  Now I'm interested in finding out what this plant really is!
http://www.buytech.biz/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_OENOTHERA_1219.html

...and the same photo in another link, but you can compare with a few photos of O. fruticosa and vars.
http://www.cgf.net/plants.aspx?genus=OENOTHERA


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 02/25/2013 - 19:43

cohan wrote:

That Pyrethrum is amazing- I forget, have you seen flowers yet?

Not yet - this is its first winter.  I'm not overly concerned about the Salvia pachyphylla just yet despite its bedraggled appearance - I had one out front in regular soil that looked about the same coming out of winter.  Unfortunately, it never amounted to anything and got broken off (from being raked over, I think).


Submitted by Toole on Mon, 02/25/2013 - 23:38

Hoy wrote:

Dave, a special Oenothera, nice colours!

IMYoung wrote:

Great colour combination on that Oenethera,T00lie - might it be O. falklandica?

McDonough wrote:

Dave, I don't think your colorful Oenothera is O. fruticosa or a variety of it.  Was intrigued to see Maggi's suggestion of E. falklandica; never heard of it, and could only find one photo of it (use the link below, scroll down to find it), showing similarly colored blooms. Searching on The Plant List, IPNI.ORG, and Tropicos, indicate that Oenothera "falklandica" is not a validly published name, possibly a horticultural invention, there are a good number of such non-existant species out in horticulture-land.  Now I'm interested in finding out what this plant really is!
http://www.buytech.biz/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_OENOTHERA_1219.html

...and the same photo in another link, but you can compare with a few photos of O. fruticosa and vars.
http://www.cgf.net/plants.aspx?genus=OENOTHERA

Thanks Trond /Maggi

I had queried the name i gave earlier as when Googling Oenothera i came across pictures of my plant labelled as O.fruticosa ssp glauca which under 'The Plant List' is an unresolved named.

And just to add to the confusion the name should be blood orange not as i have called it ,blood yellow--duh !!!....... :-[

Sorry i can't help you further Mark.

Cheers Dave.


Submitted by IMYoung on Tue, 02/26/2013 - 05:47

Toole wrote:
IMYoung wrote:

Great colour combination on that Oenethera,T00lie - might it be O. falklandica?

McDonough wrote:

Dave, I don't think your colorful Oenothera is O. fruticosa or a variety of it.  Was intrigued to see Maggi's suggestion of O. falklandica; never heard of it, and could only find one photo of it (use the link below, scroll down to find it), showing similarly colored blooms. Searching on The Plant List, IPNI.ORG, and Tropicos, indicate that Oenothera "falklandica" is not a validly published name, possibly a horticultural invention, there are a good number of such non-existant species out in horticulture-land.  Now I'm interested in finding out what this plant really is!

Thanks Trond /Maggi

I had queried the name i gave earlier as when Googling Oenothera i came across pictures of my plant labelled as O.fruticosa ssp glauca which under 'The Plant List' is an unresolved named.

And just to add to the confusion the name should be blood orange not as i have called it ,blood yellow--duh !!!....... :-[

Cheers Dave.

Right, I hadn't cottoned on to the fact that the Blood Orange was a name and not just a description.... a search for  OENOTHERA 'BLOOD ORANGE' doesn't get us much further though....

http://hobbykafe.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1388&start=15  =Bulgarian site

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Imberhorne-Lane-Nursery-OENOTHERA-ORANGE/dp/B006... =seeds for sale

http://members.gardenweb.com/members/exch/audrey  = seed swap

I've written to Bob Brown of Cotswold Garden Flowers to see what else he can tell us of is "falklandica"


Submitted by Mark McD on Tue, 02/26/2013 - 06:57

From a brief search, I find there are a number of orange Oenothera species/cultivars going around, the one that comes up the most is Oenothera versicolor, with cultivar names like 'Sunset Boulevard' and 'Endless Orange'.  Just google images for Oenothera versicolor and you will see lots of these.

Now, O. versicolor is considered a synonym for the accepted name of O. campylocalyx.
The synonym list for O. campylocalyx include:
O. coccinea
O. curvifolia
O. fusca
O. scabra
O. versicolor
O. weberbaueri
Onagra fusca
This is a species from South America (Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia).  Some "garden web sites" report Oenothera versicolor as a Californian annual, which it is not, just more unsubstantiated garden lore. Google Oenothera campylocalyx, and you'll see many of the same orange cultivars.

I think Dave's "blood orange" evening primrose or O. "falklandica", is probably some other South America species of Oenothera, it has rather different leaves than the long narrow leaves of O. campylocalyx (syn. versicolor). The trouble is, its so hard to find botanical information for Central and South America.

Regarding O. fruticosa and ssp. glauca recognized by USDA Plant Profiles, they're good entities in my book, The Plant List has a surprising high percentage of "unresolved" plant names.
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=OEFR


Submitted by IMYoung on Tue, 02/26/2013 - 13:58

Got a reply from Bob Brown about Oenethera falklandica :
He tells me the seed was " bought from North Green Seeds. It must be somebodies made-up name maybe for something collected on the Falklands"  - he knows nothing more. 


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 02/28/2013 - 16:46

Makes you wonder how the Dwarf Alberta Spruce does in Alberta....?

Actually, I didn't think you had that problem out east.  You have much more humid winters and springs than us in Minnesota.

Is it normal that one has to protect from winter sun there, too?


Submitted by Peden on Fri, 03/01/2013 - 08:26

Yes, I do wonder about Alberta.... Cohan; are you out there? I'm not sure covering plants for winter could ever be considered "normal" behavior  :o  but in some cases it might forestall burning. A burlap wrap might have prevented the burn but this plant will likely recover anyway. I just have to look at it for a few more weeks  :(  This common landscape plant is sometimes put right next to south wall in full sun where the burn really can do some serious damage. They're fine with any shading though.


Submitted by Lori S. on Fri, 03/01/2013 - 09:01

Dwarf Alberta spruce are a pretty poor bet around here in this dry chinook belt - most of those cute little green cones in the one-gallon pots are doomed from the moment they leave the store - but like everything, there is an exception here and there.  DH says there's a house in our neighbourhood with 2 of them in a sheltered front entrance that have been there at least 15 years and are head-high.  The backsides are dead (whether due to climate conditions or whether it's needle drop due to be being up against a wall or other trees is unclear) but the fronts look good, apparently.


Submitted by cohan on Fri, 03/01/2013 - 11:40

I don't have any personal experience with dwarf conifers, so can't add much. I'll try to keep my eyes open for them when I am in town...As Lori suggests, I'd tend to think most people don't care for their planted conifers that well in the first place- neither do a lot of big box garden centres, for that matter- they may be on the way out before they even leave the store..
I don't see many wrapped shrubs here- I think it is done sometimes for some cedars (? not really sure what they are- but little pyramids very popularly sold  here, with a very very low survival rate!)..
Where in Alberta must make a big difference to woodies as well- more freeze/thaw farther south, colder farther north etc, besides vagaries of exposure in a particular property- eg my place is quite sheltered by trees, greatly reducing winter winds- my aunt up the road with a more exposed site feels we can grow many things she couldn't..


Submitted by Lori S. on Fri, 03/01/2013 - 17:02

I didn't really mean to suggest that it is due to poor care that dwarf Alberta spruce tend not to do well, but more that it seems to be poorly suited to surviving in our conditions generally (usually becoming fatally dessicated over the winter, if they last that long)... a bit of a mystery as Picea glauca var. albertiana is said to have been collected from nature in Alberta.  This site claims that all plants of it are derived from "a natural dwarf specimen that was collected at Lake Laggan, Alberta, in 1904. That specimen was brought to the Arnold Arboretum in Boston and has been the source of all subsequent specimens and cultivars".
http://www.floridata.com/ref/p/pice_gla.cfm

Stuart was thinking about this a while back too... One wonders about the location of the mysterious "Lake Laggan".  Does it refer to Lake Louise in Banff National Park?
http://www.lakelouisestation.com/history.php
The name "Laggan" lives on in the name of this bakery cafe at Lake Louise townsite:  
http://laggans.ca/

Given how poorly the modern descendants of the plant do here generally, Stuart figures the original plant (or population if there is or was one) must indeed have been dwarf - maybe dwarf enough to stay completely covered by snow for most of the year?  Failing that, it  must have been located in some very mild, BC-like micro-oasis... but where?

Anyway, something of a mystery... Can anyone shed any light on this?


Submitted by Lori S. on Fri, 03/01/2013 - 19:27

A few more things melting out of the snow... visible now but that may be short-lived if the predicted storm due to start tomorrow night comes to pass.

All looking pretty much as they did last fall, here's Marrubium globosum (bottom) and a little Acantholimon kotschyi ssp. laxispicatum (top); Anthemis creticum ssp. leucanthemoides; Lupinus excubitus var. austromontanus (and of the mysterious gray things that I failed to label on the map!):
   

Astragalus loanus still looking OK, and Lupinus breweri appearing lifelike:
 

It's amazing how fast some plants get going as it warms up - there appears to be a new leaf on this Centaurea epirota (and some old battered ones from last year):

Lupinus wyethii:


Submitted by Peden on Sat, 03/02/2013 - 07:39

Lori, Interesting you note no "Lake Laggan" the reputed home of the Dwarf Alberta Spruce. I think there must be a huge difference in climate where you are versus the windward/seaward side of the Rockies which would be cloudier and moister, conditions the little spruce seems to require. So nice to see things emerging from snow. It's still "March"  :( here; cold with flurries or sprinkles but mostly just gray. If you get sun and warmth you will notice Eritrichium howardii beginning growth if you look very closely. Miracle!


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 03/02/2013 - 09:28

Bundraba! wrote:

Lori, Interesting you note no "Lake Laggan" the reputed home of the Dwarf Alberta Spruce. I think there must be a huge difference in climate where you are versus the windward/seaward side of the Rockies which would be cloudier and moister, conditions the little spruce seems to require. So nice to see things emerging from snow. It's still "March"  :( here; cold with flurries or sprinkles but mostly just gray. If you get sun and warmth you will notice Eritrichium howardii beginning growth if you look very closely. Miracle!

Yes, it seems the only "Lake Laggan" must have been what is now called Lake Louise, and you've defined the mystery exactly... Given the climate difference between the east and west sides of the continental divide, where in the drier, east-side rain shadow would one find a little pocket of conditions where this fussy little thing (or even a population?) could have existed naturally?

I'll keep an eye out for the Eritrichium howardii!  Is it actually herbaceous then?

Thanks for the info on Silene caryophylloides ssp. echinus, Mark.  It's interesting to hear the history of its introduction.


Submitted by Peden on Sat, 03/02/2013 - 11:22

I'll add to the emerging from snow theme. Yes, I've taken my winter withered hide out into the cold and clammy to search for signs of life on the garden. Not all is in hideous estate and primary to the inclusion of cheeriness into my rather brief garden walk is the note that the Snowdrops are pushing above ground where the snow has melted. Below is a photographic sampling, with my ramblings, of just a few of the plants that are showing now. There should be later, an account of conditions that some of the more controversial things here find themselves in upon winter's passing:

Lewisia tweedyi appears to have survived at the south drip of a conifer (ground level aspect). It was exposed to winter low of -12F and arid sunshine. It now sits in a cold mire along with everything else in the garden. It could well be a case of "just doesn't LOOK dead yet" but I don't think so.

Acantholimon hohenackeri on a well drained version of mire (south face of The Rock)

The white form of Penstemon caespitosus as above and like the Lewisia must yet face even hotter(April) sun than befell it in January and iffy precipitation.

I stuck the camera right down into this old Moltkia petraea. Like Satureja, Lavender... I like to leave all old growth on over winter to help keep sun off of buds lower in the bush. Ideally new growth will overtake the old in summer, but judicious clipping is OK in spring. Looks OK but I can't say if this is alive or not.

Packera from Red Mountain, Montana seems completely unfazed; tough little Rocky Mountain steppe plant. Wonderful; tough is here!

Echinocereus triglochidiatus in hairless form, has winter shrink capacity, is also unfazed. I note that my Agaves (also hairless, glaucus, hardy succulents) do not seem to posses sensible shrinkability but the ones I planted out, now seem to display a good deal of shrinking. Better late than never or just plain dead? Time will tell.

Kabschias grow any time the ground is not frozen and there is moisture: Aetheonema oppositifolia will bloom real early but I think I should have fed this one (?); not many buds showing: and Y'all've seen this Areneria/Eriogonum; not much change.
   

Finally, these Yucca harrimanii/nana really could be the walking dead. It wouldn't be the first time I'd be hoping for any regeneration from the buried roots come summer. The well known preservative effects of refrigeration must yet come to light!

The other plant is Aethionema grandiflora an excellent rock garden get-around hardy enough to reseed it's self and thus be glorious for many years.


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 03/02/2013 - 13:41

Bundraba! wrote:

Ugh!!!

Yes, of course, I should be more respectful of March  :-\

Or February? This didn't happen in one day?

Picea glauca var albertiana 'Conica' is widely grown here but some branches oftens revert back to normal form. That make me assume it can't be from a stable population of dwarfs but from a sport. Or the plants grown here are not the same as you are talking about!

I have had one in my garden for more than 25 years. It is still less than 2m high. I've never experienced any sun burning though, not even this winter that have damaged other plants.


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 00:47

Lori- interesting about the missing/uncertain original site for the collection-- I think it's very easy to find habitats in Alberta that a dwarf spruce could be sheltered in over winter- depending how dwarf! Does  it seem unlikely that it could have been a dwarf population ? Surely it would have been seen again? More likely one individual sport, and then even more reasonable that  it could find a sheltered and/or snowy spot. More of a mystery is why a sport of P glauca would be so fussy?
That makes me think of things like the firs (forgetting which sp just now) which grow in foothills, mountains and some river valleys in Alberta, but are not supposed to be terribly well suited to other areas,I read of them being killed above the fence line in chinook zone yards!  and Douglas fir which grows in just a couple of montane zone sites, not sure if anyone is growing those or not...
Important for those outside of Alberta to remember that many woody plants in general have a harder time of it (so I've read!) in the chinook belt- south/western Alberta in particular, where there is unpredictable  snow cover, and more freeze/thaw than other parts of the province. Lori is in the heart of that zone, I'm on the edge of it- we get much more of the moderating Pacific air than does, say, Edmonton, but our snow cover is more secure than Calgary's- and no doubt other issues of importance to woody plants. The natural vegetation around Calgary is grassland except for low or sheltered areas, river valleys etc, and in my area the natural vegetation is boreal forest, so there must be some important distinctions!
That said, I have no idea whether anyone is successfully growing dwarf Alberta Spruce around here- I'll be watching for them now :)


Submitted by Peden on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 07:05

cohan wrote:

That makes me think of things like the firs (forgetting which sp just now) which grow in foothills, mountains and some river valleys in Alberta, but are not supposed to be terribly well suited to other areas,I read of them being killed above the fence line in chinook zone yards!  and Douglas fir which grows in just a couple of montane zone sites, not sure if anyone is growing those or not...

It's good question. I've planted Douglas Fir here, one of them sourced from Cathey Peak overlooking Alamogordo, New Mexico a stones throw from the Mexican border. I know of one quite large specimen (or knew of; haven't visited it in a while) so they are planted here (Christmas trees too) but I don't know to what degree or from what geographic area they hail or if they are "good" plants. So far the New Mexican plant seems to be taking OK. Another thing I planted and watch closely is Thuja plicata sourced from northern Idaho. this one has burned in the past but in recent years seems to be getting along better almost like it's adapted. I would think our climate quite foreign to both of these specimens so I watch them with interest.


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 09:15

The last couple of days have been more like normal. It's no snow left and the ice  on the fjord has disappeared, at least here. The soil is still frozen though and only some snowdrops show colour. But they are very late and so are the winter aconites too. Only one crocus has showed its head. Last year they were in flower now.

Picea glauca 'Conica' shows no winter damage, however competition from shrubs isn't to its liking. Some of the Rhododendrons show damage from the cold though.

 

Snowdrops and winter aconites are late but welcome harbingers of better times. The Witch Hazel 'Pallida' has flowered for tat least one month although the flowers are easily overlooked when it is cold. Today they brightened the day considerably!

   


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 10:59

cohan wrote:

That makes me think of things like the firs (forgetting which sp just now) which grow in foothills, mountains and some river valleys in Alberta, but are not supposed to be terribly well suited to other areas,I read of them being killed above the fence line in chinook zone yards!  and Douglas fir which grows in just a couple of montane zone sites, not sure if anyone is growing those or not...

From the descriptions, I wonder if both of your references might be to Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)?  

There are said to be 3 stands of Douglas-fir in Calgary - I believe they are all in NW Calgary along the Bow River (I know of 2 of them and think I know of the third).
http://www.calgary.ca/CSPS/Parks/Pages/Locations/SW-parks/Douglas-Fir-Tr...
http://www.woodshomes.ca/douglas-fir-site.htm

A local native tree/shrub nursery sells them:
http://www.bowpointnursery.com/online-catalog/trees/douglas-fir/

This source refers to a Douglas-fir on a dry ridge in Banff that would be ~700 years old now, assuming it is still alive:
http://cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/pubwarehouse/pdfs/24075.pdf

Subalpine fir appears to have a pretty restricted range - high elevations and the relict population in the Swan Hills.  I have a government-published pamphlet called Native Trees of Alberta that shows a population somewhere in the Edmonton area(?) and Native Trees of Canada (Hosie) shows two population dots in that area (as does Trees in Canada (Farrar)),  but it looks like this more recent survey checked those areas specifically and didn't record any:
http://www.abmi.ca/abmi/biodiversitybrowser/speciesprofile.jsp;jsessioni...


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 13:11

Sorry, I shouldn't have been so lazy and looked up the tree I was talking about- Actually balsam fir Abies balsamea- looking now, Flora of Alberta only shows it farther north, though someone (on another forum, I haven't visited in some time, so I have doubts I could re-find the reference) had told me they could be found in the Red Deer River Valley; However, now looking at the maps, I wonder if they meant A lasiocarpa, alpine fir, which seems from the map to have a broader distribution coming some distance away from the mountains along the North Saskatchewan River (and more so farther north), and a short way along the Red Deer River. I know driving west from Rocky Mountain House we start to see some unfamiliar conifers quite soon, but I certainly haven't keyed them- something beyond the P glauca, P mariana and Larix common here, and not pines..
I find many plants with that sort of map representation actually make it right into my area, but that is harder for trees, since we have lots of forest here, but none of it is undisturbed longer term.
Lori- I'll have to take a look at those links- I'm curious to know what Douglas Fir in Alberta look like- I've seen them in coastal B.C., but that must be quite different! There is supposed to be  a stand on the far side (vs the highway) side of Abraham Lake, but I have no idea how accessible that is...
I have a small sapling growing from something given to me by an aunt- it was a seedling from a tree grown by a friend of hers east of here- some sort of Cedar from B.C., she's been growing it near Alberta for decades, I think; no idea what it really is, and its still very small after planting several years ago in a sheltered spot.. I'd love to grow a Douglas Fir here..
Michael, hope yours do well- interesting to find out what tolerances plants might really have...

Trond, good to hear you are getting some almost spring! Nice to see those early flowers, even the non-flashy ones..
We had lots of melting going on here, byt now we have 15cm at least fresh snow, and still snowing...


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 13:48

Lori wrote:

cohan wrote:

That makes me think of things like the firs (forgetting which sp just now) which grow in foothills, mountains and some river valleys in Alberta, but are not supposed to be terribly well suited to other areas,I read of them being killed above the fence line in chinook zone yards!  and Douglas fir which grows in just a couple of montane zone sites, not sure if anyone is growing those or not...

From the descriptions, I wonder if both of your references might be to Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)?  

There are said to be 3 stands of Douglas-fir in Calgary - I believe they are all in NW Calgary along the Bow River (I know of 2 of them and think I know of the third).
http://www.calgary.ca/CSPS/Parks/Pages/Locations/SW-parks/Douglas-Fir-Tr...
http://www.woodshomes.ca/douglas-fir-site.htm

A local native tree/shrub nursery sells them:
http://www.bowpointnursery.com/online-catalog/trees/douglas-fir/

This source refers to a Douglas-fir on a dry ridge in Banff that would be ~700 years old now, assuming it is still alive:
http://cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/pubwarehouse/pdfs/24075.pdf

Subalpine fir appears to have a pretty restricted range - high elevations and the relict population in the Swan Hills.  I have a government-published pamphlet called Native Trees of Alberta that shows a population somewhere in the Edmonton area(?) and Native Trees of Canada (Hosie) shows two population dots in that area (as does Trees in Canada (Farrar)),  but it looks like this more recent survey checked those areas specifically and didn't record any:
http://www.abmi.ca/abmi/biodiversitybrowser/speciesprofile.jsp;jsessioni...

Going through those links- if the figures are correct for the largest Douglas Fir in Alberta (now dead and felled) they said it would have been about 6inches /15cm tall at 50 years old! Maybe I wont try to grow one...
That park in Calgary looks like a pretty cool place to visit (first link)..
The notable trees of Alberta pdf was quite interesting!


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 14:06

In the Alberta Trees of Renown booklet, it's interesting that the notably-old black spruce doesn't exactly stand out from its companions - all look equally (characteristically) ratty!


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 03/03/2013 - 17:26

That's what I thought about several of those trees- you wouldn't necessarily know they were old unless you were measuring or looking for some key features..


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 03/05/2013 - 01:12

Interesting spot- why is it so bare- is it high? Doesn't seem so because of the flatness...
I've seen spruces root  from branches- or at least have branches growing along the ground, haven't checked for roots- but have never seen those branches grow vertically and amount to anything much...


Submitted by Lori S. on Tue, 03/05/2013 - 07:40

Hoy wrote:

Do some of those conifers spread vegetatively by layering? Here the common spruce (Picea abies) makes stands of several trees which all stem from one original tree. Such a clone can be very old. The oldest living spruce in Scandinavia is a Swedish one C-14 dated to be 9550 years old. It is the root that is old, not the stem.

I have no proof of it but it wouldn't surprise me if some of the little groups of subalpine firs that one sees around here at timberline are actually colonies of clones from layering.  They sometimes have that look about them - lots of prostrate growth with leaders rising up here and there... ?


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 03/05/2013 - 10:13

cohan wrote:

Interesting spot- why is it so bare- is it high? Doesn't seem so because of the flatness...
I've seen spruces root  from branches- or at least have branches growing along the ground, haven't checked for roots- but have never seen those branches grow vertically and amount to anything much...

The flatness is a typical Norwegian (or Swedish) mountain plateau (we call such a geological form "vidde"). It's no alpine formation at all but the bareness is due to harsh climate and no soil, just moss covered rocks. The tree is located at about 1000m.

Firs are foreign in Norway but commonly planted and I've often seen low branches rooting where they touch the ground. It is very common among spruces but I've never seen it on pines.


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 03/05/2013 - 15:05

There are certain bog areas in Minnesota where Picea mariana proliferate from root sprouts.  There is a small industry that has built up because of them.  Workers go out and cut the little 2-4ft trees in the late fall to sell.  The harvest is heavily regulated by our state's Department of Natural Resources.  City folk  buy them as winter decoration for their outside pots and window boxes that they grow flowers in during the growing season.  Non-Minnesotans always say they have never heard of such a thing until they come here.  Apparently, it's just a Minnesota thing (?).  I'd be interested to know if this natural phenomenon or its economic use happens elsewhere.


Submitted by Lori S. on Tue, 03/05/2013 - 18:49

RickR wrote:

Apparently, it's just a Minnesota thing (?).  I'd be interested to know if this natural phenomenon or its economic use happens elsewhere.

I've never heard of this use for black spruce!


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 03/05/2013 - 23:39

Interesting, Rick! I don't know if times have changed, but certainly when I lived in Edmonton, I didn't see anything like the amount of container gardening- and especially those containers that are re'planted' seasonally, that I saw living in Toronto, so I wonder if there would be the same sort of market for those mini-trees here?
Also, as I mentioned,  I have not seen rooted branches growing up into trees- only forming skirts around the parents, but I certainly don't claim to have seen any vast amount of territory! Picea mariana is common here, however, I think there are some even right on my acreage, and many of them in the slough just beyond our fence...


Submitted by Hoy on Wed, 03/06/2013 - 10:56

Picea mariana is planted around here but it is not common. Neither this nor other spruces are used like you describe, Rick.

Here we usually buy seedlings of some pine with juvenile foliage for winter decoration indoors!


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Wed, 03/06/2013 - 16:17

I don't think I've ever heard of pines rooting from cuttings, whereas most other conifers do slowly, so that probably explains why natural pines don't layer. I don't know enough about the taxonomy of conifers but pines do seem a race apart, and a lovely one.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Sat, 03/09/2013 - 15:34

I visited a friend's garden a day or two ago, just south of Maidstone on the escarpment of the North Downs overlooking the Weald of Kent. She has a great collection of hellebores and snowdrops, some of the latter given to her as wild collections by the botanist Martyn Rix many years ago. Some of them are pretty amazing foliage plants (forms of G. elwesii) with very broad blue-grey leaves. The garden dries out significantly in the summer and grows these plants as well as I've seen them anywhere.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Sun, 03/10/2013 - 03:17

It's actually a form of Pittosporum tenuifolium, which must be borderline hardy in many gardens - especially this yellow leaved form. I think the position of the garden on a high ridge must mean frost is moderated by continuous breezes. It is not an alpine garden in any way, except for a nice variety of woodlanders, but still has that feel of a garden where the individual plants come first.


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 03/11/2013 - 10:17

Nice to see a real spring, Tim. Here everything is still frozen solid. Even at midday in full sun the temperature only barely reaches +1C :(


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Mon, 03/11/2013 - 11:36

Actually the weather has turned very cold here too with snow in the south of Kent, and not much in the way of any sun. The great British (and Scandinavian) spring weather! Janis Ruksans (on the SRGC Forum) is talking about -20°C in Latvia so I shouldn't complain.


Submitted by Toole on Tue, 03/12/2013 - 02:16

Gee -- we could do with some moisture and cooler conditions as large areas of the North Island have been declared drought regions ---the most severe in history.
Even the normally rainy South Island West Coast is dry, and here in Southland river levels are of some concern with Fish and Game officials being forced to rescue stranded trout.

Gardening on a shady woodland property has helped somewhat moderate the continual need to water plants in pots although a number of the Primulas especially, are showing stress.

In the garden some plants have coped well including Linum x gemmels hybrid.

Cheers Dave.


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 03/12/2013 - 07:58

Seems the weather isn't quite what it should be. Today a lot of airports are closed to to snow storms :-\ but we have sunny and calm weather but cold of course.

Dave, a pretty Linum anyway! Hope the Primulas survive!


Submitted by Fermi on Wed, 03/13/2013 - 20:56

Dave,
droughts and floods are a way of life here in Oz, :-\
Whether it's climate change or just the cyclical nature of things we still have to cope with it.
This is another bulb which looks after itself in our garden - Lycoris elsae
cheers
fermi


Submitted by cohan on Wed, 03/13/2013 - 21:16

It would be really interesting to know what native plants were doing in some of those dry then flooded areas- eg. will there be whole new generations of plants that haven't been able to germinate/have seedlings survive for years?


Submitted by Mark McD on Sat, 03/16/2013 - 09:16

Beautiful Lycoris; I have tried a couple times to establish Lycoris in the garden, all I ever got was sparse foliage a couple years and then gone.


Submitted by Toole on Sat, 03/16/2013 - 22:19

Fermi wrote:

Dave,
droughts and floods are a way of life here in Oz, :-\
Whether it's climate change or just the cyclical nature of things we still have to cope with it.
cheers
fermi

Currently a bit of moisture falling from the sky here Fermi and cooler conditions ,unfortunately it's ,(so far) ,not as much as promised and we are forecasted to be back into sun and the low 20c's later next week.....

I guess i shouldn't complain as it's been simply wonderful working outside in my day job for the last couple of months :)

Here's a pink form of the dwarf Platycodon currently in bloom --my blue one finished flowering two weeks ago.

Cheers Dave.


Submitted by Toole on Sun, 03/17/2013 - 01:10

cohan wrote:

I like this colour of Platycodon!

So do i Cohan although these days i seem to be drawn to any unusual or new colour break ,of just about any horticultural worthy plant ---now if i could only get my hands on some yellow Galanthus   :-*;) ;D

The pink is a bit darker than what my pic shows.

Cheers Dave.


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 03/17/2013 - 03:14

Yes, I tend to perversely like any atypical colour for a genus or species- if they are usually yellow, I like the pink species, if they are pink I like the yellow species...lol Less true for me with hybrids, but I'm okay with sports....lol


Submitted by Mark McD on Sun, 03/17/2013 - 13:42

Toole wrote:

...these days i seem to be drawn to any unusual or new colour break ,of just about any horticultural worthy plant ---now if i could only get my hands on some yellow Galanthus   :-*;) ;D

Cheers Dave.

Dave, what you might be looking for is one of the "non-white snowdrops" ;D (this is a real term used by some Galanthophiles).
See this topic:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=1287.new#new


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Mon, 03/18/2013 - 04:50

The latest passion is for 'green' snowdrops, and they are very fascinating for the cognescenti but another example of the 'non-white' snowdrop that might bewilder some gardeners.


Submitted by Cockcroft on Tue, 03/19/2013 - 16:24

The garden is coming alive, though the weathermen are forecasting a "final winter blow" for later today.  I snapped a couple of pictures before everything gets trounced.
-- A double hellebore from Ernie and Marietta O'Bryne (2004), whose seedlings are all double
-- Olsynium douglasii grown from Ron Ratko seed (sown 2007)
-- Crocus vernus albiflorus from Jerry John Flintoff, peeking through Trillium kurabayashii leaves


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 03/19/2013 - 20:29

A really exquisite form of hellebore, Claire.

The happy looking Olsynium clearly shows its relation in the Iris family, with its stigma and 3 anthers.
No luck when I tried it from seed last year. :(


Submitted by Toole on Tue, 03/19/2013 - 23:23

McDonough wrote:

Toole wrote:

...these days i seem to be drawn to any unusual or new colour break ,of just about any horticultural worthy plant ---now if i could only get my hands on some yellow Galanthus   :-*;) ;D

Cheers Dave.

Dave, what you might be looking for is one of the "non-white snowdrops" ;D (this is a real term used by some Galanthophiles).
See this topic:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=1287.new#new

Very interesting Mark.
I think I'd need to see the 'apricot' snowdrop in person before i could pass a judgement.

I admit to having a few common 'drops' however I've decided my pockets are too shallow and my horticultural interests too wide to worry about aquiring every little variation that pops up ....(other than a good yellow).That being said i can perfectly understand the frenzy that occurs when a so call colour break occurs because i'm exactly like that with Trilliums--( i know I'm not well  :D ).

Cheers Dave.


Submitted by bulborum on Wed, 03/20/2013 - 01:05

Here Anemone blanda Muriel de Curel start flowering in the poly-tunnel
A found on a castle at Paris called Saint Jean de Beauregard

Roland


Submitted by Mark McD on Wed, 03/20/2013 - 06:04

Toole wrote:

Very interesting Mark. I think I'd need to see the 'apricot' snowdrop in person before i could pass a judgement.

I admit to having a few common 'drops' however I've decided my pockets are too shallow and my horticultural interests too wide to worry about aquiring every little variation that pops up ....(other than a good yellow).That being said i can perfectly understand the frenzy that occurs when a so call colour break occurs because i'm exactly like that with Trilliums--( i know I'm not well  :D ).

Cheers Dave.

That's the problem Dave, waiting for a "color break" to occur in Galanthus. So far I haven't seen evidence of any "color breaks", aside from white drops with variations of green or yellowish markings, and in the case of so-called "yellow snowdrops", pea greenish yellow peduncles.  I love snowdrops, but I do believe there is a large degree of wishful thinking out there in the Galanthus community.

Roland, as I've already mentioned in your Facebook posting, I really like that green Anemone, its a color break ;D


Submitted by bulborum on Wed, 03/20/2013 - 06:26

I thought you would like to see the picture from this new one here too :)
I made a typo in the name and corrected it
It must be Muriel de Curel


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Sat, 03/23/2013 - 10:39

Here is Eranthis hyemalis which started blooming and has been on and off covered with snow ever since.  Unlike Crocus tomasianus it's no worse fpor the wear.


Submitted by Peden on Wed, 03/27/2013 - 15:10

I thought this was interesting; nothing quite like the various colors plants take on when they yet again experience the sun. This Vitaliana primuliflora has become an oddish brick red orange (with variations!).

I posted several pictures of this area last year; 'The Rock'. I think the gorgeous large foliaged Acantholimon at the upper left corner of the photo did not come through winter well. The best looks to be A. litwinovii (far right center) this year. Perhaps the small needles and pedigree got it through an exposed winter. Among the green things in the middle left of the photo is Gypsophila aretiodes that nearlly died of drought last June. I threatened to move it away from The Rock but did not. It survived. Water is important!  :) The darkest plant pictured is a Globularia pretty well burned up but the color is not that of charcoal. It is still alive. A smattering of Androsaces (bottom of photo) will cheer everyone up in a bit. Not the coldest, but a tough winter was had by all.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Wed, 03/27/2013 - 22:14

Certainly not the coldest winter, Michael, but it does seem to be dragging on.  I think the birds have migrated back to their winter quarters.


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 03/28/2013 - 01:05

We have had and still have the coldest winter - and nothing better in sight but sun, no wind and freezing temps. In fact I am longing for a real spring shower! (But the soil has to thaw firstly!)


Submitted by bulborum on Thu, 03/28/2013 - 01:30

Here finally the snow is gone
it's still around zero and hardly flowers
It's here the coldest March sins 1930
also never seen so much snow in March

Erythronium dens-canis Snowflake start flowering here in the poly-tunnel

Roland


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Thu, 03/28/2013 - 06:50

Merlin wrote:

It seems the cold weather has slowed things down in my garden. Here are a few in bloom on March 27.
Douglasia nivalis

Jim, that's a really nice Douglasia nivalis form.  It's one of the earlier things here to blooom, but nothing is happening yet.


Submitted by Peden on Fri, 03/29/2013 - 14:42

Here are some views of the rocks at Snowdrop time. The only thing blocking critical veiw of the Great Ranges at this time of year is an old Fothergilla. I may begin to slowly piece it out of there this spring. I may not. There's a couple of young Sugar Maples too along the back of the property I consider cutting for the benefit of the rock gardens; but, then again, most people alive today would prefer the maples (syrup; of course!).....choices. Choices. It won't be long before larger perennials obscure the rock works and it will be summer.

   

Snow that slides off the north eve of the house tends to linger. I think this is when the Saxifrages that live here are happiest. The first photo is a large pieced S. irvingii-jenkense. The second photo is from directly above a crevice bunnery.

 

It's again time to get things done in the garden.


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Sun, 03/31/2013 - 13:59

A bed of Tulipa turkestanica:

[attachthumb = 1]

A bed of marsh marigolds:

[attachthumb = 2]

Erythronium revolutum:

[attachthumb = 3]

Sanguinaria canadensis:

[attachthumb = 4]

Narcissus cyclamineus:

[attachthumb = 5]


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Sun, 03/31/2013 - 15:43

My first Arisaema of the year, A. sikokianum:

[attachthumb = 1]

Narcissus bulbocodium:

[attachthumb = 2]

First Dodecatheon to bloom, D. hendersonii:

[attachthumb = 3]

Some NW native shrubs:  Ribes sanguineum in foreground, Oemleria cerasiformis (Indian plum) in background:

[attachthumb = 4]

Two acorn-bearing shrubs from northern California:  Lithocarpus densiflorus on left, Quercus sadleriana on right:

[attachthumb = 5]

Kalmiopsis leachiana:

[attachthumb = 6]

Tulipa humilis (?):

[attachthumb = 7]

Epigaea repens, started from seed about three years ago:

[attachthumb = 8]


Submitted by externmed on Sun, 03/31/2013 - 16:22

Crocus from NE Massachusetts- NE USA. The best, Crocus tommasinianus roseus was planted in hard clay sod, by chipmunks, but after they ate 97%. Paeonia cambessedesii is in a frost-free room and put outdoors in morning sun for the summer.  Forecast 63F high 23F low this week.  17.5C/ -5C  Somewhat normal unsettled spring weather.


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 04/01/2013 - 04:27

Gene, I am impressed! Especially of the Epigaea from seed, I have tried a few times without success :(
Does the Ribes sanguineum flower before the leaves emerge?
Your spring is well ahead of mine. We struggle with the same kind of weather we have had for months: sun, dry desiccating air and night frost. All my evergreen plants suffer badly although I have started watering them in the frozen soil :-\


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Mon, 04/01/2013 - 08:55

Hoy, we are having a very dry warm spring in the Pacific NW.  The previous three springs were very wet and cold.  So I am getting caught up on a lot of gardening chores this spring.

The Ribes sanguineum flowers before the leaves emerge.


Submitted by externmed on Mon, 04/01/2013 - 13:54

Hoy wrote:

externmed, nice crocuses and peony! is the peony from seed?

Hi Hoy,
Sorry I think the Peony was from a commercial source.  I have some Peony seeds doing a warm treatment now.  The only Paeonia I have germinated myself are from seeds I collected  (seeds die relatively quickly?).  Even then it's a long warm treatment followed by 3 + months at cold then growth at warm.  Paeonia cambessedesii, from warmer Southern areas including Crete, might take less stratification?


Submitted by Fermi on Tue, 04/02/2013 - 01:52

externmed wrote:

Crocus from NE Massachusetts- NE USA. The best, Crocus tommasinianus roseus was planted in hard clay sod, by chipmunks, but after they ate 97%. Paeonia cambessedesii is in a frost-free room and put outdoors in morning sun for the summer.  Forecast 63F high 23F low this week.  17.5C/ -5C  Somewhat normal unsettled spring weather.

Wow! Crocus here are well and truly gone before the peonies are in bloom! Amazing to see them together like that!
It's autumn here and it shows

Sternbergia sicula
Lycoris aurea
Nerine fothergila "Major'
Brunsvigia gregaria
Crossyne flava in seed
Lycoris elsae
cheers
fermi


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 04/06/2013 - 03:42

externmed wrote:

Hoy wrote:

externmed, nice crocuses and peony! is the peony from seed?

Hi Hoy,
Sorry I think the Peony was from a commercial source.  I have some Peony seeds doing a warm treatment now.  The only Paeonia I have germinated myself are from seeds I collected  (seeds die relatively quickly?).  Even then it's a long warm treatment followed by 3 + months at cold then growth at warm.  Paeonia cambessedesii, from warmer Southern areas including Crete, might take less stratification?

Yes I think peony seeds die in a year or less. At least they germinate easily the first winter when sown fresh but are difficult to germinate later. When I sow peony seeds I either place the pots outdoors or in a cold greenhouse.


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 04/06/2013 - 03:49

Gene wrote:

Hoy, we are having a very dry warm spring in the Pacific NW.  The previous three springs were very wet and cold.  So I am getting caught up on a lot of gardening chores this spring.

The Ribes sanguineum flowers before the leaves emerge.

We are still in the spell of winter :-\ We have had one of the coldest and driest springs for 160 years. A lot of sun though but very cold nights like a montane inland climate.
Got one inch of sleet tonight - the first precipitation for several weeks. A lot of evergreens are badly damaged and even Crocuses struggle to survive with very small flowers.

My R sanguineum always has started leafing out when flowering.

Fermi, I am jealous! I don't think any of those gems are fit for y garden!


Submitted by Mark McD on Sat, 04/06/2013 - 07:35

Gene, some good stuff there, although it is Ribes sanguineum that really catches my eye, its now on my "shrubs list" :D

Charles, pretty Crocus shots, attractive with the pine needle thatch.

Fermi, what festive floral fireworks to finish the fall season, fabulous! :o


Submitted by Tingley on Sat, 04/06/2013 - 08:00

Mark, I second your opinion on Ribes sanguineum, both the standard pink/red cultivar, and the alba form such as 'White Icicle'. Joy Creek nursery in Oregon carries several cultivars:

http://www.joycreek.com/Ribes-sanguineum-White-Icicle-526-017.htm
http://www.joycreek.com/Ribes-sanguineum-King-Edward-VII-526-010.htm
http://www.joycreek.com/Ribes-sanguineum-Brocklebankii-526-015.htm
http://www.joycreek.com/Ribes-sanguineum-Variegata-526-011.htm

Brocklebankii strikes me as a bit too bright, though I haven't seen the plant in person. Somehow have to find a source for King Edward VII and White Icicle,  here in Atlantic Canada (or find a way to become a source!).


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 04/06/2013 - 13:55

Although the redflowered flowering currant is quite common here, the other forms are totally absent. Can't understand why. I would love to get 'White Icicle' in my garden!


Submitted by Toole on Mon, 04/08/2013 - 04:04

Lapageria rosea (Chilean bell flower) is in full bloom here --not as many as last season when i gave up counting after reaching 300 flowers  :o ..... but not bad all the same  :)

Cheers Dave.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Mon, 04/08/2013 - 06:33

What with Fermi's Lycoris and Dave's Lapageria it feels like summer might not be too far away after all (although I've never had success with either of these). Spring is at last on the move, with the star plants probably being some of the tuberous anemones that seed around on the sand beds, and I couldn't resist showing the American Synthyris stellata too, which has been in bud since mid-February waiting for warmer weather.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Tue, 04/09/2013 - 07:58

I think spring has sprung.  It will be 70 today.  We seem to have gone from 40s and skipped over the 50s and 60s.  It is also very dry.  We really need some rain.  In bloom today in the garden.
Helleborus niger
Helleborus 'Pink Teacup'
The first is always the earliest of the hellebores.  The second seems to be quite as tough but blooms a couple of weeks later.


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 04/09/2013 - 10:48

Dave, the Lapageria is beautiful! I can't grow it outside but once I had a plant from seed in my greenhouse. It lived and flowered for many years but nothing like that! Unfortunately if froze to death some years ago (and so did a pretty Callistemon I had there too) :'(


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 04/09/2013 - 10:53

Tim, I can't grow Anemones like that although I have tried! I haven't had much luck with Synthyris either so far but I am still trying!

Anne, beautiful Hellebosus! All mine have lost their bud this winter and spring in the freeze-drying weather we have had for 3 months.Seems we will have a change tomorrow!


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 04/09/2013 - 11:45

Nice to see the flowers, all! Nothing yet here- I was excited to see some exposed soil for a while, though it was all covered up again the other day...lol
I did have some busy days working on a long area on the forest edge behind the house that is going to get some development for food gardens (hugelkultur and other permaculture approaches) as well as some native and dryland plantings.

Anne - love the hellebores- I managed to kill the free ones I got as supermarket leftovers last year, before I could get them outside, but I just got three more yesterday the same way, so I will have to be more attentive with these ones until it's warm enough to start hardening them off outside- many weeks of frost yet here...
Tim- interestng Anemones! what do they do foliarly?


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Tue, 04/09/2013 - 21:51

A group of mixed Erythronium species and hybrids:

[attachthumb = 1]

After you've grown Erythroniums from seed for a while, you will need a place like this for mystery plants.

Some of them have very dark mottling on the leaves:

[attachthumb = 2]

Does anyone know if this is a named hybrid?  I looked up White Beauty, and it does not have mottling this dark.


Submitted by Cockcroft on Wed, 04/10/2013 - 10:37

That's a wonderful mix of erythroniums, Gene.  Here's a little patch of self-sown bulbs that found a place to their liking under an Edgeworthia chrysantha.  The leaves in the background are all Trillium sulcatum seedlings that need a new home.

The second picture is of 'White Beauty' in my garden.  You are right, the mottling is not nearly as dark as yours.  Your form is gorgeous.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Wed, 04/10/2013 - 11:46

Gene and Claire - wonderful plantings of erythroniums. After many years I am beginning to get them self-sowing a little and hope to get drifts like that in a few years time. I do have one plant of E. californicum, grown from seed, with really good leaves just as they start growing. Great plants.

Cohan - the anemones have palmate cut leaves but go summer dormant very quickly, so never make large plants - effectively they are 'bulbs'. A few people have managed to establish them in short turf (at Blackthorn and Ashwood nurseries for example) and they look stunning like this en masse.

Trond - I've also tried Synthyris a couple of times before and not kept it in the garden - so fingers crossed - but it's a very lovely woodlander (would have thought it would do well with Clintonia?).

The saxifrages are in a cool crevice trough in a friend's garden - I find they burn off very easily but these are sited perfectly. In another part of the garden is probably the best plant of Helichrysum coralloides I've ever seen - I wonder how it compares with plants in Nature?


Submitted by Hoy on Wed, 04/10/2013 - 14:25

You do know how to tease me, do you, Gene and Claire! All those beautiful erythroniums :o None of mine has emerged yet :-\  However I have some nice potfulls of seedlings thanks to a generous forumist!

Tim wrote:

Trond - I've also tried Synthyris a couple of times before and not kept it in the garden - so fingers crossed - but it's a very lovely woodlander (would have thought it would do well with Clintonia?).

Tim I do agree - but I suspect that the slugs are to blame and not the climate.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Wed, 04/10/2013 - 15:23

Tim, the sax. in the crevices was beautiful.  Any idea which one it is?  Not that that will make any difference here - they seem to hate drought plus wind.
If you can't water them, they're very quickly gone.


Submitted by Peden on Sat, 04/13/2013 - 07:23

Spiegel wrote:

they seem to hate drought plus wind.
If you can't water them, they're very quickly gone.

Anne, how did you make out with Saxifraga cotyledon I gave you years back and suggested you might try it in your new woodland/brook area by road in well rotted wood chips? these things are tough as nails. I just snapped this photo of a trough, among the most neglected on the property, where S. cotyledon (hyb?) seeded itself years ago. The trough is right at the west wall of my house so it does not get sun all day. I watch this thing turn yellow in the heat of August thinking it will dry up and die. It doesn't! Two more toughies here: Arabis bryoides and Sedum aizoon(?). The Potentilla nitida did finally throw in the towel last summer, which was very hot and dry. There's also a second seedling Sax.


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 04/13/2013 - 09:55

Each brief, hopeful period of melting has been followed by another snowfall here... another 20cm is forecast for today, phooey!  
Bulbocodium vernum is looking bedraggled from all the repeated snows and melts.   There have been a few scattered crocus, scilla and puschkinia in bloom over the last 3 weeks... at least that's some encouragement!  
Puschkinia; Corydalis nobilis; pretty rosettes of Townsendia parryi (the colour difference between these seed-grown plants is interesting);  buds on a saxifrage planted last year:
     

This early-bird Pulsatilla vulgaris has been in stasis the last week... I'm sure it would open if the sun would just come out!


Submitted by cohan on Sat, 04/13/2013 - 16:35

Far ahead of here, Lori! I've realised, though, that all of my spring flowers so far are in rather slow, or at best, medium-late to melt parts of the property-- I'm giving a lot of thought to those south/west edges of spruce trees/woods through the property, which are free of snow many weeks before the middle, and weeks more before the shady places.. Of course early exposure means much more exposure to cold, but worth experimenting.. I did notice some bulbs poking up today- crocus or snowdrop- they seem very pale, so I think they may have actually started before the snow was gone over them! Meltwater from the rock garden above must have thawed the ground.... And I think I see signs of growth on a couple of Polemonium boreale in various beds- not sure if they will be ready to flower this year...
It's been snowing here all day, but just starting to accumulate, as it was melting on the ground (except on the still significant white areas!)
They've reduced our forecast now- to 5-10cm today and flurries for the next 3 days (was for up to 25cm by tomorrow..)...


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 04/13/2013 - 18:27

And ahead of me in Minnesota, too.  Only some Corydalis solida, a few snowdrops and Hellebores peaking, and of course they're all under snow again now.  Though everything is late by the calendar, things actually seem to be emerging earlier than normal here according to temperature.  (We are consistently running 15-20F below normal.)  Usually nothing happens until all traces of snow disappear because the soil freezes so deeply. But the ground has already thawed, and I actually have snowdrops emerging while there is still lingering aged winter snow.

Those Townsedia parryi are wonderful, Lori!


Submitted by Zonedenial on Sat, 04/13/2013 - 22:32

Every year I buy one plant that shouldn't survive in the open here in Iowa; as a result I have a secret cigar box containing labels I no longer need, but also have some pretty odd plants growing in my garden. Maybe my biggest surprise is the return this spring of last year's flyer: Scoliopus bigelovii, endemic to wet spots in coastal California. I lived for a number of years in Berkeley and San Francisco, and hiked a lot in Marin County, where there are a number of colonies. I have it growing in peaty soil in a large tub with some drain holes drilled in the bottom. It was up this spring while there was still some patchy snow on the ground, and it smells like a dead mouse that had rolled in orange zest. There are always a few gnats flying around it. It's pretty (very) iffy for this climate (especially our hot summers), so I'm calling it a guest for now.


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 01:27

I grow Scoliopus too and they like the climate here but slugs like the plants so it isn't that easy to grow them. I am anxious now with the weather we have had this winter though. With no snow and a lot of frost and sun all my hellebores are completely dead above ground. The ground is still frozen solid in many places and even the toughest plants struggle. The snowdrops have mostly been fine (they're over the peak now) and the crocuses are in flower with much smaller flowers than usual and almost no leaf out. Iris 'Katharine Hodkin' opened yesterday on the ground with no leaves at all - very pretty and probably more "natural" but very unusual here.


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 09:36

It's great to hear that Scoliopus is hardier than one might expect, Don.  It's a very intriguing plant and one I'd certainly give a try to (despite the odds against) if I ever come across it.


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 16:49

Scoliopus is one I'm interested in too, so we're rooting for you!

Some overviews of my rock gardens today- some of them were free of snow recently before a couple of new snows, other parts had not yet fully melted out.
Several of these were just built last year, so not many plants, or only very small ones.
I've put them in a couple of distinct parts of the property- dry and wetter especially- to hopefully suit different groups of plants.. album here:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151562468549015.1073741827.5...
I'll just select a few shots for here..

1- part of the 'Rockies' new 'dry' beds- sharply sloped and in the dry end of the yard; berm at the back (left) for non-rock plants and to help shelter from the north.. this area was mostly bare some time ago, except for some of the lowest areas. excavated between beds to hold water temporarily as a reservoir.
Interesting: Polemonium boreale planted on a high dry spot emerged green weeks ago, then old leaves all yellowed, seems to have new growth in core, last I looked; same species on beds in front of house, which did not melt as soon and so missed the coldest nights, have remained mostly green since emerging from snow.
2- in the front of the high beds are lower but gravelly 'foothills' and dryland beds
3- view of 'Alp 1' semp etc bed in front of house planted year before last; this bed was bare before
4-Jovibarba allioni in Alp 1
5-Waldheimia tomentosa in Alp 1- doesn't look like much now, but seems to have lots of live growing points..
6-Townsendia parryi in Alp 1; this one was just flowering in mid/late October when the snow came; not sure if that means it will die now?


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 16:59

Looks good, Cohan.  The rounded "river rock" gives a different sort of character; looks very much like glacial washout - I like it!  Looking forward to seeing it again when more is visible.

cohan wrote:

6-Townsendia parryi in Alp 1; this one was just flowering in mid/late October when the snow came; not sure if that means it will die now?

Townsendia parryi has been perennial for me (which is good!) so I assume the same for your plant.


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 17:00

Continuing,
1-Alp 2, also in front of the house, and based on Sempervivum et al, but this time named forms. This was also  bare before recent snow, though the bottom/back only very recently.
2- One of the Polemonium boreale in this bed
3-Prometheum (Rosularia) aizoon - couldn't find much hardiness info on this when I got, but it has survived outdoors here for several years, first year in the ground now..
In the wetter end of the yard, these beds have not yet been fully exposed, though the upper parts were before recent snows.
4-Himalaya 2 built last year, lightly planted, but there are several Viola species, Geum montanum etc.. some (most?) of the Violas flowered last year already, so hoping for a nice show this year..
5-Looking toward the north side of Himalaya 2 (dimpled look where rocks had melted out before surrounding soil; I'm looking more at how the beds will look buried in snow as part of the overall design!); foreground is a combination berm/trench where I plan to plant some mostly native wetland plants and meadow species mixed with edible plants; the branches are part of winter cover to keep mulch/soil in place on the steep sides


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 17:02

Thanks, Lori! This is the kind of stone left here by glaciers, so that's what I have to work with without spending money, and so I've tried to aime for sort of a glacial till/moraine kind of look.. Visually I'd rather have even more rocks, but I have to make them stretch...lol
Good to hear about the Townsendia- esp since it came from seed from you :)


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 19:02

Cohan, I see you're growing Waldheimia tomentosa.  Please give me some specifics.  I'vehad no success.  Isn't this a very high alpine plant?  It may be my warm, muggy summers doom me to disappointment


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 19:05

here are some pictures taken today from my garden. Still lots of snow around  to the house. These pictures are from the south side where the snow is gone a little bit.
Dianthus simulans
Dianthus haematocalyx
Draba aizoides


Submitted by RickR on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 19:54

It's really encouraging to see how things are progressing in various gardens that more closely mimic my own growing.  We all know from experience the joy we get from our own, seemingly little successes, even though a photo might not convey our level of enthusiasm.

I say, kudos to you all!


Submitted by Mark McD on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 21:43

I second that motion, it is indeed encouraging to see spring slowly inching forward, in this very slow spring.  Here it has been slow too, with bright starts then stops with cold spells.  Overall, I'd say it is a delayed spring but with some good results.

Crocus suaveolens is one of the slowest growing species, taking almost ten years to build up into this small patch. Beautiful nearly stemless flowers, striped on the outside, opening into sumptuous rose-purple chalices.

The rarely seen Crocus kosaninii, with small narrow flowers of medium purple with dark purple stripes at the base of the perianth and tube, with golden Crocus angustifolius in the background.

The tiny spring blooming Colchicum doerfleri, in its third week of bloom and still looking good, in this view the hairy leaves of the variant on the right is visible.

Iris 'Sheila Ann Germaney' on the left, and I. 'Frank Elder' on teh right, with Galanthus nivalis behind.

Jasminum nudiflorum really flowering well this year.  In past years, the first flowers opened in February; this year they were delayed a whole month and a few blooms opened in March, but it's really putting on a show here in mid April.

Helleborus niger making a great show. On the left is a very old plant, in this form the flowers age a deep ruddy pink color.  On the right is a 4-year old seedling (from my scratch-and-sown-in-place technique), also showing the deep pink coloration; only one seedling plant so far has shown white flowers that are lightly tinged pink.

Corydalis solida is popping up all over, the very color weather holding them back somewhat, but here are two nice ones that caught my attention today.  On the left is a unique very deep cranberry colored form.  On the right is what was sent to me as "blind dug" bulbs of C. solida 'Penza Strain' selected from a light blue form, although I got other colors, this one a lovely pure white. It is just starting to bloom, many flower spikes are at the ready.


Submitted by RickR on Sun, 04/14/2013 - 23:18

Really nice stuff, Mark.

  Love the Corydalis for its unusual color, but I am especially fond of the Crocus suaveolens, with its short stature, wide petals and defined pencil marked tepal backs.


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 04/15/2013 - 00:34

Anne- I grew the Waldheimia from seed from Pavelka (without looking it up, hope that's right...lol) I think the data is:Zanskar, Baralacha Pass, 4800m (again without digging for the info, that's from an email from someone I sent seed to...lol).. so yes, high alpine.
I got exactly one seedling from the original seed, it was planted out in 2011, a tiny thing, and flowered (1!) last year and did very nicely, apart from being munched by slugs for a while till I realised what was going on and put some bait out. It's in a pretty basic bed with a lot of semps etc, built from sod and native clayey loam with rocks and gravel in upper layers, and sloped for further drainage, so I hope it doesn't stay soggy, but at the same time I doubt it ever really dries out. Of course it doesn't have to deal with heat- we just barely hit 30C a few times last year, although the bed is in front of the house, so it should be warmer than some spots. Sun most of the day in summer, but probably not early morning, nor late afternoon/evening.
Panayoti has mentioned they have not been able to grow it there either... I got some seed from that one flower, so I will try to start some more, but wish it had been a pink flowered form :(

Krish- good to see spring coming there- sounds like much of Saskatchewan and Manitoba have had a much colder and snowier winter than us.

Rick- enthusiasm is the word- just to see plants exposed from the snow is a big deal here- growing and flowering can come later...lol

Mark- nice collection of Crocuses you are getting there! The colour on that Cory is very nice too!


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 04/15/2013 - 10:43

Cohan,nice "rockies" and other mountains you have! Reminds me of the moraine landscape often seen here.
Krish, hope the snow melts quickly! Hope to your plants in flower soon ;)
Mark, nice colour of the Corydalis!

Here some pictures taken today in my garden, no rain at the moment!

The earliest Corydalis is this C. bracteata(?) but the yellow flowers are almost invisible against the background.
Iris 'Katharine Hodkin' is the earliest Iris.
An unnamed primula.
The first rhodo this year seems to be Rh. sutchuenense, about a month late. It's from seed several years ago.
Not a green grass in the lawn! The snowdrops are finished and some of the crocuses too but other have just started. The soil is still bone hard.
I have dared to put the Tulbaghia outside now :D


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 04/15/2013 - 11:57

Trond- glad to hear my beds remind you of moraines- that's what I was aiming for :)

Good to see your spring is finally getting going, even if late.. the 'dead' grass is what we always have in spring..


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Mon, 04/15/2013 - 18:50

Cohan, thanks for all the great info re: Walheimia.  Pretty low germination rate.  I hope it does well this year so you can photo again.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Tue, 04/16/2013 - 02:44

Wonderful to see spring really getting going and I go with all the comments about Mark's garden - some beautiful bulbs (I've never seen a form of Corydalis solida so dark), and what is it you need to grow Helleborus niger? Most gardeners here fail with it although its hybrids do very well.

In the last few days the temperature has soared to nearly 20°C in the shade and it is as though plants have been released from hibernation! The first flower opened on Pulsatilla grandis on Sunday, Trillium hibbersonii is flowering demurely on a raised humus bed, and for the lovers of the weird the Mandrake (Mandragora officinarum) is doing its thing. A new plant to me, Scopolia carniolica (just obtained from Beeches Nursery) also has a few flowers. Roll on the alpines on the sand bed which should be getting going before too long.


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 04/16/2013 - 11:30

Really interesting photo subjects, Tim.
I'd like to see the mandrake in full flower.
I know nothing about it, but it has such a cool name! ;D


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 04/16/2013 - 12:27

Anne- the seed for the Waldheimia may not have been that fresh, the ages of the seed are listed by the Czech vendors, but I don't remember now what it was for that one; that one seedling was tough though- survived indoors for some time, and a long time in the pot outdoors before I got it planted in ground.. I haven't yet sown my own seed to see how that is..
Maggi- thanks- its nice to see the plants emerging, should be some more evident growth soon :) I do have crocus noses in one bed :)

Tim- great stuff- I have seed outdoors of Scopolia-hoping for good things.. I agree with Rick- the Mandragora is interesting.. I remember some discussion about it on SRGC, but I don't have any clear mental image of what the plant overall looks like.. will have to look into hardiness etc..


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Tue, 04/16/2013 - 15:33

Great stuff Trond! I remember that excerpt from Harry Potter very well. There is an autumn species (M. autumnalis) too, but I don't know it, and an extraordinary plant from China, M. caulescens with black flowers that may just hover in cultivation.


Submitted by Lori S. on Wed, 04/17/2013 - 19:11

A few things in bloom:
     

Allium ovalifolium var. ovalifolium emerging:
 

And a cute little mouse who got tired of waiting for the birds to drop seeds in the composter and, instead, is getting his sunflower seeds right from the source:
 


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Thu, 04/18/2013 - 10:28

Anne - I've just been reading about Epigaea repens growing at Camla (a garden made in the 1930's near to Ingwersen's Nursery). Very beautiful to see it growing in a garden now. Most UK growers must keep it in a pot.

For Rick - this is a close up of the Mandrake flowers now they are fully opening. Really quite attractive for a relative of the potato!


Submitted by cohan on Thu, 04/18/2013 - 14:05

Lori- nice leaves on the Allium! is the bird feeder right up against a fence? Does that mean you don't have squirrels?

Anne- you are in full swing now :)

Tim- very nice flowers on the mandrake :) looks like nice foliage too- seems flat? I still have to look it up, I chose not to refer to Harry Potter for botanical information..lol


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 04/18/2013 - 14:09

Lori,
seems you have a lot of thing going now!

Fermi,
I had Nerine bowdenii in the garden for several years but I dreamed of growing other species!

Anne,
I particularly like that Epigea! Have tried it several times but not been lucky :-\

Tim,
I have planned to try mandrake for several years and now you have inspired me once more ;D


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 04/18/2013 - 14:15

Although the freezing weather has left us it is still rather low temperatures so the plants develop very slowly.
Some of the early crocuses have finished but a lot of others are coming now - sorry without names. Some are seedlings appearing everywhere. Also the Hepaticas are in flower. Here is a wild collected redflowered seedling.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Thu, 04/18/2013 - 15:23

Really nice to see crocus naturalising like that - looks like a perfect spot on a sunny slope. I will try to remember to save seed from the Mandragora.


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 04/18/2013 - 16:14

Ooooh, the dusky blue-grey is really fitting on the mandrake.  And the leaves flatten with age?

And the color on that nerine!  Oh my gosh!

Trond, that crocus meadow gets better and better!


Submitted by Lori S. on Thu, 04/18/2013 - 22:57

cohan wrote:

Lori- nice leaves on the Allium! is the bird feeder right up against a fence? Does that mean you don't have squirrels?

The bird feeder is suspended overtop the composters which are against the fence... Seems a good way to manage all the sunflower seed shells and spilled seed.  Yes, we do have introduced grey squirrels -black phase mostly - and unfortunately don't get any native red squirrels (i see them in the coniferous woods along the river).  They don't do any significant harm, in any case.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Fri, 04/19/2013 - 05:15

Cohan, the dance is starting but not yet in full swing.  We're still getting cold and not that much sun - a lot of cool, gray days.

Hoy, it took me years to establish the Epigaea repens.  Linc Foster suggested that the first year I cover it with pine needles and the next year to remove half of the needles etc.  It worked.  I don't have a really natural area for this but have manufactured one at the north end of a large rock.  The rock seems to keep the roots cool and the worst of the sun away.  It has survived our hot and humid summers this way.


Submitted by cohan on Fri, 04/19/2013 - 15:37

Trond- nice crocus patches! Love the pink Hepatica too :)
Lori- I have often thought the mess under a bird feeder- esp but not only sunflower seeds- would be a pain on a city lot, so over the composter is a great idea. I didn't know there were grey squirrels in Calgary- there were lots of them in downtown Toronto, and they could be troublesome there, far more than the native squirrels here, but then they didn't have the semi/wild areas to feed in there, had to eke out a living from the postage stamp yards and street trees, apart from parks of course.


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 04/21/2013 - 01:24

Tim wrote:

Really nice to see crocus naturalising like that - looks like a perfect spot on a sunny slope. I will try to remember to save seed from the Mandragora.

Thanks Tim! Hope you get some seed ;)
In fact the slope isn't perfect. It is facing SW and I have some trees to the south casting long shadows in early spring. I cut down two of them last winter to get more sun. But it is very good drainage.

Rick, this year the crocuses flower over a longer period and with less leaves due to the persistent cold weather we have had.

Spiegel, I don't think hot summers will ever be a problem here. I have lost plants twice and I am not sure why but I'll try again! Have to find the right spot seemingly.


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 04/21/2013 - 16:51

A cold April so far, with snow continuing every weekend.  Why does it have to be on the weekends?  :rolleyes: Enough already!! 
But, despite that...
Buds and flowers on Arabis androsacea; Primula vulgaris; Tulipa tarda foliage; first Chionodoxa, with  Puschkinia:
     

First visible bud on Hepatica transylvanica; Primula algida in bud; crocus x2; Pulsatilla grandis 'Best Blue' (assuming that really is a cultivar name?); Primula scotica in bud with yesterday's lingering snow:
       


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 04/21/2013 - 16:58

Cancrinia tianshanica; one of last year's Pulsatilla patens in bud; buds on Androsace lactea and on a small Saxifraga oppositifolia:
     

More crocus:
   

And in Stuart's greenhouse, Nymphaea 'Helvola':


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 04/23/2013 - 11:14

Looking great, Lori! I have signs of growth on a few things, and crocus noses, but that's it so far..
Snow only on weekends? It's been more like every day here! Still tons of it unmelted too, in  many places.. We are a couple days past 6 months of uninterrupted snowcover, now, with some time to go yet- many bare spots, but  a foot to several in others..


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Fri, 04/26/2013 - 13:59

I think spring has sprung, no ice in the dog's water dish this morning.  Despite nightly frosts the plants have been gearing up in the crevice gardens.
Just a few pictures of things starting to bloom or bud.  Such an exciting time of year.


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 04/27/2013 - 15:55

Nice tulips, Gene! Those are some of my favorite from that genus!

Anne, pretty peas! I try to establish some in my garden too!

The plants haven't geared up much here despite the lack of nightly frost! The daytime temperature isn't much to boast of although today was not bad +10C and sun but cold northerly wind.
Some plants though do flower, like this Sanguinaria canadensis and Cardamine enneaphylla (40 days later than last year!). and also this Saxifraga oppositifolia.


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 04/27/2013 - 22:16

Wow, things are looking great all over!
Gene, you certainly have some beautiful plantings - love the species tulips.  The only ones that have naturalized well here are Tulipa tarda and T. urumiensis.  It's interesting to see that your wonderful Lewisia leana have the same old basal growth as I see on the one out in my tufa garden; I was wondering if it was something to do with the conditions but as it seems to be the same even in ideal (greenhouse) conditions, I guess it's a characteristic of the plant.

Buds on Synthyris platycarpa; Saxifraga oppositifolia - not a very nice form, though; Puschkinia; Corydalis solida; Scilla mischtschenkoana:
         

Galanthus; Phacelia sericea; Pulsatilla patens bud; Smelowskia calycina; crocus:
       


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 04/27/2013 - 22:23

And more...
The seedlings of Lupinus lepidus var. utahensis that I moved around last year are looking good;
 

The crocuses and other small bulbs (Puschkinia, Chionodoxa, Scilla siberica)are putting on a show:
             


Submitted by RickR on Sun, 04/28/2013 - 07:31

Gosh Lori, you are leaps ahead in zone 3 than me am in USDA zone 4 !  

In my little hot garden on the south side of my brown house, the first couple individual Corydalis solida flowers opened yesterday.  All my others are (mostly) not even showing, with a few a couple mm's peaking.  

What is this one
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1239.0;attach=43336...
and what is that lavender "ball" behind the blue bud?


Submitted by Merlin on Sun, 04/28/2013 - 18:00

Looks like most everyone's garden are starting to pop. It has been a cool spring here in Idaho so things are a bit behind this year. here are a few photos i took yesterday afternoon.
Hogepog of various stuff, castilleja scabrida showing it's incredible red

Second generation Penstemon acaule

Astragalus coccineus

Colomia debilis from Wyoming

Trifolium Owyheense

High altitude form of Clematis columbiana, non vining


Submitted by externmed on Sun, 04/28/2013 - 23:24

Sandbed in NE Massachusetts USA
Charles S  Z6A  sunny and breezy -- sort of "normal" unsettled spring for a change, early winter more of a new normal, warm early, then cold. Lost the more hardy of 2 Delospermas in this bed; but John Proffitt still covers a too large swath.


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Mon, 04/29/2013 - 09:58

Corydalis nobilis:

[attachthumb = 1]

Podophyllum pleianthum:

[attachthumb = 2]

Trillium ovatum:  the flowers change color as they age:

[attachthumb = 3]

[attachthumb = 4]

[attachthumb = 6]

[attachthumb = 5]


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 04/29/2013 - 12:24

Wow- miss a couple days and almost too many photos for my internet connection to load!
Lots of beauties everyone!
Anne, great to see the Oxytropis and others;
Jim- great stuff, the A coccineus is always stunning;
Lori- your bulbs are spreading nicely :)
Gene- love the tulips!
Took so long to load the pic I forgot to add-- Trond- love the Cardamine :)

Here a total of 4 Crocus flowers yesterday (today back to snow!) but I'm pleased to see the increase in the plants in only their second spring-just cheap garden centre stuff;
Some C solida shouldn't be too long, though that bed is much later to come out of the snow than the Crocus in front of the house. I was amazed when I pulled back the mulch to see shoots a couple of inches tall, in frozen soil!


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Mon, 04/29/2013 - 13:07

Great plants, Jim.  Love the Astragalus coccineus but most of all, loved the Trifolium owyheense, unfortunately no longer in my garden thanks to some nameless marauder.  Even when not in bloom it is so attractive with its silver marked leaves.


Submitted by Lori S. on Wed, 05/01/2013 - 22:27

After snow on the weekend and two nights of -7 deg C, these flowers are unfazed... Iris danfordiae and Muscari azureum:
 

... however a potted skunk-cabbage is lying in a heap - darn thing didn't even bloom.


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 05/02/2013 - 01:04

Glad to see you have at least some flowering plants in your garden, Cohan!

Some very eye-catching plants you have folks! I am envious. Here the winter will not recede. Still no leafing out - the birches should have been green by now :(


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Thu, 05/02/2013 - 11:38

Dodecatheon pulchellum:

[attachthumb = 1]

Camassia quamash ssp azurea, with Dracunculus vulgaris in back:

[attachthumb = 2]

Trillium cernuum:

[attachthumb = 3]

Cypripedium ? :

[attachthumb = 4]

Corydalis scouleri:

[attachthumb = 5]


Submitted by Longma on Fri, 05/03/2013 - 07:47

Some from the 'more formal'  :rolleyes: part of our garden today. If anyone can add names it would be appreciated.


Submitted by RickR on Fri, 05/03/2013 - 09:15

Excellent images, everyone.

Ron,
Photo #1:
The iris looks like the yellow form of I. suaveolens if it is a species.  It does seem to be more hefty than most.  Perhaps just very well grown, as you Brits (and Europeans) are know for.  My four accessions of the species are look more "wild" in my more austere garden.


Submitted by Longma on Sat, 05/04/2013 - 06:19

Thank you, Rick, Trond and Lori, for putting me straight on those species.  8)

I noticed this one today in an area that needs a good weeding,  :-[ . It is I think Anemone nemorosa, although we don't remember planting it (but of course we must have done), and it is usually an early species.  :-\


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Sun, 05/05/2013 - 13:27

Calochortus tolmiei, perfectly hardy in NW Oregon and Washington, if given sandy soil that dries in summer:

[attachthumb = 1]


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 05/05/2013 - 15:15

Nice Calochortus! Seems to be something to look for!

Here are some plants from the garden today - the first day with some decent weather for weeks :-\
Saxifraga caucasica (I think). a dwarf Narcissus struggling in old grass, an Ornithogalum - it is not umbellatum which is much later and another selfsown Rhododendron.


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 05/06/2013 - 21:19

Spring is finally here!

Fritillaria meleagris
   

Dodecatheon media alba
   

Sanguinaria canadensis 'Multiplex'
   

Helleborus Royal Heritage
   

Taraxacum pseudoroseum (Thanks, Wim!)
   

Jovibarba heuffelii
   

Dirca palustris
- tiny flowers, but quite attractive to insects.
   

While all my other Salix spp. are pretty much done, Salix schraderiana is just starting.
   


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Tue, 05/07/2013 - 03:56

The garden was open Sunday for the Garden Conservancy and it was perfect weather and a wonderful turnout.  It's still early days in the garden with recent warmth forcing bloom so that early and middle bloomers are seen together - unusual, but that seems to be the new normal.


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 05/07/2013 - 11:59

More beauties- Gene- some great clumps you have, including the Dodecatheon!
Longma- Ron? - love the Irises with Salix! Still no really dwarf Salix here, but high on my list- haven't had a chance to buy plants and never see seeds available or in the wild, but still watching :)
Anne- bet the garden visitors really enjoyed your property :)
Trond- that little  Crocus patch has really been performing- especially some of the flavus with five or six flowers on one little plant. First flowers are done, but still new ones coming. A few things in other spots now too- Townsendia, Pulsatilla etc. Last couple of days were summer- mid 20's to almost 30C yesterday, back to spring today with 15C, rest of week from 13 to 27C, and nights from 0- +9, some of my many pots of seed outdoors should start sprouting, was only Draba up to now..


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Tue, 05/07/2013 - 21:43

Rick, compare the color of tolmiei to the ones in that SRGC post.  It's a nice collector's plant, but let's face it, it's pretty homely compared to the California species.  It's like wearing a burlap sack to the Emmy awards.  But you'll notice that I still grow it.  That's because it has the usual qualities that tempt me:  it's very difficult and slow; almost nobody can grow it; and it has at least nominally interesting flowers.  Sure, a plant like that may be impressive to us, but we make up about 0.001% of the gardening marketplace in the USA.

Now here are some plants that are very difficult and slow, and which almost nobody can grow, but which are VERY impressive:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=1090.0


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 05/07/2013 - 22:23

Well then, I can still say that you took a very impressive photo of C. tolmiei!  :o :o ;D

I finally have a couple batches of seedling Nomocharis growing now, along with one from last season, that hopefully will emerge again.
Wish me luck!


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Tue, 05/07/2013 - 22:39

Nomocharis in Minnesota, eh?  You make me look like a slacker.  Let's see, what does Minnesota's climate have in common with a Himalayan meadow?  Um...um...hmmm...


Submitted by RickR on Wed, 05/08/2013 - 06:50

I never would expect Nomocharis to survive our winters.  (But wouldn't it be cool if it did?)

However I did have a small L. mackliniae bulb that was given to me that survived for several winters before I accidentally massacred it. :'(
It never bloomed, though, so I can't verify its identity.


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Wed, 05/08/2013 - 09:04

If I were growing Nomocharis or Lilium mackliniae in Minnesota, I would probably try the following:
1.  Heavy mulch in winter to slow the rate of freezing and thawing.  
2.  Shade cloth in summer, and/or grow them where they get morning sun and afternoon shade.  
3.  Mulch in summer to keep the soil cool.
4.  Herbaceous companion plants to shade the soil and control soil moisture.  No shrubs or trees; they are too competitive.
5.  Try to adjust soil pH to around 6 - 6.5.

This assumes that you've got some decent sandy loam soil, and you've got your animal and insect pests under control.

I've found that the conditions for keeping these plants alive (cool, shady, soil not too wet or rich) will also slow them down a little.  So patience is required.  The dryland lilies of the western US are an extreme example of this.  Push them too much with water and fertilizer, and they are gone.

There are some good lily growers in the midwest.  Have any of them tried Nomocharis?

By the way, there is something funny going on with germination of Nomocharis and Lilium mackliniae from the seed exchanges.  Germination in the first season is consistently terrible, maybe one or two seeds out of ten.  But another one or two will come up over the next two years.  So keep your seed flats.  Don't let the seed flats get below 25F or above 80F, keep them out of the sun, and don't let them get too dry.  The only way to build a population of these plants is one or two at a time, over a period of years.  Or you could buy bulbs.


Submitted by RickR on Wed, 05/08/2013 - 15:20

Thanks, Gene!
My experiences with seed ex seed is the same, or worse. Little if any the first season with more the next.  I don't think I've had any emerge the third year.

I don't know if anyone up here has tried them.  If anyone in Minnesota has had much success, I'm pretty sure I would have heard about it.


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Wed, 05/08/2013 - 15:46

"My experiences with seed ex seed is the same, or worse."

Either people are sending in old seed, or the stocks of these rare plants is badly inbred.  I think they are inbred, and Judith Freeman of lily hybridizing fame agrees.  Someone really needs to get serious about controlled propagation of rare plants, and restoring some genetic diversity.  Why can't the plant societies do this?


Submitted by RickR on Wed, 05/08/2013 - 20:28

An interesting thought.

  When Peter Korn was here doing his speaking tour, I had dinner with him.  We got to talking about lilies and he asked me if I had tried any Nomocharis.  I told him I had the dickens of a time getting good germination, and he suspected seeds were not viable.  He never mentioned inbreeding, but he thought fresh seed worked much better.  He said he had observed Nomocharis seed germinating while still in the pod.


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 05/11/2013 - 09:37

Adonis vernalis - I thought this was really great until I went on a garden tour last weekend and saw those grown by others - huge plants with gigantic flowers!!!!   :o

Draba acaulis; some of the last of the crocus; Primula algida; Tulipa turkestanica; Pulmonaria altaica:
         

A little Synthyris platycarpa planted last year; Hacquetia epipactis:
   

What I grew as Pulsatilla grandis 'Best Blue" (valid cultivar name??):
 


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 05/11/2013 - 09:44

Another shot of Pulsatilla grandis 'Best Blue'(?) to show the dark petals:

Compared to the other photo of Taraxacum pseudoroseum posted here recently, it seems the leaf shape can vary a lot:

Hepatica nobilis 'Flore Plena Rosea'; Pulsatilla vulgaris; Corydalis paczoskii planted last year; Corydalis nobilis:
     

Chionodoxa 'Pink Giant'; a little Primula marginata planted last year; Androsace lactea; Thlaspi kurdicum:
     


Submitted by Botanica on Sat, 05/11/2013 - 12:21

Wonderful Hepatica nobilis 'Flore Plena Rosea' Lori S.  ;D ;)

I have the Hepatica nobilis sp. , i have divided one plant ..and now i have tree plant !! Very cool !

One of them.

You know that your seeds germinate well ! ..I have many pots in the garden..I participated (in June) to the Plant exposition and exchange of SAJA (French Apline Association).

See you soon...


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 05/11/2013 - 23:15

Lori, lots of stuff going on there now.  It looks like I lost my Adonis 'Fukujukai', so you're still one up on me! ;D

Does Primula algida take some different conditions than other primulas?  It looks so happy all by its lonesome in a rock bed....

My Taraxacum pseudoroseum have not bloomed yet, so perhaps they are not what I think they are.  Buds coming....
       

But the seedlings of these exact same plants do look more like yours...
         

Love the Corydalis paczoskii.
And this is Corydalis nobilis in my garden as of today.  Zone 4 Minnesota is way behind zone 3 Alberta!
   


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Sun, 05/12/2013 - 22:29

Clematis montana rubens on the fence:

[attachthumb = 1]

Ourisia coccinea:  they will not tolerate dry soil at this time of year:

[attachthumb = 2]

Penstemon cardwelli, extremely vigorous in this climate:

[attachthumb = 3]

Polygonatum humile, with Podophyllum emodi in back:

[attachthumb = 4]

Arisaema triphyllum, doing well in full sun in my cool climate:

[attachthumb = 5]


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 05/13/2013 - 21:02

Love that clematis, Gene, not to mention the other lovely things.
Ooh, the meconopsis envy is starting, Claire!

Adonis vernalis, as good as it got this year... while Adonis x amurensis 'Fukujukai' looks like it will only produce a couple of flowers this year for some reason.

Jeffersonia dubia - I guess I missed the best part of the bloom.  Oh well, at least I caught the tail end!

I always enjoy seeing the big, burly leaves of Ligularia macrophylla emerging:

This dwarf rhubarb, Rheum rhizostachyum will have at least 6 flower stalks... it may not be the showiest thing, but it will certainly be trying hard to make up for that this year.

Iris reticulata (excuse the unsightly soaker hose) and my last Anemone blanda (seem to have lost most of them the winter before last):
 

First of what I have been thinking of as Pulsatilla turczaninovii... but after the recent, lengthy and very detailed thread on Pulsatilla IDs over at SRGC, I'm kind of afraid to blurt that out without looking a lot more closely first.  Correction:  It is Pulsatilla ambigua.

Eriogonum caespitosum, bought at the CRAGS plant sale on Saturday from Beaver Creek; it may never look so good again.  ;D

Lathyrus vernalis 'Gracilis' and a little clump of Tulipa tarda that was especially starry-looking:
 


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 05/13/2013 - 21:15

Goniolimon cf. speciosa, from Holubec seed in 2011, will bloom this year; the rosette is 10 cm across:

Androsace albana - apparently, it's monocarpic (grrr!):

Iris taurica, a division I bought at last year's CRAGS sale; quite a different colour from the darker clump I had:

Androsace incana, grown in 2012 from Pavelka seed collected in 2007; showing some flower size variation:
 

Primula elatior ssp. meyeri, bought last year from Rundlewood; Caltha palustris; Anemone ranunculoides; Lathyrus vernus; Paeonia tenuifolia 'Rubra Plena', looking muppet-like:
       


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 05/13/2013 - 21:20

And, a last couple...
Primula 'Jay Jay' with Hacquetia epipactis:

Fritillaria meleagris with Epimedium x rubrum, Mertensia ciliata and Pulmonaria altaica in the background:


Submitted by IMYoung on Tue, 05/14/2013 - 02:47

Claire, to my mind Meconopsis delavayi is the most beautiful of its family. Be sure to keep taking seed from it.

Lori, your Rheum rhizostachyum may be small but it is perfectly formed - I do like these little rhubarbs.

M


Submitted by Cockcroft on Tue, 05/14/2013 - 11:17

Gene, your garden looks fabulous!  Lori, you're growing marvelous things.  I start to wish I had more garden space but then common sense prevails.  :)

I was able to collect a small amount of seed from Meconopsis delavayi to share with friends.  Some additional seedlings are growing this year, so hopefully I will get enough seed to share more widely.


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 05/14/2013 - 11:58

Seems I am the last one to have flowers in the garden! The cold weather does continue . . . . even the slugs stay inside.
A few plants do cope with the low temperatures though. Glaucidium palmatum comes up late but very nicely. An unknown primula flowersin the woodland and Rhododendron roxieanumvar oreonastes has taken the dry cold winter without a single harmed leaf. Paris (Kinugasa) japonica flowers for the first time! However the flower doesn't open fully in the low temperature.


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Tue, 05/14/2013 - 23:16

Counterclockwise:  Vancouveria hexandra, Sanguinaria canadensis Multiplex, Lilium martagon in bud:

[attachthumb = 1]

Sturdy stems of Lilium sargentiae and henryi citrinum:

[attachthumb = 2]

Cornus canadensis, Smilacina stellata, and Peltoboykinia watanabei, all from seed:

[attachthumb = 3]


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 04:37

Hope someone can i.d. my allium, label lost.
More and more blooming every day.  Garden is late and very dry already.  April was a disaster, no rain.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 04:41

There seems to be a problem posting pictures.  I haven't been able to get on the Forum for days and this morning I could, but the pictures don't seem to go through.  Trying again.


Submitted by Hoy on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 05:26

Anne, you have some gems there! Seems the pictures came through after all!

Not much to show from our mountain "garden". Allthough the snow has disappeared from the meadows except a few patches, not much green are to be seen.
The lake is still covered by ice and the higher terrain is still snowclad. The last "heap" of snow by the cabin is of course in front of the main door!
Only the "mogop" Pulsatilla vernalis is in flower - or almost so. The hares and some European elks have been visiting and nipped a few buds. It is still cloudy and some rain but the forecast for tomorrow is much better!


Submitted by Lori S. on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 08:36

I'll throw out the suggestion of Allium akaka, Anne, but I'm sure Mark will be along soon.  :)
What a beautiful, lush garden you have, Gene.


Submitted by Hoy on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 11:43

Spiegel wrote:

Trond, how wonderful to have Pulsatilla vernalis.  Wish I could grow this one, it's so lovely.

Anne, what is your problem, too hot summers?
It is not difficult here - it is a native although I have helped it a bit establishing in our meadow. The main problem is foraging animals like hares and elks. When my wife was a girl it was abundant down in the valley too growing on sandy flats and pasture along the river. And that is one of the warmest places in all Norway.


Submitted by Hoy on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 12:14

Although the pasture and meadow still is bleak with old dead grass some colours do appear here and there.
The leaves of several plants that developed under snow cover often show red colours like the docks and sorrels (Rumex spp).

 

Also the alpine pennycress (Noccaea caerulescens) do sometimes adorn itself with reddish leaves. It is one of the early birds often starting blooming under the snowcover. However I don't think people will make a stampede to get hold of any ;D But it is a charming little one now while later it looses its spell.

 

The cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris) is is another making interesting new growth with its filigreelike leaves. A kind of mushroom live on the dead grass.

 


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 19:19

Trond, this is a very dry garden without watering possibilities and mostly in sun and wind.  We have heat (in the 90sF) and high humidity during the summer and cold winters, often without snow.  I have tried the Pulsatilla vernalis and it has always died.  Too bad, it is such a lovely plant.  I count on a wet April to supply water for the garden and this year April was extremely dry.  The eriogonums have been happy and many astragali have had a great year.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 19:23

Mark and Lori, many thanks.  The minute I saw the name karataviense I remembered.  It's really nice.  Now to find a similar allium with more color in the flowers.
Any ideas?  This one is a size to blend well in the rock garden as a single plant, and elsewhere in a group.


Submitted by RickR on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 19:36

Wow, Anne, April may have been dry, but you sure show a lot of happy healthy plants!
Yours is the first Genista to ever make it to my want list. 8)
------------------------------------

Those tiny little sparks of life in the early,early spring are really a joy when hiking the cold and seemingly lifeless landscape.
  And you always find things that most people never see....


Submitted by Lori S. on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 20:32

Phlox multiflora; a divison purchased at last year's CRAGS sale - I believe it's Phlox kelseyi, a little more vivid colour than the one I already had:
   

Astragalus loanus will bloom this year - ooh, exciting!

A perfect green dome again this year, Arenaria kansuensis:


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Fri, 05/17/2013 - 21:49

Anne,Lori and Trond very nice pictures from the garden. Lori is the Eritrichum from seed or bought it. It is fantastic.Anne your Genista is beautiful. I got one plant last year but it died.
Here are some pictures I took twodays ago and tried to post it but not successful.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Sat, 05/18/2013 - 09:40

Rick, Genista depressa is a fabulous plant.  When the flowers (which are large) go over they slowly turn to shades of rust and brown, most decorative.  The pods are narrow and almost black.  I'd add Genista carinalis to your list as well.  It's a bit more difficult for me - the central trunk gets woody quickly, but it has a wonderful shape.  Right now the garden has changed to purples. blues and yellows and whites.  The yellows are mostly genistas and cytisus and chamaecytisus, all good.


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Sat, 05/18/2013 - 09:45

Krish, the Douglasia Montana is unbelieveable!

Lori, PLEASE post many photos of Astragalus loanus when it blooms.  Mine has yet to bloom and probably won't this year.

Astragalus chloodes doesn't really show up well in the picture but it'swonderful, almost like a flowering grass.  The grassy leaves are a pale blue-gray and the flowers are purple, small but numerous.  I really like this one.


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 05/18/2013 - 09:51

Tradescantia x andersoniana 'Purple Profusion'.  The emerging sprouts are purple.  Not sure if this is the reason for the moniker, but the plant is a division (not in vitro propagation)  directly from the originator, Wesley Williams.
   

Hacquetia epipactis
May 3, May 13 and May 16
   

Hepatica americana, native from the Minnesota/Canadian border.
   

Fritillaria meleagris is such an easy frit, but really rewarding, nonetheless.
   

Mertensia alpina
   

Uvularia grandiflora (Helleborus purpurascens to the left)
   


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 05/18/2013 - 11:00

Spiegel wrote:

Krish, the Douglasia Montana is unbelieveable!

Ditto!  I must move mine into more sun... maybe it can look like that one then!

Yes, I certainly will post photos of Astragalus loanus in bloom, when the time comes.  
Astragalus chloodes - what a strange astragalus!  I can't make out any leaves at all along the petioles. Wow, you have everything, Anne!  :)

Looking great, Rick!  I love Hacquetia epipactis - what an unusual plant.  Mine look like big green daisies now.  I'm going to start moving seedlings and/or divisions around... moved a seedling a few days ago and it looks fine.  What a magnificent stand of uvularia!


Submitted by Boland on Sat, 05/18/2013 - 11:13

Great display Rick!  been a while since I've posted...been too busy on the alpine group of facebook.  Here are some shots taken in my garden this morning.  Dpahne retusa and Pieris 'Brouwer's Beauty'


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 05/18/2013 - 20:11

Long time, no see, Todd!  Things are looking great there!

Erigeron trifidus(?);  Androsace chamaejasme; Taraxacum pseudoroseum - with leaves getting toothier and stems longer... just like yours, Rick (for some reason, I was thinking of the leaves as being almost entire, but looking back at my photos, I don't know where I got that notion :rolleyes:):
     

Primula scotica; Cancrinia tianshanica; Potentilla frigida:
   


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 05/18/2013 - 21:21

Those wee little things are the cutest plants, Lori.

I had completely missed Anne's last photo of A. chloodes, until Lori mentioned it.  A strange and wonderful plant!

My Taraxacum pseudoroseum grows in the fairly hot dry garden, which probably accounts for its flattish growth.
Regarding leaf variations, these Taraxacum albidum are the same age from the same batch of single source seed.  I had transplanted them last year, and they almost immediately died, but in fact they just went dormant!  They are planted in the same garden, but perhaps in a little less hot place.
   

Taraxacum pseudoroseum - morning, next day, two days later.

The Uvularia grandiflora is also from native stock here in Hennepin County, Minnesota.  A big wild clump consists of perhaps a dozen stems, but in the garden, it really takes off.  From the one pictured above, I removed a forth of the plant (when sprouts were 1-2 inches) for divisions for our Chapter plant sale.  
   

For me, Leibnitzia anandria seems to prefer a more woodland setting.  This self sown seedling grows in dappled shade all day.
   

Corydalis nobilis, Convallaria majalis 'Aureo-striatum' and Hosta 'On the Marc'.
       


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 02:30

Spiegel wrote:

Trond, this is a very dry garden without watering possibilities and mostly in sun and wind.  We have heat (in the 90sF) and high humidity during the summer and cold winters, often without snow.  I have tried the Pulsatilla vernalis and it has always died.  Too bad, it is such a lovely plant.  I count on a wet April to supply water for the garden and this year April was extremely dry.  The eriogonums have been happy and many astragali have had a great year.

It is always a pity not to be able to grow everything you would love to! I know that feeling ;) But as you have shown you do grow plenty of other things very well!
And I have the opposite problem - too much water. This April has been a disaster.


Submitted by Boland on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 08:24

Calgary is ahead of me Lori, but then this week is nothing but cold drizzle and temps barely reaching 40 F...that is really slowing things down.


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 13:39

Mouthwatering plants folks!
Rick, I have tried Uvularia several times but it is very vulnerable when germinating - (foraging hungry slugs if you have forgotten my no 1 pest!).

My specimen of pink dandelion died after flowering last year, seemed to rot. Maybe the climate is too humid. However common dandelions do very well!

Here at the cabin it is still only the Pulsatilla vernalis that shows up. In the early morning they are closed but soon open when the sun get hotter. Yesterday we had a very warm day and even a lot of butterflies found a reason to take a flight. The Small Tortoiseshell (Nymphalis urticae) found the pulsatilla interesting. Actually they were two. The very hot day (in the city of Bergen they measured all time high temperature for May) ended with a thunderstorm and the flowers tried to hide their better parts as best they could.

       


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 16:23

Hoy wrote:

My specimen of pink dandelion died after flowering last year, seemed to rot.

Mine have a pretty good bloom going this year... I should be able to send you some seeds if you want to try it again.

Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Papageno':
 


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 16:29

Spiegel wrote:

Rick, Genista depressa is a fabulous plant.  When the flowers (which are large) go over they slowly turn to shades of rust and brown, most decorative.  The pods are narrow and almost black.  I'd add Genista carinalis to your list as well.  It's a bit more difficult for me - the central trunk gets woody quickly, but it has a wonderful shape.  Right now the garden has changed to purples. blues and yellows and whites.  The yellows are mostly genistas and cytisus and chamaecytisus, all good.

I'm sure we'd all love to see how Genista depressa changes through time, Anne... and Genista carinalis too!


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 20:37

Love the Pulsatilla vernalis, Trond.  I have a couple out in the dry, exposed front yard but they haven't bloomed in some time.  I thought I'd try again from seed, and managed to get a seedling which I planted in a trough where it would get a little better care... but I didn't count on a jackrabbit eating out the emerging bud.  I think I will finally make some hardware cloth covers for some of my troughs that are outside the fence.

I'm having a great time gardening this Victoria Day holiday long weekend - lots of challenges distinguishing the dead from the just mostly dead.   ;D
I kept checking Lactuca intricata oh-so-hopefully but had to admit that it looked thoroughly dead.  So, mourning period over, I finally started cutting off last year's dried skeleton when I noticed green shoots at the base - quite a surprise.  It's not a great beauty (more of a mildly interesting oddity: http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=1137.msg19157#msg19157) but I'm pleased that there is one less thing to replace.


Submitted by RickR on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 21:45

Gene, I didn't know L. mackliniae bloomed that early.  And I also didn't realize L. pyrenaicum could be orange!
Cool plants. ;D

Longma wrote:

{ Fritillaria affinis provides a scale  ;D }

Hah, hah!  Yes, we all know that that is the choice plant in the photo. :D

Hoy wrote:

Mouthwatering plants folks!
Rick, I have tried Uvularia several times but it is very vulnerable when germinating - (foraging hungry slugs if you have forgotten my no 1 pest!).

I usually cut off all the seed pods before they mature, otherwise I think they would take over the garden!  I could send you (or anyone) a boatload, Trond.  I am thinking the seed needs to be kept moist?

How easy do Taraxacum cross the species barrier (e.g. pseudoroseum x officinale)?  I don't think I would ever get true seed without complete isolation.


Submitted by Hoy on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 23:51

RickR wrote:

I usually cut off all the seed pods before they mature, otherwise I think they would take over the garden!  I could send you (or anyone) a boatload, Trond.  I am thinking the seed needs to be kept moist?

How easy do Taraxacum cross the species barrier (e.g. pseudoroseum x officinale)?  I don't think I would ever get true seed without complete isolation.

Not a boatload, Rick but a few podloads had been nice!

Taraxacum is usually apomictic. In Norway we have about 370 "species" (or clones if you like) of Taraxacum, many endemic.
If you added a few of the pink dandelion I would be happy Rick!


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 05/20/2013 - 00:06

Lori wrote:

Love the Pulsatilla vernalis, Trond.  I have a couple out in the dry, exposed front yard but they haven't bloomed in some time.  I thought I'd try again from seed, and managed to get a seedling which I planted in a trough where it would get a little better care... but I didn't count on a jackrabbit eating out the emerging bud.  I think I will finally make some hardware cloth covers for some of my troughs that are outside the fence.

Maybe your front yard is too dry? I think they like a moist spring (if no rain they get snowmelt water) but take a drier summer fine. I will cover mine with chicken wire. Should keep the hares out but hope the elks don't come trampling.
I can send you some fresh seed if I get any - have to be there at the right time or they are gone by the wind. . . .


Submitted by Cockcroft on Mon, 05/20/2013 - 13:02

The garden is turning into a jungle as the temperatures warm up (slightly) and the rain eases off.

Brimeura amethystina with Iris siberica nana alba in the background
Roscoea cautleyoides
Incarvillea delavayi 'Snowtop'
Ourisia coccinea


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Mon, 05/20/2013 - 20:17

Nice pictures Claire.My Incarvillea did not comeback. #days of holidays and lots of work done at the garden and inside. The weather is fabulous.Here are some pictures taken today .

[edited to add names for searchability- MMcD]
Anemonella thalictroides
Daphne arbuscula
Dryas octopetala
Iris pumila


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Mon, 05/20/2013 - 20:19

more

[edited to add names for searchability- MMcD]
Primula x pruhoniciana
Primula allionii
Rananculus sp.
Sanguinaria canadensis 'Multiplex'


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 05/20/2013 - 20:42

There's nothing I like better than a jungle, Claire!   :D

Fabulous, Krish!  I'm impressed, especially, by your Daphne.  I only have Daphne retusa which struggles, managing only to put out one cluster of flowers in the last couple of years.  (I mean, really.. one cluster of flowers since 2009?  Obviously the wrong choice for my conditions!)  How long did you have the Incarvillea delavayi?  That's one that I found would only last 2-3 years for me.  By contrast, I find that Incarvillea zhongdianensis and I. mairei v. grandiflora are very long-lived and dependable.


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 05/20/2013 - 20:51

Hoy wrote:

Lori wrote:

Love the Pulsatilla vernalis, Trond.  I have a couple out in the dry, exposed front yard but they haven't bloomed in some time.  I thought I'd try again from seed, and managed to get a seedling which I planted in a trough where it would get a little better care... but I didn't count on a jackrabbit eating out the emerging bud.  I think I will finally make some hardware cloth covers for some of my troughs that are outside the fence.

Maybe your front yard is too dry? I think they like a moist spring (if no rain they get snowmelt water) but take a drier summer fine.

Yes, undoubtedly.  Maybe I will try to move them.  There is little to lose, since they don't flower.


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 05/21/2013 - 07:53

Very nice Krish!  The sax is so cute and the primula so very happy!
  I'm glad to someone else that gardens on a small lot.  I have a dickens of a time trying to take photos without distracting backgrounds.

---------------------------
Duly noted, Trond. :)


Submitted by Cockcroft on Tue, 05/21/2013 - 10:47

Wonderful pictures, Krish.  I love the juxtaposition of dryas and daphne.  I don't grow Dryas octopetala, but D. grandiflora & D. x suendermannii are rampant growers in my climate, so I don't dare try that.  I have a hard time with Primula scotica.  It germinates, dawdles for a while, then gives up the ghost over a winter or two with little or no flowers.  Maybe I should move some seedlings into the sand bed?

Loris, the incarvillea seed was planted in January, 2009.  So far, several plants have returned every year.  That doesn't mean they'll continue.  ;)


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Tue, 05/21/2013 - 13:09

Thanks for the comment. Lori try the Daphne with some granite pieces to cover the root. I Had one with roots tucked under tufa rocks. It was not doing well. Moved with roots under granite. Doing very well. I have Daphne lawrence crocker which is in buds now. All my three Daphne gets moderate to high sun.All are doing very well.


Submitted by Hoy on Wed, 05/22/2013 - 12:12

Very nice plants!
Claire, does the Ourisia coccinea need much sun? or water?
Krish, magnificient Daphne!

After 3 days with record breaking warm weather we are back to normal: cold northerly wind damaging the plants. Not easy to take pics either.

These wasn't too blurred:
Ranunculus parnassifolius waiting for more sun, Maianthemum canadense(?) and Scilla lilio-hyacinthus, Erythronium sp


Submitted by Cockcroft on Wed, 05/22/2013 - 18:46

Hi Trond,

In my garden, Ourisia coccinea seems happiest where it is in part shade and gets ample water.  It spreads by stolons and likes a soil mix with lots of humus, too.


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 05/23/2013 - 03:47

Cockcroft wrote:

Hi Trond,

In my garden, Ourisia coccinea seems happiest where it is in part shade and gets ample water.  It spreads by stolons and likes a soil mix with lots of humus, too.

Thanks Claire. It's what I supposed. But I am afraid I have planted mine in too heavy shade.

This is what lots of gardens in the eastern part of Norway (where we have our cabin) look like today:

http://nrk.no/

http://www.vg.no/nyheter/vaer/artikkel.php?artid=10116755


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Thu, 05/23/2013 - 15:52

Trond, that flooding is really terrible.  I hope your cabin is OK.  What a pity that weather (rain, snow, heat, cold) can't be distributed evenly.  We have been so dry here and today we are finally enjoying a day of rain interspersed with thunderstorms.
Biggest excitement in the garden for me is that Lewisia rediviva alba has a place where it seems to be happy.  I made an overhang of rock which kept it drier during the winter and it has been in bloom for some time now.  I think it's the pink stamens setting off the pristine white petals that really make it special.  There were 5 flowers in bloom today.


Submitted by Peden on Fri, 05/24/2013 - 10:06

The white form of L. rediviva is lovely. I had it as 'minor' several years ago but lost it. Of all the Lewisia, rediviva seems most subject to frost heaving. I've taken to growing it in a trough where it is on the level and can anchor in well. I don't think winter wet here in the Northeast will ever be a problem for Lewisia. I sense they might even enjoy it  ;)


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Fri, 05/24/2013 - 15:39

It's one I've had difficulties keeping in the past.  Maybe the alba form is easier.  Lewisia tweedyi seems to be the easiest and lasts for years.  L.cotyledon, grown by some people like dandelions, for me seems susceptible to being wet at the wrong time and the leaves quickly show their distaste, becoming orange or yellow, and in extreme cases, turning to jelly, yuk.


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Fri, 05/24/2013 - 16:58

Hi Anne
nice Lewisia.I have a clump of Lewisia rediviva alba for the last three years.It flowers every year but not increasing in size. I got some seeds from NARGS which are germinating now.Hopefully more will be there.Two years ago I visited a Calgary garden where they had it on the vertical stone wall flowering nicely.


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Fri, 05/24/2013 - 22:45

Lilium mackliniae:

[attachthumb = 1]

Lilium pyrenaicum:

[attachthumb = 2]

Molopospermum peloponnesiacum (try saying that three times quickly):

[attachthumb = 3]

Two sturdy stems of Nomocharis:

[attachthumb = 4]

Nomocharis flower:

[attachthumb = 5]


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 05/25/2013 - 14:48

Spiegel wrote:

Trond, that flooding is really terrible.  I hope your cabin is OK.  What a pity that weather (rain, snow, heat, cold) can't be distributed evenly.  We have been so dry here and today we are finally enjoying a day of rain interspersed with thunderstorms.

Anne, my cabin is fortunately safe. It sits on higher ground and the flooding are worse in the valleys. Although the weather is better now the water is moving down the valleys and flooding new places.

Lewisia is one of my favorite genera but I have decided to wait growing them till I get a usable place for them!
Nomocharis too is a fave, but you know, the slugs . . . . .


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 05/25/2013 - 22:02

Castilleja integra!  Fantastic, Krish!  How did you acquire it?

The Nomocharis is mouth-watering, Gene.

It started raining on Thursday morning and continued through Friday - 3" by our gauge.  It had been very dry but, after that, we should be good for a while.
First peony in bloom out in the front yard; a slightly rain-soaked Iris sp. ex. Burdur, Turkey - purchased from an expert member at the CRAGS sale earlier in May; Gentiana verna is suddenly looking rather sad this year and is only putting up a few blooms:
   

Muscari and Linum; Penstemon nitidus is starting to bloom in the front yard:
   

The glaucous foliage of Zigadenus elegans with Muscari and Hieracium villosum in the front yard:

The first, modest bloom on Astragalus loanus, from NARGS Seedex seed in 2012:


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Sun, 05/26/2013 - 10:33

Lori, the bloom on Astragalus loanus may be modest, but it's a start.  Maybe there's even a chance it will set a seed pod.  The pods are really nice on this astragalus.  In my climate, I can get astragalus and other dryland peas to live and flower but very rarely to set seed.  My early summer/late spring weather does not seem to be to their liking.  It's stopped raining after several days - back to planting and setting new rocks!


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 05/26/2013 - 20:03

You must have great arm muscles, Anne.  ;D  The beauty of your gardens makes all that exercise worthwhile.  I hope you will post lots of photos of the existing gardens and the new areas.

A few from today...
Erigeron leptophylla; Erigeron nanus; a funny fasciated Townsendia parryi (BTW - the odd purple one beside it died; I should have known that imminent death was the reason for the weird colour):
   

I'm pleased that last year's Penstemon pumilus seedling will bloom this year!

Pyrethrum leontopodium in bloom (flowers a bit messed up from the rain):

Alyssum sp. from seed last year - the flowers are very tiny; collected by Mojmir Pavelka at 1500m in Tahtali Dag, Turkey, from limestone hills.  I think it will be very nice and densely-flowered as it matures.

Erigeron compositus var. discoideus:

Pulsatilla halleri, or so it was said to be... although I am starting to mistrust all Pulsatilla IDs (until the experts have passed judgement!)

Eremostachys speciosa (the plant that bloomed last year  http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=1088.msg18070#msg18070) will have two stalks this year!  :)

And switching gears completely... water hawthorn, Aponogeton distachyos:


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 05/26/2013 - 20:09

There is not much in bloom yet after that cold April.  Finishing off...
Eritrichium pauciflorum ssp. sajanense; Asperula boissieri has recovered now from the hard winter of 2012 and will have lots of flowers:
 

Paraquilegia... ONE flower?  Oh come on!  :rolleyes:  (Well, I'm glad it survives at least.  Maybe someday it will turn on the charm.  ;D)


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Sun, 05/26/2013 - 22:40

A group of Corydalis scouleri, which loves water, growing in my blueberry patch:

[attachthumb = 1]

Edraianthus serpyllifolius major, sown January 8, 2013, grown under lights, transplanted into 5-inch deep bands:

[attachthumb = 2]

Edit 5/27/13:  I don't think this is Edraianthus serpyllifolius.  Does anybody know what it is?


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Mon, 05/27/2013 - 05:15

Lori, the paraquilegia foliage looks so healthy.  The flowers will come eventually, but the plant is looking happy and settled.  Congratulations.


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Mon, 05/27/2013 - 14:13

Love to see all the pictures from the garden. Lori i got the castiileja seeds from Alplains. Did not know it needs companion plant and lots of seedlings died.Just in time to save the last one.


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 05/27/2013 - 21:18

Iris taochia and Iris taurica:
 

Androsace chamaejasme; Pulsatilla ambigua:
 

A tiny forest of Mitella nuda stems under the canopy of Betula apoiensis in the acid bed:
 


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Mon, 05/27/2013 - 23:41

Krish, how do you grow the Phacelia sericea?  What soil mix?  I have never been successful with it.  Maybe it's because my climate is too wet and dark in Spring.  But I don't know what the problem is.


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 05/28/2013 - 08:22

Two reliable species today - very different in their requirements though.
Corydalis buschii spreading in the woodland and Ranunculus parnassifolius on the roof!


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Tue, 05/28/2013 - 10:29

Gene wrote:

Krish, how do you grow the Phacelia sericea?  What soil mix?  I have never been successful with it. 

Hi Gene
I grow them at two different places. One in the rockgarden where  the soil is lean,sunny and dry and the other one in a less sunny regular soil. Both came back and flowered for me for two years. The one in regular soil grew more and loose inflorescence. In fact I want to grow them very lean with tighter inflorescence.I am going to change the place to more harsher environment. In my climate it looks like it is easy to grow.


Submitted by IMYoung on Tue, 05/28/2013 - 12:37

Krish, might I ask you to return to your previous posts to ad the plant names to the text of your post? - this enables the search engine to find the pictures.  :)


Submitted by Mark McD on Tue, 05/28/2013 - 16:05

Good reminder Maggi, I had actually edited a number of previous posts to add in names, but I'm on another of my blitz training efforts and working all hours day and night before an upcoming trip for work.

Krish, earlier I added names to some of your posts here:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=1239.msg23498#msg23498

Also see the topic "FAQ - Images - Adding image names to the body of a post" in the "Announcements from Moderators and Administrators" board.
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=401.0

Cheers,

Mark


Submitted by IMYoung on Wed, 05/29/2013 - 08:12

Krish wrote:

sorry Ian I will do that.I did not realize that the search engine wont pickup the names of the plants if I do this way

Cheers, Krish!  ;)
Maggi


Submitted by IMYoung on Sun, 06/02/2013 - 04:37

Toole wrote:

First Galanthus sps of the season down here.

Cheers Dave.

Yup, after the Jandals were famously jettisoned by Steve the other day, I was expecting the snaadreeps to begin! :D


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/02/2013 - 10:30

What an incredible Edraianthus, Michael!   :o

Lots of promise with buds or growth on last year's seedlings...
Lactuca intricata; Dianthus scardicus; Silene bolanthoides; Mathiola anchonifolium; Silene nigrescens:

     

 

Edraianthus vesovicii; Edraianthus niveus:
 


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/02/2013 - 10:42

And various sights from here and there in the garden...
First flower on Lomatium nudicaule; Pulsatilla pratensis x 2; Aubrieta canescens; Phacelia sericea - let's see if this lasts more than the usual one season!; Townsendia parryi - or so it was supposed to be - they never look like this in the wild here; update on Astragalus loanus:
     

     

Rosy-bloom crabapple; 'Evans' sour cherry:
 

Rheum palmatum v. tanguticum:


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/02/2013 - 10:51

Nymphaea 'Colorado':

Roses - 'Sheila's Perfume', 'Full Sail', 'Dolly Parton':
   

A couple of last year's seedlings of Lupinus lepidus v. utahensis starting to bloom:
 

Fritillaria acmopetala; Thymus neiceffii with Sempervivum 'Oddity' and Jovibarba:
 

A native plant, Lithospermum ruderale:
 


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/02/2013 - 16:56

I was hoping to get all my pots of seedlings planted out into the garden this weekend, but after a lovely Saturday, there's been a constant, soaking rain since Saturday evening.  Still have almost 2 trays to go, but at least I've put the big plant stand back in the garage, so it feels like progress.
A few more...

Of the two plants of Lithospermum ruderale, this one has larger flowers (I showed the smaller-flowered one earlier):

Front yard in the rain, with 'Royalty' crabapple and the bur oak in bloom; 'Royalty' flowers; 'Amsterdam' rose was set outside at the corner of the house last weekend:
   


Submitted by Toole on Mon, 06/03/2013 - 03:23

IMYoung wrote:

Yup, after the Jandals were famously jettisoned by Steve the other day, I was expecting the snaadreeps to begin! :D

Steve will probably have them back on again now --Saturday, 1st day of winter, temps reached 15c on the coast here --warm enough for me to tip out some of my clumps of potted Trilliums and carefully divide them.

Cheers Dave.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Mon, 06/03/2013 - 10:35

Wow, what a horticultural feast Lori! I have a few of those growing well, including Lactuca intricata which must be on the verge of flowering. I like the Lithospermum particularly - a very interesting genus with so many good rock plants. There were some intriguing matthiolas in the Czech gardens, including this one in Vojtech Holubec's, with soft brown flowers (I'm not sure if this is M. alchemilloides?).


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Mon, 06/03/2013 - 22:00

Hi
here are some pictures of the flowers and garden taken today. Nice weather and I diligently added all the names of the plants on the body of the text  ;D

Phlox subulata sp
View of part of my rockgarden
Aquilegia scopulorum-from NARGS seed


Submitted by tropicalgirl25… on Mon, 06/03/2013 - 22:04

since i cant fit all the pictures in the first post I am sending another one

Erigeron aureus canary bird
Physaria didymocarpa
Delosperma nubigenum


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Tue, 06/04/2013 - 09:26

Great plants and such a variety, Krish and Lori.  Here it's dianthus time.  They've been allowed to seed themselves in this area and now there are all sorts of intermediates in color and size.  Will have to introduce some darker ones and see what happens.
Also, Paeonia peregrina, one of my new favorites.  The flowers are incredibly shiny and a brilliant red.  Go to the Scottish Forum to see a picture of a hillside of it in bloom in the wild, spectacular.


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 06/04/2013 - 21:24

Ditto on the didymocarpa, Krish.  The aquilegia is gorgeously cute!  What a special treat to be able to look out your basement window directly into the garden at ground level!  And gosh, if only my gardens were that tidy.....

Ann, that peony is quite the eye catcher.  When you say shiny, you're not kidding!


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Wed, 06/05/2013 - 00:25

Rose 'Eddie's Jewel', a hybrid of Rosa moyesii:  12 feet tall on a 6 foot fence.  This was started as a cutting in 2008.  If allowed to climb a tree, it will reach 30 feet in height, an extremely impressive sight.  Behind the rose is grand fir, and behind the fir is black locust in bloom, attracting thousands of bees.

[attachthumb = 1]

Here it is up in the trees at my place in Portland:

[attachthumb = 2]

Lilium martagon on left, Lilium mackliniae in front, Nomocharis pardanthina (?) behind:

[attachthumb = 3]

A dark form of Lilium mackliniae, blooming for the first time this year.  Note the deeply colored buds:

[attachthumb = 4]

Nomocharis aperta (?):

[attachthumb = 5]


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Wed, 06/05/2013 - 00:31

Linnaea borealis blooming under the firs, with Cornus canadensis in front and Disporum hookeri in back:

[attachthumb = 1]

Another group of Linnaea:

[attachthumb = 2]

The Cornus and Disporum were grown from seed.  Linnaea is one of the few plants that I start from cuttings, since I can never find the ripe seed.


Submitted by IMYoung on Wed, 06/05/2013 - 08:34

Gene wrote:

Linnaea borealis blooming under the firs, with Cornus canadensis in front and Disporum hookeri in back:

The Cornus and Disporum were grown from seed.  Linnaea is one of the few plants that I start from cuttings, since I can never find the ripe seed.

Drat! And I was just about to send you a begging  letter for seed!  :'(

M


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Wed, 06/05/2013 - 09:00

IMYoung wrote:

Gene wrote:

Linnaea borealis blooming under the firs, with Cornus canadensis in front and Disporum hookeri in back:

The Cornus and Disporum were grown from seed.  Linnaea is one of the few plants that I start from cuttings, since I can never find the ripe seed.

Drat! And I was just about to send you a begging  letter for seed!  :'(

M

Will the plant police take me away if I send you some cuttings?


Submitted by IMYoung on Wed, 06/05/2013 - 09:01

Toole wrote:

IMYoung wrote:

Yup, after the Jandals were famously jettisoned by Steve the other day, I was expecting the snaadreeps to begin! :D

Steve will probably have them back on again now --Saturday, 1st day of winter, temps reached 15c on the coast here --warm enough for me to tip out some of my clumps of potted Trilliums and carefully divide them.

Cheers Dave.

That figures - it's turned cold again here.....
but at least that is keeping the last trillium flowers going a little longer!


Submitted by IMYoung on Wed, 06/05/2013 - 09:03

Tim wrote:

There were some intriguing matthiolas in the Czech gardens, including this one in Vojtech Holubec's, with soft brown flowers (I'm not sure if this is M. alchemilloides?).

Vojtech got that Matthiola from Josef Jurasek, it was his collection, he calls it Matthiola montana.


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 06/06/2013 - 21:10

Beautiful Liliums, Gene, and the Linnaea, too.
I've never looked for seed in the wild up here.  That will change..... :)
----------------------------------
Now, after the Chapter plant sale, and a major family gathering, I can begin to catch up....
Some sale donations with new happy owners:

Aquilegia ecalcarata
           

This one has a high cute factor: Myosotis decumbens
         

There's no need to explain why this one is named Sempervivum octopodes
         

Some Lewisia cotyledon from NARGS seed
       

Valeriana montana.  In the garden, I have it growing between limestone "crazy pavement".  Quite an inhospitable place, considering it is practically subsoil clay that is mud in the spring and baked in the summer.  As the area has become part shade over the years, it is doing better now.
           


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 06/06/2013 - 22:22

Dodecatheon meadia alba
   

No seed last season, Stephen.  Perhaps this year.  Arrenatherum elatius ssp. bulbosum 'Variegatum'
         

I never would have thought Taraxacum seed was that yummy.  After all, the weedy species is everywhere here.  But...
checking on the progress of seed, someone found it was tasty.  I managed to save the last seed head.  Taraxacum pseudoroseum
       

Xanthoceras sorbifolia
, Aconitum lamarkii, and Epimedium davidii (I only let a few of each impatiens species mature, but that's enough to take over the world anyway. ;D)
       

Thermopsis fabacaea, Veronica rupestris 'Heavenly Blue'.
       


Submitted by IMYoung on Sat, 06/08/2013 - 05:03

Gene wrote:

IMYoung wrote:

Drat! And I was just about to send you a begging  letter for seed!  :'(
M

Will the plant police take me away if I send you some cuttings?

I don't think so, Gene - they would be most welcome. :-*


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 06/08/2013 - 13:47

Gene, it is obviously the same species of linnea which grows here, but is it identical? Here are two pictures taken in the wild as I have never tried it in the garden.

 


Submitted by Hoy on Sat, 06/08/2013 - 14:06

Rick, you show a lot of gems!

From my garden today: At last the peonies are in flower, Paeonia rockii cv from seed and P mlokosewitschii.
The Ranunculus parnassifolius is still flowering on the roof.

       


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 06/08/2013 - 19:29

I was delighted to discover today that the couple of caterpillars I noticed on Mertensia ciliata are police car moth (Gnophaela vermiculata) larvae.  Well, I had been thinking of reducing the burgeoning population of Mertensia ciliata but now I've reconsidered!  (I also have Mertensia paniculata, which would be one of their native food sources... haven't seen them on those plants yet.  It appears they are feeding on the inflorescences.  Mertensia paniculata isn't blooming yet... wonder if that's why they're on non-native Mertensia ciliata, which has been in bloom for some time?)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/theresaburg/4842334588/


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 06/08/2013 - 21:01

It warms my heart to be in the company of people who don't automatically think bugs are bad.

  That caterpillar is exception beautiful, too, Lori!

I've pretty much resisted the peony temptation, but it's really hard with those pics Trond, Lori, et al.
I do have some seedling P. ostii:

     


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 06/08/2013 - 22:13

RickR wrote:

It warms my heart to be in the company of people who don't automatically think bugs are bad.

What a great observation, Rick!  My sentiments, also.
The only "bugs" I kill are those that are attacking me - mosquitoes, horseflies, stable flies (though I sometimes feel a little bad about doing so - after all, sucking mammalian blood is a pretty amazing adaptation for survival!)  However, I have to admit to an unrelenting blood-thirstiness where lily beetles are concerned, but, given that they are introduced pests, I don't feel bad about squashing them!

Well, Paeonia ostii looks like a great addition to the garden, whether or not you're ever inclined to add others.  Where did you get the seeds?

Eremostachys speciosa; rather large for the rock garden, but I like it anyway - reminds me of a wooly Pedicularis.
   

Dianthus scardicus, from seed last year - dark buds followed by sugar pink flowers:
 

Paeonia officinalis was looking fabulous the other day:

First bloom on last year's Penstemon pumilus seedling:

Townsendia parryi - now fully open:

First bloom on last year's seedling of Silene nigrescens; I had a nice plant a few years ago but lost it - it's taken quite a while to get another one going again:

I got this as Saxifraga FJK 3... ??


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 06/08/2013 - 22:44

Ranunculus pyrenaeus:

Eritrichium pauciflorum ssp. sajanense:
 

Silene bolanthoides - this one looking very white:

Rheum rhizostachyum and dark buds of Campanula stevenii ssp. turczaninovii; Iris mandshurica; Androsace sp.; Arenaria kansuensis; Edraianthus niveus:
       


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Sun, 06/09/2013 - 03:05

Maggi - thank you for the name of the Matthiola. I bought a plant that looked the same or similar from Miroslav Stanek under the name alchemilloides which doesn't seem to make a great deal of sense, but intriguing none the less.

The crevice and tufa gardens in the Czech Republic were very inspirational, as was a trough demonstration that Vojtech Holubec gave. The stone we have is a little too bold by comparison, but this is a trough made up with some of the plants brought back: there are about twenty plants in here including Asperula boissieri, Salvia caespitosa, Convolvulus sundermanii, Callianthemum farreri, Crepis wildenovii, Androsace villosa ssp. glabrata, Veronica bombycina var. frederyana and Globularia incanescens. It will be exciting to see how these develop, and in the absence of tufa I think this will be the way to try growing a lot more of these plants. The trough is essentially filled with sharp sand with some 'clay loam' from the garden to fill the base and help anchor chock stones in the crevices. Probably some feeding will be necessary in time in the absence of a much more extensive root run for the plants, and hopefully they will give us propagation material and seed.


Submitted by RickR on Sun, 06/09/2013 - 15:01

That really makes trough planting easy for the uninitiated, Tim!
A simple thing, but it can be daunting for a newcomer.  Bravo!

Yet another round of really cool plants, Lori!  8)
Your "woolies" are amazing!

Lori wrote:

Well, Paeonia ostii looks like a great addition to the garden, whether or not you're ever inclined to add others.  Where did you get the seeds?

An advantage of having an all Latin list of trade plants/seeds on Gardenweb.  It tells readers I am serious about plants and not interested in the latest horticultural craze.  Consequently, when people want something on my list, I'm usually not offered a zinnia or marigold.  Such is he case with P. ostii.  I was offered seedlings of that (and Corylopsis spicata).  By the way, one Corylopsis was planted in the garden outside and didn't make it through the winter.  I am not surprised, but we need to keep testing.... !


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/09/2013 - 23:04

I forgot to mention, Rick, that the flowers of Xanthoceras sorbifolia are quite amazing!  Is it totally hardy for you?
What an excellent trough-planting demo, Tim.  Very inspiring!

A few more...
Pulsatilla vulgaris seedheads - a few plants are still in bloom, too:

Front yard, with Penstemon confertus, Antennaria rosea and Castilleja miniata - Lilium philadelphicum is in the background of the first photo:
 

Penstemon procerus:
 

Trough with Rhodiola rosea, Heuchera hallii, Aquilegia laramiensis, Saxifraga cuneifolia, Thuja occidentalis 'Tiny Tim':


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Mon, 06/10/2013 - 07:48

Lori, very lovely Penstemon procerus.  Do you grow P.p. formosus and P.p. 'Alpenglow' as well?  They do well here.  Do you grow Penstemon spatulatus?  The foliage is great, but it doesn't flower heavily here.  I may even resort to a little blossom booster (diluted) next spring.  That works wonders w/ Lewisia tweedyi and w/ gentians.


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 06/10/2013 - 15:45

Lori, I think that Eremostachys speciosa is a winner! No, they all are when I think of it.

Tim, you do have drainage holes in the bottom of the trough?

Rick, good luck with the ostii!

Paeonia obovata looks good now but the flowers are hidden somewhat by the leaves. The yellow tree peony P lutea var ludlowii is also in flower but not as much as last year.
A Meconopsis from seed (M horridula I suppose) and Arisaema elephas clumping up in the woodland.


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 06/10/2013 - 18:30

Xanthoceras sorbifolia is completely hardy for me.  Even the flower buds are unhindered at -30F (-34C).  It is susceptible to verticillium wilt, however.  Flowers are nice, but I don't think I'd classify them as amazing.  The centers turn from yellow to pink-red with age.  At the right stage, it is easy to see the reason for the common name "Popcorn" tree. 


Submitted by Lori S. on Mon, 06/10/2013 - 22:51

Spiegel wrote:

Lori, very lovely Penstemon procerus.  Do you grow P.p. formosus and P.p. 'Alpenglow' as well?  They do well here.  Do you grow Penstemon spatulatus?  The foliage is great, but it doesn't flower heavily here.  I may even resort to a little blossom booster (diluted) next spring.  That works wonders w/ Lewisia tweedyi and w/ gentians.

Thanks!  I had P. procerus ssp. formosus in a trough but eventually lost it:
http://nargs.org/nargswiki/tiki-browse_image.php?imageId=1384
I don't have 'Alpenglow' or P. spatulatus... I need to improve my collection!   ;D


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 04:52

Lori, I saw Penstemon spatulatus on a NARGS trip to the Wallowas some years ago.  It grows easily here and the foliage is wonderful and very low, but it just hasn't bloomed heavily for me yet.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 10:53

Trond - yes, one large drainage hole in one corner! (This was covered with some wire mesh and fine plastic shade netting). The trough is actually a lot more shallow than I would have liked, and watering will be the most important thing - but it is just outside the kitchen window in full view, so the plants will signal my neglect!


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 11:29

IMYoung wrote:

Gene wrote:

Linnaea borealis blooming under the firs, with Cornus canadensis in front and Disporum hookeri in back:

The Cornus and Disporum were grown from seed.  Linnaea is one of the few plants that I start from cuttings, since I can never find the ripe seed.

Drat! And I was just about to send you a begging  letter for seed!  :'(

M

If you haven't got some seed/cuttings sorted out yet, Maggi, I can offer some - no flowers yet, so seed would be late summer, cuttings anytime, we have tons of it all over the property, including areas I try to avoid while mowing when they are in flower, but don't always succeed..


Submitted by Botanica on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 12:22

Very nice Michael J Campbell  :)

I've my first flowering of this Cyp this year

If you've other cyp flowering picture . i hope you share with us...because i'm cypripedium addict  ;D ;)


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 15:23

Love the cypripediums.  I don't even think of growing them here.
A few pictures of things in bloom now.  The area called "the jumble" is right next to the driveway.  My snowplower is devoted to his task, so devoted that he removes many plants every year, no matter where I place the markers.  I've learned to put the treasures higher up where he can't reach them.  In this area you will see arenarias, Iris tectorum, self-sown dianthus, two forms of Anthyllis vulneraria that have produced many inbetween forms and colors, Ononis, coronilla, symphyandras,
phlox douglasia - all have blended together.

(Moderator: added names of 3 plants so they can found in a search)
Lomatium grayi
Moltkia petraea
Centaurea biokevensis


Submitted by Mark McD on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 17:38

Michael, I had moved/merged you post in the 2011 version of this topic to this 2013 version, but see that you added the posts here once you spotted the issue.  A lovely Cyp, I do love these and must try more of them.

Anne, love the foliage mound on Lomatium grayi; really eye-catching.  And of course, I'm envious of such a nice clump of Moltkia petraea, not sure why but I invariably lose any Moltkia I have ever tried.


Submitted by Gene Mirro on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 17:48

cohan wrote:

If you haven't got some seed/cuttings sorted out yet, Maggi, I can offer some - no flowers yet, so seed would be late summer, cuttings anytime, we have tons of it all over the property, including areas I try to avoid while mowing when they are in flower, but don't always succeed..

How do you identify and collect the seed?  I've watched the capsules as they ripen, and I can't figure it out.  Maybe they weren't getting pollinated and weren't setting seed.


Submitted by cohan on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 23:50

I haven't done it yet, Gene- so I hope I can arrange it...lol if need be I will ask Kristl for advice, as I know she collects it- I think I remember mention of tiny burrs.. I know a casual glance didn't show obvious seed, but I've never really tried as they pretty much occupy all suitable habitat here!
I'll take some pics when the time comes..


Submitted by Mark McD on Sat, 06/15/2013 - 08:03

In reply to by Michael J Campbell

Michael, that's a knock-out beauty.  When I saw this posted on facebook, I said "WOW!".  I doubt this would be hardy in northern North American gardens, looks like a great subject for growing in a greenhouse, how much cold does it take in Ireland?


[quote=Michael J Campbell]

Frost hardy to -4c but I grow it in the greenhouse because of the wet climate here.

[/quote]

 

Thanks Michael, 25 F is just a smidge below freezing, we get much colder for longer periods of time, so a Pimelia of any sort is only suitable to a greenhouse, but the one you show is certainly worth the effort.


[quote=Spiegel]

Lori, I saw Penstemon spatulatus on a NARGS trip to the Wallowas some years ago.  It grows easily here and the foliage is wonderful and very low, but it just hasn't bloomed heavily for me yet.

[/quote]

 

Well, after saying I didn't have Penstemon spatulatus, guess what I find this evening as I'm updating maps and pulling out plant markers?  Turns out I bought it at the CRAGS spring plant sale from Beaver Creek this year.  Good grief, if only my memory still worked! 

A few things in the garden...

Ranunculus gramineus; Veronica gentianoides; Doronicum orientale and Geum x borisii; Rosa primula; Antennaria umbrinella alongside the rock garden; Aquilegia canadensis or a hybridized version now, possibly; Alyssum wulfenianum; Valeriana montana; Ajuga reptans cv.; Trollius 'Orange Princess'; Clematis alpina 'Willy' (pink) and self-seeded blue; Achillea ageratifolia; Euphorbia sp..

 

Edit:  Looks like one can post more than 10 photos now... interesting.

Ranunculus gramineus
Veronica gentianoides
Doronicum orientale and Geum x borisii
Rosa primula
Antennaria umbrinella
Aquilegia canadensis or possible hybrids thereof
Alyssum wulfenianum
Valeriana montana
Ajuga reptans cv.
Trollius 'Orange Princess'
Clematis alpina 'Willy' and self-seeded blue Clematis alpina
Achillea ageratifolia
Euphorbia sp.

Submitted by Michael J Campbell on Sun, 06/16/2013 - 07:09

In reply to by Lori S.

Ophrys apifera x 2

Paeonia lactiflora 'Bowl of Beauty'

 

Ophrys apifera
Ophrys apifera
Paeonia lactiflora 'Bowl of Beauty'

Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/16/2013 - 21:46

In reply to by Michael J Campbell

That orchid is fabulous, Michael!  

Some rose pix from the greenhouse...

'Rio Samba'; gigantic flowers (up to 3" deep and 6" across) on 'Dolly Parton' - as flamboyant as its namesake; 'Sheila's Perfume'; 'Full Sail' has been incredible this season - its first flush has had over 100 flowers.  These are very fragrant (with the exception of 'Rio Samba').

 

 


A lot of nice plants, Lori and Michael!

Embothrium coccineum.

This one is from the garden of a friend of me. He collected seed himself in Patagonia. I got the seed and he got some plants from me. This is the best one in his garden. It has withstood the 3 bad years now without a single harmed leaf.


Lori, I hope neither you nor your garden have suffered any harm in the flooding!

3 plants from my garden today - I wont bother you with all the different rhododendrons still in flower!

Clintonia borealis andrewsiana - a bit late

Arisaema elephas(?) two specimens slightl different in the leaves

Meconopsis sp, a very prickly one too


Trond, I like the Embothrium coccineum, although I doubt it would be hardy here.  On the Clintonia, I think you meant to label it C. andrewsiana, borealis is a light greenish yellow color.


Mark, thank you! It certainly is Clintonia andrewsiana, of course. I don't even have borealis in my garden.

Neither do I think Embohtrium is hardy for you - we have lost most plants during the two last very cold winters. But you have more summer heat, maybe that will compensate a bit.


[quote=Hoy]

Lori, I hope neither you nor your garden have suffered any harm in the flooding! [/quote]

No, thank heavens, we are up high above the river floodplains!  Quite an amazing thing and I feel very sorry for all those affected (and extremely fortunate, needless to say.)  I'm waiting around to see if any communications come out from my employers downtown on what the plan is for Monday - can't imagine the building will be accessible,and i"m pretty sure it will be a "work from home" day, if any instructions do come out.  It's incredible to imagine the destruction to peoples' homes and office buildings and infrastructure (roads and bridges)... very sad and shocking.

Well, I was going to post some pics from the yard but I keep getting an error message so will try again later. 

Edit:  It looks like one photo did post... Castilleja miniata with Salvia pratensis.

 

 


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/23/2013 - 21:54

In reply to by Lori S.

A few more...

Ixiolirion tataricum - my one and only! 

 

Zigadenus elegans; Helenium hoopesii;  Salvia jurisicii (x2) - funny upside-down flowers!

        

Native Geranium viscosissimum and Geranium richardsonii (rather slow to get established): 

   

Cypripedium parviflorum seedlings, rescued from the front yard last year; Delosperma congestum (or whatever the very hardy yellow one is);  Erysimum capitatum, from seed this year:

         

 

 

 


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 06/23/2013 - 22:23

In reply to by Lori S.

Sisyrinchium montanum is a beautiful wildflower that can get quite full and robust in the garden (much moreso than is typical in nature)... this is not the best example (though it was the best picture!)  The petals become recurved in full bloom and in full sun.

Dracocephalum nutans; Veronica austriaca var. teucrium;  Hedysarum boreale... which I was surprised to find is very pleasantly fragrant!

     

Geranium sanguineum... lots of these throughout the yard, and they are welcome!

 

 


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Mon, 06/24/2013 - 00:34

Here we are in the Dolomites and we woke up this morning to a pea soup fog (I thought).  Actually, it's snowing!  So far not sticking to the road but sticking to everything else.  It will be  a change of plans for today.


Well, that's the mountains for you, Anne!   ;-)   I hope it clears up soon though so you can enjoy those views.  Please do post photos!  I would love to see them.  I'm not sure how our hiking plans will play out this summer with so many bridges washed out on the highways in to the mountain parks (a minor complaint, needless to say, compared to the situations of those who have suffered flood damage to their homes, though).

A few things from the yard, in the first burst of bloom on the perennials:

Iris versicolor; Echium russicum (soundly perennial here); Silene uniflora (x2) - pinkish and white among the self-seeded multitudes:

         

Silene zawadskii (x2) - I love this plant!  It's tough as nails and takes all conditions.

   

Anemone canadensis... horribly invasive but tough and beautiful.  I thought I'd finally get rid of it this year but now I'm wavering again... as it silently invades under the plastic barrier, past the fence line and into the inner yard... 

Update on mountain lily, Ixiolirion tataricum:

Hemerocallis flava - very fragrant:

The start of bloom on Verbascum x phoenicium:


Submitted by RickR on Wed, 06/26/2013 - 23:02

I don't have any constantly moist areas in my yard.  In the wild, Styrax americanus grows in the flood plains, but it does okay here, too.  This exceptionally rainy spring has produced flowers that are 50% larger than usual.  This shrubby little American Snowbell is from a disjunct population in Illinois, at the northernmost site of its geographic distribution.

         

 

Abelia mosanensis - nice fragrance

         

 

A Hemerocallis sp., Coryphantha vivipara.  My two Agave parryi from Flagstaff, AZ didn't make it through the winter here.  (Photo taken in April.)  I'll try again under the rainshadow of the house roof.

                   

 

Phyteuma orbiculare

                   

 

Gladiolus atroviolaceus .  And this will be a good year for Verbascum nigrum.

     


Every year is a good year for Verbascum nigrum in my yard! ;-)  (I'm always thinning out the self-seeded hordes... I do love to have it around, nonetheless.)  I'm also struck by how much more advanced your season is compard to ours... V. nigrum is weeks from blooming here.  

I've not yet had any success at wintering over the hardy gladiolas, unfortunately, so very  well done, Rick!

Rosa spinosissima is spectacular right now and very fragrant (funny, I didn't used to notice the fragrance from it) - the bees are having a lovely time in it:

   

Eremurus himalaicus;  Athamanta turbith ssp. haynaldii - does this thing have a common name?

    

View from below of Caragana arborescens 'Walker' on a high graft (DH likes to refer to this as "the acacia" - yes, he does know better!!!)


May i say you do have some beautiful plants Lori, grown beautifully.

Your Eremurus himalaicus is looking superb. We have a number of Eremurus sp. in the garden and are very keen to add more. Unfortunately, although they grow each year and seem healthy enough, they stubbornly refuse to flower. Any cultivation tips would be very much appreciated. :-)


Thank you, Ron!

I"m sure no expert at growing Eremurus - the one shown is crammed in under the canopy of a sour cherry tree and is leaning out to the light.  I had some nice Eremurus stenophyllus that bloomed nicely with multiple flower stalks for many years, until they eventually got too shaded.  They didn't like being moved - darned brittle roots.  So, I guess all I can recommend from my limited experience is probably full sun.  Hmm, now there's a thought.... if we dig out the Diervilla lonicera (that has gotten to be a bit of a bore with its suckering habit), it would create a nice, open, sunny spot for me to grow Eremurus... 

Some of the alpines are charming but here's the cutest thing we've ever seen in the garden... a northern saw-whet owl.

.

These little guys are 8" from stem to stern, and are amazingly tame.  This one is resting in a pear tree after lunching on a mouse... his(her?) digestive ruminations don't seem to be disturbed by the squawk and flutter of the grackles and robins, who occasionally remember he is still there and come back to shout at him.


Submitted by Longma on Mon, 07/01/2013 - 12:57

In reply to by Lori S.

Thanks for the advice Lori. Our plants are on a slight slope facing South so get whatever sun we get, so I'm not sure that is 100% of the answer for us. Do they flower each year for you? Do you feed them in any way? Good luck with the new plantings! :-)

What a most magical garden guest! She/ he does indeed look very relaxed and 'au fait' with the environment you provide. Do they nest on your land?


In my limited experience, they have flowered each year from the start, up until getting excessively shaded (or at least that was my diagnosis at the time).  The only fertilizing that's done here is one or two applications of lawn fertilizer in the spring, timed to be just before the rains, and broadcast over all.  No fuss.

No, the saw-whet owl is just a visitor to our yard and we've never seen one here before.  I wonder if it was possibly driven to look for new feeding grounds by the flooding along the forested riparian areas?

 


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 07/01/2013 - 23:47

The Northern Saw-whet owl is really precious!  I saw my first Snowy owl just in the past year.  Very impressive, but I'm not sure which I'd like to see more.

 

Echium russicum seems to be a short lived perrenial here, lasting 3-5 years.  Only one has returned after these big hurrah last season.

         

More in the garden....

Digitalis lanata and Digitalis lutea? (well, it's not D. ferruginea that I received the seed as).

                   

 

A better pic of Gladiolus atroviolaceus


Very nice, Rick.  Your Echium russicum are so nicely upright - mine are always curved.

The result of two different storms (each with about 4 inches of rain) is that my giant perennials are even bigger than usual... Here's Persicaria polymorpha, reaching for the sky:

Oriental poppy, 'Allegro':

A variety of colours on the hybrid tea rose 'Rio Samba':

Geranium x magniflorum and Gillenia trifoliata (that's the old name, I know):

Clematis recta... nicely fragrant; looks like I will need to reef it up again to keep it from flopping over on the peony;

  

Penstemon x barbatus have self-seeded throughout the yard (which is delightful!) and are starting to bloom:


Very nice, Rick and Lori.

Echium is a genus which don't like my humid climate at home.

Your Clematis recta is very showy, Lori, and way earlier than mine!


[quote=Hoy]

Your Clematis recta is very showy, Lori, and way earlier than mine!

[/quote]

Do you have the "plain" species or a cultivar?  Clematis recta 'Purpurea' is very attractive... though I don't think I need another.   (These rambling clematis force me to do more work than I'm naturally inclined to... ;-)  )   Are there other cultivars that are available in Europe.... or here?  'Purpurea' is the only one I'm even aware of.

 


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 07/04/2013 - 11:47

In reply to by Lori S.

[quote=Lori S.]

 

Hoy wrote:

Your Clematis recta is very showy, Lori, and way earlier than mine!

Do you have the "plain" species or a cultivar?  Clematis recta 'Purpurea' is very attractive... though I don't think I need another.   (These rambling clematis force me to do more work than I'm naturally inclined to... ;-)  )   Are there other cultivars that are available in Europe.... or here?  'Purpurea' is the only one I'm even aware of.

 

[/quote]

I am not aware of any other than 'Purpurea' either but I haven't checked for a while. But I think there exist some seedlings around.


Submitted by Hoy on Thu, 07/04/2013 - 11:51

In reply to by Hoy

A few from my garden today:

An unknown Arisaema, two different Meconopsis horridula from the same seed batch, and n unknown Saxifraga on my roof.


Beautiful!  I used to try to grow Meconopsis but have given it up... too dry in my yard and I'm too lazy to provide the conditions needed.

Loads of Aquilegia, which tend to have a wonderfully long bloom period here.... bi-coloured seedlings of every description from a long past planting of 'McKana Hybrids' and various other mutts including some infused with Semiaquilegia ecalcarata genes:

 


Trying to post more Aquilegia... it seems I passed the mysterious limit beyond which photos can't be expanded in the above post, so here's continuing on...

Hieracium villosum:

 


Some really pretty McMutt columbines there Lori, I like them. The one I wanted to see the most, the one with your hand holding a columbine bloom (perhaps to compare) to the other smaller blooms nearby, doesn't enlarge.  Your Campanula rotundifolia also seem to be in a range of colors, what a fun garden playground you have!


[quote=Mark McD]

Some really pretty McMutt columbines there Lori, I like them. The one I wanted to see the most, the one with your hand holding a columbine bloom (perhaps to compare) to the other smaller blooms nearby, doesn't enlarge.  [/quote]

That's funny, it does enlarge for me, oddly enough.  Here it is again... unfortunately, this is a bad, fuzzy photo but I added a slightly better one from last year of these somewhat unusually-coloured orange "mutt" columbines:

   

I planted Aquilegia shockleyi in this area in 2006 and I think these plants are showing some influence from it:

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aquilegia_shockleyi_1.jpg


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 07/08/2013 - 00:07

In reply to by Lori S.

Lori, I think Mark means the fourth picture in your next to last post. It doesn't enlarge for me either!

You certainly have a collection of aquilegias! But they do easily hybridize, don't they?

 


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 07/08/2013 - 21:29

In reply to by Lori S.

[quote=Lori S.]

 

Mark McD wrote:

Some really pretty McMutt columbines there Lori, I like them. The one I wanted to see the most, the one with your hand holding a columbine bloom (perhaps to compare) to the other smaller blooms nearby, doesn't enlarge.  

That's funny, it does enlarge for me, oddly enough.  Here it is again... unfortunately, this is a bad, fuzzy photo but I added a slightly better one from last year of these somewhat unusually-coloured orange "mutt" columbines:

[/quote]

I am glad you said that, Lori. When Mark mentioned it didn't enlarge for him, I tried, and all of your pics enlarged for me.  But I thought maybe you had gone back and fixed it, so I didn't say anything.  But now I know you didn't.

I started to grow lots of different columbines, but I soon found that the Columbine leafminer and those tiny caterpillars that devour the leaves were too much to deal with. So I grow very few now.  But this past winter (once again) was strange, and though not particularly cold, not a one of those pests has surfaced, anywhere!


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 07/08/2013 - 21:43

Some columbine hybrids, heavy on the Aquilegia kuhistanica....

         

Auilegia caerulea hybrid

     

Tulipa urmiensis bulbs, second year from seed.  Yes, they're pretty small, but they were only growing in a 1.5 inch pot!

                          


Sorry, Mark... I thought you were referring to the orange columbine photo.  In trying to respond to your concern, I reposted the one photo, then added another clearer one,  although I see that one of them is not loading now for some reason.

This was different than the first time I exceeded whatever the limit is for embedded photos.  That time, the later photos in the list would not enlarge.  This time, it was the first photos in the list that would not enlarge.

Anyway, here's the photo you noted does not enlarge (and it doesn't enlarge for me either in the original post... though I thought I had it corrected it earlier).  Uggh, it's all very confusing.  Spurless flower on the left of Semiaquilegia ecalcarata or hybrid thereof, and spurred ones on the right:

 


Rick, is this the real A. coerulea? I have never seen such long spurs on any supposed-to be-coerulea in my garden.

Without a scale it is impossible to say whether your bulbs are small or big! ;-)


Thanks for going to the trouble to repost the photo (which does enlarge, the original one still doesn't enlarge for me), lots of curious happenings with photo uploads me-thinks.  Both columbines are lovely, even though mutts, they are of fine form and color (I have a soft spot for Aquilegia) :-)

Rick, you dark color Aquilegia kuhistanica types sure are dramatic, very nice indeed.


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 07/09/2013 - 08:29

Oh THAT photo does not enlarge.... not for me either.

 

  All the others in Lori's following post work for me.

 

 


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 07/09/2013 - 08:43

Ya know, Trond, I though the spurs were extra long, too, although I hadn't noticed when I took the photo.  It is volunteer seedling not directly from the wild.  The only long spurred columbine that I've ever had was A. chrysantha, which grew on the other side of the house and hundreds of feet away.  But, yes I think there must be some infuence, then.


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 07/09/2013 - 20:47

On the subject of Aquilegia canadensis, as kids we called them honeysuckles because of the sweet nectar that could be tasted inside the "bulb" end of the spurs.

 

Do all aquilegia sp. have enough good tasting nectar for humans to taste?

 

And do they taste different?


Submitted by HeLP on Fri, 07/12/2013 - 06:13

Asclepias tuberosa nice red form, Actaea rubra f. neglecta and Mukdenia rossi

Actaea rubra f. neglecta


Wow, stunning, Harold!  I've just bought one butterflyweed and planted it in the front yard (a very normal orange form) - had a few of the garden variety Asclepias years ago but they seemed fairly short lived in my conditions.  Do yours get constant moisture?

Lychnis chalcedonica, pink form;  Allium; Astrantia carniolica 'Rubra' and Nepeta nuda; some of our few annuals, honeywort (Cerinthe major 'Purpurascens'); Verbascum x phoenicium and rugosa roses:

        

  

Ligularia macrophylla has been brilliant:

    

Campanula thyrsoides is starting to bloom - in my garden they are 3' tall, which I imagine is 2-3x taller than in mountain meadows?; Stachys macrantha; Anthemis carpatica; another shot of Persicaria polymorpha, Veronicastrum sibiricum and Lychnis chalcedonica; Veronica in the front yard:

      

  


Lovely Asclepias Harold. I used to grow a few of them in a previous garden, and you've reminded me how much I like them. 

More stunning plants Lori. Your garden must be an absolutely beautiful picture. We'll be tracking down Campanula thyrsoides  for sure.

In our garden today Gladiolus flanaganii is beginning bloom, and it looks as though it will be a good show this year.

 

Gladiolus flanaganii

I can certainly send you seeds of Campanula thyrsoides later on, if you like, Ron.  Just PM me with an address if you are interested.  

Your Gladiolus flanaganii are gorgeous - what a colour!  One I have tried unsuccessfully, but I think Rick is growing it?


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 07/20/2013 - 17:37

Yes, I have sprouted seeds of G. flanaganii three times.  They just might be the easiest Gladiolus seed to germinate of all.  The species is not hardy through my winters, and unfortunately, with my first batch I couldn't find the pot when I looked for it to bring in for the winter.  So it overwintered with all my other pots, outside.   My second batch I just forgot about and the same consequence ensued.  The third time (last season) I did bring inside, and planted them rather late in the garden and in pots this spring.

Second year bulb


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 07/20/2013 - 17:52

Really nice Asclepias tuberosa, Harold.  I've only seen shades of orange in the wild here.  While often brilliantly colored, nothing holds a candle to yours!

I find wild Butterfly weeds grow in dry or moist sand and moist clay based soil prairies.  Quite an adaptable species, although not to adaptable to transplanting, even at a young age.

Asclepias tuberosa and Amorpha canescens seedlings


[quote=RickR]

I find wild Butterfly weeds grow in dry or moist sand and moist clay based soil prairies.  Quite an adaptable species, although not to adaptable to transplanting, even at a young age. 

[/quote]

Perhaps it's not the dryness that resulted in them being relatively short-lived in my garden (as I've read that Asclepias tuberosa is supposed to withstand drought) as much as some of the more frequently-cultivated species being somewhat on the edge of hardiness here?  Oh well, this genus is certainly worth another try for me, in any case.

Gentiana lutea survived tranplanting from its dry spot next to a big spruce, and has managed to flower, after a few years of barrenness, in these moister, friendlier conditions... flowers are a bit "squinny"-looking this year (not as nice as I remember previously) but maybe it will recover with time:

Osteospermum barberiae var. compactum 'Purple Mountain', planted in 2001 and coming through every winter since (amazing!!), with a little guest seemingly munching on one of its flowers:

  

Allium cernuum; Scutellaria alpina; Scutellaria pinnatifida (formerly orientalis) ssp. alpina; Allium senescens (thank you for the ID correction, Mark!  I received this as Allium roseum years ago and didn't realize the error until now):

      

Geranium x cantabrigiense 'Cambridge'; Verbascum eriophorum x 2; Verbascum nigrum starting to bloom:

      

Erigeron glabellus; Linum flavum 'Compactum';  Dianthus deltoides cv.:

     


Submitted by Toole on Sat, 07/20/2013 - 22:52

In reply to by Lori S.

Good bit of colour Lori .

For some reason I've always thought Gentiana lutea was monocarpic , (goodness me where did i get that idea from !!) ,so after seeing your comment above i went and had a look on Wikipedia to read it's a herbaceous perennial.Duh !.Smile.

Cheers Dave.


It really is inspiring to see everyone's wonderful plants and garden pictures on this Forum.

Verbascum  has performed very well here also this year.

 

                                                                         

 

These Achillea millefolium have managed to spread themselves all around the garden, growing in many varying conditions. We are pleased they do, :-)

 

                                                              

 

Digitalis parviflora

 

                                                   

 

The Eryngium are beginning to colour up. Two of the first ones couldn't be more different!

 

                                                 


[quote=RickR]

Asclepias tuberosa and Amorpha canescens seedlings

[/quote]

Only one of the many Amorpha canescens seedlings I planted in 2011 has survived.  Now in its third year, it's only about 3" tall!  It's probably just as well, since I planted this one next to the tufa garden (with the idea of dotting them around to try out a range of conditions) - not the proper place for it if/when it decides to put on a burst of growth.  I'd best move it soon.

Love the Verbascum, Ron!  Is it a perennial or a biennial?

I weeded out what I think is a peach seedling... of course, I wouldn't know a peach from a palm tree ;-) ... can any of you from peachier areas confirm its ID?

    

After an extremely heavy first flush, DH's roses in the greenhouse are setting up again.  'Dolly Parton':

Adenophora remotiflora f. album, a rather spready and floppy thing, even amongst the competition in the border; Lallemantia canescens; Symphyandra zanzegur; the first of Delphinium grandiflorum, which will be blooming en masse soon; a white-flowered Verbascum, possibly Verbascum chaixii 'Album' but not sure what sorts of cross-pollination have gone on over the years!

        

Campanula persicifolia 'Moerheimii'; Potentilla fruticosa Abbotswood':

    

 


Submitted by Lori S. on Tue, 07/23/2013 - 19:30

In reply to by Lori S.

Please feel free to post photos of your garden or other sites here!  (In fact, I beg of you to do so... I'm getting tired of only seeing my own postings on this forum!! ;-)  )

Cyclamen purpurascens, starting to bloom:

And its arch-enemy (well, competitor for space and sunlight, anyway), Codonopsis clematidea, which would like to take over the area and whose seedlings I pull out by the score (I still like it though):

 


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 07/25/2013 - 01:26

Asian Arisaema are always late emerging for me, but this is a new record -

Arisaema consanguineum (I think), July 18th!

I had my suspicions when I found this unusual thistle growing in the garden last season.  Care to make a guess at the identity?

It is Onopordum acanthium.  Scotch thistle is a European invasive that has made it to Minnesota.  This is the first time I've seen it.

                   

One would expect the seed heads to be spreading the seed by now, but everything was still very tight.

  But I'm taking no chances, and it's all cut down and disposed of now.

Ruellia humilis, Stachys monieri 'Hummelo' and Penstemon pinifolius.  In the background you can see the Onopordum stem.

                 

I allow two bristly annuals in the garden: a variegated Humilis sp., and Borage (Borago officinalis).

It's nice to be able to nibble in the garden.  Borage flowers are edible and make a colorful addition to salads.

       

 

                       

Deinanthe caerulea and a new qcquisition from our Chapter plant sale auction: bought as Deinanthe 'Blue Wonder', I think it is just Deinanthe caerulea (a different form).  When I planted it, I pinched off the flowers, and it produced more!  They must have been so tiny that I didn't notice.

              


Lori, I'm taken by your white Vebascum, love the fuzzy purple stamen filaments.  Wow, you have Codonopsis gone weedy, hard to imagine as they don't persist in my garden, nor previous gardens.  I did grow the beautiful tall climber C. lanceolata for about 5-6 years, it never set seed in spite of fine flowering, then perished one winter.

PK, I'm envious of your Campanula incurva, but more so of having a waterfall feature as the setting.  Had impromptu waterfalls here a couple days ago, where torrential downpours washed away mulch and bedding edges with scouring rivulets, oh brother.

Rick, doing some Allium research recently, I was using the key in Flora of China, and they use the term "decurrent" in reference to leaves on one species (when the base of a leaf continues down onto the stem), and I was trying to think of a good example; seeing your photo of Onopordum reminds me there's no better example, if I understand the term correctly.

Is the photo of Deinanthe caerulea on the right the 'Blue Wonder' variety?  The one of the left is a lovely strong blue too. This spring at a local NARGS chapter plant auction, I got what is supposed to be a very pale blue D. caerulea. In bud and even when looking at the downturned flowers from above they looked plain white, but lifting the flowers and looking inside, they were a pleasant pale lavender-blue, wonder if it's actually a hybrid with bifida, the latter species I have plenty of.

The borage flowers have a delightful form and color.


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 07/25/2013 - 09:41

[quote='Mark McD]

Rick, doing some Allium research recently, I was using the key in Flora of China, and they use the term "decurrent" in reference to leaves on one species (when the base of a leaf continues down onto the stem)...

[/quote]

In the case of Allium, "decurrent" would be like this (?)

Allium zebdanensis

[quote=Mark McD]

Is the photo of Deinanthe caerulea on the right the 'Blue Wonder' variety?

[/quote]

The original owner told me he thought it is a hybrid (caerulea/bifida), so I thought it was a cultivar.  But he also said he got it from Plant Delights many years ago, and on their web site, they use Blue Wonder as a common name for the species Deinanthe caerulea.  It's a bit ambiguous, though.  So, it must be a different form than my other Deinanthe (from Chen Yi).  Both have single hairs on both sides of the leaves, and corymbose (rather than umbellate) cymes.  both of these characteristics distinguish it from D. bifida.  Whether or not the leaf is bifid seems to not be important.


Submitted by Lori S. on Thu, 07/25/2013 - 11:01

In reply to by RickR

Deeply envious of the Arisaema, Rick... and the Deinanthe (it's just too darn dry in my garden for them, it seems).  I had no idea hops came in a variegated version - would be nice to magically exchange our plain green one for that!


Submitted by Mark McD on Thu, 07/25/2013 - 13:25

In reply to by RickR

[quote=RickR]

In the case of Allium, "decurrent" would be like this (?)

Allium zebdanensis

[/quote]

No, I don't think so, just clasping or sheathing leaf bases.  Not sure what Flora of China had in mind applying the rem to one Allium species, saying that the leaves in Allium victorialis are decurrent, I just went out and checked three forms of Allium victorialis, there is no leaf feature that I would call decurrent.  To show a plant with decurrent foliage attachments to the stems, here is a good example, Boltonia decurrans (aptly named):

http://www.plantsystematics.org/imgs/robbin/r/Asteraceae_Boltonia_decurrens_35062.html

 


[quote=Lori S.]

Deeply envious of the Arisaema, Rick... and the Deinanthe (it's just too darn dry in my garden for them, it seems).  I had no idea hops came in a variegated version - would be nice to magically exchange our plain green one for that!

[/quote]

 

I forgot to comment on the Arisaema, as the late emergence reminds me of A. fargesii that I've had for about 10 years, the darn thing never shows above ground until late July or early August, then it's just one great big shiny simple leaf, never has flowered.

Regarding hops, just meandered down google path.  I thought I had "wild hops" here on my property, they climb up into some hemlock trees, an aggressive perennial vine, but I do like the drooping hops bract-clusters later in the summer.  I include a link to a PDF entitled "Are there really wild hops?".
http://www.gorstvalleyhops.com/pdfs/July_09.pdf

Yes there are wild hops, most of what is seen is Humulus lupulus (how many plant binomials can one name with 6 "u" letters?).  There is the European H. lupulus var. lupulus (found throughout N.America as an introduction / invasive), then the eastern North American Humulus lupulus var. lupuloides and var. pubescens, and var. neomexicanus in western North America.  Now I don't know if the hops in my yard are native or not.

Haven't heard of annual hops, the variegated plants sold as ornamental annual hops are varieties of Humulus japonicus, another introduction / non-native, found throughout eastern N.America. I just learned a lot about hops. Maybe I'll go have a beer now.


Lots of great stuff, as always! Lori- your range of Verbascums is very nice!

I'm so far behind on posting I guess it doesn't really matter where I start... here are a few random things from the last few weeks, if my connection holds out long enough to post any....

A couple of no-name (to me, at least!) peonies.. nothing special, and I doubt I'd plant these, but they are here and have some photogenic moments.

.peony   peony

Dianthus barbatus; I think I've mentioned these before- I believe my sister sowed these in semi wild grassy areas on the property years ago as part of a  'wildflower' mix. There are probably hundreds of plants, many of them in very large patches, but almost all in areas that are mowed, so not that many flowers, unless a spot is not mowed for some reason, such as near where I built new veg beds etc this year, and have some leftover piles of soil, sod, lenghts of young poplars that were cut down, etc, so in hard to mow spots there are some flowers. There are many different colours and patterns of flowers, most of them nearly impossible for me to get accurate colour reproductions of. Most of these should be pinker, and the darker ones should be much more intense. This isn't all of the variations, but gives you some idea.. I still intend to do a deliberate planting of these somewhere..

    Dianthus barbatus

Dianthus barbatus  Dianthus barbatus  Dianthus barbatus 

    Dianthus barbatus    Dianthus barbatus

  Dianthus barbatus  

peony
peony
Dianthus barbatus
Dianthus barbatus
Dianthus barbatus
Dianthus barbatus
Dianthus barbatus
Dianthus barbatus
  Dianthus barbatus
  Dianthus barbatus
  Dianthus barbatus
  Dianthus barbatus

Dianthus barbatus was one of my dad's favorite plants. He always collected seed of the best forms and sowed around everywhere at our summerhouse. They're still there.


Among the very first plants I grew from seed (besides zinnias and snapdragons) when I was about 8 or 9 years old, were "pinks", each plant would be a different color and pattern, really loved growing them.  Cohan, your assemblage of pretty flower forms with variable zones of color brings back childhood memories vividly.


Trond- seeing the toughness of these plants: many have been mowed over for years, which just expands the clumps, and as soon as given a chance they rush to flower. There is even one perched on top of a pile of sod removed while digging a new bed, a couple of feet off the ground and must be dry at times, flowering! So I'm not surprised they have persisted from your father's sowings..lol

Mark- the variability in them is quite impressive, my favourites are the flower heads with 3 or 4 colours at once, sent seed to a couple of people last year from one of those...

Another old garden flower, but this one I planted on purpose- Achillea millefolium; the white version grows wild all over the property, but I've long been charmed by the coloured garden forms, and started collecting a few over the last couple of years, Now I have several shades from a corally pink through pale pinks to a near/red. This year I got one that was missing from the bunch- in the more autumny range of yellow/orangey shades.. hasn't flowered yet.

 

Achillea millefolium Achillea millefolium Achillea millefolium

 

Achillea millefolium Achillea millefolium

And a different Achillea-  A sibirica var camtschatica; very different leaves from millefolium, a pretty clear pale pink, taller than millefolium generally is, also. The colourful background is thanks to the very colourful leaves (this year, on this plant at least) of Diervilla lonicera and a couple of species Violas. Still thinking about the best spots for this, I have it in a few spots- a dry area it does okay, but smaller and less vigorous, this damp spot it is a bit floppy and too close to the rock garden: have one kind of in the middle, it's just getting going there..

Achillea sibirica var camtschatica

 

 

 

Achillea millefolium
Achillea millefolium
Achillea millefolium
Achillea millefolium
Achillea millefolium
Achillea sibirica var camtschatica

Submitted by cohan on Sun, 08/11/2013 - 12:35

I seem to have a bit of an obsession with dandelionesque plants- I  grew a couple of Hieracium (actually 3, but sadly, realised that H aurantiaca is considered a noxious weed in Alberta, so no orange Hieracium for me :( ) and Hypochoeris from seed last year.

Hieracium intybaceum is quite a nice plant with somewhat hairy, nicely wavy narrow leaves. Tons of buds, but not many opening at once, or really all that fully- likely our often cool, cloudy, rainy summer is at least partly responsible for that.. 1-closer shot of flower stems. 2-shows one of the plants on the berm with Pulsatilla vulgaris forms, H villosum and Hypochoeris maculata. 3,4 -partial views of the berm, also visible are Geum coccineum, Portulaca oleracea sativa Golden Leaf, etc.

 

Hieracium intybaceum Hieracium Pulsatilla Hypochoeris Hieracium Portulaca Geum Pulsatilla

 Hieracium Portulaca Geum Pulsatilla Saussurea

 

Hieracium villosum is more familiar to many, but first time I'm growing it also. Fuzziness is great, and it has lots of buds, we'll see how many open at once..

1- buds, with Portulaca oleracea sativa Golden Leaf- seed bought as an edible plant, I also threw some seeds onto this ornamental berm, and glad I did- awesome colour and texture, really nice beside the Hieraciums etc.. 2- another shot of H. intybaceum, with H villosum behind. 3-full view of Hieracium villosum plants. 4- H. villosum buds with a visitor.

 Hieracium intybaceum Hieracium villosum Hieracium villosum

Hieracium intybaceum Hieracium villosum
Hieracium villosum
Hieracium villosum and arachnid
Hieracium intybaceum
Hieracium Pulsatilla Hypochoeris
Hieracium Portulaca Geum Pulsatilla Saussurea
Hieracium Portulaca Geum Pulsatilla

Submitted by cohan on Wed, 07/31/2013 - 12:55

On to Hypochoeris (looking now, I see it is more commonly spelled Hypochaeris, I got my seed from France, so perhaps the 'o' is more common in French spelling?). Trond mentioned last year that he hadn't thought of this as a rockery plant- and mine isn't really in the rockery but rather a berm that I think of as more for sub-alpine and meadowy plants (though some of them do grow to higher altitudes)- so it's not really in the rock garden ;) Seriously though, probably not cultivated all that much, but I really like the leaves, a nice addition to this planting which should have a nice flowering at times (esp spring with Pulsatillas and bulbs) but will probably be nicer for foliage texture and colour than anything else ..

Hypochaeris maculata Hypochaeris maculata Hypochaeris maculata

Hypochaeris maculata
Hypochaeris maculata
Hypochaeris maculata

Hypochaeris radicata is a common weed here. It is reputed to be toxic to horses causing a problem called stringhalt.  It is also meant to be edible( for humans) if you wish to eat plants containing neurotoxins No doubt someone will enlighten me


Submitted by ClifflineGardens on Fri, 08/02/2013 - 15:28

new forum is confusing...

 

Here's a view of my garden 'walk' in Chicago in early August...


Submitted by RickR on Fri, 08/02/2013 - 20:27

Nice pics and plants, GreenRoofer!  You've rebounded quite well.  And thanks for taking the time to learn the new forum format.

 

Phemeranthus calycinus flowers dot my potted menagerie here and there, too.  Yours seem very happy!


It looks like some of your pictures have disappeared, Cohan.  (I've noticed this in a couple of my recent posts too.)  It would be nice to see Hieracium intybaceum (I'm curious what it looks like)...  if you wouldn't mind reposting the photos?  (Sorry for the problems with the site!!)

Phemeranthus calycinum... Ah, of course, that's what that attractive plant is!  Looking good, GreenRoofer!   I tried Phemeranthus (Talinum) calycinum last year(?) and planted them in various places in the vain hope that a plant might possibly winter over in the right spot... nope.

It's Eryngium season here (among the many other things in bloom)...  I seem to recall scattering some seeds of Eryngium giganteum outside some time ago, after much frustration at not being able to germinate the darn things despite many tries!  Well, lo and behold... I had assumed they were just some self-sown E. alpinum until now.  (Looking more carefully, the leaves are a little different too.)

 

And speaking of Eryngium alpinum:

And what I've now decided is Eryngium zabellii.   (I've also called it E. bourgattii at times in the past, so please do tell me what it is, if you know.)


Lori I'll repost those later-in this case it could be a combination of my often poor internet connection (time outs and slow uploads etc) combining with the vagaries of the new site to make posting especially tricky at times.. Until then, the first pic that remains showing does show H intybaceum in front of H villosum.

The Eryngiums look great, extra nice to see several together, the descriptions would sound similar but the variations are very nice. I haven't tried any yet, but have had similar poor results germinating some other Apiaceae :( That's something I didn't think of when looking at a seed list last winter- I was debating between 2 rather similar plants- one from Apiaceae and one Brassicaceae- I foolishly chose the Apiaceae and it has done nothing from seed..

 

GreenRoofer- that is a garden walk you will want to take very carefully! ;) The plants are coming along nicely, great to be able to introduce some plant life to those urban barren spots... In most places I lived in the city, all my gardens were indoors..


I love watching the dozens of bees that are in this patch of Thymus serpyllum at any one time:

I'm pleased and amazed to realize, unexpectedly, that Ligularia flowers are quite fragrant!

Digitalis lutea:

Calamintha grandiflora is a lovely thing:

  

Lysimachia nummularia... a colourful groundcover here;

 


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 08/03/2013 - 21:42

Phemeranthus calycinus has never been more than an annual for me.  But I'll have it forever (or as long as I want it).  It seems to be a nice companion plant, at least for now, with my Eranthus hyemalis seedlings.  The P. calycinus seed begins germinating right about the time that the Eranthis wains, although they continue to sprout throughout the season.  I do have an unidentified species that overwinters sometimes for me.  These pics taken in September:

P. calycinus and Phemeranthus sp.

         

 

Eryngium bourgatii won't overwinter for me.  Tried three times.   But I have gotten it to bloom in a pot.  Exquisite foliage....

         

 

My Eryngium amethystinum kicked the bucket this winter, along with several other surprises.  But it did have a long life - six years.


Allium nutans; Stachys monieri 'Hummelo'; Verbascum nigrum; Dracocephalum purdonii(??); our native Ratibida columnifera:

        

Symphyandra hofmannii; Stachys minima; Clematis 'Hagley Hybrid'; Salvia nemorosa ssp. tesquicola

      

Mertensia primuloides; Sidalcea malviflora; colour variant of Delphinium grandiflorum; Allium flavum

      

Buds on Carlina acaulis; Artemisia longifolia; long flower stems on giant Aconitum sp.: 

    


Submitted by Hoy on Mon, 08/05/2013 - 15:05

Not exactly garden walks but meadow walks and wider on.

Thanks to a very warm July (mean temp 2C above normal) most of the clovers and the other meadow plants have finished but the  is as nice as ever I saw it.

 

 

Very dandelionesque but it is possibly two different Hieracium species. They are very frequent in the subalpine birch and spruce woods. The heads can be quite large and showy.

 

 

One of the commonest flowering plants up here is Linnaea borealis. Here is a pink form. A dragonfly rests in the grass. Seconds later it lifted off.

 

 

This moss (Splachnum luteum) is rather common where we went yesterday looking for (and picking) cloudberries (Rubus chamaemorus). The moss is called umbrella or petticoat moss in English (if you google the last name you wont get this plant!). It always does grow on old elk droppings and the spores are spread by flies. The spore-bearing hats smell the same as the dung.

 

 


The pine woods here are extremely nutrient poor and the flora consists of few flowering plants but a lot of mosses and lichens.

An old pine tree - visited by several woodpeckers, and a fallen one. Such dead pine trees are called "furugadd" in Norwegian and are very important for animals, fungi,  mosses and lichens.

 

and ants. The old ant hills can get more than a meter high, A moss and lichen clad tree stump.

 

 

Some lichens.

 

 

Rocks in the creek.

 


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 08/05/2013 - 23:30

I had forgotten how nice Allium nutans can be - a nice example, Lori. I still have an Allium nutans growing in a pot from another Chapter member.  It's seems quite adaptable since it still does well in the very same super light substrate that she correctly planted Allium daghestanica in.  Tomorrow I'll find a place for it in the garden....

 

The Umbrella moss is something I would expect to see from Dr. Seuss!  I'd love to grow that here, but if it grew rampantly, I don't know how I would stop it.

 

Tthe first flowering of Liatris cylindirica from seed, and when is this Silybum marianum going to stop growing!  It's 33 inches wide!  And nothing does better than a volunteer seedling - this one Penstemon hirsutus var. pygmaeus.

                         

 

Gentiana septemfida

               

 

Gotta love those curly cues on the pink form of the fragrant Syneilesis aconitifoliaSaruma henryi foliage.

                   

 

Nigella hispanica and Ratibida pinnata with Melica ciliata in the foreground.  The birds have found the Melica seeds tasty, so they've been nibbled on.

              

 


I love those moss and lichen scenes, Trond!

It's looking good there, Rick!  I finally have Syneilesis in bud this year and am waiting for them to open... I'll have to appreciate the details you show so well.  Saruma henryi is one I've failed with a few times, though they are hardy here, in the keeners' gardens.


Submitted by RickR on Tue, 08/06/2013 - 09:26

Some have difficulty with Saruma henryi here, also.  I can't say for sure, but believe it needs a drier soil in winter, although it appreciates the extra moisture in summer.  Mine grows in full shade, under a Chamaecyparis pisifera (tree).  With all the excessive rain I've had all summer, it's never been so lush or so floriferous as this season.


Nice to see everything that everyone is growing or seeing! Now that the long weekend is over, I'm hoping my internet will be a little better, maybe I can get some photos posted! First I'll go back and try to re-add the photos to the previous post where they disappeared- tried unsuccessfully yesterday..

Trond- are these walks from your mountain cabin? Linnaea is long finished blooming here, but our local Hieracium (umbellatum, I think) is flowering now, along with the ones in the garden. I wish the clovers would be done flowering- they will flower here till past frost- all european invaders, and extremely ubiquitous, among my most bothersome garden weeds...

Saruma henryi is looking good, Rick! I might have a couple of small seedlings, not sure- from seed several years ago, took a couple of years for anything to appear, still small but doesn't look like any of the usual seed pot weeds so far....

Lori- always amazing to see  all that you are growing, hard to believe that's on a city plot!


Rick, the umbrella moss needs fresh dung to grow! I don't think you have too much of that in your garden?

 

Isn't the Silybum an annual? Yours should have flowered!

Nice to see healthy Syneilesis and Saruma. I can't grow neither. They are immediately eaten by slugs and snails.


[quote=Lori S.]

I love those moss and lichen scenes, Trond!

[/quote]

Thanks Lori - I suppose you have similar scenes where you do your walkings?


[quote=cohan]

Trond- are these walks from your mountain cabin? Linnaea is long finished blooming here, but our local Hieracium (umbellatum, I think) is flowering now, along with the ones in the garden. I wish the clovers would be done flowering- they will flower here till past frost- all european invaders, and extremely ubiquitous, among my most bothersome garden weeds...

[/quote]

Yes, it is near our mountain cabin. And although most of the twinflowers are finished, some do flower still in the cool woods.

The white clover is no problem but the red (Trifolium pratense) seems to spread too much now. Hasn't been troublesome before.


Submitted by RickR on Wed, 08/07/2013 - 11:57

[quote=Hoy]

Isn't Silybum an annual?  Yours should have flowered?

[/quote]

That's what I thought.  I've never had them do anything different.

Then I googled the species, and found it can be annual or biennial.  So, I am hoping.....

 

More in the garden:

Our native Hystrix patula

         

 

Hakonechloa macra 'Albo Striata' sat for 5 years in the garden never increasing at all.  Then I planted a pulmonaria next to it, thinking the grass would never amount to anything.  As the lungwort grew, the Forest grass was somehow stimulated!  Now after a total of 13 years, that dinky little plant looks very nice.

 

Bouteloua gracilis from Minnesota native seed a few counties to the west, and Ruellia humilis.

         


Submitted by Lori S. on Fri, 08/09/2013 - 15:32

In reply to by Hoy

[quote=Hoy]

 

Lori S. wrote:

I love those moss and lichen scenes, Trond!

Thanks Lori - I suppose you have similar scenes where you do your walkings?

[/quote]

Yes, I suppose, so though my photos are never so nice as the ones you've shown!  That charming moss, Splachnum luteum does occur here, mostly in fens and bogs across the boreal forest, growing mainly on moose dung (according to Mosses, Lichens and Ferns of Northwest North America by Vitt, Marsh and Bovey - an excellent reference); apparently, there's also a red one, Splachnum rubrum - I would love to see either!

A few more...

Diervilla lonicera, in bloom and starting to turn bronzy; Telekia speciosa, an imposing perennial; Campanula stricta var. alidagensis, a very dry-textured, broad-spreading (in shape, I mean - it's tap-rooted) Campanula:

      

Yes, I know this is a weed to most of us... but, hey, it's purple!!  And I bought it!  (In the words long ago of a local plant retailer of the time, "If people will pay money for it, it's not a weed."  LOL!)   Plantago major 'Purpurea'; it's amazing how seedlings of this always turn up -  I let a few grow this year:

Update on Cerinthe major purpurascens, much taller than I recall from when I grew it long ago; Mimulus guttatus along the edge of the greenhouse; Linum flavum compactum

      

Time for the later daylilies now - 'Jersey Spider'; and a few of the poor beleaguered Asiatic lilies (damned lily beetles!) that have managed to put on a decent show -  'Honey Pink', a Fred Fellner lily; a nice, clear orange one (name recorded somewhere no doubt), though only one bloom; 'Rosabelle #2':

      

 

A couple of new ones... young plants soon to bloom for the first time.  Inula cf. kitamurana (seeds from Holubec, collected in Zhdanko, Sakhalin, Russia at 180m from rocky grassland) and Patrinia villosa (seeds from Gardens North):

  


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 08/08/2013 - 16:22

When I grew Cerinthe major purpurascens, the volunteers wouldn't sprout until August!  Then they were quite vigorous, but there hardly enough time to flower, let alone go to seed.

 

I had a really good crop of Patrinia villosa from seed, with lots to share at the plant sale.  Then I discovered the genus is the alternate host for daylily rust.  It is the propagules produced by patrinia that are cold hardy enough to survive our winters, so I decided to chuck them all.  But also, as I was growing them they were enormously vigorous.... so much so that I also wondered about their invasive potential here.  I also had seed of Patrinia scabiosifolia which hadn't germinated yet.  I understand it is eaten in Korea,. and I now understand how valuable it could be for this purpose.


Very interesting, both about the rust and about hardiness... I've found the Patrinia spp. I've grown here (P. scabiosifolia, S. rupestris and ??) to be marginally hardy and short-lived so far.

An update on Inula cf. kitamurana showing demurely-nodding flowers; Dracocephalum grandiflorum; Campanula x tymsonii; Dalea purpurea x2:

        

    

 


Submitted by RickR on Fri, 08/09/2013 - 14:56

Every one of those five very nice photos, Lori, enlarged except the Dracocephalum.

  Likewise in post #486, they all enlarge except for Linum flavum compactum.

 

??????????????????


[quote=Lori S.]

Okay, thanks for letting me know.  I'll try to fix both.

Edit:  Done, I hope... ?

[/quote]

Works for me too!

It is interesting too see what you grow in your gardens, Lori and Rick. Many are the same as I grow (or try to) but the reasons for failures are often not the same.

 


When the NARGS Forum got changed my saved password disappeared and it took a while to get a new passsword only to discover that the method for putting pictures on had changed as well.  I couldn't seem to attach pictures to the text.  I hope someone can talk me through it.  The pictures above are of Collomia debilis (just finishing a long bloom season) and Zauschneria californica 'etteri', a very splashy deep red-orange and just starting to flower.  It's the earliest of the Zauschnerias and the hardiness is still a question since last two winters were non-events.  Pictured below is the lovely Daphne velenovskyi 'Balkan Rose', starting to rebloom.


Mmmmm, Collomia - another genus to add to the wish list!

Things are looking great there, Anne.  Thank you for persisting with the photo posting - looks like you succeeded!

I can give you a brief tutorial here if you like:

Embedded Images

If you want to place photos amongst the text, click on Embedded Images, below the text box.

Then choose the photo from your hard drive (Choose File), and click Upload.  You will see that a thumbnail of the photo appears.  

Then the next step is to return to the Message box, and place the cursor where you want the picture to be.   Then go back down to the photo, and click on Insert.  The photo will appear in the Message box where you had placed it via your cursor.  

If it is not in the right place, you can click on the photo and move it.   Or you can highlight the mis-placed photo in the Message box and delete it by pressing "Delete" on your keyboard.  Then, you can place it in the correct position by moving your cursor there and clicking Insert again.

If you decide you don't want to post that picture at all, click Remove (otherwise the photo will show up at the bottom of your posting.)

You can see that once you upload a picture, an area below it opens up that allows you to "Add a new file".  So, this allows you to add your next photo.

When you are done, click Save to publish your posting.  Or you can click Preview, to look at it again first, prior to clicking Save to publish it.  In any case, you can go back and Edit your post afterwards (so Preview is not really necessary).

Image Attachments

This feature works about the same, however does not give you the ability to place the photos where you may want them among the text lines.  Instead, the photos are all just posted at the bottom of your posting.  

Again, Choose File to select the photo you want to post, then click Upload.   

Note that you will not see the photos in the Message box until you actually click Save to publish your posting.  Then, if you go back to look at your posting, you'll see the photos there.

Again, if you decide you don't want to post that photo after all, click Remove.

Hope this helps. 

 

 


Submitted by Anne Spiegel on Sun, 08/11/2013 - 13:37

Many thanks, Lori.  I'm going to go over the instructions again when there's more time.  It seems much more complicated than the old system.  Maybe that's just because I knew how to use the old system.


Yes, it is a few more steps, Anne, but I'm sure you'll get the hang of it after a couple more times.

Hosta 'Blue Mouse Ears'; Cephalaria gigantea; tender rose 'Amsterdam' and clematis; Campanula trachelium

      

Tender roses:   'Rio Samba'; 'Sheila's Perfume'; 'Golden Celebration'

    

Delphinium brunonianum; Agastache pringlei; a native Liatris... must figure out which; Campanula x carpatica 'Thor Pedo':

      


I did finally get the Hieracium photos (a couple pages back) re-embedded, but more recently the Hieracium intybaceum finally opened more flowers at once- and the plants have got quite large and sprawling- probably they'd be a bit smaller in  a leaner environment, but I expected them to get too big for the rock garden proper, and not enough gravel to make the berms that lean.. I don't mind them in their sprawling form, but may try some at the dry end of the property out of curiosity.. in the second shot you also see Geum coccineum, and Hieracium villosum behind putting on a nice show..Then, time to get outdoors and back to the digging!

Hieracium intybaceum  Hieracium intybaceum H villosum Geum coccineum

Hieracium intybaceum
Hieracium intybaceum H villosum Geum coccineum

Submitted by RickR on Sun, 08/18/2013 - 20:12

I am doing a little renovation, too, where the Kentucky blue grass had invaded a patch of Barnardia japonica (Scilla scilloides).  I know, it's not a good time, just before they are going to flower, but they will survive just fine.  So a few pics of bulbs:

         

And as I was digging around, I found this: a blue grass stolon had grown right through a bulb!

"Ahah" you say, "this photo is staged!".  Well, I hadn't realized it when I snapped the picture, but it does seem to look that way.....

But you're wrong.  Here is another:

Bulb roots are not the best.  The plants grow in dry, amended clay.


A pleasant looking plant, Cohan.

Good grief, Rick!  Shades of "Alien"!

Still lots of colour around...

Clematis 'Pamiat Serdtsa'; hardy waterlily 'Colorado'; Sanguisorba 'Pink Elephant'; clematis:

      

Hanabusaya asiatica, a Japanese Campanulaceae (x2);  blue grama, Bouteloua gracilis; Veronicastrum virginicum

      

Finally, flowers on Syneilesis!; much to my surprise, what appears to be a hellebore seedling in the front yard:

    

Just for you, Mark... (kidding!!) - Campanula punctata; I know it is a dread weed for you, Mark, but oddly enough, I find it pretty easy to manage here for some reason, and even fairly useful for dry shade:

Campanula sarmatica; Hosta 'Blue Mouse Ears':

  

 


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 08/19/2013 - 19:53

You still have lots of stuff going on in your garden, Lori.  (No surprise.)  I think you have a harder time with Synelesis because you are so much drier.  Mine wilt even before the species impatiens do.

 

[quote=Lori S.]

Good grief, Rick! Shades of "Alien"!

[/quote]

 

That's kinda funny, 'cause I got to wondering...   in the first close up photo, you can see the stolon had been severed quite a while ago, and I imagined the bulb keeping the stolon alive(!).  But no:  I broke the bulb open, and the stolon practically fell out, so I don't think there was any nutrient transfers.

 

Lori, your not going to convince me that you really think that is a hellebore seedling you photographed.... what is it?

Hellebore seedlings

               

 

Not to be confused with Angelica gigas

       

 

______________________________

edited for spelling


Rick, the images of Kentucky blue grass piercing Scilla bulbs is an eye-opener.  Now I worry I have much more to content with, on my large Allium garden overhaul (after 2-1/2 years of neglect and no weeding).  The primary invasive is from aggressive stoloniferous field grass (don't know what genus and species) that completely envelope plants; I've been trying to loosen soil and pull the horizontal stolons for years, but without success, the only answer is a complete and thorough spading.  Now I fear, I shall have to look closely, washing soil off of bulbs and rhizomes, to make sure it's not harboring a penetrating stolon like those that you show. Here's a couple pics showing just how engulfed in grass and goldenrod some of the Alliums have become, looks sort of like a high-grass prairie view... I have the work cut out for me.

 

 

Also beware of plants given to you.  I've received many delightful Hemerocallis hybrids from a friend who is a daylily hybrizer extraordinaire, but one such daylily gift sprouted with a perennial sweet pea (I don't know which one, let me know if you recognize it).  I have pulled the sweet pea sprouts endlessly, but the sweet pea nearly won in the battle, here's a view of the daylily dug up, with 7'-8' of sweet pea vine hanging on.  It had spread 7'-8' in all directions, a 16' monster.  The Sweet Pea roots were like giant twisting ropes, I'm surprised it didn't strangle the daylily to death, the sweet pea and the many seedlings now removed.


Submitted by RickR on Mon, 08/19/2013 - 19:55

And those were only blue grass stolons, not the real vigorous ones of Quack grass or other "wild" grasses!


[quote=RickR]

Lori, you're not going to convince me that you really think that is a hellebore seedling you photographed.... what is it?

[/quote]

I'll post some better pictures when I get a chance.  I'm pretty familiar with what's out there and with seedlings of same, but this one looks odd, which put me in mind of the Helleborus multifidus and H. caucasicus that are on the other side of the roses about 10 feet away.... beats me.

I haven't gotten the impression that Syneilesis has suffered for lack of water here (no wilting observed).  Maybe both the lack of wilting and the late bloom are due to the fact that my plants are all in part shade, rather than full sun?

 


Submitted by Hoy on Tue, 08/20/2013 - 13:15

I can't match the flower power of Lori but I can compete with Mark in weeds! Here is my former kitchen garden after 2 years of neglect. I had planned to do a renovation but hasn't started yet.

 

 

Most rockery subjets have finished their season and larger "cottage garden" plants have taken over like these.

Hydrangea aspera x2 The Hydrangea is about 3x3x3m in size now.        

   

 

An unknown lily                      Rhododendron bureavii brightens the shady woodland even without flowers

   

 

Anemone hupehensis is almost a weed but I like it!


Another weedy genus is Impatiens. I balsamifera spreads everywhere and the tallest plants are about 3m. I have another species or form, very similar to balsamifera but earlier and shorter. The unknown yellow one (neither noli-tangere nor pallida I believe) is more modest both in flower and size. They are all annuals - and I like them!

I have several colour forms of I balsamifera

 

 

The smaller form has only one colour

 

 

The yellow one

   


Adenophora sp.; Solidago ex. 'Goldkind'; Salvia glutinosa, a massive plant; Echinops ritro:

      

Late dayliliy 'Cherry Cheeks';  Sedum 'Frosty Morn'; Eryngium planum:

    

Seedheads of Clematis occidentalis v. grosseserrata, looking like they should be hanging from a rear-view mirror; Aconitum lamarckii; Aconitum albo-violaceus, a twining monkshood; Artemisia versicolor 'Sea Foam', looking to me like caribou moss(lichen):

      

Solidago 'Crown of Rays';  Ratibida pinnata; Carlina acaulis, now open; clouds of flowers on Gypsophila oldhamiana; Clematis 'Pamiat Serdtsa' with Telekia speciosa in the foreground;

        

 


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 09/01/2013 - 20:01

In reply to by Lori S.

[quote=Lori S.]

RickR wrote:

Lori, you're not going to convince me that you really think that is a hellebore seedling you photographed.... what is it?

I'll post some better pictures when I get a chance.  I'm pretty familiar with what's out there and with seedlings of same, but this one looks odd, which put me in mind of the Helleborus multifidus and H. caucasicus that are on the other side of the roses about 10 feet away.... beats me.

I haven't gotten the impression that Syneilesis has suffered for lack of water here (no wilting observed).  Maybe both the lack of wilting and the late bloom are due to the fact that my plants are all in part shade, rather than full sun?

[/quote]

Yeah, you're right, it's not a hellebore... probably a shoot of a nearby aster coming up and a case of wishful thinking.

Nice, Fermi!  


Submitted by Lori S. on Sat, 09/07/2013 - 20:39

In reply to by Lori S.

Rain, wonderful rain!

After a slow start, it's been a hot, dry summer with no significant rain since mid-July, so it's been a pleasant respite to have rain and drizzle since Friday.  Only an inch so far, but better than nothing.  After clear skies for so long, the cloud cover made it seem like 5pm when it was only noon - a bit disorienting, but then, I'm always wishing for more time,  so it made for a long, luxurious day.

With the end of the season drawing near, almost everything that's going to bloom, already has... only late TelephiumZauschneria and a couple others are still to come.

I forgot about these and was pleased to see them in bloom today - Monarda punctata

  

Clematis 'Blue Boy', needing a trellis now that the nannyberry (Viburnum lentago) has been removed for the sake of keeping the path open; California poppies; Gentiana clausa; Allium senescens var. glaucum (x2); Silene regia; Sedum/Hylotelephium maximum:

            

A bur oak acorn that the squirrels and jays missed...

What's happening in your neck of the woods?

 


Seems you still have high summer, Lori!

Haven't been out in my garden lately but last weekend we were at our mountain cabin. There it is already fall but a few plants still stand up against the weather. However, we had warm summery weather in the weekend.

 

Although Centaurea scabiosa looks a bit tatty it is extremely cold hardy and flowers until it is covered by snow. Unbelievable it is a lowland plant!

 

 

Galium verum is usually yellow but a white flowered specimen has showed up amongst the yellow ones.

Also Tanacetum vulgare is a lowland plant which tolerates the climate here.

 

 

Gentanella campestris is very variable in size - the tiniest plants have only one or two flowers but the biggest have many!

Castilleja miniata flowers for the first time! Sowed in situ (seed from Lori - thanks!).

 


Saturday we went for a trip to look for the colours of fall.

The dwarf birch (Betula nana) often gets brown or yellow but some plants achieve a reddish tint in fall. The common birch (Betula pubescens) never gets red but yellow or orange.

 

 

The blueberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) leaves often have a nice red colour. The red leaves of cowberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) is coloured by a fungus.

 

 

The winner in the colour competition is as always alpine bearberry (Arctostaphylos alpinus).

   


Rick- re: bulb pics- I took pics of various bulbs and roots when I was doing some planting last week, thinking of you, will try to post them...

Lori- still a wealth! We were dry mostly for August, but not as long as you, by the sounds of it.. and I definitely wouldn't call our summer hot..lol

That Artemisia really does look like a lichen!

Trond- your weedy garden pic definitely looks familiar...lol Actually the veg beds I planted this year, with the polyculture approach have had a similar chaotic overgrown look- more or less by design...lol

We were in the mountains last week- also looking like fall here at the highest points (fall seems to be starting early here too-maybe all the dry weather in August? and/or some chilly nights, but we had those even in July), and Arctostaphylos rubra was the most extreme colour there..


Several years ago, I received garden seed of several Pulsatillas from an SRGC member. There were supposed to be white, a couple of reds, etc- but of course with garden seed, you never know. They languished in pots for a couple of years before I finally got them planted out late last summer. Still small, several of them flowered this spring, just a few flowers; but alas, all pretty much standard vulgaris colours- albeit some a bit redder, and others lighter or darker- with varying foliage. Oh well, I like regular vulgaris too :)

Well, they've been flowering again since mid august or so- not sure if it's something about the weather, or just the fact that they weren't fully ready to go in spring, so had another go for fall. I was very pleased to notice the other day that I did finally get a white in the bunch :) Now I just need a real red, then on to some of the yellow species! (I've had seed, but no results :( And an average colour, these are from Sept 14.

Pulsatilla vulgaris Pulsatilla vulgaris

And from Sept 05, a paler, more open flower.. and Aug 26, a darker one..

Pulsatilla vulgaris Pulsatilla vulgaris

And a couple from Aug 21

Pulsatilla vulgaris Pulsatilla vulgaris Pulsatilla vulgaris

I think there was a redder one yet, but no more time to dig for photos now!

 

 

 

Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris

Hi Cohan, getting some nice Pulsatilla plants there. I only have one, that I grew from seed from a SRGC Forumist in Germany, it is P. vulgaris 'Red Cloak" or in German 'Rote Gloche', as it was sent to me I have it as 'Red Gloche', a bit of English and German combinedsurprise.  It's a really good strong red color.  I believe I still have lots of seed (I should check before I make the offer), but I'll try and find where I put it.  Interestingly enough, the fellow from Germany since lost his red Pulsatilla, and I was able to send him some fresh seed.

Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Red Cloak' taken mid April 2013.

 

 


Thanks, Mark- the subtle variations in my lot are better appreciated in a post like this, since those flowers appeared mostly singly over several weeks- not that I'm complaining for late summer/fall bloom. I'm hoping they will put on a nice show in spring.

That is a great red! The best I had was a slightly redder violet (I think maybe the dark flower in the post above was my reddest- at least I haven't found any other redder photos)- in spite of seed labelled both rubra and rosea. Interestingly, there was slightly different foliage on each batch, but the flower colours didn't come true. I may yet be surprised- I think they've all flowered, but I thought that before the white popped up.

If you do still have seed, it would be appreciated, thanks.


Cohan, I found my seed, send me a PM with your mail address and I'll send it along.  If any others want some, I'm happy to share.  And, since it's the only Pulsatilla in my garden, the seedlings should come true to color.


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 09/28/2013 - 11:07

Deinanthe caerulea flowers in early and mid July.   Seeds aren't ripe yet.  The dried capsules photo is from a previous year.

                                       

 

         

First bloom from a seedling Gladiolus flanaganii.  Not like it should be, but it's a start.smiley

 

I was weeding a few weeks ago, and found that Convallaria majalis 'Aureo-striatum' had set seed.  Wondering if it was even worth growing the seed, I decided to let it develop, even though it is a probable chimera.  I reasoned that since the cultivar is so prone to reversions and varying stripe color intensity from year to year and also (apparently) due to microclimate, that maybe such diversity might show in seedlings anyway.  Thoughts, anyone?

     

And who knew (at least not me) that the berry turns a decorative orange color?

 


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 09/29/2013 - 12:43

Interesting, Rick- the Deinanthe would probably have trouble setting seed here, unless it didn't mind cold- while still having some nice-if cool- days, we've had some good frosts- Rocky Mountain House - my nearest weather reports- have already had  a couple of nights of -6 to -8C, we are presumbably a couple of degrees warmer, but the really tender stuff is mostly done. Always fascinating to see natives/alpines etc still growing and flowering after those nights that turned the tomatoes, squash, beans, potatoes etc to mush.

The Convallaria berry reminds me of Maianthemum- their berries are green then very nicely speckled with dark , going sort of golden before finally hitting red when they are really ripe- and they ripen late in spite of early flowers.


[quote=RickR]

found that Convallaria majalis 'Aureo-striatum' had set seed.  Wondering if it was even worth growing the seed, I decided to let it develop, even though it is a probable chimera.  I reasoned that since the cultivar is so prone to reversions and varying stripe color intensity from year to year and also (apparently) due to microclimate, that maybe such diversity might show in seedlings anyway.

[/quote]

 

A lot of variegated Clivia are grown from seed.  Non-variegated fruit usually yields non-variegated plants.  Variegated fruit will yield a percent of variegated plants.  Some may be 100% albino and die.  Since Convallaria from seed is likely a more daunting process, you'll have to decide if it might be worth the effort.


Submitted by Lori S. on Sun, 10/06/2013 - 10:15

In reply to by externmed

Nothing much happening here... a prolonged frost Friday morning made for the following photos of, well, frost on stuff, I guess.

Hops; cliff green, Paxistima canbyi; fern, Dryopteris filix-mas 'Undulata Robusta'; this snowberry, Symphoricarpos x doorenbosii 'Marleen', has the most berries ever this year, which is still very few - sort of a pointless bush, really:

        

Ajuga reptans and a self-seeded Hacquetia epipactis; bog birch; twinberry, Linnaea borealis and a blueberry that has survived from an optimistic, long-ago planting; Betula apoiensis

       

Salvia tchihatcheffii; Arenaria pseudoacantholimonHypericum aviculariifolium ssp. uniflorum; Marrubium lutescens, looking like a terry-cloth towel; 

      

Geum 'Beech House Apricot'; Onosma euboica and thyme; Echinops ritro; mountain ash,Sorbus sp. or hybrid(?):  

      

More terry toweling - Stachys byzantina;  poplars in the park, against the autumn sky; colours in the front yard:

     

 


Nice shots, Lori- frost is always pretty, if you don't think about it too much...lol no point worrying about cold weather here anyway, there will be plenty... I'm not usually outside in early morning, but was out the other day a bit earlier, and saw some heavy frost on things that have been fine so far, though all tenders have frozen. Amazingly things that looked limp and (I thought) black  and covered in frost were fine later- like the sub/alpine Violas that have been blooming for months, Plantago major rubra etc.

A couple of things managing flowers in spite of repeated frosts:

Campanula Get Mee (portenschlagiana) boy do I hate florist names! This was just planted out this fall, and the foliage loss I think is still from transplant rather than frost.. Still making a few flowers...

Campanula Get Mee (portenschlagiana)

Received as seed of Polemonium boreale - it does look like some cultivars I've seen, but not, unfortunately, like the dwarf arctic forms I was hoping for. It's probably around 30-40 cm tall. I moved one from this rock garden (where they are way out of scale) to a berm where it will be more appropriate, and left this one for this year to make sure I got ripe seed in case they didn't like being moved. they've been blooming non-stop since spring. I also had a couple of plants in a more xeric rock bed, and those plants are maybe a tenth the size, but still generally tall and skinny, not low-growing like the beautiful plants you see in photos from Svalbard. Still, a great flowering plant for a different kind of bed.

Polemonium boreale Polemonium boreale

 

 

Campanula Get Mee (portenschlagiana)
Polemonium boreale
Polemonium boreale

Tomatoes, squash, potatoes etc are long frozen (though I still have more potatoes to dig), but some things in the veg plantings are still looking good, like lettuce, kale, gobo, etc. Quinoa is somewhere between, not sure if I will get a harvest or not- need to get them in earlier next year! I've been very impressed with many of the lettuces, which have been beautiful all summer, and still looking great!

Lettuce, Kale Lettuce

 

An Artemisia, probably Artemisia frigida, this one from Southern Alberta. It hung on in a pot for several years till I finally got it planted in a dry berm last fall. vegetative growth is quite low-maybe 10-15cm at a guess, but flowering stems are much longer and sprawling. Tends to be more compact in habitat, but flower stems are still longish there.

Artemisia frigida

 

Wild plants on the acreage, Rubus idaeus and a Ribes sp

Rubus idaeus Ribes sp

Lettuce, Kale
Lettuce
Artemisia frigida
Rubus idaeus
Ribes sp

Lori, fine frosty photos there, particularly stunning impression of Echinops ritro.  No frost here yet, the coldest it has been is 39 F (4 C), still sleeping with windows open most nights. Frosted Salvia tchihatcheffii and Marrubium lutescens look compelling as well.

Cohan, your Artimisia photo is a reminder to me, to grow some artemisia, love the silver or gray foliage on them. I like the informal look when the shower of stems flop about. I have but one very tall one, that I got at a New England NARGS seedling sale, raised from NARGS seed as Youngia yoshinoi, a Japanese relative to Prenanthes, but it turned out to be an Artemisia sp, tall stems to 3-4', and many danging "brushes" of a rusty red color and autumn foliage that turning orangish, debating whether to discard it, or plant someplace where it'll make a big perennial accent.


Lovely subtle colours there, Cohan.   I'll have to look up what "gobo" is and what you do with it!

That Artemisia sounds intriguing, Mark.  Could you post a photo of it sometime, please?

 


Okay, here goes, four photos of Artemisia - tall species (received as Youngia yoshinoi), photos are not very good, I know I have better pics someplace, but probably didn't rename them for searchability.

Artemisia species:
 

 

Also found in my images search, is Artemisia caucasica in Peter George's garden in May 2010, pure silver mound


That does look like a nice Artemisia, Mark, just in need of the right spot and/or companions.. If you are interested in frigida, I presume my plant should be producing piles of seed..

A. caucasica is nice too- is that the full extension of the flowering stems, or are they just budding?

Lori- if you haven't looked it up already, Gobo is the Japanese vegetable for (the root of) burdock, Arctium lappa. This is my first time growing it, and I have never eaten it...lol I have to remember to look up whether I am supposed to harvest this first year, or wait till next fall.. I don't think the roots are very big yet, though, from the bit i saw of them while digging other stuff..

I'll eventually post a series of the new veg gardens this year- they were fun to look at, but harvests varied-- I was trying the polyculture approach, and definitely wins and losses from that- just too much shade for some plants, esp since few spots on my property are really full sun morning to night. I'll need to do more studying and rethink some things for next year. Also, because I was building beds so long, many things were planted a bit late, and this climate doesn't leave much room to manouever  ...


The photo of Artemisia caucasica seems quite different from what I am growing under the same name.  Different forms of the same species?  Perhaps, although the inflorescences look quite different too.  Who knows?

Here's what I grew in 2012 from M. Pavelka seed (description:  "1700m, Ala Dag, Turkey; dwarf silver cushions, 10-15 cm, mountain steppe, 2008 seed").  The plant is 2.5cm tall, and the flowering stems are up to 23 cm tall.  I wonder if the "10-15cm" in the description was meant to be the plant or the flowering stems?

    

It seems lately that every time I look at one of my plant photos, I start to wonder if it's identified correctly.  crying


Lori, your Artemisia caucasica does seem quite different (and I'm loving it, what a great looking species), even the yellow discoid flowers are attractive.  I would err on the side of your seed source being of known M.Pavelka collected provenance; not sure what the source is on Peter George's plant is, whether collected seed of garden original, but I like both. Maybe Peter will comment on his plant source.  Cohan, since my photograph of Peter's plant was taken in May, the flowers are just starting to form, it might look rather different by the time the stems and flowers fully expand.


That's a handsome mystery Artemisia, Mark.  The stems look very graceful, and nice fall colour to boot!

I appreciate the info on "gobo", Cohan.  I had not yet looked it up. 


Submitted by RickR on Sun, 10/06/2013 - 20:24

Well, "gobo" was on my list to ask about, too.  Glad you cleared that up, Cohan.  "Gobo" doesn't sound very Japanese to me, though.laugh

Frost photos always accentuate detail, but sometimes you never know what details might be the outcome until it happens!  

Lots of great pics, everyone!  I think I have always missed the actual flowering of Artemisia frigida here.  It doesn't grow anywhere nearby that I know of.


Hi Lori,

that looks what I think is Artemesia caucasica as does Mark's pic of Peter's plant. However it's been grown in Australia as A.schmidtiana nana for decades! The true A.schmidtiana nana is apparently fully herbaceous while the imposter is shrubby with seasonal, non-perennial growth. Personally I find the flowering a pain in the a**! Because after it flowers the mat looks extremely dreary till it gets sheared down. I still love it because it looks great for the rest of the year and makes a great ground-cover for bulbs to grow through. 

Cheers

fermi


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 10/07/2013 - 12:36

In reply to by Fermi

Nice Artemisia, Lori!

Rick, I have tended not to pay a lot of attention to flowering of A frigida in habitat- I guess partly because the flowering is often spotty in the dry places I usually see it, the flowering stalks can blend in with surrounding grasses etc.

Here are a few views from the Kootenay Plains in Western Alberta, Sept 04, this year.

1) Artemisia frigida, Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Juniperus  2) A frigida with Juniperus 3) A frigida on a river bank

Artemisia, Arctostaphylos, Juniperus Artemisia frigida, Juniperus Artemisia frigida

4)A frigida again, in an extra dry spot 5) A different Artemisa.. I haven't looked at names, but I think this one also occurs over quite a range, occurring in one spot I've seen in my area. If I recall correctly it is a fair size in flower, and not mat forming like frigida..

Artemisia frigida  Artemisia

 

Artemisia, Arctostaphylos, Juniperus
Artemisia frigida, Juniperus
Artemisia frigida
Artemisia frigida
Artemisia

Submitted by RickR on Mon, 10/07/2013 - 19:34

In the wild, we have the same or similar to your last pic, too, Cohan.

  No idea what it really is, either.


I find the leaves very attractive, almost succulent.. in the Kootenay plains, it probably tends to disappear among a lot of silver plants, and the one place I've seen it nearer home they seemed a bit sparse if I remember them right.. should dig for a pic..

Hmm, so much for memory- this, I'm pretty sure, is the Artemisia closer to home, and in this pic it doesn't look anything like the one above...lol.. So either I was mistaken that I'd seen it before, or it was somewhere else (other than in the same area as the pic above).

This site is about 10-12 miles from home, but a spot with some atypical sandy soil and plants usually seen a bit farther west.. near Alhambra, Alberta

Artemisia Artemisia

 

Artemisia
Artemisia

A colorful combo in the rock garden - a late flowering tulip (labelled Tulipa aff sprengeri but not close!) a Californian Poppy and a Dichelostemma (possibly D. multiflorum?)

tulip, Californian Poppy and Dichelostemma

cheers

fermi

tulip, Californian Poppy and Dichelostemma

That's a cheerful grouping :)

On T sprengeri- any idea how large bulbs need to be to flower? I just planted some out this fall from seed maybe 2009ish, but having been left in pots and probably not fed enough, the bulbs were still very tiny!

 


What do you see on your garden walks?  

Not what I wanted to see today I'm afraid surprise. We've had some heavy rain and strong winds over the past few days, and one of our great old Willow trees had partially succumbed.


I'm hoping so Cohan, but since I took the picture the wild weather has returned and I haven't been able to climb in to check it all out. The good thing is that there are no buildings in that area of the garden so no chance of damage of that kind. 


More fall colour in some photos from last week and today - what else at this time of year here? ..... though its days are numbered!   Can't complain, as fall has been very mild and extended this year. 

  

Rosa spinosissima and Rosa rugosa hybrid/cultivar (one in the 'Pavement' series):

Orostachys iwarenge; Rheum delavayi, chewed by something - there seemed to be a lot more plant-munching insects around than usual in this warm summer; Eriogonum umbellatum; Anemone trullifolia v. linearis:

        

Primula scotica; Androsace sp.; Colchicum autumnale; Carlina acaulis (x2): 

      

Gillenia trifoliata; Rhododendron mucronulatum 'Crater's Edge'; Sempervivum in 'Schubert' chokecherry leaves; Arabis procurrens 'Variegata':

      

 


Looking good, Lori, lots of colour. The native trees here are mostly bare now (except tamaracks, which are the latest of the natives to turn colour and drop leaves), though shrubs etc still have leaves/colour.


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 10/19/2013 - 19:49

Oh my, Lori, how come we haven't seen that first pic vista before!  It looks as though you planned it for fall colors!

 

The three lobes at the end of the leaves in Anemone trullifolia v. linearis is pleasingly different.


Submitted by cohan on Sun, 10/20/2013 - 13:46

Some shots from Oct 09.. nothing has changed too drastically, except for most trees having dropped leaves... same things still flowering, mostly, though gradually declining with repeated frosts-- there had already been many frosts when these shots were taken...

I've mentioned this Polemonium, and think I've shown it? Received as seed of Polemonium boreale, sown spring 2012,- which it could be, looks like some forms, but not the nice flat Svalbard type, for example :( Plants are 30-40cm tall, and by the end of the season as wide, in this mesic planting, maybe only 15-20cm in a dry bed, and only a couple of flowering stems,  but still too vertical there. I'm moving them from rock gardens proper to berm plantings (and may try naturalising in a semi-dry spot) but left this plant to be sure I got seed (tons). the first photo I can find of it flowering is mid June, so that is over 4 months flowering, with no stop.. Too big for the rock garden spots I gave them, but  well worth growing... Hummingbirds were visiting this plant in view of my front window, this summer. If there are volunteer seedlings at the base of the rock garden, might leave a couple...

Viola elegantula; grown from seed spring 2012. Wow- these have been flowering since mid May, I think, and while not quite in their prime now, still flowering after numerous frosts and temps down to around -6/-8C. Hard to get the exact colour, it is a very red-violet shade. From a few small seedlings planted out last summer, they have grown to cover maybe a meter squared or close... In fact a little too vigorous for the rock garden proper (notice a theme here?) but I didn't have anything else planted in that area for it to overwhelm, so no problem. It will get shifted to a berm or base of the rock garden.. Not sure how perennial the plants will be, but there will be millions of seedlings for sure, even though I've collected quite a bit of seed. I didn't take any shots on that day (though V lutea is part of the mass in the overview shot), but V lutea and V aetolica are also still going- aetolica started earliest, in early May.

Viola elegantula Viola elegantula

Polemonium boreale
Viola elegantula
Viola elegantula
Viola elegantula

Submitted by cohan on Sun, 10/20/2013 - 14:14

Still on pics from Oct 09. Another one that has been flowering since June, though the main flush was early, and a bit of another stronger burst in fall, Penstemon procerus. Not putting on a strong show now, but still nice to see a few flowers.. The overview shot is after I cut off old flower stems to collect seed.

Penstemon procerus Penstemon procerus

Definitely looking raggedy here, but this self sown wild Erigeron philadelphicus ( I think)  has definitely impressed this year- funnily, it sprouted on the edge of what is supposed to be a xeric bed, but from this plant's success (prefers mesic-moist habitats in nature), maybe not xeric enough! In the wild here, these plants have a short bloom period in early summer, but this plant has been flowering for months, proving to be one of those that do much more in the garden than in the wild. Rather floppy, but I think among other plants of its height it would be better. Classified as biennial to short-lived perennial, we'll see what it does, though in any case, I'm sure I will have its progeny coming up by the dozens, even though I tried to collect as much seed as I could remember to.. I'll have to plant some in a more suitable spot...

Erigeron philadelphicus

 

Penstemon procerus
Penstemon procerus
Erigeron philadelphicus

[quote=RickR]

Oh my, Lori, how come we haven't seen that first pic vista before! 

[/quote]

Well, you have... not that I would expect anyone to remember from year to year, though!  cheeky  

Looks like the seed-starting has really paid off, Cohan!  There is still a little (very little) scattered bloom here - Phlox paniculata 'David', Geranium 'Patricia' and G. sanguineum, various campanula, Monarda punctata, etc.. Campanula persicifolia is one of the most vigorously blooming... I was actually actively weeding these out up until last year (sorry, Mark!) but they've grown on me again since then and I've appreciated them all summer and now well into late fall.

Here's another oddly late-blooming penstemon, P. whippleanus:

Another Arabis photo... just because I liked it.  smiley  The plain-foliaged one was bought as Arabis x sturii; however, I now see that this is an invalid name.  The leaves are similar to, though not quite like, Arabis procurrens 'Variegata'  on the right in the photo - wonder what it is?  

Geranium sanguineum... well-named... and Veronicastrum virginicum; some colour on Saxifraga cotyledon; Euonymus alatus; Colchicum 'Waterlily'... an old plant, but down to one flower again after a couple of hard winters:

        


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 10/21/2013 - 00:17

Thanks, Lori- I do have some nice things from seed, and those that have germinated have done so mostly in good numbers, though I have to say the percentage of species that have germinated compared to those I've sown is not so high as I'd like.. oh well, room for improvement!

I thought P whippleanus sounded familiar as a dark flowered species I'd looked at on Alplains list, but not got yet. He mentions the seed is from an extra dark flowered population, dark purple to black- check out his photo:

http://www.alplains.com/images/PentWhipple.jpg

That G sanguineum really is red! I have a G sanguineum album, which so far is only turning yellow...


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 10/21/2013 - 00:48

Now a few just for foliage colour..

Here's an irony- native Alberta Monarda fistulosa, but I don't see it in my area, got the seed (wild collected in Alberta) from Kristl in Nova Scotia...lol. The seedlings were planted out late summer, we'd already had some cool nights near freezing (but then, we did all summer) and they had great colour already, and still do many weeks later.. I built an area specifically for these (with some other natives), connected to other dryish berms and rock gardens for mostly native/nativish plants, where I hope they will establish a nice little colony..

Monarda fistulosa Monarda fistulosa

Sibbaldiopsis (Potentilla) tridentata; also from Gardens North seed, but I actually sowed this last year at least, but there was no germination till this year, rather late, when I wasn't even paying attention to that pot anymore!.. Just a few, but that should be enough to get a patch  started.. also planted in the dryish native berm area..

Sibbaldiopsis tridentata

This native does grow nearby- in fact my plant comes from a rescue on a bit of land between my driveway and the neighbour's access to a pasture- land that technically belongs to a road allowance, with no indications that road will be built (hope not). During roadwork nearby last year, a backhoe driver stopped in to ask if it was okay for him to park his machine there overnight- of course I have no legal right to say yes or no, he was just being nice, and I said yes, of course, I immediately went for my shovel when he left, since I'd been watching this Potentilla in that spot for a couple of seasons, meaning to get seeds and/or transplants from it- it is very occasional in my area, I just see single plants here and there, miles apart. Knowing he'd like destroy it driving over it, I dug up a good chunk of it and transplanted it to a semi-cultivated spot near the native rock garden. I think it is Potentilla gracilis.. this just shows a couple of leaves with nice, if subtle, fall colour. (the red leaf behind is a wild strawberry which came with the transplant, and grows all over my property anyway..)

Potentilla gracilis Potentilla gracilis

Another Rosaceae- Sorbus reducta; these are from seed a couple of years ago, I'd have to check, but they've been planted out I think 2 winters already, looking healthy, but not fast! I have them in a couple of different spots (at the drier and moister ends of the property) and not much difference...I'd estimate the tallest plants are maybe 15cm, 20 at the most..... It is a small species, but still has a way to go... Pretty fall colour, we'll see if that carries on as they get bigger... I'll have to show a pic from the other planting when I find it- those ones may be  even a slightly darker burgundy/plum.

Sorbus reducta Sorbus reducta

 

 

 


A quick change of hemispheres and seasons. Very much a contrast with Alberta.

Here are a few things I photographed in my garden yesterday. First a selection of Celmisias that are flowering at the moment; a hybrid Celmisia semicordata x C. gracilenta from Hokonui Alpines, Celmisia walkeri, a second hybrid possibly Celmisia brevifolia x C. hectori from Hokonui alpines and Celmisia brevifolia .

Celmisia semicordata x gracilentaCelmisia walkeriCelmisia hybrid C. brevifolia x C. hectoriiCelmisia brevifolia

Next,  Anisotome haastii also now in flower

Anisotome haastii

 

A specimen of Melicytus growing in a pot (not Melicytus alpinus but something else - it is a specialised form found in screes) It is also in flower but I doubt whether anyone will be able to see them.

Melicytus ' Ida"

 

Myosotidium hortensia the Chatham Island forget-me-not.

 

Clematis paniculata, a New Zealand native growing through Coprosma virescens.  It is quite common in the forests around Dunedin and is grown widely on gardens as well

Celmisia paniculata

Last perhaps a more familiar plant to many of you Rhododendron 'Lem's Cameo' just beginning to flower.

'Lem's Cameo'

 

Clematis paniculata

Submitted by cohan on Mon, 10/21/2013 - 11:27

Fun to see the Celmisias together, nice variations. The Melicytus is very cool!!


Melicytus is a very interesting genus especially the  small-leaved forms. Melicytus alpinus as presently constituted is a mixture of species none of which are formally described. All are superficially very similar to one another. I find the flowers are the most useful feature to distinguish them in the field. Melicytus 'Ida" is very distinctive - the branches ramify through the stones of the screes where the plant grows and form little clumps Other forms are shrubby here is another one I have growing in a trough. I picked it up many years ago as a typical example of Melicytus alpinus but it is not.

First a picture of Melicytus alpinus from near Alexandra in Central Otago. This particular form is dioecious and these are male flowers.

 

Melicytus alpinus

 

Next the plant from my garden. The flowers are hermaphrodite

Melicytus sp

 

Melicytus sp

Submitted by RickR on Tue, 10/22/2013 - 08:16

Wow!

 

Cool plant, Cool photos!


Submitted by cohan on Wed, 10/23/2013 - 01:32

In reply to by RickR

Very interesting indeed- and crawling through the rocks is extra cool.


It will be very interesting to see how Sorbus reducta does for you, Cohan.  I'm looking forward to seeing those red-turning-to-pink berries some day, as I'm sure you are!

Fabulous stuff, Fermi!  Love the Cemisia... and the Myosotidium (sigh!)... and all the other beauties.

After a truly amazing fall, there are still a few things in bloom here.  Tomorrow, however, promises a daytime high of -5 deg C, then overnight lows of -10 C for a couple of days - (Edit:   And I realize I failed to mention the best part, 10-20 cm of snow) -  so I guess we'd better enjoy these last few daylight hours of autumn!

Aethionema saxatilis ssp. oreophila - this particular plant has been blooming since at least June 6th - not a traffic-stopper but a pretty impressive bloom period.

Draba tomentosa - teensy, plant - the chokecherry leaf provides scale; fall colour on Arenaria kansuensis; late boom on our native Ranunculus  eschscholtzii continues;  wayfaring tree, Viburnum lantana:

      

Solidago 'Laurin' - some years these plants don't even get to bloom.  I know that some species of goldenrod are very invasive in the garden, but there are also many very garden-worthy, noninvasive cultivars, which unfortunately, don't seem to be very available around here any more.

  

Last, slightly freeze-dried blooms on 'John Cabot' rose;  Aster sedifoius 'Nana'; columnar birch 'Dakota Pinnacle' in the foreground and Swedish columnar aspens behind - most of the other trees are bare now:

    


Pretty pictures folks! However the antipodean plants, especially the Melicytus Ida takes the prize!

These pictures were taken a couple of weeks ago when we visited our mountain cabin. Now it's more wintery there!

A lonely rowan tree (Sorbus aucuparia) among the spruces and pines. The rowan is one of the hardiest deciduous trees here.

A huge specimen of Huperzia selago.

 

 

The goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea) has definitely lost its golden colour! The reindeer moss (so called although it is a lichen, Cladonia stellaris) doesn't have much colour to loose!

 


There are some columnar poplars grown around here- mostly in towns, but a few on farms/acreages- and they are one of those things suddenly more conspicuous in fall, when other things are bare and they are glowing- there are also some exotic willows used as windbreaks that are either still partly/green or in fall colour now, when the native trees which predominate, and other exotic windbreak species, are bare...

Nice little Ranunculus, Lori, - I guess that is an alpine species?

I am eager to see my little Sorbus flower and fruit- if it is smart, though, it will stay close to the ground, below snow level, keeping it out of reach of the hungry moose which ruthlessly prune most shrubs here, esp anything Rosaceae, with Sorbus being a favourite. I have seedlings of S cf wilsoniana, and will have to think of some way to protect them when they are taller than snow levels...

Our forecast keeps changing- they are now saying -14/-12 for Monday and Tuesday mornings, with 10-15cm of snow for Rocky (a little warmer and less snow for Red Deer, so we'll see what we get between the two...).. back to 9 by Thursday, supposedly.... I got out this afternoon to try to get some of the last mowing to pick up leaves done before the snow, in case it doesn't melt or doesn't dry...  I have some more areas I can do if I get a chance, but if not, the main stuff is done..

Trond, is that the natural spacing of the trees on that slope, or is that due to grazing?


Submitted by RickR on Thu, 10/31/2013 - 21:55

These first few pics taken 2 weeks ago.  These are among my fist pics with a new camera, so some are not as good...

Syneilesis intermedia going over, and Syneilesis aconitifolia just turning color.  I picked up my first cyclamen (purpurascens) at our August Chapter plant sale.  Didn't even expect it to bloom and almost missed it under other foliage.

         

 

These from last week:

Abelia mosanensis calyces, Euonymus bungeana 'Pink Lady' and Acer miyabei.

         

 

Chamaecyparis thyoides, Picea crassifolia turns more blue as winter nears and Miscanthus sinensis 'Klein Fouintain'

         

 

                                 

 

And whatever happened to the giant sized Silybum marianum?  Well, the first bud aborted in mid September for some reason,

and then it grew side shoots. Some bloomed, some still aborted (Oct 18).  It drooped after a 26F night, but then recovered.  Either the cold makes the flower turn white, or it's a white form.  This is from a different seed source than my previous (purple flowering) plants.

         


Lots of nice foliage there, Rick, and great colour on the Euonymus. I like the white flower on Silybum, too. A certain number of the Cirsium arvense here have white flowers...


[quote=cohan]

Trond, is that the natural spacing of the trees on that slope, or is that due to grazing?

[/quote]

The spacing is natural as the grazing is at a very low level these days. When my father in law was a kid no trees grew here at all. Changing climate and lack of grazing (and cheese-making; cooking milk to make cheese needs a lot of firewood) have resulted in a treeline creeping higher and higher.


Submitted by cohan on Sat, 11/02/2013 - 00:51

In reply to by Hoy

Interesting changes.. apparently, treeline- or at least woody growth- is climbing in our mountains as well, threatening wildflower meadows...


It is  shrubby areas with dwarf birch and heather which is occupied by conifers, the meadows are threatened by birch invasion (not that that is any better!).

 

Rick, I like that Acer miyabei! Looks interesting.


Submitted by RickR on Sat, 11/02/2013 - 09:15

Not all Acer miyabei have the corky bark.  In fact, when I first bought the ungrafted tree mail order and 3 feet high in 1996, it had smooth bark.  The first winter it died back to the ground, and the next summer when it grew back it had corky bark.  What a pleasant surprise!  As all Asian maples are, it is susceptible to verticillium wilt, which is native here, and it was atacked when it was 15-20 ft tall.  Since then, I'v been growing it as a shrub that I cut down every 2-3 years.  It has no fall color for me, either, so I can't allocate my limited space for such an iffy tree.  But the bark and deep, deep green foliage is so nice, so I keep it around.


Rick, I have no problem with verticillium wilt so far and I think I will be on the look-out for this fine species maple.

Winter is approaching, we are expecting freezing temps next week, the first so far this fall! Some plants are still in flower. Here are som pics from last week (the plants look the same today!)

 

A late flowering Japanese Anemone cultivar is still sparsely flowering. Cyclamen hederifolium among fallen maple leaves.

 

 

A yellow fruited holly with good crop this year. Rosa 'Flammentanz' with a late flush of blooms.

    

 

This Fascicularia bicolor is flowering for the first time. It is in a pot that I bring inside when it is too cold outside.


Nice to see the colour- Fascicularia is interesting- I'\d hav e to look it up, no idea what it is- looks  like a bromeliad?

Our colours are now reduced to shades of gray and mostly white! snowing again today, we have mid-winter amounts on the ground now...  this is one of the rock gardens in front of the house the other night... more snow since then..


Been a while since I've had a look at the Forum - busy through the summer in the garden and nursery. Still good autumn colours here with Cornus controversa 'Variegata' just going over, and Magnolia x loebneri 'Leonard Messel'. The second picture shows our small sand bed in the front garden with winter protection from excess rains half constructed. This allows quite a few more tricky plants to get through the winter in the absence of much snow cover - must give passers by something to wonder about!


I fixed it for you, Tim.  The photo had been uploaded but not yet "inserted" into the text.  If you go back to your message and click on "Edit", you can see what I mean - note the "Insert" button.


Submitted by Tim Ingram on Fri, 11/29/2013 - 05:21

Thanks Lori - need to get used to this new Forum!


[quote=Tim Ingram]

...............Still good autumn colours here with Cornus controversa 'Variegata' just going over....................................................................... 

 

[/quote]

Interesting to see your Cornus controversa 'Variegata' still has plenty of leaf left Tim. Mine, which is my only garden tree, is very nearly leafless now. It isn't that we have had a lot of frost, just a couple of early morning silverings of the car windscreen and all gone by the time I get up, but we have had a lot of rain and winds from the North

 


Submitted by cohan on Fri, 11/29/2013 - 12:08

In reply to by deesen

Good to hear from you, Tim! So nice and green there still, but I guess you will be through much/all of the winter?


It's officially the start of summer here and for once it actually feels like it with hot and sunny weather.

In the rock garden a lot of color is coming from plants from the Americas;

central mound

The main part of the pic is the yellow daisy, Haplopappus coronopifolius (syn. H. glutinosus) from Argentina and Chile; on the far left (not fully in the pic) the clump of Triteleia ixioides is still colorful while Triteleia laxa is the blue patch on the right;

Triteleia ixioides

in the background California Poppies provide orange and yellow,

cheers

fermi


Thanks Cohan - yes, we rarely have snow until after Christmas and then every year is completely different! Occasionally snow will lie for a week or more - so different to the conditions you and others in N. America experience. It's great to see those flowers in Fermi's garden, and a really striking overall planting. Our big project this summer was replanting an old raised bed - mostly with mediterranean climate plants. This has now been covered with dutch lights for the winter and we look forward to seeing how the plants establish next year.


Glad you liked a small view of our garden, Tim. we were very impressed when we saw yours in May! Will is responsible for design and I do the plantingcheeky.

In another raised bed there is a nice conglomeration of late bulbs and others - Calochortus splendens, Allium acutiflorum, Euphorbia rigida/myrsinites and Californian Poppies,

calochortus, allium, Calpops

And further along Ixia rouxii can be startling when the weather is sunny,

Ixia rouxii

cheers

fermi

calochortus, allium, Calpops
Ixia rouxii

Jealous, I am.

Fantastic to see images of all the life and summer in the other half of the world--please keep them coming because there is not much startling around here.

...but here is a cute little pinus aristata that I hope will survive


Submitted by cohan on Mon, 12/09/2013 - 11:22

In reply to by janedoe42

That looks like a lot of work,  Tim!

Fermi- wow- lovely lot of colour! We just keep getting whiter by the day! I don't know if we are into any kind of record territory, but it's certainly the most snow I've seen at this time of year since I moved back..

Janedoe- that's a more familiar looking scene...lol.. nice rocks and pine, hope it does well for you..


Not quite as summery at present, just a mild 17oC with light cloud - good gardening weather but I'm at work!

This morning I got pics of two native plants in flower - Banksia cones, in fact!

Banksia petiolaris

Banksia petiolaris

Banksia gardneri ssp hiemalis

Banksia garneri ssp hiemalis

cheers

fermi

 

 

Banksia petiolaris
Banksia garneri ssp hiemalis

[quote=cohan]

Wow-those are pretty wild! and looks like they are persistent?

[/quote]

Yes, they're the sort of cones you can enjoy legallycheeky

I think in nature when the seed are produced they stay in a sort of suspended animation till a fire goes through and the pods "pop" afterwards to release the seeds into the ash-field where they'll germinate; not sure if these set fertile seeds though,

cheers

fermi