Image of the day

Not sure what causes the coloring here as I don't recall seeing it before.  But I sure like it in on this 2 year seedling from seed collected in Alaska.  This seed source does tend to have good purple tints to plant parts other than the flower.

Iris setosa from seed collected near Cordova, Alaska.

Your Iris, Cliff, is Iris ensata, the form usually called spontanea. This is the wild ancestor (from Japan and neighboring countries too) of the famous Higo iris, the incredible Japanese iris that have been bred for centuries and are featured in many Japanese gardens. We once had a spectacular display of them at Denver Botanic Gardens, now long gone, alas. The Higo sorts have flowers the size of dinner plates when grown well, and come in many swirling color combinations, mostly amethysts, lavenders, pinks and white, reminding me of some kinds of ripple ice creams. I have seen pictures of fields of these in bloom in Japan that are breathtaking: the fields are usually flooded when the iris bloom, and there are raised pathways that people walk on to admire and be dazzled by the iris.

The wild form is more uniform, and very elegant and well worth growing on its own. It is quite vigorous in my experience and easily grown. And I agree with Lori's determination on your Clematis integrifolia--an amazingly variable taxon. We introduced a dwarf, sprawling form of this species from Mongolia in our Plant Select program that makes a wonderful addition to a larger rock garden (and comes in pink, lavender, blue, deep purple and white): http://plantselect.org/support/plant_image.php?plant_number=90&photo_nam... It is marketed as 'Mongolian Bells'

I saw a display of ensata at RHS Wakehurst Park garden in the UK a couple of years ago. What form is this?

Stephen: you photographed one of those giant hybrids (Higo types) I was speaking about. Hard to relate it to the much smaller and simpler wild species, isn't it?

People do amazing things with plants! My "picture of the day" I took last Tuesday when we had one of our typical spring snows (not too cold, but enough to give you a thrill): these are of Tulipa greigii at the Gardens at Kendrick Lake, a wonderful 3 acre water conservation garden for the City of Lakewood next to Denver.

The closeup is of another scarlet tulip (I believe Vvedenskyi) growing next to a silver cholla (probably Cylindropuntia whipplei 'Snow Leopard') at Kendrick Lake the same day.

Nothing says "Colorado" like tulips from Central Asia growing alongside cacti from Arizona.

Waiting for my flight back to Newfoundland.  The 8th International Meeting was a blast!  Great to finally put faces with all the famous European names.  Must say I felt very welcome.

Back to the topic at hand: Stephen, I have seen that ensata hybrid before.  I am sure I have a picture.  Will check my image library as soon as I get home.  Sorcerer's Apprentice comes to mind but as PK notes, there are sooo many of these, dare I say, garish ensata hybrids!

Here is the first plant to start flower at our cabin this year - at least a month earlier than usual: Mogop, Pulsatilla vernalis. I think the flowers open fully in a couple of days in this weather ;D

Stephen, the mystery Iris ensata hybrid is 'Sorcerer's Triumph'.

My snow is almost gone...just a single 6" patch in the shaded corner.  Lots of bulbs starting, but the best at the moment is my Saxifraga oppositifolia...a pale selection from our wild populations.

It is an excellent form, Todd ;D

Here are mine today! It is 5 specimens flowering but I have a dozen more of seedlings ;D
Seems to be heavy stuff and a narrow band! have to load one pix at the time. . . .

cohan wrote:

Very very sweet! Think of me if you are around there at seed time  ;D
BTW--just mailed a packet to you yesterday!

Certainly and thanks, Cohan ;D ;D

Photograhed at the UK conference...Primula euprepes.  They had these for sale.....should have tried to smuggle it back home!

Todd wrote:

Photograhed at the UK conference...Primula euprepes.  They had these for sale.....should have tried to smuggle it back home!

Oh, you didn't try? I would ;) (What's the penalty if caught?)

My shed roof today. Seems that auricles do good.

The auriculas look great!  How deep is the soil there?

Erythronium dens-canis opened today.

Trond those P. auricula are gorgeous! You have to save some seed for me!  ;D I've been trying to grow mine like that for years!

cohan wrote:

Do you have to water that roof? Or can these primulas take some drought?

Cohan, I have to water if the spring/early summer gets too dry, which sometimes happens. May and June can be very dry here. The rest of the year it is not necessary.

Todd wrote:

The auriculas look great!  How deep is the soil there?

Erythronium dens-canis opened today.

Todd, the soil is 5-15cm and with rocks and gravel incorporated.

Your dens-canis is great. Seems I have lost mine and have to get them again.

AmyO wrote:

Trond those P. auricula are gorgeous! You have to save some seed for me!  ;D I've been trying to grow mine like that for years!

Certainly Amy ;)

Todd wrote:

Photographed at the UK conference...Primula euprepes.  They had these for sale.....should have tried to smuggle it back home!

It was a great shame that the AGS had not organised phyto inspections at the conference to allow folks to buy plants on their trip to take back across the pond.... many North Americans had come complete with a plant -buying budget to the UK and were VERY  disappointed.  :'( :'(

The nurserymen who lost out on the business were sad too.  :-X

Trond.... love your shed roof... more adventurous than simple saxifragas and sempervivums!  ;D

Probably not the best place to have this conversation, but what was the reason AGS dropped the ball on the phyto issue? We may not do everything right here in the U.S., but making sure we have an on-site phyto presence is critical for our Canadian and European guests.

IMYoung wrote:

Trond.... love your shed roof... more adventurous than simple saxifragas and sempervivums!  ;D

Thank you!
I have to use all possible sites, you know, and this is a place which receive some sun  8)

I asked Christine about a phyto inspector about a month before the conference as I was going to get an import permit at my end.  Unfortunately it was not to be...no one could explain why.  I had great plans to bring a bag of plants home.  As it was a couple of dormant roots followed me but I had to pass on some really choice material.

Back to the thread...my first Draba...not sure the species;  maybe D. athoa.

My crocus are over, but I don't have a one Draba blooming yet!
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I took a short walk in the woods of nearby Carver County Park.

The non-native Scilla siberica is becoming a nuisance.
       

Cardamine laciniata is having a particularly good year, being more floriferous than usual.  It's normally a very shy bloomer here.
       

For our native form, this is the most open the flowers ever get, even on a very sunny day.
       

The foliage is very nice.
       

Foliage arrangement on a flowering stem.
       

Rick, I like those Cardamines! Can I ask you for seed this year if you collect some?

Here it is the Spanish bluebell that spreads but it is no nuisance yet.

Peter wrote:

Probably not the best place to have this conversation, but what was the reason AGS dropped the ball on the phyto issue? We may not do everything right here in the U.S., but making sure we have an on-site phyto presence is critical for our Canadian and European guests.

Who knows, Peter?   We had it at the Edinburgh Conference but it seems the AGS prefers not to seek or heed advice :'(

Certainly it may not have been possible to have the checking free as it was in Edinburgh in 2001 but I reckon that folks who need such things would have been prepared to pay for the service.... better than not being able to buy anything at all.  

MY

This is one of the many untidy "wild" shrubberies in my garden. I have several of them ;D ;D

I try to use plants that need the same conditions in the same site and then I let the plants take control!

Hoy wrote:

Rick, I like those Cardamines! Can I ask you for seed this year if you collect some?

I remember from last year, Trond.  I'll definitely be watching for seed earlier this time. 

Hello Jim!  Glad you stopped in and shared some interesting pics with us.  I especially like the Talinum,
and the "A" in A. coccineus stands for what genus?
(I'm not ashamed to say I'm kinda stupid here...) 
It's a cool and hot looking plant, all at the same time!

Jim, the Trifolium owyheense is very handsome, but I have lusted for Astragalus coccineus for years, your plants are awesome.

Here's a photo of my Talinum 'Zoe' (okanoganese x spinescens, now Phemeranthus sediformis x P. spinescens), growing in a pot which sat outside exposed all winter, I've grown this for many years. I have some in troughs too.  Given good drainage as one typically gives western American plants here, I find P. sediformis and the hybrid 'Zoe' perfectly easy and not overly temperamental regarding watering or exposure to rain anytime or to snow/rain in the winter.

[MMcD:  message edited to indicate the photo is of the lovely pink hybrid T. 'Zoe']

RickR wrote:

Hoy wrote:

Rick, I like those Cardamines! Can I ask you for seed this year if you collect some?

I remember from last year, Trond.  I'll definitely be watching for seed earlier this time. 

Thank you Rick. I'm smiling :D

cohan wrote:

Very nice, Trond! What is the yellow flower under the frits?

Rick, I agree with Trond--excellent Cardamine...

The yellow is lesser celandine (Ranunculus ficaria). It is a pretty weed here on moist soil.

Trond, lesser celandine is a pest here too...my garden is starting to get overrun...spreading into the lawn as well.

Blooming now...Besseya alpina.  I can never get more than one flower per year.

Well, that's one more flower than I've been getting, Todd.  Incidentally, Todd and Trond - in a dry garden such as mine, Ranunculus ficaria is an absolute joy, not a thug.