May 2011 in the Northern Hemisphere

[Zdenek]

Wonderful plants, Zdenek. I like the Incarvillea forrestii. Mine is not happy at the moment. If I re-pot it, will it require acid or alkaline compost?

As you can see, I grow it in the garden, in a peaty soil which is acid. I am not sure however if it refuse lime.

[Zdenek]

These super photos from Zdenek remind me that none of the Incarvilleas in my garden are doing well... in fact I think none have come up this year at all... of any species    Really not sure why... they used to do so well here.  

Was not there the extraordinary wet winter, Maggi? I leave in several minutes so that I will not be able to reply.

[Tim Ingram]

I can almost smell that plant of Primula reidii - it is one of the only really choice species I have ever tried to foolishly grow down here. Geranium argenteum should do better but I have never managed to grow such a magnificent specimen (Allan Robinson at Wisley years ago was a wizard at propagating these little geraniums, along with quite a bit else!).

[PaulM]

I'm a bit late...no time to sit by the computer but here are some pictures of for me new aquaintances in the garden

Verbascum wiedemannianum is the earliest flowering Verbascum I have ever grown, and the flowers are big and deep lilac in color. It's the only one flowering in the garden this year so I hope to get seed which is true to the species.


Salvia multicaulis has taken a couple of years to reach flowering but started early this year. The bracts are supposed to become maroon later on. I hope it will set some seed too.

I grow Penstemon albertinus in a clay pot outdoors, and it survived fine over the winter, and is now flowering heavily.

Ferula communis was started from seed back in 2005, and comes back every year getting a little bigger each season...I wonder when it will build up a big enough root to support a flowering stem. It's monocarpic , right    ?

[Panu]

It is June now, but the pic is from last week. Calypso bulbosa, classified as vulnerable (VU) in Finland. For last few days I´ve been searching these and got paid for it .

[cohan]

It is June now, but the pic is from last week. Calypso bulbosa, classified as vulnerable (VU) in Finland. For last few days I´ve been searching these and got paid for it .

Getting paid for it would be great! My searching does not help my budget...lol
Interestingly, no orchids on any threatened lists in Alberta, last time I checked--mostly several plants which are really from drylands farther south and just barely make it into Alberta...

[Tim Ingram]

Paul - fantastic to see the Verbascum. It seems hardly ever grown and I never seemed to get good germination of the seed (which seems odd by comparison with the rest of the genus!). My original plants were grown, like so much else, from seed from Jim and Jenny Archibald. The Ferula communis is usually perennial on good well drained soil, especially if it is slow to come up to flowering and has put down a good root. I have a form of it with much more silvery-green leaves, taller habit, and deeper ochre-yellow flowers (ssp. glauca), which does seem less perennial.