November 2007 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Lesley Cox]

Sue, was it you who was asking earlier about NZ Myosotis species? I can't find the right topic. This one is a beaut all right and there will be seed later on so if you'd like to try it I can send some.

Cliff, it's probably the wrong time for yours but I have a bud in R. godleyanus, the remaining plant of three. I'll do a pic in due course. I suppose Louise at Hokonui will have a positive patch of it now with masses of flowers.

Rogan, the leaves of your R. baurii are certainly super. Susan will no doubt respond but our R. lyallii has very leather-textured leaves and with the hollow so clearly seen in Susan's pic, can hold a lot of water, especially as it comes from areas with high rainfall. Maybe that's why deer love it so much. Perhaps they go to the leaves for a drink and just happen to take a mouthful of leaf as well and realize it's jolly good to eat - if you're a deer - so scoff the lot!

[fermi de Sousa]

Rogan,
I love the colour of your hybrid. Did you do the cross yourself? Was the Sprekelia the seed parent?
The Ranunculus baurii is another "new to me' plant I'll check ICON for it!
cheers
fermi

[SueG]

Lesley
I'd love to have a go with some seed - I've been very restrained this year not buying much seed at all and then the RMRP catalogue hit the doormat 
Sue

[Lesley Cox]

What's RMRP?

[ranunculus]

Rocky Mountain Rare Plants Lesley.......or Ranunculus Make Remarkable Presents.....oh that I could see a bud on my Ranunculus godleyanus within my lifetime!!!!

[Susan]

Oh yes Ranunculus rule! They always put a smile on your face don't they!

Rogan and Staale - I had tried to flower R lyallii for around 20 years, in various parts of my garden.  Finally it is happy.  I live at an altitude of just over 300 metres (Google earth says higher) in a cool climate.  We have our share of misty weather, but it needs sharp drainage. Temperatures go to say -6C in winter and seldom go over 30 in summer and then only occasionally.   I have over the years lost a number of plants, but where it is now it gets full afternoon sun, and is romping around - a bit weedy if you like! One that I shifted last year from another side of the rock garden, about 4 feet away and which was getting smaller each year, is now picking up and doing better.  Same soil etc.  Have come to the conclusion that it must be the aspect it is facing.  When it starts to creep around, apparently it is happy and should flower.  The leaves are getting bigger and bigger each year.  I am posting a photo of R buchananii which we saw on Mt Burns in January this year and you will see that they are flowering as the snow melts.  R lyallii was also growing in this area.
Hope this is of some help.

Susan

[Lesley Cox]

Thanks Cliff. I did eventually make the connection when someone on another thread was talking about seed lists. For some reason I kept trying to make the initials mean Royal Canadian Mounted Police and couldn't work out why they didn't fit. Not a good day I'm afraid.

[Rogan]

I love the colour of your hybrid. Did you do the cross yourself? Was the Sprekelia the seed parent?

Sorry I did not reply to you sooner Fermi, I was away on holiday for a few days. I did not do the cross myself - the seed came from Italy in a trade (Fausto Ceni - perhaps you've heard of him?), so I have no claim to fame other than of raising it to flowering size from seed. My plant in turn is setting seed which I will gladly pass on when ripe.

As I implied above, I have just returned from a hiking trip in the Drakensberg mountains where I saw dozens of bulbs in bloom. November and December are the best months for flowers, however dodging violent thunderstorms in exposed positions can be a little nerve-wracking (sic?) at times. I plan to return in six weeks time when most of the ground-orchid species will be at their best.

Below are two not-so-rare bulb species I photographed along the trail in a natural setting: Moraea alticola and Dierama aff dracomontanum.

[Rogan]

A Drakensberg thunderstorm - don't mess with it!

[Maggi Young]

I wouldn't dream of taking any liberties with a storm like that, Rogan! Wonderful picture!

That clump of Moraea is just lovely! I am drooling! Someone asked recently for a "drool" smiley icon... I must go look for one!

[Maggi Young]

Aha! Here we go, a choice of two ... copy and save for your own use!



I'll have to send these to Dave Millward and Chloe, who were both looking for these expressive chaps!