October 2013 in the Southern Hemisphere

[fermi de Sousa]

No trillums here, but a nice little native plant, one of the "rice flowers" - Pimelea ... is in flower in a rock garden; it's spreading a little bit;
cheers
fermi

[Hillview croconut]

Lovely pictures Fermi. It is indeed a lovely little native. Why did I always think that they were huge shrubs??

I have posted anything for a long while so I thought I'd get a couple in before the end of the month. Maybe they should have gone in the Iris thread ....

Iris "Peresh"
One of Pat Toolan's arils for which I have lost the label.
Iris iberica ssp elegantissima
Iris paradoxa
All together too much wind here and a very poor flowering season.

Cheers, Marcus

[Lesley Cox]

I was thinking the dwarf bearded iris could be 'Hustle,' one I have here. 
I wasn't at the trillium weekend which was just as well as within a few days I was in hospital, not for the surgery I'm waiting for but with a nasty but unidentified virus which has knocked me for 6 and left every bone, muscle and joint in my body aching. Even my skin hurts. My doc took me in himself and shouted in A and E until I was seen, as I had a temperature of 42C. I was sent home yesterday morning and today I am feeling a little better which is just as well as I'm told the Bookers will be calling in on Tuesday. I'm still a bit wobbly and this evening while covering plants from the predations of rabbits, overbalanced, fell and crashed my head on a railway sleeper, smashing several potted plants in the process. The rbbit problem is getting really serious now and short of fencing whole areas off, expensively, I don;t know what to do about them. Roger has shot a few and Marley is happy to eat them but he is gun shy and covered in a hiding place when he even sees the gun. I don't want to poison and hate traps so...? But they are really eating my best plants, more every night.

[Peterwg]

Hi Marcus,
    Nice irises.   Especially the oncos - nice to see them doing well for you.

[David Nicholson]

Lesley, you just be careful.

[Hillview croconut]

Thanks Peter, I hope for better things next season.  Though overall my plants look good.

Lesley, take it easy.  Your health is more important than anything else.

I wouldnt muck around with the the rabbits.  Get some pindone, get a permit, if necessary, and get rid of them. You simply cant control the situation and building a fence right now seems out of the question given your health problems. You can afford sentiment in the future when you have a fence up.  How much would a contractor charge?  Might be worth looking at?  Your plants mean a lot to you and you possibly won't be able to replace them and that would be a tragedy.

Cheers,  Marcus

[Hillview croconut]

Just a follow up to the use of pindone. The poison oats are colored a weird green so they are unattractive to most other animals except rats and mice. If your concern is the death of non-targeted species then cover the poison furrow during daylight hours or place in a pipe (after habituating rabbits to feeding on normal oats there).
M

[Lesley Cox]

Will probably go with Pindone tho' Roger is talking about a low, 2 strand electric fence round the nursery, turned on when Marley is in for the night and off again in the morning, early - but not TOO early. I went out at 8.30 for a 9am haircut appointment in Mosgiel and found 4 lined up along the new rock bed edging the drive, all nibbling away like crazy. I've never before thrown stones at an animal, in anger.

Cliff and Sue Booker arrive in the morning but I think it's just for a quick cuppa before driving north to Ashburton.  I have plenty buttercups to show them, R. repens I think, half the lawn is made up of it! Another pest problem to be solved and soon.

[Maggi Young]

Give the Bookeroos my best wishes, Lesley.

Please take care of your health - I know that the garden problems are pressing - but to cope properly you need to be fit!!

[Lesley Cox]

Best wishes passed along Maggi and a couple of small white dogs were mentioned. They will no doubt be admired fully when the Bookers are in the north soon. Ah, what a life they lead. They too, are beautiful people, (along with Meg and Mollie). I wish they could have stayed longer but their going was slightly ameliorated by the arrival in the post right afterwards, of a parcel of primula seed from Barnhaven.