October 2013 in the northern hemisphere

[monocotman]

Hi,

Heptacodium flowering well in a cambridgeshire garden in this indian summer.
This plants is proving to be an easy grower - it is about 7 feet tall after 4 years and has been pruned
each year.
It looks like it will get to be quite big.
A nice bit of late summer colour and scented on a warm still day.
Bone hardy - the winter of 2010/11 was no problem.

David

[fermi de Sousa]

Not one I'd heard of before, David.
What else can you tell us about it? How old is your plant?
cheers
fermi

[rgc]

Hi
Two pictures taken this morning with my phone. Think that this Gentian sino-ornata plant has got a bit large and could do with division in the Spring. Not been moved for a couple of decades.

The Primula capitata is a very recent purchase from the SRGC stall at the Summer show in Dunblane in August. Giving a late out of season flower. (The sino-ornata can be seen in the background.)
Bob

[Maggi Young]

You've done well to maintain that Gentiana sino-ornata for so long , Bob. We find they run out of steam after only a few years if they are not lifted and replanted in new, rich ground quite often.
They are so lovely, are they not?

[TheOnionMan]

Not one I'd heard of before, David.
What else can you tell us about it? How old is your plant?
cheers
fermi

Hi Fermi, this link tells about this fine ornamental tree Heptacodium miconioides (common name: Seven Son Flower):
http://arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/1986-46-4-seven-son-flower-from-zhejiang-introducing-the-versatile-ornamental-shrub-heptacodium-jasminoides-airy-shaw.pdf

Of course, the real show, after the deliciously fragrant white blooms in late summer to autumn, are the enlarged colorful bracts that are pink to red.  Mine is in the transitional stage to bract-delight, but still some flowers too.

[Margaret]

Thank you for the info on Heptacodium miconioides. Sounds wonderful. Wish I had a bigger garden!

[monocotman]

It's definitely a quick grower - I bought mine at Beeches nursery when it was about a foot tall, four years ago.
The link is suggesting it might get to 20 feet.
Every branch flowers as it matures and they can make 3 feet of growth a season.
I'm looking forward to seeing it mature,
David

[fermi de Sousa]

Thank you, Mark and David, for the information.
Heptacodium is not currently on our "allowed list" for importation, so it might be worth submitting a "WRA" (Weed Risk Assessment) to see if it could be imported at some later stage. It may not be suitable for my garden, of course, but it could be quite good in some of the cooler climate areas in Australia,
cheers
fermi

[Natalia]

Thank you for the wonderful photos!

Add to them my contribution - re-bloom Fiteuma comosa - re-bloom Phyteuma comosum...

[Brian Ellis]

Hi,

Heptacodium flowering well in a cambridgeshire garden in this indian summer.
This plants is proving to be an easy grower - it is about 7 feet tall after 4 years and has been pruned
each year.
Bone hardy - the winter of 2010/11 was no problem.

David

I looked it up in the Plantfinder and the first two nurseries listed in Eastern England, neither of them had it listed on their own websites!  Typical of the Plantfinder and very annoying

[pontus]

Yes, I agree about the plantfinder, when I have tried to look up plants in the past, usually, 60-70% of the nurseries listed as having it dont have it anymore, while 40% of the nurseries dont even exist anymore.

As you say, it is quite annoying, and not really understandable why they do not take time to regularly update such an important reasource. I think it should be done at least twice a year, once at the issue time of spring lists, and once before teh issue of the autumn lists...!

Pontus

[shelagh]

Flowering in our Bury garden this week.

Colchicum Water Lily
Cyclamen hederifolium
Eucryphia lucida
and Kalmia latifolia having a second go.

[shelagh]

Also Satureja spicigera also known as the Winter Savoury which we mentioned in our Rock Garden article in January 2011, and one of my favourite Sedums cauticola.

[johnralphcarpenter]

Flowering today: Dahlia dissecta, Dahlia sorensenii and Canna warszewiczii

[Mike Ireland]

Crocus kotschyanus which have seeded all around my garden.
Some have the typical yellow markings in the throat but more are starting to have white throats.
Two photos, one taken from the side & one from above looking into the throat show the two forms.
Are they just variations or is one form a ssp?

Any help would be appreciated.