August 2014 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Mini bulb lover]

They belong to a member of FCHS who brought them to the Rock Garden Group meeting yesterday.

Andrew has told me he has also been growing T. violiflora (from seed) for the past 4 years but hasn't had a flower yet. He's wondering if they need colder conditions than he can provide for them to flower. There's both a blue and a white form of T. violiflora. I tried growing it from seed but the seedlings didn't last long.

Otto - your irises are beautiful.

Lesley - the snow cover looks beautiful. It's a novelty for us to have snow - on rare ocassions it falls on the alpine areas down to 600 metres.

Jamus - your photos are beautiful and put mine to shame but I'll keep trying! I only have a CSC camera - the intricacies of DSLR cameras are too technical for me.

Marcus - with all the beautiful crocuses you grow do you ever get hybrid seedlings coming up?

Otto has kindly given me my first yellow Galanthus - 'Spindlestone Surprise' as well as the beautiful 'Ophelia'.
Cyclamen coum ssp elegans - just about to be transported to a meeting.
Veltheimia bracteata - one tough plant that gets no attention from me at all and yet performs year after year.

[fermi de Sousa]

Some very special flowers there, Jon!
I posted a pic of Romulea sabulosa to the South African bulbs thread, saying that the poor light levels meant the flower wasn't fully open.
Well, it was sunnier the next day!
I have 2 strains of this romulea, one grown from NZAGS Seedex, the other from Garry Reid, a "local" supplier.
The one from NZ has a slightly different centre and exterior to the one I showed earlier,
cheers
fermi

[Mini bulb lover]

That Romulea is stunning, Fermi!

[Jupiter]

Wow fermi, that's my kind of plant! Love that scarlet and the intricate patterning on the backs of the petals is stunning. Do you collect seed?

[fermi de Sousa]

Hi Jamus,
I've dabbed pollen between the two types and am hopeful that seed will be set!
Send me your details by PM,
cheers
fermi

[Roma]

Love that Romulea sabulosa, Fermi.  I grew it at work for over 20 years.  Bulbs got more and smaller but never a flower

[Jeffnz]

Hellebores 2014

[Maggi Young]

Hmm, dark colour, nice edging - did you breed it yourself, Jeff?

[Lesley Cox]

Lovely things above. I'm always surprised when Rom. sabulosa comes out so early. It looks like a summer plant to me but hey, who's complaining. It's surprisingly hardy but my present climate is perhaps not sufficiently warm to ripen the bulbs for flowering.  I have masses of smallish daffodils in pots and bursting with buds but precious few labels among them so as they open in a week or so, I'll post some pictures to the Narcissus thread and hope for IDs.

In the meantime, here is the first flower I've had on a small plant of Helleborus vesicarius. That was another surprise because I hadn't even noticed that it was up at all. It came from a stall at the NZAGS Show maybe 5 or so years ago or maybe at a Study Weekend. I believe it likes a good warm place and summer drought/heat. This one has just about been under water for 6 months, and the same last year. The rain continues, daily and nightly. I've hand-pollinated it in hope but probably not.

[Jeffnz]

Hi Maggi
The reverse pic appeared came from seed sent to me, however the primrose is my own work.

[Jeffnz]

Lesley
Congratulations with the ves, a few years back managed to get 10 seeds to germinate and slowly over the next few years they failed to return.

[fermi de Sousa]

Jeff,
that reverse picottee is very nice and the double primrose is something to be proud of!
Roma,
I never did well with Romulea sabulosa till someone (either Garry Reid or someone on the forum) told me that they need a lot of water while in growth, so the pots stand in a tray of water once they break dormancy till the foliage starts to go yellowish. The last two years have produced the best flowers so far. I dry the pots off along with the other South African bulbs and they get a hot dry summer,
cheers
fermi

[Otto Fauser]

Fermi , I planted several clumps of Orthrosanthus laxus in the Native Rockgarden at Ferny Creek .
Hardly any sunshine the last few days here ,so Crocus flowers won't open . Luckily Hellebores do not depend on sunshine to open and stay open . This one is my darkest .  None in the pot of Narcissus cantabricus var. petunioides are actually 100% petunioides .
   Marcus Harvey collected seed of this Crocus biflorus ssp biflorus on Rhodos .

[Lesley Cox]

Lesley
Congratulations with the ves, a few years back managed to get 10 seeds to germinate and slowly over the next few years they failed to return.

Oh well, I'll look forward to that Jeff.

[Lesley Cox]

That's the black you gave me seed from Otto? One is about the same shade, others a little redder but all good.