August 2014 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Anthony Darby]

Anthony, my SRGC Journal - July - arrived yesterday and is lovely and useful as usual but I now see what you mean by needing 3 hands for fishbox troughs. How lucky is Ian to have acquired an extra from somewhere.

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Anthony,  yes they are very blue. Jamus tells me I supplied his. I have never had any as blue as that. The one I posted was one discovered in Crete (and which I covet! ).

Cheers,  Marcus

[Hillview croconut]

Just a couple on the run.

Crocus tommasinianus Taplow Ruby - a rare item in the UK now I believe?

Crocus corsicus - poor season here for this species.

Fritillaria davisii - the chocolate model.

Cheers, Marcus

[Mini bulb lover]

Around this time each year I have flocks of birds descending on my Eucalyptus nicholii tree. They go crazy for the tiny flowers. You really have to look hard to see the flowers - mind you the 20 Pied Currawongs in the tree yesterday didn't have any trouble finding them. Once they set seed various birds from the parrot family fly in for their feed.

Saxifraga x poluangelica red form just coming into flower.

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Jon,

I have the same situation but my visitors are possums. They eat the flowers and those of nearby fruit trees. I love to see the little ringtails but the brushies are very unwelcome. Musk Lorikeets are our main visitors this time of the year and the valleys around our mountain are ablaze with the golden yellow of silver wattles.

Cheers,  Marcus

[Hillview croconut]

Hi,

A few more crocus from Hill View:

Crocus x jessoppiae - Mrs Jessopp's Crocus
Crocus pestalozzae var. caerulea - apparently the more common form. Or is a new species?
Crocus olivieri ssp balansae - Little seen taxa. This one's from Samos. Probably another newly elevated species. I'll stick to the old name for the time being.

Cheers, Marcus

[Lesley Cox]

Hi Jon,

I'm not sure about the parentage of your red saxifrage. The name suggests two from the kabschia or porophyllum section, little grey limy, cushiony jobs, hard when well grown, while the foliage in the picture looks like that of a "mossy, bright green and soft. Maybe Otto would like to comment?

(We were offered this morning, an 18 month old Jack Russell whose sole parent is coming to the end of her life and she feels she must find her Otto a new home. He looks so like our precious Teddy, no longer with us, but we feel we can't have another dog, with Marley getting on now and neither R nor I in tip top health. An 18 month JR would be a huge handful. With much regret we said we couldn't.)

[gentle_ben]

Hi All,

as a first post thought I'd just chip in with a couple of things that are giving me a little joy at the mo.
Scoliopus bigelovii and Asarum splendens.

Had been watching the Scoliopus with anticipation but went out and found all the flowers but one devoured by an errant snail... 

Cheers,
Ben.

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Ben,

Welcome to the thread. Love these slightly creepy, crazy flowers. Makes you wonder what these designs are all about?

Cheers, Marcus

[Lesley Cox]

Oh Ben, get out there double quick with some slug and snail pellets. NOW! before it's night time.  and oh yes, a warm welcme to the Forum.

Carefully guarding Frit alburyana from slugs at present. Last year it had a loverly bud which was scooped out to nothing in a night!

[fermi de Sousa]

Welcome, Ben,
looking forward to seeing what other treasures you're growing down on the Bay!
cheers
fermi

[Mini bulb lover]

Hi Lesley,

I did think it was strange that I couldn't find much information under the name s. poluangelica. The leaves are the same as one I bought last year under the name saxifraga x apiculata white form (which isn't flowering yet). I'll hopefully see Otto on Saturday so I'll ask him or Viv to identify.

Marcus -

I only have ringtail possums in my garden which (touch wood) don't do any damage. The same tree usually has a Tawny Frogmouth in it at night - maybe that scares the possums away from that particular tree. Rainbow lorikeets live permanently two doors up from me. They only venture into my garden for the eucalyptus flowers and my figs. Eastern rosellas and occasionally crimson rosellas also come for the flowers and figs. And don't get me started about the Noisy miners...

Hi Ben - welcome! That Scoliopus is beautiful. Shame about the snails.

I'm trying to build up stock of Narcissus cyclamineus. I purchased 5 bulbs this year and each one is flowering in succession so that I never have two flowering at the same time (I want to hand pollinate them). Natures way of taking the mickey?

[Maggi Young]

Hi All,

as a first post thought I'd just chip in with a couple of things that are giving me a little joy at the mo.
Scoliopus bigelovii and Asarum splendens.

Had been watching the Scoliopus with anticipation but went out and found all the flowers but one devoured by an errant snail... 

Cheers,
Ben.

Greetings Ben!   Scoliopus is one of my favourite plants, both S. bigelovii and  S. hallii.  Luckily, even if the first flowers get chomped each plant will send up a whole bunch of flowers over the season  and I can already see more buds showing on yours.  Silver lining to the cloud, eh?

[Jupiter]

Hi Ben and welcome. Fantastic plants you've got there, I've always loved the Scoliopus but haven't grown it myself. Do you find it easy?

[Anthony Darby]

Cyclamen rhodium peloponnesiacum from SRGC seed sown Feb 2012.