June 2015 in the Northern Hemisphere

[Lori S.]

Melica altissima 'Atropurpurea'; Penstemon lyallii and compatriots; part of the front yard and side path; Veronicastrum virginicum, looking pristine despite the hail:

[Maggi Young]

Amazing your plants look so good in spite of hail storms, Lori. Everything is bursting with health, it seems. Love that pink paeonia that is featured.

[meanie]

What an odd lot these Adeniums are.  You grow them like cacti in the winter and as a tropical in the summer.   Last autumn I watered four of them sparingly one evening and that night the temp dropped to around 6-8c and two of thebest ones died from rot a few months later, lesson learned.  Four years old from seed.  They really respond to potting on in late spring, this one - the baby - had slowed to a snail's pace until I potted it up a month ago.  It exploded as will its very big brother.

johnw  - +12c & partially cloudy

Such are the joys of tender plants 
I had two Mackaya bella in the greenhouse over the winter when I had the electrics trip. Temps went down to -5°c - the smaller one has bloomed its heart out this spring whilst the older and larger one is just coming back from the roots 

Here today;
Arisaema tortuosum...............


Penstemon smallii............


Salvia forsskoalii.............


And an unknown Rose which has taken over the washing line whilst it's in bloom..............

[Robert]

After much effort I have finally succeeded with Lupinus lepidus. It is growing in a sand bed, coarse sand mixed with pumice. No organic matter. It is 104 F (40 C) today and appears to be thriving. 4 years from seed to first blossoms today.



In another part of the same bed is Lupinus lepidus var. lobbii. No flowers yet, however it appears to be very happy. This bed does have some organic matter, maybe 10% by volume.

[brianw]

Anagallis tenella 'Studland' today.

The shallow pan is 15" across. Guesses about the 2 "weeds" please. Look like orchid leaves to me but wont know until I get them out later this summer. I probably reused old potting soil when moving the Anagallis on a year or 2 back. (Kept in the greenhouse over winter)

[astragalus]

Pictures taken the morning we left for the Dolomites, of Japanes Iris opening in the stream garden.  By the time we get back they'll be finishing but they seem to be settling in and doing well.

[astragalus]

Sorry, the iris pictures don't belong in this  (crevice) thread.  Meant to post them in June in the Northern Hemisphere and don't know how to redirect them.

 Edit by maggi - no worries, Anne- I have moved them for you.    -after  I'd moved them in error to the southern hemisphere thread - oops! 

[astragalus]

Taken yesterday in the Dolomites, Ranunculus seguieri.  Growing in bare spots with no competition.

[astragalus]

Many thanks, Maggi.  You're magical.

[Gabriel B]

A few highlights from this June at Gardens of Rice Creek in Minnesota.

1. Cypripedium reginae, showy lady's slipper orchid, the Minnesota state flower (in a pot, but there are many more in the ground)
2. Shiny petals of blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium montanum)
3. Opuntia polyacantha, plains prickly-pear cactus
4. Phemeranthus parviflorus, fameflower, with a very, very tiny bee on it (blooms for a few hours in the early evening throughout the summer)

[astragalus]

In the Dolomites, where every rock becomes a garden

1.  Potentilla nitida barely starting to bud with a budding Sax
2.  Sax. oppositifolia peeking our from a boulder

[TC]

After a difficult season with a very late Spring, some success at last.  Our Cardiocrinum giganteum has decided to flower, happily at a height of 2 metres instead of the 3 metres which I was expecting.  We got the plant from Logan gardens about two years ago.

Even more exciting...for us...is the flowering of our Tropaeolum speciosum.  We have tried umpteen times in the last 35 years to get this plant to take but it has always disappeared without trace.   We got a good pot-full again at Logan gardens, planted them in 3 different locations and they have all taken.  The one climbing up one of our Cinnabarinums looks the strongest and should produce a good show of flowers in the next weeks.

This is making up for many of this years failures -vegetative growth but no flowers.

[Robert]

June temperatures have been well above average. Today it is 38 C , however we have had some 40 C and 42 C temperatures this month. The forecast for Wednesday is 42-43 C.

1> Corydalis sempervirens - looking good despite the heat. They self-seeded into a pot with Allium beesianum. The Allium does not seem to appreciate the heat at all. This Corydalis species is turning out to be a good "annual" species for us, reseeding itself around and having attractive gray foliage. The flowers are good too.

2> Mimulus cardinalis Yellow Form - The first flowers of the season for this variety. The flowers are more orange than yellow, however it is still quite attractive. This species is an absolute water hog if one wants to keep them blooming during the heat. The orange form in the garden has stopped blooming - not enough water. Last year they bloomed all summer, but then it was not so hot either. None of this is surprising as this species is always is found near streams.

[johnw]

The summer night air this evening is shattered by the smell of 400 rotting dead rats.

johnw

[Jupiter]

Amazing! What a fantastic flower. Not a great photo though John, was the stench making you spasm?