August 2015 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Parsla]

Hi Jamus,

Thank you for saying hello - I have been greatly admiring your photos. 

I am still relatively new to gardening (although  my mother was a lifelong devotee). About 5 years I should think, since I settled into Eltham.

A potted history is that it all started with trying to rescue a magnificently weeping but dying English oak (10 year drought, possums, neglect) on an overgrown block "the wild wood"  that had been more or less untouched since the 70s. Once started, couldn't leave the garden alone. Despite loads of mistakes and little disasters along the way the oak canopy has filled out, and almost makes for a woodland garden all by itself! Have been blessed with enthusiastic mentors in Marcus and, latterly, Otto.

this is such a wonderfully welcoming community. Jacqui.

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Jamus,

It looks more like Scilla hohenackeri. There is another very similar species, S. greilhuberi, but I am not expert enough to tell you off the top of my head the differences.


Cheers, Marcus

[Jupiter]

Hmmm.. I was suspicious of the name Trevor gave it... pictures on the web of greilhuberi look a very close fit to my plant. Here's a close up.

[arillady]

Eco grow does not have a predator for red legged earthmite.

[Hillview croconut]

Bob Brown at Cotswold Gardens says "Synonym Fessia hohenackeri. Broad foliage appears in spring unlike S.greilhuberi which is narrower and autumnal". I dunno

Otto might know more.

Great photo - the flowers remind me little blue trout lilies.

M

[Lesley Cox]

Otto, all my current 'Cantab' bulbs are from recent (last 3 years) garden centre imports (well, from wholesalers to garden centres). When the first of them flowered and also looking at some from Fermi or someone, I was quite sure they were not quite true. I can't quite place what is wrong. I think the petals on my originals were slightly paler and also slightly narrower but I'm not certain. Anyway, if you have a picture of yours, please post it. I may have an old one somewhere. I think what we NOW are getting as 'Cantab" is another variety and the true one is perhaps gone forever.

I bought 3 bulbs of a named Frit imperialis, in the autumn. They were called 'Beethoven.' One is up and in bud, the other two seem to have rotted, only a few mis-shapen and blackish leaves visible. NOT HAPPY about this, considering the price!

[Otto Fauser]

Hello Lesley , just picked the very last flower from my clump of Iris ret .'Cantab', so not perfect . Comparing it with images on the net I think mine is correctly labelled .
We do not grow Frit . imperialis 'Beethoven' in Australia- it seems to have a shorter stem and the usual colour . sad about yours .

[melager]

Hi Leslie
I got two of the frit beethoven bulbs and they are doing well, one is in full flower and fantastic, will put a picture up next week and the other is going to flower any day

Mel

[Lesley Cox]

That's good Mel. As Otto says above, they're supposed to be shorter than regular imperialis. Pleased yours are OK.

Otto I think this one may be my original. I took the photo in 2007. Looking at the August Vic AGS newsletter from Fermi, what I have in flower now looks very like what he has labelled as 'Alida.' This has never been offered here, under that name anyway. wonder if the suppliers (in Holland) are sending the wrong one as 'Cantab?'

[Lesley Cox]

Comparing my two pics, I dunno. Much of a muchness. I do remember that the true 'Cantab' has a very strongly orange signal stripe, maybe deeper than on mine.

[Maggi Young]

Hi Jamus,

It looks more like Scilla hohenackeri. There is another very similar species, S. greilhuberi, but I am not expert enough to tell you off the top of my head the differences.


Cheers, Marcus

  We've discussed this  so often - never come to any great conclusion, though!   I think "they" are calling them both Fessia now. 
Here : http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=1469.msg36893#msg36893  there are a couple of good shots of what I think is  correct Scilla/Fessia greilhuberi   
 and here for S. hohenackeri  http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=1315.msg193524#msg193524
- I think there main differences seemsto be in the amount of foliage present at flowering.
 

[Matt T]

...wonder if the suppliers (in Holland) are sending the wrong one as 'Cantab?'

Surely not, Lesley! I'm SHOCKED! (Why is there not a tongue-in-cheek smiley?)

[Jupiter]

Thanks Maggi, I believe it's one of those, but can't tell from the images which. S. greilhuberi Looks closer to me for the advanced foliage ahead of the blooms. Mine never sends up flower spikes with the first leaves and is a good clump before the first spikes emerge in late winter. I'll ask Trevor. Maybe his memory will be jogged by these names.

[vivienne Condon]

Sorry Pat,
it was just a thought about Eco grow I will ask Jon at our meeting Saturday see who he uses for his predators
Viv

[Parsla]

Dear All, it was such a lovely sunny afternoon - first in ages - some pictures from the garden 

Acis tingitana growing happily in dappled shade
Cyclamen (label has gone and i'm not confident to identify the species)
(both the above came from Otto's garden)

The beguiling Hepatica japonica (from Marcus's collection)
Muscari chalusicum (from Marcus)

Primula x marginata (from Sue W)

 Note from maggi:  the photos are added in pdf form,  just click on the file name to enable opening in a new window