September 2015 in the Northern Hemisphere

[Hoy]

Oops so did I.

"John, I did not know about this, but I think I can get the right article in place. I have a PDF of it.  Jonny"


johnw

He just sent me the article but I also found out that I could just change the last part of the link

[johnw]

1. A leisurely day out on the coast with friends, calm and tranquil out there, did absolutely nothing.  Looking south to Bermuda.

2. Sarracenia 'Dixie Lace' planted in that garden the past spring, from a 4" pot and divided.  I'd say it has vigour.

3. Fargesia sp. 'Scabrida', a classy Fargesia and no slouch.

4. Abies koreana v. prostrata cones. Icicles at 24c?

5.  Parting shot of the garden we were in, looking quite fine despite the desaprate need for rain here.   drove home with all the windows down, quite magical.

23c, 72% humidity & brilliant September sunshine.

johnw

[Gabriela]

Here are a couple of Roscoeas, always flowering sooo.. late in Southwestern Ontario:
Roscoea auriculata


Roscoea scillifolia f. atropurpurea


and the fruit of Magnolia tripetala that everyone admired, this photo taken in August. It gets gorgeous in late September:

[Giles]

'First time flowering for this Aconitum found in Russia, 2009'

Yann, I love it...  thanks for posting.
I'm going through a difficult phase of trying not to make aconites, my next craze..  not sure how long I can hold out 

[Maggi Young]

I'm going through a difficult phase of trying not to make aconites, my next craze..  not sure how long I can hold out 

  Quite understandable!  Giles, do you grow the rather yummy A. hemsleyanum 'Red Wine' ?  I saw it first  in the forum quite some years ago, and Graham Ware sang its praises in the IRG : http://www.srgc.org.uk/logs/logdir/2012May241337894269IRG29-May2012.pdf

I'm still resisting temptations, for this  gem - but perhaps not for too much longer!

[Giles]

..a nice article, thankyou Maggi..   ..and Chiltern Seeds sell it too..   

[astragalus]

Despite temperatures in the 90sF (97 yesterday!), and one 5 minute rain in the last 2 1/2 months, there are still a few things blooming now (or at least looking good).  The Astragalus utahensis is putting on a second bloom - I guess it really loves it dry.  The meadow is brown and hard as a rock.
Hoping for some rain tomorrow.

[Robert]

Astragalus,

Fantastic photographs! 

Eriogoum umbellatum in bloom in September!  Around here, even in the mountains they have finished up. Looks great.

Do you have success with other Gentians? I grow and have grown a few that seem tolerant of our heat.

Do you direct sow your Astragalus? For me, they have been temperamental when young. I have some seed I will be planting this autumn and will try sowing them directly in site in some sand beds (tubs). Any other advice would be welcome.

Sorry for so many questions. I hope that it is not too onerous to answer them. 

[astragalus]

Thanks, Robert.
The Eriogonum bloomed in the spring per usual, this is a second bloom - has never happened with this one before.  It may not have time to set seed, though.
I grow Gentiana angustifolius, G.acaulis, G. asclepidea. G. dinarica.  Any of the large trumpet spring bloomers can curl up and die during a drought since I can't water, but G. angustifoliua and G. acaulis can take a lot of abuse and come back.
I've had no luck with direct sowing of astragalus seed although a few, very few, have self-sown.
I have much better luck with seedlings that have matured to the point that the roots are starting to come out of a standard 2 1/2" pot.  Astragalus monspessulans is very easy and may even self-sow more than you want if it's happy.  Let me know if you succeed with direct sowing in sand tubs.

[Robert]

Astragalus,

I very much appreciate all of the information.

I have never had a second bloom on Eriogonum umbellatum. Some of the other species will repeat and others like forms of E. nudum seem to bloom for months, especially if they get a little extra irrigation. The repeat bloomers also tend to be the species that will bloom the first year from seed.

Gentiana dinarica has been tough here as well as G newberryi. I have not had success with G. acaulis, yet, and I have yet to try G. angustifolius (more like get the seed to germinate    ).

I appreciate the tip on transplanting Astragalus species. It seems that I have been too hasty to get them situated in the garden. I have grown them both from rooted cuttings (very easy to root) and seed. I use 2 1/4 "rose pots" all the time.

I have some seemingly perfect sites in some sand beds (tubs) where I will give the direct seeding method a try. I will let you know as to the results.

[Tim Ingram]

Robert and Anne - I'm really interested in this discussion about raising/growing Astragalus/Oxytropis and other small legumes. They really aren't easy but so very beautiful and thrilling when they do grow. Graham Nicholls must be one of the very best growers in the UK and in his book on 'Alpine Plants of North America' he recommends sowing in late autumn after abrading or nicking the seed and then growing on seedlings through the winter. He also recommends sowing seeds separately (perhaps in multitrays?) because of chemicals produced by germinating plants that inhibit growth of nearby seeds. I've always tended to wait till spring to sow legumes because they germinate so quickly generally and I've thought they needed warmth to grow away well. I haven't done very well with them - though had a woderful plant of A. utahensis for a few years - and in the wild presumably it will be the colder and wetter season when seed does germinate. Very few people grow them here and almost always in pots, but they look so much finer in the way Anne grows them in the rock garden. Definitely plants worthy of more experiment in growing.

[ian mcdonald]

If anyone else is interested in our native plants I have collected seed of Jasione montana (sheeps bit) for the exchange.

[astragalus]

Robert and Tim, my garden conditions dictate how I grow things - the garden is sunny, windy (an added desiccant), and hot and dry in the summer.  If I plant out tiny seedlings they would dry up in a day and disappear.  For me, it's better to wait until they have a bit more size.  Pea seedlings are watered and two days later the pot is tipped out into a tray of damp sand where I've scooped out a spot for each seedling and I only do a few at a time.  The scooped out spot is barely beyond horizontal.  Then a layer of damp sand just to cover the roots and then transplanted into a prepared spot and watered in and shaded.  Jacques Thompson of Michigan taught me years ago to use a shim (bought inexpensively in large bundles) next to the seedling for shade from the hottest sun.  Leave the shim in for at least a week or two for protection.  It all depends on the weather.  New plants are watered by hand if it doesn't rain.  I always have empty gallon milk containers ready to do this.
Graham Nicholls is a fantastic grower of North American plants, including the peas but he does them in pots mostly, I think.  He can grow Astragalus gilviflorus and I can't and that's just one example.

[astragalus]

Tim, I think that seed reaction is called allelopathic??  And it's true for a lot of peas but not all.
If you nick the seeds and put them in a plastic baggy half filled with turface or something similar, and put them in the refrigerator for a while, they will all germinate and can then be potted up together.  Perhaps once they've been nicked the reaction is gone??  I only know what works for me.
Probably only a few in the pot because astragali, for instance, resent too much root handling - the tap root can be strong but the feeder roots can be hair-like and delicate.  Easier to tip out a pot with 4 or 5 rather than 20.  Some people will also soak the seeds but I usually don't - probably too lazy for the extra step. Try and get Graham to weigh in on this because he is a master at growing from seed.

[Robert]

Tim and Anne,

Here in California I use several methods when germinating Fabaceae. Larger seeds such as Lupinus  are nicked and planted in the autumn, after 15 October. Germination is immediate. The seedlings are generally highly resistant to cold weather, so I can keep them out for the winter where the make slow but steady growth. For me at least, most Lupines transplant well, however I see no reason why they could not be seeded out 2-3 per 2-1/4" rose pot.

Others such as Cercis occidentalis germinate well with a hot water treatment. Germination is excellent but tends to take longer. I have a feeling that nicking the seed would work too, however I have never tried this method with Cercis.

Still others need no pre-treatment at all and will germinate well just being left out for the winter.

Another option that works for me is rooting cuttings. Many Fabaceae root extremely easily from semi-hardened first year growth. Superior clones can be propagated this way. Better yet is creating a seed line that breeds true from seed. Fabaceae in general are close to, but not quite, obligate in-breeders. This makes the creation of a true breeding line straight forward. As a farmer I was doing this all the time.

For those who are adventurous, out-breeding Fabaceae offers tremendous creative possibilities. As a farmer I was involved with this too. There are some technical issues that need to be addressed, however Fabaceae seem to benefit from out-breeding and a whole new unseen world opens up when they are out-bred.

Out here in the western U.S.A., we have many species within the Fabaceae family that have been overlooked or under used. I my mind, there is much potential within the Lotus, Hosackia, Acmispon group. Our western Lathyrus seem overlooked too. I am certainly pursuing this and will report as progress is made.