October 2015 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Parsla]

Oh, that is a fantastic jasminum specimen Fermi.
Very exciting prospect.

I was admiring your ixias as well
I have some of the greenish blue, slowly multiplying, but with much slenderer stems that won't stay upright. It makes for a very limited display.

Jacqui.

[Jupiter]

I don't have room for that kind of plant in my little rock garden! 

Lesley, you have to join their "club" to buy their "special" plants, and then they preach at you about plant breeders owning seeds which should be freely available ... huh?

[Jupiter]

A couple from today.

1. Lewisia hybrid
2. Papaver 'Danish Flag'
3. Pelargonium sidoides (cv?)
4. Viola labradorica
5. Laburnum anagyroides

[Jupiter]

"Dad, that is the most DISGUSTING flower EVER!"

[Parsla]

Hi Jupiter, you caused me to laugh out loud with that last post. Cute photo.

I want to show a few pictures of the AGS Vic garden visits yesterday. Viv Condon and Otto Fauser kindly invited us to visit and it was a truly glorious show. Unfortunately my camera work faltered and I had far too many out of focus shots. I'm still working on salvaging some of Viv's garden - so these next few are of Otto's.

Naturally, while it has been so hot dry and windy here of late, open gardens tempt an absolute downpour. Raincoats and umbrellas were THE de rigueur fashion items.

Otto's is a bulb rock garden wonderland, and we were just a little late in the season - but some absolute treasures to be found all the same.

1. AGS visitors. You can see from the scale that the garden is situated amidst a forest of tall trees in Olinda
2. More visitors
3. Just to give an idea of the rock garden layout - even when  flowering bulbs have finished it has an ethereal quality
4. A beautiful mountain laurel in bloom (Kalmia I think)

[Parsla]

…and a few more of my.. favourites from Otto's garden

5. A miniature rhododendron - looks very like a daphne - only maybe 30 cm tall
6. Close up of the composite flowerhead
7. The steep incline in front of Otto's house would daunt many a gardener - it is absolutely full of buried treasures
8. A double green-tinged anemonella thalictroides to swoon over

I hope you enjoy,
Jacqui.

[Jupiter]

Oh Wow Jacqui, thanks for posting those. Any more? Blurry or not, post them! I LOVE Kalmia. There's one at Mt. Lofty BG which I may try propagating from. Haven't seen seed capsules on it. Perhaps a tip cutting?

[Parsla]

Just a few photos of Viv's garden from yesterday's opening, a fleeting view of the landscape she has sculpted so beautifully.

She has THE most wonderful handcrafted hypertufa troughs - the nicest I have seen up close.

1 & 2. Garden bed views.
3, 4 and 5 - Just a few of the many planted troughs situated near the glasshouse.

[Jupiter]

I'm in awe of those troughs, and the garden beds. I feel so isolated over here in SA sometimes, and this is one of those times.




Lilium hansonii; first flower out today.




Humulus scandens. I love this annual climber and its hempish looking leaves.

[fermi de Sousa]

Hi Jamus,
It's only 9 hours drive from your house
You'll have to wrangle your next holiday to coincide with one of our meetings!
cheers
fermi

[Jupiter]

Thanks for the encouragement Fermi, I would love that. However, nine hours is just impossible at the moment with a 3y/old and a 7y/old, and for a host of other reasons. Maybe next year...

[Maggi Young]

Worth doing a bit of mountaineering to see Otto's garden, eh?  I spot Campanula nitida alba in Viv's garden - that would be flowering early  over here -  in our garden  it flowers more in June. ( Assuming SH equivalent of now  is April?)