July in the Northern Hemisphere

[Hoy]

Clematis x durandii - I need to go into my brother's garden to see the best of the flowers.  This is it from my side.
Cardiocrinum giganteum

Not a bad sight from your side either!

I have given up Cardiocrinium. It is always completely eaten by slugs and snails

[Hoy]

Trond,

Resting and trying to recover has given me a little time to catch up on some of the other threads.

I enjoy your photographs from Norway immensely! What a beautiful land in so many ways!

Now I will go rest some more.

Hope you recover quickly although you get less time on the internet!

[Hoy]

Beautiful seaside landscapes Trond! I went leisurely through all the pictures tonight I often see the same lichen here on certain rocks, maybe it is associated with the granitic rock type (?).
Eryngium maritimum is a gem of a plant (my seeds didn't germinate unfortunately).

There is often a band of orange lichen associated with the sea shore (the zone just above the 'beach proper'). I don't think its terribly sensitive to rock type.

I love E. maritimum too but it's not easy to please. I think it needs a deep sandy soil and dislikes competition.

Although maybe the orange lichens is insensitive to rock type they seem to prefer some places - I think it is where birds usually place their droppings

I have not had luck with seeds either

When I was a kid my father sometimes had to remove dry specimens of the Eryngium. Now it is very rare and I have never seen seed.

[Hoy]

We went for another boat trip Thursday. We got one shower but the rest of the day was fine. Farther inland they had rain and thunderstorms all the day!

One of the showier beach plants is Limonium vulgare, Sea Lavender. Strangely it is rare though although it grows very well at this site. It seems to prefer to be submerged by high tide.






Another plant from the same kind of habitat is Trifolium fragiferum, Strawberry clover. It is similar to white clover but slightly smaller. The heads mature differently though!






This plant, Kali turgidum (Salsola kali), prickly saltwort, prefer sandy shores manured with rotting seaweed. Some years it is all over the beach, some years it is almost absent.

[Hoy]

Viola tricolor usually flowers early in the summer but the drought and then the rain has created a second "spring". It is very abundant on the islets here.






Also Vicia cracca grows at similar sites on the islets. Although "boring weed" they light up the landscape and blue flowered species are rare.





This is really a weed in the garden but here among the rocks where it belongs it is nice. Sticky ragwort (Senecio viscosus).

[Hoy]

A little sweetie - Sagina nodosa (knotted pearlwort). Common on rather moist ground at the shore.






Pilosella peleteriana on the contrary grows on rather dry sites. The showy flowers had closed for the day




A late flowering (or early!) Cochlearia officinalis (common scurvygrass) among the rocks at the shore.




Found this 30m from my summer house. Had not noticed it before

Monotropa hypopitys

[Rick R.]

I think part of growing big martagons is growing them in full (or almost full) sun.  They are often thought of as shade plants, but that's only because they tolerate shade well.  Some of the other martagon section lilies, like L. distichum, do want more more shade, at least in my experience.

Always appreciate the wild pics, Trond.  Sagina nodosa is on the endangered list here in Minnesota.

[Robert]

Hope you recover quickly although you get less time on the internet!

Hi Trond,

Thank you for sharing the latest set of photographs! 

I have to admit that I am spending most of my time sleeping. Not a bad idea for me right now, as I am usually very active.

Sometimes I wake up long enough to look at the internet to enjoy the photographs.

We have a few Vicia species that are native to California. Here, some of the invasive, non native species can be quite attractive at times 

I very much like the Pilosella peletiana! The foliage is great, nice flowers must add to it even more. I even enjoyed the Violas. Despite the on and off heat they are even blooming in our garden - and still looking good.

[Gabriela]

We went for another boat trip Thursday. We got one shower but the rest of the day was fine. Farther inland they had rain and thunderstorms all the day!

One of the showier beach plants is Limonium vulgare, Sea Lavender. Strangely it is rare though although it grows very well at this site. It seems to prefer to be submerged by high tide.

Interesting to see Limonium growing so close to the water Trond - beautiful plant, like all the others What trees are close by where Monotropa grows?

[Hoy]

. . . .
Always appreciate the wild pics, Trond.  Sagina nodosa is on the endangered list here in Minnesota.

Thanks Rick Sagina nodosa is common along the shores of the islands here but I have not seen it elsewhere. It is fortunately not endangered though.

[Hoy]

Hi Trond,

Thank you for sharing the latest set of photographs! 

I have to admit that I am spending most of my time sleeping. Not a bad idea for me right now, as I am usually very active.

Sometimes I wake up long enough to look at the internet to enjoy the photographs.

We have a few Vicia species that are native to California. Here, some of the invasive, non native species can be quite attractive at times 

I very much like the Pilosella peletiana! The foliage is great, nice flowers must add to it even more. I even enjoyed the Violas. Despite the on and off heat they are even blooming in our garden - and still looking good.

You are welcome, Robert. It is vice versa

Pilosella is an attractive plant. It is a few similar species in the genus and I like them all.

[Hoy]

Interesting to see Limonium growing so close to the water Trond - beautiful plant, like all the others What trees are close by where Monotropa grows?

It is 2 species Limonium here. This one is the showiest. Both grow close to the water, while L. vulgare seems to prefer muddy soil L. humile seems to prefer crevices in the rocks.

The trees where the Monotropa grows are pine (Pinus sylvestris) and oak (Quercus petraea). Juniper shrubs (Juniperus communis) and "blueberry" (Vaccinium myrtillus) grow there.

[Giles]

Delphinium nudicaule

[Regelian]

I found these particularly attractive.  A seedling in the garden, presumed A. davidii x A pectinatum ssp forrestii.  It has a weeping habit, lime green bark, especially in Winter, yellower in Summer.

Giles, love the D. nudicale.  Never had luck with them.  I'm jealous.

[meanie]

Alstroemeria isabella has an interesting habit. When exposed to periods of bright sunlight or warmth the colour bleaches..............


By the following morning the colour has returned...........


Commelina coelestis "Alba".............


Lantana camara survived an overnight low of -5°c when a pane of glass shattered in the greenhouse over the winter. It has survived and is back in bloom...............


Salvia oxyphora (again as it is a favourite of mine).............