September 2008 - definitely Spring - in the Southern Hemisphere

[Paul T]

Fermi,

Excellent.  Are the other two Trilliums flowering as well?  I think they were both white?  Can't remember exactly.  Thanks for looking after them.... if Elizabeth hasn't been in contact yet she will be at some point, but otherwise let me know and I'll hassle her to contact you.

Thanks again for looking after them for me.

[David Lyttle]

Hi Fermi,

Nice to see some native Aussie plants along with all your other postings. It seems you have an inexhaustible supply of spring bulbs flowering slightly ahead of ours here.

Now a few picture I took this afternoon in my own garden

I'm feeling pleased I have at last got a good clump Narcissus bulbocodium flowering from seed (well it is a start at least). Also a Bellevalia that I think is pycnantha. If someone can confirm this I would be grateful.

No 3 is Androsace vandellii

No 4 is Sanguinaria canadensis

No 5 is Trillium ovatum. The first plant that flowered for me has turned pink.

No 6 is Andromeda polifolia

No 7 and 8 is Magnolia ' Iolanthe ' a plant I rescued from the discard bin in the local garden shop.

Last a very floriferous red Camellia that has now grown into a good sized shrub

[Paul T]

Fermi,

Forgot to mention that it is great to see the roadside ablaze with colour like that.  I can almost picture where that is, although there wasn't colour like that a couple of weeks ago.  The Tetratheca are in full flower here in Canberra as well, both here and in the ANBG (but I haven't posted any pics to the ANBG thread of them as yet)

David,

All lovely.  Congrats on the Trillium ovatum.  Still never flowered that here as yet.  Isn't it a wonderful time of year right now? 

[Kristl Walek]

Fermi,
Nice to see some native Aussie plants along with all your other postings.

Yes, thank you....and I would love to see more southern Hemisphere natives...

[art600]

David
What a wonderful selection of plants.  I think Spring just eclipses Autumn in the variety of plants - although the Autumn colours are a real bonus.

On the Forum we can have the best of both worlds. 

[Paul T]

Fermi,
Nice to see some native Aussie plants along with all your other postings.

Yes, thank you....and I would love to see more southern Hemisphere natives...

Kristl,

Just checking that you've seen my topic on Australian Native plants at the Botanic Gardens here in Canberra?  It's in the General Forum section.  As I get a chance to process pictures I've taken at the ANBG I post them there.  You've probably already seen it, but thought I'd check just to make sure.

[Lesley Cox]

Finally I'm getting around to sorting some pics from here and from my Australian holiday. These first ones are of the few fritillarias which haven't been smashed by gale force winds we've had through recent days, the worst (and when the damage was done) on last Tuesday, when my plane was unable to land and went back to Christchurch. Only the plants of 15 cms or less have come through unscathed.

First, Fritillaria drenovskyi


F. ehrhartii


One which I hope someone can identify for me please. It's a little like davisii but uniformly coloured in and out and with square shoulders. I have about 40 of them, presumably from seed, but I don't know where from. This is the first to flower at about 7cms. The foliage is different from davisii too.


This one probably IS davisii but in a small pot labelled F. bithynica


Three of F. rhodokanakis. I've only had 3 flowers previously.






And finally, 2 of F. mutabilis




Note the clean fingernail. I took these the day after I arrived home. No weeding for a fortnight!

Note too, the weeds in the raised bed of the last pics. They have come up like mushrooms in so short a time, though a lot of the greenery is, in fact, Campanula arvatica wandering about.

[art600]

Lesley

Lucky you with so many flowers.

Might the mystery frit be ruthenica. 

[Paul T]

Oh Lesley, they're all beautiful!!!

The Frit and Erythronium seed you sent me a few months back are all germinating by the way.  Discovered this the day after we got back from Victoria, but knew you were still traveling so didn't email you at the time.  Thank you SO much.

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Fantastic Frits Lesley !!!!

[Lesley Cox]

I'll look into the possibility of ruthenica Arthur but the one flower is just a few cms high and not REALLY like my other ruthenica (another one that was smashed by wind). I don't know how I'd have so many though as I've never had seed on mine or from elsewhere. Of course as it's the only one it could be a ring in, among something else which hasn't flowered yet. The leaves don't remind me of anything.

[Lesley Cox]

Glad your frit seeds are coming up Paul. Lots happening here too among the seeds. I need to go away more often in order to have 20 or so new things up when I get home. On a daily inspection, there's hardly anything happening.

Here are some from Australia, and I think Paul has done some at least, but you won't mind Paul if I repeat?

Two from Tim's garden,
Mukdenia something, which is in the Saxifraga family.


And Soldanella, probably montana. Tim had a band of this along the top of a stone wall, all in full flower. The full frontal shot I took was badly out of focus, so useless. I'll have to go back.....


A lovely Mahonia species at Otto's


And three stunning hellebores,
H. niger with silver foliage


A single black whose leaves were also very black shaded




And a bright butter yellow which retained its yellow colour for all of the 8 days I was there. My own "yellow" goes green within a day of opening.

[Lesley Cox]

Two from inside Otto's tiny alpine house (2 people inside and it's seriously crowded
Iris zenaidae


and the pure golden treasure that will become Fritillaria davidii. These seedlings are in their second year and the typical leaf shape is obvious, with lateral as well as well as longnitudinal veins, unique in frits.


Down Otto's steep garden were irises and frits to die for.
Iris bucharica in an all gold form


Iris 'Warlsind,' a deliciously perfumed hybrid between warleyensis and aucheri (formerly sindjarensis)


This one is either I. 'Sunshine,' a Ruksans hybrid or I. graeberiana 'Yellow Fall'. They were both there but I seem to have a picture of only one. Otto please?

[Lesley Cox]

Fritillaria ehrhartii with Tecophilaea


This little shrublet is an Australian but I foolishly didn't record its name. Someone please? It is a real honey, quite prostrate.


The beautiful bigeneric hybrid x Chionoscilla allenii which I haven't seen in NZ. Must ask Marcus as it will be permitted, both parents being on the Bio Index.


Fritillaria eduardii, which is different from F. imperialis in that the leaves continue up the stems while the other largely has naked stems. Took me a while to work this out and I had them mixed in my mind.


To finish in Otto's garden, one of the fabulous big-leaved rhododendrons. Not sure which.

[Lesley Cox]

This next group were taken in the garden of Viv Condon, President of the Victorian Group of the Alpine Garden Society, so far as I know, the only overseas "local" group of AGS. It is a very active and committed group of alpine gardeners who sometimes have to cope with most un-alpine conditions and produce incredible results in the face of a difficult climate.

Trillium rivale in a "spashed" pink colouring, the leaves stained with a deep purple near the petioles.






Not sure about this one,maybe T. cuneatum or perhaps a red seedling from T. luteum (which happens).


I saw several fine plants of Anemonella 'Schoaf's Double' in Australia and everyone said "it came from Viv Condon." Her's was the biggest and must have been huge, had she not taken pieces from it.


Two common but still very beautiful plants, a pulmonaria and a crucifer whose name I've already forgotten.