South African bulbose plants 2007

[Rafa]

Hello,

I am beginning to see the results South African species seedlings

Sparaxis villosa

[Diane Whitehead]

How long did it take before it flowered?  Are you growing it outside in the garden?

[Lesley Cox]

Most of these little South African iris relatives are very easy and quick, sometimes flowering from seed in less than 2 years. I imagine British Columbia would be mild enough for many.

[fermi de Sousa]

Hi Rafa,
that's a pretty little irid which used to be called Synnotia villosa and you may find more info about it under that name. What other species from South Africa have you got coming along? Were the seeds from a collector such as Silverhill Seeds or from one of the seedexes?
South African bulbs are a favourite of mine but we have to be a bit careful here because they can easily become weeds. I try to be careful with the ones that increase quickly.
cheers
fermi

[Rafa]

Hello,

I have sowed the seeds in October 2005, so as Lesley mentioned, 2 years to have the flowering size.

The seeds of this specie are from Ron and Rachel Saunders. I'am very interesting in South African plants, specially Iridaceae (Gladiolus, Moraea, Ferraria....). Winter growing are in a glass house and Spring growing, outdoors. This one in particular was in a window. I am also interested in Ornithogalum, Albuca, Androcymbium Lapeirusia...

I grow other seeds from McMaster's, Summerfield, Dawie Human... most of the species are very young.

I thought Peter Goldblatt has included Synnotia in Sparaxis genus,http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0026-6493(1992)79%3A1%3C143%3APAOTSA%3E2.0.CO%3B2-D, I haven't full paper. So, what is the name Spararxis or Synnotia?

Best wishes

[PEAK]

A very nice plant Rafa! I have always passed the Sparaxis part in seedlists quite fast, from now on I will slow down. You are perfectly right in the accepted nomenclature, Kew accepts Sparaxis villosa
http://tinyurl.com/2b4ucd
But of course Synnotia is a validly publicated name so you are free to use that too.
Also being addicted to SA bulbous plants I am longing to see more pictures of yours!

Cheers

[SueG]

Rafa,  a really nice little plant and flower there. Glad to find other people growing SA bulbs. I've just started recently to try to grow a lot of species gladioli and bought myself the two books on Glad in Southern Africa and Glads in Tropical Africa. It's really a boost to have a bulb which does flower in a couple of years rather than ones which are going to take 6-7 (assuming you don't kill them in the meantime!)

I've had Gladiolus tristus flowering for a couple of years now, can't see any flower buds yet this year but it shouldn't be far away - I always wonder why so few people say how great the perfume is in the evenings, I bring mine into my house when they are in flower just to enjoy that scent and to hand pollinate it.

That and the other glads and the eucomis, watsonias, chasmanthes and polyxenas mean there's not much space left and I'm trying to get my next order from Silverhills down from the current huge size to something a bit more modest.

Lets have some more pictures here as the season goes on, and show up those who think the only bulbs are snowdrops, crocuses, fritillaries. . . .

Sue

[David Nicholson]

Sue, I presume you are growing in pots? What do you do with them over winter? I manage to grow Gladiolus callianthus in the garden as well as a batch in pots,and am able to leave them in all year round but haven't tried any other Gadiolus species. I nearly bought some Habranthus bulbs the other day but put them back because I didn't want to have to lift and store them. Maggi suggested leaving them in the pot outside but somewhere dryish. In Devon that could be a difficult spot to find.

[SueG]

Hi David
Sorry to be so slow to reply, had a bit of a trying week, my car died on Sunday and has spent until today in intensive (and expensive) care at the garage, i was beginning to get a bit twitchy about whether I'd make Dunblane on saturday and trying to travel around rural Northumberland by public transport is a nightmare. Still car is now well, I'm much poorer - but to answer your questions.
Pretty much all the bulbs are in pots - my heavy clay is just not good (south african) bulb stuff. My Glads and watsonias live in a cold access frame along with some eucomis (E zambesiaca, E vandermerwei, E van Octopusoides) - the other bigger Eucomis live outside in pots in my fairly sheltered back yard. Habranthus I've got some in the cold frame.
I think given a free draining soil quite a few are worth trying outside, particularly the ones from summer rainfall areas like Glad flanaganii which I know people grow outside.

Sue

[PEAK]

Eucomis van Octopusioides???

[David Nicholson]

Hi David
Sorry to be so slow to reply, had a bit of a trying week, my car died on Sunday and has spent until today in intensive (and expensive) care at the garage, i was beginning to get a bit twitchy about whether I'd make Dunblane on saturday and trying to travel around rural Northumberland by public transport is a nightmare. Still car is now well, I'm much poorer - but to answer your questions.
Pretty much all the bulbs are in pots - my heavy clay is just not good (south african) bulb stuff. My Glads and watsonias live in a cold access frame along with some eucomis (E zambesiaca, E vandermerwei, E van Octopusoides) - the other bigger Eucomis live outside in pots in my fairly sheltered back yard. Habranthus I've got some in the cold frame.
I think given a free draining soil quite a few are worth trying outside, particularly the ones from summer rainfall areas like Glad flanaganii which I know people grow outside.

Sue

Thanks Sue, I will have a go and see what happens. Sorry to hear about the car, any car repair work is an "arm and a leg job" these days. 

[SueG]

Eucomis van Octopusioides???

Sorry this is me going in for shorthand when I'd had a trying day and couldn'd be bothered to write out vandermerwei. However I'm now confused as there seem to be two plants going around
Eucomis vandermerwei Octopus
and
Eucomis vandermerwei Octopusoides
I think they must be the same thing but does anyone know??
Sue

[PEAK]

Soory Sue, never heard of any of them. Can't find any reference to them either. Is it a hybrid? It sounds interesting, where did you get it?

Cheers

[SueG]

Soory Sue, never heard of any of them. Can't find any reference to them either. Is it a hybrid? It sounds interesting, where did you get it?

Hi - my plant came from Pennard Nurseries at a show last summer this is their web site http://www.pennardplants.com/ The nursery info says it is a hybrid but not what it hybridised with.
Sue

[Lesley Cox]

Eucomis octopusioides? E. hippopotomoides? E. rhinoceriis? E. o. `Whale of a Time?'