Plants flowering in the open rock garden.April May '09

[Sinchets]

Sorry Lesley, my V.arcturus flowered last summer when we weren't taking pics of anything. It started dieing back in the autumn and winter killed it completely. The seeds were from Goteborg Botanic Garden collected in the Rethimno Gorge, so I assume it was true. It was a short bush with dark green leaves and spikes to 20cm tall of purple-anthered yellow flowers. I remember the foliage was quite sticky to the touch.

[Lesley Cox]

That sounds generally true, though I can't remember the foliage being sticky. I'll have to learn to be more observant but surely I would have noticed that?

[Sinchets]

I just remember weeding around it last year and the leaves being quite resinous. Some of my other species are the same even though they look like they should be wooly and soft from a distance.
Flowering now:
Linanthus nuttallii
Talinum brevifolium (tiny)
Talinum okanoganense (tinier)
a Centaurea species I have always grown as C.bella (with Lupinus microcarpus)
Helianthemum croceum

[annew]

It's such a nice time for the open rock garden just now. Here are some bits of mine.
No2 shows Silene uniflora and Sisyrinchium macrocarpum. No 3 is Erinus alpinus and Salix nivalis. No4 A very nice little dianthus whose name escapes me, and Rhodiola humilis. No5 a general view of the rock garden, and No 6 a rockrose intermingled with Lathyrus laxiflorus.

[cohan]

simon--i really like the talinums--a couple are on my lists...lol--beavercreek, if i ever get that order made
anne--the overview is really nice

[Sinchets]

Lovely shots, Anne. I have a similar problem with Dianthus names too 
Cohan, get seed if you can- they are quite quick to put sizeon and in my experience as tough as old boots. These two were brought over bare-rooted and sat in paperbags for several months before I had time to plant them up.

[Lesley Cox]

Talinum okan...is very easy from seed. I raised a single plant from one of the societies then have had many more since, from that one. I like it a lot, in a trough though as it's very small. The other one there is very nice.

[Ragged Robin]

Your rock garden looks full of interesting treasures and textures Anne, is that a juniper bottom left? I am looking to add some structural/colour interest to my rock garden but it has to be miniature and slow growing - junipers grow well here

[Lori S.]

Ooops, I have to correct myself!
I have been thinking about that Gentiana verna "from seed last year" lately and wondering, "Was it one of the ones I grew from seed last year... ?!?!?" I just looked through my 2008 seed-starting list, and through my order receipts, and I did grow G. scabra, pannonica, purpurea and punctata from seed with the aid of GA-3 (managing to eventually kill all of the pannonica, however)... but, I'm afraid, not G. verna. It turns out I actually got G. verna from Wrightman's.

So sorry to have misled you all!

Carrying on, with a red face... 
Polemonium confertum, and close-up.

[Lori S.]

The flowers on this one are relatively large, but are tucked deep into the foliage.... our native Astragalus gilviflorus, which occurs in habitat (dry prairies and rocky outcrops) in the southern part of the province.

Astragalus gilviflorus... and I see I need to do some weeding in the trough.  These close-up photos are so helpful that way. 

[Gerdk]

Lori,
This is an attractive Polemonium - especially compared to the one I grow (coeruleum)!

Gerd

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Carrying on, with a red face... 
Polemonium confertum, and close-up.

No need for a red face Lori !!  The Polemonium is a really nice blue... 

[Lesley Cox]

A really GOOD Polemonium. It's a genus I've tended to avoid as the forms available here are tall, lanky and in general, undistinguished, but P. confertum certainly doesn't fit THAT description.

[Magnar]

Lori, super Astragalus, wish it was also growing in my gravel bed.

[Magnar]

Some Ranunculus.
 Ranunculus parnassifolius 09
 Ranunculus alpestris 09
 Ranunculus glacialis 09

I'm very happy that R. galcialis decided to flower this year, its not at all easy to grow when its not in its homeplace in the mountains.