Flowering Now - May 2009

[Paul T]

Helen,

Isn't the Aquilegia a cutie!  I used to have it years ago before I eventually lost it.  Such unusual flowers.  Was sold here in Aus at one point as A. 'Chocolate Soldiers', but haven't seen it available for years and years now. 

[Gerdk]

Helen,
What a strong and handsome plant! I had this species too because I love the peculiar charme of the flowers - but my specimen were always somewhat weak.

Gerd

[cohan]

Townsendia leptotes... please don't tell me this is one of the monocarpic ones!   
Polemonium confertum, developing buds...
Draba ventosa.

these are very nice, lori--when we were talking about erigeron, i was thinking about townsendias too--they just seem a little showier, florally; this one has nice foliage too--i dont have any yet, but was looking at some on beavercreek's list..
draba is also really nice..

[cohan]

Here's some flowering for me :
1) Iris hookeri
2) Penstemon 'Six Hills'
3) Oxalis 'Ione Hecker'
4) Primula flaccida (Thanks Lesley !!  )
5) Aquilegia 'Blueberry'
6-7-8-9 : All wonderful hybrids of Lewisia x rediviva - magic from Michael J. Campbell !! - and they're barely starting to flower Michael !! 

great set of blues and pinks, luc!
i keep looking at some lewisia hybrids ('little plum', i think) at a local place; i want to hold out for species, but this is the only lewisia available in the region, i;m sure...lol

[ashley]

Ah, what you need is a thicket of Gaultheria shallon, aka "salal".

Nice plant that it is, unfortunately G. shallon is 'breaking out' in SW Ireland & on its way to becoming an aggressive weed.  The same may happen or have happened in western Scotland, NZ & similar climates.

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Luc, Aquilegia ‘Blueberry’ looks good- and ideas as to its parentage?

The plant was a gift from a friend Simon - no idea of its parentage -it looks very much like the A. bertolonii (not in flower yet - picture later) I'm growing just a little darker blue. 

If you're interested in seed, give me a shout.

[maggiepie]

Simon, have you tried growing it since you have been in the mountains?

Robin, still no scent that I can detect.

Maggi, none as yet and rain forecast for the next few days.

Paul, it really is a cutie, I couldn't believe that the flowers are so tiny, not sure if it is supposed to be such a tiny plant?

Gerd, considering how small the plant is, the stems really do seem to be very strong,I will try and save seeds, these are the first of my aquilegias to flower so hopefully the seeds will be true.

[Lesley Cox]

Paul, Anthyllis montana is on our Bio Index so I'll try for some next season from the source mentioned above. Enough for us both maybe? A. vulneraria is here already and seen around occasionally but only in its scarlet form.

I currently have some seeds germinating from Ron Ratko, 3 so far of 14 species. I DO, I DO, I DO hope that the white Trollius comes up. PLEASE!!!

Cohan, even if the seedlist pulsatilla seeds don't come exactly true, every one is a beauty. I find in the garden that seed from white does make white seedlings, likewise reds from red, purples from purple etc, IN GENERAL, and sometimes the DEPTH or shade of colour varies. Species like alpine, vernalis etc come true (vulgaris seems to keep to itself) and wild collected seed is usually pretty true. But hey, don't you enjoy a lucky dip? And it's worth growing on a whole batch to flowering because especially with white, you will get some thin-petalled plants with weak colour and some with thick texture and solid, clean colour.

[Lesley Cox]

Ah, what you need is a thicket of Gaultheria shallon, aka "salal".

Nice plant that it is, unfortunately G. shallon is 'breaking out' in SW Ireland & on its way to becoming an aggressive weed.  The same may happen or have happened in western Scotland, NZ & similar climates.

I LOST MINE over a couple of very dry years!

[Otto Fauser]

Anyone knows who sells mucronulatum??
Göte

Göte

I can send you tiny seedlings of the dwarf form called variously Rhododendron mucronulatum 'Cheju', mucronulatum v. chejuensis, mucronulatum v. ciliatum and correctly as mucronulatum v.taguetii. It is dwarf and purplish with a beautiful thick trunk 10cm in diameter though only 30cm high after 25 years. It seeds about my yard, in the troughs and various pots.  Also have a pink tall mucronulatum of which I could send seed.

Just assessing some new dwarf pink ones with very red buds and one has opened a very clear pink. Still lusting for the dwarf white one selected in Japan.

johnw
[johnw , just came across this post- glad to have the correct name now for the dwarf form .
 I imported a plant of it from Scotland some 35 years ago under the name Rh. mucronulatum ,dwarf form ,col. summit of Cheju Island , Korea , it is now about 35 cm tall and in autumn colour.
 Also grow the tall purple-pink one and the clear pink ./quote]

[Paul T]

Otto,

So does yours seed around the yard too?

[johnw]

Otto - There was also a named form from Warren Berg called Crater's edge that he collected on Cheju. The colour is a rosy purple which clashes with many other rhodos - halfway between R. keleticum and say R. pseudoyanthinum.  I'm not very good at describing colours.

The leaves of your plant are quite different than mine, mine are more rounded with no narrow pointed leaves and so seedlings are generally easy to sort from the tall type.

I will try to take a shot of mine tomorrow but it is just going over.

BTW I have crossed my dwarf one with many other lepidote species; so far x leucaspis  and x campylogynum Charopeum Group (now Scotian Bells) look good. Seems to be a good parent for hardiness but I would dearly love to have the dwarf white to cross with leucaspis.

johnw

[cohan]

Cohan, even if the seedlist pulsatilla seeds don't come exactly true, every one is a beauty. I find in the garden that seed from white does make white seedlings, likewise reds from red, purples from purple etc, IN GENERAL, and sometimes the DEPTH or shade of colour varies. Species like alpine, vernalis etc come true (vulgaris seems to keep to itself) and wild collected seed is usually pretty true. But hey, don't you enjoy a lucky dip? And it's worth growing on a whole batch to flowering because especially with white, you will get some thin-petalled plants with weak colour and some with thick texture and solid, clean colour.

lesley,you're right, i actually wouldnt mind with pulsatillas-- they seem like a nice early season plant for here, so i'd be happy to have lots of them--the two i have are just from a local garden centre, so nothing special in provenance... i was just thinking in general of getting vague maybe hybrids from open pollinated seed of various things, not so much pulsatillas... good info that various species of pulsatilla remain more or less separate; also good tip to keep them all til flowering..

[Sinchets]

Sorry- I only grew Aquilegia viridiflora in the UK.
Another of my Geum (not coccineum) in the woodland garden. It starts off yellow and turns red- anyone any ideas?

[Paul T]

Helen,

The Aquilegia was perhaps 20cm or so tall for me.  hard to remember exactly now.  Definitely diminutive though.