delosperma & aizoaceae

[Great Moravian]

thanks for the details (some repeated, i know)

repetitio mater studiorum if I remember

i have seen 'sani pass' offerings, not sure if they are the same one or not...

A compact bright-purple-flowered species is offered as 'Sani Pass' too.

waiting to see if the two 'gold nugget' types i have have survived the winter-still in pots, sunk after an early cold blast (around -20) in oct; when the snow receded recently, they seemed to still be alive, with most of last season's foliage dead, but they still have to get through the rest of the spring freeze/thaw..

Our climate is certainly milder, -18 C in January. Unprotected plants in the experimental rock garden in a local nursery
survived as follows. Gold nuggets several leaves damaged. A new introduction 'Diamantové doly' intact.
'Beaufort West' completely different results.
Ruschia putterillii upper leaves strongly damaged. Bergeranthus jamesii leaves strongly damaged.
Several types of Delosperma nubigena of course intact.
My Delosperma ashtonii unprotected destroyed, under 15 times 15 times 25 cm
glass cover alive, but under poly tunnel destroyed.

[iann]

nubigena, latin noun, formed from clouds.  Used both for mound (=cloud) forming plants and in this case for plants growing in the cloud layer.  It is masculine!  Species epithet nubigenum is common, and nubigenus is also found.

[Great Moravian]

nubigena, latin noun, formed from clouds.  Used both for mound (=cloud) forming plants and in this case for plants growing in the cloud layer.  It is masculine! 

Yes, it is. Substantiva in apposition retain their own gender.

Species epithet nubigenum is common, and nubigenus is also found.

Errors are common. Epithets ending in -colum, -colus, -fugum, -fugus, -genum, -genus
are incorrectly spelled instead of correct -cola, -fuga, -gena.
Standard Latin usage is obligatory.
In Google 1 140 the correct spelling, 5 290 the incorrect spelling.
Sedum cauticolum instead of correct Sedum cauticola can be found too.
In Google 6 920 the former, 27 500 the latter.
Because -cola is an explicit example in the rules and -gena not.
23.5. The specific epithet, when adjectival in form and not used as a noun, agrees grammatically with the generic name; when it is a noun in apposition or a genitive noun, it retains its own gender and termination irrespective of the gender of the generic name. Epithets not conforming to this rule are to be corrected (see  Art. 32.7). In particular, the usage of the word element -cola as an adjective is a correctable error.
But -fuga and -gena behave identically as -cola and cannot be used as an adjective too.
People do not consult handbooks of Latin grammar.

[Great Moravian]

Here's a new species, or possibly a newly discovered old species, that I'm hoping will take to the garden because it has some of the nicest flowers on a Delosperma.  Its lovely in a pot but already has a taproot a foot long and wants to expand more.  Delosperma deilanthoides (possibly = D. galpinii).

Delosperma galpinii occurs in Natal at 2000m.
Delosperma deilanthoides in Northern Cape.
http://ts-den.aluka.org/fsi/img/size2/alukaplant/pre/phase_01/pre0002/presld0012112.jpg
The following species are considered to be endemic angiosperms of the Drakensberg Alpine Centre
 Delosperma alticola L. Bolus
 Delosperma basuticum L. Bolus
 Delosperma congestum L. Bolus
 Delosperma deleeuwiae Lavis
 Delosperma galpinii L. Bolus
 Delosperma kofleri Lavis
 Delosperma nelii L. Bolus
 Delosperma nubigena (Schltr.) L. Bolus
 Delosperma pilosulum L. Bolus
 Delosperma reynoldsii Lavis
 Delosperma scabripes L. Bolus
 Delosperma wiumii Lavis

[iann]

Delosperma deilanthoides is still alive in the garden.  -15C this winter although this one is close to the house so probably didn't get that cold.  Like most Delospermas it grows better in a pot than in my limestone soil.

[Great Moravian]

Delosperma deilanthoides is still alive in the garden.  -15C this winter although this one is close to the house so probably didn't get that cold.  Like most Delospermas it grows better in a pot than in my limestone soil.

Fantastic. You should disseminate the seeds. I ask whether the shoots remain alive trough winter.
There exists a Delosperma which hibernates as a taproot without shoots, but which.
In reality, it was a question of another person to me.

[iann]

Yes, it kept green leaves right through the winter although they shrunk down into the grit.  It should be getting easier to find now.  I grew mine from MSG seed.  I've distributed a few hundred seeds but I don't know who ended up with them or how well they did.

[iann]

On a different note, these things startled me this week.

First is Neohenricia sibbettii.  This is a very hardy little thing and a piece that I tested in the garden survived this winter.  Pick a dry spot though!  Nocturnal and highly scented.

And also this hybrid between the two Neohenricia species and Mossia intervallaris, a related plant that tends to creep rather than form mats.  Larger flowers, supposed to be strongly but differently scented but to me just mildly fragrant.

[Great Moravian]

On a different note, these things startled me this week.

First is Neohenricia sibbettii.  This is a very hardy little thing and a piece that I tested in the garden survived this winter.  Pick a dry spot though!  Nocturnal and highly scented.

But it should be a winter grower. Logically, it cannot be under totally dry conditions in winter. I cannot imagine its watering in the garden.

[iann]

It's not a winter grower.  Not in habitat and certainly not in England.  You can give some winter water if it is warm and sunny, but I'd suggest not if it is frozen.  Obviously it gets some moisture out in my garden all year round, but plants under cover are quite happy to sit out the winter dry.

[Great Moravian]

It's not a winter grower.  Not in habitat and certainly not in England.  You can give some winter water if it is warm and sunny, but I'd suggest not if it is frozen.  Obviously it gets some moisture out in my garden all year round, but plants under cover are quite happy to sit out the winter dry.

So it can be a quite interesting enrichment in the garden. Interestingly, it originally flowered in March in Kirstenbosch, not in spring or summer as Delosperma. I suppose the plants cultivated by you flower in autumn too.

[iann]

It flowers more or less continuously through summer.  Mine don't usually start this early, but the last month has been very sunny, so very warm in the greenhouse.  I imagine it would go dormant like most mesembs in continuous very hot weather, so it might well do spring and autumn growth in Kirstenbosch.  Habitat is on the edge of the central plateau.  Cold dry winters, hot dry-ish summers but nights usually still cool.  Rainfall erratic.

[Great Moravian]

Habitat is on the edge of the central plateau.  Cold dry winters, hot dry-ish summers but nights usually still cool.  Rainfall erratic.

Clear.

[Great Moravian]

The season of Delosperma basuticum Hort. non L. Bolus is coming. It is not clear to me which of the different variants really is the cultivar 'Gold Nugget'. If you can provide an image of genuine 'Gold Nugget', do it. Two German growers claim it possesses 6 to 10 locules in capsules wheras 5 are normal in the genus Delosperma. I investigated the flowers of a generally available variant of Delosperma basuticum Hort. non L. Bolus and counted 5 locules. The flowers are of Delosperma shape having a narrow throat. In contrast, the flower shape of 'White Nugget' is different, the throat is broad and resembling Nananthus sensu amplo, there are at least 6 locules. In my guess, 'White Nugget', which is certainly a garden hybrid, might be a hybrid between Delosperma basuticum Hort. non L. Bolus and an unknown species of Nananthus sensu amplo. It should be checked whether 'Gold Nugget' really possesses 6 to 10 locules.

[iann]

I don't have anything that could possibly be Gold Nugget, but I do have this other yellow flowering tufted species from Lesotho which has a single flush of flowers in spring.  This is sometimes sold as D. congestum, although it isn't that species.