Spring in Southern Hemisphere... with crocus! (July- September)

[David Nicholson]

It's lovely to see your all your spring colour folks makes ours much nearer. Paul, have we ever had any general views of your garden it really must be a cracker.

[Lesley Cox]

Fermi, I'm sure you're wanting a little bite, regarding 'Rip van Winkle' but funnily enough, I've always had a sneaking affection for that double, probably because it's been around so long and is obviously not the product of modern breeders. In fact, isn't it a natural aberration?

[Lesley Cox]

Otto, I'm pretty sure Ray's frit isn't rhodokanakis. All I've seen, including my yellow, have quite shiny leaves, not glaucous. The flower shape isn't right either. It looks very like what I thought was euboica too, except that the BD was sure mine was carica, and that seems to me what Ray's may be. Euboica has a pair of quite broad basal leaves which sit right at ground (pot) level.

[Paul T]

Cohan,

Technically on averages, we apparently have fairly standard rain spread out each month over the year, but I think that is long term averages and doesn't take into account the climate change over the last 10 to 20 years.  Until the last couple of years I would have said that we have most of our rain in autumn and spring, or at least it feels that way.  Unfortunately the last couple of years we have had almost total failure of the autumn rains too.... like 1mm in April last year instead of the average of 60mm or so.  Our yearly rainfall the last few years has been well below the long term averages as well.  This year we head reasonable late autumn and early winter rains, then dry again.  At the rate we're going at the moment we will be on stricter water restrictions this summer than we've ever been before..... no outside watering using mains water I would imagine.  I'll be able to keep some things going with the tank water I have, but I if we get to those restrictions I will end up losing a lot of my collection unfortunately.    Not a fun prospect, let me tell you.  Hopefully we will get some good spring rain, despite the predictions.

[fermi de Sousa]

Some more pics taken the last two days.
Cyclamen coum


More lemon hoops, most likely "Smarple" or "Kholmes"


The Geissorhiza corrugata is about to bloom (see "spiral foliage" thread)


And buds on Crocus sieberi ssp sublimis f. Tricolor are showing promise!


And also very promising are these seedlings of Trop. beuthii from SRGC seed!


cheers
fermi

[Paul T]

Fermi,

Congrats on the Trop seedlings!!    Narcissus 'Kholmes' is yet another one I haven't heard of.  I guess I must do some research into the little detective series and try to find the rest of them. 

[cohan]

Cohan,

Technically on averages, we apparently have fairly standard rain spread out each month over the year, but I think that is long term averages and doesn't take into account the climate change over the last 10 to 20 years.  Until the last couple of years I would have said that we have most of our rain in autumn and spring, or at least it feels that way.  Unfortunately the last couple of years we have had almost total failure of the autumn rains too.... like 1mm in April last year instead of the average of 60mm or so.  Our yearly rainfall the last few years has been well below the long term averages as well.  This year we head reasonable late autumn and early winter rains, then dry again.  At the rate we're going at the moment we will be on stricter water restrictions this summer than we've ever been before..... no outside watering using mains water I would imagine.  I'll be able to keep some things going with the tank water I have, but I if we get to those restrictions I will end up losing a lot of my collection unfortunately.    Not a fun prospect, let me tell you.  Hopefully we will get some good spring rain, despite the predictions.

sorry to hear i've heard of drought in areas of oz... hopefully you get some rain..
canada has been having opposite extremes this summer, but both bad for agriculture: so soggy in parts of centre and east that crops couldnt be got in, and so dry in parts of alberta that nothing grew! most places a cool summer, except b.c. where they have been hot and dry sparking a lot of fires--apparently the amount of smoke can spoil the flavour of wine grapes!!
 we had a dry spring, but not too bad overall, but no heat, so ripening some crops will depend on how early the frost are...

[Lesley Cox]

Funny that the Aussie C. sieberi sublimis tricolor are so much later than mine here, which are just about over now. Yet my minimus haven't yet started - a bit of bud colour just yesterday. But my two white minimus have decided to flower after all and are out now. I had a better than ever performance of alatavicus too, with 2 late blooms, a total of 3!

[Rogan]

A coupla things in flower from these parts:

Polystachya pubescens, a little epiphyte from the warm forests of Natal - in flower for much of the year, but best in spring.

My pot of Moraea tricolor never fails to impress!

A collection of Cyrtanthus mackenii hybrids in a friend's garden - why don't we see more of these around?

The surreal flowers of Pelargonium lobatum - much magnified!

Enjoy  

[Paul T]

Rogan,

Any chance of you collecting some seed from your friend's Cyrtanthus collection?  Even maybe doing a bit of hybridising of them as well and then collecting seed?  I would love to get more colours, but finding them is rather hard.  They really just aren't available much. 

[arillady]

Rogan,
I received seed of a plant that grew to be like Pelargonium lobatum when I ordered Pelargonium triste - or are they similar in flower shape? It is many years since  I had this plant.
I have a small clump in the garden of Cyrtanthus mackenii hybrids which I grew from seed - the keep flowering every year without fail. Touch wood!

[Paul T]

What sort of colours in the Cyrtanthus hybrids did you end up with, Pat?

[fermi de Sousa]

Rogan,
that Moraea tricolor is certainly 
Pat,
I got a plant of Pelargonium triste which has flowers like the P. lobatum but the foliage is much more dissected and ferny.

Here are some things form the Rock Garden,
Narcissus "Itzim"



Narciss "Bezzababe"




Yesterday, the first flower on Retic Iris "Pixie" opened,


And today I was seeing double!


Not a good shot, but the first blooms on Babiana odorata (yes, Lesley, it is scented!)


cheers
fermi

[Paul T]

Nice, Fermi.  I have 'Itzim' in bud I think, but must go looking for 'Pixie', as I haven't seen flowers this year as yet.  Nice Bab.

[Lesley Cox]

Planning to take some Narcissus into town tomorrow for Kees and came across this pot of seedlings from 'Gambus.' There is a little N. cyclamineus influence in the two on the right and maybe some fasciation in the remaining one though no sign of a thickened stem. The little one is very tiny, the corona being just 1.5cms in length. If it stays that size for a couple of years, it must fall into the micro-mini class and will be perfect for a trough. The big one has 9 sepals (?tepals) instead of the usual 6. It's a bit weather beaten. I think I like it.