May 2010 in the Northern Hemisphere

[TheOnionMan]

Some shrubs flowering here this week:                     
                                   
Magnolia Lois 1                                   
Magnolia Lois 2
Cercis canadensis Forest Pansy
Cercis canadensis Forest Pansy cl                       
Halesia carolina                           
Halesia carolina cl.                             
Cornus florida Sweetwater

Luit, now a bittersweet moment regarding my Magnolia 'Lois', which I successfully bid for in a silent auction about 6 years ago, which I had for several years in my shaded "nursery area" awaiting planting out in the yard someplace, died after a long stretch of dry weather.  What a beautiful classic flower form it has, and a good clear yellow, glad to see what it would have looked like.  I photographed my three varieties of Halesia (carolina, tetraptera 'Rosea', monticola), but most the photos except for monticola came out lousy, and I didn't bother reshoot the pics.  These are such lovely trees when covered with hanging white (or pink) bells.

Be sure to show Forest Pansy in leaf, so that forumists see why it is called Forest Pansy!

[Lvandelft]

Mark, I know what it is losing some more expensive plant,  , see my next reply!

I showed the Forest Pansy last year here already. It is one of the best shrubs I ever planted 

The leaves are so beautiful all summer and stay on the plant till late autumn  ! ! ! !

Magnolia 'Lois' is a wonderful colour.... is it a  strong growing plant, Luit?

Maggi, I bought some years ago M. Lois and M. Serene.
Both varieties are known as growing in soils with pH around 6.5, like we have here and the yellow flower is rather exclusive in Magnolia’s.

Don’t know how fast it grows but when staying alive I am already very satisfied 
M. Serene flowered last year, for the first time (picture showed here last year) but the plant died later in the year.
I hope that I am more lucky with M. Lois. 

I like the colour of the Cornus 'Sweetwater' too.... like crushed raspberrie s in cream 

What is the cream for……? 

[WimB]

Flowering here now, one of the very few species of Pinguicula which can grow on calcareous soil. It's been growing here for two years in tufa.

Pinguicula mundii

[WimB]

And some more plants flowering here today:

A Clematis hybrid
Muscari anatolicum
Trillium recurvatum
and a plant of which I always forget the name (maybe I should write it down )

[bulborum]

Hello Hans

P. multiflorum looks correct
P. odoratum looks like P. odoratum var. odoratum but a poor one
where did you get P. verticilatum it doe's not like the one witch in the trade
P.X Weihenstephan looks more as P. multiflorum
I think the flowers are to small for P.X Weihenstephan but it can be P.X Weihenstephan
I will post under Polygonatum later my pictures
maybe Aaron can also have a look

Roland

[Hans J]

Hi Roland ,

Many thanks ....I will write you a PM

Hans

[olegKon]

This extremely warm May the garden looks summer like
1-3 Aristolochia (sorry. have forgotten the actual name) grown from a small rooted cutting given by a friend
4 Scilla riverchonii
5 Scilla persica

[Lesley Cox]

Angie ,

This kind of Hibiscus are really common here ....they are in near each garden -but I dont know the name.
They are always full of flowers each year ...I will send later a pic
In gardencenters they sell here a other kind of Hibiscus -they are not hardy outside .

Hans

Hibiscus syriaca? Presumably from Syria and quite hardy here. There are a lot of different forms in pinks, lavenders etc. The bigger, flashier ones are tropical and only grow in the far north of NZ.

[Regelian]

here are two Geranium phaeum seedlings just coming into bloom.  I really love this Geranium.  There are seedlings ranging from ashen white to black-purple

[Graeme Strachan]

Growing in my garden is a pot of nascissus "Sun Disc". However a couple of the bulbs I bought last year have thrown up a couple of oddities. The bulbs have the same leaves but the flowers are weird. Is this a throw-back to some wild form or a species that it was crossed with at some stage. I am sorry if I appear naive, but could someone enlighten me.

              thanks

                  Graeme Strachan

[Maggi Young]

Ooh! An Ornithogalum has sneaked in there, Graeme...... 

I'll just take this chance to thank you for all the work you put in at the Aberdeen Show on the 15th..... I know all Show Secretaries think they have good teams of helpers, but Ian and I  are convinced none are so good as  the Aberdeen Gang! 

[Lvandelft]

Graeme, in the area where these Narcissus are grown here, often Ornithogalum umbellatum ( or something like that) are often growing in the bulbfields.
It is a difficult plant to get rid off, because they flower later than the bulbs and hand weeding is seldom done nowadays.

[angie]

Hans will look forward to seeing the hibiscus in flower.
Does anyone in Scotland get there Hibiscus to flower ?

Angie

[Graeme Strachan]

Maggi and Landelft - Thank you for identifying my "oddity". So it's an Ornithogalum. The bulbs must look very similar because I chose the individual bulbs myself.

          Thanks again.

             Graeme

[olegKon]

Graeme, it must be Ornithogallum nutans