South African Bulbs 2011

[Hans J]

Here is flowering Galtonia viridescens  

This plants I have grown from seeds ex AGS ( sown 2004 ) - they have survived the last winter without any protection free in borders

[bulborum]

Nice one Hans
one of my favourites

You don't believe it
but they call it now Ornithogalum
BTW The Acis ionica grows well

Roland

[Maggi Young]

You don't believe it
but they call it now Ornithogalum


Roland

I didn't know this..... went to see learn about it.... and so I see http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/kew-307626 where it also says the name is  G. viridiflora and Ornithogalum viridiflorum..... another thing learned for me today. 

[jshields]

You don't believe it
but they call it now Ornithogalum


Roland

I didn't know this..... went to see learn about it.... and so I see http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/kew-307626 where it also says the name is  G. viridiflora and Ornithogalum viridiflorum..... another thing learned for me today. 

In a 2004 paper, Manning et al. sank everything in the Ornithogaloideae into a single genus -- Ornithogalum.  That was, IMHO, simply a cop-out.  Now, there are enough more recent studies out there on Ornithogalum and its many close relatives that "you pays your money and you takes your choice!" 

Manning et al. in 2009 resurrected a couple of the old genera and left the Ornithogaloideae in four genera:  Ornithogalum (containing most of them), Albuca, Pseudogaltonia, and Dipcadi. 

Martinez-Azorin et al., [Annals of Botany, vol. 107, pp. 1-37 (2011)] resurrect most of the old genera, including Galtonia. 

It will come down to a careful reading of these last two papers by people with a deeper understanding than I have of the math involved in calculating distances between DNA sequences.  Whose data and whose analysis are better?

Jim Shields
in Westfield, Indiana
USA
where the sun is finally shining again!

[Ezeiza]

It is really problematic to keep pace with all these changes that to growers are of little practical consequence. We need to know more about habitat conditions to sharpen our cultivation methods. Of course we have to know about them or will end buying the same species under four different names.

Not to mention that is has done little to support credibility the fact that several genera were merged and reinstated by the same people within a short time

[PeterT]

There was a chart of the ornithalogum relationships in a IBSA mailing last year which seemed to make sense...

[arillady]

Peter is that chart available. Link?

[PeterT]

The chart was in the maling about a year ago, I dont have the means to reproduce it here but perhaps Heine could help?

[ArnoldT]

Kniphofia northiae  has persisted here for 7 years and this year is sending up a offset. Purchased from the now closed Seneca Hill Perennials in upstate New York.

[bulborum]

Very nice colour
Looks a very short one Arnold
is it ??

Roland

[PeterT]

Thanks for posting Arnold, It has grown well here for several years but not flowerd yet.

[jshields]

Aloe ecklonis seedling blooming for the first time.  The seed came from Mauro Peixoto in Brazil.

Jim
in Westfield, Indiana
USA

[ArnoldT]

Roland:

The flower stalk is till growing.  The plant is very large.  I'll post an image of the entire plant with something in it for scale.

[Ezeiza]

Jim. is Aloe ecklonii a bulb of some sort?

[jshields]

Actually, it is probably better classed as a succulent than a geophyte.  It is definitely not a bulb!  So it's somewhat off topic here, other than being native to South Africa.  I was just very happy to see mine bloom for the first time.