Summer flowering Gentians

[ruweiss]

Flowering of the Alpine plants gets rarer now, but some summer flowering gentians start to
show their pretty faces.
Gentiana calycosa from Western USA flowers reliably since many years in a moist position.

I was quite amazed by the whitish form of Gentiana georgei from Hualong/China, a gift from
a Czech rock-gardening friend.

Gentiana veitchiorum from Chinese seed also dislikes too dry places.

[Peter II]

Beautiful plants. I like Gentiana.

[John85]

As many summer/autumn flowering gentians prefer a cool ,rather moist, spot in the rock garden are there any that 'd be happy in full sun and rather dryish soil?

[Tim Ingram]

John - I have a very nice form of Gentiana septemfida (subsp. grossheimii) which does well on our sand bed (seed came from Plant World in Devon). Also G. paradoxa is very fine and has narrow foliage reminiscent of some of the autumn gentians; there are good hybrids of this (see the Jelitto seed catalogue). The plant below has twice as many flowers now and looks very good.

[Brian Ellis]

From the garden today, Gentiana 'Joan Ward' is beginning to flower.

[johnw]

Some lovely Gentianas posted to date, so hard to pick a favourite.

This one was grown as G. karoo but may be dahurica. Any thoughts?

johnw

[Maggi Young]

Gentiana kurroo Royle, Illus. Bot. Himal. 278, 1835; Clarke in Fl. Brit. Ind. IV: 117. 1883; Coventry, Wild. Fls. Kashm. III: 81, Pl. XLI, 1927; Blatter, Beaut. Fls. Kashm. II: 37, P1. 41, 1927; Javeid, Fl. Srinagar I: 544, 1970; Stewart, Ann. Cat. Vas. Pl. W. PaL & Kashm. 557:1972.
Pneumonthe kurroo (Royle) G. Don, Phil. Mag. 75, 1836; Gentianodes kurroo (Royle) Omer, Ali & Qaiser, Pak. J. Bot. 20: 16. 1988.

Perennial herb, with thick, stout rootstock. Flowering stems ascending to semi-erect, one to many from rootstock, simple, purplish, 30-45 cm high, 1-5 flowered. Leaves radical as well as cauline; radical ones rosulate, linear to oblong-oblanceolate, 5-10 X 0.5-1.5 cm, entire-crenate, cormate at base, slightly reflexed at margins, single veined, acute; cauline leaves, opposite decussate, smaller, in pairs, linear-oblong, 2-5 X 0.3-0.6cm, entire, acute, reflexed at margins, each pair connate at base and forming a 0.4-1.0 cm long tube. Flowers 1-5 on each stem, axillary as well as terminal, on 1-3 cm long pedicels, campanulate, showy, 3-5 cm long. Calyx 2.5- 4 cm long; tube 0.8-1.2 cm long; lobes unequal, linear, acute, 1-2 cm long, sinuses between lobes obtuse. Corolla 2.5-5 cm long, bright-blue, freckled with white and yellowish inside; tube 1.5-3.5 cm long; lobes ovate, entire, acute, 0.5-1.2 x 0.4-0.9 cm. Stamens 5; filaments slender, adnate at middle of the corolla tube, slightly winged at base; anthers dorsifixed, bilobed, [ or -] sagittate, creamy-white. Ovary lanceolate, shortly stipitate, 1-2.3 x 0.3-0.7 cm; style not distinct; stigma prominent, slightly bilobed. Capsule stalked, lanceolate, 1.8-3.2 x 0.5-1 cm. Seeds numerous, oval, reticulate .



Gentiana dahurica Fischer, Mém. Soc. Imp. Naturalistes Moscou. 3: 63. 1812.

Perennials 10-25 cm tall. Roots to 20 × 1.5 cm. Stems ascending, stout, simple, glabrous. Basal leaves petiole 2-4 cm, membranous; leaf blade linear-elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate, 5-15 × 0.8-1.4 cm, base narrowed, margin scabrous, apex acuminate, veins 3-5. Stem leaves 3-5 pairs; petiole 5-10 mm, shortened toward apex; leaf blade linear to linear-lanceolate, 2-5 cm × 2-4 mm, base obtuse, margin scabrous, apex acuminate, veins 1-3. Cymes few to many flowered. Pedicel to 3 cm. Calyx tube 7-10 mm, membranous, entire or rarely slightly split on 1 side; lobes 1-5, linear to subulate, 3-8 mm, unequal. Corolla dark blue-purple, with yellow spots in throat, funnelform or campanulate, 2.5-4.5 cm; lobes ovate-elliptic to ovate, 4-7 mm, margin entire, apex obtuse; plicae ovate to triangular, 1.5-2 mm, margin entire or erose, apex obtuse. Stamens inserted at or just below middle of corolla tube; filaments (0.8-)1-1.2 cm; anthers narrowly ellipsoid, 2-3 mm. Style 2-4 mm; stigma lobes oblong. Capsules sessile, narrowly ellipsoid, 2.3-3 cm. Seeds light brown, ellipsoid, 1.2-1.5 mm. Fl. and fr. Jul-Sep.

Lot of flowers in those pretty heads you show, John......

[David Nicholson]

Over the weekend I picked up a copy of "Gentians in the Garden" by G H Berry, published by Faber circa 1951, cost me 50p. He grew all of his Gentians in pots. It's probably a bit out of date taxonomically but it's well written and easy to follow for someone like me just dipping their toe in the Gentiana water. Well recommended.

[Lesley Cox]

You're right David, a jolly good book and at 50p, it must please even your Yorkshire soul. Mine was bought so long ago that it probably didn't cost much more, though in those days would have been WORTH a lot more. No regrets though.

[Maggi Young]

Forgot to say... Kohlein and Jermyn say G. dahurica has four lobes to the flowers.....

[johnw]

Thanks Maggi, now we will have to get to work!

johnw

[Roma]

Flowering now Gentiana 'Black Boy', grown from SRGC seed sown in February 2000.  It looks like septemfida group but I cannot find any information about it.  I need to move either the geranium or the gentian to give it more space.

[ichristie]

Hi all thanks for all the pictures I have some hybrid Gentians in the garden so am posting one interesting variation it is G. septemfida group we have a white one as well.   Roma we had a Gentian Black boy years ago from the Stones at Askival never found out anything about it but perhaps septemfida group. cheers Ian the Christie kind.

[Great Moravian]

Some lovely Gentianas posted to date, so hard to pick a favourite.
This one was grown as G. karoo but may be dahurica. Any thoughts?

By the broad upper leaves Gentiana cruciata probably in the variety phlogifolia.
Gentiana dahurica is narrow-leaved as the plant in the linked picture.
http://www.alexsad.com/item.php?pid=_root_al_mx_vd_0040-76

[Great Moravian]

Forgot to say... Kohlein and Jermyn say G. dahurica has four lobes to the flowers.....

Fischer wrote explicitly corolla quinquefida in his original description
http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/10110044
Gardening books writers excel at exaggerated fancy.