Trillium Weekend in New Zealand

[Maggi Young]

Mark, can you not take Bob to a local Library, log in and show him the photos?

[Lesley Cox]

Probably the majority are T. chloropetalum Mark. It varies between deep red almost black, lighter reds, pinkish, white and the stunning yellows. We also saw a few amazingly psychadelic green forms. The leaves can be plainish green or superbly marked and splashed darker. Usually the petals are wide, but this varies too. Some of the smaller sessile species may be maculatum or cunetaum while the pedicillates could be any of the rectum/felxipes complex or ovatum, grandiflorum etc. You know rivale well and pusillum. If you want to know any specific pics, just ask, someone will know.

I couldn't find my pic of T. 'Val Mulvihill,' the original ,because I remembered I didn't have a digital camera when we first saw 10 years ago. The one I have somewhere (but where?) was sent to me by Bill Dijk and maybe he could post it here as it was undoubtedly a superb plant. Val herself was perhaps overly generous with it in the very early days and has found it slow to recover to its former glory. Certainly at least one plant went to the UK, to Carl Denton and I think some went to the States as well as to a few lucky local gardeners.

[Anthony Darby]

There must be some somewhere, because the image has been etched on my memory, and it was not those above? Perhaps the old forum?

[Maggi Young]

I can't find any reference to the old forum Anthony.... and even if it were there , we have sadly lost that facility, as a result of haccking attacks recently. 

[Maggi Young]

Some other Trillium 'Val Mulvihill' references :
Perhaps from Trillium=l??
http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/temperate/index.php?gal=woodland&genus=Trillium&id=1969

http://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/Growing-Heritage/pdf/ActionPlanFinal  photo from Carl Denton here

http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/img_anno_query?kwid=0000+0000+0207+0311
Mike Ireland... of a show plant at Harrogate
http://131.211.5.130/temperate/show.php?img=T./T._chloropetalum_Val_Mulvihill_1969.jpg&caption=Trillium%20chloropetalum%20%5CVal%20Mulvihill%5C   close up of Mike's photo, I think.


http://mailman.science.uu.nl/pipermail/trillium-l/2005-December/013521.html

[Anthony Darby]

I think the Carl Denton photo looks familiar? What a shame about the old Forum. Not the sort of thing anyone would have saved to disc anywhere?

[Maggi Young]

What a shame about the old Forum. Not the sort of thing anyone would have saved to disc anywhere?

It was HUGE, and we haven't the resources for that.

[Anthony Darby]

Just shows you how the contributions of all the contributors have added up over the years. I am in awe of the people who manage it and keep it running so smoothly!

[Lesley Cox]

I have been slow to post to this thread because the weather has been so good and as I'm on holiday from my job at present, it's been a great opportunity to get quite a lot done outside. Never mind the housework. That can wait.

In the meantime though, yesterday we had a gathering of the local Fritillaria Group members here in Dunedin and explored the Botanic Gardens, the rock garden, the new Mediterranean garden and then the propagating areas. Then we went to two gardens at Mosgiel, the fantastic garden of Stewart Preston and the smaller but excellent garden of Dick King, aged well into his 80s and starting fresh in a retirement village, a beautiful home and the largest garden I've ever seen in such a place. If we saw wonderful trilliums at Val Mulvihill's Stewarts were even in many cases, more impressive. Photos to follow. His being a week later, included many pedicillate species and hybrids which weren't out in Val's garden under the snow covered mountains. We followed these adventures with a short AGM at Susan and David More's place, a talk from Doreen Mear about a trip to Lake Van in eastern Turkey then a sumptuous meal contributed to, by all present. We missed Wales playing FRance, but we all know how that ended, no-one but the French happy with the result.

Today has been busy too with Rhodo Day at the Bot Gardens and lots of spending on the plant stalls there. I need to get back to work to start earning again!!! But first the semi-final between Australia and NZ in the RWC. Of course we will win it - we assure ourselves, but somewhat uncertainly.

[Maggi Young]

What a wonderrful weekend you've been enjoying, Lesley... topped off by the All blacks' win!
Happy days!

[Anthony Darby]

ABs win. Never, er, in doubt!

[Paddy Tobin]

A wonderful selection of plants in these pages, really enjoyed seeing them and the garden shots, even some of the hairy knees on display.

Many thanks for them all.

And, delighted with the All Blacks win this morning. Good game, watched with breakfast. Tough luck, Ozzies.

Paddy

[Lesley Cox]

I said to Tim when he went home that we would next meet on the rugby field, but I didn't see him there. Yes, we played reasonably well and thank goodness, no further injuries.

[Lesley Cox]

Roger says he has just heard on the news that the Aussies are offering to sell us Quade Cooper - for a dollar! QC is one of their star players but was NZ born and hasn't been permitted to become an Australian citizen because he hasn't formerly applied for residency or something. It did seem near the beginning of the game that he was actually playing for NZ with some silly mistakes. The crowd gave him beans. There has been a lot of discussion locally about the fact that Australia didn't want him as a citizen but were prepared to use him for their own benefit in big games.

[Lesley Cox]

Posting about the Trillium weekend seems to have stopped so I'll put up some more pictures, from the gardens which were not so much Trillium gardens but all the same had good plants in them and in every case, it was obvious that the owners had really worked hard to make good venues for their visitors.

This jar was a good size and shape under a large tree, just on its own and making an attractive statement.


Don't mind please that I repeat Doug's posting of the super Lysichiton americanum. It was shorter than perhaps it usually grows but in keeping with the little pond in a little garden.


The Japanese species L. camschatsense was a smaller plant but equally lovely.


Over the weekend and this last one as well, we saw numerous plants of Orobus (is it Lathyrus now?) vernus in different colours. I've never grown them before but will look for them in the next batch of seedlists. This is O. v. albo-roseus I think.


We saw many Tiarella and Heuchera vars, most of them newish, from America. This Tiarella had pretty foliage as well as flowers.