September 2012 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Folks,

A few more corydalis -  all from Janis Ruksans:

Corydalis solida ssp transsylvanica
Corydalis solida White knight
Corydalis decipiens

Cheers, Marcus

[fermi de Sousa]

Some photos of the potted plants from the recent Canberra Show. They belong to Paul.

No wonder he had to rush back home after the Dandenongs!
Well done, Paul.
cheers
fermi

[Paul T]

Thanks for that Graham.  Did you have to? 

I don't mind the photos, it's just that the plants just aren't that good.  They were all badly neglected and in most cases were about the only entry in the class.  Better to have an imperfect plant in a class than no class at all I feel, but none of them were particularly good other than the Erythronium.  Given I only entered about 9 or 10 entries in the whole show I did extremely well with that champion pot plant and champion container of flowers as well (5 perfect spikes of Prunus 'Elvins').

Thank you everyone for your best wishes. 

I have some general pics of the show still in my camera that I took to post here, but I barely even got a chance to have a proper look at the show at all.  I stewarded all morning, had some lunch and was at work by 1pm so didn't get any time to wander around and look properly at everything.  Such a shame.  I did have a quick look at the mini daffs of course, but even that wasn't long enough.  And there were so many camellias that there would have been some wonderful treasures to discover I'm sure if I had the chance to look at them. 

And sorry that I still haven't posted pics from the Victorian trip.  I worked Saturday and Sunday (after helping set up the show on Friday and Saturday morning), got into the garden a bit on Monday and Tuesday (Hort Society monthly meeting Monday night as well) and caught up on groceries, washing etc, headed to Sydney today to pick up Cymbidium orchids for selling at our Orchid Society Show this weekend, I'm working tomorrow and Friday, the Orchid show all weekend, then working Monday and Tuesday.  Oh yeah, and I'm currently trying to write an article on my clumsy attempts at growing Australian Terrestrial Orchids for the Horticultural Society Bulletin, and that article has to be finished by Monday, around everything else.    I expect to have time to scratch myself about next Wednesday.... if I'm lucky.   

[Hillview croconut]

Come on Paul that grand champion erythronium looked great - it would rival the Jack and the Beanstalk story

Sounds like you have a very busy schedule so I won't hold you to the Victorian trip.

Couple of my favourite arums out. Can these be grown outdoors in Scotland or for that matter the UK? Can apricots and nectarines be successfully grown?

Arum palestinum
Arum hygrophilum

Had some problems with the wildlife with this group. Not that they want to eat them . It seems I have planted most of them on some ancient ancestral wallaby path and the damage has been considerable. Plus a fence fell on them in our recent gales.

Cheers, Marcus

[fermi de Sousa]

Just a few pics from our garden - the last for a while as I'm away from the computer for a week
Firstly some tulips:
Tulipa 'Little Beauty'
One of my favourites - the Lady Tulip, Tulipa clusiana,
though her mascara seems to have smudged in the second pic!
Tulipa kolpakovskiana
cheers
fermi

[fermi de Sousa]

Some other blooms:
Geissorhiza splendidissima x 2
Geissorhiza orinthogaloides - first flower from NZAGS seedex second year from seed!
Acis trichophylla - looking very pink this year - and yes, Marcus, this is the one I got from you originally!
Romulea hartungii
And just to prove to Lesley that I haven't managed to kill off the mertensia that I got from Tim from seed she sent over!
cheers
fermi

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Folks,

A medley of muscari today from a very gloomy southern island.

Muscari armeniacum "Gul" seedlings - for you Paul I noted that you were ogling a northern post of this plant
Muscari anatolicum - JJA number
Muscari polyanthum - is it the same as armeniacum? I'll let the peptide counters work it out
Muscari polyanthum album - From Janis
Bellevlia dubia - a JJA number - Alan Edwards collection in Sicily if I recall correctly

Cheers, Marcus

[Paul T]

Lovely Fermi,

Marcus,

Thanks.  That is a beauty.  I love the contrasts in the anatolicum as well.  Now, can you please remember to remind me to ask you about these in summer?

[Hillview croconut]

Hi folks,

Sure Paul we can do that no problemo.

A few more bits and pieces from Hill View:

Fritillaria acmopetala - the darkest one I have ever seen! Grown from seed and a bit of a find.
Narcissus Three of Diamonds - Lovely over-lapping petals. Is it a Rod Barwick creation?
Iris vicaria - not as lovely as I. aucheri but at least its easy.

Cheers, Marcus

[Mini-daffs]

Marcus
Three of Diamonds was bred by Mary Lou Gripshover of the US not Rod. It is fertile so useful for breeding miniatures.
Kind regards
Graham

[Hillview croconut]

Thanks Graham - I wasn't sure it was Rod's - it didn't seem like his type of thing. I could have checked his catalogue but you saved me the trouble .

A couple of paeonies have popped into view:

Paeonia mascula ssp hellenica - My personal favourite and a cracker of a plant. Only a bud - the rain has ruined the first flowers.
Paeonia ? sp - came in a packet of P. flavescens seed from Jim Archibald. Any ideas?

Cheers, Marcus

[Hillview croconut]

Hi Folks,

I seems to be the only one posting .

Few more spring flowers:

Chionodoxa gigantea alba - A wonderful ground cover - I think it has now been labelled Chionodoxa forbesii alba
Fritillaria uva vulpis - Easy but rather inelegant little frit.
Fritillaria bithynica - this is the smooth capsule race from around Denizli.

Cheers, Marcus

[Lesley Cox]

All of my bithynicas, from whatever source, have unwinged capsules. I've had some seed from you Marcus in hope/expectation of getting winged capsules when they flower. Should be next year. A lot of mine are plain glaucous green on the outside and glossy lime green inside but quite a few have the pink edging stripe as in yours above. Someone on the Forum, could have been Gerry Webster, suggested these could be of hybrid origin, I think F. pinardii was suggested as a possible parent, but presumably a few generations back as the pinkish ones seem to be relatively stable now, from seed.

[ronm]

Fritillaria bithynica - this is the smooth capsule race from around Denizli.

Cheers, Marcus

Hi Marcus,

May I ask why this description came about please? I see that a very similar flower is pictured on the Fritillaria Group website, also as F. bithynica from Denizli. In 'The revision of the genus Fritillaria L. (Liliaceae) in the Mediterranean region (Turkey)' by Mehtap TEKŞEN and Zeki AYTAÇ, of 2011, the winged capsule is a diagnostic feature of F. bithynica. 

[Gerry Webster]

Lesley - I don't remember suggesting this but as senile decay progresses anything is possible.
I've just had a look at Flora of Turkey (Rix) who describes the flowers as "glaucous-green to yellowish-green, sometimes with purple markings". I suppose to some eyes (or in herbarium specimens) the tepal margins, as on Marcus's plants might look purple.

Edit:

Rix describes the capsule as "usually with 6 wings", as do -
Mehtap TEKŞEN &  Zeki AYTAÇ (2011) The revision of the genus Fritillaria L. (Liliaceae) in the Mediterranean region (Turkey). Turk. J. Bot. 35, 447