Well, I just spent the day out weeding and moving things around to prepare for an extension to the tufa bed, and what did I see on my garden walk but... HORRORS!!... two small patches of what I feel is almost certainly Campanula rapunculoides! :o Crazy winds two winters ago likely brought the seeds (as we live on a corner, and these patches are far from the neighboring yard... which, I came to realize last year (upon seeing a bouquet of stems in a jar :-X :P ??? :o), does harbour this fiend - amazing I haven't been invaded sooner) and I was pulling out suspicious-looking campanula seedlings last summer from the one area... This year, the white carrot-like roots on the little plants I evidently missed are sending out ominous networks of lateral roots. IMO, this is truly one of the worst garden weeds in North America!! Here I was, ruthlessly rooting out relatively-innocent seedlings of C. trachelium and C. kolenatiana while the REAL enemy caught me unawares! Anyway, I can see that I have a new pastime... :rolleyes: But I will prevail!!! >:(
Lori, which hedysarum is it that you grow. Hedysarum cappadocica has flowers for the first time and it really caps the week in the garden. Yes, it's a small plant but have never had any success at all with this genus.
Wow! :o That's positively electric, Anne! The only one I grow is Hedysarum boreale var boreale and here are some older photos of it (I don't think it's even emerged yet - Correction: It's up about 8").
Wow, what an explosion of great plants and photos !!!
Love the architectural effect of the Dianthus/Yucca (or Agave) photo, Tim. I just bought a couple Yucca nana plants at a local Friends School sale here for $5 each.
Well, I just spent the day out weeding and moving things around to prepare for an extension to the tufa bed, and what did I see on my garden walk but... HORRORS!!... two small patches of what I feel is almost certainly Campanula rapunculoides! :o Crazy winds two winters ago likely brought the seeds (as we live on a corner, and these patches are far from the neighboring yard... which, I came to realize last year (upon seeing a bouquet of stems in a jar :-X :P ??? :o), does harbour this fiend - amazing I haven't been invaded sooner) and I was pulling out suspicious-looking campanula seedlings last summer from the one area... This year, the white carrot-like roots on the little plants I evidently missed are sending out ominous networks of lateral roots. IMO, this is truly one of the worst garden weeds in North America!! Here I was, ruthlessly rooting out relatively-innocent seedlings of C. trachelium and C. kolenatiana while the REAL enemy caught me unawares! Anyway, I can see that I have a new pastime... :rolleyes: But I will prevail!!! >:(
Funny, I've read this is supposed to be invasive, but we have a patch planted by my aunt or mom years ago, and though there has been a bit of spread there, it hasn't cropped up elsewhere on the property.. much more aggressive, here, it seems to me are Geranium himalayense (if only I liked the flower colour :( --though this is also mostly/entirely vegetative spread, there are several patches of several square metres) and some purple spikey thing--maybe a tall Veronica--this definitely seeds around.... don't know how hard any of them are to get rid of ( I have heard the Campanula is very hard--but the roots are edible!) as I haven't done much in the areas they are planted, but may make some efforts to plant some additional stuff near them this year....
A few pretty things that have been in bloom for the past few days. Every day brings more beauty...the plants are loving this cool & rainy weather, but it is so frustrating to have to run out between downpours to try and get anything done! :P
Cohan: Several places we visited the last days were still snowcovered!
Lori: Birch is the common tree line kind of trees here. Spruces are exotic and planted only the last hundred years. (In the eastern parts spruce is common.) You can find pinewoods high up but usually on drier land. Some places foreign firs and larches are planted too.
The last day on the road. We stayed the night at Mundal Hotell in the small place of Mundal. The former vice president of USA Walter Mondale has his name from this place ;D The hotel is 120 years this year and has seen better days but is cozy and charming. View from my window early this morning.
No time to look at the flowers but some could be seen on the few stops we had. Matteuccia struthiopteris is very common in the moist woods. Orchis mascula is also common at the road verges.
We escaped two fjord crossings but had several more mountain crossings on our way home. This is Vikafjell and typically you see the old road still snowcovered and the "new" road disappearing into a tunnel. In this part of Norway there are several hundreds of them. You also find the World's longest road tunnel here (24.5km/15.2miles).
Amy, your growing season is also jumping ahead of mine....my Jeffersonia is barely showing buds yet my Primula denticulata and Asarum canadense is in full bloom. Lori you are getting way ahead of me...paeonia tenuifolia is just starting to show its bud here.
More lovely scenery Trond!
Sunny today but still icy-cold...only 8 C.
Anemone blanda...a rock wall was built on top of it...doesn't seem to cause it any harm! Also in flower troday: Anemone ranunculoides, Primula X seriana and Sanguinaria canadensis.
Wonderful things, Amy! It's worth going out in the rain for that! :)
Trond, thanks for those beautiful pictures, especially the alpine scenery.
Your area will soon catch up, Todd (if in fact it's behind - it seems like you're ahead for some things, not for others). Wow, (as I said before) your photos are incredible! :o
A few more things here... Thlaspi kurdicum, covered in bloom... I guess I'll keep it. ;)
Eritrichium pauciflorum ssp. sajanense, from seed last year:
Glad you liked the pictures from our roundtrip to Ålesund although the weather wasn't the best and pictures was mostly taken through the car window! Lori, switchbacks are the rule on Norwegian roads - except on a few main ones ;D In fact the old roads were build where the horsetracks went in earlier times.
I am always a little jealous on those of you growing plants I don't have or can't! But it always inspire to try when I see pictures here ;D
How could you ever think of getting rid of that Thlaspi, Lori?
I think you manage well even in rain, Amy! Btw don't you have a raincoat? ;D
Todd, do you know the provenience of that Anemone ranunculuoides? The leaves look different from my clones.
Trond, I've only been to Norway once but it was enchanting and your pictures bring it back. We travelled by various means from Bergen to Geirangerfjord and my most amazing memory was walking to one of the deserted farms perched up on the side of the fjord. No wonder the Vikings were such intrepid explorers! (We have just had an 'Icelandic' season on TV to prove this).
I knew you had been holding back on posting the SO MANY things you grow so well, Lori.
I actually prefer the Thlapsi in mostly bud, just as I like the Viburnum x 'Juddii' and Viburnum carlesii currently wafting their scent through my house windows.
Corydalis solida 'Munich Sunrise' (if I am remembering correctly, can't seem to find any written confirmation...) from an SRGC forumist in Europe, in 09, doing nicely.. colour is brighter than seems in most of the shots...last one is about right..
The only retic Iris that has come up in this bed--either really slow or they didn't like something-- extra long, wet melt period? Scillas seem fine, as do Pulsatillas.... growing beside it is--?-probably a native Ribes...
A tough little Daphne retusa, whose evergreen foliage is somewhat frost-burnt; that one little flower cluster (first I have actually witnessed in bloom :rolleyes:) is amazingly fragrant!
Trond, I've only been to Norway once but it was enchanting and your pictures bring it back. We travelled by various means from Bergen to Geirangerfjord and my most amazing memory was walking to one of the deserted farms perched up on the side of the fjord. No wonder the Vikings were such intrepid explorers! (We have just had an 'Icelandic' season on TV to prove this).
Thanks, Lori and Trond! BTW-- I think I finally see some more retic Irises coming up! last year they were not so late... Scillas on the other hand, came up early, but are taking forever to open flrs... Lori, must agree with the others--you seem to be growing things very nicely indeed! issues of climate and learning where you can place the plants to best advantage (issues everyone has) that you have mentioned, notwithstanding! Thinking about growing well, and what it means, I'm not sure that a lot of fussing equals growing well (or at least, that's only one kind of growing well) I'd mostly rather aim for the type of growing well that involves understanding good plant choices, preparation and placement to avoid fussing ;D
Trond, I know about weed issues--I sometimes think I am crazy trying to garden with so many vigorous things trying to grow in any inch of exposed soil, and you are right, small plants are even harder...lol.. your big plants are nice! This small bed I have with spring flowers, I try to weed every time I stop to look at it, and still I took the photos of the Pulsatilla and found a fat clover behind it...lol..sometimes the weeds aren't so bad--in the woodland bed with the C solida, is a self-sown native C aurea--huge and lush and soon to flower!
Wonderful plants, everyone...nice to see spring again in your gardens....
Here are some plants which are flowering here now: Heuchera x brizoides 'Pruhoniciana Alba' and Dicentra eximia Papaver orientale 'Salmon Pink' and Polygonatum cirrhifolium 'Red Form'
Stunning images Todd! I still don't have much planted (besides seed pots!) so I wont be doing much catching up ;D but the wildflowers are racing along! I found another 3 things flowering today that I wasn't expecting so hard on the heels of Petasites and Caltha, but maybe its just because I forget when they should be...lol Should be a good year for woodland flowers after all the snow...
I picked and dispatched 6 lily beetles this morning! The fiends had already chewed up a clump of asiatics. For never even having seen one before 2 years ago, this is horrendous!! And what a shame - asiatic lilies used to be absolutely carefree plants here.
I tried Polyganatum cirrhifolium. They grew for two summers and survived one winter. That's all they wrote...
Now if I could just get this one to bloom - Polyganatum verticillatum. It seems to be happy in dappled shade and a clay-woodland soil. This is its fourth season. Any ideas?
It's rained here almost every day for a week, and I've had difficulty getting outside to weed, let alone take pictures. But today around noon the mist stopped and I got in the garden for a few minutes and took some not really good pictures of some of the things that are blooming. I apologize for the quality, but given the conditions, they'll have to do. The first one is Eriogonum caespitosa, 3 years old from Alplains seed, and the second is Gentiana acaulis, which has been in the garden for 5 years. Next is Coronilla vaginalis, 4 years from seed, and finally, an Eriogonum I've had for 4 or 5 years, and whose label is long gone.
Now if I could just get this one to bloom - Polyganatum verticillatum. It seems to be happy in dappled shade and a clay-woodland soil. This is its fourth season. Any ideas?
No idea, Rick. It took forever for Polygonatum humile to bloom for me.
Great show, Peter! Gentiana acaulis is always breathtaking, isn't it?
On a positive note (after the lily beetle report >:(), I moved my Betula apoiensis on Sunday and it is still looking fine. It was crowding the front of the big acid bed it's in and infringing on the path... moved it back a ways. So far, so good!
Sorry to hear about the beetles Lori :( There's been talk about them on the yahoo group... one person mentioned she found them in early spring in a bed that had leaf litter or mulch or dead stuff--I forget exactly, but it was some kind of organic material, deliberate or left-over (I think it was the latter).. 'clean' beds didn't seem to be as/hospitable for overwintering....
This little gem is so dark its hard to see it in the pot! Planted in a gallon pot from a piece of root-thanks Stephenb!- late last fall.. so it has survived one winter, and looking great! Taraxacum 'faroense' which is presumably T rubifolium
Its only maybe 3 inches across, most of these leaves are new this spring, and it seems to have a bud coming, we'll see..I'd rather it didn't have regular dandelion colour flowers--it does--but the foliage makes it worthwhile... I wonder if it will stay this dark all year? Hope so.... Anyone know what sort of moisture this sp likes? Faroes look pretty wet to me....
I've not been successful in finding a picture of faeroense in the wild, but one reference refers to it "as distinctive in its blanket bog habitat, leaf form and colour" (so if this is the what we have, it certainly doesn't mind damp conditions!). On the other hand rubifolium isn't noted from the UK, but I've seen pictures of a plant with this name taken in the wild in the Faroe Islands (it looks the same), but no other reference to where it is found in the wild. I would conclude that it is a synonym and that faeroense is accepted as correct in the UK.... Neither are mentioned in the Flora of North America.
The crevice garden continues to be a delight and plants do seem to like it very much. Just a few pictures from what's in bloom now. It's a constantly changing parade.
There's been talk about them on the yahoo group... one person mentioned she found them in early spring in a bed that had leaf litter or mulch or dead stuff--I forget exactly, but it was some kind of organic material, deliberate or left-over (I think it was the latter).. 'clean' beds didn't seem to be as/hospitable for overwintering....
A friend at work who is deeply interested in lilies and hybridizing compiled a fact sheet for the Alberta Regional Lily Society. Apparently, the adults overwinter in soil or in organic debris. He compiled reports last year - apparently, they have started to occur all over the city.
I tried Polyganatum cirrhifolium. They grew for two summers and survived one winter. That's all they wrote...
Now if I could just get this one to bloom - Polyganatum verticillatum. It seems to be happy in dappled shade and a clay-woodland soil. This is its fourth season. Any ideas?
I do grow verticillatum. I collected a piece of the rhizome of a winter cold inland site in E Norway. It flowers sparse but regularly. Seems the outmost plants in the clump produce more flowers. They naturally grow in rather moist (but not wet) soil and tolerate heavy shade.
A clump of Tulipa urumiensis that has been given new life by the removal of a 14'W x 8' T sweetberry honeysuckle (Lonicera caerulea)... funny, when this honeysuckle was introduced around here, it was said to get to 3'x3'! This is where the tufa bed extension will go, so the tulips (and anything else worth saving) will get moved soon too.
Gentiana verna... my camera (claimed to be pretty good for its type, I gather, but IMO, lousy at focusing and colour capture) can't show the true colour, a much darker blue. Nice how the petals unwind.
Taraxacum albopseudoroseum - not delicate; this one wintered over as an evergreen, and bloomed last year in its first year from seed.
Veronica bombycina ssp. bolkardaghensis:
Looks like I might, after many years, get a flower on Clematis hirsutissima! (It never looks much better than this... just one feathery sprig sticking up.)
Primula 'Jay Jay'... I think I'd best propagate/rejuvenate all my old primroses - many are declining.
Fritillaria meleagris - the hole in the petal is probably from hail (quite a hailstorm a while ago and a bit last night in the rain)... not from lily beetles!
There's been talk about them on the yahoo group... one person mentioned she found them in early spring in a bed that had leaf litter or mulch or dead stuff--I forget exactly, but it was some kind of organic material, deliberate or left-over (I think it was the latter).. 'clean' beds didn't seem to be as/hospitable for overwintering....
A friend at work who is deeply interested in lilies and hybridizing compiled a fact sheet for the Alberta Regional Lily Society. Apparently, the adults overwinter in soil or in organic debris. He compiled reports last year - apparently, they have started to occur all over the city.
Makes me think I should stick to buying seed and not live plants (not buying any lilies, but I presume they could be in the soil of other plants? could they be hidden in summer, or if you bought a plant would they have to be visible on above ground plant parts?).. I don't have any number of lilies at risk, but I worry about introducing them to native lily relatives.... At this point, I really do nothing with or about insects outdoors--for the most part, the natural fauna seems to be in balance...
Thanks for input Stephen and Mark; I've seen some of those images before.. Faroes look lovely.. sounds like I should keep it well watered. Stephen, is yours in ordinary garden conditions, or...?
Lori, did you mean T pseudoroseum? I had seedlings last fall, not yet sure if they are coming back --there are dandelion seedlings in that pot, but all very small, so I'm not yet sure if there are any overwinterers, new germination, or just 'wild' stuff seeded in.... Your success is encouraging, but still not sure of its survival...
Quote: Looks like I might, after many years, get a flower on Clematis hirsutissima! (It never looks much better than this... just one feathery sprig sticking up.)
How many years? I have this in my sand bed and it grows really well but has never flowered. I put it down to not getting hot enough summers and maybe cold enough winters, but perhaps i just need to be more patient. Clematis tenuiloba in the same bed does flower but not brilliantly. I wish I could grow the Veronica. I've tried it from seed but it hasn't kept going too long. Some of those Turkish species are exquisite
Yes, thanks! My iPhoto is currently disconnected from my huge photo gallery... grrr. I usually go back and copy names over, but I just winged it on that one, and got it wrong.
Tim, I've had that C. hirsutissima for about 5-6 years, and I bought it so it must have been at least 2-3 years old. A couple of these choice low clematis do splendidly at Rundle Wood Garden here in Calgary; I think they get much more sun-baking where they are positioned there than this one of mine.
Ranunculus eschscholtzii, starting to bloom. I like the very glossy foliage... although I much prefer to see them in the wild here. :)
Androsace chamaejasme... ditto!
And one from the aquatic world, water hawthorn, Aponogeton distachyos - one of the most bizarre flowers I've ever seen.
Didymophysavesicaria... I think there is a misspelling there. Anyone know what it really is? (Again, I think I figured it out last year... but can't get at my photo records!) I figured it out. Correction: It's probably Braya linearis.
Yes it's Eriogonum caespitosum. This particular plant is an oddball since it's flowering stems are 4-6 inches long. Normal plants display their flowers just above the foliage. I found it growing in a normally proportioned population.
Thanks for the close-ups! It's gorgeous! There are so many plants, I don't know where to start asking for names. Out of curiosity, what is the low grass-substitute (I assume) in the second photo?
Dianthus myrtinervius ssp. caespitosus looks like it will put on a good show this year; the winter of 2009-2010 was hard on it, and about 1/3 of died, but it seems to have recovered its vigour.
I have some seed of C hirsutissima, which I may have sown to late for full stratification--then again, if it needs warm cold warm, even later ;D Anyway, from all the comments here and on SRGC recently, (someone waited 9 years from seed for flowers).. I'm starting to wonder if its worth worrying about.. (may take so long, no point giving it any thought!) plus, if it needs baking, it prob wont be happy here! I got it from someone in Saskatchewan.. wonder how long his took to flower...
Thanks for the close-ups! It's gorgeous! There are so many plants, I don't know where to start asking for names. Out of curiosity, what is the low grass-substitute (I assume) in the second photo?
The Green grass substitutes are a mix of Thyme species. I think about six varieties . The gray creeper you see in the upper portion is Raoulia australis. The lawn forms a circle around a sand stone patio. On the north and west sides of the lawn are five species of Antennaria forming a silvery lawn.
Comments
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Sun, 05/15/2011 - 7:44pmWell, I just spent the day out weeding and moving things around to prepare for an extension to the tufa bed, and what did I see on my garden walk but... HORRORS!!... two small patches of what I feel is almost certainly Campanula rapunculoides! :o Crazy winds two winters ago likely brought the seeds (as we live on a corner, and these patches are far from the neighboring yard... which, I came to realize last year (upon seeing a bouquet of stems in a jar :-X :P ??? :o), does harbour this fiend - amazing I haven't been invaded sooner) and I was pulling out suspicious-looking campanula seedlings last summer from the one area... This year, the white carrot-like roots on the little plants I evidently missed are sending out ominous networks of lateral roots. IMO, this is truly one of the worst garden weeds in North America!!
Here I was, ruthlessly rooting out relatively-innocent seedlings of C. trachelium and C. kolenatiana while the REAL enemy caught me unawares! Anyway, I can see that I have a new pastime... :rolleyes: But I will prevail!!! >:(
Anne Spiegel
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Sun, 05/15/2011 - 7:50pmLori, which hedysarum is it that you grow. Hedysarum cappadocica has flowers for the first time and it really caps the week in the garden. Yes, it's a small plant but have never had any success at all with this genus.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Sun, 05/15/2011 - 7:55pmWow! :o That's positively electric, Anne!
The only one I grow is Hedysarum boreale var boreale and here are some older photos of it (I don't think it's even emerged yet - Correction: It's up about 8").
Richard T. Rodich
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Sun, 05/15/2011 - 9:28pmWow, what an explosion of great plants and photos !!!
Love the architectural effect of the Dianthus/Yucca (or Agave) photo, Tim. I just bought a couple Yucca nana plants at a local Friends School sale here for $5 each.
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Sun, 05/15/2011 - 11:19pmFunny, I've read this is supposed to be invasive, but we have a patch planted by my aunt or mom years ago, and though there has been a bit of spread there, it hasn't cropped up elsewhere on the property.. much more aggressive, here, it seems to me are Geranium himalayense (if only I liked the flower colour :( --though this is also mostly/entirely vegetative spread, there are several patches of several square metres) and some purple spikey thing--maybe a tall Veronica--this definitely seeds around.... don't know how hard any of them are to get rid of ( I have heard the Campanula is very hard--but the roots are edible!) as I haven't done much in the areas they are planted, but may make some efforts to plant some additional stuff near them this year....
Trond Hoy
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 9:29amTwo very pretty Hedysarums, Anne and Lori! I haven't yet had any luck with that genus. But I hope to mend that soon.....
Amy Olmsted
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 9:40amA few pretty things that have been in bloom for the past few days. Every day brings more beauty...the plants are loving this cool & rainy weather, but it is so frustrating to have to run out between downpours to try and get anything done! :P
Trond Hoy
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 9:53amCohan: Several places we visited the last days were still snowcovered!
Lori: Birch is the common tree line kind of trees here. Spruces are exotic and planted only the last hundred years. (In the eastern parts spruce is common.) You can find pinewoods high up but usually on drier land. Some places foreign firs and larches are planted too.
The last day on the road. We stayed the night at Mundal Hotell in the small place of Mundal. The former vice president of USA Walter Mondale has his name from this place ;D
The hotel is 120 years this year and has seen better days but is cozy and charming. View from my window early this morning.
No time to look at the flowers but some could be seen on the few stops we had.
Matteuccia struthiopteris is very common in the moist woods. Orchis mascula is also common at the road verges.
We escaped two fjord crossings but had several more mountain crossings on our way home. This is Vikafjell and typically you see the old road still snowcovered and the "new" road disappearing into a tunnel. In this part of Norway there are several hundreds of them. You also find the World's longest road tunnel here (24.5km/15.2miles).
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 12:03pmMore beautiful shots, Trond--love the last view esp..
Amy-- great stuff!
Todd Boland
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 5:04pmAmy, your growing season is also jumping ahead of mine....my Jeffersonia is barely showing buds yet my Primula denticulata and Asarum canadense is in full bloom. Lori you are getting way ahead of me...paeonia tenuifolia is just starting to show its bud here.
More lovely scenery Trond!
Sunny today but still icy-cold...only 8 C.
Anemone blanda...a rock wall was built on top of it...doesn't seem to cause it any harm! Also in flower troday: Anemone ranunculoides, Primula X seriana and Sanguinaria canadensis.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 8:48pmWonderful things, Amy! It's worth going out in the rain for that! :)
Trond, thanks for those beautiful pictures, especially the alpine scenery.
Your area will soon catch up, Todd (if in fact it's behind - it seems like you're ahead for some things, not for others). Wow, (as I said before) your photos are incredible! :o
A few more things here...
Thlaspi kurdicum, covered in bloom... I guess I'll keep it. ;)
Eritrichium pauciflorum ssp. sajanense, from seed last year:
Primula algida, from seed last year:
Primula marginata 'Sheila Denby':
A couple of choice selections (from the 2+ trays-full I bought at the CRAGS spring plant sale).... Lomatium columbianum and Trifolium owyheense:
I have a couple of seedlings (finally) in a pot of Lomatium columbianum but I couldn't turn up the chance to get a more established plant.
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 9:54pmBeuties, Todd, love the A blanda!
Lori--great Thlaspi indeed :) I was going to ask if the CRAGS sale had already happened this year...
Trond Hoy
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Mon, 05/16/2011 - 11:21pmGlad you liked the pictures from our roundtrip to Ålesund although the weather wasn't the best and pictures was mostly taken through the car window!
Lori, switchbacks are the rule on Norwegian roads - except on a few main ones ;D In fact the old roads were build where the horsetracks went in earlier times.
I am always a little jealous on those of you growing plants I don't have or can't! But it always inspire to try when I see pictures here ;D
How could you ever think of getting rid of that Thlaspi, Lori?
I think you manage well even in rain, Amy! Btw don't you have a raincoat? ;D
Todd, do you know the provenience of that Anemone ranunculuoides? The leaves look different from my clones.
Tim Ingram (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 12:08amTrond, I've only been to Norway once but it was enchanting and your pictures bring it back. We travelled by various means from Bergen to Geirangerfjord and my most amazing memory was walking to one of the deserted farms perched up on the side of the fjord. No wonder the Vikings were such intrepid explorers! (We have just had an 'Icelandic' season on TV to prove this).
Richard T. Rodich
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 10:35amI knew you had been holding back on posting the SO MANY things you grow so well, Lori.
I actually prefer the Thlapsi in mostly bud, just as I like the Viburnum x 'Juddii' and Viburnum carlesii currently wafting their scent through my house windows.
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 6:18pmFlowers at last on some of my few spring flowering plants.. pics from May 11 to 14
https://picasaweb.google.com/cactuscactus/May11To142011SpringGardenFlowers#
Corydalis solida 'Munich Sunrise' (if I am remembering correctly, can't seem to find any written confirmation...) from an SRGC forumist in Europe, in 09, doing nicely.. colour is brighter than seems in most of the shots...last one is about right..
Pulsatilla vulgaris
The only retic Iris that has come up in this bed--either really slow or they didn't like something-- extra long, wet melt period? Scillas seem fine, as do Pulsatillas.... growing beside it is--?-probably a native Ribes...
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 10:07pmVery nice, Cohan!
Thanks for the kind words, Rick... I like to think I grow a fair variety of things but I think most not terribly well! :-[
Gentiana verna getting ready to roll...
A tough little Daphne retusa, whose evergreen foliage is somewhat frost-burnt; that one little flower cluster (first I have actually witnessed in bloom :rolleyes:) is amazingly fragrant!
Anemone ranunculoides:
Trond Hoy
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 10:47pmYou are welcome back any time, Tim!
Trond Hoy
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 11:20pmCohan, seems the spring has arrived at your place ;D Nice plants too.
Lori, don't be too humble, in my opinion Rick is right ;)
I have few places to grow small plants. Everything grow to considerable sizes here - the weeds too.
Therefore I often use huge plants like these:
Podophyllum aurantiocaule
Diphylleia sinensis
Asphodelus albus with a twist this year!
. . and in one of the beds I manage to keep the weed away. Calceolaria biflora
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Tue, 05/17/2011 - 11:48pmThanks, Lori and Trond! BTW-- I think I finally see some more retic Irises coming up! last year they were not so late... Scillas on the other hand, came up early, but are taking forever to open flrs...
Lori, must agree with the others--you seem to be growing things very nicely indeed! issues of climate and learning where you can place the plants to best advantage (issues everyone has) that you have mentioned, notwithstanding!
Thinking about growing well, and what it means, I'm not sure that a lot of fussing equals growing well (or at least, that's only one kind of growing well) I'd mostly rather aim for the type of growing well that involves understanding good plant choices, preparation and placement to avoid fussing ;D
Trond, I know about weed issues--I sometimes think I am crazy trying to garden with so many vigorous things trying to grow in any inch of exposed soil, and you are right, small plants are even harder...lol.. your big plants are nice! This small bed I have with spring flowers, I try to weed every time I stop to look at it, and still I took the photos of the Pulsatilla and found a fat clover behind it...lol..sometimes the weeds aren't so bad--in the woodland bed with the C solida, is a self-sown native C aurea--huge and lush and soon to flower!
WimB (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Wed, 05/18/2011 - 1:41amWonderful plants, everyone...nice to see spring again in your gardens....
Here are some plants which are flowering here now:
Heuchera x brizoides 'Pruhoniciana Alba' and Dicentra eximia
Papaver orientale 'Salmon Pink'
and Polygonatum cirrhifolium 'Red Form'
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Wed, 05/18/2011 - 12:05pmInteresting Polygonatum!
Todd Boland
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Wed, 05/18/2011 - 4:57pmBizarre Polygonatum Wim!
Cohan, you are just a week or so behind me...quick to catch up with your sunny weather compared to my cloudy.
Never heard of that Podophyllum species Trond...very attractive.
Lori, you're killing me with G. verna....love it but can't grow it.
Some images from today...Omphalodes verna, Primula 'Dale's Red', Rhododendron racemosum, Sanguinaria canadensis 'Rosea' and Viola corsica.
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Wed, 05/18/2011 - 11:11pmStunning images Todd!
I still don't have much planted (besides seed pots!) so I wont be doing much catching up ;D but the wildflowers are racing along! I found another 3 things flowering today that I wasn't expecting so hard on the heels of Petasites and Caltha, but maybe its just because I forget when they should be...lol Should be a good year for woodland flowers after all the snow...
WimB (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 1:36amThanks Cohan, it's a Chen Yi plant so I'm not 100% sure of the name...but it's a nice one.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 4:03pmI picked and dispatched 6 lily beetles this morning! The fiends had already chewed up a clump of asiatics. For never even having seen one before 2 years ago, this is horrendous!! And what a shame - asiatic lilies used to be absolutely carefree plants here.
Todd Boland
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 4:41pmTouch wood...lily beetles have not made it to newfoundland. They are a major nuisance in Nova Scotia so too close for comfort!
Richard T. Rodich
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 6:54pmI tried Polyganatum cirrhifolium. They grew for two summers and survived one winter. That's all they wrote...
Now if I could just get this one to bloom - Polyganatum verticillatum. It seems to be happy in dappled shade and a clay-woodland soil. This is its fourth season. Any ideas?
Peter George
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 7:05pmIt's rained here almost every day for a week, and I've had difficulty getting outside to weed, let alone take pictures. But today around noon the mist stopped and I got in the garden for a few minutes and took some not really good pictures of some of the things that are blooming. I apologize for the quality, but given the conditions, they'll have to do.
The first one is Eriogonum caespitosa, 3 years old from Alplains seed, and the second is Gentiana acaulis, which has been in the garden for 5 years. Next is Coronilla vaginalis, 4 years from seed, and finally, an Eriogonum I've had for 4 or 5 years, and whose label is long gone.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 7:18pmNo idea, Rick. It took forever for Polygonatum humile to bloom for me.
Great show, Peter! Gentiana acaulis is always breathtaking, isn't it?
On a positive note (after the lily beetle report >:(), I moved my Betula apoiensis on Sunday and it is still looking fine. It was crowding the front of the big acid bed it's in and infringing on the path... moved it back a ways. So far, so good!
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 9:28pmSorry to hear about the beetles Lori :( There's been talk about them on the yahoo group... one person mentioned she found them in early spring in a bed that had leaf litter or mulch or dead stuff--I forget exactly, but it was some kind of organic material, deliberate or left-over (I think it was the latter).. 'clean' beds didn't seem to be as/hospitable for overwintering....
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Thu, 05/19/2011 - 10:05pmThis little gem is so dark its hard to see it in the pot! Planted in a gallon pot from a piece of root-thanks Stephenb!- late last fall.. so it has survived one winter, and looking great!
Taraxacum 'faroense' which is presumably T rubifolium
Its only maybe 3 inches across, most of these leaves are new this spring, and it seems to have a bud coming, we'll see..I'd rather it didn't have regular dandelion colour flowers--it does--but the foliage makes it worthwhile... I wonder if it will stay this dark all year? Hope so....
Anyone know what sort of moisture this sp likes? Faroes look pretty wet to me....
Stephen Barstow
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 1:33amGood to see that it has made it! Even though it has standard coloured flowers, the contrast against the dark leaves is very nice!
Although the Plant List doesn't note a Taraxacum faroense or faeroense, the Botanical Society of the British Isles does note a species with the latter name and it is fairly widespread in the UK: http://www.bsbimaps.org.uk/atlas/map_page.php?spid=3847.0&sppname=Taraxacum faeroense&commname=A dandelion
I've not been successful in finding a picture of faeroense in the wild, but one reference refers to it "as distinctive in its blanket bog habitat, leaf form and colour" (so if this is the what we have, it certainly doesn't mind damp conditions!). On the other hand rubifolium isn't noted from the UK, but I've seen pictures of a plant with this name taken in the wild in the Faroe Islands (it looks the same), but no other reference to where it is found in the wild. I would conclude that it is a synonym and that faeroense is accepted as correct in the UK.... Neither are mentioned in the Flora of North America.
Mark McDonough
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 3:55amJust some quick links relative to Taraxacum, and Taraxacum faeroense Dahlst. 1926 in particular:
T. rubrifolium
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31788134@N04/4656690003/
The Flora of Derbyshire entry (no image)
http://www.derby.gov.uk/dccwebdev/museum/flora/flora.aspx?SpeciesID=1873
Listed in the Interactive Flora of NW Europe
http://ip30.eti.uva.nl/BIS/flora.php?selected=beschrijving&menuentry=soo...
A Shetland endemic, habitat:
Native; damp or wet acidic grassy places, often in upland areas, also roadsides etc..
Map:
http://wbrc.org.uk/WORCRECD/Issue%2020/taraxacum_maps_3.htm
of interest:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faroe_Islands
Anne Spiegel
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 6:14amThe crevice garden continues to be a delight and plants do seem to like it very much. Just a few pictures from what's in bloom now. It's a constantly changing parade.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 8:11amA friend at work who is deeply interested in lilies and hybridizing compiled a fact sheet for the Alberta Regional Lily Society. Apparently, the adults overwinter in soil or in organic debris. He compiled reports last year - apparently, they have started to occur all over the city.
Trond Hoy
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 9:46amFortunately I have no problem with the lily beetle at home. However at my summerhouse it is devastating :(
All I want for my birthday is some crevices to fill with plants ;D
Trond Hoy
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 10:04amI do grow verticillatum. I collected a piece of the rhizome of a winter cold inland site in E Norway. It flowers sparse but regularly. Seems the outmost plants in the clump produce more flowers. They naturally grow in rather moist (but not wet) soil and tolerate heavy shade.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 10:18amAnd an absolutely delightful one, Anne!
A clump of Tulipa urumiensis that has been given new life by the removal of a 14'W x 8' T sweetberry honeysuckle (Lonicera caerulea)... funny, when this honeysuckle was introduced around here, it was said to get to 3'x3'! This is where the tufa bed extension will go, so the tulips (and anything else worth saving) will get moved soon too.
Gentiana verna... my camera (claimed to be pretty good for its type, I gather, but IMO, lousy at focusing and colour capture) can't show the true colour, a much darker blue. Nice how the petals unwind.
Taraxacum
albopseudoroseum - not delicate; this one wintered over as an evergreen, and bloomed last year in its first year from seed.Veronica bombycina ssp. bolkardaghensis:
Looks like I might, after many years, get a flower on Clematis hirsutissima! (It never looks much better than this... just one feathery sprig sticking up.)
Primula 'Jay Jay'... I think I'd best propagate/rejuvenate all my old primroses - many are declining.
Fritillaria meleagris - the hole in the petal is probably from hail (quite a hailstorm a while ago and a bit last night in the rain)... not from lily beetles!
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 11:48amMakes me think I should stick to buying seed and not live plants (not buying any lilies, but I presume they could be in the soil of other plants? could they be hidden in summer, or if you bought a plant would they have to be visible on above ground plant parts?).. I don't have any number of lilies at risk, but I worry about introducing them to native lily relatives.... At this point, I really do nothing with or about insects outdoors--for the most part, the natural fauna seems to be in balance...
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 11:54amThanks for input Stephen and Mark; I've seen some of those images before.. Faroes look lovely.. sounds like I should keep it well watered. Stephen, is yours in ordinary garden conditions, or...?
Lori, did you mean T pseudoroseum? I had seedlings last fall, not yet sure if they are coming back --there are dandelion seedlings in that pot, but all very small, so I'm not yet sure if there are any overwinterers, new germination, or just 'wild' stuff seeded in.... Your success is encouraging, but still not sure of its survival...
Tim Ingram (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 12:13pmQuote: Looks like I might, after many years, get a flower on Clematis hirsutissima! (It never looks much better than this... just one feathery sprig sticking up.)
How many years? I have this in my sand bed and it grows really well but has never flowered. I put it down to not getting hot enough summers and maybe cold enough winters, but perhaps i just need to be more patient. Clematis tenuiloba in the same bed does flower but not brilliantly. I wish I could grow the Veronica. I've tried it from seed but it hasn't kept going too long. Some of those Turkish species are exquisite
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 12:14pmYes, thanks! My iPhoto is currently disconnected from my huge photo gallery... grrr. I usually go back and copy names over, but I just winged it on that one, and got it wrong.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 12:34pmTim, I've had that C. hirsutissima for about 5-6 years, and I bought it so it must have been at least 2-3 years old. A couple of these choice low clematis do splendidly at Rundle Wood Garden here in Calgary; I think they get much more sun-baking where they are positioned there than this one of mine.
Ranunculus eschscholtzii, starting to bloom. I like the very glossy foliage... although I much prefer to see them in the wild here. :)
Androsace chamaejasme... ditto!
And one from the aquatic world, water hawthorn, Aponogeton distachyos - one of the most bizarre flowers I've ever seen.
Didymophysa vesicaria... I think there is a misspelling there. Anyone know what it really is? (Again, I think I figured it out last year... but can't get at my photo records!) I figured it out. Correction: It's probably Braya linearis.
John P. Weiser
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 12:51pmI took a stroll through my garden yesterday.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 4:43pmJohn... WOW!! :o Absolutely fantastic! What are the yellow flowers in the last one? Eriogonum?
John P. Weiser
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 6:22pmYes it's Eriogonum caespitosum. This particular plant is an oddball since it's flowering stems are
4-6 inches long. Normal plants display their flowers just above the foliage. I found it growing in a normally proportioned population.
Here are some close ups.
Lori S. (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 7:42pmThanks for the close-ups! It's gorgeous!
There are so many plants, I don't know where to start asking for names. Out of curiosity, what is the low grass-substitute (I assume) in the second photo?
Dianthus myrtinervius ssp. caespitosus looks like it will put on a good show this year; the winter of 2009-2010 was hard on it, and about 1/3 of died, but it seems to have recovered its vigour.
cohan (not verified)
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 8:16pmI have some seed of C hirsutissima, which I may have sown to late for full stratification--then again, if it needs warm cold warm, even later ;D
Anyway, from all the comments here and on SRGC recently, (someone waited 9 years from seed for flowers).. I'm starting to wonder if its worth worrying about.. (may take so long, no point giving it any thought!) plus, if it needs baking, it prob wont be happy here! I got it from someone in Saskatchewan.. wonder how long his took to flower...
John P. Weiser
Re: What do you see on your garden walks?
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 8:20pmThe Green grass substitutes are a mix of Thyme species. I think about six varieties . The gray creeper you see in the upper portion is Raoulia australis. The lawn forms a circle around a sand stone patio. On the north and west sides of the lawn are five species of Antennaria forming a silvery lawn.
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