Hippeastrum - Amaryllis

Isn't this just the most gorgeous flower? I picked up this Amaryllis hybrid when I was out at Glasshouse Works in Stewart OH last week. Ken has for years dabbled with hybridizing Amaryllis and this is just one of his creations. I doesn't have a name, as far as I know, but the color is just glowing, especially when the sun shines through it. And I love the bright, grass green throat.
I once tried to plant some Amaryllis seed that I had created by pollinating some of my many Amaryllis plants that live outside in the summer and in the greenhouse in the winter. I bring them into the house just as they are about to bloom so I can enjoy the flowers. It's a sure antidote to the winter blahs. Anyway, the seeds just sat there and did nothing, so I asked Ken how one starts Amaryllis seeds.
Anyway, after you dab the pollen and have gotten some seed, the trick, I am told, is that you need to take a pot or flat, depending on how much seed you have. By the way, these are large, flat seeds. Moisten the soil and then spread the seed on top. They need light to germinate, so you shouldn't cover them with soil. You can put a piece of plastic wrap over the pot so things don't dry out too fast. I'm going to try again next time I get some seeds, because I am truly in love with these big flowers that brighten my house and my life in the darkest days of winter.

Now, a little bit about how I grow my Amaryllis. Like I said, I keep them in the greenhouse in the winter and outside the rest of the year, as long as nighttime temperatures will be above 50 degrees. In the winter they get lots of sun (assuming it actually comes out - this past winter wasn't very good for sunny days). They spend their summers in the dappled shade of some old lilac bushes. I repot and fertilize them when I bring them out. They like to be somewhat potbound, so I don't size them up unless they have broken the pot, which they will do to plastic pots, especially when they create new offsets. They seem to like plenty of moisture, but I don't think they want to be soggy or sit in water. I don't mess so much with the stuff about giving them a rest at certain seasons. When they want a rest, they take one, dropping their leaves and just sitting there for awhile. During that time I water sparingly and only when they either send up a bloom scape or new leaves do I start with the regular watering again. There are some species ones with smaller flowers (mine have red ones) that don't go dormant at all and bloom occasionally throughout the year. Always in the winter, but sometimes again in summer and occasionally at other times too.
Amaryllis bloom scapes are pretty fragile things as they are hollow, quite tall and have up to 4 heavy blooms perched at the top. I set the smaller pot in which the plant is growing into a heavy ceramic pot to keep the whole thing from toppling over, and then I have a cup hook in the window frame to which I tie the scape. You don't really see the thin white string, but it keeps the whole thing safer. If the worst happens and the scape breaks off, I just put the stem in a tall vase (recut the bottom first) and the blooms will last almost as long that way.

So if you don't already have at least on Amaryllis (and why don't you???), you should certainly find one. They can be had for not too much money just after Christmas when they are considered 'left-overs'. As long as the bulbs are sound, they should do just fine. I would avoid the fancy catalog ones that come with a fancy pot. The same plant, without expensive pot can be had for much less and will be just as beautiful. Just think how many other plants you could buy with that extra money!
Four days in a row. Not a record, but good for me. See you tomorrow.
Jane

Trillium grandiflorum

Trillium grandiflorum grows wild around here and usually blooms in early April. The plants are around a foot tall and each bulb produced a stalk with 3 leaves and 1 white, unscented flower. As the flowers age, they change from white to pink. Other varieties have red or yellow flowers or patterned leaves, but this one is our local trillium. Besides enjoying it in the woods, there are quite a few of them spread around the garden.
The common name is Wake Robin, but I've never heard anyone call them anything but Trilliums. They are monocots and members of the Lily Family. It is native to the eastern half of the U.S. and Canada, as far south as Georgia and to the northernmost parts of Canada. These are woodland flowers and will be happiest in those conditions. A few of ours get some sun, but spend most of their days in the shade.
Jane

Erythronium 'Pagoda'

Erythronium 'Pagoda' is a new Dogtooth Violet that we're growing this year. It is a cross between the native American species Erythronium tuolumense and Erythronium revolutum. It will have 3-5 of these lovely yellow flowers per stem and sometimes multiple stems per bulb. I'm happy with just this one flower for its first season. The flower scapes will be 6-12" tall and the leaves are shiny green, kind of fleshy and pretty large. Unlike some of our other Dogtooth Violets, this one doesn't have patterned leaves, but plain green. It blooms in mid to late spring, likes woodland conditions and will tolerate some sun. It grows in zones 3-8.
Although the bulb can be eaten fresh or dried and can be ground into flour and the leaves can be used in salads, I think I'll stick to just enjoying the flowers in the garden.
2 days in a row. Let's see how long I can keep going without missing a day - it's not like there isn't enough to write about in the garden this time of year.
Jane

Ranunculus ficaria 'Limelight'

Laziness is about to end. I think. I hope. I took a bunch of pictures yesterday so I have no excuses for not sharing some interesting plants with all of you.
Today's picture is Ranunculus ficaria 'Limelight'. A buttercup. I've seen it called Fig Buttercup and Creeping Buttercup (proper common name is Lesser Celandine), but although the clumps increase in size gradually over time, I'd be more inclined to think of it more of a jumping buttercup as I find new tiny plants some distance from the mother plant. The species is listed as invasive in some states, but these cultivated types don't seem to fit that description. This one has green leaves with silvery markings and the usual shiny yellow flowers, more single than double, but with a nice puff of stamens in the center. It likes light shade or morning sun and afternoon shade. Mine original clump grows in a sort of rock garden spot - not a real rock garden, but a bit of a terraced spot behind the greenhouse. The leaves come up first thing in the spring, even before the daffodils are in bloom and the flowers follow a few weeks later. The flowers don't open on rainy or very cloudy days - just when you need their cheery yellow. The clump is rather ground hugging, not more than 2 inches tall. The leaves themselves are about the size of a quarter, so this is a rather diminutive plant. As with most of our other ranunculus, at least the ficarias, it will go dormant when the heat of summer arrives. Grows in zones 4-9 which seems about right since the species is native from Europe to northern Africa.
This is one of four that we grow, though we also grow several other Ranunculuses (my proper Latin says that's not the plural, but - whatever) that are not ficarias, though all have those lovely shiny yellow flowers. This particular one doesn't seem that easy to find, but if you're interested in collecting these buttercups, Arrowhead Alpines is an excellent source.
See you all tomorrow.
Jane

Corydalis solida

Corydalis solida (G.P. Baker, above) is one of my favorite spring flowers. It grows from a bulb, unlike most of the other corydalis that we grow. It comes up at the first hint of spring and in a very short time it is in full bloom. Height is probably about 8-10 inches. The named one above is a lovely rosy red/pink, but over the years we have ended up with lots of variety in the colors like the purple one below.

This grape juice color may be my favorite, but over the years they have self seeded and filled in lots of spaces, much better than I could have done planting them myself, and in every shade of pink, red, purple, lavender and anything in between.

I'm told that they also come in white, but I don't have any of those and the closest we've come is some very pale pinks or lavenders. Above is just a sampling of one part of the gardens at Lake Amanda.

These are considered a spring ephemeral since by the beginning of summer they will have totally disappeared. We plant them in gardens with things like hostas that will hide the bare spots. They are best in shade, at least they will last longer there, but we have them in sunny spots that they have chosen themselves and they seem to do all right there, but go dormant a lot faster. In the wild it is a woodland plant, and so those conditions are preferable. Grows in zones 4-8.

And an update on my last post. The first bloom on the orchid cactus has come out with 3 more to go. Last summer it has 20 something blooms at once. To say it was noticeable would be an understatement.

Jane

Epiphyllums and Their Friends

This is certainly not an area in which I am an expert, but I was inspired by the lovely blooms on some of these this morning when I was watering the house plants. This first one is a plant with which most will be familiar, if nor from having grown it, from seeing it in the stores at Christmas time. The Christmas Cactus, Schlumbergera, is native to Brazil. In the southern hemisphere they are simply called winter-flowering cactus. There are six species and a ton of hybrids. All are similar in form with flat jointed stems that make a small arching stemmed bush. They need less than 12 hours of light per day if they are to flower which is why you will usually see them bloom during the dark, short days of winter. Too much light, even artificial light, will hinder their bloom. Mine all live in rooms that don't get as much use in the evening and so are pretty much dark from sundown to sunup. The flowers grow from the tips of the stems. The fruits are green or reddish and grape-like, but since we don't have insects inside to pollinate them in the winter here, I've never seen any fruit on ours. These are shade loving plants. They live in west windows when in the house and their hanging baskets hang under the trees outside in the summer. It's amazing how well they grow outside. Just be sure to bring them back in before the nights get much below 50 degrees (F.) They can go down to about 41 degrees, but I hate to take chances. They like regular feeding in summer and autumn when they are putting on a lot of new growth. This lovely pink one lives in my sewing room this time of year.

Everyone loves the RicRack orchid cactus, Epiphyllum anguliger. This one, as you can see, has deeply serrated trailing stems. It has sweetly scented white or cream colored flowers in summer or fall, though mine has yet to bloom. A warm and shady place makes these happy, no cooler than 43 degrees. Mine is in a south facing window in the winter, but only gets morning sun.

Another non-bloomer (at least so far) is the Selenicereus pteranthus. This will have white flowers also when it finally gets around to it. This one is not quite as showy as the previous 2 (or the one to follow) sort of reminding me of a dinosaur or some sort of prehistoric plant, rambling at odd angles. This one is a bit spiny, unlike the previous ones. This one has 3 sided, fleshy stems. It likes shade and can be grown as a hanging basket plant or as a sort of upright rambler.

Now one of my favorites and one that was just covered with blooms last summer; I think I counted 23 or them at one time. This is Ephyllum ackermannii. These get rather huge for a potted plant. I keep mine trimmed to no more than 6 feet long since they have to live in the house in the winter and I have to carry them in and out. Even 6 feet has me tripping over the ends of the stems sometimes. The red/orange flowers on these are really big and showy - probably 6 inches across easily. In the wild, they grow in the tree canopy of tropical jungles from Mexico to northern South America. The flowers last a couple of days, longer in cooler weather. Regular feeding and warm shade will keep them happy. Minimum temperature is 41 degrees.

Here is a bud just starting that I noticed this morning. This plant is in a north window which is also shaded by a hemlock tree.

And here is the bloom that should be open in the next couple of days. Can't wait. I expect it will bloom again this summer as usual.

That's it for today.

Jane

Papaveraceae - Part Last

Who doesn't like poppies with their crepe paper petals and gaudy colors. Their only drawback, as far as I can see, is that they go dormant shortly after blooming and leave a hole in your perennial border. We have enough things planted, that you mostly don't notice the ones in the proper garden, and our main poppy beds - 2 wide 80, maybe 100 foot rows - are between rows of peonies and daylilies that pretty much take over at the times when the poppies either aren't blooming or aren't there at all. This first picture is the 'normal' orange poppy. Which comes in various shades of orange, some lighter, some darker, but all really orange.

The one below is 'Big Jim' . This isn't an especially good photo, but you get the idea that this is one really red blossom, about the color of the Memorial Day poppies my father used to sell for the American Legion.

This next one is not quite as common, and seems to be a bit less hardy than the solid colored ones. Its name is 'Carousel'. I think it is not quite as tall as some of the other either.

Being someone who just loves purple, 'Patty's Plum' has to be one of my favorites. Purple or lavender poppies are pretty unusual. This one was a bear to get started, but the third try was the charm. It has been living here quite happily ever since it decided that it liked us. It has increased nicely and usually has lots of blooms. It is in the shade in the afternoon, which isn't usually what poppies like, but I'm not complaining since it grows and thrives.

This pink one isn't named, one of several we bought by color awhile back. It's nice having some of these other colors besides just the orange ones.

This orange sherbet color belongs to 'Helen Elizabeth'. She lives next to the pond occupied by the Imperial Lotus. Good thing she blooms fairly early because as gorgeous as she is, nothing else gets noticed once the lotus are in bloom.

Last but not least, is 'Watermelon'. No point trying to describe the actual color (which isn't quite right in this picture) except to say that it really looks like the inside of a watermelon.

Now, if you just came for the pictures, you can get on with your day. For the rest, here is a little about Oriental Poppies. Actually there is a bit of confusion here. Papaver orientale and Papaver bracteayum are both native to the area from Turkey to Iran and the Caucasus. One is slightly smaller than the other with more slender stems, but they seem to be sold interchangeably.

As far as growing them, they are exceedingly accommodating. They will grow on pretty much any soil as long as it's not waterlogged. Sun is best. The best time to divide them is late summer, while dormant, just before the resprout in the fall. If you haven't grown them before, their life cycle can seem a bit peculiar. They come up in the fall, a lovely rosette of leaves that stay fairly small through the winter. When nice weather returns in the late spring, they start growing and then flower in summer - after which they promptly turn brown and die back, to rest until it's time to come up again in the fall.

Oriental Poppies can be grown from seed. You'll get a variety in the colors, even in a packet that is supposedly all one color. Seeds can be started early indoors in pots, or sown where you want them to grow. Spring is the best time. As they grow, they will need to be spread out and the best time for this is autumn. Expect to wait 2 or 3 years for your first blooms.

Where do we go next? Not sure, but I'll be back with a new topic in a couple of days, as soon as I take some more spring photos.

Jane