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Author: hortoris

Purple Coloured Flowers and Plants

Purple Coloured Flowers and Plants

Interesting colours are often seen in plants after a rain storm. The clouds and the temperature of the light can create some eerie shades. With all the rain in Yorkshire this summer colour in the garden has needed all the help it can get.

Iris

See Gardening Colour Wheel Hints and Tips


Purple Flower Selection

  • Pulasatilla vulgaris has a satiny rich, purple petals with a grey hairy underside. Also called the Pasque flower it is great for a spring purple if you want to avoid crocus.
  • If you like your purples to err towards the red spectrum then Clematis Haku-Oakan or Gipsy Queen are the climbers for you.
  • Malva mauritiana is a top purple perennial but Iris are my favourite. Try Mandarin Iris mixed with lime green Euphorbia.
  • At the end of summer the best Michaelmas Daisies will bloom in purples of all hues

Clematis

…

Read More Read More

Photos of Phlox Species

Photos of Phlox Species

Phlox 'wagon wheels'
Phlox adsurgens a mat forming evergreen with a cheery springtime display of star-like flowers in pale pink.

Phlox paniculata
Phlox paniculata

Phlox
Phlox subulata a rockery favourite

Various Phlox are available from Thompson & Morgan Including:-
Phlox drummondii ‘Phlox of Sheep’ an annual
Phlox subulata,
Phlox douglasii or Moss Phlox for fragrant ground cover.
Phlox divaricata ‘Clouds of Perfume’ also known as Wild Sweet William, Blue Phlox or Woodland Phlox
Phlox Hybrida Compacta ‘Peppermint Candy’
Zaluzianskya capensis Night Phlox with a honey fragrance in the late evening

Book Cover
Phlox: A Natural History and Gardener’s Guide by James H. Locklear

Downy phlox
Downy Phlox pilosa

Phlox hoodii var. canescens (Carpet phlox)
Phlox hoodii var. canescens aka Carpet phlox

Phlox stolonifera (Photo Credit: Dexter Hinckley)
Phlox stolonifera at UDA National Museum of Natural History’s Butterfly Garden.

Phlox longifolia closeup DSC_0320
Phlox longifolia

Opal phlox in the Alpine House
Phlox opalensis flowering in the Davies Alpine House and in the wild in Wyoming and Utah.

Photo and other Credits

Downy phlox by eleanord43 CC BY-NC 2.0
Phlox hoodii var. canescens (Carpet phlox) by Tony Frates CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Phlox stolonifera (Photo Credit: Dexter Hinckley) by samantha.schipani CC BY-NC 2.0
Phlox longifolia closeup DSC_0320 by Tony Frates CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Opal phlox in the Alpine House by Kew on Flick CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
moss phlox　シバザクラ by microwalrus CC BY-NC 2.0

moss phlox　シバザクラ
masses of Moss Phlox subulata

Collection of Thoughts on Small Wild Bulbs

Collection of Thoughts on Small Wild Bulbs

If you can’t visit these bulbs in their natural wild habitat read the wild stories from a Latvian bulb collector Janis Ruskans.
Small Iris bulbs should be replanted and thinned every 2-3 years to retain flower power.

Iris reticulata

If you like Iris reticulata and a good travel yarn then you could do a lot worse than read ‘Buried Treasures: Finding and Growing the World’s Choicest Bulbs’ by Janis Ruksans

Book Cover
I think of Janis as the wild ‘ iris bulb man’ for the work he performs on breeding the various varieties in his Latvian nursery.

Janis Ruksans has been growing bulbs since age twelve and from 1991 has operated his own bulb nursery in his native Latvia. Janis is an expert specializing in rare and unusual bulbs. This book includes stories of his travels on several expeditions searching for new bulbs throughout Europe and Central Asia. He has also written a respected work on ‘Crocuses A complete guide to the genus’.

June garden 038 Iris reticulata

Unusually late these Iris reticulata normally bloom in the wild as soon as the snow melts on the mountain side.
Normally in the wild they remain dry during summer.
The bulbs should be replanted and thinned every 2-3 years to retain flower power.

Other Links
Look Forward to Winter and Iris Reticulata
Iris Reticulata and Histroides Species
Growing Iris From Bulbs
Tips for Growing Spring Iris from Bulbs

Tips for Growing Pulsatilla the Pasque Flower

Tips for Growing Pulsatilla the Pasque Flower

pasque-flowers

The Pulsatilla is also called the Pasque flower or meadow anemone and although related to the anemone it is a separate part of the buttercup family Ranunculus.

Also commonly known as the prairie crocus, Anemone Pulsatilla, Wind flower and Easter Flowe.

  • This clump forming herbaceous perennial is 6 inches tall and the flowers can be red, blue, purple or white and have six velvety petals with curled, pointed tips surrounding a ring of bright yellow stamens. Flowering around Easter they have the alternative native British name of Pasque flower.
  • All plant surfaces are covered in fine, soft hairs as can be seen in this images.The attractive seed heads which follow are spherical with silvery plume like styles raised on elongated flower stems.
  • Not to be out done the foliage is exquisite in spring.
  • The plant is best treated as poisonous although it is occasionally used in herbal medicine.
  • Protect from excessive wet winter weather. They tolerate alkaline soils and are found naturally in the wild.
  • They dislike root disturbance and can be difficult to establish. They can be grown from seed or propagated by root cutting but try not to disturb the main plant as they take several years to flower at their best. Plant when small and leave undisturbed.
  • Pulsatilla vulgaris Red Cloak is a great variety to grow from seed. Rubra is another red variety.

Seeds from Thompson & Morgan

Other Pulsatilla Facts
Pulsatilla vulgaris is the county flower for both Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire.
Single flowers are followed by attractive fuzzy seedheads resembling those of clematis.
There is one double cultivar called Papageno

Passion flower Pulsatilla

Other Pulsatilla species  include:

Pulsatilla alpina
# Pulsatilla chinensis
# Pulsatilla grandis
# Pulsatilla halleri
# Pulsatilla montana
# Pulsatilla nigricans
# Pulsatilla patens
# Pulsatilla pratensis
# Pulsatilla vernalis
# Pulsatilla vulgaris
# Pulsatilla subslavica
# Pulsatilla cernua

Pinnacle of Phlox

Pinnacle of Phlox

The top three tips to keep perennial Phlox Paniculata in perfect condition are:
1. Keep well watered to avoid mildew
2. Split large clumps and weed out weedy stems to aid air flow
3. Plant several colours and varieties for a great show.

Golden Acre phlox

Top Varieties

    3 feet tall the pure white ‘Phlox of Mount Fuji‘ earns its AGM. The flaring petals open out from twisted buds to form clusters of flat white scented flowers.
    Another AGM winner is Bright Eyes with pale pink flowers having a deeper red centre. The foliage may take on the red tinge during summer and it grows to about 4 feet tall.
    Phlox paniculata ‘Dodo Hanbury-Forbes’ AGM just for its name or Blue Ice or Blue Paradise to balance up the colour scheme.
    Phlox Tiara is a new double white flower.



Plus Points

    Various Phlox are available from Thompson & Morgan
    Phlox will flower in some shade but prefer and smell best in full sun.
    Phlox are easy to grow but some varieties may suffer from mildew. Bright Eyes is resistant.
    Clumps of Phlox do not need staking and supporting
    Phlox paniculata are a clump forming member of the Phlox family.
    Cut down the old stems in winter and give the plants a mulch.

Phlox paniculata

Phlox Problems

  • Phlox are prone to mildew but it won’t kill the plant – Phlox will come back next year.
  • Water stress is a main cause of Phlox mildew so water the roots, avoid splashing the leaves as this transfers spores of mildew.
  • Lack of air circulation is another cause of mildew.
  • In Autumn tidy up all fallen leaves.
  • Mildew attacks young sappy growth so do not feed late in the summer.

    • Perennial Favourite
    Read more about how to grow Annual Phlox

    Phlox

    Book Cover
    Phlox: A Natural History and Gardener’s Guide by James H. Locklear

Google Killed my Seeds

Google Killed my Seeds

My garden tips web site is being killed by Pandas and Penguins. These alien species have been imported by Google and are destroying the search rankings.

The search rankings were the main way to access the circa 2,000 pages of tips, hints and photographs on this web blog. Thousands of amateur gardeners read one or more pages every day until Google changed the rules. This new garden pest is called an algorithm and they breed at the expense of smaller web sites. 80% of the traffic has disappeared even though we try to comply with all the Google rules.

If you want most of your searches to take you to the BBC, Wiki, RHS or big businesses selling you a product then Google is the tool for you!

I can’t claim to be growing seeds of wisdom nor germinating the next great garden writings but Google used to give me and other bloggers an opportunity to share and shine.

For the Future

If you like idiosyncratic observations from a practicing gardener, with a warts and all approach, then sign up for our RSS feed. (I do not understand what sort of fertiliser this feed is but my son recommends it.)
The 5,500 photographs of gardens, plants and flowers, many or which feature on one or more pages, are still available to view on Flickr.

Euphorbia atropupurea

Why chose to illustrate the article with a Euphorbia? Well the sap is irritating but it won’t kill you.
Despite Google I will keep planting blogs and hope they grow in popularity.

Ranunculus Calandrinioides and Other Buttercups

Ranunculus Calandrinioides and Other Buttercups

There are as many varieties of Ranunculus as there are buttercups in a meadow. Not surprising as a buttercup is a member of the Ranunculus family as is this Ranunculus calandrinioides.

What is Ranunculus Calandrinioides

  • This perennial plant is happy grown in containers or an alpine house.
  • Growing 8 inches tall and 6 inches wide.
  • In suitable climates some of the 200+ species can be useful as ground cover outdoors.
  • The roots are fleshy and thick and different species may be tubers or fiberous rooted.
  • The lance shaped leaves are bluish-green and upto 3 inches in length.
  • Flowers are cup shaped white or pink 2 inches wide.

Ranunculus

Growing Ranunculus Calandrinioides

  • Ranunculus Calandrinioides need full sunlight to reach their full potential with good flowering.
  • Moist soil that receives regular watering to a depth of 18 inch deep is favoured by most Ranunculus.
  • Soil should not be allowed to dry out.
  • Grown outdoors on the southern and western sides of buildings are favoured areas as they are usually are the sunniest.
  • Ranunculus calandrinioides should be easy to grow under cold glass in good soil or compost.
  • Winter growth may be lax due to low light levels that cause the plant to be drawn up.
  • Kept bone dry until mid winter it will stand freezing conditions
  • Watered in early autumn, after a summer rest it will grow well before Christmas.

Germination guide
Various Ranunculus from Thompson & Morgan
B&T Seeds say Ranunculus calandrinioides seeds will usually germinate in 30-90 days, even under good conditions germination may be erratic. Sow seeds about 2mm deep in a Well drained seed sowing mix at about 10°C.

Seeds will mostly germinate as the weather warms up in Spring, some may germinate during the Summer or Autumn but are more likely to stay dormant until the following Spring.

Photo credit
Grateful thanks to Robynejay for using CC BY-NC 2.0
Ranunculus by robynejay
Various Ranunculus from

Thompson & Morgan

Colour Can Con Gardeners

Colour Can Con Gardeners

Colour is a complex science and not a subject for the colourblind to take lightly.

Kew Gardens September 2010
Both of these images were taken virtually at the same time and of the same plant. Is it red or orange seed capsules that are right. If the plant is Arum maculatum a Lords and Ladies plant then orange would be the favoured colour.

Kew Gardens September 2010

Light has a temperature and like a ‘white hot’ metal it can look dark red through orange to a burnt out white.
See the ‘Fearless Colour Gardens: The Creative Gardener’s Guide to Jumping Off the Colour Wheel ‘

Harewood 052
It comes as less of a surprise when sun and shade affect colour perception as in this pairing.
Harewood 081

Acer palmatum disectum

Colour saturation can vary with the tone of pigment but is more likely to be a function of the camera and photographic settings.

Acer palmatum disectum

Frost 005
Reproduction is the last variable we are considering in this set. Electronic screens ipads, phones, Tv’s etc vary more than printed matter. Even print can often look quite different as plates and blankets wear.
Frost 006

For more on colour visit the The Society of Dyers and Colourists Colour Museum in Bradford

Bromeliad Fascicularia bicolour

Bromeliad Fascicularia bicolour

Blooming fascicularia

Kew publish some photographs for public consumption and use under a creative commons license BY-NC-SA 2.0 including this image of Blooming fascicularia More pics on google

Fascicularia bicolor #1
This photo of Fascicularia bicolor #1 by J.G. in S.F. is under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Gardeners Comments
Fascicularia bicolor is native to Chile as is the longer leaved Fascicularia pitcairnifolia.
Fascicularia bicolor has long thin leaves to about 24″ and when mature turns a brilliant red.
The blooms are formed by large tight clusters of blue flowers in the center.
Do not give too much fertiliser if you want them to flower. They may flower better when pot bound.
It offsets to form large clusters.

Fascicularia pitcairnifolia var. bicolor

Fascicularia pitcairnifolia var. bicolor by Silversyrpher, CC BY 2.0 Taken Benmore Botanic Gardens, Argyle, Scotland. Sept.09


A less flamboyant Bromeliad
Bromeliads are members of the Pineapple family and grow in the tropical and sub-tropical forests of the Americas…. read more

Funky Growing

Funky Growing

Going to the theater used to mean a trip out to see actors performing. Then someone built a stage to show off Auriculas and they called this an Auricula theatre.
Victorians and Edwardians grew some fine plants shown off in these neat custom built arenas like the one at the Geffrye Museum in London.

London liverpool st 132

So what has this to do with funky veg or the Hot Chilli & Sweet Pepper Kit by Plant Theatre – 6 Different Varieties to Grow?. Well I have given it away as these are products sold by Plant Theatre and available as gifts via Amazon.

More About Funky Veg

The kit is promoted as a really novel gift and would work for gardeners or cooks with just a window box.
The kit contains 5 distinctive and unusual vegetables including the following varieties: Purple Carrot seeds, Yellow Courgettes seeds, Stripy Tomatoes seeds, Red Brussels Sprouts seeds and Multi Coloured Brightlights Swiss Chard seeds
Also included in the box are: 5 starter growing pots made from peat 5 peat blocks which expand when watered 5 plant markers and Sowing & Growing Tips.
All the seeds are of UK origin.
I would be a bit worried about the extent of the companies disclaimer of responsibility which says ‘The germination and growing results are the purchasers responsibility and depend on many factors such as planting time, seed depth, watering, light and weather conditions. These factors are out of Plant Theatres control and Plant Theatre or any company selling this product can not be held responsible for non germinating seeds. This kit is deemed as a novelty gift and is sold as such.’
A cynical gardener may think they doth cover their muddy footprints too much.

cosmic purple carrots
Cosmic (and funky) purple carrots by kthread CC BY-NC-SA 2.0