May blooms

I'll have to look at all the plant labels to share what all the
plants are in this trough but most are from Beaver Creek
Greenhouse order last year. The dianthus is so tight and
cute.

What kind of a sempervivum (or sempervivum-like) plant has such long stolons, Tammy? Very nice Dianthus, and Lewisia.

I grew a Sempervivella (sp?) species once that turned out not to be hardy for me. It had long stolons, but not that long.

Looks like an androsace, no? I'm thinking Androsace primuloides...

Sempervivella alba

Of course! I have been having hen and chicks on the brain the last few days as I have been propagating them for our Rock Garden Society sale. But as long as I started, and even though this is not a May bloom, I will finish with the Sempervivella with flowers in focus.

Very cute, Rick! I hadn't even heard of sempervivella until your posting! And you're probably right... the rosette on the end of the long stem on the left side of the trough doesn't look very androsace-ish at all, now that I look more closely.

Wow, your garden sure has caught up despite the late spring, Todd! There is still a little snow around here from Friday morning's snowfall... sheesh. Good thing the trees haven't leafed out yet... even so, with the wet snow and saturated ground, our cedar bent over to the ground and uprooted itself!

Nice-looking trough, Tammy!

Sempervivella is new to me too! Looks like a Rosularia based on the blooms.

Tammy, that Dianthus is super tight! My Lewisia are just starting to show buds.

I agree Lori that the stoloniferous plant is probably an Androsace....I have primuloides and it seems larger..maybe its villosa ssp. jaquemontii (?)...let us know Tammy!

2 days till Spain...hopefully I'll see some wild Androsace there! I should have lots of pics once I get back.

Primula villosa opened yesterday...may be covered by snow overnight if we get what they are forecasting! This has been the spring from hell!

Corydalis solida ssp. transylvanica... or whatever they call this one now.

Fantastic fritillaria pudica! I loved my saxifraga longifolia - the flowers were amazing but alas I have it no more..

Scilla bifolia... errr, probably not alpine....

Lori, I think we are almost at the same stage in our gardens. My Scilla is also in peak bloom. BTW, it's Scilla miczenkoana not bifolia. It is native to NW Iran in the mountains at 1800m, so in my books, it is indeed an alpine!

Here's a pic of mine taken last Monday (the last time I saw the sun!)

Caltha leptosepala is open today despite 34 F!

Isn't spring wonderful! The very cool weather is allowing many combinations
here that have never occurred before.

I did look at the tag for the mystery plant - you guys are really good! It is an androsace.

Tam

ahhh...but which one?

You caught me... I have a terrible memory - looked at the tag and then
worked like a crazy lady the rest of the day... and forgot it by the time
I came into the house & cleaned up.

OK, I just walked out and brought the tag in w/me. Androsace Lanuginosa

Tam

So, whaddayathink, are Saxifraga longifolia hybrids likely to be monocarpic too? Is it a dominant trait?

Rick, aren't the spring flowers of Leibnitzia nepalense supposed to be red?

This message was edited May 11, 2008 8:52 PM

A rather tough winter this year.... Schivereckia podolica showing lots of damage, which is quite unusual.

Leibnitzia nepalense - red flowers?
Glad you brought that up Lori. I had completely forgotten. I looked back at the NARGS listing where the seed came from, and the Danish donor lists it as red flowers too. And with all this cool weather, color should be at its peak. But there is no inkling of red, just white with purply-rose petal backs. Could the seeds actually donated be hybrid? From my one year expreience with it, the plants are definitely dwarf compared to anandria. So far, only one of my "nepalense" have opened flowers. Another sould display tomorrow, and I have a few others too. But by their buds, they all look the same.

Interesting question about S. longifolia hybrids.

In theory, longifolia hybrids are NOT monocarpic...however, I had Tumbling Waters and after 3 years of the rosette getting bigger and bigger it finally flowered and died. Bottom line.....if the hybrid shows multiple rosettes you are OK...if it continues with just a single, then it will become monocarpic...in reality, all the encrusted saxs have monocarpic rosettes, its just that they produce offsets before the mother rosettes blooms and dies.

I seem to recall that pics I've seen of Leibnitzia on the internet were white, not red.

Leibnitzia anandria has white flowers with rose pink backs. L. nepalense, according to the references I could find some time ago, was said to have "red" flowers - no detail as to whether that meant entirely red (as one would assume) or only with red backs.

Thanks for the saxifrage info!

This message was edited May 12, 2008 5:12 AM

Three more L.nepalense plants' flowers opened today. Still white. Perhaps the plants need to be more mature? First flowers of my 20+ Escobaria vivipara plants from seed had washed out color compared to later years.

You'd kinda think I would get some variation if they were hybrids, but maybe not. Which poses another interesting thought: if they are F1 hybrids, an F2 cross should bring out something. Wonder if anyone has done this (on purpose) with Leibnitzia.

Just emerged and already in bloom!
Hacquetia epipactus:

A not very outstanding Primula auricula 'Paradise Valley':

Is that a primula marginata? The serrated leaves indicate that to me.

This a specimen I have called Clear's Variety

You may be right, Galanthophile... On the other hand, though, Richards (Primula, 1993) describes the leaves of P. auricula as "entire to sharply toothed". In the key, he describes P. marginata as having "leaves more than 3x as long as wide", which certainly fits your plant, though it doesn't seem to fit mine. Anyway, I'll read up on the other details and see if there is anything else that would suggest one or the other...

EDIT: Of course, I suppose it could always be some sort of a hybrid too...

EDIT AGAIN - May 19/08: Galanthophile, you were absolutely right! The ID came not from Richards but from my own traitorous map (LOL!)... as I peer more closely at it, I see that the primrose was actually labelled as P. marginata 'Sheila Denby'... (it's the one next to it that is P. auricula 'Paradise Valley'). Good eye!


This message was edited May 16, 2008 9:38 PM

This message was edited May 19, 2008 9:33 PM

Primula x pubescens 'Freedom' opened today:

(NB: x pubescens = hybrids between P. auricula and P. hirsuta)

Phlox hoodii(?) is really covered in blossoms now!


Edit: Ah ha! I just remembered... it's Phlox kelseyi (or so it was labelled, anyway).

This message was edited May 16, 2008 10:49 PM

Polemonium confertum, finally starting to open:

Altagardener - lovely primula & phlox. The polemonium is new to me. You'll
have to add that photo to your other one in PlantFiles.

Thanks, Tammy! Another little one starting to bloom, Primula x juliana 'Allure':

Is that a Corydalis solida behind Primula 'Freedom'?
Sure puts mine to shame.

And that Polemonium confertum is a really nice refined species.

Rick - yes, it's what used to be called Corydalis transylvanica or C. solida var. transylvanica , but now C. solida ssp. solida, apparently.

Draba rigida, starting to bloom; I'm always very impressed by the length of bloom time; the flower stems will elongate quite a bit through time:

Jeffersonia dubia; I hope it one day looks like the plant you posted, Leftwood!

Primula elatior, starting to bloom; this plant becomes really gorgeous later on!

Trollius laxus blooming a little more generously now... though the ones in this area will soon be done.



This message was edited May 17, 2008 10:16 PM

Lewisia longipetala... just purchased from Beaver Creek and planted last weekend; it's lovely that the timing was right to have it bloom here for me!

And, same story with Lewisia glandulosa... (perhaps tomorrow, I will finally map this bed and remove the tags)...

Old man of the mountain, Tetraneuris grandiflora: