JEARRARD'S HERBAL
Thats enough introduction - on with the plants!
To navigate this site, use the links above, or the detailed links at the bottom of this page.
... out in the garden.
15th November 2009
Aristolochia 'Kewensis' .
More rain this week. Almost an inch fell yesterday if the weather forecasters are to be believed. It is keeping the temperatures up a bit
but there is a feeling in the garden that it is all about to end in tears! Maybe we will remain frost free until the new year, but it isn't a thing to rely on.
This Aristolochia was in flower when I bought it during the summer and has now started to produce a second flush of buds.
There was a break during late summer, when I was removing every new growth and rooting it in the propagator, so not surprisingly I lost the flowers.
It is probably tender. I am planning to move this one indoors as soon as the weather starts to threaten serious cold, but for the moment I am happy to leave it outside.
I am trying a few species of Aristolochia this year and I have been pleased with their summer performance, so now it is a question of waiting to see
how they make it through the winter.
15th November 2009
Fascicularia bicolor bicolor .
The Fascicularia are suffering a bit, and need more space and more care, but other (less prickly) things have distracted me this year. Regardless of my lack of care,
they are coming into flower and if I pay them some attention in the spring the new offsets should grow away well.
Grown primarily for the bright red bracts, which remain in good condition for weeks, I have started to value the bright blue flowers
which don't last for long, but are quite stunning. There is some variation in colour, and I like this bright blue, but there is a paler form
around as well. There are a couple of Puya outside with them as well, but if I am honest the ones growing in the greenhouse
are performing much better.
15th November 2009
Nerine 'Mother of Pearl' .
The Nerine have been good this year, and as a result I have been pollinating like mad and chasing up new cultivars. As a result I now have a lot of seed
to sow, and nowhere to put it. Today I started moving the Clivia seedlings out of the greenhoue and back under the benches in the conservatory
(where they will be a bit warmer) and the plan is to sow the seed in the free space - and worry about the spring when it happens. Seed of
N.filifolia that I sowed about six weeks ago is now germinating. I tried to hybridise it with some N.bowdenii pollen but all the seedlings so far look
very thin leaved so I don't think I succeded.
Many years ago I bought a bulb of 'Mother of Pearl' as a dry pre-pack, and when it flowered it was screaming pink, instead of the white that it should have been.
I thought I had included a picture in the index, but it looks like it was so wrong that I didn't bother. This year I saw it on sale again, and the bulbs
were all distinctively silvery, so I had hoped that it might be correctly named this time. No such luck I'm afraid. This shiny salmon flower is a wonderful thing,
but it isn't the white I was hoping for.
15th November 2009
Petrocosmea minor .
A fortnight ago I saw this looking magnificent at Wisley. A great fat rosette supporting a cushion of purple flowers. It's a great little plant.
It inspired me to come home and check out how my plants were doing, and wonder of wonders, I have a flower!
The Ramonda have done rather poorly since I moved them inside, and for a long time I though it was because I divided them at the same time, but I think they
just don't like the greenhouse. When I get a minute I am building a bench in the shade for them. In contrast, the Petrocosmea are flourishing, and the
Haberlea are doing much better under cover than they did outside. I am still chasing some of the other species. I would like to say I could grow them from seed,
but repeated experience has demonstrated that I can't!
To find particular groups of plants I grow, click on the genus name in the table above. Click on the "Index" box at the top of the page for the full list.
I have a lot of good intentions when it comes to updating this site, and I try to keep a note
about what is going on, if you are interested.
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