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Soldanella minima



The smallest little thing with the most delightful little flowers, produced rather sparingly in spring. I got my plant from Blackthorn Nursery, their label says:

"Solitary tubular bell-shaped flowers fringed to the middle. White with purple striations within. A little gem!"

In April 1960 it was given an Award of Merit when exhibited to the RHS by Edrom Nusery. The citation reads:

"As the name suggests this is the daintiest of all the soldanellas, and is a native of the Swiss and Carinthian Alps and the Carpathians. In this instance a 6-inch pan contained five small clumps, each supporting from five to seven purplish scapes on which the pendent bell-shaped flowers were borne singly. The corolla was fimbriate for almost half its length, and in colour was Pastel Lavender (H.C.C. 40/3) tinted with Spectrum Violet (H.C.C. 735/3). The leaves were dark green, glabrous and orbicular, the largest measuring just over 1/4 inch across. It is said to be suitable both for the rock garden and alpine house."
17th January 2006



Reginald Farrer said:

"S. minima (S. austriaca, S. cyclophylla, Vierh.) has the same narrowed bell and shallow fringe as in S. pusilla, but is a smaller treasure yet, hardly ever achieving more than one flower to a stem of only an inch or two. It may always be known, stature and flower apart, by the fact that its very fat dark little round leaves are almost like flat salt-spoons on their stems, perfectly round in outline; whereas in S. pusilla they swell into an open and very shallow, but quite definite rounded lobe on either side, so as to bo of a kidney shaped design. The flowers, too, seem always to be as pale as the other's only sometimes are ; they are the daintiest wee bells imaginable, fine and frail in shape, waxy and sturdy and crystalline in their texture, dancing across the damp hollows and stream-basins of the Eastern limestones, and down into the Abruzzi, preferring the finest turf (rather than stony places), which the plant fills with shining masses of minute foliage, over which hover, in the family profusion, pale or snow-white bugles, lined with streaks of violet inside. This, again, revels in the underground-watered bed ; and of this, as of all the race, it has well been said that no Soldanella can have too much moisture in summer, or be kept too rigidly dry in winter."



9th April 2006 17th April 2006 21st April 2006



References:
  • Farrer, Reginald - 'The English Rock Garden', 1919
  • Journal of the RHS, Vol.85, Part.11, p.503 (1960)