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These are not in my garden. I saw them at the Bonny Doon Ecological Preserve yesterday.

Quote from: Uli on June 11, 2023, 04:03:17 AMI agree with the others. There is no general treatment for winter growing seedlings during their first summer. What I do is to group the pots together which need the same treatment. All in shade. Those pots where the seedlings go completely dormant are moved to the dormant group and those which remain at least partly green are kept moist. However, even the fully dormant pots get a small amount of water every four weeks or so. Small bulbs my dry up to death if kept brutally dry for many months, especially in a hot climate. It has also happened to me that seedling bulbs have rotted with too much water during dormancy but this is the exception. I have lost more to drought. All this is a matter of constant learning and close observation.
Uli
Great information, thank you all, 
I have been doing exactly this, those that seem to be constantly green get some water and light fertilizer when they seem dry and those having gone dormant are in my dry area propagation box. I will add some water to them occasionally with this tip, thanks

Do I understand this correctly, that I should keep them growing all summer? I am guessing the bulbs need to grow to withstand a summer dry period in a pot. 

I think I found this recommendation in one of the old Bulb Garden that were just recently posted. 

I am sure there is no simple answer as different species need different treatments. I had some go tan then brown really quickly while others are still green (growing?)

Peter

Quote from: Robert_Parks on June 05, 2023, 05:10:01 PM

Quote from: MarcR on June 02, 2023, 11:52:39 PMOne solution that might work for everyone is to check your markers every 6 mos and replace as needed.  Dynotape plastic labels attached to wooden or metal stakes with small screws (the glue is not reliable) seem to be long lasting.

Growing in pots and lifting almost everything every year lets me keep labels renewed.

It doesn't help when the crows come in and have a fiesta of throwing labels around, or going for the gusto and tossing 2-4 inch pots all over the back patio and playing with the plants thus uprooted.

I can relate to that with squirrels though they just know stuff over. 

I've been trying to train crows to trade peanuts for trinkets, but they are not willing to give me anything back.
 
I did see a video where someone taught a crow to stack pots by size for a treat. Maybe they can at least clean up after their feast!

Beautiful plant. Congrats on keeping the pests away.

We have finally had some very nice warm sunny weather and no change to the flowers. I would have put them in my greenhouse but my friends plants always have scale.....

Thanks for trying, much appreciated

peter

Mid 50's F

not really warm and tired of the rain. 

Gift from an old friend. Labeled O. longibracteatum but not it for sure.

Leaves are thin grasslike, flower stalks branched with flowers vertical and not really opening up fully.

The Wiki page mentions a section of Albuca with vertically held flowers but I cant find a list of those to try to ID it.

thanks

Quote from: David Pilling on March 31, 2023, 03:40:57 AMPlants emit ultrasonic sounds in rapid bursts when stressed, scientists say

Thirsty or damaged plants produce up to 50 staccato pops in an hour, which nearby creatures may respond to, researchers find

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/30/plants-emit-ultrasonic-sounds-in-rapid-bursts-when-stressed-scientists-say

I wonder if it's the snapping of the water columns in the tiny xylem cells, considering the cut the stems or had them wilting. I recall in my plant physiology class 100 years ago that tiny microphones could pick those snaps up.

The breaking of these columns is non reversible and if its happening in lots of areas results in permanent wilting of that part.

Quote from: petershaw on March 12, 2023, 08:45:54 AMGeissorhiza corrugata from the bulb ex. Thanks!

We've had so much rain and cloud cover that I had to bring them into the garage and put then under one of my shop lights to get the flowers to open. I guess more light is needed early to get the twisted leaves.

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These 2 pots are still blooming. There must be something wrong with them, So what gives? Invasive? 

Quote from: Robert_Parks on April 05, 2023, 09:04:25 PM

Quote from: petershaw on April 05, 2023, 07:06:25 AMAs I was thinking about the post about invasive bulbs, this one was top on my mind... Is there anywhere someone would want to grow this plant because it's hard to grow there? Or because it's rare there?

I don't think it is rare anywhere it can grow easily. My neighbor, who lets me garden her front yard prefers they not be removed since they are so pretty. It makes a pretty pot plant...think abandoned pots in the corner of a yard bursting into bloom winter and spring!

I wish I had a neighbor like that! We have a "vacant" house across the street that I could do some planting but every once in a blue moon they send in a string trimmer.

As I was thinking about the post about invasive bulbs, this one was top on my mind... Is there anywhere someone would want to grow this plant because it's hard to grow there? Or because it's rare there?

Quote from: Uli on April 04, 2023, 11:53:57 AMThe beautiful Corydalis nobilis was impossible to maintain in my former garden in Germany but is a dreaded weed in Sweden. I could not talk my Swedish friends into digging up some of their weed for my garden......
Uli

Thanks for your response. This is exactly what I was thinking about, (not the Corydalis).

I was awarded the "rest of the bunch" of seeds last fall and sowed them all, along with some of the Sparaxis I collected from the neighbors yard and I will now have to decide how to evaluate the 40 some odd pots of seedlings. Some are not really very interesting to me and I will harvest the "bulbs" for the exchange. Others I am going to try to figure out how they will do.

I really like small growing plants, some Lachenalia, Massonia, and Albuca for example, but also curious to see how the Ferraria and Babiana behave here. The gophers moved some of the Babiana around but so far I like them that way.

We're going to the UC Berkeley Botanic Garden soon along with a visit to Ruth Bancroft's garden in Walnut Creek. I first saw Ferraria there and want to see how it might be spreading.

Quote from: David Pilling on April 05, 2023, 06:29:25 AM

Quote from: Uli on April 04, 2023, 11:53:57 AMProbably all of us do not want to introduce a new weed to our garden or the landscape.

Ellen Willmott, who liked to secretly scatter seeds of the plant in other people's gardens."

Ah yes, now called Guerrilla gardening... not a bad thing sometimes, we have a "vacant" Beach house across the street and spread some magenta poppy seeds, wonderful show.

The thread about Oxalis pes-caprae  reminds me that "we" have a long history of thinking that a cool plant from somewhere else is going to play nice in our garden. I grew O. megalorrhiza 45 years ago in my quest for caudiciforms and gave a few plants to a friend at the local college botany greenhouse, returned 30+ years later and my gift had become a resident in almost every pot.

In California we have seen plants from the southern hemisphere take over large areas of our landscapes, some of the Eucalyptus and Acacias for example. This is not to bash SH plants, as our well loved Liquidambar has turned into a big mistake as a street or landscape tree in CA.

Where am I going with this? I'm pretty new to exotic bulb collecting and want to be sure I don't do this to my landscape. I love Sparaxis, but not like this. (Okay, I love walking past this on my daily walks)



Visiting the UCSC arboretum yesterday I came across a gladiolus that was going to town.. Beautiful but again, I dont want to be weeding too much any longer (late 60's), listed as G. tristis 'Moonlight' but wrong color. I think this plant was a volunteer that liked the label.



I am just hoping that the ones I want are going to be tame. 

Peter

Visiting UCSC Arboretum (Santa Cruz CA. Arboretum known for plants of the 5 Mediterranean climates) yesterday to see the Puya, and came across these bulbs. 

Any ID help?

Both are very short, the purple one might be only3-5" tall.