PBS Forum

Quote from: Diane Whitehead on April 14, 2024, 04:55:15 PMThanks.  It is a good looking plant, and spiky enough to deter the deer in my neighbourhood.  Maybe I should grow one.

I thought it odd that I have never seen it, as I have been to South Africa four times, but I just googled E horridus, and it is native to the Eastern Cape Province where I didn't go.

Diane, I feel compelled to tell you, in general cycads are SLOOOW GROWING! IDK how old you are, but I'd recommend you buy a hybrid of Horridus X Arenarius as hybrids generally grow much faster than pure species, and are usually cheaper especially in bigger sizes which is the point I wanted to make here. Buy something (online most likely for you) that's 3" caudex MINIMUM! The bigger the better!! Seedlings can take 10 years in good growing conditions to look like the plant you see in the pictures I posted.

Quote from: Diane Whitehead on April 14, 2024, 11:32:47 AMWhat is the gray leaved plant in the bottom left corner of Too Many Plants'  Img 4509?

Hi Diane, Peter's correct it is a Cycad. It's an Encephalartos hybrid of Horridus X Arenarius. These are SA Cycads native to the Cape and surrounding habitats. I'm guessing Horridus and Arenarius probably share their habitats with some of the bulbs we collect and enjoy...

Another exciting first flowering for us from the last BX!

Babiana "Jim's choice", and quite spectacular imho.

Again a big Thank You! to those generous PBS peeps that share the bulb Love!!

1- I believe this is Freesia Laxa

2- Lachenalia sp. too many plants growing around it right now to view or pull out the tag. Smells wonderful, like sweet honey cinnamon!

3- Ixia one of the cultivation forms (hybrids). I still enjoy it.

Quote from: Uli on April 12, 2024, 05:08:04 AMYesterday I came across this nice stand of the native Iris xiphium. Color is slightly variable, the plants are very elegant and graceful. They grow in acidic sandy soil among Cistus, Myrthus, Lavandula stoechas and other plants. Trees nearby are cork oak and pine trees.

Very nice, Uli. Thanks for sharing!

Ixia Paniculata flowers have been in bud for weeks, and...finally opened today!

I ordered seed of what was named Moraea Iridioides, and what was pictured (attached) that appears to be M. Villosa. Wondering if anyone can speak to this name, origin, etc., or is it a complete farce. I'm including a picture of the seed in case anyone wants to speak to what the seed might appear to be, the seed group is a touch bigger than a quarter. I did find on the web a few people posting Dietes Iridioides as Moraea Iridioides, so I hope I didn't waste time and $ bothering with that...

Another unknown gift bulb reveal...Watsonia of course, and I'm guessing it's Aletroides?

I thought I had this species already, but what I have is much bigger longer leaved plants. So maybe they're some other species. I know I have Meriana bulbifera as that is unmistakable.

My Ferraria ssp. Nortieri just going off! And my B. Angustifolia looking nice with lots of color on it...

Quote from: Robert_Parks on April 10, 2024, 11:10:32 PMA few recents:

Ixia dubia better than any of the commercial yellow Ixias, foliage fairly broad.

Hesperantha bachmannii, delicate and perfect.

Bulbine mesembryanthemoides, tiny flowers, but insanely complicated.

Babiana odorata or similar.

Ixia viridiflora, I'm sorry if it shows up as a vivid sea blue (maybe just this monitor)...it is a delicate greenish blue in person.

Coelogyne cristata, OK, not a geophyte, but it hangs out with them and requires chilling to bloom well.

Elsewhere in the garden, Bomarea are blooming variously, and there are still a few Arums pushing up flowers.

Robert
Actual springlike conditions in San Francisco at the moment

Fantastic Robert! I have B Odorata about to bloom, and I once upon a time had Ixia Viridiflora, but unlike most Ixia I have planted it did not stick around!

Quote from: Robin Jangle on April 09, 2024, 10:30:40 PM@Too Many Plants! it looks to be an Ixia. Could you please take some pics of the foliage and of the bracts. I should be able to narrow it down then .

Pics from today...

Here's one that popped up around a plant I dug from an old timer collectors garden that had many SA bulbs.

Speculating this could be a Geissorhiza...

Any thoughts out there?

Robin Jangle..?

1- I got this as Babiana Angustifolia.

2- Albuca Acuminata

3- Babiana ... ?

Quote from: Martin Bohnet on April 07, 2024, 09:58:11 AMLast but not least: the Irids - this time in the form of Moraea vegeta

 

Very nice Martin! Love to see this species...I just got seed from Silver Hill and this is one of the species I got.

Quote from: Robin Jangle on April 06, 2024, 10:34:16 PM@Too Many Plants! - that is also a hybrid. Obviously tricolor as one parent; the other is pillansii
The tepals are identical to pillansii - they are lanceolate and subacute whereas in tricolor the tepals are broadly lanceolate-ovate. Also the markings are a mish mash of the two species - tricolor has minimal black markings on the yellow cup whereas pillansii has very bold markings

Robin, you make it sound like most of my S. Tricolor are hybrids. I'm wondering if you've seen the Sparaxis Tricolor bulbs that are available commercially, that come in many mixed colors? I guess I assumed those were colors Tricolor naturally comes in, but now I am wondering if they could be hybrids from the growing farms that produce them commercially. However, I've never seen any other Sparaxis species bulbs commercially available. Is there a certain set of colors that are true S. Tricolor?