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Thank you David and Marc for the responses.

I will be trying the procedure outlined in your link, David. I've had success with a process close to it previously, but it seemed a bit too much hit or miss. The randomness also could have been due to using homemade rooting compound. I've got a few willows in the yard, so fresh green willow switches are easy to obtain.

I have 2 pots of Scilla madeirensis. As I was moving the pots outside today (frost free date in the area is 5-31), a rogue gust of wind snapped two of the stems off slightly above the bulbs. I now have two foot long(ish) leaves that are in very nice shape (plus a few somewhat more roughly used leaves that I already tossed).

It seems a shame to just toss the two good looking leaves. What would be the method of treatment most likely to result in either bulblets, or rooted leaf segments?

Thanks,

Mike
In Finger Lakes region, 6A, where we still haven't had any rain yet (last rain was 15 days ago). Although it looked like pending rain first thing this morning, that resolved into a blustery, but clear, day. Anything right up near the lake is getting a bit drenched due to all the waves crashing ashore, but more than a few feet back, it's still crispy.

Maybe they just like "holy" things, Arnold. Ailanthus altissima (known as the Tree of Heaven), and Evodias (named after Saint Evodius, the first Bishop of Antioch, and Saint Peter's successor).

Interestingly, the bark, and roots of the Ailanthus are used to make an industrial insecticide. Must not work on these guys.

Mike
In the Finger Lakes Region, 6A; where we're currently experiencing a mild drought after nine days without any precipitation. Yes, nine days is a long time without rain in this area...

If anyone is interested in free tubers of Mirabilis jalapa, shoot a message to my Forum inbox. I have about ten tubers available. No charge, no swapping necessary.

Some people in warmer zones may find M. jalapa a bit on the invasive side. It blooms heavily, and each bloom WILL set one seed. The seeds are large-ish and distinctively jug-shaped. It is easy to check over the area near the plant once every ten days or so and collect the dropped seeds. If any sprout (90-100 percent germination rate), they are readily identifiable, and easily pulled. I have been growing the plants for around twenty years in Zone 6A and have only had volunteers survive the winter three times.

Google Mirabilis jalapa 'California Wild Magenta' for images of plants in bloom. Several images come up for Dave's Garden, and JL Hudson (where I originally got the seeds).

Sorry, but please only reply if you are in the continental US. Again, I am not charging, but if you feel more comfortable doing it as a swap, let me know... I'm sure we can find something to swap. The tubers just started to sprout, so I want to get these out as soon as possible.

Thanks,

Mike
In the Finger Lakes area, Zone 6A where we can't plant out safely until Memorial Day.
 

The National Desk has released more photos of the California superbloom (near Santa Margarita). Check the link here https://thenationaldesk.com/news/from-the-desk/gallery/california-superbloom-bursts-to-life-after-record-breaking-rain-levels-historic-rainfall-explosion-of-color-santa-margarita-san-luis-obispo-county-goldfields-tidy-tips-baby-blue-eyes-lupine-california-poppies?photo=1

Thank you, Robert. One of the bulbs was growing at ground level, and another with the puff of foliage/flowers about 1.5" off the ground.

I do already have the O. sp. from a BX a year or two ago. I only requested it (again) because the first time around, it wasn't identified as O. sp. Durango (just O. sp.). I wasn't sure if it was the same item, or not. It's all good; I got something I didn't have previously, I was just unsure about the petite size. I'm more used to Oxalis being a sprawling plant that usually blooms non-stop. While the pea gravel took care of the squirrel issue, I think it absorbed/radiated some extra heat when the weather got into the higher 90's. Things looked a bit crispy for a few days, then the plant adjusted, but never returned to blooming. I'll put it somewhere that is more partial shade next year and see if the plant gets bigger, or remains dainty.

Mike
Where the water in the lake must have gotten super-chilled from all the cold weather in December. After 2 days in the 50's, there is still a foot or so wide rim of ice along the shore. Lots of swans and Canada geese floating around out there.

I requested Oxalis sp. from BX481 (item 98 from Robert Parks). What I received isn't O. sp., I think it is probably O. versicolor RP 2 (item 101). The flower color and leaves are dead on, however the plants (and flowers) never got any bigger than Pearlwort (Sagina subulata). It's hard to tell from the pictures I can find on our Wiki, and Google searches, since there aren't really any that include something giving a sense of scale. Is that the normal size of O. versicolor, or is the RP 2 variant maybe a dwarf?

I suppose it could also have been from the inopportune attention of a fluffy-tailed rat (aka grey squirrel) that dug the bulbs up daily until I put 1/4" of pea gravel on top of the soil (although that was many weeks before the bulbs started to grow). Said squirrel eventually offed itself when it decided to eat 10-15 Hippeastrum striatum bulbs (leaves, roots, and strawberry-sized bulbs) for lunch one day.

Mike
Zone 6A region of the Finger Lakes - where the temperatures peaked in the low fifties today, after a week around 0 F.

Welcome to the forums, Mike!

Don't plant the bulbs too close to the lake. All of mine croaked within the first few years after planting outside. I figure the constant cold breeze during the winter certainly didn't help.

The flowers look great, Tim.

Mike

Rimmer,

Looks like Zephyranthes chlorosolen to me. Did you get it from Telos?

Mike

Quote from: David Pilling on July 07, 2022, 07:35:00 AMToday the Dahlia bloom line passed through Blackpool on its way North...

Imagines gardener-led conga lines passing South to North through citites to celebrate bloom lines...

Quote from: David Pilling on June 21, 2022, 06:56:59 AMMore than 30 plants stolen from floral displays in South Shields town centre - South Tyneside Council slams acts of vandalism


https://www.shieldsgazette.com/news/crime/more-than-30-plants-stolen-from-floral-displays-in-south-shields-town-centre-south-tyneside-council-slams-acts-of-vandalism-3736797

Were the plant roots nibbled off? Sounds like grey squirrel vandals.

Judy,

Just out of curiosity, you're in zone 7, correct? I've been growing the Mirabilis jalapa for maybe 8 years (and Mirabilis longiflora for the last 2). The production of seeds is at stratospheric level, but I've never really bothered cleaning them up since I figured winter would take care of it for me. Previous to this year, the only time a seed survived the winter, and subsequently sprouted, was one that had managed to come to rest wedged into a small pocket surrounded on three sides by tree roots. The fourth (open) side got plugged up with leaves/twigs, and apparently, provided enough protection to keep the seed viable.

This year, I've got about six seedlings coming up within a few feet of where the pot spends the summer. There is a Jasminum × stephanense growing about sixteen inches from that spot, and this year it died back to the ground (usually only the distal tips die off). That's got me wondering whether it is duration of low temps, or just the lowest temp reached which (normally) kills off the seed.

Mike

Guess I should have checked to see if you had also posted here (replied to list)...

Forgot to add that often the tuber will resprout if it is not too damaged. I make sure it has plenty of water, although I usually water off to one side to keep the broken off end from getting wet.

Mike

Looks more like a Habranthus robustus, Mark.

The flowers can be either white, or a light pink. Sometimes, they start out as one color, and then fade to the other after a few days.

Hi Martin,

I am aware of the pure water requirement. I was planning on using distilled water. I have a jug around somewhere, but should probably get a fresh jug. The old one was opened a few times (to water a Venus Fly Trap) and then has been sitting around for three or so years. It probably has a nice crop of yeast or something growing in it by now.

I was thinking that having the insect trap leaves around during the winter would help keep the fungus gnats under control, but then read that the traps die off for the winter. Guess I'll have to keep trying to find a Pinguicula gigantea in stock somewhere. They're always out of stock when I find somewhere that sells them.

How do we add the quote to our profile (like your "Southern Germany, probably zone 7")?

Mike
In the Finger Lakes area of NYS, Zone 6A (Where it hit 81 degrees today, but most of next week will be in the 50's.)