The thing about Sanguinaria

…is that the seeds can have two types of morphophysiological dormancy (after Baskin & Baskin):

  • In the first case the roots will emerge in late fall after a warm stratification and the shoots growth will begin in the following spring (= after cold stratification); deep simple epicotyl dormancy.

Sanguinaria canadensis: seeds sown in summer 2016 – complete germination April 2017

  • In the second case (said to occur in about 49% of seeds according to a study), the shoots growth will begin in the second spring after sowing; deep simple double dormancy.

Sanguinaria canadensis: seeds sown in late summer 2015 – complete germination in 2017

The lots of seeds shown were collected from different sites, and I wonder if this was also a decisive/only factor in displaying the different types of dormancy. It is well known that the germination dormancy traits have a genetic component.

Temperatures in the summer/winter may also have role; to be sure I will try to repeat the sowing with seeds of both populations/at the same time. It would be nice to know and collect seeds from certain populations knowing they will germinate in the first year after sowing.

Note: To be clear, for Sanguinaria we are only talking about fresh/or moist kept seeds.

 

Out in the woods – Hepatica

It is that time of year when Hepaticas are flowering in the woods (and in the garden). Scouting in areas with large populations always leads to finding interesting forms!
The Hepatica acutiloba specimens shown below are isolated clumps and there is a good chance that a good proportion of the seedlings to come true to the mother-plants.

Hepatica acutiloba 1 – 2017

Hepatica acutiloba 2 – 2017

As well, this is the first find of a Hepatica americana with true pink flowers

Hepatica americana pink – 2017

Semi-double forms are not that rare as the pink flowered, but still a nice find.

Hepatica americana sd- 2017

The Hepatica shop section will be updated as soon as we’ll be able to tell how the seed forming is going on.

Also Claytonia virginica is in flower and soon Sanguinaria canadensis….a kind reminder that the Pre-orders page is up and running!
Usually there are plenty of Sanguinaria seeds and they keep well in moist storage, but asking for seeds of Claytonia, Erythronium and some of the special forms of Hepatica late in the fall, can only lead to disappointment…

It’s Corydalis time!

To say I like Corydalis very much would be an understatement. The delicate, ferny foliage and early, colourful flowering of many species, make them wonderful spring harbingers.
Quite a few tuberous species are easy to grow in the garden in our cold climate (I usually don’t fuss around with pots, except for seedlings): C. solida especially, but also C. caucasica, C. packozy, C. cava, C. bracteata and probably few others.

Corydalis solida seedlings

Corydalis paczosky seedlings

The same applies for rhizomatous species like C. nobilis, the Pseudofumaria group (formerly C. lutea and C. alba), C. ophiocarpa, C. incisa; also the North American Capnoides sempervirens.

Corydalis nobilis seedlings

Corydalis incisa and C. ophiocarpa which were grown under lights are already advanced.

Corydalis incisa

Corydalis ophiocarpa

I agree it is much easier to buy plants (if available), but for a fast increase of the personal collection, growing from seeds is the better option, not to mention cheaper. They germinate very well if sown fresh or after moist storage. Sowing asap and keeping the pots outdoors (i.e., a warm/cold treatment) is the best option (by asap I don’t mean next day, the seeds sown up to about a month after collecting are OK even if not kept moist).
All you have to do is sow, cover the pots/trays with a mesh and keep them in a partly shaded area; water once in a while. For the winter, place in an area that usually gets covered in snow (or where it is easy to pile snow on top) or a cold garage. By spring they will start to germinate.

For the more adventurous there is also the option on sowing the seeds directly in the garden, reproducing their natural way of multiplying; the seeds are dispersed and buried by ants which feed on the elaiosomes, for which reason, in time they will show up in various places around the garden.

Same applies for Claytonia or any of the other spring flowering species that are best sown fresh: Dicentra, Hepatica, Erythronium, Anemone quinquefolia, Sanguinaria and so on – more about all these soon…

See more Corydalis pictures below in the related posts.

Stress relief – Rhodiola sachalinensis

Nothing is better for stress relief than sowing or transplanting seedlings. More than this, I had the perfect seedlings for the purpose – of Rhodiola sachalinensis.

Rhodiola sachalinensis and other Rhodiola species, particularly R. rosea, have long been used as traditional medicinal plants in Asia and Eastern Europe for various ailments, and they have been categorized as adaptogen plants, similar to the better known ginseng species. Besides this, they make for excellent rock garden plants.

Rhodiola sachalinensis grows wild in the mountainous regions of China, Japan, Korea and Russia (Altai region). Unfortunately, it is a dioecious species and the ones that survived from a batch of seedlings started 2 years ago, turned out to be all male plants at flowering.

So, I sowed a few more seeds and I will keep all the transplanted seedlings hoping that at least one will be female. Some were a bit more robust and already showed the nice, thickened caudex; I couldn’t abstain taking a picture:

Rhodiola sachalinensis seedlings

Rhodiola semenovii will have to wait to be sown next year, and I don’t have a picture of it, but here it is Rhodiola rosea in its wild habitat (Carpathian Mts.)

Rhodiola rosea

 

 

 

Intention – Podophyllum delavayi

My intention was to write a longer post detailing the germination/seedlings growing of a few Chinese Podophyllum species, but by the time the evening came the desire to do that has vanished.

As a proof of my good faith I will let you admire last year’s Podophyllum delavayi seedlings. Last year by this time they were like this:

Podophyllum delavayi seedling, March 24/2016

And today, when I ‘performed’ an emergency repotting, like this:

Podophyllum delavayi – one year old ‘seedlings’ sharing the same pot

Podophyllum delavayi one-year old – showing extensive root system

It was a good intention though…

Friday’s Seeds – Tiger Iris

A few new Iris seeds from the rare side, so pictures are warranted. Despite its name, Iris tigridia (common name Tiger iris) is a completely harmless iris ;) hailing from the Altai region of Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China. Not an easy one, but extremely beautiful dwarf iris with blue streaked petals.

Images in wild habitat: Iris tigridia

Iris tigridia seeds

Iris potaninii, similar in habit (and distribution), has light to deep yellow flowers. As well from dry, rocky mountain slopes.

Images in wild habitat: Iris potaninii

Iris potaninii seeds

They both belong to the group of arillate Irises; I will update this post later with soaked seeds images to better observe the arils.

 

Snowflakes by design: Mitella diphylla

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Myriads of Mitella diphylla flowers are still falling from the sky. I noticed that not too many people are familiar with this dainty North American woodlander; what a pity…

It can be found in deciduous woodlands in part shaded areas, most often at the edges of the forest; easily noticeable despite its small flowers, it will flower somewhere at the beginning of May. A better timetable is to consider that it flowers at the same time with Trillium grandiflorum, Uvularia grandiflora and Coptis trifolia.

Mitella diphylla, Two-leaved bishop’s cap (Fam. Saxifragaceae) – Tall flowering stems carrying small, fringed, snowflakes shaped flowers above a pair of leaves. Fruits are dehiscent capsules with many small, black seeds.

Mitella is not an easy subject to capture on camera

What I like even more about it is that the basal leaves are evergreen; a most useful character in our climate with long flowerless periods. I cannot take a picture in the garden right now, but I have one from the previous garden showing it together with Cyclamen hederifolium and Hepatica in late November.

Mitella diphylla, Cyclamen and Hepatica foliage in November

Propagation: easy from seeds (sown in the fall) and mine has started to flower in the third year. After it gets established it can also be divided (it forms a rather tight clump so there is no worry about potential invasiveness).

Mitella diphylla seeds

The genus name Mitella comes from the Greek ‘mitra’= cap and the common name bishop’s cap or mitrewort refers to the cap-shaped fruit.

Friday’s Seeds – Papaveraceae

Back to seeds, and just a few here from the last published seed gallery.

Many of the species of Papaveraceae family present seeds with elaiosomes, a well-known adaptation to ant dispersal (myrmechory). In the general term ‘elaiosomes’ are included various seed appendages rich in lipids (with oleic acid as the main component), amino acids, carbohydrates and vitamins.

These appendages are often very beautiful and interesting. Problem is, you have to be fast in admiration because few days after dispersal/collecting (whichever comes first ;-) they will ‘shrink’ or simply ‘disappear’. This applies as well for the seeds which are kept in moist storage for later sowing/sales (keeping these species as dry seeds is strongly NOT recommended).

Stylophorum diphyllum, one of my favourites, with ‘mohawk-style’ elaiosomes (insert with seeds in moist storage).

Stylophorum diphyllum

Stylophorum lasiocarpum – with a different ‘hair’ style.

Stylophorum lasiocarpum

Corydalis solida – displays  ‘leaf shaped’ elaiosomes.

Corydalis solida

Dicentra cucullaria – a hard one to catch and the elaiosomes fade very fast.

Dicentra cucullaria

And, I cannot forget the Sanguinaria: ‘little snails’ trying to get away :)

Sanguinaria canadensis

 

More on the Papaveraceae seed gallery.

 

 

All over again

The first Arisaema of the season – in love all over again… 

Arisaema fargesii seedling

 

Through the looking-glass: Montreal Botanical Garden

Every time I visit a Botanical Garden, it feels like stepping into a parallel world full of wonders. Montreal Botanical Garden especially felt like the Garden of Live Flowers. Did the flowers think that I was one of them? I don’t know, but let’s see what’s on the other side of the mirror.

Maybe not enough time to do a full exploration, but we can always return for more ;-) There are 10 exhibition greenhouses and about 30 thematic outdoor gardens!!!
Link to – Montreal Botanical Garden

Very short, I have to mention that MBG came into being in 1931 through the efforts and vision of botanist Frѐre Marie Victorin, which practically dedicated his life to this garden. Rightly so, today he welcomes all visitors at the entrance.
In the pictures: Frere Marie Victorin, and second, an archive image with him and the garden’s designer, Henry Teuscher (1936) – please click to open the full size images in the gallery.

Frere Marie Victorin – MBG

Frere Marie Victorin and Henry Teuscher in the greenhouse (1936)

Because it is cold, snowy and I had a bad cold, there is no other place I’d rather be right now than the Rainforest section of the Conservatory where it is warm and humid, and epiphytic plants and lianas are draping over the skilfully built ‘cork trees’.

Tropical Rainforest Greenhouse at Montreal Botanical Garden

Before starting to admire the multitude of species growing here, it’s good to note how much effort went into creating an environment that mimics very well the wild habitats of the displayed species, in this case many epiphytic bromeliaceae, Tillandsia, various  aroids, Orchids, Maranthaceae, Zingiberaceae and Nepenthaceae.

Aechmea gamosepala and Vriesea sucrei from Brasil

As you can see from the close-up image, pieces of cork (bark of Quercus suber, I think) were skillfully arranged and tied over ‘skeletons’ of trees (made from metallic tubes). In this way, were created various levels on which species from many parts of the world could coexist harmoniously according with their light requirements.

As well, panels with the same cork supporting epiphytic Tillandsia and orchid species hanged around the sides of the greenhouse and helped to achieve a tri-dimensional look of the indoor forest.

Tillandsia andreana (Colombia)

And a bit more :)

Tillandsia xerographica

Vriesia ‘Kiwi Sunset’

Epiphytic orchids

Billbergia, Aechmea

Neoregelia

Tacca

aroid

x Canmea

Hymenocallis littoralis

 

 

Pink sunglasses

Winter is a black & white season in this part of the Northern Hemisphere. I patiently await for the invention of suitable glasses that would project on my retina sunny, flowery images all day long.

Meanwhile, I use my indoor light stand as an indoor garden. It is bright and I get to wear sunglasses that adjust to my desired colour*. Today I have chosen pink for Incarvillea (various species, all commonly called Incarvillea or hardy gloxinia).

Hardy gloxinia species belong to the so called ‘warm germinators’ (will germinate at room temp.). They are also easy to grow indoors and, like many other tuberous species, will benefit from an early start, having more time to develop a good size tuber by late spring when they can be planted outside. Some may even flower in the first year, like it happened with I. delavayi. I have already grown from seeds I. delavayi and I. zhongdianensis.

Incarvillea delavayi, a first year seedling flowering

Incarvillea zhongdianensis, a mature plant (alas, not in my garden)

This year I am happy to start two other species: I. mairei and I. younghusbandii. These are smaller species height-wise, the second a real dwarf, but with larger deep pink/magenta flowers; this combination gives them an even more exotic look for our Northern Hemisphere gardens.

Incarvillea mairei, a relatively young plant

Looking at the world through pink sunglasses in late January is pretty amazing!
Then, there will be days for yellows, blues in many shades, purple, orange…

I. younghusbandii – click for google images.

*Such sunglasses of course, do not exist; except in my imagination.

Here’s a very, very short list of others ‘warm germinators’ that can be started early and will grow well under lights indoors.
Anthemis, Arisaema,
Astragalus, Anthyllis
Anthirrhinum, Iris*
Biscutella, Calycanthus
Oxytropis, Sanguisorba, Roscoea
Scabiosa, Hypericum,
Draba, Allysum
Campanula*, Dianthus*, Lilium*
Agastache, Primula*,
* not all species

You may want to know….

also, see update from Feb.8

How the moist stored seeds of C. nobilis are looking at the moment. This is the first time I have ‘excess’ seeds and it is interesting to see how they ‘behave’.

The growth of the embryos has resulted in the expansion of the endosperm and splitting of the seed coat. This is not happening in many species and has been reported as well in Corydalis ambigua; I also noted it in Hydrastis canadensis last year (see below).

Corydalis nobilis seeds with enlarged endosperms (January – seeds in moist storage)

Hydrastis

Hydrastis canadensis seeds with split seed coats by early January (germination in April)

These type of seeds, which have an undeveloped embryo when ripen, require warm stratification before embryo growth can occur in late autumn. The root emergence, followed shortly by the cotyledons, will happen then in early spring (somewhere in mid-March-April).

If I’m not wrong, that’s when I expect to see the ‘little lords’ showing up!

UPDATE – Feb.8

I was wrong! – by second week of February I spotted the first radicles!

Corydalis nobilis – germination start

It continues to be very gloomy here, so a bright and sunny picture will do us all good :) And, I repeat again because not many are mentioning; besides being very hardy and beautiful, the lord of the Corydalis is also fragrant!

Corydalis nobilis

Warning!
Germination of Corydalis nobilis from dry seeds it is so poor (better said maybe non-existent), that’s not even worth trying it.

Surprise, surprise! – Iris pumila

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Growing from seeds is always full of surprises, especially for first time sowings, like in this case for Iris pumila.

Iris pumila – a dwarf, early spring flowering, bearded Iris with a wild distribution from Central Europe to the Caucasus. The large flowers can be violet, blue, purple, yellow, or in various combinations like it naturally happens in wild populations; it is super hardy and excellent for the rockery, or a sunny border.

For best germination, most sources suggest soaking the seeds and providing about 4 weeks warm and then a longer (few months) cold period. So, my plan was to keep the sowings the furnace room for 3-4 weeks (+/- 23C day/ 17C night) and then place the pots outside under snow for the remaining of the winter. I sowed on Dec. 19th – and a couple of days ago (Jan. 5)…surprise! I found some pots with the first shoots were out. The plan has changed of course, and my light stand will be up very soon :)

Iris pumila – seeds soaked, sown on Dec.19th at warm – first signs of germination Jan. 5th (few even sooner)

The pots contain seeds of differently coloured specimens, although this little Iris can provide even more surprises colour-wise!

I don’t know if the seeds will germinate in the same way after going into a deeper dormancy, but this is still a good time to sow – and few fresh seeds are still available in the shop!

Friday’s Seeds – Fritillaria

And a Happy New Year!

I’ve recently sown few species new for me: Fritillaria and Gagea – Fam. Liliaceae.  I hoped that the close-up pictures will reveal minute differences between the seeds, and I will be able to use them for species identification. I was wrong – partially.

There are slight differences, especially when looking at them by comparison, but fair to say it is (almost) impossible to ID these Fritillaria spp. only after their seeds (F. ruthenica is a bit distinctive). Other Gagea species might be very similar with G. taurica as well. Not surprisingly, many Lilium species have also look-alike seeds.

In this case we can only trust and hope that after a few years the bulbs will flower to reveal the names written on the labels. With the same spirit of hope we look forward to the New Year, as a better, safer, and peaceful one for all !

Gagea taurica seeds

  Happy New Year!

                                    – and keep sowing :)                             

 

Plants of the Canadian West Coast – III

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From the shady side

As we are approaching the longest night of the year, it seems appropriate to present few species from the shady side. The characteristic rain forest of the area presents itself as an enchanted place with huge ferns, moss clad tree logs and boulders, and lichens of all sorts and shapes. One could easily imagine how handy rain gear would be if visiting in spring or fall!

Growing on a most beautiful mossy outcrop populated by reindeer lichen, Goodyera, hairy Arctostaphylos and ferns, was Plectritis congesta. Some plants were already with seeds, but a few were still flowering and looked very nice in deep pink on the background of moss covered rocks.

Plectritis congesta, the Sea blush (Fam. Caprifoliaceae), is an annual species, very adaptable to growing conditions and quite variable as height and flower colour.

A species abundant in cool and shaded damp places, was the broad-leaved starflowers – Trientalis latifolia (Fam. Myrsinaceae more recently). The species can be easily distinguished by its very broad leaves, which make the pinkish to white flowers look smaller than they really are. As well, Linnaea borealis was frequent in the same microhabitats.

Trientalis latifolia – all populations found had pink to deep pink flowers, some also presenting extra petals

There would be much more to say and show, but Christmas time is close, so I will end this trip with a few lichen images, so specific for the coastal rainy forest habitats (there are also species growing in full sun locations). Species shown here belong to the Cladonia and Cladina genera (reindeer lichens), but since I’m not a lichen specialist, I will abstain from assigning species names. We can just admire their most beautiful, intricate and delicate patterns.

And a Merry Christmas to all!

 

Plants of the Canadian West Coast – II

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More snow is on the way for us (and bitter cold), but we are hiking on the Sooke Coast trail where there are many flowers ;) Enjoy and more to come…

As I mentioned in part 1, Sedum spathulifolium seems to enjoy the company of many other species: Triteleia/Brodiaea, Allium cernuum, Heuchera micrantha and Pentagramma, to note just a few. The contrast of its bluish rosettes with the violet flowers of Triteleia laxa was particularly exquisite.

Brodiaea coronaria

Triteleia laxa Brodiaea coronaria – corrected thanks to a SRGC forumist, grows from a small, edible corm (Fam. Asparagaceae) and flowers usually after the foliage dies back. Flowers can be light blue to violet, rarely white; especially attractive when growing in groups, with the flowers showing up among the golden, dry foliage.

Another Triteleia species encountered was Triteleia hyacinthina (fool’s onion). The plant can be variable in height (10-40 cm) and has compact umbels of white flowers (sometimes having bluish tints) with green midribs. I don’t know really know if to call this one Brodiaea…

Triteleia hyacinthina

Triteleia hyacinthina close-up

Allium cernuum, the nodding onion, was also found growing nearby and looked very attractive when drooping gracefully over a rock ledge.

Allium cernuum

Taking pictures of Triteleia, I noticed something glittering in the sun down the slope and approaching to see better, I noticed the goldback fern – Pentagramma triangularis. This lovely small sized fern can remain evergreen throughout the year when enough moisture is available.  In full sun and dry conditions, as I found it, it will curl its fronds and reveal the golden spores. I know the picture cannot show the reality of the ‘golden glitter’, but it’s true. What a great little fern for the rock garden!

Pentagramma triangularis – Goldback fern on Sooke Coast Trail

Meandering around beach pockets, the hiking trail enters sometimes into the forest (there is also an option to return through the woods to the trailhead). Majestic Douglas, Tsuga, Sitka spruce and Thuja plicata will accompany the path; it’s only after the bark that you can tell which one is which. A spectacular shrub encountered in large numbers as an understory, was the salal, Gaultheria shallon (Fam. Ericaceae).

Gaultheria shallon – Salal

This is an evergreen shrub, 1,5 m to 3 m tall, which can form very dense thickets. The leathery, thick leaves and the racemes of urn-shaped, white to pink flowers make it for a very handsome shrub. Fruits are purplish-black berries that are said to be sweetish and flavourful. Salal berries were a staple food for the NW coastal First Nations, who use to eat them preserved in oolichan (bear fat – correction thanks to a  sharp eye, oolichan or smelt is a fish – see end of the post for more info), pounded and dried into cakes (kept in woven baskets over the winter). There is also mention of mixing the fruits with salmon eggs to obtain a sweetish dish…

Gaultheria shallon

 

Excerpt
read more here – Eulachon, Oolichan, Candlefish, Hooligan 

“To Native Americans, the return of the eulachon meant the beginning of spring and a renewed food supply, literally saving lives and earning them the name “salvation fish” or “savour fish.”  They were the first fish to arrive in the river after a long cold winter when most of their stored food supplies had been depleted.   Unlike other fish oils, eulachon lipids are solid at room temperature, with the color and consistency of butter.  These fish are almost 20 percent oil by weight, allowing a fine grease to be rendered from their bodies and creating a high-energy food source that could easily be transported and traded with other tribes farther inland.”