All Violas in one place

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To finalize the query about the new Viola I was talking last week, pictures of seeds were taken (more detailed than usual): size, surface, colour, aril size and aspect are all useful characters for identification.

Viola cf. declinata seeds

Unfortunately, not having a term of comparison the identity is still uncertain. So, until I grow a few plants it will be offered as Viola cf. declinata.

While at it, why not see about other Viola spp. seeds? And, of course, why not have a Violaceae page in the Seeds Library? Have a look and notice the subtle differences between Viola renifolia and Viola macloskeyi seeds (these two native species are a bit hard to differentiate).

And how about a Viola category in the seeds shop? :)) On this occasion, I ‘discovered’ I forgot to add the Viola pubescens, as well as Viola jooi seeds to the inventory.

It’s so good to have everything in one place!

Friday’s seed and plant portrait – Hypericum kalmianum

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Having too many seeds makes it hard to choose which one to show/write about.
I am going the easy way with the last species uploaded to the shop – the Kalm’s St. John’s wort, a (sub)shrub native of the Great Lakes region in Canada and US.

Hypericum kalmianum seeds – Kalm’s St. John’s wort (Fam. Hypericaceae)

Cultivated to some extent, this Hypericum has narrow bluish-green leaves and cheerful, large golden flowers with extruded stamens in late summer; the capsules mature very late.
It is a showy, adaptable plant; evergreen (or partly) and as one can guess after its wild habitat, with excellent cold hardiness. Another attractive feature is the brown/reddish bark which peels off.

Lots of qualities!

Hypericum kalmianum flowers

Hypericum kalmianum1

Hypericum kalmianum bark

Lobelia kalmii

The specific epithet honors Pehr Kalm, one of Linnaeus’ disciples ; an explorer, botanist and naturalist, he traveled to and lived for a while in North America in mid-17th , discovering and writing about plants, animals, insects, Niagara Falls, and in general about the life of American colonies at the time.

Another species that can be found with H. kalmianum, bearing the same name is Lobelia kalmii  shown in the gallery.
Days are short now so you can start to read more about Pehr in the wiki stub and then follow other links: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pehr_Kalm

Friday’s Seeds and plant portrait – Amsonia hubrichtii

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Honestly, I had no intention to write another post so soon, but plants need to be shown at their best moments. And, Amsonia hubrichtii, the Arkansas bluestar is absolutely radiant right now.

Amsonia hubrichtii in late fall

Depending how much sun receives it may also take a russet hue (notice the capsules).

I won’t wonder again about why is not cultivated more; the images speak for themselves. It is a foliage plant by definition, the thread- like leaves will combine beautifully with almost anything else; those who want more flowery display should plant other perennials close to it and let them complement/weave through the delicate foliage.

The flowers are pale blue, not very noticeable but a nice addition.

With Delphinium likiangense; probably larkspurs (Consolida regalis) would make for a nice combination as well.

Without thinking much, one year I planted Dahlia coccinea behind it; now it has become the rule.

The seeds are quite particular, like of other Amsonias (Fam. Apocynaceae); the fruits (capsules) can be spotted in one image above.

Amsonia hubrichtii seeds

PS. It is a bit late to emerge in the spring; planting a bunch of small spring bulbs & daffodils close to the clump will do the trick ;)

 

The cranberry

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Another belated Friday’s seeds would have been unacceptable, so a plant portrait instead (seeds included ;) about the cranberry – Vaccinium macrocarpon, American cranberry.

The Cranberry is a North American symbol. Recently I’ve seen it growing in the wild and asked myself how many people actually know how the plant looks like?

Vaccinium macrocarpon fruit

It is very surprising to see that the large fruits are formed on a small trailing vine, which has thin, graceful branches. Is this indeed The cranberry?

Vaccinium macrocarpon

Yes, it is; after all ‘macrocarpon’ means ‘large fruit’.
Another species, Vaccinium oxycoccos, the small cranberry, is very similar and distinguishable by its pointed leaves (and few other details). The cranberries are specific wetlands species: they grow on swamps, fens, and occasionally on glacial deposits in kettle holes on shorelines (like shown in the picture). Usually will form mats on Sphagnum moss; leaves are shiny green/glaucous beneath and turn bright red in the fall.

Vaccinium macrocarpon habitat

Vaccinium macrocarpon

Vaccinium macrocarpon seeds

The American cranberry can be found from Manitoba to Newfoundland, and south into the mid-western and eastern U.S. Probably in some areas fruits are still collected in the wild but most came from commercial operations. It was one of the first medicinal plant crop to be grown commercially in the U.S.; maybe in Canada as well.

Traditionally, Native people have gathered and consumed the fresh fruits for their vitamin C content and also used them dried and mixed with fat/dried meat and fish.
To note only few of the modern utilizations: they are used mainly for juice and pie making, jams, dried fruits, and for naturopathic preparations (bladder and kidney infections).

Have a bog/wet, acidic area in the garden? – do not hesitate to grow this lovely North American shrub!

 

A well done job

Never enough gentians….

In my opinion the bumble bees did a great job with Gentiana andrewsii. There are enough seeds for Canada 150 Celebration sale, and also for the seeds exchanges! :)

Bumble bee pollinating Gentiana andrewsii

A well done job

 

 

Here they go!

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Trillium grandiflorum seeds are just beginning to germinate! As well is Paris quadrifolia; I noticed the first signs last Saturday (with my x40 lens).

I snapped a few pictures when I was packing some today; they are advanced enough to be noticeable even if the pictures are not great.

Trillium grandiflorum seeds starting to germinate

 

Paris quadrifolia seeds barely showing the radicle

No matter what someone else says or writes, this is happening every year.

For these species, moist stored seeds kept at warm (room temperature) will always start to germinate around this time (roots only).
From all T. grandiflorum seeds, 70-80% will germinate now (roots) and then show the first leaves in the spring after a period of cold stratification. The rest will need one more warm/cold cycle to go through the same cycle.

Paris quadrifolia seeds were also tested two years ago and at that time they all germinated by November (this year I only got few and were promised to someone).

On short, hurry up if you think about Trillium grandiflorum; right now I can select and send seeds that are just about to germinate (they are enlarged and lighter in colour – see the feature image).

 

 

Friday’s seeds – Mitchella repens

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I recently collected more partridge berries, together with Lindera benzoin and Prosartes lanuginosa (already shown, click on names).

Mitchella repens presents an interesting fruit, therefore worth a closer look. The red, fleshy, ‘two-eyed’ fruit it is formed after the fusion of the flowers ovaries – the white, fragrant flowers are disposed in pairs.  So, each pair of flowers will form one fruit. Each fruit has a spongy inside (a bit like Gaultheria) and will contain up to 8 seeds.

Mitchella repens fruits and seeds – Partridge berry, twinberry, squaw vine (Fam. Rubiaceae)

Why this perfect, evergreen ground hugging plant is seldom seen cultivated in the gardens remains a mystery to me. It can be easily propagated by cuttings as well.

Mitchella repens flowers

Mitchella repens fruits

Belated Friday’s seeds – Chamaedaphne calyculata

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Instead of writing about seeds, I was in collecting them ;) therefore a combined post about Chamaedaphne calyculata, the Leatherleaf or ground laurel.

The sole member of the genus Chamaedaphne (Ericaceae), leatherleaf is a low growing evergreen small shrub (up to 1.5 m tall). It is native to cool regions of the Northern Hemisphere, from North America, NE Europe to N. Japan, Mongolia and Siberia, where grows in all types of bogs, sedge fens, and open wetlands.
It is characteristic of mature and late stages of moss shrub communities, where it forms colonies, with rhizomes spreading in the sphagnum moss. It actually helps the installation of other species with whom is found growing, like Sarracenia, Drosera, Kalmia polifolia, Ledum groenlandica, various Vaccinium species.

The common name comes from the thick, leathery leaves, which are turning red-brown in the winter. It has a dense branching and the older stems turn gray with a fine exfoliating bark texture.
The white, bell shaped flowers on long inflorescences appear in April-July, depending on the region. Somewhat resembles Andromeda flowers, which is why Linnaeus first named it Andromeda calyculata.

Chamaedaphne calyculata, Leatherleaf

Fruits are capsules with split open and release the seeds shown below (wedged shaped, golden brown).

Chamaedaphne calyculata fruits and seeds

 It would make a great addition for small and large bog gardens. For those who have conditions and enjoy growing Ericaceous species – the seeds require cold/moist stratification and probably best to germinate them like in nature on a piece of sphagnum moss (in a pot/or ‘in situ’). I showed in a previous post how to easily germinate Gaultheria procumbens and Saxifraga cuneifolia in moss (Read here Sowing in moss).

Chamaedaphne calyculata seedlings germinated/growing on sphagnum moss (look around the Tamarack branch :)

 

 

In kindness – Spigelia

Few years ago I bought a postal card that I meant to frame but never got around to do it. In a lovely aboriginal design by Terry Starr (Tsimshian artist), hummingbirds are shown sipping nectar from red flowers.
The drawing named – In Kindness has the following note:
“Hummingbirds symbolize the act of offering peace and the generosity of sharing wealth”.

In kindness – by Terry Starr

I don’t know what the red flowers are but they remind me of Spigelia marilandica (Indian pink) and a very kind and generous friend who takes care to catch its seeds (explosive capsules) in small organza bags every year :)

Spigelia, with its red flowers sought after hummingbirds and their symbolism it is such a good fit for our Canada 150 Celebration Sale that I can’t abstain to add it to the list.

Let’s celebrate kindness for a while!

Those in need can read more about Spigelia – here.
*1 pck. limit/customer while on sale

 

To autumn – the lusty song of fruits and flowers

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Images from out in the woods, from the garden and even along the margins of the roads, all reflecting the harmony of colours, shapes and textures that autumn brings, were flashing through my mind when cleaning fruits today.  Such an easy way to go into a lyrical mood…(I’ll keep it short ;)

“O Autumn, laden with fruit, and stained
With the blood of the grape, pass not, but sit
Beneath my shady roof…
………………………………………
Sing now the lusty song of fruits and flowers”.

                                           W. Blake – To Autumn

Euonymus obovatus and Arisaema

Arisaema flavum

Solidago canadensis -Rhus

Scabiosa caucasica

Colchicum

Cornus sericea

Cimicifuga racemosa

Polygonatum pubescens

Rosa

 

Friday’s seeds – or is it a fruit? Triosteum

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Sometimes we refer to ‘seeds’ without actually realizing that we are talking about the fruits.
This is the case of dry fruits like achenes, caryopses, samaras…, which tightly enclose the seed(s) and it would be practically impossible/or at least highly impractical to try to ‘extract’ the seeds.

So, why do we care if we sow seeds or fruits?
Knowing that we actually handle fruits, helps understanding why certain treatments are needed for the storage/germination process. Also, because in these cases we cannot see the actual seeds, we only make the assumption they are inside the fruit and will germinate in due time. Which perhaps they will, but sometimes there is no one there to do it!
To understand what I mean, you can have a look back at two notorious examples:
False assurance – Linnaea borealis
The Beauty and the Parthenocarpy – Acer triflorum

In the Caprifoliaceae family there are also species with dry fruits which we treat as seeds, like Morina and Triosteum. In both cases, they have hard teguments which play a role in retarding/obstructing the germination.

I wanted for a long time to have a closer look at Triosteum aurantiacum. I found no reliable info regarding its germination but someone who bought ‘seeds’ few years ago got back to me saying that by filing the fruits tegument, followed by GA3 and/or cold-moist stratification obtained good results.

So, I placed the fruits in warm water for a few days in an attempt to soften their teguments before I proceed to dissections. In Triosteum – and I refer here to Triosteum aurantiacum – the fruits resemble coffee beans, and only by looking at them one can imagine it will take a lot of time for them to disintegrate naturally in the soil.

Even after keeping them in water for few days I had to use a cutter to slice through them. The wall of the fruit is extremely thick and the seed is fused to it.
Here’s a plate showing the whole story in pictures:

I managed to extract one seed intact – inside, the embryo is invisible with the naked eye because of underdevelopment, pointing to the requirement of at least one period of cold/moist stratification.

This is a Triosteum aurantiacum SEED

Conclusion: these are the options to hurry up the germination for Triosteum – first, by filing the hard tegument with a metal file almost until reaching the seed, followed by cold/moist stratification 3 months.

Second, by nicking the end of the fruit (I used this myself for T. pinnatifidum), followed by cold/moist stratification for a few months. In this case, take care not to harm the seed when nicking the end and best to keep the fruits in water for a few days to somehow soften them.

A suplimentary GA3 treatment coupled with the cold/moist stratification may have some effect or not; I will try it this winter and we’ll know for sure.

About Morina next time…

 

 

 

Moist packing – what’s that?

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As I was packing seeds today, I thought that maybe some people who never bought or they buy for the first time moist packed seeds may wonder what they would get.

Sometimes I get questions as well, so although I have shown pictures in previous posts, it is good to tell again. There is no secret; seeds that are known to be hydrophilic (to make a long story short – these are seeds which need to be sown right away after collecting or if not, kept moist to preserve their viability), are cleaned from the fruits and stored in slightly moist vermiculite in Ziploc bags. And no, there is no need to spray the seeds with anything chemical.

These seeds are to be sown right away after receiving them. Right after collecting, for a short time (June) for shipping these seeds are packed in glassine envelopes and then in a plastic bag. Later, the portion of seeds is placed in smaller bags with a bit of the moist vermiculite or a small piece of moist towel.

Asarum canadense moist packed seeds for shipping

The small plastic bags are not intended for storing the seeds long term!!! (I know someone tried to do that, that’s why I mention it). If you really want to keep the seeds longer, and /or provide stratification in the fridge instead of the recommended sowing, you need to transfer them in larger bags with added moist vermiculite (slightly moist peat works as well).

These seeds are easily sown by spreading the content of the bag on top of the potting mix (no need to pick the seeds from the vermiculite). Even larger seeds are better sown this way. Cover with a thin layer of sowing mix, water and you’re done!

In case of hydrophilic seeds, if they are kept dry they will either not germinate at all, or will germinate poorly/over a longer period of time. Keeping them moist and allowed the required cycles that mimic the natural conditions will result most times, in 100% germination in the spring. It is a lot of extra work but worth doing it.

Thank you! – Merci! to all our customers