Easter #2
Happy Easter to those celebrating this weekend – wishes for peace, joy and hope for new beginnings!
The Pasque flowers are still not blooming, so garden-wise we are celebrating with a few ‘black beauties’, plus a nice form of Corydalis solida – in the feature image.
The dark-red to purple color at emergence of some early spring plants is due to the high anthocyanins content and it is common for most Paeonia species; also for Jeffersonia dubia (Plagiorhegma dubium) and a few others. The coldest the spring weather the darker the shoots/foliage.
The accumulation of anthocyanins in the leaves and stems improve the plants adaptability to low-temperatures. In all cases, the foliage will turn to green as it keeps expanding, in correlation with the rising spring temperatures.
Be careful with the really dark new shoots of Physochlaina orientalis and Caulophyllum; it is very easy to destroy them during the spring cleaning.
Due to its particular germination pattern, Caulophyllum thalictroides moist packed seeds can be ordered again. These seeds require two more cycles: one warm/one cold for germination (in translation, one more year sown outdoors).
*A few shoots of Caulophyllum were found on a location that receives sun for half of the day right now; in more shaded sites they may not be present yet (do not scratch the ground looking for the young shoots as they are very fragile in early spring).
