November 2023 photos

[Martin Bohnet]

November  is a gamble in my climate - there are things still in flower like this Hedychium of which I'm not sure if its a pure deceptum or a hybrid, but the tropical look becomes more and more surreal with all the trees dropping leaves. Other things may or may not open up depending on if there's a warm and sunny day or not - luckily, this 1st was one, so there's Crocus melantherus

, Crocus pallasii

, Moraea polystachya

and a small golden Oxalis in flower.

Last one is not a geophyte, but Berkheya cirsiifolia may show how far off normal the weather is - this year continues to be a wild ride.

[Diane Whitehead]

Which ones are growing outside in your garden?

[Martin Bohnet]

the Crocuses and the Berkheya - everything else is potted and will move into the frost free shelter if we get more than a slight touch of frost, though the Hedychium should take -10 °C in theory

[Too Many Plants!]

Some of our recent bulb activity...our Gladiolus (heirloom hybrid?) finishing. We've had these Moraea Polystachya really setting up shop (naturalizing) in our garden for the last couple years! So far, I've tracked them flowering at least from August through February. And this Amaryllis was sold to us by an old-timer plant collector as an Amaryllis X Crinum hybrid.

[Martin Bohnet]

And this Amaryllis was sold to us by an old-timer plant collector as an Amaryllis X Crinum hybrid.

It is. The leaves are obviously from the crinum side. likely behaves evergreen under most conditions.

[Too Many Plants!]

Thank you for verifying, Martin! That stuff is completely outside my wheelhouse. It's nice to know what I'm telling people is accurate. And yes, it does seem to be around at least most of the year, and I do believe it flowers more than once a year too.

[Arnold]

Today's show

Freesia caryophyllacea
Lachenalia pygmaea

[Too Many Plants!]

The days are getting shorter...nights are getting colder...and it's beginning to look a lot like bulb season! 

Boophone, Velthemia, Ferraria, Ixia, Babiana, Lachenalia, and others I can't recall due to CRS...

[Too Many Plants!]

And this Amaryllis was sold to us by an old-timer plant collector as an Amaryllis X Crinum hybrid.

It is. The leaves are obviously from the crinum side. likely behaves evergreen under most conditions.

Hi Martin, I'm curious if you have anything to say about this...I don't believe this hybrid sets seed like my other Amaryllis, Crinum, and SA bulbs do. Is this something like an intergeneric Mule palm being sterile?

[Martin Bohnet]

absolutely possible - I've never had seeds on the wide crosses like xAmarine and xAmacrinum. To be fair I don't have any other related amaryllids in flower when the Amacrinum is.

[Wylie]

absolutely possible - I've never had seeds on the wide crosses like xAmarine and xAmacrinum. To be fair I don't have any other related amaryllids in flower when the Amacrinum is.

I have some bulbs growing that were a result of crossing xAmarine with Amaryllis belladonna. If it would stop raining, I want to try a xAmarine with Nerine sarniensis since both are in flower.

[Uli]

First time in my life I can see this amazing flower with my own eyes.... Paramongaia.

[Too Many Plants!]

First time in my life I can see this amazing flower with my own eyes.... Paramongaia.

FANTASTIC! Thank you for sharing.

[Carlos]

Congratulations!! I got three bulbs and they refuse to sprout, they might have been killed by the extreme heat of last summer, I should have unpotted them.

Carlos

[Martin Bohnet]

We have now the 18th of November and still there wasn't a single day without rain this month - everything beyond my rain shelter capacities is drenched, and I fear for a lot of rot when the weather finally forces me to put things into the unheated greenhouse with limited air movement. There's an arctic outbreak forecast about a week ahead, but I'm still hopeful things will slip a few hundred  kilometers west or east, which often means the complete opposite in meridonal weather...

As threatened in the October topic, the weather was stable enough to allow Tropaeolum tuberosum

Flower Colors:	orange, yellow, red
Flower Season:	late summer
Special:	climber, edible flowers, edible storage organ

to flower. By chance it mingled with my Bomarea not quite edulis (could be a hybrid as it behaves a lot different than my other clone, as in being later, smaller but more intense in color). Hmm, two Andeans with similar color scheme and overall flower shape and nodding angle. Something screams common pollinator here.

A few days older is this picture of an Oxalis donated by Uli in the EX05. As it is typical for winter growing Oxalis in my climate, I had to trick it into opening up by taking it inside für half an hour. then again, the flower's just a bonus to the cute speckled foliage.