Nomocharis?

Pacific Rim paige@hillkeep.ca
Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:04:25 PST
Hi, Diane.

"A vast hybrid swarm" of Nomocharis. What a glorious daydream.

I haven't been able to keep any Nomocharis in a pot, but plain old N. aperta
is holding its own in our garden. It's on a moist, humusy slope, in sun for
less than half the day. It might prefer different conditions -- peat and sun
are mentioned in the journals -- but it has bloomed faithfully since 2004.

Perhaps moisture is important. We get more rain than you do, and even in dry
late summer we irrigate where the Nomocharis grows for the sake of other
plants that we *know* want moisture.

I have wondered whether these little bulbs are short-lived but
stoloniferous. I mark stems that have flowered with stakes for later
digging.
Sometimes I find no bulb at the foot of a stake but another bulb not far
away. Counter-theory: muscle-bound voles push them aside as they tunnel.
Counter-counter theory: weeders move the stakes.

Science in the slow lane.

Paige Woodward
on top of Chilliwack Mountain
in SW British Columbia
Canada
wet Zone 6


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