Oxalis lobata (again)

 

One of my plants of Oxalis lobata (now O.perdicaria I think). This one has grown unprotected from an escaped bulb about 10 years ago in a sunny trough here, just outside of Oxford, UK. It’s one of my absolute favourite plants with the fresh green leaves and golden yellow flowers that glow in the later summer & autumnal sun.

This one is much more compact than in my shady greenhouse where it tends to sprawl so I’m now bringing the plants in pots out to flower. I made the mistake last year in assuming I could leave them out all year. The result was my two large pans were downsized in the spring to a single small pot. I don’t know whether they got too wet or cold or a combination of the two.

When I was a teen I read in the old books I got from the library about the problem of it going dormant in the winter and again in the summer, leafing up in the spring and then leafing up and flowering in the later summer. I’ve found that with me it only goes dormant in the summer. I think it was regarded as a novelty and desirable plant, I get the impression that it’s popularity has waned although it still seems to be readily available.

well this is a turn up for the books...

 I'm back again. First there was the Inspiring Plants website in 1999 that got alot of visitors and some awards, then the platform changed and that went so I created a blog. Then I got locked out of that blog and started another Inspiring Plants site and then that got messed up by the hosting service so I'm back on the blog.

Alot has changed for hobbyist content over the decades. Free hosting has largely gone, blogging appeared, and then Facebook & Instagram are with us. Email lists have mostly disappeared and forums seem to be on their way out. Such is progress. 

 

Cyclamen cyprium

 

The national flower of Cyprus. It's a distinct species which despite it's appearance is said to be related to C.pseudo-ibericum and C. libanoticum.

Flowers in late autumn with very fragrant flowers. The auricles are very prominent and it is usually pure white with darker markings at the nose. Sometimes it opens pale pink but fades to white, more rarely the pink colour remains. It generally flowers in October but I find that individual flowers sometimes persist until February. The leaves are highly variable.  

It is regarded as tender and so grown in a frost free greenhouse. It comes easily from seed.

 

Arum pictum

 

This is my Arum pictum grown from AGS seed, I think it's 4-5 years old now. It's the first Arum I've grown (I thought it was about time to give them a go). A.pictum is from the Balearics and is an autumn flowering species. It comes in various forms, the most usual has a dark spathe and spadix so this is one of the less usual forms. The flower doesn't last long, about a week, which can be a good thing if it decides to emit it's foul smelling "perfume". Some years it does, some it doesn't.

Oxalis lobata

 

The Oxalis are a big and varied family, from pernicious weeds to alpine treasures from Chile and colourful South African low landers. Oxais lobata is from Chile but I think from low altitudes. Bright green lush looking leaves and golden yellow flowers. It's supposed to be autumnal but I find it starts flowering late summer. 

I now have a couple of large pots in the greenhouse and an escape in a trough. In the trough it is a bit neater, in the greenhouse the flower stems tend to draw a bit. It's survived in the trough for several years now but has only grown quite slowly.

In old books people are warned that this has an odd habit of having two dormancies, in the summer and the winter. Apparently people used to complain that the plant had died to the nurseries. Seeing as it wasn't exactly easy to get except from specialists even then I'm suprised a prospective buyer would be unaware of this. Having said that, for me it only dies back in summer, it remains in leaf from late August until the late spring.

Cyclamen purpurascens

The Cyclamen species are probably my foavourite plants and I grew most of the species and subspecies. 

Right now Cyclamen purpurascens and Cyclamen colchicum are in flower. Cyclamen purpurascens is variable in the quality of the flowers. It can be dumpy and with washed out looking flowers, it can be a graceful shape and a full cyclamen pink flowers. The leaves also vary from nothing special to very attractive.

Although Cyclamen purpurascens is widely distributed and grows generally in subalpine woodland, where it is more or less evergreen, but I’ve never found it very easy to grow in the UK. I have had some great plants in the greenhouse in full sun (!) and some outside. I'm now trying it in shade in the greenhouse because the newer plants I am growing don't seem to like the sun. I also have some in a frame and one pot in a shady sand bed. So far I have found Cyclamen colchicum much easier, better germination, better general growth and flowering.

 

Allium cyaneum & Allium sikkimense

Allium cyaneum and sikkimense seem to be frequently mixed up. I originally got my A.sikkimense from seed labelled A.cyaneum and my A.cyaneum from seed labelled A.sikkimense. For me, sikkimense is more robust and starts flowering a little earlier, but right now both are out. The key difference is that in cyaneum the stamens and style stick out and give it a whiskery appearance. They are more hidden for sikkimense.

Both are fairly straightforward from seed and would be fine in a well managed rock garden (which I don't have) or trough. Pots are a bit more of a stretch here as I don't think they like the relatively hot summers we have had here recently.

There is a third species, Allium beesianum which flowers later and is larger. I've only had it this season and it definately didn't like the heat, but hopefully it will recover.

Allium sikkimense

Allium cyaneum