Tag: bulbs

The first tulip emerges and other joys from my winter garden

Post author By Christine
Post date July 3, 2011
16 Comments on The first tulip emerges and other joys from my winter garden

You might remember that I spent ages planting up all the hundreds of bulbs I bought in April and May. Most of the bulbs were planted at the end of April over the long Easter weekend and made their presence known very quickly with shoots emerging and now we wait for them to flower in Spring. The few Narcissus I planted have already flowered (I admit I was underwhelmed by them, they were pretty but nothing to get terribly excited about). The Tulips I planted have not shown any signs of planning to emerge until today! I found the first bit of life from the tulips and I’m very excited about it.

The Asiatic Lilies are coming up and look very strong and healthy and at last the Daffodils are starting to come through. The Potato bush which I thought I had killed has erupted into a mass of flowers so it goes to show that moving a plant from a position where it seems unhappy to another, really pays off. Then the last bit of joy is that my Camellias are all flowering and Azaleas in pink and cerise are adding colour to my winter garden.

[one_half]The first Tulip emerges[/one_half]

[one_half_last]The Asiatic Lilies are looking good[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Potato bush comes back to life[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Violas hide emerging Daffodils[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Pink Azaleas[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Does Lavender flower all year long?[/one_half_last]

[one_half]My only white Camellia opening[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Ranunculus waiting for Spring[/one_half_last]

Oh I just can’t wait for Spring … only two more months (59 more sleeps!)

Happy Gardening
xxx

I’ve added this post to Helen’s meme: End of Month View over at her blog, The Patient Gardener.

Tags bulbs, spring bulbs, tulips

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Winter in Two Gardens for June Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

Post author By Christine
Post date June 14, 2011
36 Comments on Winter in Two Gardens for June Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

Our fourth combined post for the monthly Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day, here’s whats happening in our Gardens in June 2011. With Winter cooling the earth and sending many of our plants into hibernation, there are no mass displays of beautiful blooms, but we do have a few lovelies to show off this month. We hope you enjoy our “June blooms”.

Here’s whats blooming in Christine’s Garden in June 2011

A week ago I was complaining that there would be no blooms to show this month for Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. Then, a fair amount of rain mixed with warm sunny days in between and what a surprise when I went to look for blooms to show. Lots of Camellias (pinks and reds), pink and maroon Azaleas, the first Narcissus bulbs are just opening their pretty faces (Yay!), my very first “grown from seed” Nasturtiums are blooming … all in all not a bad display for a winter garden. Condsidering that June has been a month of planning and some major changes have taken place in my garden including a drastic cutting back of overgrown trees, has sadly left my garden looking quite bleak. But when you get down to it there is lots of pretty in my garden – that is, if you look past the bare branches and sawn off tree tops, there are enough blooms to make me smile…

[one_half]First Narcissus blooms[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Narcissus Cantabricus[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Rosa ‘Iceberg’ blooming again[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Cerise Azaleas blooming[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Red Camellias blooming[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Purple Ribbon Bush[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Sweet Alyssum never stops[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Lots of pinks blooming[/one_half_last]

[one_half]First Nasturtium bloom[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Lots of bright red berries[/one_half_last]

Lets pop over to Barbie’s garden to see what she has to show …

Here’s whats blooming in Barbie’s Garden in June 2011

Chris, I had no doubt that you would have a beautiful show of winter flowers – your garden is alive with new shoots and anticipated bulbs and I love my visits and the “show-and-tell” as we wander around. They are just lovely! Thank you! My garden tends to hide the small blooms and my usual favourites never disappoint! I did find something blooming, even though I had to go on my hands and knees alot! In between my veggies and herbs were the flowers of these plants. This brought a whole new perspective and the close ups allow me to really see how perfect each flower in my garden can be! And talking about bees…… I caught a happy workers in the act!

Oh yes – I also have my first Nasturtiums from seed!!

Happy gardening to all our friends! xxx

[one_half]My first Fuchsia![/one_half]

[one_half_last]Delicate and beautiful[/one_half_last]

[one_half]My first Nasturtium flower[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Violas still looking gorgeous[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Delicate coriander bloom[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Broccoli flower![/one_half_last]

[one_half]Protea still in bloom[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Roses still delight[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Sugar herb in bloom[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Busy Bee in my lavender[/one_half_last]

About Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

Join Carol and friends over at May Dreams Gardens to see what other gardeners around the world have blooming in June and then pop over to ‘Garten Blogger Blüten im Mei‘ over at Seepferds Garten for the German version of Garden Bloggers Bloom Day! And if you haven’t joined yet and have some blooms you’d like to show off, please join in the fun of showcasing your blooms! We’d love to see what other South African’s have blooming in their winter gardens

Thank you for joining us!

Happy Gardening
xxx

Tags bulbs, flowers, garden bloggers bloom day

Christine's garden Gardening Home page features Perenniels

I Heart Liliums ♥

Liliums are on at the top of my favourite cut-flower list! Liliums and Dutch Irises to be exact, but St Josephs Lilies are easier to purchase here. Every two weeks throughout winter I hotfoot it to Woolies and buy two bunches of St Josephs Lilies for the very large vase which lives on the table as you enter my home (via the back entrance). The flower filled vase is also in my direct line of sight whenever I glance up from the computer screen in my office. So now you understand just how much I love these Lilies. I want to see them all day long, and I do. And I smell them. They fill the entrance of my home with their lovely scent which can be a bit overpowering in winter if doors and windows are kept closed for too long.

I love the huge vases filled with these beautiful flowers I regularly see in Home Decor magazines. Huge vases filled with these long stemmed white lilies – I love the green colour of the foliage, the way the flowers stand upright, the beautiful glossy petals … to me they are the perfect “architectural” blooms. One lily on its own in a long slender glass vase, 20 or more in a massive ceramic vase … always perfect. Always beautiful. And the cut Liliums I buy for my vase always last at least two weeks, sometimes more.

If I love them so much, why don’t I have them in my garden was the question I asked myself when I saw Hadeco were selling Lilium bulbs online. Because I didn’t know that they are easy to grow. I didn’t know you could just buy the bulbs, plant them in the right place and then sit back and enjoy their lovely blooms in a few months time. I thought anything this beautiful must be massively difficult to grow. Which is why I keep buying them as cut flowers. But having seen them for sale and reading that they are easy to grow – well it seems like a no-brainer that I should at least try.

So after much online research and finally convincing myself that I can do this and have a few “perfect places” for them, I took the plunge and ordered. Two days later they arrived in a box, 3 bulbs per pack of the varieties I bought and the kind people at Hadeco included 30 extra bulbs of Mixed Asiatic Lilies for free! I have no idea why I got the extras, but thank you Hadeco – I will plant and love them!

[one_half]Today’s Liliums in the vase[/one_half]

[one_half_last]A perfect bloom up close[/one_half_last]

[one_half]It doesn’t get much prettier than this[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Two are pretty together[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Beautiful leaves[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Yes! I bought my own[/one_half_last]

The Lilium bulbs I bought are:

Lilium Longiflorum – Snow Queen (I believe these are the type I always buy as cut flowers like the ones in the photographs above)
Lilium Asiatic – Soft Pink
Lilium Asiatic – Salmon
Lilium Asiatic – White
Lilium Asiatic – Mixed (the free ones)

I’ve spent the whole afternoon cleaning up and preparing the bed where I plan to plant my Lilium bulbs! Then it got dark and I had to stop for today. Wish me luck with these – I’m really excited about having them in the garden.

I’d love to hear from anyone that has Liliums growing in their garden – How do they grow for you?

Happy Gardening
xxx

Tags asiatic lilies, bulbs, lilies, lilium, spring bulbs

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On my Wish List – Crocosmia

Post author By Christine
Post date May 20, 2011
20 Comments on On my Wish List – Crocosmia

Hi Barbie – The plant I was telling you about today that I couldn’t remember the name of is Crocosmia. If you do a Google search for “Crocosmia” and then click on images you will see how gorgeous these flowers looks when planted in large groupings. They come in orange (Crocosmia “Aurea”) and red (Crocosmia “Lucifer”). I really love this indigenous flowering plant. It likes a shaded position so would really brighten up the shaded area at the back of my garden that is currently still a mess and crying for some attention …

[one_half]Crocosmia[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Crocosmia “Lucifer”[/one_half_last]

Notes: Crocosmia is a genus in the Iridaceae family from tropical and eastern South Africa. It is well known because of its frequently cultivated hybrid between Crocosmia pottsii and Crocosmia aurea, Crocosmia × crosmiiflora. Plants have erect sword shaped leaved and spikes of tubular or funnel shaped orange to red flowers.

Crocosmias produce dense clumps of upright iris-like foliage. In midsummer this makes a good background for the small, profuse flowers. ‘Lucifer’ is an aptly-named variety because its flowers are the hottest coloured of all – a searing paprika red. The individual blooms are not as big as other crocosmias’, but small-flowered varieties such as this are the hardiest which makes them a wise choice in cold districts. Grown in a flower border, they provide structure and colour. The Royal Horticultural Society has given it the Award of Garden Merit (AGM).

I have to wait until after the 6th June when they come to sort out the trees at the back that are causing such dense deep shade that nothing is growing well there. After that, I will have to get cracking on doing something. At the moment I have a few Clivias there and the rest is all junk … left overs from the “Ivy garden” I inherited. I can’t wait …

[one_half]I love the strappy leaves[/one_half]

[one_half_last]More Crocosmia[/one_half_last]

What do you think?

Happy Gardening
xxx

Tags bulbs, crocosmia, indigenous

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Final bulb delivery and bulb update

Post author By Christine
Post date May 10, 2011
16 Comments on Final bulb delivery and bulb update

I finished planting out all my bulbs for the season over the Easter Weekend but wanted to get a few more Tulip Bulbs, because tulips are my daughters favourite flower. When I look at the varieties of Tulips available to purchase overseas (both in Europe and in the USA) I am very disappointed that all that is available to us here is the standard, ordinary tulip (see update below – they seem to have just become available). Coupled with that the colour options available here are extremely limited – all the colour options appear as “sold out” on the website of South Africa’s major Bulb Provider (the company everyone seems to get their bulbs from) and yet I have not seen a single tulip bulb on sale at any of the nurseries. Perhaps they are still coming, I don’t know, but I only had 32 red tulip bulbs and so jumped on the “mixed” packs when the website finally had stock. I received my delivery yesterday and now I have another 75 Tulip bulbs to plant. And, they sent me ANOTHER one of those “Free Gift Packs” … so I have another 300 bulbs to plant this weekend.

A lot of the bulbs I planted two/three weeks ago are already coming up – I have no idea whether this is normal. I was not expecting to see them so soon, but there it is. Most of them have sent up shoots and its fun to see – and at least I know they haven’t been eaten by the mole rats. I took a few photos to share with you of my “bulb sprouts” (what is the correct terminology for this?).

[one_half]Tulip bulbs delivery[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Ixias and Ixia Viridiflora[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Dutch Irises[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Freesias[/one_half_last]

I’d be interested to know if it is normal for bulbs to grow so quickly. I can’t find any info in my books about how soon exactly after planting the shoots should appear.

UPDATE: I have just visited the website again and now they have all sorts of tulips available including the less ordinary ones that I have admired on some overseas gardening websites. YAY!! But unfortunately they are expensive and I have already blown my entire “bulb budget”, so I’ll have to see what I can do …

Happy Gardening
xxx

Tags bulbs, rare bulbs, spring bulbs

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Bulb planting weekend – Part II

Post author By Christine
Post date April 25, 2011
22 Comments on Bulb planting weekend – Part II

I planted all 969 bulbs!! I’m exhausted! And I hurt myself – I have a big gash on my ankle from a clumsy fall. I hope its worth it. I’ll be gutted if I don’t have a garden full of flowers come spring. Right now I look and feel like this …

Bulbs planted this weekend:

In the Bed under the Office Window (under and in between the Nandina’s):
At the back – Leucojum aestivum – 20
In front of them – Muscari – dainty white – 20

In the “Camellia bed”:
Alliums – 100 (I ordered 50, they gave me an extra 50 for free = 100)
Narcissus cantabricus – 4 (in “compots”, so I can move and plant later)

In the Front Garden “Gardenia bed”:
Sparaxis – 35 (planted in the sunniest corner away from the Gardenias)

In the “Rose Bed”:
Ranunculus white – 70
Ranunculus pink – 35
Ornithogalum white – 35

Back garden bed under the Birch Tree:
Dutch Iris pale blue and white – 75

Back garden bed at the front of the border:
Tritonias – 35

Back Garden Bed under the Pepper Tree area:
Freesias – 235

Outside the property, on the verge:
Anemones – 100(might get more – only a small part of the verge covered)

In various containers and pots:
Narcissus mixed – 75
Rare indigeneous bulbs – 46
Ixias – 35

Tulips – 48 – STILL TO DO! Have the container but ran out of potting soil … need to go and get one more bag of potting soil – yikes, we know how that turns out 🙂

The Dream …

[one_half]This is what I am hoping for …[/one_half]

[one_half_last]and dreaming of …[/one_half_last]

The Verdict:
With the bulb planting tool thingy it was actually very EASY! My soil is wonderfully friable, the bulb tool thingy (Dibber) went in easily creating the holes for bulbs that went straight into the soil and I was able to do many bulbs per minute! Make the holes, pop the bulbs in and cover. Easy! What a pleasure that was! What did take time was the containers. I had a plan I wanted to follow (that I had seen in a book) and it just didn’t work out for me, so in the end I just planted the bulbs in the containers the way I felt like doing it, changed my mind a few times and … well they are all planted somewhere now!

What did NOT work well:
The bulbs that went into the bulb baskets took a little longer and I feel they are a waste. I bought them to protect the bulbs from the mole rates – but the two solar mole repeller are doing their thing – they emit a buzzing sound every few seconds so hopefully the mole rats stay away. So far there are no new mole hills, so it might actually be working. I only used five of the trays in the end because I found it so much easier using the dibber. I have lots going spare now, I hope I can find some use for them. I might use them for the Tulips seeing as those bulbs need to be lifted and thrown out (so the books tell me – why not just leave them in the soil to rot and turn to compost I wonder?).

Finito!!

Tags bulbs, rare bulbs, spring bulbs

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Bulb planting weekend – Part I

Post author By Christine
Post date April 23, 2011
9 Comments on Bulb planting weekend – Part I

I’ve mentioned before that I want to have a spring garden filled with gorgeous blooms that smell heavenly and the last two months whilst visiting the blogs of our new gardening friends in the Northern Hemisphere, their wonderful gardens filled with daffodils, tulips, snowdrops, crocus, narcissus and irises have had me waiting patiently for the Easter Weekend to sink my bulbs into the ground.

New to gardening, bulb planting is something I’ve not done before so I needed books and tools and of course … BULBS! I’ve been buying and collecting bulbs now for about 6 weeks and as the books tell me to plant when the weather has changed – usually by Easter, guess what I’m doing this weekend? Planting all +/-800 bulbs I’ve collected!

So this is part one of my Bulb Planting Weekend – The “Before” post!

[one_half]Dexter very excited about helping![/one_half]

[one_half_last]Delivery from Hadeco[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Free gift from Hadeco – Extra 175 Bulbs![/one_half]

[one_half_last]All the bulb paraphenalia[/one_half_last]

So there you have it – Now you know what I’m doing today and tomorrow! I’ll be back on the blog once they have all been planted. If you don’t see me for a while … well then you will know that I’m up to my eyeballs in BULBS!!

Happy Gardening
xxx

Tags bulbs, hadeco, rare bulbs, spring bulbs

Bugs & Pests Christine's garden Gardening Home page features Products

A Solar Mole Repeller – Did they see me coming?

Post author By Christine
Post date April 22, 2011
6 Comments on A Solar Mole Repeller – Did they see me coming?

I have a problem with Moles! They burrow up my garden in search of earthworms and grubs (the former of which I have plenty, the latter, hopefully a few less). I’m fed up with their relentless pursuit of my earthworms and the never ending mounds of soil they kick up in search of them. I’ve tried organic control with some pungent smelling garlic liquid formulation you are supposed to pour down the holes – problem is I can never find the holes and when I do … well, it didn’t work! They keep coming and keep messing up my garden.

I have big plans to plant spring flowering bulbs in my garden – this weekend being the big “Bulb Planting Weekend”. I believe moles eat the bulbs. As I have no intention of allowing the moles to eat all my precious bulbs it was time to get serious about mole-prevention. Yes I’ve bought bulb planting trays to protect the bulbs and yes, I will continue to use the organic garlic mole repellent liquid as and when I see their “holes”, but what else can I do to stop them entering my garden? After all, I’m sure my neighbours have quite enough earthworms and grubs for them so … go to # 15 Moles!! They serve better grubs than we do here at #13!

Enter the Solar Mole Repeller (made in China!). Right – I’m not convinced this is going to work but I’m so fed up with the moles that I’m willing to try anything at this stage, so I purchased two of these devices and they’ve just been “planted” in the garden! The first one went in, no sound or vibrations but when I put the second one into it’s designated spot it started making a strange vibrating sort of sound – irritating enough for Dexter to bark at it! Had to calm him down and convince him we need this thing in the garden – lets hope he doesn’t dig it up!

[one_half]The Mole heaps[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Mole Repeller opened[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Connect the wires[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Mole repeller in situ[/one_half_last]

I really hope this works!

Happy gardening
xxx

PS: The blurb on the box says (spelling and grammar unaltered!): A kind of solar energy device making use of ultrasonic to expel moles. To expel rodents (applicable to such animals as moles and shrews), operated on solar energy. Transmitting ultrasonic via vibration, Garden Solar Pest Repeller is used to affect the acute hearing of underground rodents, with very effective preventive effect. The ultrasonic will deceive them, making them feel endangered, so as to force them away from the vibrating area. Transmitting ultrasonic every 30 seconds, Garden Solar Pest Repeller has an effective range of 650 square meters. Garden Solar Pest Repeller radiates in all directions. During radiation, there shall be no any obstruction to tamper with the ultrasonic. To achieve the best performance, we strongly recommend that 2 devices be installed every 30 meters for those areas frequented by rodents. Garden Solar Pest Repeller works on a solar cell, while the other rechargeable cell is charged for nocturnal use. When a cell is fully charged, it can supply power when light is unable to drive Garden Solar Pest Repeller, so as to ensure continuous 48-hour operation.

PPSS: “Did they see me coming?” in my post title refers to the people who sell these things. I’m not convinced these will work, sounds to good to be true but time will tell!

Tags bulbs, mole repeller, moles, spring bulbs

Christine's garden Gardening Home page features Miscellaneous

Rare Indigenous Bulb purchases

Post author By Christine
Post date March 27, 2011
9 Comments on Rare Indigenous Bulb purchases

My only gardening experience prior to my current garden was many, many years ago (20 to be exact) when I lived in a rented cottage in Green Point. The cottage had a tiny garden, total size about 8 square metres of which most was lawn. In the beds around the lawn I half-heartedly dabbled with planting a few things – mostly annuals and one year I bought a batch of bulbs and by some fluke ended up with a lovely little garden full of spring flowers – I recall daffodils, ranunculus and freesias – and for weeks on end I had huge bunches of cut flowers in the cottage, thanks to that one time planting. I remember it being very easy (all I did was plant and water, I don’t think I ever fed them). I am hoping to do something similar in my own garden this year, so I’ve already purchased Alliums, Freesias, Anemones, Ranunculus and Dutch Iris which will be going into the ground next month. I still want to get some Daffodils and Tulip bulbs which I haven’t found yet at the nurseries.

At the Rare Plant Fair held at Rustenberg which I attended yesterday I met a Horticulturist called Jim Holmes (http://www.capeseedandbulb.com/). He had an interesting selection of rare bulbs for sale. Initially I walked on thinking I had quite enough bulbs already but after tea we wondered back over to Jim’s stand and the photographs of the blooms these bulbs will morph into had me taking a second look. Needless to say I walked away with a bunch of bulbs I had no clue about other than that they may give me some pretty interesting flowers if I plant and treat them right. A few months ago I bought a book called “Grow Bulbs” by Graham Duncan, a specialist horticulturist at Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden where he curates the collection of indigenous South African bulbs. How useful that book is now! I’ve spent a few hours doing my “homework” and realise now that these bulbs are going to require some commitment and extra care. Many are rare or classified as vulnerable so I feel some sort of responsibility in making them grow and hopefully getting them to thrive.

So here are notes and photos I have found on my purchases and for those that are interested I have added notes about how I have to plant them and care for them to get them to flower.

Challenges

1). ALL the bulbs I purchased require full sun. (yikes!). That will be the biggest challenge and may require daily moving around of the bulbs. To do that I will have to plant them in pots as I have very limited full sun areas.
2). I have a mole / vole / some underground-digger-animal problem here from time to time. So planting the bulbs in pots is definitely the way to go.

The Bulbs and my notes

[one_half]
Geissorhiza radians
This is an endangered plant know as Cup of Wine. These require constant moisture throughout the growing period and at flowering time. According to the book they do best in containers that are placed in saucers filled with water in winter and spring. I have eight.[/one_half]

[one_half_last]
Geissorhiza splendidissima
Also an endangered plant, this is called the “Blue pride-of-Niewoudtville. They grow 10 – 20 cm in height. An early flowering species with intensely blue flowers. As for radians, they will require deep drenching throughout the growing and flowering period. I have four of these.[/one_half_last]

[one_half]
Gladiolus alatus
The flower spikes hold large orange and green coloured flowers. Very similar to Gladiolus equitans but more slender foliage. The flowers are fragrant. Grows in sandy soil so best grown in a pot with some extra sand added to the soil. Should be allowed to go dry in summer during dormant period. I have three bulbs.[/one_half]

[one_half_last]
Ixia viridiflora
Isn’t this one exquisite? Known as Green ixia or groenkalossie (in Afrikaans), it is an exquisite species with many-flowered spikes of sea-green blooms with black centres. According to the book it will do well in deep terracotta pots but will be short lived in a plastic pot! I have four of these bulbs.[/one_half_last]

[one_half]
Moraea villosa
This plant is classified as vulnerable. Its a large flowered species that is apparently easily cultivated in deep pots or raised beds and rock gardens. These plants also require regular deep drenching throughout the growing period. I have six of these.[/one_half]

[one_half_last]
Oxalis purpurea
Flowering time is April to October so I better plant these right now! Apparently it is an large-flowered species that is “an ideal subject for naturalising in lawns as it can withstand summer irrigation” (according to the book). I have four of them.[/one_half_last]

[one_half]
Sparaxis elegans
Sparaxis elegans is classified as vulnerable. Its a very pretty salmon-pink flowered species that is ideal for growing in pots. The corms are highly sensitive to summer moisture so not for planting in amongst my plants. I only have two of these.[/one_half]

[one_half_last]
Watsonia hysterantha
These I recognise – I think they are not that unusual, I see them growing on the Cape West Coast. Flowering is from April to July so I better plant them pronto. The corms multiply quickly and need to be lifted and divided to encourage flowering. I have four of them.[/one_half_last]

Narcissus Cantabricus

My last purchase was Narcissus cantabricus. The Narcissus is not an indigenous plant, but very beautiful in my opinion. It appears to do well in semi-shade to full sun so this one will be easier for me to grow. As I only have four bulbs I’ll still keep them in pots. Its deciduous, low maintenance and perennial so might be best planted along with my other standard bulbs.

Note: “Narcissus is a genus in the Amaryllidaceae family native to Europe, North Africa and Asia. As a popular garden plant it has been hybridized heavily, and there are new ones being introduced every year“.

[one_half]
Narcissus cantabricus
[/one_half]

[one_half_last]
Narcissus cantabricus
[/one_half_last]

My Questions / concerns

What I don’t really understand or get is whether I should put each of the indigenous bulbs in an individual pot or whether planting all of them in one large container will work. Visually I would imagine one (or two) containers filled with different blooms may look better but I don’t know what is best for the plants. Does anyone have any opinions or suggestions?

Tags bulbs, indigenous, plants, rare bulbs

Christine's garden Gardening Home page features Miscellaneous

Rare Plant Fair 2011 at Rustenberg Wines

Post author By Christine
Post date March 26, 2011
27 Comments on Rare Plant Fair 2011 at Rustenberg Wines

This morning I had the privilege of attending the Autumn Rare Plant Fair 2011 at Rustenberg Wines in Stellenbosch in the glorious Cape Winelands. A friend had invited me and we set off early this morning as the drive to Stellenbosch is about 45 minutes and we wanted to get there early before all the good plants were sold out. And I’m so glad we did. By the time we arrived at 9.00 am parking was already difficult and the grounds were teeming with plant lovers from all over the Cape. This annual Rare Plant Fair was once again held at Rustenberg Wines. Twenty-five specialist growers were selling their plants directly to the gardening public. Tea, coffee and a variety of eats were available under the oaks, and special discounts on Rustenberg wines were available to purchase by wine lovers.

Held at Rustenberg Wine Estate, the setting was beautiful. The weather was perfect, a lovely sunny day, no wind, temperature in the high 20’s (C), and the plants on offer were simply gorgeous. I could have spent a small fortune had I taken more cash. (cash was king here, no credit card machines available). We wondered around and “oohed” and “aahed” at all the fabulous plants available (The variety of Day lillies and Orchids available were hugely impressive). I recognised many plants from books but the only plant I saw that I see regularly at the nurseries I frequent was Clivia, and at a much better price! I have plenty of Clivia in my back shade garden, so those weren’t of interest to me today. It was the rare Irises, rare, endangered and vulnerable and other special plants I was after. We shopped and then enjoyed some cake and coffee under the oaks and then … we bought some more!

Ryan bought a few bulbs, a beautiful peach coloured Rhododendron, a whole batch of Irises and the same white flowering plant I bought (Anemone). I bought a whole bunch of rare bulbs (have written about my bulb ‘haul’ here: Rare indigenous bulbs), a beautiful grass – Panicum Virgatum “Shenandoah” and a few Irises. The “Stanley Blue” Irises we bought were VERY expensive. (R150.00 each). Apparantly these have just become available and a search on the Internet returns no results so it seems this may well be true. We also bought “Colorific” and “Sinfonietta” Irises – all beautiful variations of blue Irises. I’m really excited about planting these in my garden! Lastly, I got a little four-leaf clover for R20.00. I couldn’t resist – its supposed to be lucky, right? I felt quite “lucky” getting all these gorgeous plants!

Here are some of my purchases:

[one_half]Pretty white flowers[/one_half]

[one_half_last]The Irises[/one_half_last]

[one_half]My rare bulb stash[/one_half]

[one_half_last]The four-leaf clover[/one_half_last]

Now I’m off to do some more reading up on my new rare bulbs which include Geissorhiza radiens, Gladiolus alatas and Moraea villosa … just to mention a few. Such interesting sounding names!

Note about the Autumn Rare Plant Fair 2011:
This was the first time I’ve ever attended anything like this. I thought it was very well organised, the setting was splendid, the variety of plants was fantastic, the people (staff, exhibitors and atendees) were all very friendly and the atmosphere was great. The huge variety of Orchids and Day Lillies available was outstanding … wish I’d had lots more cash with me. Next time I will save up for a month or two so I have LOTS more cash with me! I’ll definitely go again.

Ryan, thanks so much for taking me! I thoroughly enjoyed the day!

Photo Gallery: (I apologise for the very poor quality of the photos – I took my small point-and-click camera and the photographs are really poor. But you get the idea …)

About Rustenberg Wines:
“Enter the gates of Rustenberg with a sense of anticipation. The historic farm, sheltered by the Simonsberg, is a Cape gem that has welcomed visitors since 1682 …” For anyone that is interested in seeing more of this beautiful Wine Estate, here is the link to their website: http://www.rustenberg.co.za/ or you can find out more about the region at Cape Winelands.

Tags bulbs, flowers, plants, rare plant fair