Jack's Mystery Plant

1 Mar '07 11:42 pm

Gordon, all your news are uplifting, despite the negative weather! Spring is there! I hope you will have the greatest experience in your gardening event!

Me, too, I managed to prune some more of the Roses before this last weekend and planted my 3 Hamamelis babies and two Budleias, but no gardening with such a rain during this week....

You photo is lovely! Why the Woodies here visit only the lawn and do not visit the feeder? Do they eat something special?

2 Mar '07 6:53 pm

Hi, Liza!

Thanks for your kind words! As for why the woodpeckers come to the feeder, perhaps it is because I have a mixture of suet fat and various seeds there. I suppose these birds like the fat, while the jays prefer the seeds. Anyway, they all spend a lot of time gorging themselves!

I took some pictures of the area in the front of my trailer where I'm gradually getting rid of the grass to make way for the new flower bed that I have been talking about. I'll post a picture once the grass is all gone. In the meantime, I plan to try to put some white paper over the area where the lawn now is located and photocopy the combination. The idea is to get a coloured picture of the trailer with a blank, white area in the foreground on which I can use coloured pencils to sketch out where I want the various colours of flowers as well as the heights of the plants. This will help me get an idea of how it's all supposed to look so I can make changes before I plant. I've never gone to all this effort before, but, since this is in the front, for all to see, it seems worth it!

We'll see how it all turns out!

I uploaded my first video to YouTube as a trial balloon, and if I can find it and get it to play, then I know I'll be able to post the video of my garden later in the spring. If you'd like to see it, go to YouTube and do a search for fringecup; with luck, you'll see my living room with the pellet stove that I have been mentioning!

Cheers!!

gordonf

2 Mar '07 7:42 pm

Dear Gordon, Fringecup, and ...landscape-ist gardener! You have lots of talents!

Yes! I visited You Tube -- I found it through Google! But, after I tried twice, "they " said , that Mr. Fringecup has not any video there.. Could you send the exact link with your work? By the way, I find these sites very clever! My daughter made me sign up in the Flickr recently, since I also have a Yahoo account. She has two accounts there, one for herself, and for her baby son -- with just his photos! Yes, really clever and creative! And , in your case, it is much easier to post a link here, for example, with a lovely video of your own, no?

And , your... landscapist plans, are just genious! I just wait to see the artistic results!

3 Mar '07 1:56 am

BROWALLIA AMERICANA!

There is an excellent article at
www.whiteflowerfarm.com/70850-product.html

Many thanks for all the enthusiasm in trying to find the name!

3 Mar '07 2:26 am

Well congratulations Jack. I have to admit Browalia is not one that I would have considered. White Flower Farm's catalogue is one of my favorites just because of their beautiful photos; however, I seldom order from them because their prices are rather high. The combination of New Dawn roses and Etoile Violette clematis on my swing arbor came from them. They called it Dawn and Dusk.

3 Mar '07 2:25 pm

Well! So much has happened in such a short time on this forum!!

First, good for you, Jack, for finding out the name of the mystery flower! I never would have thought of browallia, either!

And, Faith - that's a wonderful picture of your swing all covered with roses and clematis! It sure must be a pleasure to sit there on a warm day and to smell the roses. Somehow, that all seems like a peculiarly "southern" activity Cool

! You know, shades of southern belles with white hats sipping mint juleps!

And on to Liza: It takes up to 24 hours for YouTube to get new videos posted because of the large volume being uploaded. I just checked today, and the video is now there for all to enjoy, such as it is (remember, it's my first one!). Just go to www.YouTube.com and then do a search on their search engine (top right of the screen) for fringecup and you should find it. Enjoy!

By the way, it snowed again here and probably will snow once more tonight, but the following rain should wash it all away soon.

Going back to the videos, now I have to figure out how to add sound to them so I can add a running commentary to the one about the garden.

Cheers, everyone!

gordonf

3 Mar '07 10:57 pm

Wow, Gordon! I am so excited! It is the first time I watch a member's own video in our site! I LOVED your living room! It is so friendly and inviting! Lovely colours on the walls and the floor! And the fire!! ..In full action! I took a glance of your lovely dog , too! Thank you , Gordon! And the video is a very good quality , too! Now, PLEASE , try to take a video of your babies sprouting by the window and your first Springtime flowers!

Faith! I loved this romantic, flowery photo! And that....Americana, Jack! I only know the short annual(?) variety of this plant , which has bigger and adorable sky-blue flowers. I used to grow it in pots out of seeds bought in England, many years ago, in Greece. She was called Browallia Speciosa-Major . And here she is : http://www.froer.nu/product-view.asp?pid=14862411

4 Mar '07 3:35 am

Dear all, but especially Gordon

I've been doing some catch-up. It is strange how being unable to take part in what was happening on the forum, I also tended not to keep up with other people's postings. I've read this whole thread/string/post/whatever for the first time... it has disappointingly little to do with me and my mystery plant Crying or Very sad

But it raises quite separately an issue which my original unsuccessful post on Browallia mentioned, but which was lost in the muddle of the last fortnight: that of seed-exchange. If Browallia does so well for me as a self-seeder after a particularly cold winter, then most of you should be able to grow it, especially if started off early under glass. I've read (since knowing what to read!) that they like long, hot, dry summers: that must be why they have been so spectacular for us this year.

And heaven knows, there is going to be plenty of seed to harvest. So Moosey/Eggy: I give my permission for you to give my email to the forum friends. Let me know if you would like seed!

As for flicr and YouTube: I must find the time to explore them! And see what all members - including Jacqueline! - have posted. Thanks for the link to Browallia speciosa, Liza. I realised after finding out what I had that I had actually taken a good look at B. speciosa as an option when going through my books. Talking of which: I have checked all my likely books and the few that do mention B., don't give enough info to remotely identify my plants. So I still don't know where my original identification, the one that went on to the lost bit of paper, came from.... Rolling Eyes

4 Mar '07 10:59 am

I hijacked (sorry again!) your post to talk seeds - but it would have been difficult to put answers on another post. Unfortunately there are very strict rules regarding importing seeds into NZ but anything that has been grown here for a number of years and has proven to not be a pest is allowed. There is a site to check on eligibility, will look for it later. I do know of people who have seeds sent to them in the insides of cards, but if caught there is a huge fine.
And welcome back!

4 Mar '07 1:50 pm

First, thanks to Liza for the very kind words about my first video. Positive reinforcement like that really is encouraging to any beginner; I know that in places the video was too dark and shaky, also that I stayed too long on some areas and not long enough on others; but with practice that should improve. Since you saw Joey slinking away from the very scary camera Laughing

, now you know how hard it is for me to get a good, still shot of him!! I'm looking forward to trying more little videos, hopefully with sound as well!

Now, Jack - Welcome back! I've missed your informative postings with the outstanding pictures! I don't remember whether it was a recent post of yours or not, but I recently discovered the set of pictures that you took of the flash flood. Just wonderful!! How lucky you were to be there at just the right time!! I was just amazed at how rapidly the riverbed filled; no wonder people sometimes drown in those things! And also, once again, I'm really pleased that you finally found out about the browallia Very Happy

!

Now, to anyone else who uploads images to Flikr or Photobucket, could you let me and others know how to find them? For still pictures, I still prefer Moosey's, but perhaps others think differently. The reason that I posted the video to YouTube was that, with the size limit on this forum, I didn't think videos would be allowed. Once I discovered how easy it was to use YouTube, I decided to try that instead with just the link on this site. Seems to work, don't you think?

I was at the Seedy Saturday event today, and, wouldn't you know it, I spent my budget and then charged some plants on my credit card as well!! Got a gentian for the roof garden, 2 Cyclamen coum in a lovely dark magenta colour for the spring garden (I'm tired of just white, blue and yellow), and a Hellebore westerflix baby for the new bed being built in the former veggie garden. Tonight they are resting in the cold frame and will be planted out, weather permitting, tomorrow.

I also got some new potting soil so I can pot up the cannas and get them started. They'll need to stay in pots until sometime in May when the ground outside is warm enough for them, but the early start should give them time to get good and high before blooming. I think that later tonight I may plant the Pacific Coast Native Iris seeds that just arrived from the Society in the States. They need a bit of cold treatment to enhance germination, so will need to be placed outside for the rest of the winter.

That's my news for today - stay safe, everyone!

gordonf

Jack's Mystery Plant

Woodpeckers

Wow!

...and That Blue Annual is called...

Congrats. to All!!

Hallo again!

Sorry Jack!

Hi again, everyone!!