Plant Notes

 January 2007 Plant Notes

Araucaria araucana seed (Araucariaceae). Monkey puzzle.
Found under mature trees at the Menlo Park VA by Nancy Schramm.
These conifers are native to Chile and Argentina and look like they belong in a Dr. Seuss story. They have been in cultivation since the mid 1800 and are planted for their unusual form. Their female cones fall apart on the tree, the wind scatters the seeds, and the jays and squirrels provide planting services. Nancy had found several seed pods and was interested in germinating them.

Cyrtanthus (Amaryllidaceae). Scarborough Lily.
Grown by Ellie Gioumousis in Palo Alto.
Bill Kurtz thought this beautiful flower was in the Cyrtanthus genus. On a 10-12 inch stem, there was a single, large, funnel-shaped bloom in soft salmon-pink with a white mid-strip on the bottom third or so of each petal. If it truly is a Cyrtanthus, it is native to South Africa, probably frost tender, and an excellent houseplant.

Lachenalia sp. (Hyacinthaceae). Cape cowslip.
Grown by Bill Kurtz in Santa Clara.
Bill had a couple of Lachenalia varieties just coming into bloom that he bought from McClure and Zimmerman. Each plant had two strap shaped leaves and a flowering stem about 10-12 inches tall with nodding, tubular flowers. One variety had yellow flowers with dark red petal tips and brown spotted leaves and flower stems. The other had subtle light green leaf spots and a more congested flower spike of pale chartreusy-yellow flowers. There are over 100 naturally occurring members of this genus, most of them from a small area of the Western Cape of South Africa, and many horticultural hybrids as well. They bloom winter into spring, need a dry summer dormancy and very good drainage. They can tolerate only occassional very light frosts. Bill is growing these in his green house. He used a mix of about 3 parts potting soil and 1 part lava rock but thinks they would be happier with less organic matter.

Luculia gratissima (Rubiaceae).
Grown by Jim Sugai in San Jose.
Dick Dunmire and Kerry Barrs gave Jim the ID for this outstanding shrub. In fall to mid-winter, it is covered with large trusses of fragrant, rosy-pink flowers. Each flower is a slender tube that flares open at the mouth. It is technically deciduous but the new leaves are produced as the old leaves are lost. In cultivation, it probably will grow to about 8-10 feet tall. A native of Himalayan forests, it wants organic soil with good drainage, cool sun or part shade, nearly frost-free winters, and regular watering which explains why it is growing so well all over SF Botanical Garden.

Polypodium californicum (Polypodiaceae). California polypody.
Found growing on the north side of a rock outcrop in southern Santa Clara County by Nancy Schramm.
Native to much of California and into Baja, it is summer dormant (even if irrigated). With the first fall rains, it unfurls 4 to12 inch long, deeply lobed, bright green fronds. It prefers part to full shade and will tolerate occasional irrigation during dormancy. It is perfect for rock walls and gardens and makes a beautiful cool season ground cover under trees. "Sarah Lyman" is a particularly beautiful cultivar that is frequently available in nurseries.

Rosa sp. (Rosaceae).
Grown by Betsy Clebsch in La Honda.
Betsy brought in a beautiful selection of roses from her garden. Devoniensis, a white Climbing Tea; La Marne, a pink and white Polyantha; Lady Hillingdon, a warm yellow Climbing Tea; Mons Tillier, a pink Tea; Mary Rose, a pink Austin; Souvenir de la Malmaison, a very pale pink Bourbon; and Charles Austin, a deep apricot Austin.

Salvia gesneraeflora,Tequila (Lamiaceae).
Grown by Liz Calhoon in Los Altos Hills.
Tequila with its combination of large, vivid scarlet flowers with dark purple calyces and stems is always eye catching. Originally collected in Jalisco, Mexico at 8,500 feet, it usually grows to about 5-6 feet tall in our gardens, blooms late winter into spring, and is cold hardy into the 20s; an essential trait this year.

Salvia vazquezii (Lamiaceae).
Grown by Betsy Clebsch in La Honda.
Betsy received this newly found Salvia from Ginny Hunt who grew it from seeds collected in Mexico near the Sierra de Manantlon Biosphere. It is named for the Biosphere's botanist. This is a large shrub (about 7 feet tall in Betsy's garden) with impressive color coordination of leaves, flowers and bracts. Dark magenta, 1-1/2 inch long flowers bloom in somewhat closely spaced whorls on long terminal spikes. The light green calyces and flower bracts are broadly edged with magenta. The large leaves are light green with dark magenta along their back margins and are softly fuzzy with a quilted texture and light resinous fragrance. An altogether gorgeous new shrub for us to try.

Santolina chamaecyparissus, Little Nicky (Asteraceae). Dwarf Lavender Cotton.
Grown by Elizabeth Garbett in Los Altos Hills.
Elizabeth found this new, very dwarf Santolina for their miniature railroad landscape at California Flora in Fulton. It is a tight mound of very aromatic, bright green foliage that will only grow to about 8 inches tall by 12 inches wide. It resembles an ancient, very dwarf conifer except in summer when it is covered with small, yellow, button flowers. It is from the Mediterranean, hardy to 0 F, wants full sun and good drainage, and is drought and deer resistant. Besides landscaping miniature railroads, it would also be an excellent rock garden plant.

Sprekelia formossisima (Amaryllidaceae). Aztec Lily, Jacobean Lily. FEATURED PLANT
Grown by Kerry Barrs and friend.
Kerry had this in a broken bay window where it stubbornly remained dormant. But when he gave it to a friend with a green house, it immediately sent up leaves and an 18 inch flowering stem with a large, beautiful, dark red, orchid-like blossom. The upper 3 petals are erect and curved back while the lower three droop and, at their base, are fused together into a tube. (You may need a picture for this to make sense.) Sprekelia has one bloom per stem and ordinarily blooms in early summer here. It can repeat bloom several times a year if allowed to go a little dry after each bloom cycle. In our area, they should be cold hardy and can be evergreen. It is native to Mexico and Guatemala.

Zygopetalum mackayi (Orchidaceae).
Grown by Dick Dunmire in Los Altos.
A winter-blooming, terrestrial orchid native to the cool rainforests of southern Brazil. Flowering stems up to 30 inches long can have up to 10 blooms all of which will often open simultneously. The blooms are very fragrant with a scent that reminds Dick of hyacinths. They are about three inch wide, have yellow-green petals prominently stripped with dark purple blotches and a wide white lip with purple veins. Dick's plant has 7 stems in bloom right now though Dick admits to giving it no special treatment. It is growing in a 10 inch pot in a random potting mix he buys at Rancho Hardware, and it lives outside on a covered porch where he plans to leave it during the upcoming sub-freezing weather. I think we willl need to get an update on this plant next month.

Jackie N. Doda

REFERENCES: Am. Hort. Soc. A-Z Encyclopedia, Botanica, Flora, Sunset Western Garden, CA Native Plants for the Garden.