Viewing comments posted by jmorth

Evocation was one of the first of the pink double daffodil flowers registered in New Zealand. New Zealand hosts a rather large group of daffodil hybridizers. Evocation was registered in 1979, bred by David S Bell. It's coded 4 W-P and blooms in the middle to late part of the season.

Brent and Becky's description -
'Prosecco - the first all pink, fragrant jonquilla; pink petals and cup make this one a knockout; mid-late spring; 12"-16".
Planning to obtain and force for 2017.

Regarding General Kohler, Old House Gardens says:
'The opulent, lavender-blue bells of this rare double look as if they’ve been sculpted out of Bavarian sugar-frosting. Although originally scorned, double hyacinths rocketed into vogue in the early 1700s and remained the world’s most popular bulb for the next 150 years. 10-12”, zones 5a-8a.'

Successfully forced in a pot.

Dutch introduction in 1878.
General Kohler was the commander of Dutch-Indonesian forces during the First Aoeh Expedition at the northern tip of Sumatra in 1873, which failed. Gen. Kohler was shot and died there.

Old House Gardens on Menelik -
'Black is beautiful, and this astonishing hyacinth – named in honor of the Victorian king of Ethiopia – is an intense indigo-purple shading to absolute BLACK. Although it went commercially extinct in Holland in 2001, most years we get a handful of bulbs from Alan Shipp of the UK National Collection. 10-12”, zones 5a-7b(9bWC), from England.'

Forced in a pot.

Martinette is a reliable daffodil forcer that needs a considerably shorter cold period to be ready to force over winter, this is related to its tazetta (division 8) ancestry (related to paperwhites which need no cold exposure to initiate bloom). I have forced this cultivar often over the years, subsequently placing it the garden outside where it's bloomed successfully and expanded its domain. This past year I waited till Brent and Becky offered it during their end of season half-price sale, ordering it on 12-7-15 and receiving it the 14th. Many forced cultivars started that late might take till mid-April to bloom. I think this year's purchase will bloom this week.
Martinette was bred by an American, H. Tuggle, jr. from Virginia in 1985. It presents 4 or 5 blooms per stem (umbel) of lemon-yellow petals, fronted by a small cup-shaped corona of bright orange. Official designation is 8 Y-O (div 8, yellow petal, orange cup).
Martinette placed 20th in an ATP survey in September 2014 named "25 top Daffodils" (by Dave).

From Old House Gardens - 'If daffodils were athletes, 'Avalanche' would be wearing an Olympic metal. Extra vigorous, with 15 to 20 fragrant blooms per stem. It was discovered thriving happily half-way down a rocky sea cliff in the Scilly Isles where tazettas had once been grown by the thousands in the fields above. Superb in zones 6b - 9b. It's also easy to force indoors for a refreshing bit of spring in winter. 8 W-Y. Holland grown'.

OHG web site details method of forcing in water with minimal cold period. Basically it's done by setting bulbs on pebbles, rocks, or marbles with water up to base of bulbs, enclose in paper bag, subject to a 3 week cold period, then set out to bloom. This method works. I've done it myself.

An interesting side note related to daffodil growers in the Scilly Isles off the coast of England: Growers must pay a tithe (tax) yearly to the King of England of 1 pound. One pound covers all the daffodil growers; there are a lot of daffodils still grown there.

One of the first lily groups to be planted in the current garden. Purchased from Gilbert H Wild over ten years ago (map/date notes only go back to 2006). Started with three, now the stems probably number close to twenty-five plus, they predominate the center of the north fence border line. Very pleasing color combination in this LA hybrid lily.

This cultivar is equivalent to the S. elegans known as Pineapple Sage except Honey Melon starts blooming in early summer in more northern latitudes while the variety known as Pineapple starts blooming in late summer to fall in the same latitudes. The one known as Pineapple Sage is a short day plant, meaning blooming is triggered by shorter day length.
Both have edible leaves and flowers.

2016 Green Thumb Award winner. Long lived perennial plant native to the southwest (New Mexico and Arizona) small in stature, big in bloom. Hummingbirds are attracted (also, pollinate) to its orange bloom in late spring to early summer. Luminous prefers dry and poor, well-drained soil and a lot of sun in Zones 5 -9. Its presentation is well summed up by its name.

A fall-flowering green daffodil from New Zealander John Hunt. It is classified as a Jonquilla daffodil and, like many so classified, has a fine fragrance. Emerald Sea's fragrance is noted as strong and sweet. The flowers, star shaped and down facing, are presented on an umbel (4 to 6 multiple flowers per stem). This cultivar was registered with RHS in 1999.
Its uniqueness places it high on my most-sought-daffodil list.

A rather rare fall-flowering daffodil with a green cup fronting white petals was registered in 2003 by John Hunter, a New Zealander. Flowers are presented as an umbel (multi-flowering stems) The fragrance of this cultivar is wonderful, mixing the fragrance of a viridiflorus species daffodil with a tazetta daffodil.
It's on my most-sought list.

Psychotria viridis is the other half of the mix known as Ayahuasca, a quite potent hallucinogenic brew used by shamans in the Amazon rainforest for purposes of divination and healing. Like its sister ingredient, Banisteriopsis caapi, Psychotria viridis contains alkaloids that can trigger visions. DMT (N,N dimethyl tryptaime) is one of these alkaloids. The leaves (of both plants) are used to produce the drink Ayahuasca.
Psychotria viridis is a woody, tropical, broad-leaved perennial shrub with a bushy growth habit, growing up to 16 ft (average is 8 ft) by 6.5 ft. This evergreen shrub (or small tree) is an understory plant, living in shade or filtered sunlight. The leaves are opposite, glossy, and narrow. Leaves resemble the leaf of the coffee plant (to which it is related). Many small greenish-white flowers bloom late in the season, followed by a small red fruit (drupe), where up to 4 longish oval seeds reside.
Seeds planted 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep in slightly acidic soil usually germinate in two to three weeks, but may take up to 2 months.
Propagation can also be accomplished by stem or leaf cuttings, the former taking 3 to 8 weeks to attain transplant size, the latter 6 to 12 weeks. High humidity is also part of the equation. Reportedly, it can be grown in a gallon-sized container indoors.

AAS (All America Selection) winner in 2011.

AAS winner 1981. 78 days. 5 to 7 pound oval shape. High sugar content,

AAS (All America Selection) winner 2001.
79 day. 8.5 inch ears filled with 18 to 20 kernel rows.
Very sweet.

Vine with a rather nice flower manifestation, but that's not all it manifests. When prepared with another rainforest plant, Psychotria viridis, a potent hallucinogenic brew is made capable of zoning one to another planet far, far away. When mixed, the resultant concoction is called Ayahuasca. It is psychedelic due to alkaloids (harmine and others) present throughout the plant. Ethnologically, it is used by shamans in the Amazon basin for medical and magical purposes. Use of the brew can be traced to over 2500 years ago. Banisteriopsis caapi itself is a powerful purgative and has been used to clean the body of parasites and as an aid to the digestive tract.
The vine is described as a twisting tropical liana (climbing woody vine) capable of extremely fast growth given ideal conditions (a foot a week). The bark is smooth with a chocolate brown color. Leaves are green, long and somewhat oval shaped. Flowers are small and pink. Fruit is a samara (3 winged maple like). The seed is green when fresh, turns brown with age. Germination success is dependent on seed's freshness and may take several weeks. A jungle-like environment is needed. The most common method of propagation is accomplished by taking stem cuttings.

Pawpaw name originated with Arawakan Indians.

The National Grass Trials at Colorado State University rated this cultivar one of the best in their 2015 trials.

Perennial Plant Association's Perennial Plant of the Year for 2016

In 2002 was named The indoor Foliage Plant of the Year by the Florida Nurserymen's and Growers' Association.