Growing Natives
Jay 6a Chicago
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Growing native azalea from seed?
Comments (17)Alicia, around here you can buy bags of long fiber dried sphagnum moss at garden centers -- I've even seen it at Lowe's, too. That's what I use. I just rub it through a strainer, the ordinary kind with a handle you can buy in the kitchen tools section of a grocery store. It's the same moss as florists use, just dried. If the potting mix stays too moist or drainage isn't sufficient, add perlite. Don't worry about the seemingly big size of the perlite relative to the tiny seed. The sphagnum moss (or live moss, like Mainegrower uses) gets the seed going and then it roots down easily into the medium below. It seems to me azalea seedlings likes a lot of oxygen in the soil and not too much wet. Once they get beyond a certain size it becomes less critical. The other thing to do is make sure your containers have as many drain holes as you can reasonably punch in the bottom. I use an ice pick and put maybe 20 sizable holes in the bottom of a 3" x 5" container. You want the water to flow freely out of the bottom. Soeur...See MoreRE: Anyone growing native species roses? Continued
Comments (150)I had read the comments from the Tea Bag ladies, but will go back to one of the first questions I asked about 'Francis Dubreuil', when this thread first began to drift from its original topic: Was the original 'Francis Dubreuil' a "true Tea", or was he a "Hybrid Tea"? Or was he that other thing, a "Tea hybrid"? The earliest descriptions of FD say his color was a dark red with pink or cerise or amaranth highlights. My assumption is that 'FD' was darker than other red Teas, but would not have looked terribly out of place hanging out with other reds such as 'Gen Gallieni', 'M. Tillier', 'Souv. de David d'Angers', 'Mlle Christine de Nouë', ''Corallina', 'Safrano a Fleurs Rouges', 'Princesse de Sagan', 'Bardou Job' and- of course- 'Souv de Therese Levet'. Here's a 1901 review from a German rose reviewer about Francis: "Francis Dubreuil (Dubreuil 1895) is not only one of the most excellent red Tea roses but also one of the best Tea roses of all. The flower is in fact only of medium size, and sometimes even small, but keeps extremely well. It lasts In bud form for a very long time, and is then at its most beautiful. The growth is vigorous and the crown is well branched. What I like most about this rose, is its capacity to produce solitary flowers on long, upright stems, I do not like roses in flower umbels (in clusters). Its floriferousness (flowering period) is very long, it lasts right up to the frosts." That mention of "solitary flowers on long, upright stems" makes me think we might find some HP ancestry in Francis' background, no? And it accords well with other early mentions of FD having "diffuse growth"... Here's an early discrepancy, though; the review above says 'FD' "lasts in bud form for a very long time, and is then at its most beautiful". Contrast that with an earlier British review- Francis "is described as full flower of a fine form, opening very readily, perhaps too much so"... So if Francis was dark red and had diffuse growth, he seems to be quacking like an early HT, and not a "pure Tea"? Was he classified as a Tea because of his fragrance? According to Guillot, 'FD' is descended from 'Souv de David d'Angers' (described as "deliciously fragrant" in 1864) who is in turn descended from 'Caroline', the Tea that may be synonymous with 'Bermuda Spice'. Some early reviews of 'FD' say he is fragrant, most say nothing, and at least one reviewer says "not fragrant". This assortment of varying opinions shouldn't be surprising, given humans' different capacities for smell, and given the way odors can vary according to temperature, time of day, etc. The scent of Tea roses seems to be especially elusive, and elicits a confusion of descriptions, so I'm inclined to believe that the original Francis probably had a Tea scent and was fragrant to some people and not to others. However, I think it's also possible that if there were an early confusion with at least one grower offering a different rose as 'Francis D', the differences in opinion about form and fragrance could stem from an early switcheroo. Just because there was a later mix-up with 'Barcelona' doesn't mean there wasn't also an earlier mix-up somewheres down the line. And if there were an earlier misidentification, this early imposter might be the rose that was later sent from Sangerhausen to Oz in 1981? Another question I have relates to size. The Tea rose grown by Mr Knight just outside of Sydney was a large rose bush. The roses grown in the U.S. and Oz as FD today both seem to be more compact and HT-like (although the Aussie plant that hails from Sangerhausen seems to have a earlier HT look than 'Barcelona' does?) I'm trying to get things straight in my own head, so if I'm off-course in my suppositions, please get me back on track. Virginia...See MoreClass: Growing Native Plants & Flowers - Thursday, July 15
Comments (1)Thanks for posting Violet. I bet Hamilton's would be a nice place to visit too....See Moregrowing native Wisterias from seed
Comments (3)Thanks for the responses so far. No worries about waiting only 12-15 years for the native species to bloom. I grow several species of trees from seed, of which some will take quite awhile to mature (like my oaks). Brings to mind one of my favorite quotes, which would also be fitting here: "He that plants a tree loves others than himself." - Dr. Thomas Fuller...See MoreJay 6a Chicago
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2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
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2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
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2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
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2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoSkip1909
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoIris S (SC, Zone 7b)
2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
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2 years agoJay 6a Chicago
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deanna in ME Barely zone 6a, more like 5b