#edit: they are spotted deadnettle

[monardas]

[kevinscottgardens]

1 through 4 January 2019

For New Year’s Eve, I had Susie (who captured the evening beautifully with this shot) and Richard over for a quiet evening of cocktails, Champaign, risotto and a bit of fireworks on the telly. Happy New Year everyone.

I worked New Year’s Day and recorded all plants with at least one open flower. We have had an unseasonably warm autumn and start to winter; the result was 159 plants in flower:

Abutilon × milleri

Acanthus sennii

Ageratina ligustrina

Agrostemma githago

Alstroemeria aurea

Alstroemeria psittacina

Alyssum montanum 'Berggold'

Amicia zygomeris

Anisodontea capensis

Arabis procurrens

Arbutus canariensis

Arbutus unedo f. rubra

Argyranthemum pinnatifidum subsp. pinnatifidum

Bergenia × schmidtii

Bergenia crassifolia

Bidens aurea

Buddleja officinalis

Calendula officinalis

Camellia sinensis

Cestrum parqui

Cestrum psittacinum

Chimonanthus praecox

Chimonanthus praecox Grandiflorus Group

Chrysanthemum 'Kakinomoto'

Cistus creticus

Clematis cirrhosa 'Wisley Cream'

Cobaea scandens

Colletia hystrix 'Rosea'

Colletia paradoxa

Coronilla valentina subsp. glauca 'Citrina'

Correa backhousiana

Cyclamen coum

Dahlia imperialis

Daphne bholua 'Jacqueline Postill'

Dasylirion acrotrichum

Descurainia millefolia

Dianthus deltoides

Dianthus gratianopolitanus

Dichroa febrifuga

Drimys winteri

Echium italicum subsp. bieberstenii

Eomecon chionantha

Eranthis hyemalis

Eriobotrya japonica

Eruca vesicaria subsp. sativa

Erysimum 'Bowles Mauve'

Eschscholzia lobbii

Fragaria 'Pink Panda'

Fuchsia 'Hawkshead'

Fuchsia microphylla

Gaillardia aristata

Galanthus 'Armine'

Galanthus 'Art Nouveau'

Galanthus caucasicus

Galanthus cilicicus

Galanthus elwesii

Galanthus elwesii 'Grumpy'

Galanthus elwesii 'Lode Star'

Galanthus elwesii 'Mrs Macnamara'

Galanthus elwesii 'Snowfox'

Galanthus elwesii var. elwesii 'Kite'

Galanthus elwesii var. monostictus Hiemalis Group

Galanthus 'James Backhouse'

Galanthus 'John Gray'

Galanthus 'Lapwing'

Galanthus 'Lavinia'

Galanthus 'Lyn'

Galanthus nivalis

Galanthus nivalis 'Melvillei'

Galanthus plicatus 'Florence Baker'

Galanthus plicatus 'Warham'

Galanthus reginae-olgae 'Blanc de Chine'

Galanthus 'Rose Lloyd'

Geranium macrorrhizum

Geum rivale

Halimium lasianthum 'Sandling'

Hebe salicifolia

Hebe stricta

Helichrysum bracteatum

Helleborus × hybridus

Helleborus × hybridus 'Early Purple'

Helleborus × sternii

Helleborus argutifolius

Helleborus cyclophyllus

Helleborus foetidus

Helleborus foetidus 'Wester Flisk'

Helleborus niger

Hoheria sexstylosa

Hyacinthoides aristidis

Hyacinthoides mauritanica

Hydrangea macrophylla 'Sir Joseph Banks'

Iberis amara

Iberis sempervirens

Iris unguicularis

Iris unguicularis 'Walter Butt'

Jasminum mesnyi

Jasminum nudiflorum

Justicia floribunda

Laurus nobilis

Lavandula dentata var. dentata (Grey Leaved Form)

Lavandula minutolii var. minutolii

Leonurus sibiricus

Leucojum aestivum subsp. aestivum

Lithodora zahnii

Loasa triphylla var. vulcanica

Lobelia erinus

Lonicera elisae

Lonicera standishii

Mahonia japonica

Mahonia napaulensis

Medicago arborea

Narcissus bulbocodium subsp. bulbocodium var. conspicuus

Narcissus dubius

Narcissus romieuxii 'Julia Jane'

Nerine bowdenii 'Mark Fenwick'

Nicotiana rustica

Nicotiana tabacum

Nigella sativa

Petasites fragrans

Polemonium reptans

Polyspora indet.

Primula × pruhonicensis

Primula vulgaris

Prunus × subhirtella 'Autumnalis Rosea'

Prunus mume

Ricinus communis 'Carmencita'

Rosa × odorata 'Bengal Crimson'

Rosa 'Ausmas' [GRAHAM THOMAS]

Rosa chinensis 'Veridiflora'

Rosmarinus officinalis

Rosmarinus officinalis 'Prostratus'

Ruta graveolens

Salvia 'Amistad'

Salvia atrocyanea

Salvia elegans 'Honey Melon'

Salvia guaranitica ‘Black and Bloom’

Salvia guaranitica 'Black and Blue'

Salvia haenkei 'Prawn Chorus'

Salvia involucrata

Salvia involucrata 'Bethellii'

Salvia keerlii

Salvia longistyla

Salvia 'Phyllis' Fancy'

Salvia stachydifolia

Sarcococca confusa

Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna

Sarcococca hookeriana var. hookeriana

Sarcococca hookeriana var. hookeriana 'Ghorepani'

Sarcococca ruscifolia var. ruscifolia

Scabiosa minoana subsp. minoana

Scrophularia lucida

Senna corymbosa

Stylophorum lasiocarpum

Tagetes lemmonii

Viburnum tinus 'Eve Price'

Vinca difformis

Vinca major

Viola odorata 'Czar'

Westringia fruticosa

I finished reviewing all 20,621 accessions and separating our seeds from our plants. I had no idea it would take a week to do this. I’m happy I did it this way; I am more familiar with the data and aware of so many different ways the database has been used over the years.

We made a huge dent in the pile that needed to be shredded and the compost pile has been moved along so we have an empty bay to start filling.

We are working shorter hours now, down to an average of 35 hours per week, in line with the rest of the staff. It is so civilised and European. Because we work 39 hours per week in the summer, we now finish at 15.30 Monday through Thursday and 13.00 on Friday. I’m very happy with these longer weekend. I will be able to take a much earlier train to the continent for weekend jaunts.

Plant of the week

Lamiaceae Rotheca myricoides (Hochst.) Steane & Mabb.

common name(s) - butterfly bush, blue glory bower, blue butterfly bush, butterfly clerodendrum, blue glory bower, blue glorybower, blue cat's whiskers synonym(s) - Clerodendrum dekindtii Gürke; C. d. var. dinteri Thomas; C. myricoides (Hochst.) R.Br. ex Vatke; C. m. var. camporum Gürke; C. m. var. chartaceum Moldenke; C. m. var. grossiserratum Gürke; C. m. var. involutum B.Thomas; C. m. f. lanceolatilobatum R.Fern.; C. m. var. laxum Gürke; C. m. var. microphyllum Gürke; C. m. var. savanorum (De Wild.) B.Thomas; C. neumayeri Vatke; C. savanorum De Wild.; C. schlechteri Gürke; C. sylvaticum (Hochst.) Briq.; C. ugandense Prain; Cyclonema myricoides Hochst.; C. sylvaticum Hochst.; Cyrtostemma myricoides (Hochst.) Kunze; Rotheca myricoides f. lanceolatilobata (R.Fern.) R.Fern.; R. m. subsp. myricoides; Siphonanthus myricoides (Hochst.) Hiern; Spironema myricoides Hochst. conservation rating - none native to - Kenya, Uganda location - glasshouse four, accession _____ leaves - glabrous, elliptic to narrow-obovate, glossy bright green, serrate margins, wedge-shaped bases flowers - showy, five-petaled flowers bloom June to September, showy, curved, outward-arching, purple stamens (resembling butterfly antennae); black, fleshy fruit follows habit - suckering evergreen shrub with a somewhat open habit to 2m tall and 2m wide habitat - in thickets in rocky places, along streams and at the edges of evergreen forest, to 1,700m pests - aphids, whitefly, mealybugs, scale, spider mites disease - leaf spot hardiness - to 1ºC (H2) soil - organically rich, evenly moist, well-drained sun - full sun to part shade propagation - seed, cuttings pruning - prune stems hard to the ground in early spring if compact plant form is desired nomenclature - Lamiaceae - the mint or deadnettle family, gullet, the name in Pliny refers to the gaping mouth of the corolla; Rotheca - Latinisation of the Malayalam ചെറിയ തേക്ക് words cheriga meaning small and thekku meaning teak; myricoides - from the French myriades meaning ten thousand and a Latinization of the Greek –oides meaning to see; resembling Myrica

References, bibliography:

Flora of Zimbabwe [online] https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/speciesdata/species.php?species_id=149090 [31 Dec 18]

Gledhill, David, (2008) The Names of Plants, fourth edition; Cambridge University Press; ISBN: 978-0-52168-553-5

IUCN [online] http://www.iucnredlist.org/search [31 Dec 18]

Missouri Botanical Garden [online] http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=a496 [31 Dec 18]

Plant List, The [online] http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-179968 [31 Dec 18]