Thursday, June 20, 2019

My 2019 Garden Bloggers Fling plant haul...

Plant shopping opportunities were scarce during the 2019 Fling in Colorado, which I've been calling the Denver Fling, but we spent a day in Ft. Collins and a day in Boulder, so we definitely saw more than just Denver.

While I was on a bus visiting gardens Andrew was out and about exploring the city. He sent me photos of a plant filled window at the Queen City General Store...

I tried not to be to jealous, I mean I don't really need more plants, do I?

Thankfully I didn't return home plant-less. Here's the final haul, back home in Portland.

The little sempervivum at the bottom of the plant pyramid (above) came from this clump...

...in the garden of Linda Boley. When I asked her about the odd knuckled leaves on a few of the plants, she said that was her “pine-cone sempervivum” and asked if I wanted one, of course! She then proceeded to pull one out of the ground and hand it to me, as well as doing the same for two friends who walked up and admired it. What a generous lady with a great garden...

See how the tips resemble a pine cone?

The Denver Botanic Gardens gift shop provided shopping opportunities.

Complete with rusty cacti...

...and Little Pickles!

While I loved the name, the plant itself wasn't something I needed to bring home.

I was tempted by the Puya alpestris, but didn't want to torture the poor thing.

There were a few great containers, but the fact we flew to Denver kept me from even looking at the prices.

I did however succumb to the temptation of these cuties.

Aloinopsis spathulata, aka hardy living stone

Full sun, well drained soil, Zone 6

My other two plant purchases weren't actually purchases but rather gifts. Andrew and I returned to the Denver Botanic Gardens on Monday (after the Fling proper had wrapped up) and ran into Panayoti Kelaidis (Senior Curator and Director of Outreach at the garden, as well as all around amazing plantsman). Just a few minutes of talking with him and he was working to connect us with Kelly Grummons (the cactus man) for a garden tour. So after a wandering the DBG for a bit we then set off to meet this kind (and very knowledgeable) man who spent a couple of hours touring two complete strangers around his garden and through his small retail greenhouses. I fell hard for that blue agave...

It's Agave parryi v. neomexicana x utahensis, or deep blue form New Mexican agave (available here). It's hardy to Zone 5, and of course needs excellent drainage. Isn't it a beauty?

That's it on the left. The other plant, Echinocereus triglochidiatus...

...was one I fell in love with in the greenhouse. The larger 4" pots weren't for sale, as he's saving those to gather seeds for propagation.

But I got one of these smaller guys, they're so pristine! The deep red claret cup flowers were a feature of many of the gardens we visited during the Fling, if my plant blooms someday it will definitely take me back.

There were a few other plants I was seriously lusting after at Kelly's place, this petite opuntia (below) topped the list, but he didn't have any available on site. Meet Opuntia polyacantha 'Peter Pan', so called because it never matures and never blooms. Forever staying in this, it's juvenile form. Yes, I've already ordered a pair...


Weather Diary, June 19: Hi 70, Low 54/ Precip 0

All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

30 comments:

  1. You just answered my burning question: Did she bring home any plants?

    I love what you ended up with. I have a spineless Echinocereus triglochidiatus, and it has beautiful flowers. Unlike many cactus flowers, the flowers of Echinocereus triglochidiatus (and close relatives) stay open for almost a week!

    That blue neomexicana is VERY nice!

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    1. I'm praying I can grow the little agave pup on to full size. I'm not very good when starting out with one so small.

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  2. You brought home some cool stuff! I wasn't prepared to bring plants home, but I was a little disappointed there wasn't at least one local nursery on the itinerary. The guidelines kind of discourage it, but it can be interesting to see what they sell and how they market stuff. I'm intrigued by that little succulent that is hardy to Zone 6.

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    1. I agree, I do love seeing what nurseries are like in other cities and would have liked to visit at least one.

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  3. It's practically impossible to come home empty handed from such a trip. I'd say you were quite restrained. Maybe the new additions will find there way into a crevice garden?

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    1. Nah, as fun as that would be I think they need to be planted out much sooner than a crevice garden would be implemented.

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  4. I'd be in utter shock if you came home without plants. Great selections all! Even I'm tempted by that Opuntia - and that whole genus usually has me keeping my distance due to those nasty spines.

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    1. That opuntia was so cute I wanted to pet it, but I knew better.

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  5. Great little collection going to a good home!

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  6. Yes gorgeous Agave. I love the super symmetrical ones. (And the other kind, too.)

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    1. Thankfully we don't have to chose between them.

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  7. You mean I could actually grow an Agave in my zone 5 garden?? What about it being buried for months under snow?

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    1. Yep, there are a few Zone 5 hardy agaves that do great, as long as they're kept dry when it's cold. It's the cold wet that will do them in. Buried under months of snow also sounds problematic...when it falls does it just stick around without melting?

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  8. Not a bad haul given your mode of transportation!

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    1. Ya, I"m used to trying to get much larger plants home!

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  9. I brought home my lone raffle gift, an Aster. I guess that's just as well since the Portland plant haul will probably be vast !

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  10. The DBG is on my bucket list. Meeting Panayoti would be the icing on the cake. Have a similar semp to the pinecone one you received. My kids call it 'monster toes'. Look forward to hearing more your Fling experience.

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    1. We toured Panayoti's personal garden right after leaving the DBG, it was a wonderful day! So is your "monster toes" a mutation? Or did you buy it that way?

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    2. I bought 'monster toes' this way thinking it would revert back to a more normal leaf form but it has stayed true.

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    3. Well now I'm going to keep an eye out for this at nurseries!

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  11. Nice haul! I thought the DBG's gift shop plant selection was pretty tempting too but didn't feel brave enough this trip to try to bring anything home. As it was the TSA peeps took my Corona trowel out of my luggage! You just never know what will set them off...

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    1. I've heard of a couple people who lost their trowels, I feel lucky to have checked mine.

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  12. A nice haul, I also love that blue agave. I picked up Little Pickles at a local cactus shop because it's too cute to pass up. It hasn't quit blooming since March.

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    1. It sounds like Little Pickles is happy in your garden!

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  13. I would have bought Aloinopsis spathulata too. Nice!

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    1. And I suspect you'd be happy with those pink blooms too!

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  14. Great pics, and glad you met Panayoti and Kelly! I've only left Denver's bot garden with a book or two...

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  15. Wow! I knew you'd find treasures but these are outstanding and hardy to boot! Hooray!

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