FRINGE-LILY

Thysanotus tuberosus, known as the common fringe-lily is a perennial herb in the Asparagaceae family, which is endemic to Australia. The generic name comes from the Greek θύσανος (thysanos) and means "tasselled", while species name tuberosus refers to the crisp tasting edible root.

The leaves are linear in shape, and round at cross section towards the top. The plant reaches a height from 20 cm to 60 cm tall and grows in a wide variety of situations, from semi-arid parts of south eastern Australia to coastal areas receiving more than 1300 mm of rain per year. The plants are often found in open country, heathlands or in dry sclerophyll woodland.

Flowers form from September to April. The three-petalled flowers are purple, with frilly edges, and only last for one day. They are among the more colourful wildflowers in Southeastern Australia. There two sub-species: The tepals are somewhat longer and wider in subsp. tuberosus, being 10 to 19 mm long, and around 10 mm wide. In subsp. parviflorus the inner anthers are smaller, and straight to slightly curved. Fringe-lilies are not often seen in cultivation despite their obvious beauty. Generally they have proved to be difficult to maintain in cultivation.

T. tuberosus should be grown in a well-drained sunny position. It is also suited to growing in a container. Propagation is relatively easy from seed which does not require any special pre-treatment.

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme,

and also part of the Photo Sunday meme.

ROSA, 'EBB TIDE'

Rosa 'Ebb Tide' was bred by Tom Carruth, USA, in 2004. It is a wonderful rose, which created a massive impact for the intense colour and fragrance which was rarely seen in modern roses. This very free-flowering rose bears flowers in small clusters with an amazingly intense clove fragrance throughout the flowering season.

Ebb Tide has beautiful, medium sized, glossy and dark green foliage which is highly disease resistant. The bushy growth is around 90 cm in height with flowers all over the shrub. The striking purple colour and the intense, spicy fragrance will make this rose variety a delightful addition to the rose garden.

Roses thrive in generally sunny, dry and hot conditions as we experience in most Australian gardens, and roses will flourish when you take measures to provide the following:

WATER – Roses are very deep rooted plants and require one good, deep soaking at least every 10 days in hot and dry conditions.

FEED – Because roses flower throughout all but the Winter season, they should be regularly fertilised with quality (preferably organic) fertiliser which contains a balance of major nutrients (NPK) and trace elements. The fertiliser should be applied at least once a month – small amount often – with fortnightly applications of liquid seaweed over the foliage.

PRUNE – During Winter, 70% of the rose plant should be pruned and all old wood removed back to the crown and the bush pruned to shape. During the flowering seasons, 25% of all flowering stems should be cut back after flowering to encourage strong re-growth.

MULCH – Particular attention to application of lucerne or pea straw directly around the root-zone of each rose will enhance the overall health of the rose and then the whole bed should be mulched to 75mm with any other mulch medium available.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

GERALDTON WAX

Chamaelaucium uncinatum, Geraldton wax, is a flowering plant endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub 0.5 to 4m high, bearing white or pink flowers June–November. The name uncinatum means "hooked" in Latin, in reference to the tips of the leaves. The flowers (somewhat resembling those of the tea tree) last a relatively long time after cutting, making the plant popular in horticulture. It is widely cultivated throughout Australia, both in home gardens and in the cut flower industry. Purple-flowering cultivars have been developed, as shown by the photo.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

PEPINO

Solanum muricatum is a species of evergreen shrub native to South America and grown for its sweet edible fruit. It is known as pepino dulce ("sweet cucumber" in English, in order to differentiate it from cucumber which is also called "pepino" in Spanish) or simply pepino; the latter is also used for similar species such as "S. mucronatum" (which actually seems to belong in the related genus Lycianthes).

The pepino dulce fruit resembles a melon (Cucumis melo) in colour, and its flavour recalls a mixture of honeydew and cucumber, and thus it is also sometimes called pepino melon or melon pear, but pepinos are only very distantly related to melons and pears. Another common name, "tree melon", is more often used for the Papaya (Carica papaya) though the pepino dulce plant generally does not look much like a tree; it looks more like a ground cover, trailing plant.

The present species is, however, a close relative of other nightshades cultivated for their fruit, including the tomato (S. lycopersicum) and the eggplant (S. melongena), which its own fruit closely resembles. Pepino fruit is common in markets in Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru and Chile, but less often overseas because it is quite sensitive to handling and does not travel well. Attempts to produce commercial cultivars and to export the fruit have been made in New Zealand, Turkey, Mauritius and Chile.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Friday Greens meme,
and also part of the Food Friday meme.

LIATRIS SPICATA

Liatris spicata (dense blazing star or prairie gay feather), is a herbaceous perennial plant native throughout most of eastern North America, growing in moist prairies and sedge meadows. Liatris spicata var. resinosa is found in the southern part of the species natural range, the variable plants have only 5 or 6 flowers per head and the heads are more widely spaced on the stems, these differences are more pronounced when the plants are found in drier and coastal habitats.

Liatris spicata is a garden flower in many countries around the world, grown for its showy purple flowers (pink or white in some cultivars). The tall spikes of purple flowers appear in July and August. It thrives in full sun in ordinary garden soil and is excellent for attracting birds and butterflies. Under cultivation it is found under many names including; button snakewort, Kansas gay feather, blazing star. Liatris spicata 'Alba' and Liatris spicata 'Floristan White' are white flowering cultivars. Liatris spicata 'Kobold' is a popular compact cultivar that is less likely to need staking than the type species.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

GIANT SPIDERWORT

Tradescantia, the Spiderworts, is a genus of 75 species of perennial plants in the family Commelinaceae, native to the New World from southern Canada south to northern Argentina including the West Indies. Some species have become naturalised in various regions in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and assorted oceanic islands.

They are weakly upright to scrambling plants, growing to 30–60 cm tall, and are commonly found individually or in clumps in wooded areas and fields. A number of the species flower in the morning and when the sun shines on the flowers in the afternoon they close, but can remain open on cloudy days until evening.

Tradescantia gigantea or Giant Spiderwort, has a dainty, three-petal flower with slender, hairy stamens. The flower colour can be an indicator of the pH of the soil. Acidic soils produce bluer flowers, while more alkaline soils create varying shades of pink and purple. All parts of this plant contain volatile oil that can cause severe skin inflammation, itching, and blistering on direct contact or if borne by sooty smoke. Washing thoroughly with soap or swabbing with alcohol immediately on exposure removes the oil irritant. The berries are poisonous if eaten.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

BEARDED IRIS

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.