Allyssum

(Sweet) Alyssum
(Lobularia maritima)

Alyssum is a genus of about 100–170 species of flowering plants in the family Brassicaceae, native to Europe, Asia, and northern Africa, with the highest species diversity in the Mediterranean region.

4 to 8 inches tall by 1 foot wide Honey-scented flowers are white, pink, rose or purple. Late spring until frost Alyssum may decline in midsummer.

Shear, feed and water to rejuvenate.

tricolor Alyssum in basket

Sweet alyssum is a type of annual that flowers for months, even through the winter in milder climates. A member of the mustard family, sweet alyssum is quite fragrant.

Description: Sweet alyssum grows only a few inches high but spreads as much as a foot in diameter. The tiny flowers are closely packed around small racemes that grow upward as lower flowers fade. Although white is the most planted color, pink, lavender, and darker shades of violet are also available.

How to grow: Sweet alyssum grows best in full sun in cool weather, but it will tolerate partial shade. The plants will survive light frosts. Space from six to eight inches apart. Sweet alyssum will reseed vigorously.

Propagation: Sow seeds outdoors as soon as the ground can be worked. Seeds germinate in 7 to 14 days at 65 degrees to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

Uses: Sweet alyssum is traditionally used for edging beds, borders, and as an annual ground cover.

Related varieties: New Carpet of Snow is the most planted, but the Wonderland series consists of White, Rosy-Red, and Deep Purple. White Snow Crystal is wide, low, and vigorous.

Scientific name: Lobularia maritima

Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’ – Creeping Jenny

vine

I’ve always propagated by cutting and the original plant on my balcony is now ten years old with may it of it in other pots and given away. I don’t know the proper name for this one and drew a blank n a Google search as Creeping Betty, although that was the name on the stick which came with the original plant. It grows rapidly, doesn’t mind having cuttings taken and often needs to be cut back. It flowers but once a year, a shame because it is very showy. – update, the stick was wrong it should have said Creeping Jenny, that does bring up stuff on Google.

Common Name: creeping Jenny

Type: Herbaceous perennial

Family: Primulaceae

Zone: 3 to 9

Height: 0.25 to 0.50 feet

Spread: 1.00 to 1.50 feet

Bloom Time: June

Bloom Description: Yellow

Sun: Full sun to part shade

Water: Medium to wet

Maintenance: Medium

Suggested Use: Ground Cover, Water Plant, Naturalize, Rain Garden

Flower: Showy

Leaf: Colorful

Tolerate: Wet Soil, Shallow-Rocky Soil

Invasive: Where is this species invasive in the US?

Garden locations

Culture

Easily grown in average, medium to wet, well-drained soil in full sun to shade. Best yellow color in full sun. Foliage is lime green in shade. Prefers moist soils. Intolerant of dry soils.

Noteworthy Characteristics

Moneywort or creeping Jenny is a low-growing, creeping ground cover which forms a leafy mat only 2-4″ tall. Roots where leaf nodes come in contact with the soil. Thrives in damp soils which will often kill off other types of ground covers. This cultivar features rounded, slightly ruffled, yellow leaves (to 3/4″ diameter). Profuse, cup-shaped, bright yellow flowers (to 3/4″ across) appear in early summer. Tolerates limited foot traffic.

Problems

No serious insect or disease problems. Spreads by runners and can be a very aggressive spreader. Yellow foliage has been known to revert to the green color of the species.

Garden Uses

Excellent ground cover for areas where it can be left alone to spread or naturalize, such as banks, woodland gardens, along paths, or in moist areas near water gardens or along streams, pools or ponds. Also can be planted to cover or spill over stone walls. Interesting selection for hanging baskets. Probably too aggressive a spreader for border fronts or areas adjacent to lawns. Yellow foliage provides excellent contrast and color for shade areas.

Gazania – wildflower

Family: Asteraceae
Form: Herb
Origin: Native to South Africa.
Weed Type(s): Weed, Naturalised, Garden Escape, Environmental Weed
also: Treasure Flower

Brought home from the broken plant table at a local nursery, they took quickly to life on a balcony in containers, to my surprise returning after several winters (3 years).

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Gazania is a tough, low-growing perennial herb with lance-shaped leaves and brightly coloured daisy-like flowers in bronze, yellow and orange tones. It produces abundant wind-blown seeds and spreads rapidly. It withstands salt-laden winds and grows well in sandy soils. It is often spread in garden waste.

Gazania is widespread and common in Victoria and naturalised in South Australia and Western Australia.

The related Coastal gazania, Gazania rigens, has become naturalised on coastal dunes and along roadsides from southern Sydney to the central coast, on the Eyre Peninsula and southern Mt Lofty region of South Australia and in the Moreton region of South-east Queensland.

They need the sun, and soil has to be very well drained and watered daily It faired through the winter here in British Columbia in a balcony planter and continues to bloom rofusely. I bought the plants last year.

Nemesia – wildflower and culivar

Family: Scrophulariaceae
Common names: Mauve nemesia (E)
Wildeleeubekkie (A)

Nemesia fruticans occurs naturally throughout the summer rainfall grassland areas of South Africa where it grows mostly in among rocks. Like many other grassland perennials it has a woody taproot that helps it survive fires and winter frost.
The flowers resemble little snapdragon flowers, with two lips and a spur. They are dusty-pink or mauve or even whiter in colour and decorated with bright yellow protuberances in the throat. The mauve nemesia flowers mostly at the beginning of spring (September-October), but the flowering season can extend through summer to autumn. The seeds are produced in flat capsules which are dry and whitish to yellow-brown in colour.

The genus Nemesia is found only in South Africa and has about seventy species. The family Scrophulariaceae is the large snapdragon family which consists of about 5 100 species worldwide. Amongst them, the foxgloves or Digitalis are known to contain certain drug chemicals. In South Africa there are 79 genera of the family Scrophulariaceae.

Growing Nemesia fruticans

Nemesia fruticans is used mostly as a flowering bedding plant and as an ornamental pot plant. Various colour forms are available from specialist nurseries.

It is best propagated by seed sown in March for summer flowering. It can also be propagated by means of cuttings. Cuttings are best taken in spring when regrowth commences and active root formation takes place. Special colour forms are best propagated from cuttings.

The mauve nemesia prefers well-drained soil, enriched with compost. It prefers to be planted in a sunny position. It can be treated as an annual and will self-seed if plants have been allowed to set seed before removal. Alternatively it can be treated as a perennial and cut back after flowering each year, or in early spring. It is frost tolerant. Although the upper growth is damaged by frost, the plant will resprout from the taproot.

If you are looking for seeds, this is my favourite source: http://www.provenwinners.com/plants/?doSearch=1&searchGenus=Nemesia

Lobelia – wildflower and cultivar

Lobelia
Family: Campanulaceae
Subfamily: Lobelioideae

A popular flowering plant comprising 360–400 species, with a sub-cosmopolitan distribution primarily in tropical to warm temperate regions of the world, a few species extending into cooler temperate regions. English names include Lobelia, Asthma Weed, Indian Tobacco, Pukeweed, and Vomitwort.

Lobelia species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the Setaceous Hebrew Character.

Lobelia erinus is a very popular ornamental plant in gardens, grown for its long flowering period, from mid spring to early autumn. Edging Lobelia, Garden Lobelia or Trailing Lobelia) is a species of Lobelia native to southern Africa, from Malawi and Namibia south to South Africa.[1]

It is a prostrate or scrambling herbaceous perennial plant growing to 8–15 cm tall. The basal leaves are oval, 10 mm long and 4-8 mm broad, with a toothed margin; leaves higher on the stems are slender and sometimes untoothed. The flowers are blue to violet in wild plants,Edging Lobelia, Garden Lobelia or Trailing Lobelia) is a species of Lobelia native to southern Africa, from Malawi and Namibia south to South Africa.

It is a prostrate or scrambling herbaceous perennial plant growing to 8–15 cm tall. The basal leaves are oval, 10 mm long and 4-8 mm broad, with a toothed margin; leaves higher on the stems are slender and sometimes untoothed. The flowers are blue to violet in wild plants. It is perennial in subtropical climates, but often grown as an annual plant in colder areas. Numerous cultivars have been selected for garden use, with a wide range of flower colours, including white, pink, red, pale to dark blue, and purple. Some of the better known cultivars are ‘Blue Moon’, ‘Cascade’, ‘Gracilis’ and ‘Rosamund’.

The genus is named after the Belgian botanist Matthias de Lobel (1538–1616).

An active ingredient in the lobelia plant, lobeline, is similar to nicotine in its effect on the body. Like nicotine, it stimulates nerves in the central nervous system. For this reason, lobeline was once used as a nicotine substitute in many anti-smoking products and preparations designed to break the smoking habit. In 1993, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) prohibited the sale of lobeline-containing smoking products. The FDA reported that such products lacked effectiveness in helping people quit or reduce smoking.

It is important to note that lobelia is a potentially toxic herb. Lobelia can be safely used in very small doses (particularly homeopathic doses), but moderate-to-large doses can cause serious adverse effects ranging from dry mouth and nausea to convulsions and even coma (see Precautions). Under the guidance of a qualified health care provider, however, lobelia, in combination with other herbs that affect the respiratory system, is considered relatively safe. Additional information on it’s medical uses: http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/lobelia-000264.htm