Oxford Botanic Gardens (piccy heavy)

I think that your garden room would be ideal for this vine. At OBG it grows in the enclosed passageway which is basically (I suspect) similar conditions.

Sparse? Mine was spectacular last year! A little shy to bloom if that's what you meant.

I'm jealous!
My T.gregorii in the greenhouse took -5°c when the electrics failed at the top of the garden but still looks ok.

Let me know if you do.

 

I threw my toys out of the pram big style today so I gave myself the afternoon off and went to the botanic gardens.

Fuchsia paniculata..............




Encephalartos ferox...............


Arisaema sikokianum.............


Pleione formosana...............


Fritillaria acmopetala...........


Fritillaria pontica.................


Helicodiceros muscivorus.................






Oncidium sphacelatum.............


More to follow.

 

It is hard to beat Strongylodon macrobotrys.................






Paphiopedilum maudiae.............


Saracenia alata..................


Another Saracenia...........


Trillium...............


Agave parryi..............


Lysichiton americanus.................




More to follow.

 

Finally, the Magnolias were looking magnificent;

Magnolia stellata..............




Magnolia x soulangiana................

 

Lovely LongK - I have been away and only just seen these. That Strongylodon is fantastic. Is there a best time of the year to visit?

 

The Strongylodon is in bloom now, but really any time is good. The arid house can be spectacular in the depths of winter, the carnivorous house is just coming into bloom now, the Lily house always has something of interest and so on.
Outdoors the Iris bed will be at its best soon, then the mint family bed takes over - you get the picture.

 

We took a day out in Oxford yesterday and obviously that involved a visit to the Botanic Gardens. The first port of call is The Orangery which has a revolving display of potted plants mostly. Star of the show was Streptocarpus cooperii even though the flowers were over...................

A permanent planting is Geranium maderense. Despite being a regular visitor I have never seen this in bloom nor any sign of it ever having bloomed...............


A summer display plant – Tibouchina organensis................


Outside on the way to the main glasshouses;
Hedychium densiflorum “Assam Orange”................


Crinum moorei is in a very sheltered spot...............



Next to it is x Amarcrinum memoria-corsii.................


In the porch area is Eucomis vandermerwei............


In the passageway is another Crinum – C.yemense..............


In the Lily house now;
Alamanda cathartica is a rampant tropical climber..................


The third Crinum of the day is growing in a basket in the pool – C.asiaticum..............




A spectacular Nepenthes..............




A general shot to show how good the pool looks at this time of year...........


Canna glauca (Water Canna)..............




Passiflora quadrangularis..................

 

Do keep these pics coming Longk. They are lovely and informative. My Geranium maderense, which is a biennial in Madeira, took at least four years from seed to flower for me. Then they die. The foliage is so lovely that I almost didn't want it to flower - but it was spectacular.

Your pictures have inspired me to visit Durham Botanical Gardens a while back. The outside part was nothing special, but there was a very nice small tropical house which I knew had a Strongylodon. However it was not in flower and had been cut back heavily, so was unimpressive. However they did have a Musa accuminata which was bearing yellow bananas. A short while ago I also visited Sheffield Botanical Gardens. The outside area was very impressive and it had a huge temperate glasshouse, which was lovely. I suspect that not many places can afford the winter cost of a tropical glasshouse.

 

A few more then!

Into the passageway and we find Fuchsia boliviana...............


The everblooming Thunbergia mysorensis..............


Bomarea edulis is a strange choice to grow under glass and this one is seriously under-performing...........


Solanum seafortianum..............


Russelia equisetiformis................


In the Palm House is this unknown shrub................


And Hibiscus schizopetalus.................


Tweedia caerulea................


And now outdoors;
Cannas..................




Persicania orientalis looked good...............




And this unknown plant which I suspect is a member of the broader Ginger family (although it may be a member of the Acanthus family instead)................

 

Brilliant pics LongK

That's amazing as it was in flower in March this year as well. Mine is still doing well, but its not a fast grower. Its still a long way from flowering.

I love this one. I have seen it in the Wentworth Castle conservatory.

I have always fancied this, but I have now seen it in the flesh a couple of times. Its not very big and I thought a bit disappointing in real life.

 

Very much dependant upon sunlight. In good summers the flowers are bigger.

So outdoors now;
Colutea orientalis..............


And its seed pods................


Tricyrtis formosana...............


Various Salvias that had their labels well and truly outgrown by the new growth..................










The Merton Borders are supposed to be drought tolerant and self seeding - frankly I think that they're nothing more than a mess!

 

Kirengeshoma palmata is a lovely late bloomer for shade..............


Impatiens balfourii is a reliable self seeder.................




Some more Salvia with overgrown labels.................








Salvia oxyphora.................


Salvia confertiflora...................

 

I do like the implication that things were generally well labelled - either that or your knowledge is even more encyclopaedic than I realised.

My major complaint of both Durham and Sheffield botanic gardens was that there was a shortage of labels - and nobody to ask. I found this even more annoying at the Eden Project. I went with friends in March last year. It was wonderful, because there was almost no one else there. But the labels had stayed at home as well.

 

On the whole it is good although you do have to dig around sometimes!

Frustrating.

My pet gripe there as well. Pretty unforgivable on a venture of that scale I thought.

 

I really must visit again sometime soon as Mrs Scrungee & I used to visit (for free) when she was at Oxford, my opticians are still in Oxford and I'd be entitled to a £1.65 discount with my own Alumini Card, so would get some extra value out of my park and ride charge, and looking back through this thread it would appear I still have time to combine visits.