THE SEED HAS ARRIVED.
At this time of the year most people look forward to the arrival of cards from long lost friends or relatives wishing them the all the best for the festive season and the New Year. It is not the arrival of cards that makes my festive season complete, but the gentle thud on the hall floor that signifies the arrival of my free allocation of seed from the Alpine Garden Society.
Although the same thing happens every year and I can forecast almost to the day when the package will arrive, I still get that little buss of excitement opening the padded envelope and scurrying around looking for the seed list. All the numbers are carefully checked with particular attention paid to those that were underlined in red. (Yes I do keep a photocopy just to see how many of my first choice seeds I receive)
A quick glance revealed that I had got 27 out of the 32 underlined. Now for a more detailed check, and a pen to write the details into the seed book. No 1 Androsace integra (SAQE817) collected in China. This one is supposed to resemble A. bulleyana, with fairly large rosettes that hug the ground. Should be interesting, as I have not grown it before.
No 4 is another Androsace, just listed as Sp. (SAQE671) also from China, and should cerate a certain amount of excitement if anything at all germinates.
The next one underlined was No 430, Rhodothamnus chamaecistus. No luck with this one will have to wait another year.
No 567 did arrive though, Androsace aff maxima, an annual with white or sometimes pink flowers and should make an interesting addition to my annual collection of Androsaces.
No luck with No 783, Androsace bisulca aureate the yellow Androsace.
The next seven were all on the list 1407 through 1413, Anomatheca, Laxa, laxa alba, alba-maculata, laxa blue form, Joan evans, laxa mixed, red eye, and viridus. While I do have some of these in stock already I want as wide a variation as possible with the view of embarking on a comprehensive breeding program.
1827 Calceolaria falklandica 1831 C. sp 1832 C. tripartita 1833 C. uniflora darwinii and 1834 C. walter shrimpton. All arrived and will make the nucleus of another breeding attempt.
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