Rock Garden Quarterly Summer 2012 - (Page 265)

All-American beauty, appear to be so vastly underappreciated in North American gardens? Obviously at least part of this is due to the difficulties getting seed: it can defeat the attentions of the collector by dispersing its seed just as the nervous collector approaches. James H. Locklear’s book, Phlox: A Natural History and Gardener’s Guide, is a wonderful and illustrative resource to find specific phlox species suitable for your environment and preference. Alan Bradshaw of Alplains offers many phlox seeds. Siskiyou Rare Plants Nursery sells phlox plants, as does Laporte Avenue Nursery. Some species tend to produce seeds at irregular intervals and require cold stratification for germination; subsequently, some varieties of phlox can be hard to acquire. The Phlox mentioned in this article are simply the Colorado sampling of the nearly seventy species of the genus, each with its unique personality and quirks. All species are native to North America with the exception of P. sibirica, which grows in Siberia. Phlox have adapted to dry, wet, sun, and shade: the environment ranges from the scree of the alpine-growing P. pulvinata, the shade of the woodlandloving P. stolonifera, to the arid charm of the desert-dwelling P. austromontana. Their loyalty is unparalleled. Just as seasons change from spring to summer to fall to winter, gardeners too must re-situate themselves from around the nation and the world. Although it may sound heartbreaking to leave your garden, groomed and loved over varying lengths of time, be sure to take your phloxes wherever you may migrate. No matter where you may find your new residence you will certainly find a loyal species of phlox to tickle your fancy: phloxes will follow you wherever you may go. PLANTS/SEED SOURCES Alplains P.O. Box 489, Kiowa, CO 80117-0489 www.alplains.com - email: alandean7@msn.com Siskiyou Rare Plant Nursery 2115 Talent Ave, Talent, OR 97540 (tel: 541-535-7103) www.siskiyourareplantnursery.com Laporte Avenue Nursery 1950 Laporte Avenue Fort Collins, CO 80521 (tel: 970-472-0017) www.laporteavenuenursery.com - email: klehrer23@msn.com BIBLIOGRAPHY Locklear, James H. Phlox: A Natural History and Gardener’s Guide. 2011. Farrer, Reginald John. The English Rock Garden, 1919. Weber, William A. Colorado Flora: Eastern Slope. 1990. Weber, William A. Colorado Flora: Western Slope. 1987. Fire in the Hole: Phlox across Colorado 265 http://www.alplains.com http://www.siskiyourareplantnursery.com http://www.laporteavenuenursery.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rock Garden Quarterly Summer 2012

Digital Quarterly
Expanding Panayoti's Axioms
Photo Contest 2012
Photographing Alpine Plants: A Landscape Point of View
NARGS 2013 Election Timetable
Rock Gardening from Scratch - Seeds
Kim Blaxland and the Violets of North America
Viola pedata
Violas, Kim, and Us - A Celebration
Cooking Native Japanese Plants
Carl Gehenio Memorial Trough Show
Fire in the Hole: Phlox across Colorado
Rebuilding a Rock Garden in Pittsburgh
A Remarkable Garden: David Douglas and the Shrub-steppe of the Columbia Plateau
Bookshelf - Reviews
Swedish Dreams
Treasurer's Report
Bulletin Board
2012 - Eastern Study Weekend: October, Pittsburgh

Rock Garden Quarterly Summer 2012