More jottings from my old garden.
Prunus
The wild cherry, just slipped this one in because I had one at the bottom of the garden. Unsurprisingly the avium comes from the fact it is generally propagated from seed deposited by our feathered friends.
Rhus
The stag’s horn sumach, is a bit of a curiosity, it only fruits on female plants although the male carries the flowers. It gets its name from the way the branches resemble a stag’s antlers also the stems carry a sort of brown velvety russet which is also reminiscent. A fairly undemanding, strong grower, it is easy to propagate as it produces plentiful suckers and can quickly turn into a thicket if allowed. The pictures could possibly be of Rhus typhina laciniata.
Ribes
Flowering currants are one of those plants which belong to the era of when forsythia, philadelphus and ribes was just about all that was on offer. The flowers offered early nectar for bees and other insects but once flowered the actual shrub itself was hardly engaging for the rest of the year. Still has a place in the larger garden with some cultivars available, in particular an old favourite R.sanguineum ‘Kind Edward VII’. As you would expect the prevailing impression from the plant is the smell of currants.
Robinia
Known in the UK usually as the false acacia this tree is actually a legume even to the extent that the roots fixate nitrogen. I never really liked it, although the fresh leaves were attractive, it frequently carried areas of die back and a rather untidy form as can be seen in the photo’. In this case it did die completely one day so I had to tolerate it no further.
Rosa sericea subsp. omiensis f. pteracantha
This is real one-off, it was impossible to grow roses in my damp shaded garden without massive fungal problems but when I heard about this rose from parts of China and read an account of it growing in Nepal I had to have it! Grown for its spectacular thorned stems it had small nondescript white flowers followed by red hips of which unfortunately, I don’t have a picture, however the spectacular red stems and thorns make up for it.
Fallopia
The Russian vine or one time Russian glory vine, (syn. Polygonum baldschuanicum) was very popular for covering up unsightly structures until it was realised it could also cause untold damage to the structures and any shrubs and even trees in the vicinity. Superb when in flower but rather uninspiring for the rest of the year, definitely needs handling with care!
A Plantsman's World 
The Rhus have such lovely color, a gem. That Rosa sericea, whoa – I’ve not seem that before and the thorns and stems are gorgeous.
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I always remember the rhus from my parents garden, it was one of the few plants that they had. I couldn’t resist the rose, partly because of its Himalayan origins and just took one look at those thorns! Glad you liked them.
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Oh, for Peat’s sake! Like so many modern “problems”, it seems that the solution for people who do not want to use peat is for them to not use it. I avoid the stuff because I do not often propagate from seed, am not growing anything commercially, and my favorite plants are native to my area and need nothing from me once established. I went out yesterday and scattered random native seeds straight onto the soil of the area set aside for my expansion. My indoor plant habit has gravitated to Tillandsia, so no soil required at all! We have a big peat industry in my state and I am more interested in preserving some peat bog habitat because it is interesting. Areas already in production are not exactly a peat bog habitat and one cannot exactly create one de novo. I hope that some peatlands are saved for environmental reasons having to do with habitats not so much the CO2 question. There is value in protecting certain habitats and this can be done without impacting areas already under production. Here is one such area in my state. Nice article!
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Thank you for your your comment and link to Suk Cerney, as I pointed out the movement started out to protect endangered peatlands, which are now largely protected, before it was hijacked by the Greens and the Nanny State. I think your point about those who don’t want to use it do so is excellent as long as they leave the rest of us alone. Because I grow many acid loving plants and grow mostly from seed I do use peat but I get so annoyed that gardeners pay the price for such illogical legislation. In my new small garden I tend to grow some natives as they stand a better chance of survival, but, with very few exceptions, I wouldn’t dream of broadcasting the seed in situ, I am definitely envious! 🙂
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