FFF428 - ROSES ARE RED...

While visiting the Victorian State Rose Garden, I took some photos of some brilliantly red roses, perhaps none so intense as this variety, "Grande Amore". It was bred by Tim Hermann Kordes (Germany, 1995) and introduced in Germany by W. Kordes' Söhne (Retail) in 2004. Introduced in United States by Wayside Gardens in 2008 as 'Grande Amore'.

This is a standout among red hybrid tea roses, acclaimed for its depth of colour and exceptional disease resistance. It produces continuous flushes of dark red, pointed buds, which open into high- centred blooms of a shiny, intense red, set off by deep green glossy leaves. It is a moderately fragrant rose and can be used readily as a cut flower.

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Happy Valentine's Day!

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FFF427 - FUCHSIA GUM

Eucalyptus forrestiana, commonly known as Fuchsia Gum, Forrest's Mallee or Forrest's Marlock, is a small tree which occurs in an area near Esperance in Western Australia. It was named after George Forrest (1873-1932). It is a mallee Eucalyptus with smooth bark and grows to between 1.5 and to 6 metres in height. It has bright red buds and yellow flowers which appear between summer and winter.

Two closely related species, E. dolichorhyncha and E. stoatei, have been treated as subspecies in the past. It is a pretty multi-stemmed native tree with a dark green canopy and smooth grey bark. It produces brilliant flowers in summer that are red caps and yellow flowers in summer and winter. Great as a streetscape tree or suited to a garden, adding colour and drama. It prefers well-drained sandy soils. It is drought and frost tolerant and copes with limited waterlogging. Flowers and fruit are useful as cut flowers.

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FFF426 - WATER LILY

Nymphaea (water lily) is a genus of hardy and tender aquatic plants in the family Nymphaeaceae. There are about 50 species in the genus, which has a cosmopolitan distribution. White-flowered waterlilies (of several species) are the national flower of Bangladesh.

The name Nymphaea comes from the Greek term "Νυμφαία", possibly related to "Νύμφη" meaning "nymph". The nymphs in Greek mythology were supernatural feminine beings associated with springs, so the application of the name to delicately flowered aquatic plants is understandable. Despite its common name "water lily" (water-lily, waterlily), Nymphaea is not related to the true lily, Lilium.

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FFF425 - WISTERIA

Wisteria (also spelled Wistaria or Wysteria) is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, that includes ten species of woody climbing bines native to the Eastern United States and to China, Korea, and Japan. Some species are popular ornamental plants, especially in China and Japan. The botanist Thomas Nuttall said he named the genus Wisteria in memory of Dr. Caspar Wistar (1761–1818). Questioned about the spelling later, Nuttall said it was for "euphony", but his biographer speculated that it may have something to do with Nuttall's friend Charles Jones Wister, Sr, of Grumblethorpe, the grandson of the merchant John Wister.

Wisteria sinensis, shown here flowers in the spring (just before or as the leaves open). Here is a Summer-flowering plant, which is in our neighbour's garden presently. Our squiffy weather may have something to do with the unseasonal blooming! The flowers of this species are fragrant, and the seeds are produced in pods similar to those of Laburnum, and, like the seeds of that genus, are poisonous. Wisteria is an extremely hardy plant that is considered an invasive species in many parts of the world.

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FFF424 - DAISIES

Argyranthemum (marguerite, marguerite daisy, dill daisy) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Asteraceae. Members of this genus are sometimes also placed in the genus Chrysanthemum. The genus is endemic to Macaronesia, occurring only on the Canary Islands, the Savage Islands, and Madeira.

Argyranthemum frutescens is recorded as a food plant of the leaf-mining larva of the moth Bucculatrix chrysanthemella. Varieties and cultivars of Argyranthemum (sometimes listed under A. frutescens) are widely sold as garden plants, for summer bedding or containers. They produce prolific single- or double-flowered daisy-like flowers in shades of white, pink, yellow and purple throughout summer. They are generally half-hardy, and can be grown from seed or cuttings, or purchased as young plants to be planted out after all danger of frost has passed.

Several cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. Illustrated here is the cultivar Marguerite Daisy 'Madeira® (Argyranthemum frutescens) 'Crested Merlot', which blooms prolifically. This is an easily grown variety that is particularly suited for pots and planters.

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FFF423 - YARROW

Achillea millefolium, commonly known as yarrow or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Asia, Europe, and North America. It has been introduced as a feed for live stock in places like New Zealand and Australia. However, it is a weed in those places and sometimes also in its native regions.

In New Mexico and southern Colorado, it is called plumajillo (Spanish for 'little feather') from its leaf shape and texture. In antiquity, yarrow was known as herba militaris, for its use in stanching the flow of blood from wounds. Other common names for this species include gordaldo, nosebleed plant, old man's pepper, devil's nettle, sanguinary, milfoil, soldier's woundwort, thousand-leaf, and thousand-seal.

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FFF422 - JUBILEE CELEBRATION ROSE

Rosa Jubilee Celebration ('Aushunter') (Pbr) is an exceptionally free-flowering rose named to commemorate the Queen's Golden Jubilee. It produces a mass of golden-flushed, pink blooms through the summer, each held clear of the foliage on stout stems. Their scent is strong and fruity.

A vigorous and healthy shrub rose that will provide months of colour in the border.Position: Full sun; Soil: Fertile, humus-rich, moist, well-drained; Rate of growth: Fast-growing; Flowering period: June to September; Flower colour: Salmon-pink; Other features: Excellent cut-flowers; Hardiness: Fully hardy.

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FFF421 - PASSIONFLOWERS

Passiflora, known also as the passion flowers or passion vines, is a genus of about 500 species of flowering plants, the namesakes of the family Passifloraceae. They are mostly vines, with some being shrubs, and a few species being herbaceous. The monotypic genus Hollrungia seems to be inseparable from Passiflora, but further study is needed.

Nine species of Passiflora are native to the USA, found from Ohio to the north, west to California and south to the Florida Keys. Most other species are found in South America, Eastern Asia, and Southern Asia, New Guinea, four or more species in Australia and a single endemic species in New Zealand. New species continue to be identified: for example, P. pardifolia and P. xishuangbannaensis have only been known to the scientific community since 2006 and 2005, respectively.

Some species of Passiflora have been naturalised beyond their native ranges. For example, Blue Passion Flower (P. caerulea) now grows wild in Spain. The purple passionfruit (P. edulis) and its yellow relative P. flavicarpa have been introduced in many tropical regions as commercial crops. A number of species of Passiflora are cultivated outside their natural range because of their beautiful flowers. Hundreds of hybrids have been named; hybridising is currently being done extensively for flowers, foliage and fruit.

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FFF420 - JADE PLANT VISITOR

Crassula ovata, commonly known as jade plant, lucky plant, money plant or money tree, is a succulent plant with small pink or white flowers. It is native to South Africa and Mozambique, and is common as a houseplant worldwide. Much of its popularity stems from the low levels of care needed; the jade plant requires little water and can survive in most indoor conditions. It is sometimes referred to as the money tree; however, Pachira aquatica also has this nickname.

Honey bees are a subset of bees in the genus Apis, primarily distinguished by the production and storage of honey and the construction of perennial, colonial nests out of wax. Honey bees are the only extant members of the tribe Apini, all in the genus Apis. Currently, there are only seven recognised species of honey bee with a total of 44 subspecies, though historically, anywhere from six to eleven species have been recognised. Honey bees represent only a small fraction of the approximately 20,000 known species of bees. Some other types of related bees produce and store honey, but only members of the genus Apis are true honey bees.

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FFF419 - KNIPHOFIA

Kniphofia uvaria is also known as Tritoma, Torch Lily, or Red Hot Poker due to the shape and colour of its inflorescence. The leaves are reminiscent of a lily, and the flowerhead can reach up to 1.52 m in height. There are many varieties of torch lily, and they bloom at different times during the growing season. The flowers are red, orange, and yellow.

Kniphofia uvaria originates from the Cape Province of South Africa, and has been introduced into many parts of the world, such as North America, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe as a garden plant. It is hardy in zones 5-10. In parts of south-eastern Australia, such as the Central and Southern Tablelands of New South Wales and southern Victoria, it has escaped cultivation and become naturalised.

It is now regarded as an environmental weed in these locations, spreading from former habitations into natural areas, where it can grow in thick clumps and threaten sensitive ecosystems. Elsewhere in southern Australia it is regarded as a potential environmental weed, and it may have also naturalised in parts of South Australia and California.

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