Wildflower Wednesday and First of Advent

Gail at Clay and Limestone’s Wildflower Wednesday is usually my chance to walk around the garden – collecting what is blooming to attention. But they must be indigenous, native to South Africa. As I did last November. Today our wild iris Dietes will monopolise this WFW. It began life as part of my free seed allocation for members of the Botanical Society based at Kirstenbosch. Now it is SANBI South African National Biodiversity Institute  which hosts the PlantZAfrica site I like to use. Biodiversity e.g. barn swallow migration and climate change.

Dietes grandiflora

Dietes grandiflora has that American habit known as walking onions. The flower stems arch up out away, and when they bow down and touch the ground a fan of leaves grows and a daughter plant grows where she can drop in at mum for dinner. They say – wild iris anticipates rain, and will bloom prophetically. In the picture from September 2007 this is a harmless little fan of leaves polka dotted in the centre of the Summer Gold bed at Paradise and Roses. Today the clump claims about a sixth of the bed, wedges its elbows into Mandela’s Gold, Courvoisier and Elizabeth of Glamis.  And I see granddaughters looking to leave home.  About two weeks ago we had an uncountable mass of blooms. Needs some water in summer, so happy to share with the roses. Dietes means two relatives – who are Moraea and Iris.

Dietes grandiflora 

Dietes grandiflora

This coming Sunday will be the First of Advent. Thanks to a Hungarian craft site who featured me as one of her set of Advent wreaths around the web last year – I have visitors coming to the blog from many Eastern European countries – I'm using StatCounter to teach me geography. This Advent my Hungarian blogger is focused on decorating the nursery for her unborn baby!

A dark Advent wreath

Last year we had silver leaves and white silk balls. This year I am drawn to darker colours. The platter beneath is a teal blue from my sister. One tuberous begonia leaf spreads it palm in support behind the candles. We pruned the two olives at the road entrance, and those leaves, turned up to show silver, are the arms extended in an embrace.    

Advent wreath

Agapanthus suffers so much from commonorgarden that they call it Lily of the Nile. Excuse me! De Nial is a river in Egypt, up, at the European end of Africa. We, where the Agapanthus is at home, are at the other Antarctic end of Africa. Blue African lily is a better name. Agapanthus forms an exclusive family all its own, found only in South Africa. The Latin name means Love and Flower, or Flower I’m Contented with (so long as I remember some summer watering!). Always something new out of Africa – blue lilies, Kingfisher blue Felicia daisies.

Advent wreath

And skipping away from indigenous, staying with the dark theme, I have red roses – Anna’s Red, Papa Meilland and Alec’s Red.

Advent wreath 2011

Thanks to our Swiss friends who once gave us the Hergiswil glass Advent wreath – I will simply replace as needed, during the three weeks that span four Advent Sundays.

Pictures and words by Diana of  Elephant's Eye 

- wildlife gardening in Porterville, near Cape Town in South Africa

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