Plant
of the Month
|
 |
October/November 2005
Ranunculus
gramineus
by Harold McBride
 |
|
Ranunculus gramineus
© Harold McBride
|
I first became awareof this errect, slender perennial
buttercup when I admired several plants growing in a
gardening friend's Co. Down rock-garden. When I expressed
my delight a well-grown seedling was produced and soon
became established in one of my raised-beds.
This was over a quarter of a century ago and I am pleased
to report that the same plant and its descendants are
still with me, so its first two attributes as a worthy
garden plant must be long-lived and easy to cater for.
R. gramineus grows in well-drained Alpine meadows
in Southern Europe where I found the slender branched
flowering stems reach heights of 20-30cm, in garden
conditions it may be slightly taller reaching 35-40
cm.
 |
|
Ranunculus gramineus
in the garden
© Harold McBride
|
This ranunculus is clump-forming with basal leaves
linear to lanceolate with a strongly glacous appearence.
The delightful rich glistening yellow flowers 2cm or
more across are produced in early May and last for several
weeks. Viable seed is usually produced and is best sown
fresh, if you are not a tidy gardener (like myself)
self-sown seedlings will often be found around the plant
in early spring.
These seedlings are in great demand from garden visitors
who become enchanted when they see this buttercup in
flower- just as I was all those years ago.
R. gramineus requires a rich well-drained soil
in full sun, the leaves disappear below ground in late
summer and do not emerge until February. Some years
ago this excellent buttercup was deservedly given an
AGM (Award of Garden Merit) by the Royal Horticultural
Society, and although rather tall for a pot, it is somtimes
exibited at Alpine Garden Society shows in Dublin and
Belfast. It is often available on plant sales tables
at both these shows
Contributor
|
 Harold
McBride gardens at Lisburn, Co. Antrim.
His garden is devoted to the cultivation
and propagation of alpine plants. Around
70% of his garden plants have been grown
from seed, many from seed collection by
AGS, SRGC, NZAGS and NARGS.
The garden has featured on many TV programmes
and plant publications, including the Royal
Horticultural Society journal 'The Garden'.
Harold has travelled widely to seek out
plants in many of the world's mountains
and lectures internationally including USA,
New Zealand and many countries of Europe.
He has served as Chairman of the Ulster
Alpine
Garden Society Group and the main AGS
committee. He is currently a Vice President
of the AGS.
|
|
Photo Credits
|
All photos courtesy of Mr. Harold McBride.
|
|
[TOP OF PAGE] [BACK
TO INDEX]
|
