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17 DEC 11 by
Tessie
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Breathtaking! Love that combination of lupines with roses.
Melissa
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Yes, but it's a pity both are weeds.
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#2 of 9 posted
17 DEC 11 by
Tomartyr
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Margaret, I think of weeds as plants growing where they are not wanted. These lupins are not the noxious, yellow riverbed variety. They are Russell lupins - the same variety as the widely accepted garden plant and they densely inhabit mile after mile of rural roadside in the area concerned. Those that seed across the fence where livestock graze don't seem to survive. They enhance the beauty of the area and are a tourist attraction in their own right. I'm sure none of the local folk would prefer to be without them and although they have naturalised, they are certainly not weeds by my definition. The local farmers would no doubt prefer to be without the briar roses, however, so they could well be called weeds, despite the attractiveness of their flowers and hips.
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#3 of 9 posted
17 DEC 11 by
Tessie
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I like lupines and they can be very beneficial to soil, being nitrogen-fixers. As a matter of fact, I just added one (lupinus arboreus or tree lupine) to one of my rosebeds in order to provide a source of nitrogen that I won't have to supply. I won't know until it blooms whether I have the yellow or blue-flowered plant, but I think it will look nice in either case, nestled between Henry Nevard and Duchesse de Rohan.
Melissa
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#4 of 9 posted
17 DEC 11 by
 Jay-Jay
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I agree with Tomartyr whe he states: "I think of weeds as plants growing where they are not wanted"!
And like Tessie, this year I planted "nitrogen-fixers" between the roses, but that were green beans, so we had something to enjoy eating too!
And it looked great too.
The picture is gorgeous and the display is not only suitable for the tourist's eye.
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I heard a story that a homesick immigrant had seeds sent to NZ, and grew them on; then distributed seeds to all her visitors, asking them to strew them along roadsides. Lovely story and lovely effect, but we've all been burned badly by people doing such things without knowing the possible outcome. The Viper's Bugloss in another of your pics (Echium candicans, Paterson's Curse, Salvation Jane) is feral in Aus too, and is a horse poison. Baron von Mueller thought it would be a good idea to spread blackberries in Aus so travellers would have something to eat, with no idea of what destruction he was wreaking. Many South African ornamentals have become pest plants in Aus, as have Aus. Hakeas in South Africa. Not to mention the impact of kudzu (and the rose that "eats cattle and tractors") in the US.
Too late to cure those ills, but I guess the message for us all now is: don't bypass Quarantine.
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#6 of 9 posted
18 DEC 11 by
Tomartyr
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There's no denying that many plant (and animal) species imported by our homesick forebears, in hindsight would have been better left in their native lands. But would we have been better off without them? Yes, we could have done without a great many of them, but New Zealand without any introduced species is unimaginable. No pine trees, no pasture grasses (as we know them), no bees, no roses and... no sheep! One of the most regrettable mistakes was the the introduction in 1837 of Australian possums, which have no natural predators here; they outnumber humans by seven to one and they continue to decimate the habitat of our native birdlife, not to mention their liking for the new growth on roses!
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#7 of 9 posted
18 DEC 11 by
Jay-Jay
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And what about ALL the roses, You're so fond of? Or are there native roses in both New zealand and Australia?
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No, there are no roses native to the southern hemisphere. Yes I like roses, but I like native plants too, and could survive comfortably without roses. Yes, Australia wouldn't be the same without (imported) Jacarandas and peppertrees (Schinus molle), and no, there aren't any native grasses suitable for cereal crops. But even the agricultural assets have their price. European bees, for example, escape to the wild and displace native creatures (including native bees ) from their nesting tree-holes, which are becoming a sparse commodity as forests are cleared.
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#9 of 9 posted
18 DEC 11 by
Jay-Jay
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Yes Margaret, I understand, what You mean to say. In America for example the Africanized bees and in The Netherlands for instance the mites and chafers, that decimate the beepopulations.
Or ambrosia (known for causing pollinosis/hayfever) and invasive imported (for gardenponds) waterplants, that completely suffocate the life under the watersurface of our canals and ditches.
Or foreign lobsters, bullfrogs or oysters that thrive in our waters and elbow out the native flora and fauna.
Yes I understand Your point of vieuw! But without a lot of exotes or cultivars, it would be a bit dull!
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