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Re: Leptospermum 'Henry Price'

Tim Longville wrote:
> 
> Many thanks to Tim and Moira for their info.
> 
> I suppose there IS a screwy kind of logic to a development which (it
> seems) goes something like this:
> 
> In area of origin A there is a plant which is basically white-flowered
> but which occasionally produces a red or pink sport. Therefore it is
> the red or pink sports from which hybrids will be developed. Said
> hybrids will then then exported to area B, where, as a result, more or
> less only red or pink forms are known. So, what do the oddity-spotters
> and empty-niche-occupiers in area B promptly do? Yup, you guessed it,
> folks. They hail as desirable rarities any WHITE forms which turn up -
> said forms back in area of origin A being dismissed meanwhile as not
> much more than weeds.
> 
> Gardening? A rational activity? Come ON...
> 
> Any Irish-based member out there (Val? Jane?) able to confirm the
> Irishness of Leptospermum H.P. and/or offer any info about the
> eponymous H.P. himself?
> 
> The hardiness of leptospermums outside their native areas is an
> interesting question. Certainly all the leptos. I happened to see in
> Ireland were L. scoparium and cultivars. (Not that I was poking
> through the undergrowth looking for rare leptos. Well, not
> PARTICULARLY for rare leptos....)
> 
> I'd have thought, though, that quite a few other spp might be
> feasible,  in favoured parts there and in the UK and around the Med.
> Indeed, I know at least a few people in the UK who do have success
> with other spp. Even this far north I've had some (limited; maybe
> short-term: wait until the next hard winter...) success with spp such
> as L. lanigerum, grandiflorum and, even - to my and Moira's
> astonishment?! - rotundifolium - and am currently trying a few others.
> Any Irish/British/Euro. members have more
> info/species-suggestions/experiences to offer?
> 
 Tim 

I was being a bit parochial when discussing Australian Leptospermums. Of
course any of the species are likely to succeed in the northern (warmer)
parts of New Zealand, even if not right here in Wainuiomata which is  a
somewhat elevated valley among the hills.

In any case, I was muddling the species, as rotundifolium (which is
listed in my NZ catalogue) being from New South Wales is probably almost
as hardy as scoparium. Another hardy one (which I don't grow myself, but
have seen elsewhere around Wellington) is L nitidum 'Copper Sheen'.
which I can definitely recommend. The species is known as the Shiny Tea
Tree and this is a very pretty selection with reddish young stems and
deep copper-bronze leaves. The flowers are greenish-yellow which seems
to fit well with the leaf colour.

>From what I can make out however, scoparium varieties are generally 
connsidered superior in that they flower when very young and display
their blooms better than the Australian species, whose flowers tend to
hide in the foliage.

Just looking at the catalogue, even if we do not have Henry Price, we
still have plenty of choice. 32 cultivars are listed, including a few
dwarf forms suitable for large rockeries. Only one white is mentioned, a
double called (somewhat unoriginally) Snow White, but, of course our
hills are spangled with acres of the wild single white every spring, so
perhaps we value the colours more, as you suggest. (For wild pink sports
you have to travel further north to the centre of the island - goodness
knows why)

Moira
-- 
Tony & Moira Ryan <theryans@xtra.co.nz>
Both Retired. Careers were: Moira - botanist/horticulturist; 
Tony - Various jobs, then computer programmer.
Wainuiomata, Lower Hutt, New Zealand
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