Re: Corrected Buchus: None So Blind...




Apologies. The pessimist doesn't see what's in front of his eyes
because he doesn't EXPECT it to be there. In fact, Silverhill do offer
a few buchus species (and perhaps if we ordered some from them and
gently suggested...., future catalogues might offer more). The ones
listed in the current (Jan 99) catalogue are:

Agathosma ciliaris (Zone 8, aromatic, clustered white/mauve fls, to
2');

A. crenulata (Zone 8, aromatic, white flowers, sun or semi shade,
likes moisture, to 2m);

A ovata (Zone 8, aromatic, compact, showy white/mauve fls, to 3m);

A. thymifolia (Zone 9, 'very showy shrub,' fls mauve in terminal
clusters, to 1m);

Coleonoma pulchellum;

Diosma acmaeophylla (Zone 8, aromatic, white fls, to 2m).

(Treat the Zone indications with caution, I'd suggest.)

But no Sheilanthera, alas, so I'm still looking for a chance to try my
Paul Hogan line on somebody...
Tim Longville

Hi All

The SA Rutacea are definitely a neglected part of our flora, though there is
now an increased interest in them with the new awareness of waterwise
gardens.
As a family they have the habit of forming neat compact bushes, which with
their scents, makes them attractive garden subjects, even when they are not
flowering. Most of them are also tolerant of a wide variety of soils -
though I wouldn't try to go alkaline - & will take summer watering so being
able to be included into more demanding plantings.
I'd say the spp listed would give you a good representitive selection of the
family. Add the Coleonema album ( white flowered ) & the Coleonema ' Sunset
Gold ', which I think should be more easily available in the garden centres,
& its the makings of a nice collection.

The Agathosma crenulata is the only really difficult one there. Its the true
medicinal buchu & I think works on the  tested natural medicinal theory that
anything tasting that vile must be good for you. It was used for sorting out
troubled stomachs. I've met two returned servicemen from the 2nd War who
came back with dysentry, which no concoction of the time could touch, who
maintained they cured it with a tincture of buchu brandy. You can still buy
it in the bottle stores here.
Buchu harvesting is now a multimillion dollar industry here, with the vast
majority of it going to Japan & Germany for food flavourants. Unfortunately,
given SAs apptitude for criminality & the making of a fast buck, the
situation is getting out of hand. Illegal gangs hit the farmers at night
steal their crops & also raid the nature reserves & strip them. They'll cut
the bushes to the ground, with no thought of continued cropping & tomorrows
income. Its getting to the point where the conservation status of the
species is being questioned.
I've tried growing it a few times. A difficult seed to germinate ( I'd
definitely recommend smoke water on all the species seeds ) & each time I've
got it away it slowly yellows off in the ground & dies in a couple of
seasons. I do have a very heavy soil. In nature I've only ever found it
growing in coarse, white,sandstone derived soils, adjacent to streams in the
kloofs. This doesn't necessarily mean their roots are always in water but
they do have a cool, deep root run, & the environment always seems
relatively cooler & humid..Also go for a lot of sun with them all.
The aroma when you're hiking & force your way through a thicket of them can
be quite overwhelming. The scent of the fynbos is quite lovely actually &
the agathosmas form a large component of it. There are several areas with
quite large thickets of different spp ( Riversdale & Cape St Francis for
example ) where the air just seems to drip with their  scent. A planting of
even a few in the garden can give this effect as well - especially on a
crisp, still morning.

The Acmadenia is also nice. They tend to form smaller, more compact bushes
with a longer flowering period than the other genera.

Your Sheilanthera I'm afraid I'm not at all familiar with. Are you sure its
from SA & not an Aussie ?

Regards

Glenn Breayley. Ragnarok & Valhalla Research.
POBox 26158, Hout Bay, 7872, Capetown, South Africa
Ph/Fax SA 021 7904253  E-mail valhalla@iafrica.com
Wholesale nurseryman & Tillandsia specialist wholesale & retail grower.
Equivalent USDA zone 10
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