One of the things I like about going for hikes in the mountains of Labrador is to look at the alpines. Mostly they grow in clumps close to the soil and you have to get up close to realise their true beauty. This plant is the only species in the Diapensia genus although two subspecies exist. Those being Diapensia lapponica subsp. lapponica and Diapensia lapponica subsp. obovata.
Wow, what an impressive little plant. I can grow many alpine and rock plants in the favoured climate of Vancouver, but nothing like a simple yet gorgeous Diapensia lapponica. Nice photos!
Hey Brent. Thanks a lot. You have to admire the advid rock gardener for having a trained eye to see and recognize the beauty of small alpines under their feet. I've seen a couple nice alpine gardens and the gardeners are obsessed with collecting them. Hopefully one day I will have one of my own but from what I have seen it takes a lot of patience, especially when growing certain alpines from seed.
My pleasure to see it. I was really happy to view up close a truly "overlooked" plant brought to some greater attention. If you were to start a rock/alpine garden, you could easily buy a few small plants instead of raising from seed. While there's lots to be said for the satisfaction of it, the rock garden societies are always in need of support. The local one here, Alpine Garden Club of BC, invites the public to come and mingle, hear the speaker and see what it's all about, without having to join up right away. They often have Spring and/or Fall sales, too. I think they're a largely unknown resource of unusual, often completely one-off, unique plants that couldn't ever be found at the retail level anywhere. Just a few thoughts there ... As for collecting, it's a human trait to do so, isn't it. I know I'm hooked. Whenever I'm out hiking, visiting countryside around here or in far flung places, my eye is now trained to see things others don't. I bring home little treasures of seed or plant bits regularly from my travels. Happy exploring !
I agree about these plants being unique. I have spent the last couple of years photographing and compiling a native plant database for Labrador. I come across a lot of neat plants but the alpines are the most unique. Fortunately if I do plan on starting an alpine garden, I live close to the mountains where I can collect some native specimens. Within a 100 ft square area these are some of the alpines I can come up with: Salix uva-ursi, Arctous alpina, Loiseleuria procumbens, Phyllodoce empetriformis, Vaccinium uliginosum and of course Diapensia lapponica. Besides that there are a lot more common alpines that I fail to mention. Unfortunately I live in an isolated mining town and I do not have the luxury of having garden clubs or descent nurseries or garden centers. I think I live in zone 0-1 or something. If I do want to add some alpines to my garden, that are not native to my area, I will have to specially order them from outside. A friend of mine tells me that a good place for alpine seeds though is Gardens North, although I have never really checked it out. I imagine that propagating my own from seed will be my best bet so I dont pay a fortune for shipping of live plant material. These are just some of the problems I face.
I hope you will start a small alpine/rock garden. What a unique garden that would be! Incidentally, have you heard to the Tromso Botanic Garden? If not, check them here: http://uit.no/botanisk?Language=en They are in the somewhat enviable position of being a high latitude, coastal garden, with very mild year round temps, due to the Gulf Stream's influence. I find it inspirational to look at sometimes. As for importing plants, it might be expensive, yes. Another good source is Alpines Mont Echo in Quebec. I imagine that if I were starting a garden in Labrador, I'd attempt to fill it with local plants first, then try growing a few things from seed, then import later. Do you collect any native plant seed in the Fall? Don't forget it's rather straightforward to grow plants like Arctuous,Phyllodoce and Salix from cuttings; much quicker!
Labtea, Nice pictures! Thanks for sharing. Most of us probably won't ever have the chance to see one in real life. Which makes your pictures all the more intriguing.
Wow I didn't actually think I would get BPotD but I am honoured! This site hasn't been working for me for the past day and a half so I was surprised I actually seen it selected for BPotD. Thanks for the kind words Weekend Gardener and thanks Brent for the great write up for Diapensia. I definitely learned a lot about the plant that I did not originally know. More unique than I thought!
My pleasure, LabTea. Anytime (from Spring, that is) you want to take another interesting image(s) of Labradorian plants, please feel free to send it this way. I would love to see more.
