Douglas Justice's September in the Garden 2025 - UBC Botanical Garden blog has been out for three weeks. I'm just getting around to posting photos from four days ago when I met up with Nadia at the garden. There are still lots of flowers, and some showy fruits too. Here are just a few from the Entrance Plaza. The Hesperantha coccinea labels do not have cultivar names, but it's clear in the blog photos what's what. Here is Hesperantha coccinea 'Major' (river lily) and Hesperantha coccinea 'November Cheer'. Gomphocarpus physocarpus, balloon cottonbush, were in bloom with fruits last month. I got somewhat better photos this time of what I know of as "bishop's balls". I didn't find any ants on the flowers - see the blog for a good photo of those. We were very excited by the Iris domestica, blackberry lily. I probably post Kirengeshoma palmata every year. The plant on the north side of Upper Asian Way still has lots of flowers in good shape or yet to open and just a few fruits. The first two photos are from this plant. I'm not sure if the third photo is from a plant a little farther down south of the main path. The plant across the path on the south side had a visible label in previous years: Hesperantha coccinea Koreana Group. The flowers were finished on this, all the better to appreciate what Douglas described as "Martian-helmet fruits" and what I have always called "Sputnik fruits". I'll do fruits next, some from the blog and others that caught my eye.
FRUITS Here are my two favourite Sorbus trees, or at least they used to both be Sorbus. One has changed its genus (twice) and one has changed its epithet or species name. Here with its brand new name is Micromeles caloneura, bronze-fruited Asian whitebeam. What this tree and its fruits lack in colour it makes up for in drama. Here is Sorbus splendens, a name I learned about last year (see Douglas Justice's reply to my posting at https://forums.botanicalgarden.ubc....apples-and-pome-relatives.104839/#post-446059). I never remember the name anyway, always search for it as "Christmas tree sorbus" because it is so heavily laden with bright fruits that it just seems like it's adorned with holiday decorations. Here is Sorbus setschwanensis, common name mountain ash. I haven't been noticing the Decaisnea insignis (dead man's fingers) fruits developing. But all of a sudden, here they are and there are so many this year. I was going to post Disporum longistylum 'Night Heron' fruits here, but I found a thread I posted for ID for this plant from seven years ago, so I have posted the photos there, at https://forums.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/threads/purple-leaves-drooping-flowers.93133/#post-448456. I paid attention this time to the Quercus myrsinifolia and its developing acorns. We cut through the Food Garden, were impressed with this plant that I have identified as Physalis philadelphica - tomatillo. Someone can let me know if that's not right. I have room for a few more photos. Here are some spider webs. And a slug on the main path. I didn't measure it, but it was at least 10cm.
Here are some plants from the African section of the E. H. Lohbrunner Alpine Garden. This is Watsonia fourcadei. Acanthus sennii Gladiolus saundersii Ceratotheca triloba - South African foxglove Here's another fruit - Vaccinium cylindraceum, Azores blueberry. Just cross the path into the North America section of the Alpine Garden are Epilobium canum subsp. canum 'Sir Cedric Morris' (common name California fuchsia) and Epilobium canum subsp. latifolium, common names California fuchsia, zauschneria. Pretty much off-topic now that I can see what I've forgotten to post, the persimmon tree, Diospyros kaki 'Izu', at the edge of the Food Garden has more fruits than I remember ever seeing. I think these are flowers at the base of the Zingiber mioga, and I think they are just starting. The knock-my-socks-off moment last week was from the Fargesia scabrida - orange-stem bamboo.
I can't tell how large the individual Physalis plants are, but the fruits don't look much bigger than the flowers; so, I would guess that these are some sort of Ground Cherry, one of many species. My tomatillos are huge plants, a single plant easily reaching 8 ft tall and wide; and the fruits are baseball size.
Thanks, @vitog. I think I've only seen tomatillos that are between cherry tomato and regular small tomato size. I don't know anything about ground cherries. I'm seeing a botanical name of Physalis pruinosa. I wonder if I have seen them at a farmer's market and not realized they weren't just orange cherry tomatoes. Well, if ground cherries are sold at all in markets, it would usually be with their husks still on? I've posted it on Instagram to see if UBCBG gardener Linda Layne will notice and reply.
