Hamamelis-Witch-hazel

Waiting for my friend to join me for a walk -it was sunny and warm in last days here-I discovered she has  hamamelis planted in the front garden.It is not often used in our gardens,despite its blossom in winter and early spring, when it is the first to announce spring.I like its Slovene name -nepozebnik, it could be translated like”non-frosting”.The english name is even more interesting: witch hazel, where witch actually isn’t witch (like my friend with witch hazel in her garden ),but Old English  wice - pliant,  bendable.

Witch-hazel
Hamamelis virginiana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Core eudicots
Order:	Saxifragales
Family:	Hamamelidaceae
Genus:	Hamamelis Gronov. ex L.
Species
Hamamelis japonica Hamamelis mollis Hamamelis ovalis Hamamelis vernalis Hamamelis virginianafrom:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch-hazel

Trachelospermum jasminoides-Star Jasmine, Confederate Jasmine, and Trader’s Compass.

Here comes my little California, making this winter a bit bearable, even pleasant with all these little white flowers and scent.Star jasmine is not winter hardy in Ljubljana, but makes decorative indoor scenery.It reminds me of summer at the sea-coast, where patios are sometimes full of little white fragrant  flowers.And it does remind me of my friends in California.So I like its name “Confederate jasmine”.Funny enough, it has nothing in common with real jasmine, except nice smell.But I must object about the other name given to this plant-”Trader’s compass”-after an old Uzbekistan saying.The flover namely pointed traders where they wanted to go, if they were of good character.May I ask where did it send the others, having bad character??????And how could a plant smell the character of a trader????? 

 

Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Gentianales
Family:	Apocynaceae
Genus:	Trachelospermum
Species:	T. jasminoides
Binomial name
Trachelospermum jasminoides (Lindl.) Lem.
Synonyms
Rhynchospermum jasminoides Lindl.; from:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trachelospermum_jasminoides

Viennese rose, Augarten park and my coffee

Spartium junceum (syn. Genista juncea) is the first!

It is so cold in Europe these days,temperatures far below zero, snow, wind everywhere.In Ljubljana we have temperatures 8 degrees under average for February. I couldn’t help myself,I just had to go to the seaside, to make this winter at least a bit bearable.But down there the story is the same,with an exception-wind is there much worse (bora wind).The canals in Venice are frozen, some dalmatian islands have got snow after decades.And in Portorose, harbour of roses,  instead of buzz of many tourists walking down the main street only wind bending palms is heard.And it really is cold!Winter!But I’ve brought good news from there:SPRING IS HERE!!!!! In Portorose broom(brnistra) blooms! Its tiny, fragrant, yellow flowers have just started to bloom-no matter how bad the weather is.This are good news, indeed!!

Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Subfamily:	Faboideae
Tribe:	Genisteae
Genus:	Spartium
Species:	S. junceum
Binomial name
Spartium junceum L.

from:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spartium

 

EUROPEAN BEECH in snow

Fagus sylvatica-european beech
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Fagales
Family:	Fagaceae
Genus:	Fagus
Species:	F. sylvatica
Binomial name
Fagus sylvatica L.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fagus_sylvatica

Winter is here, we don’t have much snow ,but the temperatures are deep below zero.I had my walk anyway,in the forest behind my home.For the first time I’ve seen so many cupules  on beeches-then I remembered we had extremely hot and dry summer.Birds will be thankful………………………………maybe even I will try these seeds, in Europe they were eaten centuries ago,I only need a good recipe

Cyclamen

My sister has a nice habit of buying cyclamen for her kids each winter .As  I bought one myself last week the spring seems nearer; it will be easier to wait for the first cyclamen in the woods. A little poem goes like:C is for cyclamen-do not try to hide from us for your smell is telling where you are………

And indeed, the shy cyclamen smells so strong, you cannot miss it, as kids we wandered the woods to find the very first ones…..

Searching for more details for this post I found lake Bled district ,Slovenia,  has special dark variant of Cyclamen purpurascens: can’t wait to find it -I promise a post  ; )

Till then something from:

http://species.wikimedia.org/wiki/Cyclamen_purpurascens

Classification System: APG III (down to family level):

Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Asterids
Cladus: Unassigned Asterids
Ordo: Ericales
Familia: Primulaceae
Tribus: Cyclamineae
Genus: Cyclamen
Species: Cyclamen purpurascens