[Hilary]

Helianthus, Sunflower

The Netherlands issued this stamp in 2003 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Vincent Van Gogh.

The photo was taken a few days ago in the flower market of Thessalonica

Sunflowers seem to be part of the staple planting of small vegetable patches, here in Corinth. Anyone who has gone to the trouble of cultivating a  vegetable garden seems to have a few huge sunflowers along the border. I don't know if the seeds are for the birds or the humans

I found a few references to Sunflowers in
THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN and recommend the article in number 63, January 2011.
DESIGNING AND WORKING WITH THE
NATURAL LANDSCAPE IN CRETE
 by Valerie Whittington

There are photos to illustrate this article on the MGS website

[Hilary]

Vernonia fasciculata, Prairie Iron Weed and
Zerene cesonia, Southern Dogface Butterfly

This stamp was issued by the USA postal service in 2007

To find a reference in THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN I was really stretching my self- made rules.
Since this is a butterfly which lives in the USA  I searched for a garden in the USA for this post and chose
GANNA WALSKA’S GARDEN by Martin Wood in TMG number 77, July 2014.

This article also appeared in TMG, 4 Spring 1996

No mention of butterflies in the garden but there must be plenty of them

[Hilary]

Primula elatior, Oxlip, Great Cowslip

A stamp issued by San Marino in 1957.

The photo is of a potted Primula, one April, a few years ago.

You can find all you want to know about Primula elatior here
https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/13747/Primula-elatior-(Pr)/Details

I was thrilled to find a reference to this ‘weed’ in
THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN, Number 28, April 2002
Read
 HORTULUS APTUS:
A GARDEN SUITED TO ITS PURPOSE
by Helene Pizzi

[Hilary]

Euphorbia  symmetrica

Another stamp from the series SUCCULENTS issued by South Africa in 1988.

Read about it here

http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/SUCCULENTS/Family/Euphorbiaceae/1968/Euphorbia_symmetrica

Although not mentioned by name in THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN I am recommending that all you succulent growers, and others, read
HOW PLANTS COPE WITH DRYNESS:
MECHANISM OF ADAPTATION by Olivier Filippi
In TMG number 48, April 2007

[Hilary]

Begonia tuber hybrida. Tuberous begonia

A stamp issued by Poland in 1964 in a series named
GARDEN FLOWERS

At the moment the flower shops and nurseries are selling these brightly coloured pot plants for instant garden colour.

The photo is of a plant growing in a monastery yard in Thessaloniki

Begonia, in general, are mentioned many times in
THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN but I can't find a reference to this plant specifically so point you to
CALIFORNIA SEEN FROM PROVENCE: PART TWO
 By Louisa Jones in TMG number 45, July 2006

[Hilary]

Cyclamen

San Marino 1952
Stamps exhibition San Marino – Riccione

A friend of mine lent me some stamps depicting flowers to scan and use, several were from San Marino

I quote from WIKIPEDIA

Over the years, the attractive designs of San Marino’s stamps have been extremely popular with philatelists around the world.[] It is estimated that 10% of the republic’s revenue is generated by the sale of its postage stamps to international collectors. The government of San Marino has the world's only philatelic minister of state, Simone Celli, who carries the title (in Italian) La Segreteria di Stato per le finanze, il bilancio e la programmazione, l'informazione, i rapporti con l'azienda autonoma di stato filatelica e numismatica.

The photo was taken one September in Hyde Hall Gardens, UK .

There are many references to Cyclamen in
THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN and so many interesting articles to read.
Today I recommend number 34, October 2003
 THE RENAISSANCE OF A GARDEN IN RHODES
by Manuela de Montalembert

[Hilary]

Centaurea cyanus, Cornflower

A stamp issued by San Marino in 1953.

The photo was sent  to me by a friend who lives in Leeds. U.K.
She had seen this wildflower meadow on one of her trips to some stately home or garden.

This plant is mentioned twice in
THE MEDITERRANEAN  GARDEN both times in lists of plants seen growing in Mediterranean areas.
Read  TMG number 82, October 2015
EPIRUS – MGS TRIP MAY 2015 by John Joynes

[Hilary]

Clematis alpina, Austrian Clematis

A stamp issued by Switzerland in 1949 to commemorate

“ The 400th Anniversary of the Death of Niklaus Wengi”

The photo was taken in a friend’s garden in Leeds, UK

Although this plant, by the look of its name, would appear to grow in cooler climes than the ones we are used to in the Mediterranean and the photo is of a Clematis alpina growing  in a Yorkshire garden I am still directing you to  an article in

 THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN.
Go to issue number 53, July 2008 where  Mike Brown's article
CLEMATIS FOR MEDITERRANEAN GARDENS tells you everything you ever wanted to know about Clematis

[Hilary]

Impatiens balsamina
A stamp issued by MALUKU SELATAN , or so I thought until I tried to find some information
I quote from Wikipedia

“Ulrich Häger wrote in the "Großes Lexikon der Philatelie" (Great Encyclopaedia of Philately) under the keyword Maluku Selatan:

“   In 1955, approx. 150 commemorative stamps with the country name MALUKU SELATAN gradually appeared, which were supposed to have come from a new independent state formed on the Moluccas. In fact, there were efforts on the Moluccas to become independent from Indonesia, but the formation of the country never took place. But that was no obstacle for a well-known New York stamp dealer; via a middleman, he placed an order for the production of series of stamps at the Staatsdruckerei, which was promptly carried out, without making sure that Maluku Selatan really existed. These stamps, which were initially bought by many collectors due to lack of knowledge, at best have only a low value as curiosities.”

So there you are a bogus stamp

I don't have a photo of this flower but it looks very much like a plant my cousin grew from seed every year and gave to my mother.

In THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN number 16, Spring 1999
Hugo Latymer compares the use of Impatiens between the USA and the Mediterranean in his article
SEEN FROM THE GARDEN SHED:
A NURSERY MAN’S VIEWPOINT

[Hilary]

Falco sparvererius, American Kestrel.

A stamp issued by the United States Postal Service in 1999

In her article A CALIFORNIA GARDEN Katherine Greenberg writes

I wanted to encourage wildlife to visit the garden and have access to the creek for water so the property is not fenced except around the pool. The garden has become a haven for deer, squirrels, birds and an occasional coyote, fox or mountain lion.

This article can be found in THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN number 30, October 2002

[Hilary]

Lithops dorotheae

 A quotation from Wikipedia

Lithops dorotheae is a species of Lithops found in South Africa. It was named after Dorothea Huyssteen, who found the plant in 1935. It grows on fine-grained sheared quartz and feldspar rock containing feldspathic quartzite.

The third stamp in the series  SUCCULENTS issued by South Africa in 1988

Towards the back of THE MEDITERANEAN GARDEN there is a section BOOKS where the latest books on plants and gardens are reviewed. In issue number 30, October 2002 Trevor Nottle writes in his review of
 The Looking -Glass Garden – Plants and Gardens of the Southern Hemisphere

Who has not been enthralled by Lithops and Eriocactus ?

[Hilary]

Platycodon grandiflorus, Balloon Flower, Ballonblume.

A stamp issued in 2011 by Germany.

Platycodon is mentioned in THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN number 55, January 2009
In the article by Marjorie Holmes
AFTER THE FIRE

[Hilary]

Rosa, Rose

This stamp was issued by San Marino in  1952 to commemorate the Stamps exhibition San Marino – Riccione

The photo was taken at a nursery in deepest Essex where we ate breakfast.
 Breakfast and labelled plants, what more could you ask for? 

Of course there is hardly an article in
 THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN which does not mention roses.
Today I recommend issue number 35 January 2004
DALI’S GARDENS by Oriol Aguila 

[Hilary]

Helichrysum thomsonii, Thomson's Daisy, Thomson's Everlasting

A stamp issued by Australia in 1975

It features an ‘everlasting’ flower which grows in Central Australia.

The photo is of Helichrysum stoechas which grows quite near here on a very dry bank.

Helichrysum stoechas is mentioned in
 THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN number 71, January 2013
in the article
A MEDITERRANEAN OASIS: SPAROZA by Gabriel Rochard

[Hilary]

Clianthus puniceus, KOWHAI, NGUTU, KAKA

A stamp issued by New Zealand in 1960-63 in a series named FLOWERS

Apparently this plant is now known as  Kaka Beak .

I quote from Wikipedia

Clianthus, commonly known as kakabeak (Kōwhai ngutukākā in Māori), is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae, comprising two species of shrubsnative to New Zealand. They have striking clusters of red flowers which resemble the beak of the kākā, a New Zealand parrot. The plants are also known as parrot's beak, parrot's bill and lobster claw - all references to the distinctive flowers. There is also a variety with white to creamy coloured flowers.

Absolutely no mention of this plant in TMG but all is not lost, there is a discussion on this Forum  between Caroline,  on Waiheke Island, and myself about New Zealand flowers and the confusion about their names.
.
http://www.mgsforum.org/smf/index.php?topic=1986.0