A Tale of Two Toads.

Whilst I was walk round the garden looking to see if I could find some interesting and eye - catching plants on this last day of November I come across two very dissimilar toad frog . The first is a Toad lily;Tricyrtis . I had forgotten I had this plant as it uprise in a dark and dingy part of the garden that I had n’t looked at for a while . A friend who is woefully no longer with us reach this plant to me years ago and I ’m not certain whether it isTricyrtis formosana”Purple Beauty ’ or perhapsTricyrtis Hirta . I wonder if anyone could tell me which it is ?

I have never nettle to compile any more toad frog lilies because I ’m not sure that I love them enough to bother . Some of them have rather small efflorescence . They are spotted and orchid - the like and of row anything in blossom now is welcome . I lie with Reginald Farrer ’s description of them . He said;‘They emit bombastic and evil flowers , very tardily in summer or autumn , built on the scheme of a lily , but wried by perversity into an almost Aubrey - Beardsley freakishness of synopsis and sound waxen texture and livid sombre colour of putrid garden pink , freckle and spotted with dark purpleness till their name of Toad - lily is experience to be pertinent . ’I think that Reginald Farrer ’s descriptions are always delicious ; he had such a way with words . This one sums up the toad lily quite neatly . He says that they have an ‘ inexpressible quaintness ’ and so all that remains for me to say is that they are stoloniferous and require cryptic , fertile , moist dirt and shade . mayhap we should all have one or two of these autumn -flowering charmers .

My other toad is a toadstool;Amanita muscariaor the Fly agaric . It is called this not because if you ingest it you believe that you could fly but because masses used to make a preparation from it to keep flies away . It is the toadstool that often illustrates children ’s faggot fib and you see it surrounded by frolicking gremlin and elves . I often wonder if the story illustrators who read this first had been ingesting it themselves . I think it is highly hallucinatory and toxic too .

I would love a little group of these toadstools ; they are so pretty and brighten up a dark point under some birch tree . They are ectomycorrhizal and develop on the roots of these trees . I consider they farm on the roots of pine Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree too . Of of course you ca n’t garden toadstools they look where and when they want to .

In case there are any crazed druggies out there who call back they might recrudesce into my garden to slip the toadstool I must bring that I only have the one . And anyway as you may see from the pic something has got there first and nibbled it . That intend that there are probably slugs crawl about my garden who recall they can fly and who see pixie .

20 Responses toA Tale of Two Toads.

Thanks for visiting my web site . I have quite a few Fly agaric on the property . One has also been pick . I like your post on hollyhock too . I am stress to create a Suffolk bungalow garden here on the seashore of British Columbia . Roses and hollyhocks are at the top of the list .

I enjoyed study about your two “ anuran ” . I tried to produce a batrachian lily for the first time this year . The snails eat the leaves , so I do n’t jazz if it ’s still alive or not . I hypothesise I ’ll find out in fall . Is n’t it strange that fell agaric , venomous and depend a moment sinister , has been show as a gay small fairy mansion in so many childrens ’ book ? I ’ve never seen a substantial one , so it seems alien to me to have one in the garden !

Thanks for your recent sojourn to my blog . I ’m proud of to have find you and will return . enjoy your toady narration . Have never gown anuran lilies but have the right condition and anything that is fall anthesis is well worth consider . Think that I will stay readable of that particular toadstool though however attractive it is 🙂

I have Tricyrtis formosana ‘ pinkish lentigo ’ , yours looks very similar if that ’s any assist . I bought it just this year and it ’s been in flower up until the last month , quite good size prime . In this post if you want to equate : http://www.rustyduck.net/2025-01-06 / september - bloomers/

Ah , but you do n’t need to turn them , Christina , you’re able to develop many far more more exciting thing than that to cheer you up at this meter of the year .. I am so jealous of the bunch of flowers you peck today . You do n’t need can plants when you have such lovely things in the garden . Chloris

I am glad to have do across your blog and am enjoy your Wiley Post very much . I implant some Tricyrtis a few years back with great hope . The flower are very pocket-size but they sure do amount back every year just when everything else is done bloomng . They are hardy short thing ! Again .. nice to have base you and will be back to travel to !

Thank you for your comment and for visiting my blog . I enjoy reading yours too . Tricyrtis is the sort of affair you forget about until this time of the twelvemonth and then you are happy of it . Chloris

Cute stake ! I wish Toad Lilies . I had two plants several years ago but they only live a couple of year . I ’m not trusted I ’ll try them again , but I apprize their uniqueness . Nice Toadstool !

Thank you;I’m glad you savor the post . I remember Tricyrtis like quite dampish , rich stain but there are more rewarding plant for such a position . I do n’t recall I ’d vex replacing mine if it die . Chloris .

A Tale of Two Toads.