Fame Flower

We followed the Gold Moss, and then turned left, pausing for a view of the E-Beds. The gold moss continues along the low, stone wall. The wall is shown still in shambles due to a tree fall the year before. As we continue, there to our left is the back corner of the garage and a small raised bed destined for tiny plants. It will need some larger plants removed before we can put in tiny ones.

When The Most Important Tree fell all over everything, this small bed was crushed and had to be completely reconstructed starting at the ground.

Then it was planted with native plants: three starts of our native nodding onion, bird foot violets, one fame flower, and some creeping sedums -- one white flowering and the other yellow. It is not Gold Moss.

When the nodding onions grew to be as large as they are, I was sorry I did that. Come spring, I hope to move them. The yellow-flowering sedum turned out to be almost as prolific as Gold Moss. The more I've removed, the more it returns. Ugh! The violets died out over a few years time - probably too much sun and heat. The white flowering sedum is still there, barely; I try to encourage it and keep the yellow one away from it.


The fame flower is the success; it is so tiny and such a delicate beauty when it blooms. Each spring, I think it isn't coming back, but so far it's returned approximately five springs. I wanted to put in more of them. But, they are native plants, and I learned that it is now on the endangered plant list and is no longer available from the wildflower nursery. I wish it would make new plants from tiny seeds, but so far none have appeared. I'm not even sure if it makes seeds. Maybe it needs another plant for cross pollination.

I am a member of the Kentucky Native Plant Society. I read in one of the newsletters that one group on a field trip made a side stop to check on the fame flowers growing on a limestone glade - just to see if they were blooming yet. Hmmm, I thought, so they like limestone; I can do that. The tiny little thing soon had a light mulch of tiny particles of crushed limestone. It seemed happy and bloomed away. I wish I had a photo to show you. I will try to take one next summer, if it returns again in the spring. It is late awakening so I always watch it with nearly bated breath and feel great joy when I detect signs of life. You can't see the plant, but in the photo below, a small plastic label (white) is stuck into the soil behind it to mark its location.

Gold Moss has filled in around the bottom edge and is creeping up on the sides. I have to pull it out routinely.
And there in the lower right-hand corner, we can see one of my favorites, the white Candy Tuft. Upper left is the Nodding Onion - not full size yet at this time. It did get too large.

ADDENDUM 2007
The Nodding Onions were moved to another location. They were simply too large for this small trough-like bed. The large puff of yellow Sedum sexangulare is being slowly eradicated - at least I am trying. The Fame Flower did not wake up. I am sorry to loose it, because it was the smaller species, such a little thing.

I was able to order a few plants of the larger species. Fame Flower plants are succulent and in the Portulaca ("Moss Rose") family, Portulacaceae. The flowers are a vibrant color... what can I call it... fuchsia or magenta? I'm not sure, but it is show stopper!

The tight buds do not open during the morning. Here are a few snapshots taken over the summer and at different times of the day. Then they close up again as the sun goes down. You will also see some lemon thyme in the pictures... and rocks. What is it about people like me who cannot resist interesting, attractive rocks!

New young plants' first flowers.
June 15 at 4:30 p.m.

Here you can see the fleshy foliage. The bloom stalk has fallen forward toward the sun almost onto the chunk of coal. The point of the stone points toward a clump of lemon thyme.
July 7 at 7:30 p.m.

1:45 p.m. - July 20th.
Thirteen days later they have shown much growth and are now full of flowers. This shows the flowers tightly closed at 1:45.

4:00 p.m.
Two hours later on the same day and they are wide open to the sun!

5:00 p.m. - Aug. 2

Shhh! Quiet. Do you hear a buzzing sound?!

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