Photo's by Frank Starkey
Oh there is nothing like meeting new people and sharing not only friendship, stories but plant material too.
My new friends Barbara and Frank Starkey own this wonderful old historic home when they transformed it into the Carriage House Inn, right here in King City. As a matter of fact, it is the ONLY B & B here. Seeped with history, charm and lot’s of love, Barbara and Frank have created a little piece of heaven here on earth which they share with their guests.
The home was originally built in 1892 by William C. and Birdie Janette Hamilton who was the niece of Charles H. King, founder of King City. In day’s to come much more of King City’s rich past will be explored.
Barbara and I have become email buddies and communicate all the time. I adore her wit and humor towards life and appreciate our new found friendship. In one e-mail she mentioned Frank’s Black Lilies, and wham! The plant detective side of me came out. I just had to see them for myself and I wondered how old these lilies might be. That is a question that both Barbara and Frank pondered too.
The only information Frank had about the lilies was someone identified them as Dracunculus vulgaris. Dracunculus, which in Latin means small dragon taken from the look of the spadix and spathe which appears to look like the tongue of a fire breathing dragon. Vulgaris, which is usually a name given to the most common species in a genus. Common names include, Dragon Arum, Voodoo Lily, Stink Lily or Lily Snake.
I love to find out folklore about plants, especially one’s that are curious in nature and also in name sake. It was thought that the plants were carried on boats to repeal the sea serpents that plagued our oceans many moons ago. Supposedly if you were to carry the roots or leaves it is said they will protect you against vipers and serpents. Also, if you wash your hands in a liquor made from the plant you can handle snakes with impunity!
Originally the plant was found in Greece and in the south western part of Anatolia. Recently introduced to America and can be found thriving in Oregon, California and Tennessee.
It also is native to the Balkans, aside from extending as far as Greece, Crete and the Aegean Islands it is also in the south-western parts of Anatolia.
This odd plant is pollinated by flies not honey bees so when it is ready for pollination the plant produces a smell, well to be frank, like rotten meat or a carcass to attract the flies for pollination. In a couple of days, once pollination is complete the smell stops but I still wouldn’t recommend planting it next to a front door or window. Even though the bloom is beautiful I still wouldn’t recommend it as a cut flower.
With Frank by my side we took a tour of the rest of the garden. In the back was this fascinating tree, which to me didn’t really look like a palm. Well I set out on a mission to find out what this wonderful plant specimen was. I put word out to my horticultural friends and sure enough, Dutch Vanderwort pointed me down the right garden path.
This delightful tree is actually named Dicksonia antarctica commonly named “Soft tree fern” or “Tasmanian tree fern” which originally comes from Australia and is a true fern, not a tree but grows into the form of a tree with a single trunk. Dicksonia is a genus of “tree ferns” in the order Cyatheales. There are fossil records that include stems, pinnules and spores of these beautiful plants dating back at least to the primitive Jurassic and Cretaceous periods.
This commonly known evergreen tree fern is found growing throughout the forests of eastern Australia, Tasmania and some sub-Antarctica islands (hence the name Antarctica) where temperatures seldom rise above 65° F. It has also been found thriving in the lower Alpine zones in Australia too.
This temperate tree fern species of Dicksonia (in it’s native setting) is probably one of the largest, where normally they get 20 feet in height but given the ideal setting with lot’s of moisture it can reach 50 feet in height! It’s trunk can also reach a couple of feet in diameter, with it‘s fronds easily reaching a spread of 20 feet. Growth habit’s are relatively slow anywhere from one inch to three inches per year, depending on conditions, these tree ferns sometimes have a life span of 400 years or so.
This tree fern is very popular in sheltered garden environments in Britain but can be found in the US residing well in the south coast of Oregon. Given the proper environment with plenty of water it will grow from central Texas eastward in the United States as well as California’s hot Central Valley. This adaptable species can survive in these hotter regions if provided shade and a sheltered micro-climate.
In Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Monterey counties Dicksonia antarctica is slow growing, that in time will reach 15 feet in height. It is also not uncommon for the spread to reach 6 to 10 feet since this tree fern has many arching fronds that are divided into many small toothed leaflets, creating a nice full head. It’s general toughness also enables it to make for a good indoor specimen. As usual, this special plant will not be found in your local garden nurseries but most likely in a specialty, mail-order plant nursery.
As to dating these two plants? In my research I believe the Franks black lilies are probably 15 years old. As to the “Soft tree fern” based on it’s height, it could be as old as 30 years maximum but most likely, due to our climate and where the plant is, it is probably around 20 years old. It is my thoughts though, the previous owners of the home had a flair for oddity plants and they were probably planted at the same time period.
Yet another plant mystery solved but now I am trying to date the roses that are so prominent at my home.
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