Galanthus to mid February 2007

[ian mcenery]

Yep Maggi no one more surprised than me. I'm more likely to kill em - now I have bragged about this one it is sure to get some awful disease. What I didn't show was Wendy's Gold which I only had one bulb and a few offsets where the main bulb has rotted. As the outside of the bulb had a hole in it and the inside was rotten I'm not sure whether it was botrytis or a critter. Would welcome any views from our experts.

[Paddy Tobin]

Hi Anne,

Yes, the 'S. Arnott' striped is real but...as with the ladies - augmented.

I was doing a little experiment with the kids in school to show how plants take up food: white carnations standing in variously coloured glasses of water; the flowers take up the coloured water and the petals change to that colour. So, a few 'S. Arnott' were added to the pot and ... there you have it.

(By the way, a carnation with its stem carefully split up the centre and each half in a different colour dye give a very interesting bi-coloured flower - an interesting snowdrop on the way, blue and red, perhaps?)

I'm sure I could advertise the striped 'S. Arnott' for sale, with the usual proviso that it takes a while to settle down to its usual colouration after being moved and I could have my fortune made before the ruse was discovered. By then I would be in the Bahamas or some such sunny refuge.

Ian's 'Primrose Warburg' is really good. As Maggi said, the yellows especially the Sandersii group is reputed to be weak in cultivation. This makes Ian's all the more admirable.

Aren't the prices quoted from the snowdrop gala by Mark above outrageous. Those who pay such prices are the truly obsessed, as Ian says. They would certainly be beyond what I would be willing to pay for any snowdrop, though, if it were jewel encrusted white gold, I might consider it.

Paddy

[Maggi Young]

if it were jewel encrusted white gold, I might consider it.

And what a lovely gift that would make for Mary, who started off your snowie collection in the first place!



PS I do not condone the brutalising of innocent flowers for your class lessons. Goodness me, you'l be dissecting frogs next

[ian mcenery]

Maggi the shape could change as the flower develops and as I had not seen this before I only have this experience of the plant. I did however remark that I thought it had the shape of Trym at the time.

What I can say is the garden where I saw this has over 500 different named cultivars and is owned by one the cognoscenti it seems likely that this one is the real thing. The question is, is it lovely or a novelty? Answers on a postcard please

[Maggi Young]

Paddy, do you think I could get away with "doctoring" a few flowers to take to Dunblane, or might too many folk be reading this? Could really set a cat among the pigeons, though, eh? !!


Ian, there's changing shape and there's changing shape !! I think yours looks more kosher. Not that i have the faintest skill in such matters! It has always been one of my mottoes that lack of knowledge need not stop one expressing an opinion!!

[Maggi Young]

Ian,

As the outside of the bulb had a hole in it and the inside was rotten I'm not sure whether it was botrytis or a critter.

remember my MAIN motto, "there's often a clue".... if there's a hole I would guess you've had a hungry slug in there.

[Paddy Tobin]

Maggi,

I should have had this special snowdrop mounted on a ring and ready to present for Valentine's Day.

Paddy

[Maggi Young]

Might I suggest a pendant, rather than a ring, easier to wear ALL the time!



It's never too late, Paddy!

[mark smyth]

I think it's well known that if a Narcissus fly grub eats the inside of a large bulb there is enough of the plate left for it to produce daughter bulbs but I wouldnt have thought they would flower in one year. It is possible they were already well advanced within the larger bulb. I once had a badly damaged 'St Anne's' sold to me mail order that had lots of smaller bulbs within

If people are willing to spend silly money those producing bulbs will increase their prices. Now if everyone could get together to agree not to buy any mail order bulbs for one year!!

[ian mcenery]

Mark now what a good idea perhaps we could all do some swapping which would make  it very much cheaper and enjoyable

[Alan_b]

DO NOT DISPAIR, Ian.

The two pictures below show my Wendy's Gold on 20th February 2004 (a year after I bought a single flowering bulb) and in January of 2007.  In 2004 it produced barely a shoot but there were at least signs of life - nature's twin-scaling.  In 2007 it is back to full health and I have three more small offsets growing elsewhere. 

[Maggi Young]

Impressive recovery, Alan. Good to see the extent of the damage but that find there is still life inside!

[annew]

I found similar results to Ian while investigating a tray of potted snowdrops that hadn't showed this week. Alongside the empty bulb in many pots was a fat greyish grub about 10-12mm long - presumably the Narcissus fly larva/pupa. The motto is to bin any compost from affected pots unless you are very good at picking through to find the beasties.

[mark smyth]

sounds like the Narciisus fly grub. I heard last weekend that SuSCon Green is supposed to help kill the grubs while travelling towards the bulbs. The grub has to pupate before emerging in late May as an adult

[Maggi Young]

Mark, SuScon Green isn't readily available to gardeners.
When we get chewed bulbs, mostly in the garden, there is usually a slug or two, or a large snail, in close proximity.. If we are sorting any compost from pots that have vineweevils, for example, we spread it out on a large aluminium bakers' tray and lay it somewhere for a while to let the Robins and the Blackbirds have a pick through it for beasties: they are more thorough cleaners than we are!