Crocus April - 2015

[Janis Ruksans]

With most of "croconuts" flowering season ended but with me it still goes - but close to end. The last bloomers are some species from Balcans. Returning from W Ukraina I found several crocuses in full bloom.
Crocus cvijicii allways belongs to the latest ones. Very variable. Here Greek form.
It hybridizes with veluchensis - hybrids can be white to purplish, some are very nice.
Another late bloomer is C. jablanicensis from very limited area in FYROF (Republic of Macedonia). Separation from neighbours not allways easy, but species status was confirmed by DNA
Crocus pelistericus and scardicus hasn't good reputation in gardens, not easy to find the best treatment in summer. Their hybrids (Crocus x gotoburgensis) are very variable and a little bit more easy in garden.
Janis

[Janis Ruksans]

Crocus scardicus is most difficult from Balcanian crocuses. Here the sample from FYROM
Crocus cvijicii from Macedonian Republic is much paler and really looks as different species, may be intermediate between cvijicii and jablanicensis
Crocus veluchensis grow side by side with jablanicensis. Here garden hybrid with cvijicii - flowers are almost white with light bluish flush and darker blue narrow rim at segments top
C. veluchensis is very variable, too - there are white and blue forms - this one collected by Henrik zetterlund (Serbia, Surdulica-Streezimirovci, near Vlasinsko reservoir, peaty, boggy meadows) has white and slightly bluish flowers, but side by side is growing deep purple forms, too.
And as last in this entry the last flower of Crocus vaclavii, originally growing just at sea level, but blooming late here.

[Janis Ruksans]

The very last with me allways is typical Crocus minimus - some forms even didn't started blooming - here two aquisitions of it
But I just returned from W Ukraina where went together with my wife Guna and Ukrainian friends to E Carpathian mountains, to make some pictures of Crocus heuffelianus. Unfortunately the weather was nice just on road there, but in morning we were greated with rain and higher in mountains with snowing, but some nice pictures was possible and I will share those under this topic.
The greatest discovery for me was finding of autumn blooming C. banaticus - it is most N population and reported as very rare there, but Dima spotted very large population of it and we collected few for DNA research. Here its leaves and habitat.
In some localities Crocus heuffelianus grow together with Leucojum vernum carpathicum

[Janis Ruksans]

On this entry Crocus heuffelianus in E Carpathians. Pity, but in mountains was fog, rain and snowing, and crocuses only started blooming but in Transcarpathians - they were damaged by night frosts and rains, so no good picture was possible, but you at least can judge how abbundant it is there. In any case some interesting forms you can see here.

[Janis Ruksans]

One more form of Crocus heuffelianus from E carpathians
In Transcarpathians Crocuses were something over, but the Leucojum vernum carpathicum was in full bloom. You can see typical form - 2 flowers with yellow tips on stem and few unusual blooms.

[Janis Ruksans]

The last place visited by us was famous Narcissus Valley - the most northern population of daffodils where later will bloom N. angustifolius from poeticus group. I never succeed with it - usually lost in my collection. My individuals originated from Tallin Botanical Garden and some other Estonian wild bulb collectors. There it is growing quite well but not with me.
There a year before Dima found C. heuffelianus - very similar to my famous Carpathian Wonder.
At our coming Crocus season there ended but was top of Leucojum blooming and a month later will start Narcissus - you can see picture how it looks from entry desk - it is strongly protected area.
And on last pictures - my companions from left Sergey, Vasilij, Dima & Guna
and on very last picture - made by Guna - you can see me picturing leucojums.

[Janis Ruksans]

But it is no need to go to Carpathians to see Leucojums and bad weather - here the same rain and snow and Leucojums (something mixed with Galanthus and Eranthis) naturalised in garden where some 20 years ago were bulb beds in deep shade of Fraxinus, Acer etc.

[Ian Y]

Lovely to see these late Crocus, Janis, both in the nursery and in the field with DZ.

So many more good plants could be introduced from the Carpathians - as well as the Crocus I love some of the forms of Leucojum.

[johnralphcarpenter]

I agree. Lovely to see your crocus Janis - please show us your tulips as they flower!

[pehe]

Janis, exciting that you and Dima found C. banaticus in Carpathian! It will be interesting to see if they are different from the ones growing at locus classicus.

Poul

[Janis Ruksans]

Some more plants seen in E Carpathians. One of our targets was Carpathian form of Erythronium dens-canis. I collected it in 1977 and it turned the earliest bloomer between all Erythroniums in my collection. But few collected plants didn't increase by splitting and after attack of rodents left only one bulb which I'm growing up to now. So returning after 38(!) years was very intriguing. Of course spots on roadside where it was collected so long ago were under buildings now, but in my travel notes was listed that it was seen on mountain slopes under forest, too - and yes - there it was and much more abundantly than left in my memory. Flowers are very dark lilac, something muddy and leaves strongly mottled. This population is located in Transcarpathian region, but it is found even more in Eastern direction - in Zhitomir district where Dima is now looking for it.

[Janis Ruksans]

Another plant from my "sweet memories" was Galanthus nivalis Carpathian form with large flowers later named by me as 'Carpathian Giant'. Then I found it only on one small spot (by my memory) but now it was almost everywhere and with same size of flowers. Dima are working on snowdrop research and even was co-author (with Aaron Davies) of new species from Abchasia - Galanthus panjutinii. Now he was occupied collecting leaf samples for DNA research on Carpathian plants. Vasilij during this time found some 6 individuals with unusual flower forms resembling cultivars with flared flower segments, poculiformis, viridapicis etc. He kindly presented those to me. Weather was horrible - snow and rain almost all the day.
Another "sweet memory" was the first plant collected during my first mountain trip - near Skole I collected plant then named as Scilla bifolia, but now it got own name - Scilla kladnii. This one from Skole didn't grow with me and I lost it in first winter. Now I collected few for potting.
On the last picture Sergey and Dima picturing plants.

[Janis Ruksans]

Janis, exciting that you and Dima found C. fanatics in Carpathian! It will be interesting to see if they are different from the ones growing at locus classicus.

Poul

The sample I sent to IPK for DNA checking.

[Maggi Young]

On Facebook, Mat Murray in Australia posted this photo, which he captioned  "Crocus pallasii dark throat form"



Dirk Schnabel ( Udo) asked   " Is this really pallasii?"

Comments?

[Janis Ruksans]

My first opinion that it more resembles some of hadriaticus, but must to see corm tunics etc.
Here some pallasii + hadriaticus of similar colour pattern.
Janis