Sternbergia 2009

[Pauli]

Poul,

I have no problem with flowering them. I feed them heavily and give a dry summer rest

[Paul T]

And while your Sternbergia candida are flowering over there..... here in Australia the S. lutea are flowering for us.  Some lovely splashes of gold are appearing in my garden now, with lots more to come I hope.  Lovely to see the S. candida, something I have tried once and lost to rot unfortunately.  Beautiful looking flowers on them by the look of it.  Great to see them doing so well and flowering so heavily. 

[Paul T]

Flowering now as I mentioned......  Sternbergia lutea.

[fermi de Sousa]

Flowering now as I mentioned......  Sternbergia lutea.

As well as S. sicula,

cheers
fermi

[pehe]

My first Sternbergia in flower this year. 3 days earlier than last year.

Poul

[pehe]

A week later it is much prettier.

And Sternbergia lutea follows soon.


Poul

[Gerry Webster]

Sternbergia sicula
From a collection  made by John Marr (JRM 3186/75) at Dodona. I find this to be the most reliable form of S. sicula  that I grow.After a very poor summer, other forms from further S in the range of the species show no sign of flowering.
(unfortunately, my camera is not too good with yellow).

[pehe]

Sternbergia sicula
From a collection  made by John Marr (JRM 3186/75) at Dodona. I find this to be the most reliable form of S. sicula  that I grow.After a very poor summer, other forms from further S in the range of the species show no sign of flowering.
(unfortunately, my camera is not too good with yellow).

Great sicula, Gerry. If all these flowerbuds are formed in a bad summer, there must be a tremendous number after a good summer!

My Sternbergia under glass continue flowering.

1. Part of my bulbframe. The Scillas are shooting leaves, and the Sternbergias have flowers.
2. and 3. St. sicula from Korfu top of Pantokrator
4. and 5. St. greuteriana
6. St. lutea

Outside I have seen the first flowerbuds of sicula Dodona Gold and lutea.

Poul
 

[David Nicholson]

Lovely Sternbergias Gerry and Poul. I have never had any success with them, but thanks to Anthony I have a pot of S.sicula in the greenhouse that are showing some very healthy leaves. I have high hopes.

[shelagh]

You are not the only one David.  We have two pots of lovely foliage S. luteum and  S. siculum, they come up every year.  We know they do flower because they were in flower when they were given to us but since then nothing. I'm all for chucking them out but Brian says 'Oh ye of little faith'.

[David Nicholson]

Must be due a touch of the magic white powder Shelagh, and in case the FBI is watching I mean Sulphate of Potash

[pehe]

Shelagh and David,

I have success with Sternbergia lutea and sicula in my garden, but they require a warm sunny place and a fertile soil to flower well.
Feeding with bone meal and sulphate of potash give good results.
The photo is from last year. The wall is south facing. Here they performs very well.

I grow them in pots too (under glass). The roots goes deep, so in general I use rather large pots. They like to be crowded, but then heavy feeding is necessary. Sometimes when I only have few bulbs I place them among 'dummy bulbs' of limestone.
Last year I have tried 11 cm pots for sicula, greuteriana and colchiciflora. (The pots you see in post #22) Until now it seems OK.

Poul

[pehe]

Here is a strange Sternbergia.

Poul

[Rodger Whitlock]

My Sternbergia under glass continue flowering.

Those are very well grown. Please describe the soil mix you use, preferably in excruciating detail so those of us who live in far away places have some chance of mixing something that works equally well.

I have for long had a nagging idea that the mix I use for pretty much everything just isn't right for Mediterranean bulbs, so I'm especially curious about pH, how gritty the mix is, what kind of grit and soil you use, nutrient levels, any additives.

PS: I am interested to see you using square pots; few gardeners do in these larger sizes. I switched to square "one gallon" pots (really 2.5 liters) roughly 20 years ago, and any round pots that come in with nursery stock are quickly recycled. I managed to get a really good deal on some hundreds of used square pots and guard them very carefully! My coldframes hold each a nice tight array of square pots 6×9, 54 pots per frame.

[Mike Ireland]

David
Friends gave me some bulbs of Sternbergia lutea a few years ago and advised me to plant in the hottest part of my garden.  In full sun they perform well every year and have to be split up every 2 - 3 years.  I give a top dressing of bone meal, if I remember.


Mike