Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Bulbs => Crocus => Topic started by: pehe on November 01, 2017, 05:49:20 AM

Title: Crocus November 2017
Post by: pehe on November 01, 2017, 05:49:20 AM
Here are a few typical November pics from my garden: Low light, autumn leaves, closed crocus flowers and a lot of weeds...

1. Crocus kotschyanus HKEP.9205 is still flowering
2. Crocus ochroleucus with weeds and a few Galanthus Peter Gatehouse in the background
3. Crocus melantherus under glass

I have a single Crocus vallicola still flowering, while many spring flowering Crocus is showing their noses.

Poul
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Yann on November 01, 2017, 08:36:35 PM
during a turkish birds treck a friend collected several crocuses pods. I lost many bulbils but 3 of them survived. Here's the first flower from these pods. I'm thinking of biflorus or nerimaniae?? I've returned from page 1 to end the Janis book but still looking this answer  ;D
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 02, 2017, 11:24:06 AM
during a turkish birds treck a friend collected several crocuses pods. I lost many bulbils but 3 of them survived. Here's the first flower from these pods. I'm thinking of biflorus or nerimaniae?? I've returned from page 1 to end the Janis book but still looking this answer  ;D
Crocus nerimaniae. There are only 2 blue autumn annulate species with black anthers - C. nerimaniae and C. wattiorum (picture attached here - easy to see differences), so identification is easy.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Yann on November 02, 2017, 12:48:34 PM
nerimaniae: the stamens are shorter than the pistil, is it a always true feature?
On wattiorum the stripes are not diffused
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 02, 2017, 01:44:35 PM
nerimaniae: the stamens are shorter than the pistil, is it a always true feature?
On wattiorum the stripes are not diffused
In nerimaniae basal lobes of anthers are dark, in wattiorum - yellow, nerimaniae flowers never open so widely, are more rounded. Striping can vary, but in nerimaniae stripes looks as more white on blue ground, in wattiorum stripes are dark on blue. Flowers are so different in overall view, that you never could misidentify both. Here pictures of both
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Yann on November 02, 2017, 02:13:43 PM
Many thanks Janis ;)
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 04, 2017, 05:07:45 PM
Crocus cartwrightianus is one of only 3 species which didn't close flowers in night. In same time it is one of most variable by flower colour. Here on 4 pictures you can see 3 plants from Naxos Island collected for me by Dima.Especially like this one which is yellow in bud. They arer strongly scented.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 04, 2017, 05:20:37 PM
Another strongly scented is C. longiflorus. At Basilicata (continental Italy) it is quite variable by throat colour, on Nebrodi range (Sicily) variation isn't so wide (at least in my plants).
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 04, 2017, 05:26:53 PM
I crossed one of the best Turkish Crocus pallasii s.l. forms from near Labranda with Crocus pallasii s.l. cv. 'Homeri' (pollen parent) from Chios Island (Greece, E Aegean). Here you see seedlings from this cross.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 05, 2017, 05:23:29 AM
The first is most likely new crocus species from Israel lowlands.
Still blooms Crocus caspius.
Then picture of seedling from white C. banaticus 'Snowdrift' - very few from them are white, but all keeps perfect shape of 'Snowdrift'. This autumn no one from white banaticus blooms with me at present. Here they are later bloomers than blue ones.
And as last two are forms of C. goulimyi - striped 'Agia Sofia' from Melwin and mine 'Pink Wonder' spotted in wild by Liga.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 05, 2017, 05:31:21 AM
Crocus hyremalis had too little sun to open fully, but black anthers and nice stigma are easy notable.
On other pictures various acquisitions of C. laevigatus
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 05, 2017, 05:41:05 AM
Now three different acquisitions of Crocus melantherus and
two pictures of Crocus kotschyanus RUDA-117 from near Syrian border but in Turkey, very similar (practically identical) with Dirk's kotschyanus aff. originally collected by V. Pilous in same region (may be along the same road where I travelled with Augis Dambrauskas in 2003).
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 05, 2017, 05:50:50 AM
The first two pictures are from Crocus ochroleucus collected near Boumana, E of Beirut, received from Jim Archibald but originally collected by R&R Wallis.
Next is the same species from Golan Heights, near Massada
The last two are C. pumilus from Crete.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 05, 2017, 06:03:04 AM
Still blooms one of Iranian crocuses of speciosus group - 16IRS-069
Crocus lycius JATU-038 in full its beauty
This form of so named "mazziaricus" comes from Cukukoy in Turkey (I got from Jim Archibald)
And something out of crocuses confirming that season is very unusual - this one most likely is new Muscari species, nicknamed as "miniarmeniacum"  and normally is blooming in spring, but it blooms now.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Yann on November 05, 2017, 10:39:34 AM
Nice sets Janis, :P

From you here's Crocus pallasii, ex Chios
Crocus hyemalis, ex Israel
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 09, 2017, 06:53:04 AM
Yesterday we had some night frost - minus 3 C but day was sunny and so several new pictures were taken in my greenhouse.
The first is last flowers of purest white C. niveus. Although name suppose white colour, mostly flowers are slightly bluish shaded and sometimes even blue. This is one of the best purest white clones in my collection.
Crocuses at present named as C. cancellatus still contains some species. Here you can see form from Israel, which most likely can be regarded as typical cancellatus.
C. dilekyarensis is one of those separated from cancellatus group and in wild you can find it on very W of Turkey.
The last two pictures represents two acquisitions of C. damascenus from Iran - both are the first blooming in my collection.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 09, 2017, 07:43:21 AM
Some more crocuses from East
Iranian Crocus haussknechtii
2 pictures of Crocus hermoneus from Jordania
Crocus hyemalis from Israel
and more to the West - Crocus veneris from Cyprus
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 09, 2017, 07:48:28 AM
Two close relatives
Crocus laevigatus from Ikaria Island - blue coloured
and Crocus pumilus from Crete
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 09, 2017, 08:10:00 AM
Still blooms Crocus mathewii and here two pictures of the very best form of it cv. 'Brian Mathew'
Quite distributed in last time is cv. 'Dream Dancer'. Actually only this autumn I gave more attention to it and was surprised for white, most likely sterile anthers of it. Then I checked pictures from former years - they all had same anthers, so it is not seasonal problem. This force me to suppose that it is not pure C. mathewii but hybrid with some other species. Would be interested to know about your observations. May be it is raised by my conditions only? Although this autumn Erch Pasche sent to me few additional corms of 'Dream Dancer' and their flowers had same white, sterile anthers.

This C. pallasii s.l. very resembles C. dispathaceus but was collected near Simav, very far from traditional localities of C. dispathaceus.

And last two are pictures from Portugal crocus of serotinus group. Unfortunately I haven't their corm tunics to check netting for identification - is it salzmannii or clusii (by my memory tunics were with fine fibres, so type serotinus is excluded).
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: sokol on November 09, 2017, 10:46:42 AM
mine have also white anthers.

[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 09, 2017, 12:10:59 PM
mine have also white anthers.
Seem that yours are without pollens, too.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Ian Y on November 10, 2017, 11:36:37 AM
Here is a dark form of Crocus mathewii that I received and thought was  'Dream Dancer' it has yellow pollen that looks to be fertile so it may be another form.

[attachimg=1]

[attachimg=2]
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Janis Ruksans on November 10, 2017, 12:38:26 PM
I have similarly coloured forms from wild and they all are fertile - in attached picture both flowers are from plants collected at same locality at locus classicus.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Yann on November 12, 2017, 07:35:27 PM
Despite the dark and wet weather, some crocuses are shining.

Crocus biflorus ssp melantherus from seeds collected by the late Marcus Harvey in Rhodos.
Crocus hyemalis, another seedling batch
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: ikizzeki on November 17, 2017, 04:23:35 PM
C.asumaniae and its habitat.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Yann on November 18, 2017, 08:34:45 PM
the rock background is perfect for those crocuses,  did you see them  near Antalya?
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Yann on November 19, 2017, 08:05:29 PM
Crocus cambessedesii is brightening up the cold and short day.
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: ikizzeki on November 24, 2017, 04:54:56 PM
From the habitat, Antalya, Turkey
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Maggi Young on December 14, 2017, 02:19:53 PM
We in SRGC are delighted to learn this  most exciting and very pleasant  news from Latvia - Janis Ruksans' latest  crocus book has been given an award from  the Latvian Academy of Sciences for best achievements in biology and his  book has been  listed in the  honorary list of 10 best publications of Academy members in the year 2017.

A wonderful acknowledgment of the  calibre of Janis'  work -  Janis  must be more than pleased to have these honours.

Well done, Janis - we are not at all surprised at this success!
Title: Re: Crocus November 2017
Post by: Matt T on January 22, 2018, 09:22:18 PM
A wonderful endorsement of Janis' achievements, richly deserved!! Looking forward to seeing Janis again at Dunblane in February.
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