Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
Bulbs => Galanthus => Topic started by: Paul T on March 29, 2009, 06:24:12 AM
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Howdy All,
Despite not having caught up with a single topic in the Galanthus section as yet (I am slowly working my way through things, section by section, after my absence for a couple of months)... I have to start up the 2009 Southern Hemisphere topic as the white fever has struck.... well sort of......
Click on the pic to enlarge
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The first buds have started appearing above the surface, on both Galanthus peshmenii and G. reginae-olgae in my garden. This pic was taken yesterday (March 28th)!! Yeah!!!!!!!!! 8)
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Welcome back Paul - I have missed you during this snowdrop season.
Best wishes
John ;D
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Yes indeed, welcome back Paul, I look forward to your pictures of the new season to extend my mania ;D
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Nice - I am looking forward to seeing more of your Galanthus once they start coming up!
Nothing above the soil yet down here in my garden.
However, we have had an unusually warm March with high 20's during the day and balmy nights, so that may have slowed things a bit. After looking at Northern Hemisphere Galanthus pics for some months (both online and in magazines), I am impatient for the Southern season to kick off in my backyard! :)
Keep the photo's coming, Paul.
cheers
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Paul ,
really funny : here is the end of season and in your hemisphere start a new one ;D
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Hans,
Yeah. And who says you can't get snowies to flower all year around? ;D ;)
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Paul ,
...and this forum is the real place for all addictet ;)
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A couple more pics of my autumn species in flower at the moment.....
Galanthus peshmenii
G. reginae-olgae
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Galanthus update.....
The very last of the older reginae-olgae have flowers just dying off, plus buds still emerging on my seed grown ones that are flowering for the first time this year. The first of the elwesii types are in flower at the moment, including 'Eric's Choice' which is a lovely green tipped locally (well Australia, anyway) selected one. Plenty more are above ground now and some with buds showing. Yeah!!!!!!
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...and here are we, at the other end of the season, twin-scaling! Lucky you, don't forget some pics for us poor, deprived, northern galanthophiles :'(
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Brian,
Ask and you shall receive......
A couple of elwesii types that are flowering at the moment. One is the earliest I had flowering this year, but unsure of the name (I've included two pics of it, just to show it from the side and below to see the markings). The other is Galanthus 'Eric's Choice'.
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Blessing upon you Paul, I feel better already ;D
G.'Eric's Choice' is a very nice green tipped, I have admired it before and this just confirms it. Thanks
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Careful Paul, you'll have them all trembling, they've been having withdrawal symptoms for months ;D
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David,
You're talking to another addict. They help me through my summer here, so the least I can do is help them through your summer there. ;D
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Paul I do like "Eric"s Choice" ,not one I have come across before. :P
It certainly would be one of this Eric"s choices. ;)
Eric
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Eric,
It is an Australian selection, which is why you haven't seen it. Very large flowers too.
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8) 8) 8)
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Thanks Paul
I feel that I can cope with the long wait until Autumn now.
That Eric's Choice is a nice one. ;D
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John,
There'll be plenty more to come over the next few months, so you don't just have to live from that fix alone. ;D
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Paul,
the G. elwesii here have only just put their noses above the ground!
cheers
fermi
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Fermi,
I have many elwesii varieties that have no sign above ground yet, while my usual first flowerers in the ground are not too far off opening (they always start late June). The two I pictured are in pots, so that probably has made them a little earlier. There is so much time variation in the elwesii cultivars, it's quite amazing.
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Howdy All,
I discovered this in flower yesterday, not even realising it was above ground. ::) This I got from my friend Lyn here in Canberra a few years ago. I've lifted it back into a pot as it has refused to offset at all where I had it in the ground... fingers crossed that it will do so now as I love it. It is always one of the earliest elwesii to open for me, has quite small and chunky flowers but of a beautiful form and substance to them. The plant in the pic is probably around 20cm high, but I could measure it if necessary. This is a named form but Lyn cannot recall the name. To me it is totally distinct from anything else I grow. Does anyone recognise this flower and timing and can provide a name? No idea whether it was an Australian named one or an import either, which complicates things still further. I figured it was worth asking at least, even though I know how hard it is to put names on these when lost. The fact it is so very early is a big identifier for me...... I must try self-pollinating it to see whether it will set seed on itself or not.
Thanks for any info or feedback on it. I just love it, which is why I want the darn thing to start multiplying. ;D
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A few more in flower for me at the moment....
Galanthus 'Powelltown'
Galanthus elwesii clump - unnamed, first to flower in the ground each year. Haven't managed to catch it open this week, but hope to one of these days. ::)
Galanthus reginae-olgae seedlings that I mentioned earlier in this topic and showed the pics of the buds just starting. The green markings on each do differ, which is wonderful!
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8) ;D 8)
That Galanthus 'Powelltown' is a nice snowdrop too, good mark and long petals.
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Brian,
Very elongated, that is for sure. Certainly different. :D
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Howdy All,
A couple of pics of the Galanthus elwesii clump that I posted the other day, this time actually open. As mentioned before, it is the first to flower in the ground for me each year. A pic of the clump open, and a pic of an individual flower.
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More and more Galanthus coming out now of course. Here's just a couple...
The one entitled 'Late' I am not sure deserves a name specifically (nor that that actually WAS supposed to be a name.... it definitely is not late here, that is for sure), but it is a good substantial flower and a very good performed.
The other one is just an elwesii I've had for years without a name... good long petals, and another good performer. The previous clump I posted is to the left of my rose arch, and this one is to the right. 8)
Click on the pic for a larger version!
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And.... Galanthus woronowii. Not a good flower, but the only flower I have this year. Doesn't like flowering for me for some reason. ::)
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And.... Galanthus woronowii. Not a good flower, but the only flower I have this year. Doesn't like flowering for me for some reason. ::)
Paul, can't understand why G. woronowii does not like you ,grows , multyplies and flowers
profusely here , as does G. rizehensis [I have given hundreds of rizehensis to my friends ],
also a photo of 'Ophelia 'just going over ,all 3 photos taken today .
If I was only allowed to grow one snowdrop ,it would have to be 'S. Arnott'- such a wonderful
constitution . and still going strong after a century !
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Otto,
If only I could understand why it doesn't flower for me.... then maybe I could rectify it. Friends have it flower well for them, but mine rarely if ever flower. I have it in a few different places in the garden to no avail. I am going to put some back into pots and see whether that helps. G. rizehensis normally does well for me, but the area they are in was a bit dry this year. 'Ophelia' always flowers well, but only just starting here, not even one fully open as yet. I love your wonderful clumps. Oh to have that sort of colony of them. 8)
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This snowdrop appeared in my garden in a clump of 'S. Arnott' a few years ago and it appears to have the two ovaries joined [Siamese Twins - but this is not politically correct].
I named it after Angie , the wife of my nice neighbour Tim Orpin [also a Foruminist ]
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Certainly an odd one and an interesting one. You say it arose a few years ago so I presume it has continued to perform as photographed.
Looking at image 002 I could not fail to wish that the abberant central petals were absent. It would be a very balanced flower without them.
Paddy
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It's a real chunky one too Otto, it appears to be quite short?
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It's a real chunky one too Otto, it appears to be quite short?
Brian Ellis, stop talking about me in these terms.
Paddy
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As if I would Paddy ;)
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Nice, Otto. Good to find stable aberrant ones, particularly that give as good an outer appearance as that. You can't miss the fact that that one is different from the outside. ;D
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For Northern Hemisphere Galanthophiles here are a few pictures from my garden. I left it a bit late in the day to get the camera out so there was not much light and the wind had picked up. Please excuse the indifferent photographs
1. Galanthus ' Atkinsii ' This one does well for me - my original colony got to shaded so I had to dig all the bulbs out and replant them. Here they are in their new position.
2. Galanthus double. This colony is thriving as well.
3. Galanthus nivalis A drift just coming into flower.
I lost some of my named bulbs through narcissus fly - they can always pick the best ones. My wife's hens managed to destroy a good proportion of the labels a well before they were incarcerated in the henitentiary. I think I will stick to the ones that survive untended in the garden.
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Thanks David, we appreciate your help in our time of need!! Nice drifts too.
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David, I love the juxtaposition of your planting Galanthus ' Atkinsii ' by the rock with lichen - they seem to like being tight up to it :)
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Robin,
I planted the bulbs next to the rock to keep them so I could relocate them. The conspicuous grey-green lichen on the rock is the weed of the lichen world - it is quite happy growing on glass or polythene greenhouses or anything really.
Brian,
Snowdrops grow really well in my garden. Mine do not like being shaded unlike those growing under deciduous trees in English woodlands. (or at least that's the impression I get from the pictures I have seen). I have several bigger drifts than the clumps I have shown you. I am pleased that you enjoyed them.
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Nothing very exciting here but these Galanthus plicatus were dry bulbs I got in December and only remembered to plant last month!
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And these Galanthus elwesii have been increasing slowly over the years.
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These G. elwesii enjoy the company of daffs and ipheion!
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cheers
fermi
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these Galanthus plicatus were dry bulbs I got in December and only remembered to plant last month!
Good grief, fermi, you'll get yourself drummed out of the snowdrop fancier's society with that kind of 'drop abuse!
The bulbs seem to be making up well for lost time at the minute..... I wonder if they will suffer next year because of their recent deprivations?
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these Galanthus plicatus were dry bulbs I got in December and only remembered to plant last month!
Good grief, fermi, you'll get yourself drummed out of the snowdrop fancier's society with that kind of 'drop abuse!
The bulbs seem to be making up well for lost time at the minute..... I wonder if they will suffer next year because of their recent deprivations?
Well, I think it may've been June when I planted them ;D but that's still 6 months kept dry. They'll only be a "success" if they do so well this time next year as I've planted them in a new bed in almost full sun (next to a tree peony, so they may get some shade) in a position which seems to suit G. elwesii, so I'll wait and see if they are suited to such a position.
cheers
fermi
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Howdy All,
One of the sharlockii type nivalis, green tipped with the extended split spathe. An excellent flowerer for me. The main basic nivalis are just opening here, while most of the elwesii are pretty much over now.
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That's certainly a good-looking snowdrop, Paul
Paddy
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Paddy,
It multiplies the best of any that I have, starting as a single bulb about 10 years ago and counting those I've given away and their offspring etc there would probably be over 100 by now. This is unusual for Galanthus in my garden, believe me. It flowers very well, although not as much this year after a bit of a disturbance, even in the ground. I'm very pleased with it. I'm assuming the sharlockii types are fairly common overseas? This one was in a packet of 10 I got from a mailorder nursery (very, very few sell Galanthus here in Aus) and I was very surprised to find this green tipped one amongst them. It has done way better than the others I got at the time!!
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Galanthus 'Merlin'.
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Paul,
A beautiful shot of 'Merlin', caught it perfectly, good light and the patterning on the outer petals is crystal clear. Although it is almost de rigeur the fashion to now photograph snowdrops against a black background, and this method has many benefits, there is a delight in a snowdrop photographed in nature that is hard to surpass.
You are lucky to have a snowdrop which does well for you. While we all like to have the many, many different cultivars which are now available there is nothing to compare with a drift of snowdrops in the garden. The very best and most beautiful individual snowdrop will never look as good as good clump.
Paddy
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Paddy,
You're spot on.... nothign in a pot for me has ever looked as good as a good clump in the garden, but I don't have THAT many that I have out in the garden. I find so many of them just don't multiply for me in the ground, which is why this green tipped one is such a wonder. It will be interesting to see how well it does next year after it has settled back in from the disturbance. That little area of garden has become "Otto's Garden" as it contains some of the treasures that appear unexpectedly in the mail from Otto from time to time. ;D There are various Galanthus leaves coming up thoughout the garden, so I obviously missed some bulbs when I lifted them all before digging the garden area over...... I'm going to retrieve them all later in the season. At least I know for sure there are no other Galanthus in that garden so they all must be that one. There's probably about 40 bulbs there, plus some more in a pot, and the ones I have mentioned giving away to friends. If only they ALL did that well. ::)
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I find so many of them just don't multiply for me in the ground, which is why this green tipped one is such a wonder
I find the same thing here that bulbs don't multiply much, even in my bulb bed, and I am wondering what I'm doing wrong?
Paul, I do hope you wonderous green tipped one has offspring as it is really is exceptional :)
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Robin,
I think the greatest difficulty for snowdrops is presented by wet and heavy ground. They certainly prefer a soil with plenty of leafmould, open and fertile, which stays dry during the dormant summer period. Now is the time to remember that with autumn approaching you can collect leaves and store them for use in the following autumn. Leaves collected here last year are now completely rotted down and I have been using them to top-dress the snowdrop beds.
Paddy
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Robin,
I think the greatest difficulty for snowdrops is presented by wet and heavy ground. They certainly prefer a soil with plenty of leafmould, open and fertile, which stays dry during the dormant summer period. Now is the time to remember that with autumn approaching you can collect leaves and store them for use in the following autumn. Leaves collected here last year are now completely rotted down and I have been using them to top-dress the snowdrop beds.
Paddy
Paddy - Great advice, I must shred and compost more oak leaves next year, such a wonderful top-dressing.
Having repotted most of the Galanthus I have a great appreciation for microbes, bugs and worms in the garden. They do a fantastic job at cleaning up the bulbs - dead roots, tunics, old basal plates and bases of last year's shoots.
I had a note from a friend in Germany who said he grows krasnovii in a peat block, I was amazed. Yet I saw healthy Lewisias in peat blocks in Denmark, we'd never get away with that here.
It would be interesting to list all the Galanthus species and get forumist's feedback on their peculiar requirements in their gardens - ie very summer dry etc. G. gracilis I have never quite mastered and baffles me. I assume, if they have any hardiness, ikariae and reginae-olgae might require planting against a south wall here to get a good baking or at least under a vigorously rooted tree that would assure summer dryness.
Despite the heat and dryness here over the last two days the giant banana slugs are out in full force at night. For the last week there has been an evening single file lineup into the potting shed, all heading for a potted Tropaeolum sp. Two huge ones halfway up the greenhouse screen door last night.
johnw
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Thanks for your practical advice Paddy, I will have to do some lateral thinking as the only leaves here in our garden are from wild cherry and pine needles... we do of course get very wet when the melt starts and then hot and dry in summer but the raised bed is dampish under the stone chip top dressing i put on this year, may be that will help?
I plan to plant many more bulbs this September/October and have had gleaned some great ideas from the Forum :)
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Robin,
Cherry leaves and pine needles would be perfect. Why not collect them this autumn, leave them to rot down and use them as compost or top-dressing next season?
Paddy
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I certainly will Paddy ;D
Sounds like it could work then.... ::)
I was also thinking, from your previous comments, that may be the soil is not fertile enough - at least in the wild parts of the garden - so perhaps i should at least try sprinkling some bone meal where the bulbs are this autumn and hope for more than one snowdrop :)
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Howdy All,
A couple that are in flower for me at the moment......
Galanthus 'Hoddles Creek' is very large, with good substance. It's an Aussie selection.
Galanthus nivalis is in full flower here right now
And lastly.... Galanthus 'Trym', flowering for the first time. Has been on my "Holy Grail" list for years since I first saw it. I only got it this year, so I am very pleased to have it flowering. Small flower (I don't know whether this is standard or not), but so distinct. Very cool. 8)
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Paul,
Snowdrop season is progressing well for you. Your G. nivalis and G. 'Trym' are looking well and G. 'Hoddles Creek' is perfectly charming. I particularly like snowdrops with long outer petals; they give a very attractive shape to the flower. Good to see a nice Australian selection. I'm sure you see so many cultivars from the northern hemisphere and it is very good to see a nice selection with you. A good snowdrop. Increase well? Makes a good clump?
Paddy
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Paddy,
It's not doing too bad clump-wise. It is in the ground, so I find that few in the ground multiply particularly well for me I must admit (except that green tipped one I posted recently). That said, it IS forming a clump. The flowers are large, and even with just a few flowers on the clump it is still very noticeable. Also very late for an elwesii, the latest to open this year.
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Hi paul. some nice galanthus there, particularly Trym. very nice markings. So where does one get this from, Otto?
How tall is it?
Cheers
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Stephen,
I have been badgering Marcus for Trym for years, and he finally gave in. Has been right at the top of my "holy grail" list for a number of years. I don't think he has many, and I think I am very lucky that he agreed to sell me one. ;D It's maybe 6 inches tall, but relatively small in flower, at least this year. Never having seen it in person before, I have nothing to go by to know whether it is smaller than it will end up. It was a small bulb and I honestly did not expect it to flower, so I was thrilled when I discovered it was going to. 8)
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Yes Paul, Trym is one of the smaller flowered snowdrops. I'm glad you are pleased to have it, I was too.
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Thanks for the confirmation, Brian. You never quite know what is "standard", the first year. ;D
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Hi Paul,
thanks for that info,
theres Trymlet as well, wonder if that means even smaller? Does anyone grow this?
cheers
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Stephen,
Or is is just meaning "baby Trym" as it is a seedling of it? I really don't know. 'South Hayes' I think is one of it's progeny too.... I think someone mentioned that in the Trym trading topic? Not sure whether I should try self pollinating, or crossing something else with 'Trym to see if I could set seed. ;D
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South Haynes, after looking it up is a very nice hybrid, thanks for bringing this one to my attention.
Yes Trym has some nice qualities and worth crossing for something new as an Aussie hybrid, good luck with that project.
Must have a look for South Hynes, wonder if its in Aus?
cheers
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Stephen 'Trymlet' is a selected seedling from 'Trym' and it is believed that 'South Hayes' is also a seedling - Primrose Warburg called it 'False Trym' before it was named after her garden.
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HI Brian,
thanks that info. So how long has Trym and South Haynes been in cultivation, is this something new and comes with a high price?
cheers
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theres Trymlet as well, wonder if that means even smaller? Does anyone grow this?
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Hi Stephen
I grew Trymlet for a short while and found it to be bigger in all respects than Trym.
Alas, I found it necessary to move Trymlet to my mothers garden as the bulb I had purchased showed worrying signs of being virused.
Regards
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Both first around in the early 1990s but such lovely plants that they still command a high price ie above £25 unless you are really lucky.
If you are getting into snowdrops Stephen there is no better book to own than this
http://www.griffinpress.co.uk/snowdrop.htm
Although be warned, part two is in the process of being written as there are so many new introductions!
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Thanks Brian,Yes ive seen a copy and it is a great read. I also know John Grimshaw, very nice and helpful guy who manages Henry Elwes's garden at Colsbourne, a garden I would very much like to visit.
cheers