Crocus January 2014

[Yann]

Nice one kris

[Janis Ruksans]

Crocus biflorus ssp

Most likely Crocus simavensis.

[Janis Ruksans]

Crocus cyprius four different forms

Very nice C. cyprius. Mine stock is quite uniformly lilac. Never saw so white speciomens. Excellent!

[Janis Ruksans]

Using occasion of temperartures still slightly above zero I entered some more pots in house for pollination and made some pictures.
On this entry Crocus adamioides from Turkey in Europe.
and
two pictures of slightly bluish form of Crocus babadagensis, It is quite unusual form. Typical plants I showed earlier and they are basically white. This one looks intermediate between punctatus and babadagensis, but closer to last.

[Janis Ruksans]

On this entry Crocus chrysanthus from near Gundogmus, most likely needs new species name by several features. At this locality all plants are with brownish shade on petals back and famous GUNDOGMUS BRONZE strain comes from same locality.
On last two pictures Crocus fibroannulatus from NE Turkey. That is type gathering - not very good pictures but it is not easy to make good pictures under table lamp light.

[Janis Ruksans]

This crocus I collected near Denizli at locality where is growing Crocus crewei. I suddenly spotted this creamy yellow plant with no marks on back of petals. It was early, rainy morning and flower were tightly closed. I marked it as Crocus chrysanthus creamy, but someone wrote me that Crocus chrysanthus isn't growing in vicinity.
Now this plant for the first time bloomed in Latvia and showed grey shade in colour of anthers. So I suppose that it could be extremely unusual form of C. crewei.
In addition one picture of Crocus nevadensis (good form but not good picture).

[Janis Ruksans]

This beautiful crocus I got from Jim Archibald under name Crocus nubigena as collected at Goktepe, but nubigena isn't distributed so far to east. Putting on map localities of my Turkish crocuses and comparing pictures I came to conclusion that it is Crocus taselianus, first corms of which I collected during my second trip to Turkey and then named as sp. nova isauricus affinitas (new species similar to isauricus). What is real isauricus still remain mystery, but this one later was described by Erich & Co as C. taseliensis (by Taseli Yaila). This enlarges area of this beautiful crocus something to west.

[Cyril L]

Janis, more mouth-watering crocus.  Crocus taseliensis is something special.

Crocus graveolens RIGA-115 (again from Janis), flowering now.

[ashley]

Brought my C. graveolens indoors for pollination.  The stink is really something

[Janis Ruksans]

Now definitely last pictures from this "spring in winter". Outside is minus 6 C and in afternoon, when I hope that temperature will rise a little I will bring my crocus pots back to greenhouse. In second half of week is offered even minus 18 so on Wednesday I will cover all pots with my traditional glass-wool sheets. Yesterday all the day worked bringing them from shed to polytunnels.
But from pictures this case one picture of Crocus taseliensis collected by myself more to East from locality of Jim Archibald's so named "nubigena" which I showed you in my previous entry.
And last three pictures are from Crocus artvinensis (I think it was collected inside city line, where it was growing in some park-like structure).

[Gerry Webster]

Lots of extremely attractive crocus.

The number of taxa included in Crocus seems to be increasing at an alarming rate. I foresee the time when there will be as many taxa as there are individual plants. One of the traditional theoretical  problems with 'Linnaean' taxonomy  which can only be avoided if one makes use of 'essential' rather than 'accidental' characteristics - which in itself raises major problems.

[Otto Fauser]

Janis , you grow so many newly described species and attractive forms . Thank you for sharing them with us , otherwise we would not have the pleasure to see them .

   and thanks Kris for showing C. hartmannianus  , of which I have never seen a photo .

                                   cheers from hot Melbourne - 43 C .

[freddyvl]

Beautiful pictures Janis, Tony, Yann, Kris and many others.
A general view from Crocus in the rock garden today:
- C. korolkowii
- C. korolkowii / C. imperati

[krisderaeymaeker]

Beautiful pictures Janis, Tony, Yann, Kris and many others.
A general view from Crocus in the rock garden today:
- C. korolkowii
- C. korolkowii / C. imperati

Looks very natural Freddy. It looks like a piece of the Caucasus is settled in your garden  .....

[krisderaeymaeker]

   and thanks Kris for showing C. hartmannianus  , of which I have never seen a photo .

                                   cheers from hot Melbourne - 43 C .

It was a pleasure Otto . 43 degrees , that is very hot .......Never get temperatures like that here in Belgium.