Pleione 2025

[Tim Harberd]

As mentioned previously: It is my intention to show more Pleione here this year. Hopefully a few other forum members will chip in.

The season has started, as usual, with P. Shantung ‘Ducat’ (R6.35) This one is 10cm across. Personally I don't like these lone early flowers, as they can be over before the rest of the flowers in the pan are fully open

P. Kettlewell ‘Garth’ (H161.2) and P. Marco Polo (H168.2) are not far behind. It really is high time H168.2 got a name! Any suggestions? I’ll talk to Dad about it this week.

Coming up, this P. Shantung ‘Natasha’(R6.40) has put up two double headers. I’m not a fan of twin flowers, since the second is often twisted, but I do take the trait as a sign of general good health. On which point, note the uneven colouring of the developing buds. This was the start of last year’s virus scare! I expect these flowers to have normal colouring once fully mature, but time will tell.

Tim DH

[Maggi Young]

Here are two Pleiones shown by Don Peace at the Hexham Show on Saturday 29th March  2025 - the photos were taken by Alan Gardner.

[Tim Harberd]

Hi Maggi,
   Thanks for those. … I hope the quality doesn’t put other people off from posting!

   I think Ueli Wackernagel is an underrated grex, and Don’s ‘Enigma’ is a good example of it. It’s a very forgiving group. A friend of mine used to grow them, all year round, in the bathroom!

   Ducat is just about in full swing now. The yellow in the petals isn’t quite as pure as I’d like.
The first P. Shepherds Warning ‘MaryB’ has opened. Both these cultivars are about three weeks earlier than a decade ago, which had me a little nervous.

Tim DH

[Tim Harberd]

MaryB is now properly out. Three pots here with flowers stretching to 11cm across.

The earlier shown double headers of Natasha have matured to a decent colour, tho’ they look a little sad. I think the weight of the buds has pulled them over. The solo flower on the other side of this pot looks much more confident!

P.Harlequin ‘Clown’ has just started, as has P. Ueli Wackernagel ‘Regal’. 14 buds in this pot!

Tim DH

[Tim Harberd]

Goodness!  A fortnight has shot by since I last posted.

Regal is now in full flower. I actually don't like pots this full, as its difficult to appreciate the flowers!

Clown is also fully out. I know this colour form makes some folk nervous (virus), but since I've got pictures of it looking like this from two decades ago I'm not worried.

Next up P. hybrid (P.Soufriere x P.Shepherd's Warning)  ‘Swan Song’. Later flowering than a Shepherd's Warning, and coincidently less susceptible to poor petal colour development. Also, I think, a better shape.

Lastly for today  P.Vesuvius ‘Ember’

[Maggi Young]

I agree about too crowded a potful taking away from the appreciation of the flowers, Tim. This is true of too many plants ( of various types of "bulbs") in  show pots, in my opinion!
'Regal' is just that -  very stylish flower.

[Tim Harberd]

With the unusually warm April weather, the season here is racing towards an early finish.

The Embers have almost burnt out.

P. Captain Hook   I have exacerbated a problem with this grex! When I took over Dad’s collection I received two pots of Captain Hook. One clearly labelled H121.2 and one which was either labelled 121.5 or 121.S. In the family, Dad’s writing is notoriously difficult to read, however in this case even he could not decipher what the label should be! He offered two explanations for what might have happened. It could be the fifth seedling of the cross to flower hence 121.5. However it could also be that the first couple of seedlings got potted up separately and the rest got dropped into a group pot to save space. Subsequently one bulb in the group pot may have got singled out as ‘Special’ and labelled 121.S.

Initially I had no way of distinguishing between the two cultivars, and by chance, when it came to naming, I named 121.2 as ‘Wendy’. Over the following decade or so the other seedling has turned out to be marginally more vigorous. In my continuing efforts to rationalise the collection I’ve decided to drop ‘Wendy’! I’ve re-numbered the other seedling clearly as 121.S and will henceforth call it ‘Wendy S’. (The difference between the two is very slight and it would probably take five years of side by side growing to separate them.)

Lastly, for today.   P. Stromboli 'Senorita'  I think the weather has upset this one, as the flowers are not coming up together (in time) as I would expect.