Crocuses in the Southern Hemisphere - 2009

[Lesley Cox]

I really will get out with the camera later today or early tomorrow. Apart from the crocuses, there are Narc 'Atlas Gold' one of which is a full 5cms across and a nice pot of Galanthus elwesii 'Emerald' (as Denis Hughes calls it, also known as 'Emerald Hughes' or 'Hughes' Emerald.' When I bought them last year just a couple of days before taking off for Australia, they were lifted from the open ground and I wasn't particularly impressed but they have increased well in the year and the blooms are big and fat with very strong markings. Definitely impressed now.

[Otto Fauser]

one more shade of a reddish mauve in flower today -if one grows C. tommasinianus long
 enough [like I have ] differentcoloured seedlings appear spontaniously ,including white .
    thank you all for your kind comments,

              Otto.

[Paul T]

Nice solid pink to that one, Otto.  Very nice!!

[Ragged Robin]

A very unusual and lovely colour, Otto 

[Kees Green]

Hi, well I know nothing about Crocus except that I love them.
Does anyone know what this, probably very common variety is?
This will show my newness, I was not aware of the tri coloured crocus, they are beautiful looking flowers.
At present if it was not for crocus my front garden would look very barren, the beautiful yellow flowers are now scattered through and the mauve ones should not be far away-actually a few Narcissus are about to flower but that is another thread.
Thanks for any help.

[Paul T]

Kees,

I'd hazard by the look of it it is a colour form of Crocus tommasinianus (like the ones Otto has been posting).  Very variable species, with lots of different colour forms and markings etc.  Nice colour on yours.

[Otto Fauser]

Kees , your Crocus is tommasinianus, the easiest of them all . now that you have been bitten by the Crocus bug ,surely you will want to grow many others ,including the
autumn flowering species .

[Kees Green]

Yes Otto, I will try to increase my numbers and species.
I might look for the tri colour and pink ones for next season, still will be mainly concentrating on my miniature daff crosses.

[Paul T]

Howdy All,

Some of the Crocus I have in flower, or have had in flower in the last couple of weeks.... Just for the sake of having them all together.  If there are incorrect IDs in here, please let me know as I would like to have things correctly named....

Crocus biflorus ssp alexandrii
Crocus biflorus ssp weldenii
Crocus 'Cinderella'
Crocus corsicus
Two differently sourced Crocus cvijicii.  The New one had a much shortened style, but I don't know whether this is a single flower anomoly or standard.  I've still hand pollinated onto the shortened style with the hope of setting seed.  It unfortunately never set any pollen, so I wasn't able to pollinate the other way. 

Please click on the pic for a larger version.  If pics are too large, please let me know.

[Paul T]

Crocus minimus is a success story for the new Crocus Garden.  I nearly lost it a few years ago, and now it is back.  I was pleased when I had a flower open on it this year, but this week I have had 17 flowers open on it at one point.  It is back with vigour!!

Crocus pestalozzae

I have an anomaly with Crocus saturnus, with one being a much larger and darker flower than the others.  Better form to it, larger and stronger colour..... I've some pics of it, and the others in the clump, and a pic of the clump later on to show that it still IS much larger than the others.  Is it likely to be a ring-in, or is it just a particularly nice clone?  I love it, but will isolate it out if it is incorrectly named.  Thanks for any help you can give by way of IDing.  

Please click on the pic for a larger version.  If pics are too large, please let me know.

[Paul T]

Some rather nice Crocus sieberi ssp sieberi.  I love both forms.  The one from Marcus is brand new this year. 

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Wonderful Crocus Paul !   
Glad that your Crocus garden is living up to expectations !!

I particularly  love the C. sieberi ss sieberi clones - they are real stunners - too bad they are so hard to come by.
C. biflorus ssp alexandrii also looks gorgeous... just as the saturnus form... such a warm orange !

Thanks for showing !!

[Ragged Robin]

I agree with Luc, just a wonderful vision of what is growing so well in your crocus garden and C. sieberi is my favourite - you must be so pleased with the success of so many looking so good 

[Paul T]

Thanks to you both.  Yes, the sieberi are gorgeous!!

Here's some more flowering in the last couple of days...

A pic of my clump of Crocus cvijicii in the Crocus Garden yesterday.  I just love it.
Crocus chrysanthus 'Herald' is the most striking colour combination.  Beautiful form to it too.
I am a little concerned about this Crocus etruscus.... is it supposed to be stripey like this?  Brand new this year, so it must have come with it if it has virus.  What do people in the know think of the markings?
Crocus etruscus 'Rosalind'

Please click on the pic for a larger version.  If pics are too large, please let me know.

[Paul T]

Crocus reticulata x angustifolius - gorgeous colour on quite a petite flower.  Really beautiful.
Crocus vernus - I had this under another name but I think we worked out last year that this was a more species style of C. vernus?  I don't recall the dark markings near the tip last year, reminiscent slightly of the heuffelianus.  A large flower, but relatively spidery.  Not bad at all.  

Please click on the pic for a larger version.  If pics are too large, please let me know.