Crocus September 2009

[Maggi Young]

You all have shown us such a lot of fine autumn crocus. It`s a colorful time. I thought I`m only a galanthophile.... May be I`m a little croconut too???

Hagen, rejoice! Let the Crocus colour into your life and ENJOY!!

[Janis Ruksans]

We here had first snow today. Weather horrible - changes of heavy rain, hail, snow, sun + strong wind broaking and breaking flowers of crocuses even in greenhouse. Temperature only +2 C (outside). So the quality of posted pictures isn't of best shape. Started blooming Crocus karduchorum. Surprisingly but one of seedlings has yellowish stigma although it keeps the shape of typical species. Could be some joke of bee? Surprisingly abundant blooming of Crocus kotschyanus Albus. I very long looked for good clone and finally selected 2 corms which looked healthy last autumn and this spring. Never hoped to see so many blooms from two corms. The last isn't fully open yet white form of Crocus pallasii from Crimea. Hope tomorrow will see it in more open, good shape. There are some more flowers coming up.
Janis

[Janis Ruksans]

Last pictures for today. Great surprise was solitary flower of Crocus cambessedesii - so unusually early here. Usually it is between the last. Beautifully withstand horrible weather early form of Crocus boryi. For the first time blooms Crocus serotinus salzmannii 'El Torcal'. I got it only this autumn, so possibly for that reason flower isn't very perfect. Started blooming of Crocus asumaniae. Several aquisitions of C. hadriaticus are in full bloom or close to it. Crocus cartwrightianus CEH-618 hope will open fully tomorrow.
Janis

[Hagen Engelmann]

Thank you RR,
Hello Maggie, yes I rejoice. But please have a look to the fine pics of Janis. 50% of his plants blooms white . Udo also showed us an unique white quattro crocus boryi, Zhirair the C. pulch. ZEPHYR, Gunilla the white Cb, Ashley the white C. robertianus.
I`m sure they all will come to the galanthophile. I should look to bicolor Galanthus.

[Hagen Engelmann]

Janis, there is a lot of fire in your C. serotinus salzmannii 'El Torcal'. Top flower.

[Oron Peri]

Amazing Crocus from everyone, Thanks for showing them.

Down here it will still take two or three weeks for the first flower to show up...

[art600]

Curiously the picture of the early form of boryi did not open - but clicking on the details allowed me to open it in my photo gallery.  What a stunning group.

[art600]

Would you class this as a bicolour?

[Janis Ruksans]

Would you class this as a bicolour?

It is intermediate, halfway to real bicolor...
Janis

[Gerry Webster]

I'm very envious of all the 'normal'  C. boryi shown recently - this species does not do well with me. While I usually think that Dirk's crocus are superb, I'm sorry to say I cannot share the enthusiasm for his double form. Not at all attractive to my eyes.   

[Boyed]

Could my Crocus be too warm? Their petals are rolling and at night they are not closing properly. Day time temperatures all of September have been in the high teens.

Mark,
mainly the the reson is lack of fresh air curculation, and strong sun and hight temperatures also stimulate this. It usually happens with indoor crocus plants mainly during the 3rd day of blooming. Besides,  the blooming period of crocuses twisely shortens indoors. My 'Zephyr', which is now indoors due to the snow (very unusual here for late September) and low tempertures also looks this way.

[Janis Ruksans]

I'm very envious of all the 'normal'  C. boryi shown recently - this species does not do well with me. While I usually think that Dirk's crocus are superb, I'm sorry to say I cannot share the enthusiasm for his double form. Not at all attractive to my eyes.   

C. boryi isn't the hardiest here and something suffered last winter. Really I'm surprised for so nice blooming this autumn. I like it as well as this semi-double.
Janis

[Oakwood]

Hi all!!!

It’s a case to show you my Caucasian trip crocuses although I’m very rare on your magnificent forum only when travelling! So this year in August (the 17-28 August 2009) I was in N. Caucasus and it was a beginning of flowering of  Crocus scharojanii. The weather was exceptionally sunny and I have had luck to make the pictures!! SO, I saw there well separable by altitude and ecotype 2 kinds of Crocus scharojanii locality: the low altitude (1900-2000 m) populations and the high altitude populations (2600-2700 m). There were also unique creamy to almost pure white plants.
Also I post some Caucasian geophytes from the same trip – Corydalis conorhyza (2600-2700 m) and Corydalis emanuelii (2900-3100 m). Pity, there was no Crocus vallicola there in bloom – too early…It’s a time for them just now!!
I post there too the pics of Crocus pallasii from Crimea (300 m) from my last year trip. It’s a staining very colorful and different plants by flower form too! In those huge populations the pure white plants were more frequent.

Good luck to all!
Dima.

[Oakwood]

and more...

[tonyg]

Dima
Thank you so much for these magnificent pictures.  We learn so much from seeing the plants in their natural situation and in the many variants are very interesting.  Do you have any shots of the habitat and landscape where these plants grow?
Thanks again - I am sure I will be only the first of many to say this!