Crocus December 2009

[PDJ]

Mice are a problem for me as well and I found traps not very good until I baited them with crocus bulbs!  Each year when the garden centres are selling off there bulbs I buy some cheap ones for the Mice.  One thing I find is a bulb lasts along while if you use the snap shut traps.  If it loses its appeal remove some of its tunic.  After all if they like crocuses no better way of getting them in the trap!

[Maggi Young]

Welcome,Paul ( PDJ)..... what a cunning plan to use crocus bulbs.......it is so logical..... must give that a try!

[ashley]

Here they prefer chocolate

[Kees Jan]

This is Crocus serotinus ssp. salzmanii, photographed in Morocco in late October

[David Nicholson]

Armin, my congratulations to your wife those are beautiful pictures.

[Armin]

Same here !
Can we order some Armin ??  

Luc,
no plan yet to sell any paintings. But what would you be ready to pay for one?

[Armin]

Mark,
the last picture shows C. imperati "De Jager". My personal favourite too.
Your C. fleischeri "Gulek Pass" are very beautiful. Nice shots.

David, I'll forward your compliments to "Frau Ruby"

Kees, beautiful form of C. serotinus subsp. salzmannii.
Interesting, the anthers seem to be much longer than the style? A typical feature for the population there?
Did you saw more flowers with markings on the outside?

Paul (PDJ),
the idea is clever but I feel any eaten crocus by mice is a loss! 

[Kees Jan]

I don't know about the length of the anthers and will have a look at my pictures. Strong markings on the outside seem to be a rare feature in this subspecies. Here is C. serotinus salzmanii habitat in the Middel Atlas and two other forms.

[Armin]

Kees,
what a woodland habitat . If you had asked before I'll never guessed it!
Very nice pale forms. Those come closer to the ones commercially available and shown on the forum too.

[jnovis]

This is Crocus serotinus ssp. salzmanii, photographed in Morocco in late October

Nice looking crocus,Kees. Quite different to some I saw in flower this Oct. north of Estapona in Spain.

[Kees Jan]

serotinus salzmanii is quite common in NW Morocco and grows in a variety of situations: in the margins of Pinus pinea woodland near the coast, in lowland Quercus suber woodland, in the margins of evergreen Maquis vegetation but also in meadows at higher altitude and in coastal heath.

[Andrew]

Merry Christmas all.

I have had a request for a site of Crocus cartwrightianus on Crete.

Can anybody help (best to PM me) ?

Happy New Year.

Andrew

[Sinchets]

Sunny weather and 12C here -the Crocus laevigatus have picked themselves up very well after being being pressed flat to ground by snow.

[jnovis]

Ref.pest damage. Luckily not had any problems with mice yet,only squirrels planting acorns as previously mentioned in forum. However,just found following damage to Frit.davisii in my Access cold frame during our recent spell of snow.Frames were closed as night temp.down to -6 cent. and covered with webbing. Pots are in sand plunge and when I inspected the damage,I found a small grey slug (10mm long by 4mm dia,) which I imagine was the culprit.Incidentally,during this cold spell ,I also had a disaster with my paraffin heater. Blue flame when I closed the greenhouse,BLACK!! greenhouse and plants in the morning, see photo below. Happy New Year to All Forum posters. Jim.

[Maggi Young]

Crikey, Jim, that's not good. At least any chewing pests in the greenhouse are presumably dead from carbon monoxide poisoning?

Ian had to spent a bit of time today working out why a soil cable wasn't working, solved it in the end, having tried all sorts of remedies, changing fuses, thermostats etc.... turned out a second air thermostat had somehow got wired into the loop!

There is, as we say in these parts, "aye a somethin' "