Crocus February 2007

[Maggi Young]

How  can you rely on  the labelling?

As you have found, David, mostly, you cannot rely on it at all. Look at the so-called Galanthus nivalis that Ian featured the other week which were a mixture of G. elwesii and G. wornowii..... since then I have heard of  other pots of these Galanthus, probably all from the same supplier, that have been bought all over the country, some of which not only did not contain any Galanthus nivalisthey also had, Ornithogalums, Scillas and other assorted bulbs in there! So much for the "grown on a british nursery" label!! That is just out and out mis-representation, I believe of wild collected bulbbs just potted up for a while in the UK to qualify for the labelling, but I don't know whether the mis-naming of Crocus etc is fraud, to make you buy more varieties, or just stupidity...it is certainly one or the other!

[mark smyth]

Cant remember who told me but bulbs can be called British if they are potted up and grown on over here.

Misnaming is extremely annoying. I bought C. angustifolius from a well known  English company. They bulbs are mixed and the pots now contain angustifolius and the bronze form. What's even more worrying is I managed to plant the corms on each side of the pot. I have two pots the same. Dare I seperate them out now?

I also bought two sets of biflorus ssp weldenii 'Albus'. Both are different. One with an egg yolk centre and a blue tinged petal base and one pure white with a grey base
exhibit 1
exhibit 2

[tonyg]

Mark you can seperate them now but keep root damage to a minimum, they will probably make smaller corms for a season but you won't kill them.  The alternatives are plant 'em singly in small pots next year - tiresome and small pots dry out fast - or enjoy the mixtures!