Scilla 2013

[Hans A.]

A few seedgrown Scillas, first two flowering for the first time - Scilla cilicica from Israel, Scilla reverchonii from Spain and Scilla greilhuberi from Iran.

[frits.kp]

Love the deep blue colour of Scilla cilcica.

[YT]

Hello, here is Scilla ingridiae, from JJA 874.009

[Maggi Young]

Hello, here is Scilla ingridiae, from JJA 874.009

The pot full is improving each year, Tatsuo.

I have added this to the Archibald page too 

[YT]

Thank you, Maggi

[Rimmer de Vries]

Hyacinthoides aristides is bloom today in an open frame

this is the form offered by Paul Christian

[Ru]

Scilla bifolia var. taurica Regel (Crimea)
Scilla bifolia f. alba (Crimea)
Scilla bifolia f. rosea (Crimea)

[Tony Willis]

two Scilla bifolia from Greece

[Roma]

First flowering of x Chionoscilla allenii sown in November 2009

[Janis Ruksans]

Here is white form of Scilla bifolia. It is very widespread species and very variable, but not all stocks are good garden growers. All my gatherings in Eastern Carpathians (blue, pink, white) were lost in one-two years. Crimean plants have very large flowers and is named var. taurica. Samples from Turkey are good growers./ Haven't experience with Greek plants, not collected this spercies there.
But this one from Turkey seem to be new species close to Scilla bifoia.
Very nice and unusually light form of Scilla armena - usually 1, rarely 2 flowers on stem but this is compensated by number of stems from bulb.
Scilla sp. BATM-181 - still not identified from Turkey
and as last - Scilla rosenii variability from Bakuriani in Georgia collected during CMGG trip (Colim Mason's Georgian Group) organized for exploring of Galanthus, but my interests were in other bulbs.

[Rimmer de Vries]

Scilla biflora- alba from Janis blooming earlier this week


Three 2011 Photos of two white scillas that came with an order of Scilla rosenii in 2010 - what are these?

[Janis Ruksans]

Three 2011 Photos of two white scillas that came with an order of Scilla rosenii in 2010 - what are these?

Scilla rosenii is quite variable in wild. I collected plants with blue flowers, with white flowers, specimens with lilac flowers, even white with blue tips of petals. I'm multiplying my rosenii from seeds, as naturally it didn't split well. When I keep my white stock of rosenii in separate greenhouse all seedlings comes out white, but if rosenii is placed together with other scillas they can hybridise. In such a way I raised my Scilla x sibrose - the best growing scilla witjh huge flowers and large bulbs which are intermediate between parents - rosenii and sibirica. To get clean rosenii seeds I'm planting them in far corner of my land - around 500 m away from other scillas. Then seedlings comes out true, but some hybrid still is possible as bees and other pollinating insects fly out of our control.

[Janis Ruksans]

This spring happens long waited occasion. But the story needs longer explain. Many years ago I got two bulbs of Scilla gorgonica. They fantastically bloomed with me forming pure white flowers (you can see it on the first picture). In 2004 I hand-pollinated all flowers and got good seed crop. They perfectly germinated, so I decided that I can to cut bottom of bulb in way as it is done with hyacinths and in 2008 I had some 15 new bulbs and I put its picture on my catalogues front cover offering this beauty to other bulb lowers. But new plants were not more so compact, as you can see on second picture. Then I grew larger stocks of my bulbs in polytunnel but they were planted in ground, in traditional type nursery beds, only under cover. And then came some rodent (I think water rat) which took away all my bulbs of S. gorgonica. So it was impossible to send ordered bulbs. Since that day I waited first blooming of those seedlings and every year got some requests - have I Scilla gorgonica for sell? Then I saw one pot with it in Brian Mathew greenhouse. By the way I collected few in Iran, too (WHIR). They all had pale blue flowers.
It took nine (!) years from pollination till first blooming of my seedlings! First flowers seem white, although they have some bluish tint regardless of hand-pollination and fact that at this time I had only pure white specimens of Scilla gorgonica.

[ebbie]

Yes, Scilla gorgonica is an absolute desire plant. It will probably but remain a dream for me.

[Janis Ruksans]

Yes, Scilla gorgonica is an absolute desire plant. It will probably but remain a dream for me.

Yes, it can be dream plant, but so compact as on first picture here I saw only twice and in UK - in Kew and in B. Mathew's collection. May be it depends from temperature. Earlier I was keeping bulbs in bulb shed where is cooler than in greenhouse. In UK summer temperatures is lower, too. May be low temperature in summer don't allow to develop all flower initials and plant is formed more compact? I don't know, but it is nice species.