Crocus October 2013

[tonyg]

Crocus pulchellus "Michael Hoog"
all blooms have been distorted like this
is this virused?

Yes, I think so.  If only one flower affected maybe some doubt but all three - it looks bad 

[Rimmer de Vries]

Yes, I think so.  If only one flower affected maybe some doubt but all three - it looks bad 

what happens if a virused crocus is left in a collection? does the whole collect run the risk of catching this virus if aphids or other vectors show up?

[Janis Ruksans]

 

Yes, I think so.  If only one flower affected maybe some doubt but all three - it looks bad 

It looks as virus. But it can be caused by some other reason, too. This year I had similar Michael Hoog, although earlier it looked perfect. And all plants looked same (I have around 100 corms - 8 pots with 12-16 in each). Similar problem is with kotschyanus leucopharynx seedlings - they all formed only similarly looking flowers. They bloomed for first time last autumn and it is only second blooming. And all flowers looks same. I don't think that they get virus so quickly. C. pulchellus Michael Hoog is old variety, so in this virus infection is more possible. But I will wait till next season before deciding to keep or destroy the stock. Sometimes it is caused by replanting and keeping of corms out of soil. Of course I replaced my pots to so named quarantine - where I can observe them and to protect other stocks from possible infection. Sometimes virus is hided under good growing conditions and appear only under unfavourable situation. Similar damage can be caused by bulb scale mite, but then corms will die completely during one season. It is quite great problem in milder climatic conditions and several collections in Germany, Holland, UK seriously suffers from it. Here I think winters are too cold. We discussed problem with Henrik Zetterlund. By him dangerous is combination of mite and fungal disease.

[Janis Ruksans]

We passed difficult day without electricity after horrible wind during most of night. Wind blowed away bed cover, around wooden sticks separating stocks soil was blown away and even a lot of sticks were "picked" out. The black film (geotextile) sheet 50 x 10 m large (used to cover soil against weeds) was picked up and pushed high in trees - you can see this on first 3 pictures. Damage to greenhouses were minimal - only few windows were broken but generally all was repaired during this day. In greenhouse continue blooming of autumn crocuses. In this entry a pair of rarities - just described by me Crocus macedonicus and quite difficult for growing but very beautiful Crocus moabiticus.

[Maggi Young]

what happens if a virused crocus is left in a collection? does the whole collect run the risk of catching this virus if aphids or other vectors show up?

Yes, that can happen!

[YT]

What a terrible disaster, Janis Really hoping your plant collections haven’t got severe damages. And I’ve already added those two crocuses on the top of my wish list yet

Here is a very popular Crocus pulchellus, JJA350.409 (Ex R. & R. Wallis 01-34.). This is the first flower from seed, sown in Oct. 2009.

[Janis Ruksans]

What a terrible disaster, Janis Really hoping your plant collections haven’t got severe damages. And I’ve already added those two crocuses on the top of my wish list yet

Here is a very popular Crocus pulchellus, JJA350.409 (Ex R. & R. Wallis 01-34.). This is the first flower from seed, sown in Oct. 2009.

If they will grow well - macedonicus may be will be available next year. I collected a lot of seeds from this one and I have full box with seedlings. C. moabiticus I pollinated but as I have only one blooming plant, seed crop could be very small or even absent. Several crocuses are self-sterile.

[Janis Ruksans]

Crocus pulchellus isn't very variable although it is growing on large territory. Here you can see some variants collected on Athos peninsula in continental Greece where I looked for Crocus vaclavii and others are from various locations on Chios Island just at Turkish border. Variations - intensity of colour, shape of petals, blooming time.

[Janis Ruksans]

One more pulchellus from Chios - the lightest at present
Then some subsp. of speciosus - xantholaimos, sakariensis and hellenicus. Note the branching of stigma and its position in xantholaimos and sakariensis.
as last
Crocus veneris

[Janis Ruksans]

Now 2 pictures of Crocus aleppicus from Israel
Then crocus cancellatus (?) from Jordania
Crocus ochroleucus from Israel kindly sent to me by Oron
and Crocus pallasii Alba - baught from Antoine Hoog

[Janis Ruksans]

Crocus boryi from Lefkada is one of the latest boryi blooming this season. The blooming sequence is not very constant but stock marked as earliest allways blooms at start of "boryi" season
Crocus cartwrightianus from Crete some growers are naming as "subsp. cretensis"
Here white form of Crocus caspius although flower colour can change - first flowers come out white and the last ones (from second wave of blooms) are light lilac
Crocus laevigatus pumila is very variable by colour. Those plants all were collected in same population on Mnt. Vouvala, Crete
Crocus ligusticus is not easy to obtain  and to grow. Here healthy specimen from N Italy originally collected by Thomas Huber. More known under old name of C. medius.

[Janis Ruksans]

The last entry for today
Crocus nerimaniae blooming in seedling section - it had only 2 growing seasons from sawing when maid first flower
This is extremely late Crocus mazziaricus from W Turkey.
And last - Crocus longiflorus from Sicily got via Erich Pasche.

[John Aipassa]

It took me a few years, but I finally found a seller with good (true?) coloured Crocus mathewii 'Dream Dancer'. This one I acquired last September and it puts my "other" Dream Dancer in the shade.

I am very happy to have it.

It is the first time I put a Crocus in a pot instead of in the garden. I wanted to be sure to get seeds of it, so it is basking in the sun on my window sill and being utterly harrased by my paintbrush the last couple of days, although the stamen and stigmas are quite short on this one.

[Janis Ruksans]

It looks true John. I don't know - is C.mathewii self-fertile or not. In any case better to pollinate it with another mathewii (not Dream Dancer - clone can be selfsterile on all specimens - you need another form, clone).

[John Aipassa]

Thank you Janis. I will do what you have advised.