Rain-lilies: Cooperia, Habranthus, Zephyranthes, etc, 2014

[jshields]

Brian  - There was an article on Harry Hay in The Garden about a year before he died.  I think he referred to it as a Lycoris.  He also grew and flowered (!) a fertile L. radiata down in Tadworth.  I always meant to write and asked just how he accomplished that miracle of miracles. 

johnw

John,

There is a fertile, diploid subspecies of Lycrois radiata, ssp. pumila, although Kew insists it is just Lycoris radiata.

Jim

[johnw]

John,
There is a fertile, diploid subspecies of Lycrois radiata, ssp. pumila, although Kew insists it is just Lycoris radiata.
Jim

Jim - So is ssp. pumila the one growing along ditches in Japan and a native there?  I just wonder how the infertile one could exist in the wild unless planted by folks there.  Does anyone know the history of the infertile one?

johnw

[David Nicholson]

Habranthus estensis from seed kindly sent to me by Paul Tyreman, sown May 2008

[johnw]

My David that is a fine-looking Habrathus species.

johnw

[David Nicholson]

Thank you John. I really need to sort myself out with the few Habranthus I grow though. I never really know when I should let them go dormant and when I should start watering them. These were in a pot in the greenhouse that got pushed to the back of a shelf, probably last year around this time, and forgotten about. I found them about a fortnight ago and gave them a good drench and this is the result.

[jshields]

Zephyranthes atamasco, collected in Wade county, North Carolina, so definitely NOT Zephyranthes treatiae which is only found in Florida.  This is the first bloom for me, and seems off season.  It is either awfully late or very early....?







The flower looks to be about 10 cm across the face, but I should actually measure it tomorrow when the sun comes out again.

Jim

[brianw]

Very impressive. Tried seed labelled as this but never got anything as good as that.

[jshields]

Although I have been taking credit for this beautiful, big rainlily, I can't actually do so.  Dr. Hoffmann at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, sent me the mature bulbs in June, and this is the result.  That flower measures 11 cm across the face, making it larger than Zephyranthes guatemalensis, which is otherwise the largest white rainlily flower I know of, at 10 cm diameter.  I'm waiting for another bulb from that same group to bloom, so we can see if they are all this big.

It remains to be seen whether I can keep it this healthy in future years.  Some say Z. atamsco is harder to grow in pots than Z. treatiae and Z. simpsonii, which are the three native white rain lily species in the Southeastern U.S.

Jim

[fermi de Sousa]

This rain-lily is unlabelled, perhaps Zephyranthes drummondii - didn't realise we had so many thrip till I saw them on the flower on the computer screen!
cheers
fermi

[Mark Griffiths]

This rain-lily is unlabelled, perhaps Zephyranthes drummondii - didn't realise we had so many thrip till I saw them on the flower on the computer screen!
cheers
fermi

It's when they are in the computer screen that you have to worry.

[fermi de Sousa]

They do get everywhere, Mark!
Here's a patch of Habranthus robustus (ex 'Russell Manning') six days after an inch of rain fell on the garden - and it's raining again tonight!
cheers
fermi

[Mark Griffiths]

well it's raining here but only the slugs and snails come up. 

Very nice as always Fermi, I have some seedlings of various rainlilies and your postings are encouraging me to see if I can get some more.

[fermi de Sousa]

This thread started with pics in January including Zephranthes primulina and here it is again!
cheers
fermi