Scilla 2015

[Matt T]

Hi Matt

i have these growing in my garden in Michigan
these Prospero autumnale (Scilla autumnalis) came from NARGS seed started in 2009 form a donor in Belgium and they are fully hardy here zone 4-6 depending on the winter. They began blooming in mid July this summer and bloom without leaves.  The thread grass like leaves come later and are green all winter under the snow and die down in early summer a few weeks before the flowers emerge. They are still in bloom now after blooming for 6 weeks in 50-90F weather, the photos are from today.  I don't know if these are the same as the Scilla (Prospero) autumnalis subsp. latifolia you posted but they look similar.

Hi Rimmer, apologies for overlooking your reply. They certainly seem to be growing well in your garden. The ones you're growing appear to be the type Scilla/Prospero autumnalis subsp. autumnalis - the thread-like leaves are the determining factor. In subsp. latifolia the leaves are broad and lie close to the ground - I attach a cropped pic of the leaf rosette. The plants I saw were mostly showing some leaf with the flowers, although most plants have flower stems that had gone over and were forming seed, as well as open flowers and young flower stems/buds coming along. I guess the first blooming would have been without any leaf and later flowerings with progressively more. The scapes on these plants were also larger and more robust that any of the other S./P. autumnalis we had seen elsewhere (widespread and common but often easily overlooked), so the flowers were much more 'showy'. It was this, along with the repeated flowering with 3 or 4 scapes arising successively from (apparently) one bulb that made me think it would be very garden-worthy. I have found one UK nursery that sells the subsp. latifolia but will have to wait for it to be back 'in stock'.

[brianw]

Scilla madierensis just colouring here. I have deliberately left them outside most of this summer to get whatever weather throws at them. Very erratic, some with flower stem a few inches long, some still showing no signs of growth, some seedlings of mine some acquired a few years back. No pattern I can see.

[Rimmer de Vries]

Some Scilla linguata from North Africa began blooming this week after a cool spell last week
now it is 90F and very humid and steamy weather

these certainly look like asparagus when they emerge

[Maggi Young]

Nice- and I like the white form too, Rimmer

[Rimmer de Vries]

Thanks
 do you know the collector initials
PB SL etc. ?

[Maggi Young]

Let me check.....

 RRW is Robert (Bob) and Rannveig Wallis
 PB is Peter Bird    OR  P. Boyce

 SL - Hmm, well, S & L is     I. Sinclair & D. Long   

[Matt T]

Could SL be Salmon & Lovell?

[Matt T]

Kurt Vickery lists a number of Scilla species collected in N. Africa under "SL###" collection numbers, which he gives as Salmon & Lovell.

[Maggi Young]

Kurt Vickery lists a number of Scilla species collected in N. Africa under "SL###" collection numbers, which he gives as Salmon & Lovell.

 Well done, Matt - I'll add that to my lists. 
I've also got a note of MS&CL for  Salmon, Michael.; Lovell, Chris.

[Rimmer de Vries]

Kurt Vickery lists a number of Scilla species collected in N. Africa under "SL###" collection numbers, which he gives as Salmon & Lovell.

That makes sense.  Reading the intro to Kurt Vickery's first seed list in August 2009, he wrote:

Welcome to my first seed list, For those of you who don’t know me I have been helping Mike Salmon, who used to run the well loved Monocot nursery, for many years. We still maintain his collection, and it is at his suggestion and with his encouragement that I have produced this
list (A good 50%of the items listed here are from the nursery) along with material from my own collection. 


does anyone know who ABS, PF, SBL , SF and LB are?


i am happy these plants or their offspring are still with us.

[LucS]

That makes sense.  Reading the intro to Kurt Vickery's first seed list in August 2009, he wrote:

Welcome to my first seed list, For those of you who don’t know me I have been helping Mike Salmon, who used to run the well loved Monocot nursery, for many years. We still maintain his collection, and it is at his suggestion and with his encouragement that I have produced this
list (A good 50%of the items listed here are from the nursery) along with material from my own collection. 


does anyone know who ABS, PF, SBL , SF and LB are?

ABS = J. Archibald, Blanchard, M. Salmon
PF = Paul Furse
SBL = M. Salmon, P. Bird, C. Lovell
SF = M. Salmon, M. Fillan
LB = C. Lovell, P. Bird

[Matt T]

The bulbs are waking up! Here my first is Scilla lingulata alba SL253A.

[Rimmer de Vries]

The bulbs are waking up! Here my first is Scilla lingulata alba.

Nice Matt, do you know if this is SL 253a or SL 263A?
Rimmer

[Matt T]

Hi Rimmer,
This one is SL253A.

[Rimmer de Vries]

thanks same as mine but nicer photo!

i should have seedlings of SL 263/ 263a started in 2013 blooming some day, but they are not above grade yet.

i wonder if the white form will set white seedlings.