Crocus February- 2017

[Janis Ruksans]

Crocus sieberi sieberi - likely hybrid with ssp sublimis

Why you rergard this as hybrid? It resembles true sieberi. Hybrids with sublimis occurs very rarely, I had no results although I repeated such crossing several years.

[tonyg]

Why you rergard this as hybrid? It resembles true sieberi. Hybrids with sublimis occurs very rarely, I had no results although I repeated such crossing several years.

Some of my seed raised Crocus sieberi ssp sieberi have plants that resemble ssp sublimis, some with 'tricolor' effect others with dark markings at petal tips.  The next to flower in this pot has dark outer petals and paler purple inner petals.  So variable.  If not sublimis, is it atticus or just variation in sieberi?
Pictures below of some of my seedlings that seem to be hybrids.  Let me know what you think.  pictures are labelled by seed parent.

[Janis Ruksans]

Picture #2 - I would regard as variation in typical sieberi, picture #3 - don't know. Will look for my wild pictures and will post them on Forum.

[tonyg]

Picture #2 - I would regard as variation in typical sieberi, picture #3 - don't know. Will look for my wild pictures and will post them on Forum.

Thanks Janis.  It is always good to see the wild variation.  I have only seen the all purple flowers in sieberi sieberi in raisings from my own seed, never from wild seed so I have assumed that some cross pollination has been responsible. 
I have has seed from sieberi Bowles White in recent years which has given a range of lilac purple offspring.

[Janis Ruksans]

Really I didn't saw any with blue inside colour of flower segments. Those looks similar to sublimis. Are you sure against accidental mix in seeds (ants?)?
Here 3 pictures from wild (spring 2016) and some from earlier collections on Omalos in cultivation. You will see by background.

[Janis Ruksans]

I only in 2015 got first seeds from Bowles'White - for flowering must to wait. We posted former 2 entries simultaneously.

[Janis Ruksans]

And few more

[tonyg]

Great to see.  The one with pale purple inner petals pic labelled Omalos is very similar to some of my seedlings.  All of yours have the same dark, purple colour marking the outer petals, some of mine have a colour in them much closer to the ground colour of sublimis or atticus, a paler, more blueish purple.  See another one below but here agai there is a darker bud waiting to flower below.

I will find and photograph my seedlings ex Bowles White in the next few days as they open their flowers.  After growing BW for over 20 years I started getting seed from it a few years ago ... strange to wait so long.

[Janis Ruksans]

Printing House sent me some pictures from processing of my book and ensured that I will receive it on next Monday. I menaced them with cancelling of contract and jury-process for getting back pre-paid money.
Unfortunately on Tuesday I'm going to mountain trip and I will be back only 10th of March and then I will start despatching of book.

[Janis Ruksans]

Great to see.  The one with pale purple inner petals pic labelled Omalos is very similar to some of my seedlings.  All of yours have the same dark, purple colour marking the outer petals, some of mine have a colour in them much closer to the ground colour of sublimis or atticus, a paler, more blueish purple.  See another one below but here agai there is a darker bud waiting to flower below.

I will find and photograph my seedlings ex Bowles White in the next few days as they open their flowers.  After growing BW for over 20 years I started getting seed from it a few years ago ... strange to wait so long.

Regarding BW - with me the same - the first seed crop after same long waiting. May be bee found best pollen parent? I tried to selfpollinate it and to pollinate with pollen mix of sieberi and self.

[Maggi Young]

Printing House sent me some pictures from processing of my book and ensured that I will receive it on next Monday. I menaced them with cancelling of contract and jury-process for getting back pre-paid money.
Unfortunately on Tuesday I'm going to mountain trip and I will be back only 10th of March and then I will start despatching of book.

But progress is being made, Janis!  Great to see.  Have a wonderful - and safe trip - and we will see you again soon!

[johnw]

I have never been able to quite catch how gilded Crocus x chrysanthus 'Phoebe' can appear some afternoons.  Mind you it barely co-operated today & then only after setting it in the worst possible spot for background.

john

[WimB]

I have never been able to quite catch how gilded Crocus x chrysanthus 'Phoebe' can appear some afternoons.  Mind you it barely co-operated today & then only after setting it in the worst possible spot for background.

john

Nice one, John!

[Janis Ruksans]

Here still very cool and dark weather, at this moment outside is snowing and tomorrow is promised up to 7 cm of snow but in afternoon again rain.
It is too dark for good pictures, but again some of closed buds I pictured.
In this entry are crocuses which I collected in spring 2013 out of flowers in search for one very special species published by HKEP. Together with friends we two days circled in this comparatively small region. Collected few corms at several stops, but their corm tunics were different, so not searched by us crocus. Saw 1 or 2 chrysanthus type flowers and supposed that they are chrysanthus s.l., too. Later turned that few were ordinary pulchellus, but spring 2007 brought great surprise. It seems that we collected new species. Here are some pictures of its closed flowers. The sample 038 was collected on another mountain massive, quite distant, but looks same as in samples 020-026.

[Janis Ruksans]

Here Crocus brickellii, from locus classicus. It was collected out of flowers, so I was very intrigued - is it true or not, so opened slightly flowers by fingers, checking position of stigma. Yes! It was typical brickellii.
Then is Crocus henrikii
After that Crocus mediotauricus and as last the darkest toned Crocus korolkowii ever seen by me. Although I never succeed artificially crossing korolkowii with michelsonii - it resembles hybrid, although both species at time of gathering seeds were placed in different greenhouses.