Fritillaria 2018

[ashley]

Beautiful plants Colin; you grow them very well.
The variation in those chitralensis is interesting so fingers crossed that seed develops.

[colin e]

I have to confess this week has been a first for me in that I have never had such low temperatures with so much vegetative growth. Ok it only went down to -6c but it stayed below freezing for three days and the plants looked awful. The last time I got into the greenhouse I took some pictures of some very sorry looking plants to have a reference. The soil thermometer in the plunge was saying -0.5c. The snow came down and then the freezing rain; my greenhouse was encased in ice (picture of glass below). I then could not get in or see in very well for two days! To my surprise, today they all look ok. Yes I have heard in lectures that this is what happens but the implied length of time is overnight not three days! Below: two plants looking awful at the start of the freeze and then what they look like today.     

Colin

[colin e]

The Fritillaria chitralensis seem to have made it through the freeze, but as yet no indication of any seed set. They were under fleece and the thermometer did record -1c. So it is just a waiting game now.

Colin

[colin e]

These are just starting to flower for the second time for me. I grew them from seed obtained late in 2011 and sown in 2012. The seed packet said Fritillaria fleischeriana but when Laurence saw them he questioned if they were labelled correctly and he was right to do so. When I looked at the style it was wrong and the leaves were not really canaliculated as they should be. So I now have it labelled Fritillaria aff pinardii. It is quite variable and I will post more flower pictures as they open.

Colin

[colin e]

I currently have two Fritillaria latifolia var nobilis in flower. Both are flowering for the first time for me, one sown in 2009 and the other in 2013.

Colin

[Chris Johnson]

Wonderful plants Colin, thanks for sharing.

[colin e]

Here is another flower of what I currently have labelled Fritillaria aff pinardii with a more yellow hue. I say currently because it is under discussion again and I may have to wright another label for it depending on the outcome.     

[Steve Garvie]

Lovely Frits Colin! All the more remarkable given the recent adverse weather.

My Fritillaria pinardii look slightly different to your plants and it certainly seems to be a variable species with some similarities to carica and kittaniae amongst others.

[Arda Takan]

Here is another flower of what I currently have labelled Fritillaria aff pinardii with a more yellow hue. I say currently because it is under discussion again and I may have to wright another label for it depending on the outcome.     

Colin hi,
Can you show a more detailed photo of the foilage?
I saw many pinardii and fleischeriana in wild so I may help.
Best regards.
Arda

[colin e]

Hi Arda,
I will try and do something tomorrow.

Colin

[colin e]

Go away for a few days at this time of year and everything changes. More flowers - first Fritillaria graeca x davisii. I just liked the way the flowers lined up and spaced themselves for the picture. I put a picture of a single flower with extra petals up before and you can see it on the right of Fritillaria kittaniae JJA 0497 700. The pot is starting to look good. This Fritillaria poluninii sown in 2013 is flowering for the second time on small bulbs and the open flowers are only 1 cm across. Fritillaria thunbergii has done well for itself this year producing this from 6 bulbs. Fritillaria walujewi, although is seems to grow for me, I just do not think I give it a cool enough winter to get good flowering from it. The potential is there as I get quite a few aborted white buds, but not many flowers. 

Colin

[Maggi Young]

So many great frits, Colin - weeks ahead of  us here in Aberdeen

[sokol]

Fritillaria season hast started on sunday with Fritillaria stenanthera as in most of the previous years.

Great frits Colin!

[Steve Garvie]

Whilst other Frits are now starting to flower here it is mainly the ”Rhinopetalum”group that are providing the current flower power.

Fritillaria gibbosa





Fritillaria ariana





Fritillaria stenanthera



The plant below came from Jan Jilek as “Rhinopetalum sp. new location”. To my eye it resembles bucharica.

[colin e]

Hi Arda,
This is what has been said this year about the pictures I have put up on the Fritillaria Group Facebook page:
Bob Wallis said “The leaves are very narrow and canaliculate. I am not sure that it is F pinardii either. What is the style like? If it is more than 1mm wide then it is like F assyriaca. Are the un-dehisced (F assyriaca) anthers yellow or black (F melananthera)?
I have had a check through our records and I suspect that this seed may have come from us. It looks very like plants that we have seen around Ermenek in Southern Turkey which ought to be F melananthera but they have yellow anthers belying the Latin name. I can only call them F assyraica in that case. The style is stout and trifid at the tip without being divided into branches. The flowers are typical of F melananthera. I think that this the plants in that area need some more work.”
Laurence Hill said “Before adding this to the Fritillaria Icones website there was an exchange of emails with Martyn Rix. Based on both its morphology and location it was listed as aff. pinardii”
I have also put three more images of Fritillaria aff pinardii and two of Fritillaria fleischeriana JJA 495 560 from 2017.

Colin