Crocus year 2022

[Janis Ruksans]

Yesterday took off winter cover from greenhouse beds. Today the first job was cleaning of plants from old flowers - some melantherus and laevigatus were covered when they still were in bloom. Fusarium nivale and penicillium on old flowers is very dangerous as can go down to corms. A lot of crocuses showed flower buds. Here few pictures - all in closed buds due lacking of sun. Outside all the day was snowing.

    Opening of beds.jpg
    IMG_9166.jpg
    IMG_9168.jpg
    Crocus youngiorum KPPZ-209 -23.jpg
    Crocus korolkowii Mountains Glory -13.jpg

[Janis Ruksans]

Some more pictures from today

    Crocus atticus 16GRS-002 -10.jpg
    Crocus fauseri 12TU-009 -67.jpg
    Crocus iranicus WHIR-164 -01.jpg
    Crocus demirizianus Ibrahim -30.jpg
    Crocus gembosii 20-09 -03.jpg

[Leena]

Janis, what has been the lowest temperatures in your greenhouses and does the soil ever totally freeze?

[Janis Ruksans]

Janis, what has been the lowest temperatures in your greenhouses and does the soil ever totally freeze?

This winter we had for 1 night minus 23 C outside. Below cover temperature didn't fall below -2 at top of pots and +2 C at bottom. Soil in pots were frozen for some time, that it was impossible to pick out labels. Then I covered with 3 layers of night-frost protection film (white, thickest variant - 50g/sq.m, thinner is not ussable). The price here for 100 m long, 1.6 m wide roll was ~70,- Eu.

[Janis Ruksans]

Some more pictures from yesterday

    Crocus atticus x Bowles White -05.jpg
    Crocus cf. chrysanthus NE Simav 13TUS-031 -02.jpg
    Crocus demirizianus Ibrahim -31.jpg
    Crocus hartmannianus Oron -08.jpg
    Crocus iranicus WHIR-164 -01.jpg

[Robert]

Leena,

In the U.S.A Eliot Coleman wrote a book called the “The Winter Harvest Handbook”. The book discusses how Mr. Coleman grows vegetables during the wintertime in Harborside, Maine using unheated poly-tunnel greenhouses and floating row cover. Most likely you are already aware of these cultivation techniques. Based on photographs I have seen of winter vegetable production in Norway, and the recent postings by Mr. Ruksans these general techniques are well established throughout Europe for use with both vegetables as well as ornamental plants. From the best I can determine, from my home in sunny wintertime warm California; these techniques work extremely well in cold climates. The information in this book might be helpful to other Formists growing containerized or borderline hardy species in winter cold climates.

[LucS]

Crocus michelsonii from Iran

[Janis Ruksans]

On Monday all was under deep, deep snow. On picture my greenhouse's outside. Now it is slowly thawing. But yesterday was some lighter weather and some crocuses even opened flowers. On the last picture - bad result after overlooked died flower - the rot from flower segments came to leaves and by them down to corm.

    08-02-2022 -01.jpg
    Crocus ancyrensis IV LST-124 -07.jpg
    Crocus atticus x Bowles White -06.jpg
    Crocus michelsonii -20.jpg
    IMG_9249.jpg

[Janis Ruksans]

Some more pictures from last few days
between those two acquisitions of normally late autumn blooming Crocus laevigatus which started blooming below cover and normally blooms now - from Evia Island and labeled as 'Dark Form'.
My famous pink Crocus alatavicus still in tight bud
New species from Iran shows its variability
and another Iranian - close to Crocus cf. iranicus 18IRS-054 from so named Anemone field

[Janis Ruksans]

And some more
Such remnants of cataphylls in autumn blooming crocuses appears quite often and must be removed to make leaves free and to avoid possible fungal disease on dead tissues going farther in leaves and finally corm
Even only in buds C. cyprius is already very pretty
Crocus demirizianus own gathering needs sun to open
as well as C. fibroannulatus which started blooming even before winter cover was off
Usually all stocks of C. hittiticus blooms in winter - December/January. This season one stock started in November, but all others do this only now.

[Janis Ruksans]

A little sun and few degrees over zero - all what need my crocuses for full bloom.
On the first two pictures pot with Crocus gembosii selection 21-07 in greenhouse and 2 hours later on my kitchen's windowsill
and some others


    Crocus gembosii 21-07 -06.jpg
    Crocus gembosii 21-07 -08.jpg
    Crocus chrysanthus aqff.13TUS-031 -Turkey, Simav to Emet.jpg
    Crocus danfordiae E RUDA-096B -13.jpg
    Crocus cf. iranicus 18IRS-054 Anemone field -06.jpg

[Janis Ruksans]

Some more pictures from yesterday

    Crocus cf. iranicus 18IRS-054 Anemone field -06.jpg
    Crocus chrysanthus aqff.13TUS-031 -Turkey, Simav to Emet.jpg
    Crocus danfordiae E RUDA-096B -13.jpg
    Crocus fibroannulatus -09.jpg
    Crocus hittiticus BM-8449 -10.jpg

[Janis Ruksans]

Outside temperature +1 C but cold wind cools everything. Few morning hours were sunny and some3 crocuses half-opened flowers.
    Crocus antherotes Dirk-16 -14.jpg
    Crocus artvinensis HKEP-9359 -28.jpg
    Crocus atticus 16GRS-002 -11.jpg
    Crocus uschakensis TULA-020 -24.jpg
    Crocus fauseri 12TU-009 -68.jpg

[Janis Ruksans]

Few more from today

    Crocus fauseri 12TU-009 -69.jpg

    Crocus hartmannianus Oron -09.jpg
    Crocus micranthus JJVV-036A -06.jpg
    Crocus randjeloviciorum Serbia -10.jpg

[Akke]

Janis

Thanks for sharing so many beautiful pictures, the ones showing diseases are very helpful.

Very pleased to see Crocus rhodensis flowering here, they’re different but both stunning.



Crocus olivieri ‘chios’ is quite uniform yellow, I liked the shadows of the setting sun.


This Crocus, some chrysanthus cultivar? (public green), stood out because of the blackish edges. Others around don’t show it.