Bulb Log 17-01-07

[David Shaw]

Ian & Maggie, congratulations to you both. This award could not have gone to a more deserving partnership.
You have both done so much to further education in Scottish (& planetary) horticuture.

http://www.srgc.org.uk/bulblog/log2007/170107/log.html

[Luc Gilgemyn]

May I join David in congratulating both Mrs and Mr Young (some above average courtesy seems appropriate under the circumstances) on this so well deserved recognition of their skills and continuous efforts to make this world a better (gardening) place.


On a simple note : congratulations Maggi and Ian ! 

[annew]

'Right worthy' indeed - congratulations to you both!

[ian mcenery]

Great news Congratulations!!!!!!! and keep up the good work
By the way who gets to wear the gong or do you take it turns? 

Since there is only one gong and two of us; he will wear it Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I'll get it Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and on Sunday we'll polish it, and our haloes!! M

[snowdropman]

Ian & Maggi - well done to both of you - very well deserved recognition.

[David Nicholson]

Congratulations Ian and Maggi. Your honour is much deserved. Glad to see that the Exhibition went well and I hope that the Young bank account is suitably impressed (if it has have you converted it to Erythronium seed Ian?

Erythronium seed is not cheap, as you can imagine!! Luckily the Hospital Art Trust has also benefitted from the sales! M

She who must be obeyed is now very worried about my mutterings of "Where can I get some old venetian blinds from"

Try your local recycling depot, that's nearly always fruitful. Or a scrap merchants. Or phone the local venetian blind shop (there are still some about) and ask for some rejects. M

[hadacekf]

Congratulations Ian and Maggi for this great award.

[Anthony Darby]

May I add my congratulations too. Well deserved both of you. See you next month.

[Paddy Tobin]

Heartiest Congratulations Ian & Maggi!

Delighted that your work has been recognised.

Although I have only been a signed-up member of this forum for a short while, I have been one of those lurkers for a long while and have enjoyed my regular visits and been a benificiary of Ian and Maggi's work. Actually, now that I have become a member I am beginning to think this forum is taking up a significant portion of life, but it is winter and what better to do on these dark evenings. When the longer evenings come we can stay in the garden instead of writing about it.

Well done for all you have done and great to join in congratulations for this recognition which has come your way.

Paddy

[DaveM]

Very many congratulations to you Ian and Maggi. You're a constant inspiration to us all and I know that I have learnt much from you over the last few years. I raise my glass (a wee dram of SINGLE malt, of course) in salute to you both as very worthy recipients!!!!!

Dave

[Lesley Cox]

And congratulations from the underside of the world too Maggi and Ian. I'm thrilled for you both. The medal is much nicer than a mere knighthood and very richly deserved. And great success with the exhibition too. What lovely pictures. Are you going to bring one or two to NZ next year? I hope so.

A super bulb log edition altogether, with such detailed and well illustrated instructions for sowing bulb seed. Just one query though, I thought erythronium was one you deep planted. Is that incorrect?

[Ian Y]

Thanks everyone for your kind words we do appreciate them.

Lesley, I have never said to plant the Western American Erythroniums deep. I have said that my first instinct was to try them planted deep, based on the depth the bulbs take themselves down to, but my experiences and trials have proved otherwise.
Think how they are distributed, by catapult action as the seed pod dries and opens at the top only so the seed does not fall out - it has the be catapulted out.

But to add the twist to the tale, and I will come back to this at some time in the years bulb log, The Eastern American erythroniums along with the dens canis clade are completely different. Their seed capsules split completely spilling the seeds out. Also the seeds have an elaiosome, a sweet fleshy attachment, to encourage ants to distribute them and take them underground and so I believe they are best sown deep -I am still awaiting the results of another trial to confirm this.

[fermi de Sousa]

Congrats Ian and Maggi! I look forward to seeing the gong around Maggi's neck at the Aberdeen Show in May!
Ian, the step-by-step demonstration of seed raising is a great help. You must have a secure, windless area to sow those Frit seeds like that! They'd be completely mixed before I got the grit onto them if I tried it like that!
If you bring some of your prints to NZ next year it will be another incentive for people to attend!
cheers
fermi

[claykoplin]

Congratulations! Contributions to global horticulture, methinks.

Ah, for once I get exciting seed on my side of the pond before y'all do.  I took a more cautious approach to winter sowing fritillaria, splitting half  (only the N. American from NNS and East Asian varieties from JJA) seed for sewing now, and half for september of '07.  I flooded once and drained, and keep them in my cool (3-4C) basement for 4-6 weeks to mimic a short fall, then put them outside February 1st for the three full months of snow, frost, and cold temperatures until spring breaks May first or thereafter.  We'll see if this encourages spring sprouting instead of fall sprouting like last year.  Also, my September 06 seed from these groups that didn't sprout last spring should make a showing this spring if on a september "break dormancy" regime.  Again, we'll see.  I'm very committed to making every possible mistake myself before actually learning anything.

Ian & Maggie - if I find that you are also gifted sculptors, linquists, martial artists and astronauts, I doubt I'd be much more impressed with your talents.  And you share your art as freely as your gardening skills, it seems.  Thank You.

[Ian Y]

Fermi,
I should have mentioned that I sow the seed in the shelter of a glasshouse or like you the frit seed would end up everywhere.
No matter how hard I try and cover all the important points it is all too easy to take these simple factors forgranted.
I am keen to show other tasks in detail in future logs and any suggestions for topics or points/techniques that I could cover are welcome.
I will try and bring a selection of prints out with me next year, the smaller ones will be easy enough to pack, I am not sure about the larger ones, but you will be able to see them when you are over.

Clay,
the best way to learn anything is to make the mistakes yourself, as long as you identify them and only make them once.
I am holding all my Eurasian Fritillaria seeds and will sow them in September.