Crocus elongation

[Alex]

Hi everyone,

I've just joined this forum, and live in Oxford, UK with a collection of mainly potted bulbs under glass concentrating on Iris, Crocus, Fritillaria and terrestrial orchids (Ophrys species). I've grown Crocus michelsonii for the past couple of years and every year the buds develop (usually January, but this year now), look good and then the floral tube/stem elongates to ridiculous lengths, about 10cm, before the flowers open! Is this related to lack of light? Is there anything I can do to stop it? I would love to have compact flowering plants if possible, although if it is to do with lightl levels there's probably not much else I can do.

Thanks for any help, and Happy New Year to all,

Alex

[mark smyth]

Hi Alex welcome to the SRGC forum.

It probably is a lack of light due to where we live. My C. chrysanthus that are flowering now are elongated but also have small flowers on to of the 'stem'. An expensive remedy would be to use grow lights
http://www.seaofgreen.co.uk/prodtype.asp?PT_ID=118&strPageHistory=cat. I just put up with it or move my pots to the sunny side of the house. My glass house is on the north side of the house and gets no sun at this time of year until the sun is about to set.

[Janis Ruksans]

My earliest record of michelsonii is from middle November, outside in January. Last year start of December, this year end of December. Reason for elongation - lacking of light + low temperature. Bringing in room on windowsill forced starting of blooming, so they were shorter at start but elongates later.
Janis

[Anthony Darby]

Welcome Alex. I too grow Ophrys spp. and no doubt we will be able to share experiences in due course. My michelsonii hasn't yet produced its flowers, but I suspect it will very shortly. I think the trick is to keep it cold to delay flowering, and to bring it inside when it does to open the blooms as Janis says. I wonder if keeping them in a cold frame would be better than a frost-free greenhouse?

[Luc Gilgemyn]

I have the same experience with C. baytopiorum - very neat, elegant flower but much too elongated (12 cm !)... It's grown in a pot outside - just sheltered from too much rain but I brought it inside the frostfree Veranda 10 days ago (not flowering yet at that time)because frosts were forecasted.  I blame poor lightlevels... does anyone manage to grow them more compact ?

[Alex]

Hello Mark, Janis, Anthony, Luc and others,

Thank you very much for your welcome and your advice, it is as I thought then. I think I'll try Janis's suggestion and bring a pot into the kitchen, I'll try and manage without getting into growlights for the moment, although it may come to that if I have to continue looking at these ridiculously etiolated stems. I grow some other which flower at this time including baytopiorum, and they elongate a bit, but nothing like as severely for me.

Alex

[Tony Willis]

hello Alex, I to grow ophrys  together with a wide selection of bulbs. The problem you have with the crocus is one I experience all the time for the reason stated by others. I am almost at the point of gettting rid of my autumn flowering ones which I am lucky if I ever see open nicely for a day. Spring ones are better but at this time of year my C. graveolens have shot up and fallen over.

Here is a picture of a biflorus ssp taken in January last year to illustrate the point.

[Gerry Webster]

Hello Alex - I agree with everyone else, low light levels. My experience is the exact  opposite of Tony's. Autumn flowering crocus are not  bad but Spring flowers elongate a lot, the main reason I grow so few of them. I suppose matters would be improved if every day was like today - brilliant sunshine - but such days are a rarity at this time of year.

[mark smyth]

Gerry what you say is true. It happens to my collection also.

[Tony Willis]

Mark some days I would think that was a success. I am not going back on my autumn problems but looking through my pictures to find that fallen over one has made me realise what a lot have been good in spring over the years. C. baytopiorum is just hopeless with me but I continue to persevere with it.

I have the same problem with early narcissus.

[tonyg]

Yes it all depends on light and temperature.  Tony W in NW England has more challenging light than I do in Eastern England.  Like Gerry I tend to do better with the autumn ones as the prevailing autumn weather from the atlantic does not always reach this far east.  The spring ones depend ona cold December/January to look at their best.   Hopefully the current cold weather will last another month at least!

[mark smyth]

No thanks Tony!

[tonyg]

Mark - just wear thicker socks .... or knitted long-johns

[Alex]

Just for interest - attached are two pics, one showing just how bad the situation with the elongated floral tubes has become, the other showing another still compact plant and a third showing the same plant within 30 minutes of being brought inside - quick result! Also now allows me the opportunity to actually pollinate the things!

Thanks and BW to all,

Alex

[mark smyth]

That is bad, Alex. Is there any direct light getting to them?

I like you small pots. Are they old or new?