Narcissus March 2007

[Paddy Tobin]

Many thanks, Maggi.

Where does Lee Martin hail from? I suppose now that I have his name I shall watch out for him in the AGS journal and will surely see him mentioned now and again.

Re N. 'Englander', Mark Smyth had a posting with a photograph of this earlier in this thread. After looking back at it I would comment that his 'Englander' has more of a flare to the trumpet than David's 'Queen of Spain'. Of course, I could not comment on what the significance of this is, other than saying that this seems to be a difference between the two photographed. Both are excellent plants.

By the way, why do the negative comments which normally go in the direction of those who like snowdrops not go likewise in the direction of those who love these hopelessly mixed up daffodils? There is obviously a similar level of  confusion re identification and equally obviously those who like them become similarly obsessed.

And as for those crocks interested in crocus - beyond help!

Paddy

[Maggi Young]

Paddy, Lee and Julie live in East Sussex and are very successful exhibitors.


The reason that the Galanthophiles take more stick than the rest of us is that they are too polite to strike back!

[tonyg]

David - your 'Queen of Spain' may be a Narcissus called 'John Wall'.  I had Q of S from a very good grower in Lancaster many years ago but a local daffodil expert who has attended RHS commmitees told me mine is N John Wall'.  Apparently the real Q of S has some triandrus in its blood and this cyclamineus imposter (which looks very similar to Englander) has been quite widely distributed.  It is a really nice plant though!

Maggi - Lee and Julie Martin have won FMs with two forms of N bulbocodium.  The best known one is a form close to N b obesus with very fat coronas on short stems which flowers quite late.  The other form is one that I gave them.  I have a form with longer, narrower corona which was in the running for a Farrer one year.  (Closest I ever got to one.)  Lee admired it so I gave him a few bulbs.  A couple of years later while I was busy raising children he won a Farrer with the same plants!

[Diane Clement]

Here's a picture of Lee and Julie Martin’s Narcissus bulbocodium winning the Farrer in 2004:

http://freespace.virgin.net/kate.almond/Ex04farrer.jpg

and Lee and Julie themselves with the late Jim Lever, holding another Farrer plant, Dianthus Eileen Lever at East Anglia show 2003 photographed by Tony G

http://www.alpinegardensociety.net/servlet/htmlservlet/shows/results/shows2003/shows/anglia/images/Tony_Goode/sizedHurry_up_this_is_heavy.JPG.html

 I love the title of this one "Hurry up this is heavy"

[tonyg]

Thats the N bulbocodium I gave them!!

[Anthony Darby]

Anyone any ideas what this narcissus is? It grows quite small and was rescued from a patch of brambles in a nearby area of managed woodland a year or two back and I have split the clump several times since (it is also still growing in said bramble patch).

[Paddy Tobin]

Maggi, Tony & Diane,

Many thanks for the information on Lee Martin. It always adds to the interest of a plant when one has some background information.

Wow, Diane, that pot of N. bulbocodium is out of this world. No wonder it did so well in competition. In another 10 or so years I might be in the same position.

Tony, as you say, this bulb has a very wide-mouthed corona and, is indeed, very close in appearance to N. obesus- well, the  plant I have as N. obesus at any rate. Have a look back at my posting with both of these plants shown in photographs.

Many thanks. Paddy

[mark smyth]

'Englander' is quite different

[Lesley Cox]

PAddy, N. b. obesus is a real honey, because it's so short and stout, a big flower and has great substance in the corolla. I think it's one of the best species forms. And it's always among the last to flower here so that I often have it in flower for a show when all else is past or nearly so.

Anthony, how about your basic N. pumilus/lobularis/Little Beauty? Can remember which is which or which names are valid but everyone has it and it naturalizes nicely.

[annew]

Crikey, Mark, they look identical!

[mark smyth]

yeah but no but look how Englander holds it's head. On Daffseek they show one with it's head down too http://daffseek.org/query-detail.php?photo3=d0600252617c85333c8fe981d8d32b59 No photo for Queen of Spain on Daffseek

[tonyg]

Hmmm ... It would be so much easier if one of them had a distinguishing green mark inside

[mark smyth]

oh if only. My Englanders are tall compared to Queen of Spain. I'll take measurments when I get home

[Geebo]

Someone out there to identify this narc i recieved from an old garden
Cheers,
Guy

[Ian Y]

Re, Narcissus Queen Of Spain, after extensive research I am convinced that the picture below is the original plant introduced as Queen of Spain.
We also have the other one shown by David and Mark dirtributed by the same grower and it is a superb plant but I do not think it is correctly named.

Google searh for images to get the bulb log pages and search the old forum for much more discussion on this plant.